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Touya had heard of them. Whispers throughout the cafe of the trans barista who was on medical leave for the next month to get top surgery. Touya had never met anyone who had actually gone through the surgery and they had so many questions simmering inside of them– so many things they longed to know about something they craved so desperately. Touya had heard their coworker was already on testosterone too, and they were a year younger than Touya.
It was intimidating, hearing all of their new coworkers talk about this mythical person who would be returning at the end of the month. Touya had no idea what to expect, no idea what they might look like. They had built up this image in their head of someone charismatic and suave, someone who wouldn’t give Touya the time of day.
Their anxiety was already bad enough, starting a new job tended to do that to Touya. Their coworkers were nice, and they all made an effort to use their correct name and pronouns, which was more than their family ever did. They even had a pronoun pin on their apron. Customers still misgendered them from time to time, lumping them in with the ‘ladies’ and calling them Ma’am . They tried not to let it get under their skin.
Some days it did, some days it didn’t. But the day the prodigal son returned to the cafe, it all changed.
“Hi, I’m Keigo,” they said merrily while offering Touya their hand. “My pronouns are they/them.”
Touya couldn’t look away, transfixed by their golden eyes swirling like the sun at dawn. Their smile was just as blinding, sharp canines peeking out and the ghost of dimples on their cheeks. They were shorter than Touya, just by a few inches, but how they held themself created a noticeable presence in the room.
Touya smiled nervously and shook their hand.
“I’m Touya,” they replied, taking a sharp inhale before hesitantly adding, “and my pronouns are they/them too.”
Their smile beamed at Touya as they said, “I’ve heard a lot about you– good things, don’t worry!” Keigo laughed, walking behind the bar and towards the back room, tying their apron as they went. Touya trails behind them, entranced.
“I-I could say the same thing about you,” Touya joked back, trying to fight down the fluttering feeling in their chest.
“Oh, yeah? What have you heard?” they asked as they washed their hands in the sink.
“Uh,” Touya’s face began to heat up, “Just that you’re also trans, and good at your job,” they added.
“Nice to know people think I’m good at my job. Not like it’s a hard job, I feel like I could do it blindfolded,” they joked. Touya laughed.
“Seriously, I don’t understand how some people can take so long–” Touya started easily then immediately snapped their mouth shut.
“No, no, please continue! Everyone here is too timid to bitch about anything,” Keigo remarked as they dried off their hands. They tossed the towel in the bin and fixed Touya with an unreadable expression. “Did you hear anything else?” Touya gulped.
“...I heard you were on medical leave for top surgery,” they admitted. Keigo’s face split into a shit-eating grin and their eyes darkened. They took a step closer to Touya.
“Do you wanna see?” they asked in scandalized hushed tones. Touya’s eyes widened as Keigo grabbed the collar of their apron and hauled them far enough into the back room to be out of sight from the cameras and customers.
“Is this okay–?” Touya asked nervously.
“Don’t think so. Here, look!”
Keigo pulled the strap of their apron over their head and folded the fabric down around their waist. They pulled up the front of their shirt all the way to their collarbone and looked up at Touya with a ridiculously adorable satisfied expression.
“Woah…” Touya breathed, instinctively reaching out their hands to ghost over the skin. They admired the two freshly healed scars that were carved across Keigo’s chest, curving up at the tail end and nearly meeting in the middle. The grafted nipples were still a bit scabby and red, but the flat plain of their chest was like a painstakingly detailed painting, all swift brush strokes and dramatic lighting.
“You can touch them,” Keigo said, drawing Touya’s eyes up to meet their golden gaze. Touya could see their canines peeking out again through their lips as they smiled.
“A-are you sure? I mean, we just met–”
“I ‘just met’ the doctor who cut them off, stop making it weird.”
“I just don’t want to overstep your boundaries–”
“Oh, shove it, hot stuff,” Keigo griped, then they reached out and snagged Touya’s wrist, forcing their hand to cup the right scar. Touya flushed, hesitantly spreading their fingers over the raised skin. Keigo looked down at their fingers wrapped around Touya’s wrist and took note of the scars winding their way up Touya’s arm and disappearing under their sleeve, all neat and intentional.
“Hot stuff?” Touya laughed lightly.
“You look like a hot head with that white hair,” Keigo supplied.
“Why not hot head, then?”
“Do you have to analyze everything I say?” Keigo rolled their eyes, “I said it because you’re hot.”
Touya snatched back their hand, embarrassment flooding their body. Keigo pulled their shirt back down and fixed their apron.
“Now, let’s go do our jobs. I wanna see if you live up to the hype,” Keigo taunted, shoving Touya’s shoulder playfully as they passed by. Touya stood in the back room alone for a few more moments, trying to control their breathing. Their heart was hammering and their whole body felt too warm. They went to the sink, splashed some water on their face, and scrubbed at their eyes roughly.
There was no fucking way they already had a crush on their coworker.