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Fate was not on Luo Wenzhou's side this Monday morning. He woke up to the sound of Luo Yiguo depositing a hairball directly onto the toe of his boot, then his car greeted him with a flat tire and now he was on his bicycle staring at the "closed" sign on the door of his usual coffee shop.
But even fate couldn't slow down a man who was determined to avoid the Bureau's cheap instant coffee. Luo Wenzhou knew there was another coffee shop two blocks away, so he wheeled the bicycle around and headed in that direction. It was one of those trendy places with a teenage clientele and a menu longer than his arm, and under normal circumstances he had no reason to go near it when Wang's Coffee and Bakery suited his needs just fine. But he had less than fifteen minutes to get to work and a sincere need for caffeine, so he steeled himself and went in.
There was indeed a morning crush of teenagers around the tables, most of them avidly photographing their drinks for social media. None of the cups looked like they actually contained coffee despite the rich fragrance in the air. Luo Wenzhou spotted several that appeared to be decorated with flowers and one that was definitely green. Well, it wasn't his business what people wasted their money on.
Unsurprisingly, the barista was a pretentious young man in an expensive shirt and delicate wire-rimmed glasses. His dark hair fell past his collar like he was some sort of art student.
"Iced black coffee, no sweetener," Luo Wenzhou ordered. He wasn't picky about coffee as long as it wasn't decaf or instant.
The barista gave him a long, slow blink, eloquently expressing his opinion of the grandpa who had just walked into his shop with such an unimaginative order. Then he smiled suddenly, his eyes curving. "Of course, sir. Which blend would you prefer?"
He listed a number of roasts that would have been pure gibberish to Luo Wenzhou's ears even if he wasn't slightly dazed by that smile.
"Any kind is fine, just don't add any fancy stuff. I'm in a hurry."
"No problem. I'll have your order ready in a moment."
The man turned towards the coffee maker, revealing a slim waist accentuated by the ties of his apron. Luo Wenzhou blinked. It took him a moment to realize that most of the girls and a number of the boys in the shop were also staring in Pretentious Barista's direction. He shook himself and pretended to read the terrible menu - who the fuck put seaweed in coffee - until the barista turned back and handed him his order. Their fingers brushed as Luo Wenzhou took the cup, and he caught another flash of smiling peach blossom eyes.
By the time he got to his desk that morning Luo Wenzhou felt he had more than earned his coffee despite the exorbitant price he'd paid for it. He leaned back and took a sip in happy expectation.
There was a spluttering noise and a barrage of curses from Captain Luo's office. Lang Qiao decided to show off her bravery and stuck her head through the door.
"Boss, are you alright?"
The expression on Captain Luo's face implied that he was, but someone else was about to suffer. He ripped the plastic lid off his coffee cup and stared at the mess inside.
"What the fuck is this?"
Lang Qiao leaned closer to look. "Ooh, dirty coffee! Very trendy."
"What?"
Lang Qiao stared at him. "You mean you didn't order it on purpose? It's espresso poured onto cold milk, that's how it makes the pretty swirls." She pointed at the marbled effect of milk and coffee.
"I ordered black coffee. Plain black coffee, not fucking swirls! I knew that guy was trouble. What kind of criminal messes up a law enforcement officer's drink?"
Lang Qiao backed out slowly while her boss continued to grumble. At the door she looked back and saw him take a swig of the drink anyway, clearly sacrificing his taste buds for the sake of caffeine. An odd expression crossed his face, and he took another, smaller sip. By the time Lang Qiao completed her escape, the look on Luo Wenzhou's face had changed from outraged to merely grumpy. It must be good espresso, she thought.
***
"You fucked up my order yesterday," Luo Wenzhou told Pretentious Barista. The man had a name tag pinned to his silky black shirt but if he couldn't be bothered to get an order straight then Luo Wenzhou wasn't going to bother to read it.
"I'm very sorry," Pretentious Barista replied. "We were so busy yesterday, I must have made a mistake. Can I offer you a replacement on the house?" his manner was perfectly sincere, not a single hint of arrogance or scorn. Luo Wenzhou didn't trust him for a second.
"Fine," he said. "Black coffee, I don't care what kind, no milk, no sugar. Is that clear enough?"
Something bumped his shoulder, and he turned to find a gaggle of young women crowding up to the counter.
"President Fei!" one of them called out in greeting, and they all giggled.
Pretentious Barista turned to smile at her, dark hair brushing his jaw. "Ah, such lovely ladies are gracing my shop again today! I am truly fortunate."
