aterat | Be our guest!

Entry tags:

Be our guest!

Who; Haru and Yusuke
What; A cafe adventure.
Where; The Noble District
When;10/05, afternoon
Warnings;None

A lot had happened since Haru's arrival in this place. Some good and some bad, but certainly enough to make her feel like this was a place she was going to be for quite some time. There was nothing inherently bad about that despite the few bad things that had happened. After all there were some good things to be found. Like the little hideout the Phantom Thieves had been making for themselves in the Harbor District and the sandsharks. The sandsharks had certainly been a good thing! They were cute but deadly and utterly fascinating! The mirror realm had been a bit...unsettling but fighting with Yusuke had been exhilarating to say the least. That situation was made less awful by the fact that they had both felt the same in regards to it. Or perhaps not the same, but similar enough that any embarrassment she may have felt had been soothed.

It was strange really. In some ways she felt she knew him a bit better here than she did back home. They had shared experiences there that they hadn't here, but they had considerably less one on one time there. Certainly less time for them to discuss their more personal likes and dislikes. They had things in common, that much she was certain of, however it felt like here a whole other world of similarities had opened up. Her own artistic endeavors were quite different from his but they seemed to come from the same curious and introspective place. A place that spurred her to actually consider bigger possibilities. The possibility that weighed heavily on her mind the last few weeks had been that little dream of a café that she had spoken to both him and Ren about.

That was a dream she had back home too. A cute little wholesome place where people could gather, sip tea or coffee, maybe buy some homemade crochet crafts, and just relax and feel safe. Safe and comfortable. After several days of daydreaming about color palettes and what she might serve she finally got the courage to seek Yusuke out. She wanted his opinion and maybe his help looking at places. A creative person to bounce ideas off of seemed perfect. Plus she could check on him! She still didn't particularly like the idea of both he and Ren living there, but they seemed to accept it. That hardly meant she didn't worry about them and if they were eating right (Yusuke probably wasn't).

With that in mind she showed up to his room at the orphanage with an awkward knock on his door.

"Yusuke! It's Haru, are you in?"

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“That’s what I was thinking, something you can start upon fresh and use to paint your masterpiece, hm?” He responded a touch dramatically, but no less honestly. Even if the canvas wasn’t perfect to start, he was sure that Haru’s vision would unfold with a little time and work. Yusuke, for one, was quite interested in seeing what that vision was. If she had colours or a design in mind, how it might reflect herself and the energy she wanted the establishment to hold. For all that she didn’t seem to have much confidence in some of her hobbies, Yusuke got the sense that there was a creative soul in his friend. One that had the potential to make such lovely things with the right encouragement. Perhaps it was the artist in him, recognizing the artist in another, even as their mediums and interests differed some.

Yusuke was happy to let her go forward with the idea, rather than continuing to puzzle over what they might get… And it seemed like her idea was a fun one, both saving time and presenting them with a mystery. “How clever. This saves the decision and gives it a whimsically fun element to the snack.” He commented with a light smile, standing aside and watching as the person at the register took two cupcakes at random.

Accepting his own with a brief word of thanks to the counter attendant and one to Haru as well for purchasing it, he looked at the cupcake in his hand curiously as he tried to discern what the flavour was. A small, delighted hum escaping. “Ah, I believe mine would be Dulce de Leche? They both look quite delicious.” The teen commented as he moved away from the counter. “These should do wonderfully for fueling us in our search.”

"Everyone can do with a little bit of whimsy in their lives," she said with a bright smile. Sometimes it was nice to simply let go and be a bit spontaneous and playful! While Haru was often reserved and quiet there were certainly moments where that side of her shined through. One could even say her attire had a certain amount of it all on it's own. What she usually wore combined comfort with patterns and shapes that she found cute or welcoming. They might not always go together perfectly, but they worked for her and made her happy. Sometimes the little things were very important.

Once they were back outside she stretched her free hand out and then moved it back and forth in a rather dramatic fashion. She did this a few times with her eyes squeezed shut and then froze her arm in place as a finger pointed directly at a building across the street and slightly up and to the right of them.

