The first thing that happened was Lala tripping over her own feet. Who would have thought that something like that could happen in real life? Not Francis, that was for sure. The second thing that happened was Aki standing up from his seat and catching her in his arms without hesitation. But then the impact of her hitting him came in full force, and they both ended up falling on the floor. Now that was the third thing that happened.

If this was a scene in a story, Francis would write how gentle yet firm Aki’s hold was on Lala. Despite the worry etched on their faces, his hands reassured both of them that he got her. Now and always. Or was that too cliche? But then, this scenario itself was as well! And who was Francis to say no to adding fuel to the fire?

All in all, this left him and You no time to properly react at all. With Lala now pinning Aki down, and the sandwich was left splattered on the side, Francis held his breath from the scene before him. Their faces were so close that they practically went nose to nose. Someone call the director, because what in the cheesy romcom is this?

“Are you okay?” Aki finally asked, breaking the silence.

This seemed to snap Lala out of it, and she pushed herself up. “Oh my god, oh my god! I’m so sorry!”

“No, no, it’s fine. I must’ve slipped when I caught you.”

“Did you hit your head on the floor? Oh, I hope you didn’t because that would mean there’s a bump on your head. You can still see fine, right? Or should we go to the hospital right now? I didn’t mean to do all this, promise, and I ruined your sandwich!”

Aki just stared at her the whole time she rambled, and Francis wanted to say he looked at her in awe almost. But it was hard to tell from this angle. You sighed at this, and motioned for him to stay by the cashier as he went to deliver the Spanish Latte. Still, Francis kept his eyes on the two, not wanting to miss anything that might happen.

“My head is okay.” Aki reassured her with a smile, but this just made her let out a ‘uuuuhhhhhh’ sound. Francis wasn’t sure what she meant by that.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, I swear.”

“I’m so sorry about all this.”

“If you really are sorry, you’d get off of him right now.” You looked down at them, unamused.

Lala’s face flushed at that as she scrambled to get up. She then held out her hand to Aki, and he took it for her to pull him up. Again, she was back to being unable to meet him in the eye. Francis gestured at her to keep talking to him, but she only stared at him with a pursed lip and red face. Oh boy.

Just then, Aki gave her hand a squeeze and this was enough for her to finally look at him. “I’m fine, really. I want you to know that.”

Wow, Francis wanted to applaud him for being smooth.

They were still holding hands, and Lala only seemed to realize this now. “Oh.” She let out a sound similar to a squeak, if that was possible. “Okay. Thank you for, uhm, letting me know.”

They let go of each other then, and You served the Spanish Latte on the table as Aki took his seat. However, he also made Lala sit on the vacant chair next to Aki. Both of them looked as confused as ever about that. What was You up to now? Francis kept quiet as he watched the whole thing. If anything, he was all in for it. Like a reader hooked on how the book was going.

“Because you made such a ruckus, you’re going to keep him company and make sure his head is really okay.” You scolded Lala, his hand firm on her shoulder.

“What? But I—” she started, but was stopped.

“No buts.”

The woman seemed to shrink into herself after that, but stayed where she was. Aki was saying how this wasn’t really needed with how he was fine, but You wouldn’t have it as he picked up the plate— it miraculously didn’t break— and the ruined sandwich. If Francis wasn’t imagining it, this might be You supporting Lala and her love life. Could it be? Or was that too nice to be true? Either way, this gave her a chance to bond with Aki!

“I’ll be back with a new sandwich.” You left them be.

“And I’ll get the mop.” Francis offered, and went to work, cleaning up the mess. In reality, he just wanted an excuse to get closer to the two and eavesdrop on their conversation. Did he slow down his pace as much as possible to stay there longer? Maybe.

“Are you sure you don’t need to go to the hospital?” Lala pressed on, not willing to drop the subject with how worried she looked. Maybe that overpowered her nervousness, hence why she was able to properly speak to him this time around.

“We don’t need to go to the hospital.” Aki chuckled at her insistence. “Look, you can feel the back of my head yourself. See if there’s any bump.” He then took off his mushroom beanie, revealing his black hair. It reminded Francis of a sheep somehow.

“Sure?”

“Yes.”

She paused at that for a moment. “But—”

“Here,” he took both her hands and led them to hold his head.