There were more giggles, and a few blushes.
"Who said it's your shop, kid?" An older woman with a severe ponytail came out from the back of the shop and cuffed Pretentious Barista lightly on the head, immediately earning Luo Wenzhou's everlasting gratitude. "Show some respect for your Lu-da-ge."
"Ah, Wei-jie-jie, don't be mad at him!" One of the girls exclaimed, earning herself a glare.
"Not your jie, either," snapped the woman. She jerked her chin in Luo Wenzhou's direction. "Fei Du, did you take his order?"
"Yes, boss," he said meekly, turning away from his adoring fan club to get started on Luo Wenzhou's coffee.
A couple of the girls stared appraisingly at Luo Wenzhou. He ignored them.
When he was finally handed his drink Luo Wenzhou grabbed it and left without a word, a miasma of perfume and giggles trailing after him.
He sat in his car and took a gulp of coffee. Or tried to. Whatever was in the cup was so thick it was barely moving.
He pulled off the lid. A delicious fragrance of coffee and cinnamon floated up from what appeared to be some sort of dessert. He poked it experimentally and got cream all over his finger.
He sent a picture to Lang Qiao. What the hell is this supposed to be?
The reply was swift and contained far too many emojis hearts eyes. Mascarpone coffee!!
This didn't actually clarify anything. For the sake of collecting data, Luo Wenzhou licked the cream off his finger. It wasn't bad. In fact it tasted like something that would take a hefty chunk out of his paycheck, except - he hadn't paid for it, had he?
And he hadn't ordered it, either.
Luo Wenzhou stared at the creamy, decadent, overdone and most of all not black coffee and ground his teeth.
It seemed like President Fei needed someone to focus his attention on the job.
***
On Wednesday Luo Wenzhou strode into the coffee shop, flashed his police ID at the floppy youth in the front of the queue until the kid backed off, then put his palms on the counter and leaned all the way forwards into Pretentious Barista's personal space.
He made a show of reading the man's name tag this time. Slowly and clearly, he said, "Fei Du. I want you to serve me a black coffee. No sugar, no milk, no cream. I don't want fancy blends. I don't want options. I don't want something that would make my lactose intolerant old man keel over just by looking at it. I want a goddamn coffee and I want it black. Do you understand?"
Fei Du blinked. This close, Luo Wenzhou couldn't help noticing that his lashes were very, very long.
"So forceful, Captain," he said breathily, obviously having taken a good look at Luo Wenzhou's ID while he was waving it around. Then, instead of retreating and going to make the coffee like any normal person, Fei Du leaned even closer. Luo Wenzhou caught a hint of his cologne, felt his breath on the side of his face.
"It seems I have no choice but to take your...order," Fei Du purred.
Luo Wenzhou stepped backwards so fast he almost tripped.
"Good. And make it quick," he snapped.
The floppy kid he'd pushed out of the way earlier gave him a weird look, but Luo Wenzhou didn't care. Fei Du was fucking smirking at him and he was trying to work out how much of a stretch it would be to get him arrested on an obscenity charge.
It seemed to take at least twice as long as usual for Fei Du to bring out Luo Wenzhou's order.
"I hope this will be to your liking, Captain." Fei Du said, handing him the cup. "It's on the house again, of course." He was still smiling.
Luo Wenzhou pulled off the plastic lid and examined the dark liquid within. Not a trace of milk or cream. Finally. Now he could leave, and tomorrow - tomorrow he was going to buy his own damn coffee machine.
***
He did not buy a coffee machine.
Luo Wenzhou, Yan City's Captain China, was not going to back down and flee just because a young man with pretty eyes flirted with him.
On top of that, the coffee had been terrible. Oh, it was black, but it had spices in it. Luo Wenzhou knew his way around a kitchen and even he couldn't tell exactly what was in it. Cardamom? A hint of nutmeg? He finished the whole cup, just to make sure he didn't forget how absolutely undrinkable it had been.
Thursday morning he called Tao Ran from his apartment. "I need backup," he said.
"Where are you?" Tao Ran sounded perplexed. "Isn't this the time you usually leave for work?"
"Yes. I'm going to get coffee and I need you to come with me."
"Wenzhou, what-"
"I'll text you the location." Luo Wenzhou hung up.
When Tao Ran pulled up next to where Luo Wenzhou was parked he looked vaguely worried.
"Is this a stake-out? Wait - this is the coffee shop Lang Qiao is always complaining she can't afford. Why-"
"She sure knows a lot about their menu for someone who can't afford it," Luo Wenzhou said, thinking about all those emojis.