"How about we start there?" For the first time Haru didn't even seem embarrassed by her slightly eccentric way of picking a place to start. Maybe she was getting at least a tiny bit more comfortable around him in this place. Even back home she still had moments every now and then where she worried about what others would think of her ideas or choices. It was lessening now that she'd grown more comfortable with the Phantom Thieves but it was hard to not worry a bit. But this time she just did it and then looked at her friend hopefully for some sort of input.

“Agreed!” He responded with a smile, though perhaps some might say that Yusuke tended towards that a little more than one should when it came to some creative endeavors… But there was a particular honesty to his actions most of the time, sincere and serious about whatever it was he was attempting, and it could draw people in on more than one occasion. Yusuke found he rather liked to see glimpses of something similar in Haru, even if she was more reserved until a situation allowed for it to shine through. It almost made it exciting? Never knowing when it might appear, but knowing when it did that it would be something interesting and fun.

Which proved to be true as they left the shop behind and she began a rather random method of picking their first target. His brows rising with interest and following her gesture curiously until she finally stopped on one particular building.

His eyes resting on the building and raising his hands to frame (albeit awkwardly with a cupcake balanced in one) the building and closing one eye as he tried to get a sense of how it might look fixed up… Before nodding with a brilliant smile. “I believe that is the perfect place to begin! Your method of selection today seems to be quite on point, Haru!” The teen smiled brightly, thinking about how the choice in cupcakes and buildings both had presented an interesting and potentially excellent result.

Haru took a bite of her cupcake getting just a bit of frosting on her nose in the process. This sad fact was lost on her though and so she started off towards the building she'd pointed at. Once they got closer she noticed that the outside looked pretty decent, basically the same as the others save for a bit of grime built up on large windows outside. Of course they couldn't really see the roof of the strip mall from here so there was no telling if there were any problems there. Luckily this area was generally a bit nicer than other places in general.

She laughed at his compliment. "I'm not certain if that's entirely true. My methods all came down to me being very terrible at making decisions on my own." So she left it up to chance. Maybe it had seemed creative or interesting, but really it was just an easy way to get out of picking directly. There was probably something to be said about how negative towards herself that was, but Haru tended towards that anyway. It was nothing new really, was it?

"What do you think of the outside? Does it fit your frame?"

Yusuke had begun to realize that about her, that she tended towards painting her methods, talents or dreams in a more negative light. It was rather sad, and made him wonder all the more what her situation had been like back in their world… Yes, he knew what had happened with her father, of course… But that was a little different from knowing the details about what Haru had dealt with personally before that. That said, it only meant that they all had to help her push past such feelings about herself, right? Friends supporting and encouraging one another. Yusuke at least found himself wanting to, now that he had people in his life. Even if he was a bit unskilled and unpracticed, at least when it came to creative endeavors and wishes? He had experience with both discouragement with yourself and the importance of bouncing back to keep trying!

“Sometimes leaving a decision up to chance or taking a risk can be quite rewarding!” The teen didn’t notice the frosting on his friend’s nose at first, though. Eyes still focused on the building itself through the frame of his hands. Tilting his head one way, and then another. “In fact, I believe that this is a prime example of that.” He hummed, pleased with what he saw. “I believe it fits my frame well, especially for a start?” He commented, finally lowering his hands to focus on taking a bite of his cupcake while he explained. “I believe the outside does show promise. With a little cleaning and aesthetic decisions such as colours and decoration, it would be a rather inviting display for people to happen upon?” He finished a bite and then glanced to Haru to see what she thought.

That was when he noticed the frosting on her nose and instead found himself tilting his head at her with a curious expression. It was an odd thing to see, perhaps, someone who was quite well put together with frosting just resting on her nose rather out of place. Blinking, he reached up to gesture awkwardly at his own face to indicate where it was. “Ah, you seem to have a little frosting on your face? Just around here-ish.”

"I think you might be right!" She took another small bite of her cupcake, pleased with herself over how well the not quite decision had turned out. This was precisely the flavor she had wanted and yet she hadn't even realized it. She nodded enthusiastically as he spoke.

