Hetalia One-Shots

PruCan : Coffee Shop

Days have passed and Matthew couldn't help but feel nervous entering the coffee shop. He tied his apron and walked behind the counter scanning the room for the man. No sign of him.

  The blond let out a sigh of relief. The past weeks, a strange man had been coming to the café sitting at the exact same place and always ordering the same thing. Each time, he would stare at Matthew intently making him uncomfortable and vulnerable. Other than that, he didn't do any harm. It even made Matthew happy seeing that a customer would come regularly, to see him. He understood that much, but then, why him in particular, he had no idea.

  The man wasn't even all that bad. He had an intriguing hair color and really pale skin other than that, his face was actually really handsome. Matthew never took the time to contemplate him fully, either getting caught staring or simply having to work. He would sometimes catch himself staring too long at the stranger while making a coffee. He spilled many drinks because of that man, but never really held a grudge against him.

  "Excuse me?"

  The tall blond snapped out of his thoughts. "Oh, yes? I'm terribly sorry. How may I help you?" he asked smiling sweetly.

The girl in front of him smiled back and ordered, "One long expresso with a croissant please."

Matthew nodded, typing in the order. "For here or to go?" he questioned, looking up to the girl.

"Here." The girl smiled at Matthew and headed to a table in the shop. The blond started making the expresso. He pulled out a glass and placed it under the coffee machine. The liquid poured out, steam evaporating from it. Matthew picked a croissant up and placed it on a plate next to the expresso.

  He walked up to the table and placed the expresso down in front of the girl. As he set the croissant down, the bells on the door rang. He lifted his eyes and saw him. He lowered his tray, tucking it under his arm. His eyes followed the man as he entered the shop, his eyes wandering around searching for something. He then spotted Matt and smiled at him. The man walked over to the cashier. Matthew stared at him his cheeks starting to blush.

  "Oh, I'm really sorry, but could I ask you a glass of water?" The girl asked holding the expresso to her lips. Matthew shook his head and snapped out of his daze.

"Oh, sorry, yes of course, I'll be right there," he stammered, trotting back to the counter avoiding the persistent man's stare. He readied a glass of cool water and brought it back to the customer.

  Meanwhile, one of Matthew's coworkers attended to the white haired man's order. A group of young students entered the café adding to the chatter already present in the shop. They all filed up at the cashier discussing what they would like to consume.

"Hey Mattie, would you mind taking care of this order as I take these please?" The brunette with whom Matthew was working with asked.

"Of course," he replied accepting the small paper where the order was written, although he didn't need to read it to know what was inscribed. He pulled out a glass and placed it under the coffee machine brewing the drink. He added milk with a small drop of cream. He swirled whipped cream and chocolate on the top. He pulled out a slice of chocolate cake and placed it on a tray next to the latte.

  The blond nervously walked over to the table facing the grand glass window. The white haired man was staring out onto the street with a preoccupied expression. Matthew gently set the plates down catching the man's attention. He smiled and whispered a thank you. For the first time, Matthew actually took the time to observe the man. He had intriguing red eyes which instantly made the Canadian understand the man was an albino. He had never seen one but liked what he saw.

"Y-Your welcome," he stuttered, mentally scolding himself for staring so impolitely. He spun on his heals and fled to the counter.

The man pulled out his laptop and started working on it and Matthew pursued his shift. After a while, he wandered betwixt the tables removing the emptied cups and plates. He stopped by the albino and asked, "Are, are you finished?"

The man grinned and nodded, pushing the plate near Matthew.

"Would you like anything else?" The blond pursued, becoming more and more uneasy.

"No, thank you. Could I have the bill please?"

Matthew acquiesced with a nod. "Of course, I'll be right there."

  Matthew scurried with the dishes and brought them to the back. He placed them near the sink and headed back out to print out the bill. He strolled up to the customer and placed the bill down with the small silver plate it was on. He was just about to leave as he was stopped. "Wait! I'd have a question," the man said looking up to Matthew. The blond nodded, his heart beating fast, not knowing if he had done something wrong or what the man could possibly ask.

  "What's your name?"

Matthew cocked his head to the side slightly surprised. He clenched his fists in his back. "Um, I'm, my name is Matthew," he replied not wanting to upset the man.

"Matthew..." He repeated, liking the sound of the name rolling off his tongue. "I'm Gilbert. Gilbert Beilschmidt," he introduced himself.

Matthew smiled his eyes darting all over the place as he pushed his round glasses back up his nose.

"I've been meaning to say this for a while..." Gilbert paused. Matthew almost felt his heart explode. "I would really like it if we could meet up some time. Here's my number, don't hesitate to ring me if you're up for it," he grinned, handing the blushing blond a napkin with numbers scribbled on it.

  Matthew eagerly took the napkin staring at it shortly. He raised his eyes from the paper and peered at Gilbert, a smile forming on his lips. The albino placed the money on the silver plate and stood up. Matthew moved back to let him pass. Gilbert placed his hand on his shoulder and grinned brightly. "See you soon, Birdie!"

  The bells rang and his silhouette disappeared in the street as the door closed. Matthew walked back to the register his mind in a haze after picking up the money, and generous tip. He was grinning like an idiot which caught his coworker's attention.

She smirked and remarked, "You know Mattie, you're not allowed to flirt on the job."

Matthew blinked and his cheeks became a darker shade of red. "I-I was not flirting!" he defended, "I-I was just helping out a customer!" He crumpled the napkin in his fist and stuffed it in his pocket.

"Suuure, whatever you say," she responded mockingly. The blond man pouted and ignored the woman as he cleaned the counter.

  After a while he calmed down and started to smile again. He was really happy, he didn't realize it at first, but he was developing a crush on the mysterious man. Maybe getting to know him would be a good thing. He decided he would try to call Gilbert the next day. The rest of the day Matthew was humming happily with an image of the albino glued in his mind.

* * * *

  Yes, I'm in a PruCan and superhero-y mood lately and there will be a lot of those coming up.

  Deal with it.

  Anyway, thank you very much for reading and if you have any ideas don't hesitate to send them! ❤️