"She follows them on Douyin. Apparently the guy who films their videos is very popular or something?" Tao Ran still looked confused.
Luo Wenzhou snorted. "I'll just bet he is, the criminal." He slammed the car door and headed for the shop. "Let's go. Follow my lead."
"Wait, are we talking about an actual criminal here, or-" Tao Ran hurried to keep up, but Luo Wenzhou had already pushed open the door and he had no option except to follow him inside.
Several of the female clients looked around at Tao Ran with interest, but all his attention was on Luo Wenzhou. Luo Wenzhou in turn immediately focused on Fei Du, who was behind the counter typing something into the store's computer. As Luo Wenzhou got closer, he saw that the top two buttons of Fei Du's shirt were undone today, showing off the dip between his collarbones, and his sleeves were rolled up just a bit further than yesterday.
Luo Wenzhou was starting to feel like he needed a stiff drink more than he needed coffee. Still, he wasn't about to abandon his plan.
"Good morning," Luo Wenzhou said pleasantly as he walked up to the counter. "Yesterday's coffee was so excellent that I just had to bring my friend to your store as well. Tao Ran, why don't you pick something for yourself? My treat."
Tao Ran looked at him like he suspected Luo Wenzhou was going senile. Fei Du was glancing from one to the other with a perfectly polite expression that just barely failed to hide the glint in his eyes.
Since Tao Ran was physically incapable of being rude to service workers, he turned to Fei Du with a weak smile and said, "In that case, could I have a latte with almond milk?"
It was Luo Wenzhou's turn to stare. Since when did the straight guy know about almond milk?
Fei Du's expression turned radiant, as if he'd been waiting all morning for Tao Ran to show up. "Of course, Tao Ran-ge. It'll take just a moment."
Luo Wenzhou's brain filled with static for a solid five seconds. "You know each other?" he finally got out.
Tao Ran's ears went pink. "The girl I'm dating...sometimes she asks me to pick up her order after work."
"Of course we know each other," Fei Du said warmly. "Such a devoted boyfriend, he comes in almost every day. How can I not admire him as a role model?"
Luo Wenzhou's beautiful plan of implying that Tao Ran was his boyfriend and that Fei Du should leave Luo Wenzhou the hell alone was now in pieces. It was probably karma for casting doubt on Tao Ran's orientation, but still.
Tao Ran made the little pleased-embarrassed sound he always did in response to sincere compliments, ears still flushed.
"It's really no big deal," he muttered.
"Of course it is," Luo Wenzhou said, rallying. He put an arm around Tao Ran's shoulders and grinned at Fei Du. "Devotion deserves its reward. Make sure it's a really good coffee, alright?"
Fei Du's gaze was far too astute for Luo Wenzhou's peace of mind. "Certainly," he said. "And what will you be having, Captain Luo?"
"Eh?" Tao Ran stared at Luo Wenzhou. "You know him too?"
Luo Wenzhou looked from Tao Ran's innocent confusion to Fei Du's smug little grin and decided on a tactical retreat. "Espresso," he said, "and make it a double. Here's the cash. I'll wait for you at the car, Tao Ran."
***
"Do you want to explain?" Tao Ran asked when he came back with their drinks.
"No," Luo Wenzhou said flatly. He grabbed the cup Tao Ran handed him and opened the lid. Inky black espresso, good.
"Did you get your almond milk latte?" he asked.
"Yes, why wouldn't I?" Tao Ran took a sip and his confused expression relaxed in the way that only happens with really good coffee.
"Because Fei Du is incapable of serving someone what they ask for, that's why." Luo Wenzhou said, taking a cautious sip of his espresso. It was...fine. No weird toppings or spices. Just coffee.
"But of course he wouldn't want to offend his ge, so it's a good thing I brought you," Luo Wenzhou went on.
Tao Ran looked at him. "Are you...jealous? I didn't think he was your type, but-"
"No!" Luo Wenzhou exclaimed in horror. "I just wanted to get what I ordered for once. That's all."
"Okay? I've never had him mess up an order though. He's responsible and good at his job."
"How would you know he's responsible?" Luo Wenzhou asked suspiciously.
Tao Ran coughed. "We got talking one day while the coffee machine was being repaired. He's a college student but he still lives with his mom so she doesn't get lonely. He did a whole course in photography to learn how to shoot the best videos for the store's social media. I think his cousin owns the place? Anyway, I know he flirts with anything that breathes, but he really seems like a good guy."
