#i just need this week to happen and hten im gonna read everything

[ythmir-writes]

Be My Valentine Content Creation Challenge 2022 - Day 03

prompt #06: Comparing hand sizes and immediately blushing after

fandom: Ikemen Prince feat: Jin Grandet 1.9k words

tags: Modern AU, working at a bakery, light, fluff, with a named OC quick summary: Maris works at a bakery, Jin is their favorite coworker

Morning shift was always lively where Maris worked and today was no different. One moment they were shivering in the biting three a.m. cold, the next, they were greeted by the warmth of a bakery beginning its day.

Even with the distance between the kitchen and the employee lockers, Maris could hear the sound of pans being placed on tables, the rhythmic sound of dough being kneaded to start the bread, the beeping of probably the first batch of loaves, and of course the usual conversation that signalled the start of their working day.

“Beans are going to be late today.”

“Again?”

Maris chuckled. In all their time working at Good Seasons Bakeshop, three things were constant. One, their coffee beans arrived late no matter how early they placed their orders. Two, Yves Kloss always reacted vehemently whenever it was mentioned. And three…

“Good morning, Maris.”

Three was that it was always a fantastic shift when they were with Jin Grandet.

“Good morning, Jin, Yves.” Maris greeted the two and took a moment to breathe in the aroma of morning prep. Jin was already loading the planetary mixer with the heavy dough and Yves had laid out the beginnings of the day’s brioche. “Heard the coffee’s gonna be late again?”

“That Nokto.” Yves grumbled, face souring. “I swear he’s doing it on purpose.”

“He’ll pull through.” Maris said.

“Always does.” Jin added.

“Barely!” Yves protested at them. “Don’t smile like that, Jin!”

“I’m just saying Nokto’ll be here before you know it.” Jin stepped away from the mixer to let it do its work. “Morning’s busy enough you won’t notice.”

“You know how stressed I get when we don’t have all the ingredients here.” Yves would not let the absent man off the hook. “What if I needed it now? What if Maris needed it now?” Yves continued on about the importance of being on time. Maris, as always, did their best to listen but as soon as Jin approached their shared countertop, they were gone.

It was easy enough for anyone to have a crush on the man, honestly. Tall, with close-cropped hair, broad shoulders, and muscular arms that Maris had often enough imagined could easily sweep them off their feet. Jin also had a smile that was both easy-going and sincere and he was aiming that smile at them now and it took everything in them to act casual.

“Hey.”

“Hey.”

“Got here okay? Wasn’t too cold?” Jin asked, placing the dough on the table.

Maris tried to recall what they’ve seen on the weather app, distracting themselves from Jin’s arms. “Probably around five? Three degrees? But it was okay. I had a coat and a scarf on this time.” Jin’s smile widened and Maris matched his grin.

Three weeks ago, Maris did not have the best start to their day. They had stayed up all night trying to comfort their sister over a phone call, missed their alarm, and woke up late. Their shower had been biting cold, the tank water heater for the apartment failed for one reason or other. They’d run to the bakery to make up for time, chilled to the bone despite the three layers of clothing and their thickest jacket, and slipped on wet pavement. Twice.

It was a bad case of things going horribly wrong all at once. They were just about ready to call in sick – there was only so much bad luck a person can handle – when they rounded a corner and ran headlong into Jin. Maris was certain they had bounced off of him with a loud oomph but Jin had caught them and steadied them on their feet. “Maris? Are you okay?”

It was not fair, Maris had thought. There they were, wet and miserable and cranky, and in front of them was Jin, impeccable in a long gray houndstooth patterned coat and a thick scarf. He had looked at them worriedly. “Where are you going in such a hurry?”

““Work.” They’d blinked. “We have a shift and we’re late.”

“It’s a Sunday.”

It had taken a few moments for Maris to process what Jin had said. In the span of time between them hearing it and their understanding what had just been said, Maris’s cheeks were warm enough to spread heat all the way to their toes. “Sunday.” They repeated.

“Bad morning?” Jin had tried to lighten the mood but his smile turned worried again. “Are you sure you’re all right? You’re shivering.” Before they could answer, Jin had taken off his scarf and wrapped it around their neck, securing it with a small loop. Then, he declared that they looked like they hadn’t eaten and steered them to a nearby diner. They’d shared thin pancakes and bad coffee and Maris remembered laughing so hard they’d forgotten how bad their morning had gone.

Now that they thought about, Maris wondered why Jin had been dressed up at six in the morning on a Sunday. Had he meant to go somewhere or was he back from something? He had been carrying a rather large bag.

No. It wasn't their business. “I brought the scarf.” Maris said to Jin. "Thanks again for that."

“Keep it.” Jin replied, cutting more of the dough for Maris to ball. “I got plenty of those.”

Maris frowned a little. At first glance, the scarf had looked simple but when they’d gotten home, they realized it was an expensive brand. They weren’t sure if they should own something so luxurious. “I got plenty of scarves too.” They kneeled down the countertop to get a stack of metal trays for the donuts.