Francis wanted to bite his fist from all this, but alas. He was done mopping, and had no more excuse to stay where he was. Though he saw how Lala’s eyes sparkled with amazement. What was up with that? Man, Francis should have brought a broom too! Maybe even a vacuum. Was it too late to say he could wipe their table?

“Your hair is really soft and fluffy.” Lala said in awe.

“Oh?” Aki bowed his head, making it easier for her to check the back of his head. “Thank you?”

“It’s also smooth and silky, but your hair is a bit curly! How?”

“Uh, shampoo and conditioner?”

She giggled at that and gave his head a teasing tap. “The 2-in-1?”

“Give me some credit for using actual shampoo and conditioner.” But he was chuckling now too as she played with his hair. “Oh, do you feel any bump on the back of my head?”

At that moment, You arrived with the new chicken sandwich. “Jesus, what the hell are you two doing?”

Immediately, Lala pulled her hands away from Aki’s head and kept them to herself. Her face flushed from embarrassment, but Aki didn’t seem to mind. In fact, he looked happy about it! You know what, this would make good writing material for a meet cute one-shot. And the setting being a coffee shop was just the cherry on top! Oh Francis couldn’t wait to get his hands on his laptop to type this all out.

“They’re being cute, that’s what.” He nodded his head at their moment, waving a finger in the air.

“She was just checking for any bumps on my head.” Aki answered, finally looking up at both You and Francis. While the latter smiled and dismissed him with an easy wave, the other only clicked his tongue.

“That’s not needed. It’s not like your head is bleeding anyway.” You leaned over to see for a quick second.

“It’s alright. I didn’t mind her double checking anyway.”

“We have to be sure, you know.” Lala added before Aki could say more. It looked like she could explode like a tomato if the guy continued with his honesty.

“Well, we wouldn’t have to be sure in the first place if you were careful with your steps.” You clicked his tongue again, but this time in disapproval.

“Hey, tripping was out of my control!”

Both Aki and Francis laughed at that, but You wasn’t having it and rolled his eyes at Lala. Just then, Aki looked over at him expectantly. “I take it that that’s my chicken sandwich?”

“Oh, yeah, here.” You placed it on his table. “Try not to ruin this one.”

“I won’t. I’m sure it was made with love and care, so I wouldn’t want to put that to waste.”

“Ew. Never say that in my presence again.”

“Uh, duly noted, mister—?” Aki squinted at his name tag. “Is ‘You’ really your name?”

The man only smirked at that. “Why? Got a problem with it?”

“No, no. It’s just a… very unique name, for sure.”

“Since you’re all good, we should all probably go.” Lala jerked her thumb to point at the counter.

Is she leaving Aki alone? Oh, no! Not on Francis’ watch! He then stood behind Aki and gave his shoulders a shake. “How about giving your sandwich feedback directly to the maker?”

“I will, if she doesn’t mind.” He looked at her. “Miss?”

At that moment, Lala and Francis made a quick eye contact, remembering what needed to be done. “Uhm!” She started, only to cough into her hand. Was she trying to clear her throat? “You can call me—uh, just— Lala.”

“Just Lala?”

“Yes.”

“Well, it’s very nice to meet you, Just Lala.”

“I mean—” she looked troubled with her crossed brows and pout, but when Aki smiled at her again, it became obvious to her that he was teasing her. She groaned at that and frowned at him. And just like that, they were back to having another conversation together, with Aki taking a bite of his sandwich. Francis smiled at them once he and You were back behind the counter.

“Ah, young love.” He sighed in relief for them, glad things were going well.

“Why are you talking like an old man?” You scoffed, wiping a glass clean. “If anything, we’re all probably in the same age range.”

“Yeah, but look at them! They’re so cute together.”

“Eh.”

“One of these days, it’s going to be your turn, sir.” Francis grinned at him, earning a shove on the shoulder.

“As if, and like I said, don’t call me that.”

And then Francis was left to watch Lala and Aki in peace. In a way, this brought back memories from the past. Of a woman who captured his heart like no other, and how they were once in this kind of situation. While it may not exactly be the same, it still reminded Francis of those days. He wanted to know how she was now, but… maybe it was for the best he didn’t reach out to her just yet. They didn’t really part on good terms after all.

He smiled sadly at the memory of her laughter, but shook it off when he resumed watching Aki and Lala. They were animatedly talking about the chicken sandwich now, and he was proud of Lala for coming out of her shell. When You called for him, Francis immediately put up a cheery attitude. Just like that, the day continued as they all went about their business.