Luo Wenzhou tried to put those peach blossom eyes and the shit-eating smirk in the same picture as a "good guy" and failed.
"Sure he is," he grumbled.
Tao Ran seemed to decide whatever was going on with Luo Wenzhou was above his pay grade, both as colleague and friend. He sighed and opened the door to his own car. "I'm going to work. Are you coming?"
Luo Wenzhou took another swallow of his completely, utterly ordinary coffee. Maybe he should have asked for a triple. "Yes," he said.
***
During his lunch break Luo Wenzhou logged into his inactive Douyin account and typed in the name of the coffee shop. His screen flooded with videos of elaborate coffee pours and decadent toppings. Most of the videos contained a familiar, slender pair of hands and leanly muscled forearms. The clips with the most views were filmed from a distance, showing the whole of Fei Du's lithe torso as he made a drink and presented it to the camera with a soft, personal smile. No wonder President Fei had his own fan club. Forget "flirts with anything that breathes" - the man could even flirt with a camera.
There was a post from Tuesday that wasn't a video, just a snapshot of a familiar drink with a whipped topping. Our special mascarpone coffee for a special customer, the caption read. Luo Wenzhou went rigid, then told himself to relax. That was only a day after they met, and Fei Du had no way of knowing if Luo Wenzhou used social media. They must sell dozens of these drinks every day. It had nothing to do with him.
Luo Wenzhou slammed down his phone, pulled over a stack of reports and resolutely did not think about coffee or peach blossom eyes for the rest of the afternoon.
***
On Friday, he went straight to work and made himself a cup of instant coffee.
It tasted even worse than he remembered.
***
Luo Wenzhou woke up on Saturday morning, considered the overcast sky with its threat of rain, and decided he had no reason to go out. He had no reason to even get out of bed, except that Luo Yiguo was yowling for breakfast in the kitchen.
He fed the cat, got his own breakfast, and thought about coffee. The weather practically demanded a warm drink. Like that dark chocolate cappuccino on the shop's Douyin. He'd watched the video a couple of times. In it, Fei Du had ditched his usual apron and was wearing a white shirt and tight black pants with a slutty little waistcoat that had the back mostly cut out. There ought to be a company policy against this sort of provocation.
There ought to be a shred of self-control keeping Luo Wenzhou from wasting more of his paycheck and his self respect in pursuit of...whatever this was. He was definitely not going back to the shop after Thursday's humiliation.
But wasn't that cowardice? No, he decided, it was refusing to give in to Fei Du's manipulations. Luo Wenzhou had been a litter box attendant for long enough to know that giving in even once could lead to endless problems.
Luo Yiguo, the extremely spoiled manipulator, watched from his perch on the cat tree as the litter box attendant grabbed his car keys and left, cursing all the way.
***
It was even colder and gloomier by the time Luo Wenzhou arrived at the shop. Next to the storefront an older, heavily muscled man was leaning against the wall smoking a cigarette. As Luo Wenzhou stepped onto the curb the man looked at him and said "He's not here. It's his day off."
"Ah?" Luo Wenzhou stopped.
"I've seen you here every day this week. My office is right up there," the man said, gesturing at the floor above the shop. "Taken a shine to our barista, have you?"
"That's not - he kept getting my order wrong!" Luo Wenzhou reached for the moral high ground.
"Uh-huh." The man did not look impressed. "I've never seen Fei Du mess up an order. Wouldn't keep him around if he did, no matter how much - anyway." He stubbed out his cigarette on the windowsill and took a step forward.
"Lu Jia," he introduced himself. "I own the shop, and that little troublemaker is the best barista we've ever had. If you have a complaint as a customer, you can talk to me about it. If you're here to bother my staff-" he squared his shoulders and gave Luo Wenzhou a very level stare, "You can also talk to me."
It took a moment to sink in, and then, horribly, humiliatingly, Luo Wenzhou felt his ears begin to heat up. He'd never really had to deal with protective fathers when he dated, partly because not many other men in the community were out to their parents but mostly because none of his relationships ever got that far. He recognized the tone, however. The man didn't look quite old enough to be Fei Du's father, but the level of paternal intimidation was flawless.
Fortunately, Luo Wenzhou had grown up with Luo Cheng.
"Sir, I have no intention of harassing anyone in your employ," he said, bowing slightly. "Please forgive the misunderstanding."
"Hm." Lu Jia folded his arms. "Don't you? Because Fei Du has had a lot to say recently about a certain handsome police officer."