"For the first location it's not too bad!" She was just about to say more when she noticed him looking at her with a rather curious looking expression. Heat started to rise on her cheeks as she wondered what he was looking at precisely. Of course, she didn't seem to have to wonder long before he awkwardly said something to her. "Oh...oh no," her entire face turned a vivid red as she quickly put a hand up to wipe the frosting off. "D-did I get it all?" This was so embarrassing! How had she not noticed? It had felt a bit like something was there but she figured maybe it was the dust since coming over into this section? (Not that there was really dust outside...) "Thank you... It would have been terrible if someone else had noticed first." There weren't too many people around but that would have been even more embarrassing.

She cleared her throat and then opened up the door to this first building. The door itself was pretty insecure as it swung open. Inside the floor was dusty and there were a number of chairs and broken boards thrown about. "Oh dear." Well at least there didn't seem to be mold or anything like that! The sound of her shoes clicked against the floor as she walked, tossing dust up.

"Well...there's a nice counter that looks a bit like the one at Leblanc..." If Leblanc's cafe counter had a hole in the middle of it.

“What a brilliant shade… I was unaware one could take on such a hue.” He commented with a curious tilt of his head, watching as poor Haru’s complexion turned a rather vivid shade of red with embarrassment. Should he have pointed that out? Probably not… But It was the colour that caught his attention, and he hadn’t really thought before speaking up. Alas, his social skills still had a rather long way to go, even as he’d been learning from being around more people since joining the thieves… And, well, some things never seemed to change.

At her question, Yusuke leans slightly to get a better look and then nods with a smile. “Yes, your face is now free of frosting for now!” He confirmed, glad to have been assistance on that front. “I’m happy to have helped. It seems like the risk of cupcakes. Frosting seems a bit tricky that way.” He added as though he hadn’t said anything particularly odd before, moving easily on to the subject of the building again.

It really did look like it had potential from the outside, but admittedly the inside… Was a little sad. “Hmm…” He took a bite of cupcake, carefully picking his way by the broken chairs and boards scattered about. “It still has… promise? Though I daresay the inside needs a little more work than the outside does.” Moving to the counter, he winced a little at the hole in the middle of it. “Though the counter does put one in mind of Leblanc… I wonder how easy that would be for us to repair.” He added, looking at the hole with some concern.

It still had potential, but perhaps one of the other locations might be a little less… Rough inside.

"Yusuke! You don't need to point it out!" If only she didn't still have a bit of cupcake in her hand! Then maybe she could just burrow her face into her hands. It was hardly surprising he'd just pointed it out like that, but it didn't make it any less humiliating. Maybe...maybe now they could just move on from it! Forget about it forever. Hide her embarrassment behind looking down at the dusty musty floor like it was beautiful.

"At least there's that..." At least it was gone...She heaved a sigh. It truly was going to just be a better idea to move on. Quickly and swiftly from it all. Maybe he'd just forget about the color of her face.

"It'd just need a bit more polish! And love!" And care. And a lot of time. And to figure out how you fix a hole perfectly in the middle like that. "Hmm," she looked at it thoughtfully. "I'm not certain. It seems like it'd be quite difficult to find an exact match to patch it up with." She sighed and turned around on the small heel on her shoe. "Maybe the next location will be a bit less work on the inside!"

Yusuke blinked in surprise at her reaction, tilting his head with a slightly confused expression. “Oh, um…! I simply couldn’t help but observe it. My apologies, Haru. I shall try to remember that in the future.” He responded in a little, slightly dramatic, rush. Also accidentally indicating that such an incident might happen again in the future. Alas… They were both a bit awkward at times, weren’t they?

To the teen’s credit, he at least moved on rather quickly and gracefully from the blunder. Although that might also have something to do with how easily he shifted focus to things of interest. Which, at the moment, was the state of the building as he tried to see the potential in it. A small frown crossing his lips as he studied the hole in the counter again.

“I admit, I’m not particularly knowledgeable concerning carpentry… But I believe you’re right? The whole counter might be easier to replace than repairing it, which would be less than ideal for moving in and getting set up.” He shook his head lightly, but smiled at her optimism. “Quite right, there may be a jewel among these buildings that will be far more convenient. Let us continue the search!” He gestured with the cupcake in his hand, before heading towards the door. “Shall we try the one next door? Or shall we rely upon random chance again?”

