"honesty and grace" (Mezo Shoji X Reader)

Chapter 3

The morning air was just cold enough where you could see your breath only for a slight second. Your layers keep you warm as you walk up the road to the little coffee shop. Thinking about it hard for a bit, you take note of what (F/f/n) had said and that you should head to the bakery around noon. Maybe see if Ojiro will be there with his friend, or maybe he'll be there a little after that. You've got nothing better to do, you think as you enter the small shop. The lady at the counter, an elderly woman with curly black and gray hair, smiles at you and tilts her head. "Why, you're here early. We just opened, well, not even ten minutes ago." She says, matter-of-factly.

You raise your head from your shoes and look at the small clock hanging above her head. A small smile appears on your face as you notice she's right. "My alarm went off this morning, I forgot to turn it off before I fell asleep." Your smile stays as you think about that for a second. "I decided to just throw on some nice walking clothes and head down here for a drink."

The elderly woman walks over to a large fridge and points to the contents. "I haven't started making things, or getting the ingredients together. So it might be a while if you order anything hot. If you want a cool beverage, we have iced tea and iced coffee in bottles." Her smile is so sweet and innocent, yet so youthful.

At the bakery, you were used to regulars coming in and ordering the same thing each time. You grew accustomed to faces, were familiar with the mannerisms of customers, and had even a few regulars–besides Ojiro–that you would go as far as to consider them friends. Here, you were the regular. Not an everyday occurrence, but often enough. You tended to keep it inconsistent, ordering something new almost each time you were here.

Your feet carry you to the fridge, examining it all before opening up and grabbing a cold bottle of (f. juice). "I'll take this, thank you." You smile while handing it to her.

A large smile covers her face once again as she takes it from you. She leads you to the front counter and rings it up while you get out some money for her. "Say," she starts, taking the yen from you and putting it in the register. "I'm sure you've bought this before. Losing your taste of adventure?"

You look up at her, slightly surprised that she could remember your orders. "Oh, yeah, I've had this. And no, I'm just in the mood for something not too sweet this morning." You grab the bottled beverage off the counter and look down at the change in your hand. You toss it into the pocket of your sweatpants before once again looking up at the clock above the elderly woman. "No work today, so I'm hoping to take today kind of easy."

"My grandson was wondering about that place," she tilts her head up, a warm expression on her face. "He thought that it would be nice to stop down there after school one day and get something for his class. Something sweet, probably." She smiles, looking at you. The thought of someone making a large order like that makes you kind of nervous, given that the bakery has only done it a select few times. Honestly, though, it'd be good for business, especially if more people would like something like that to happen more often. Not to mention, it would be a kind gesture from one student to his classmates.

Though, you only shrug and smile, thinking about the thought of doing something like that. "We could put that together, but I probably wouldn't have much to do with it, that'd be the boss's job. What's his name? I can keep an eye out for it." You suggest.

"His name is Hanta Sero." Her bright brown eyes lit up, the bright pink of her work uniform really showing them off. You nod to the lady and bid goodbye, waving to her as you leave the small shop. The bottle in your hand sways back and forth as you walk back to the apartments, taking your time to get there. Looking up to see the sun start to finally peek over the horizon brings a small smile to your face. The ground is cold from the rain that fell yesterday afternoon, but the thin layer of water on the sidewalk glistens. It must have just stopped raining not too long ago. Today was supposed to be a lot nicer than yesterday, thankfully, with the weather predicted to be warm but comfortable.