Lemon Tea

Unexpected Meeting

Not sure how long this fic will be but knowing me I'll drag it on because I'm a sucker for slow burns :'') I feel like Ukai is goofier and sweeter than people paint him out to be so that's gonna be the vibe. Hope you enjoy!

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"Ah man," you said to yourself, fishing through your bag. "I must've left my water bottle at school."

You'd been living in Miyagi prefecture for just under two years, having moved there from Tokyo to teach at the local high school. While you usually drove to school, the spring weather had been so nice the past few days you decided to walk. But now you were too far from the school to justify turning back and were starting to get thirsty.

"Too bad," you relented as you continued down the street. Only a minute later did you come across a convenient store that had already lived up to its name.

You walked in, the bell on the door prompting a casual but loud "Welcome" from the cashier. You head to the drink aisle after briefly noticing the cashier, who was sitting carefree at the counter, face buried in a Shonen Jump magazine, a cigarette between his fingers. You picked a bottle of lemon black tea and leisurely strolled back to the counter, grabbing one of your favorite candies on the way.

"Hi." you chimed, setting your tea and candy on the counter as he looked up from his manga.

"Anything else?" he said as he smushed his cigarette into a nearby ashtray and began ringing up the items in one smooth motion. He wore an orange hoodie under an apron, his bleached hair held back with a headband exposing two silver earrings on his left ear.

"No, just this." you said automatically, hoping he didn't notice you inspecting him.

"¥750. Need a bag?" he said, looking up from the counter to make eye contact with you.

"No that's fine," you said as you grabbed cash from your wallet. You gathered your change and items while thanking him and started to leave.

"Come again," he said, a slight smile forming in the corner of his mouth as he propped up his elbow on the counter and rested his chin on his hand.

You smiled back at him and headed out the door, leaving the fluorescent lighting of the store for the warm glow of late afternoon. You raised your eyebrows, silently impressed.

"You don't usually see guys like that around here," you thought to yourself, pleased after your random encounter with an attractive stranger as you took a swig of your tea.