"It's...it's alright. I think I was just very embarrassed..." she gave him a tilted half smile that still betrayed a degree of embarrassment. Ah, why did they both have to be so terribly socially awkward? Perhaps that was just the fate of two people that hadn't really had many friends their own age.

"Mmm...you're right. Unless we wanted to make the counter different styles or colors...? But...I'm not sure if patchwork is quite what I'm looking for. I think I'd prefer something more...appropriate for the area." Patchwork might look cute in some ways, but it somehow didn't seem quite appropriate for the upscale area of the Noble District.

She headed out of the building and looked to the next one. "Lets just try this one right next door." It was also empty. This one had a door that definitely needed paint of some kind, it seemed like previously it'd been painted a nice white but it was peeling and more grey than white now. Opening the door was a lot more sturdy this time at least. This one had a counter in the back that was actually completely whole though the state of the paint was about as bad as the door. It'd probably been some hideous shade of green before, but now it was kind of a puke color from how it'd faded and peeled.

"Well, at least the counter doesn't have a hole in it..." The walls had a wallpaper on it that looked like it might have, at one time, been in a green and gold pattern that was probably pretty at the time. However, now, it was peeling and looked a bit like something out of a horror movie. Though...all in all, things weren't in terrible condition. It was a bit smaller than the one they'd just been in, but not by too much.

"There'd be a lot to polish up here." But maybe it'd be a decent blank canvas? Haru went behind the counter and looked very confused by what she found there. There were pieces of something that looked like an old coffee machine. It was rusty, dusty, and broken apart to point that it definitely wouldn't be useable but still an intriguing find.

Following Haru to the next building, he considered the space compared to the last one. “Hm… It does have that going for it.” He mused, eyes looking over the counter before they returned to the rest of the interior. “And while you’re right, it does need more polish than the last location… I think the work that needs doing is actually cleaning and painting more than anything? Which would be easier than having to make repairs to the counters or furnishings, I expect.” He closed his eyes after a moment, trying to picture what it might look like with a fresh coat of paint in some pleasant shades.

“Considering the fact that everything needs repainting means you could choose the colours and coordinate the whole space!” So, following her train of thought, they could treat it as a blank canvas for her to work with. Yusuke rather found that more appealing than the potential repairs that none of them may know how to do, after all.

Yusuke tilted his head and looked at what had caught her attention as he leaned over the countertop. “My! What a lovely old machine, or at least it could be with some work, perhaps?” Following her behind the counter for a better look, he smiled a little. “Even if it’s not operational, perhaps it would make a nice decor piece? And it does show this place was once a cafe to begin with. Perhaps that’s a good sign?”

She nodded rather enthusiastically at his observations. "That's quite true. It might take us a while to remove everything, dust, and clear it all up but it would still be easier than figuring out how to repair the counter. It is a bit smaller than the other place though..." Was that actually a big problem though? She wasn't entirely certain. "I think I'd kind of like to have one wall have maybe a few things for sale." She tilted her head as she looked at the walls. "Do you think that'd work here? Or would it be too crowded? The small size is a bit more cozy though and I did want this place to be truly cozy!" That was a big sticking point, she wanted it to be homey and nice.

"I'm not even certain what kind of colors I'd want to go... but being able to decide all of it might be quite exciting." More than likely she'd just default to just asking him what he might think looked best.

She looked from the machine to him and then clapped her hands. "Oh! That's a lovely idea! Using it as décor might be really cute!"

“That is a good point… But I think your wish for a cozy atmosphere would be helped by the size of the space. Cafes are usually more of a comfortable atmosphere than wide and sprawling, are they not? And I think… It’s not too small a space, much smaller and you might run the risk of overcrowding, but I don’t know that it would be a problem here?” He responded, holding up his hands to frame the wall in question. “Depending on how you wish to display things, it might actually work. Perhaps putting up some shelving, rather than a wide table or something, would save on space, and stop it from getting too crowded to browse?” And a nice display could be viewed even from the tables while people enjoyed their drinks and food!

