B99 One-Shots

Coffee •Jake•

Detective Jake Peralta of the 99th precinct was in his element, working a tricky undercover case involving a string of high-end electronics heists. The team had narrowed down a list of suspects, and today, Jake was focused on interviewing a potential witness who'd been spotted near several of the crime scenes.

He was pacing in the interrogation room, getting ready for the interview, when he glanced at his notes and the file photo of the person he was about to question: (Y/N) (L/N). (Y/N) was in her late twenties, with piercing (e/c) eyes, (H/c) (h/l) hair, and a slight smirk in her photo that made Jake wonder if she knew something everyone else didn't. She was a tech expert, reportedly running her own repair shop that, rumor had it, specialized in some less-than-legal mods.

Rosa had warned him that (Y/N) was "probably a handful" and "likely wouldn't fall for any of his usual shit," but Jake was determined to crack her case. He'd started the morning with his usual energy, but the moment (Y/N) walked in, everything shifted.

When she sat down across from him, Jake had to remind himself to keep breathing. She was even more striking in person. She sat with a confident slouch, one eyebrow raised as she appraised him, her lips curving in a smirk that seemed to say she wasn't impressed with him—or maybe she was, but she was too cool to show it.

"Detective Peralta, right?" she said, crossing her arms.

"Uh, yeah, yeah, that's me," Jake stammered, immediately hating himself for sounding like a nervous schoolboy. He cleared his throat and tried to regain his usual bravado. "So,(Y/N) (L/N). You've been seen near three of our crime scenes, and rumor has it you know your way around, uh, tech stuff."

She raised an eyebrow. "Tech stuff. Very descriptive," she replied, her tone dry but not unfriendly. "If you're asking if I know how to repair a smartphone, then yes. I guess I'm guilty as charged."

Jake grinned, ignoring the heat creeping up his neck. "Guilty of being a tech whiz, huh? Well, that's not a crime, technically, unless you're modding people's phones to turn into, like, illegal Wi-Fi hotspots or... robot vacuum overlords or something."

She chuckled, and Jake felt a thrill of satisfaction at making her laugh. "Robot vacuum overlords? You really have an active imagination, Detective."

"Hey, it's not a stretch," he said, leaning in. "I've seen weirder things. Trust me."

They talked for a few more minutes, Jake going through his questions, but it was hard to focus when (Y/N) kept shooting him these quick, teasing glances. He found himself veering off-topic, asking her about her work, her favorite gadgets, and the best phone hacks she knew. She answered each question with the same easy confidence, occasionally dropping some tech jargon that he barely understood, but he nodded along anyway, hanging onto every word.

"Detective," she finally said, crossing her arms and tilting her head, "am I here to be interrogated, or are you just looking for tips on jailbreaking your phone?"

Jake blinked, momentarily flustered. "I, uh—well, look, I'm just getting all the information here. It's important to have a complete picture, you know? Plus, it's, uh, helpful to hear from someone with real expertise... like you." He flashed his signature smile, but (Y/N) just smirked back, clearly amused by his flustered attempt to cover up his distraction.

She narrowed her eyes, looking him up and down like she was assessing him. "You know, I heard you were the precinct's hotshot detective. Didn't think you'd get distracted so easily."

"Oh, I'm not distracted," he said quickly, realizing too late how unconvincing he sounded. "I'm just... observant. Like, super observant. For example, I observed that you probably drink a lot of coffee to get through your days."

(Y/N) raised an eyebrow. "What makes you say that?"

He shrugged, feeling a surge of inspiration. "You've got that coffee-shop energy, you know? Like you can handle a high-stakes, high-caffeine environment. I bet you can name every coffee blend in Brooklyn."

She laughed again, this time softer, and Jake's heart did a weird, fluttery thing he couldn't ignore.

"Well, Detective, you're not wrong," she admitted. "But let's say I do know my coffee. How's that relevant to your investigation?"

Jake hesitated for half a second, then decided to go for it. "It's relevant because I was thinking... maybe, you and I could continue this conversation over a coffee. You know, in a less... interrogate-y setting."

She looked at him, her expression one of genuine surprise. "Are you... asking me out for coffee?"

"Well, I mean, yeah," he said, trying to keep it casual. "You know, for, uh, research purposes. Maybe if we chat a little more, I'll be able to get a better sense of what's going on here. And, hey, coffee's on me. Call it an unofficial police perk."

She tilted her head, considering his offer, her smile faint but intrigued. "Well, Detective, if you're paying, I might just take you up on that."

He grinned, feeling an inexplicable surge of excitement. "Great! There's a coffee place just down the street that has the best macchiato. I'll even spring for one of those fancy pastries if you're into that."

(Y/N) chuckled, standing up and grabbing her bag. "Lead the way, Detective Peralta."

As they walked out of the precinct together, Jake couldn't help but feel like a kid going to prom for the first time. They made small talk as they walked to the coffee shop, and he was secretly thrilled when she actually seemed interested in some of his wildest case stories.

They found a booth in the coffee shop, and over the next hour, Jake learned more about (Y/N) than he ever expected to. She told him stories from her days working in tech repair, shared anecdotes about the quirky customers she'd met, and even admitted a few hilarious misadventures from her own life.

He wasn't sure where this coffee outing would lead, or if it would lead anywhere at all. But sitting there, laughing with (Y/N) as she teased him about his terrible choice of ringtone, Jake felt something he hadn't felt in a long time: a nervous, giddy anticipation. For now, that was more than enough.