Wait, did this man want Luo Wenzhou to be courting Fei Du? Or was Tao Ran the officer Fei Du was smitten with? It seemed much more likely. Except -
I've never seen Fei Du mess up an order.
Fei Du had definitely been flirting with him, there was no doubt about that. Fei Du flirted with everyone, but apparently he only served ridiculous, delicious, unasked for coffees to Luo Wenzhou.
Maybe Fei Du wasn't playing up to Tao Ran yesterday because he had a crush on him. Could he have wanted Luo Wenzhou to be jealous?
As Luo Wenzhou tried to wrap his mind around the situation, it began to rain. Lu Jia, sheltered underneath the shop's awning, looked quite happy to wait all day for Luo Wenzhou's braincells to finish short-circuiting. The rain grew heavier, and Luo Wenzhou was opening his mouth to say - something, he wasn't sure what - when a shadow passed over his head. Someone had just stepped up beside him with an umbrella.
"That's enough, da-ge. I can handle this," said Fei Du. He turned and smiled at Luo Wenzhou, the rain pattering on the black umbrella above them. "Come with me? Or..." his eyes twinkled, "do you want to get some coffee first?"
"Shut up," Luo Wenzhou said, grabbing his wrist and tugging him away. Fei Du went easily, still smiling. He led them to the little park nearby where they could sit under the gazebo to avoid getting soaked.
"Sorry about Lu Jia," he said, folding the umbrella neatly and setting it down. "He's ex-military, he can be a bit intense sometimes."
"He's ex-military and he runs a coffee shop?"
"Owns," Fei Du corrected. "Wei Lan is the manager. She's even more scary, believe it or not. It's like having an older sister with the soul of a hundred-year-old fierce auntie."
Luo Wenzhou watched him as he spoke, taking in the fondness of his expression. He guessed both these people had been in Fei Du's life for quite a bit longer than he'd been a barista.
"They care about you," he said.
"Yes," Fei Du agreed. "Even when I cause them trouble."
"The way you've been causing me trouble?"
Fei Du gave him a demure look. "I'm sure I don't know what you mean, Captain."
"Call me Wenzhou," Luo Wenzhou said. "And you know exactly what I mean." He started listing off on his fingers. "Ignoring my orders so you could serve me the best coffees I've ever had. Flirting. Making eyes at Tao Ran just to piss me off. And specifically-" he hooked a finger in the top button of Fei Du's shirt, just below the one that was left undone. "-this should be illegal."
Fei Du leaned into it, exposing his throat. "Wenzhou. You think I did all of that on purpose? For a stranger?"
Luo Wenzhou frowned, hesitating.
"Eight years ago," Fei Du said. "My mother and I had just moved, again. I was lonely and struggling to make friends, but there was this cool older guy from a few floors down who let me play on his game console."
"I - that was you?" He let go of Fei Du and looked him over. Back then he hadn't really paid attention to the appearance of the solitary kid in the apartment building's stairwell, except to notice that he was unusually slender and reserved. But those dark, curving eyes - how could he have forgotten Fei Du's eyes?
"I still have the console," Fei Du said. "Not that it matters. I was teasing just now. Even if we'd never met before, the minute you walked into the shop I knew I had to get your attention."
"Shameless," Luo Wenzhou said, shaking his head.
"Very," Fei Du agreed. He leaned closer, tilting his head. "Well? Are you going to let all my hard work go to waste?"
Bad behavior shouldn't be rewarded, Luo Wenzhou thought again, but he kissed him anyway.
Fei Du tasted like cinnamon. The warmth of his body drew Luo Wenzhou in as the rain continued to fall around them. He slid his hands under Fei Du's jacket and Fei Du hummed and licked into Luo Wenzhou's mouth. It didn't feel like kissing someone he'd only met a few days ago. It didn't even feel like letting out a week's worth of frustration at this beautiful, impossible man and his extremely targeted nonsense.
It just felt like Fei Du was meant to fit into his arms, meant to melt under his every touch.
It also felt a bit like things were going to get out of hand if they didn't slow down. Luo Wenzhou pulled away, trying to get his breathing under control.
"I am not fucking you on a first date," he said with effort. He felt the warmth of Fei Du’s skin through his shirt and amended, "I am not fucking you in a gazebo on a first date."
Fei Du adjusted his collar where Luo Wenzhou had crumpled it en route to his neck.
"Technically, this isn't a date," he pointed out. "But I have to agree about the gazebo." He leaned in close and said in Luo Wenzhou's ear, "Take me home, shixiong?"
So Luo Wenzhou did.