Yusuke would absolutely be thrilled to help pick out colours, of course! He would even assist with cleaning and helping to cover the walls in whatever lovely shade she went with. “Then perhaps we’ll have to see if we can’t find a shop that sells paint and consider what might suit the space well?” He tapped a chin before continuing. “We should take a picture of it with our phones, and then perhaps it will help when choosing if we can better visualize the space alongside the colours.”

Smiling brightly, the teen was glad to see his idea had been a good one! “Then we shall have to see about getting it cleaned up. I’m sure some polishing will at least make it presentable!” Even if she didn’t choose this spot exactly, they could always… Remove it… No one was using it, after all!

"That's very true." She looked around the place and then nodded. "I don't think overcrowding should be an issue in this place!" She watched him and then looked at the spot and tried to imagine shelving there. It was a bit more difficult for her than it was for him to imagine it but she thought she could see it in the back of her mind. "Shelving would probably work a lot better to not have it be crowded...." Oh this was starting to sound like a lovely idea. She put her hands together in excitement.

"There has to be a place or two in the market that sells paint!" The more she thought about this all coming together the more excited she was actually getting. "Yes! Lets take some pictures so we can plan better. It'll be easier to put colors and see what goes together that way." Better than her plan of just picking a color and going with it and hoping for the best. "That's such a good idea!" She was definitely glad she'd thought to invite him.

"I think...perhaps this spot may be it then? Maybe this little machine was the sign? What do you think?"

Yusuke smiled, letting her try to imagine the space, and it could be with a little work. After all, it was going to be her business! It was important for her to decide if it was right for her and if the space was large enough or suitable for her vision. Even if she wasn’t a hundred percent sure yet, he had faith in her ideas and wanted to encourage his friend and offer suggestions when needed. “Then I believe we should add the carpentry shop to our list of places to visit to see about getting shelving installed once the painting is finished if you decide to keep this place!”

But it felt like it was a pretty done deal, at least based on her excitement and confirmation that it was a large enough space to avoid overcrowding. The suggestion gets a nod, waving his hand lightly. “I can say with the utmost certainty there are a few places to buy paint! I’ve had to replenish some of my own supplies and came across places that sold paint for walls and furnishings as well.” Tugging out his phone, he backed up slightly to capture the space at various angles. “A wonderful idea. It will be easy to show the paint shop and get an idea of how much they might recommend covering the space as well as give you a canvas to consider while coordinating colours!”

Her question gets a small pause, though, halting his excited motions before a smile crossed his face. “I think I’m of the same mind on the subject. This place seems quite perfect, and the machine seems like a good sign that this place was meant to be a cafe!” So they had their location. It just needed work!

"Drat," she said with a small frown as she fished around in her pockets. "I should have brought a small notebook to make notes!" Oh well, she couldn't think of everything right? Still though it feels like something of a small failure on her part.

"Thank you! And thank you for taking the pictures. Perhaps we can return to my place and stat doing some work on potential color schemes if you're up for it?" She was already extremely excited about it all and ready to dive even further into work on it. Although maybe that was too much in one day? Oh she really never knew.

"Wonderful! I'm so happy we came to a conclusion!! This is so exciting. I really never thought we'd find something. Certainly not something that called out so much."

At Haru’s rather sad dismay, Yusuke blinked and shuffled around the satchel he usually carried around. Tugging out a sketch pad and flipping to a blank page and offering it over with a pencil. What kind of artist would be he be if he didn’t have what he needed on him should he get an itch to sketch? “You may use this if you like, Haru.”

Her thanks get a smile though, once the pictures were taken and texted to her as well to have as reference. “Of course, I’d be happy to assist with that! Colour schemes are important to work out before we find paints, after all.” The teen added with a nod, figuring that was a good next step now that they had the location picked out. It was really quite exciting to think they had gotten this far already, and to think about what they could accomplish next.

“It would seem that luck has been on our side today.” Yusuke added with a light grin at her comment. “Though I admit, I had a rather good feeling about our search. Your idea was excellent after all, and this was a good part of the city to start, I think.”