“Maybe I like seeing you wear something from me.”

The comment had caught Maris off-guard. They almost dropped the trays and they clanged loudly enough for the two men to ask if they was all right, with Yves tut-tutting from his station. They assured them they were, and as they straightened and floured up the trays, pretended they had not heard what Jin had just said.

No way that was serious.

For all that Maris had a crush on Jin, they knew their chances of anything romantic was practically zero. Jin was a gentleman, sure; funny and charming and doting in his own way. He cared for the bakery, treated them all like friends, and was a genuinely good man. But he was also very vocal about his tastes in women and Maris was the direct opposite of everything he found attractive.

It was fine. No, really it was. Maris understood the attraction, even. For someone as stunning as Jin, he should have a partner that was just as equally stunning. And besides, it was just a crush for them anyway. It wasn’t a bad thing to have a crush on a workmate. They wouldn’t want to stand in the way of Jin’s romantic endeavors because of simple infatuation.

Yeah.

Maris breathed a small sigh of relief as Jin went away to load more heavy dough into the mixer before heading to check the ovens. The smell of freshly baked bread filled the kitchen and with that, Maris turned back to their work.

They were in charge of donuts and cupcakes usually, and the occasional filled buns. It was easy enough to fall into the rhythm of baking, focusing on their hands and to their own internal beat. Roll, swipe, roll, fill, slather. On repeat.

Soon enough, the smell of different kinds of bread was heavy in the air and they began assembling their products on the shelves. At around six, their front door rang with a soft tune and Nokto arrived with the coffee.

He greeted Maris with a flourish of his clipboard and a bow. “A fine morning to the effervescent Maris!”

“I’m also right here.” Jin complained loudly.

“Quite unfortunate, really.” Nokto gave him an exaggerated frown.

Maris bumped their fist on Nokto’s shoulder in a friendly gesture. “Yves is going to scold you again.”

“Part of my every day.”

“You could come in earlier, y’know. Save him the headache.”

“And miss watching Yves blow steam through his ears? I think not.”

As if on cue, Yves appeared, probably having spied Nokto from inside. “You!”

Nokto was all smiles. “Me?”

Maris chuckled as the two’s usual banter began, and took the clipboard from Nokto. They went over the list of coffee beans, more of a formality than anything. Nokto always delivered whatever the bakery needed. Then, they noticed an extra two boxes. “Are these right?”

Nokto looked over at their shoulder. “Oh, yeah. Boss wanted some extra for this week. Valentine’s Day and all.”

Maris had almost forgotten. That would explain why Yves had been clearing up the shop’s board earlier. They glanced at Jin, wondered if he would have a date. Receive chocolates, maybe. Then, dismissed the thought. “All right. Let’s get to it, then.”

After hours of baking, the cool air was pleasant and Maris took in a lungful. A few people were already out in the street, hurrying to catch trains or buses into the city proper. Maris had been part of that scene before and they were glad to have found work in a place that didn’t involve suffering through long and dreadful commutes.

Nokto lowered his truck’s tailgate and Maris pulled a box to themselves.

“What are you doing?”

Maris didn’t register the question being aimed at them and bumped into Jin as they turned. They stepped back just as Jin stepped forward and took the box in their hands. “Hey!”

“Hey, yourself.” Jin said. “Nokto and I’ll handle these. You go get the rest of the trays ready.”

“Pfft. I can handle a box.” Maris said, ignoring how Jin’s hand had brushed over theirs. They took another box from the truck – heavier than the last – but they weren’t going to let that stop them. They carried it all the way into the front of the shop, back into the kitchens, and did their best not to groan in relief as they laid it down on the floor.

Jin didn’t miss their huff of breath. “We’ll get the rest.”

They began to protest. Jin stepped closer, took their hand in his and spread their fingers so that they were splayed against each other. “I can hold twice as much so don’t argue.”

How could they? When all they could think of was that Jin’s hands were big, warm, a little calloused. But they were surprisingly smooth and as Maris ran their fingers across his palms to his wrists, they realized he’d fell silent.

Jin was blushing.

“I – !” They both began to say but stopped short when they realized the other was speaking. A moment passed, and then another, and both of them burst out laughing at the silly awkwardness of it all.

“We’ll get the boxes – don’t argue. Please.” Jin said, his smile softening. “It’ll look bad for me to let my Belle carry all the weight here.”

Maris’ throat was suddenly very dry. “Well... Well, this Belle can carry anything they want. Boxes full of Valentine’s coffee, even.”

“I know. But I’m saying just let me take care of it.” Jin squeezed their hand and it was only then that Maris realized he hasn’t let theirs go. “If anything happened to you on my watch I wouldn’t be able to forgive myself.”

Don’t put too much thought in it. Don’t put too much thought in this. “My gallant knight.” Their tone was almost dry and not at all squeaky.

Jin laughed and Maris told their insides not to have any more butterflies than it already had. “For you? Gladly.”

They would have protested again, but Yves was calling them and it seemed like the perfect excuse to just return to work.