Joji One Shots

"Flipping Eggs" in the Parking Lot

Requested by thetwinkinpink
Word count: 1450 words
A/N: Sorry sorry sorry!!! I know you requested this ages ago but I wanted this to be really good and I'm always so busy with school, you know? Anyway I hope you enjoy it and feel free to message me if you think of anything else! That goes for all of you lovely readers too, don't be shy!

I've never gotten to eat hibachi that often because it's not cheap, and I've never had the time. My neighbor Finn usually goes on her days off in the early evening so that she has time to do other things after. There's this one place she's been going to for years that have really entertaining chefs and good food.

Walking down the street, I've got my hands in my pockets as my eyes follow the neutral-colored pavement. Finn nudges me.

"Hey, we're here!" She shows me her teeth in excitement. I replicate her emotions.

Tonight was more for me than it was for her. I've been going through a lot of stress from overworking and she took it upon herself to show me a good time. When I told her that I had never been to hibachi before, she knew exactly what to do. The overhead chime shimmered as I pushed open the door.

Joji's POV

I wiped the sweat off my brow as I prepped some more food in the kitchen. My coworker needed some more vegetables, so I started to chop those up. Today was a slow day; I couldn't help looking up when a couple walked in. The girl had curly ginger hair and freckles, one of the regulars here, but what caught me off guard was the guy... They don't come like that very often.

"Hey man, can you do me a favor?"

I blinked a few times before looking over at Benji, responding with a grunt.

"I kinda... had an accident prepping earlier, so I can't do the live cooking today. Do you mind taking over?" He raised his hand to reveal a bandaged hand.

My insides froze over. Normally I just stayed in the kitchen, prepping ingredients and minding my own business. When I first applied for this job, I was fully expecting to do live work, but when one of the line cooks quit, I ended up taking over his role. I didn't mind it, I was never good with people anyway. I got to stay in the back and mind my own business. That was great for me; it honestly encouraged me to stay for as long as I did, it made the job simple and relaxing. 

It wasn't that I didn't have the skill— I had to prove that I did in the interview —it just came so suddenly.

"A-are you sure someone else can't—

"Joji, you're the only other one here. Daichi went home for the day because he knew it was slow, and no one else is coming because it's already past 5."

I looked at my watch. Damn, I didn't even notice the time, it was half-past!

I sighed and rubbed the back of my neck.

"Listen, you'll be fine. You physically can't be here if you aren't. Right?" He gives me a firm slap on the back.

A cold sensation spread across my chest, as if an ice pack was resting on it. I caught another glance at the two at the table. The guy seemed to be exhausted, I could see it in his stare. His eyes were a shade of brown I had never seen before, as if it were a polished bar of milk chocolate. Just watching him sent shivers down my spine. I huffed to myself and tapped my cheek.

Ho-kay. This shouldn't be too bad. You've been practicing every morning before you head in. You can juggle knives without cutting yourself. Just forget about that cute guy and focus on the food. The jokes will flow naturally.

I finished prepping everything I needed for the table. Benji helped out and brought everything out for me as I slowly made my way toward the table.

(Y/N)'s POV

The place had a nice ambiance to it; a very modern feel with grey walls and black linings, glass doors with white shutters, and windows with cloudy floral designs on them. I wondered why it was so slow, you would think this sort of place got a lot of business regardless of the day of the week. 

Finn was chatting with me about what Carol had said to her during her shift today when I noticed our chef approaching us, and man did I drift off. He was dressed head to toe in black, save for his red chef's hat which accented his charcoal black hair. He walked with a sort of elegance in his step, but not in a way of being pretentious, more as if he was professional or hospitable. Finn swooned as he approached us.

"I've never seen him here before! Maybe he's new~" She nudged me as she winked at the chef.

He smirked, clicking his teeth as he flipped a spatula in his hand. It would have been just neat in other circumstances, except his eyes were on me rather than Finn.

Bro what the fuck, did I do something? Why is he looking at me like he knows he's hot??

"How are you two tonight, doing well?" His eyes shifted between the two of us.

Finn giggled and nodded with an "Mhm" as I agreed.

He was flipping an uncracked egg on his spatula. "You two out on a date? Y'all look fancy."

Finn rolled her eyes and waved her hand. "Nah, we're just neighbors."

"Neghbors with benefits or— ," Finn had begun to cackle as the chef raised his hands in defense, "I dunno, I've seen what happens with Monica and Chandler, you know?"

I grinned a little at his Friends reference. He looked over at me. "Hey I bet I can't crack this behind my back. We got a deal?" He smirked.

"Pffft, nah you're trying to mess me up. You know you can do it." I waved my hand at him.

"No really, I've never done it before. Worst case scenario, you've got a cute guy to pay back, right? That or shell in your eggs." He tossed the egg a little higher in the sky before catching it with his spatula and winking. 

I pursed my lips in both intrigue and disbelief. " 'Kay... but if you can't you owe me a discount for this meal."

He spun the egg on the grill. "You've got yourself a deal, my handsome friend."

I blushed as I watched him toss the egg in the air. He turned his back to it, arm outstretched from behind him as the egg landed, perfectly split down the middle on the spatula. With a cooking fork in his other hand he removed the shell from the tool and set it to the side.

"A deal's a deal." He said in a funny voice, similar to a white office worker or something.

He proceeded to prepare our food, cracking jokes and flirting with me for most of the night. I humored him through most of it, I mean how could I not? He was so charming I felt like I was in a trance.

Finn's POV

The new chef finished cooking our food and bowed his head. We gave him a round of applause, or rather, (Y/N) did, and I gave him a standing ovation. Let's not get things mixed up, I'm about as gay as Lady Gaga singing in a froot loop bikini on a pride parade float, but I'm naturally flirtatious. If anything I was trying to be a wingman for (Y/N), but I do get a little carried away with myself.

(Y/N) had excused himself to the bathroom about halfway into our meal. I didn't think  much of it, everyone goes to the bathroom. It wasn't until he was gone for 20 minutes that I got a little worried. I shot him a text as I finished the last bit of rice on my plate. 10 minutes fly by with no response.

I got up to check on him, passing by the kitchen that wasn't too far from our table. As I took a glance, I noticed that the room was completely empty. Down the hall was a metal door that was partially open. I leaned in past the counter to double check for any chefs or waitresses, and carefully snuck toward the door. When I cracked it open, just barely enough to see, I couldn't believe it.

(Y/N) was in the chef's arms, legs wrapped around his torso as his hands streamed though his hair. He was freaking making out with the chef!!!

I backed away and rushed back to my seat, shooting him another text once I sat down. Another 20 minutes passes before he came back. He gave me a confused look as I smirked at him.

"I guess we'll have to come together more often, huh?"