She took the pencil and the sketchpad with a bright look in her eyes. "Thank you! You always seem to be prepared for such things." Sometimes she wondered if he actually went anywhere without it. Not that it was a bad thing, it certainly came in handy here and she was certain he got a lot of inspiration.

"I appreciate you saying so many nice things and agreeing to help with me. This will be a wonderful project to do together!"

Yusuke smiled a little at the comment. “You’re more than welcome! One never knows when inspiration may strike, so I like to have something convenient on hand, even if only to sketch.” And here, he found there were so many unique sights to see, it kept him rather busy on that front.

“I only say what I see to be true, of course.” He smiled, though, glad that it had helped bolster her confidence in the project some. “I’m in agreement, though. I’m quite eager to see how this all turns out.” To see the opening day would be rather exciting when it did happen. “Let us be off. We have much to work on now, I think!”

"Let us be off then! This has been an extremely productive day, hasn't it? I really do appreciate you coming and at least starting this project with me. I hope we'll be able to do something wonderful with it!" And she really did think they would. Between the two of them maybe her little café dream could actually come true.

“Indeed!” He responded, following her with an eager sense of purpose. “We have truly gotten much done, even if there is quite a lot left to do… It’s hard to not feel a sense of accomplishment, isn’t it?” As though they had this all well in hand, and it was a good sign for what was to come. He could almost imagine a nice afternoon spent in the space, all cleaned and painted up. A much needed, good cup of coffee and pleasant company of their friends all together in the welcoming cafe, it was wonderful.

"Indeed it is" She started out of the building and on the path back towards the main city. "I'm...well, I'm rather excited to be honest. The thought is exhilarating! I had always wished to do something like this back home but I knew it would be quite some time before I would be truly prepared." Things were quite different here after all and she wasn't quite certain if she'd need the education she felt she did back home. At the very least she had a lot of help here. "I was actually off to college to try to learn the managerial skills I might require for it. Here though I'm not certain if that will entirely matter. Oh...I mean...I do hope it won't!" She smiled at him though, practically beaming.

"I think it'll go fine. I suppose our next step is picking out paint and then the decorating. Once that's complete we can try to come up with an event for our grand opening. Father always said you must have some sort of memorable event!"

Yusuke followed after Haru quickly, long strides out of the bounding and down the road to keep up with her excited pace. “A new experience, a chance to accomplish something you’ve wanted? I would be quite surprised if you weren’t excited!” He smiled, supposing she had a point. This world was different from theirs, more modeled after an older time where one didn’t necessarily need to go to college to open a small business like a cafe. Which was interesting to think, really… But in a good way. It gave people more opportunities, and in turn helped make a city trying to rebuild itself after disaster expand and fill in needs that hadn’t been met yet.

“I believe it will go well! You’re learning through experience rather than at school, and you won’t be alone in the project.” He responded, knowing there was a lot to be said for learning on the job. Plus… Well, she had them! Yusuke didn’t doubt that they would be up to the task of helping to get the cafe in shape to open, and help out with the cafe itself after the fact. “Picking out the paint colour is definitely a starting point. Have you considered what kind of shade might fit your mental image of the cafe you wish to open?”

"It seemed so silly when I first started thinking about it..." she shook her head with a wide grin. "But now I think it'll really happen and we'll manage to make something great! I hope...at least." All she could really do was hope at the very least.

"I think..." she tapped her chin and looked deep in thought for a few seconds. She didn't want anything like Big Bang Burger, that was too loud and bold for the kind of atmosphere she wanted to create. "Something cozy, warm and inviting. Maybe...pink? Or pastel colors? I've always really liked pastels!" Which was probably obvious from how she dressed most of the time.

“Hmm… Cozy warm colours, pink, could certainly be a focal point. A softer shade like a pastel would probably give it a softer quality as well, I think? With something to accent it perhaps, a shade that matches the wood of the counters, perhaps.” He responded with a thoughtful tone, trying to imagine what shades might go best with what they had to work with already.

And it definitely would make it feel more like Haru, given her obvious taste for those shades in particular. That in itself would give the atmosphere a warm and inviting quality, he thinks. Quite like the soon to be owner of the establishment!

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