Summary: Joy's new coworker is an arrogant, grumpy perfectionist who criticizes her coffee-making skills and she makes the best latte art Joy has ever seen.

Joy definitely did not like her new coworker.

She had been working at this coffee shop for the past two years. She knew the regular customers by heart, she never spilled coffee on herself anymore, and she could make a killer hot chocolate. She was a great employee.

But she couldn't make latte art.

You, on the other hand, are the freaking Van Gogh of latte art.

You had only been working at the coffee shop for the past month, and already your masterpieces have drawn more attention than the managers could have ever dreamed of. Soon enough, the shop was advertising a new special— "latte art of the day," where you would sculpt some beautiful dragon or a frothy tidal wave into the top of the customers' coffee.

Thankfully, you weren't the perfect employee, because you were awful with customers. You had a beautiful face, sure, even Joy could admit to that but you were as dense as a brick. You were always scowling, like you weren't happy with whatever you were dealing with and after getting to know you, Joy quickly found out that this was absolutely the case. You were extremely grumpy and an insane perfectionist. On you first day on the job, you criticized Joy for accidentally dropping the replacement coffee lids onto the floor and sure, Joy was clumsy and maybe deserved to be scolded, but not yelled at in front of everyone.

Joy was not a fan of you but she knew talent when she saw it and you had talent to spare.

You could draw perfect leaves and trees, the kind you see teenage girls posting pictures of on their blogs, swirling the milk around just right so that the image cut through the espresso foam. Joy could only stare the first time she witnessed this artistic process, and when you noticed her coworker ogling you scoffed and said, "You think that's impressive? I could have done that in my sleep years ago." Joy could remember exactly how your lips curled up in a self-satisfied smirk before she turned back to the espresso machine.

No, Joy wasn't jealous but she was competitive, and she wasn't going to let you get the best of her, even if you were some kind of artistic genius. So she did the only things she could think to do.

"Teach me how to do latte art!"

You blinked once, then twice. "Huh?"

Joy bowed at the waist, humbling herself before her rival. This hurt her pride immensely, but it would be worth it.

"Please teach me how to make art like you do!" Joy repeated, her voice hoarse with embarrassment.

"...Why should I?"

Joy stood back up straight with a jolt. "Because we're coworkers, duh!" She put her hands on her hips, stood up to her full height, and put on her most convincing scowl. If this was gonna come down to a battle of wills, Joy was ready. She had years of experience arguing with her younger friend. Sure, fighting Yeri was easier but she could handle convincing you to help her out.

You eyed her warily. "There's no way someone as clumsy as you could ever make the latte art on my level. You have to be precise and delicate, and from what I can tell, you can barely fill a cup without sloshing it all around," you said, your words so blunt that Joy felt winded momentarily. "Plus, why the hell do you want my help? You don't even like me."

Joy's frustration was quickly replaced by confusion. "What does that matter? You don't like me either," she retorted and it was true, wasn't it?

Your glare darkened, and Joy jumped back a couple feet out of fear. You stood there staring at each other, unmoving, for several grueling seconds until the silence was broken by the light jingling of the doorbell.

"We've got customers," you grumbled, turning around to prepare the machines. "Go man the register."

"Yes, boss," Joy said with a roll of her eyes. Before she greeted the customers, though, she quickly chirped, "But don't think I'm going to stop bugging you about this! I'm gonna get you to crack, just you wait!"

Your shift ended at 1:00, and instead of ignoring each other like you normally do as you left work, Joy stuck right by your side during her walk home.

"I'm gonna keep walking you home and talking your ear off until you change your mind about helping me, you know. And I mean, come on, it wouldn't be so bad! I could buy you a treat each time you teach me something. Heck, I could bake you cookies! I'm not the best cook, but the last batch of cookies I made were only like, half burnt. Do you even like cookies?" Joy paused, genuinely curious about the answer. She wondered if someone as bitter as you even liked sweets but like she was actually going to say that out loud right now, while she was trying to get the girl's help. If she actually did have to bake, maybe she'd just ask Wendy for a favor.

You seemed to be pointedly ignoring Joy's rambling, as you had been throughout your entire shift after your first conversation but it looked like you had something to say. So why wouldn't you just spill it?

Joy waited for a moment. But... she had never been a very patient person. After a few seconds she was elbowing your in the side—gently of course—and pleading with her to say something.

"Come on, Y/N, I know you don't wanna show me how to do it but I'm a quick learner! And I'll make sure to clean up when I spill stuff and I even offered to bake you cookies! So couldn't you at least try to teach me?"

"I never said I wouldn't teach you!" You yelled, whipping your head around to finally look at Joy. Your face was unusually red, and your glare looked even scarier than normal. "I just said you wouldn't ever be as good as me. And..." you looked away again, focusing on the sidewalk in front of you, "I never said I didn't like you, either."

Joy was at a loss for words. With just a couple sentences, you had turned from a scary monster into a... cute, frustrated (but still really arrogant) monster? And all Joy could do was say, "Awww."

"Shut up!" You spat, your face even redder than Joy thought humanly possible. "It's not that I like you either, idiot, I just respect your stupidly stubborn work ethic. And that you're good with customers. And people, in general," you admitted, your voice getting quieter with every word.

Joy let out a hearty chuckle she didn't know had been trapped in . "Who would have thought? You aren't mean, you're just awkward and grumpy!" She smiled at you with newfound affection. "That's adorable."

"You know what, screw you, I'm not helping you with ," you said, your voice not quite as steely as you probably would have liked. You started jogging away, and Joy could only laugh some more.

"No, wait! I'm sorry!" Joy called after you. She started jogging, trying to catch up to the girl racing away in front of her. "I promise I won't ever call you adorable again! Come back!"

Around 10:30 every morning, the shop hit a quiet lull where it was too late for morning coffee and too early for lunch coffee. It was the perfect time to whip up a latte and utterly fail at creating art.

"What the hell is that? Some kind of toad?"

"Psh! No! Are you blind? It's obviously a heart!"

"That is the lumpiest looking heart I have ever seen."

"Well I would have been able to smooth it out if you'd just let me use your stick thing to add details."

You sighed and rubbed your forehead aggressively. "I already told you. You have to master pouring the milk in properly before you do any detail work. You should be able to make a heart by just pouring. It's easy."

Joy pouted. "If it's so easy then why can't I do it? I've tried three times now!"

"You're not going slowly enough when you're starting off. You can't just plop the milk in like a frickin' maniac. You need to be patient." Before Joy could grumble something about how patience was not one of her virtues, you stood behind her and held Joy's hands in your own. "Here. Just... shut up and let me show you."

Joy was not prepared for this kind of contact. That's the only reason her heart was speeding up, mind you—she was startled. She hadn't expected your hands to be so soft or tight around her wrists. Actually, no, the tightness made sense. You were totally the type to not be gentle when you were frustrated and you must be frustrated if you was resorting to puppeteer-ing Joy's hands and suddenly you let go and said, "And there you go. See, easy."

Joy looked down into the coffee cup below her. There was a perfect heart, white blooming out of the dark brown. It was really cute and Joy had no idea how it got there.

"So now you know how to do it on your own, right?" You asked, stepping to the side to look Joy in the eye. Joy stared back blankly.

"I totally wasn't paying attention at all."

Right at that moment a group of students walked into the shop, only to see you slapping Joy upside the head, shouting obscenities as the she begged for forgiveness.

"Y/N," Joy whined, sprawled out on the counter next to where her coworker was washing out the already clean whipped cream container. "Stop doing that and make a latte with me."

With a huff, you turned the water off and shot Joy your patented "you're an idiot" glare.

"You do realize we're here to actually work, right? Not just play around with coffee all the time?"

Joy sighed. "I know," she said, "but you haven't taught me anything other than how to pour milk! I wanna get detailed, like you always do, with all the swirls and the shwoops!"

You looked down at Joy skeptically. "Shwoops?"

"Yeah, you know!" Joy mimicked the look of the line she was describing by pinching and pulling her fingers, but all you did in response was roll your eyes.

"You have the vocabulary of a child."

Joy squawked and propped her hand up on her hips. "Coming from the girl who can't split up tips without having to count on her fingers!"

Your glare transformed into its darkest form and Joy nearly jumped out of her skin.

"Alright. Fine. I'll make something for you," you said with an evil sneer. You stalked over to the espresso machine, filled up a cup with coffee, and slammed it down on the counter in from of Joy. "Here's a demonstration on how to make a something detailed without using a mixing stick. All you need to do is pour the milk and not be a complete idiot."

You began slowly pouring the milk into the cup, and with just a few delicately placed swirls and a flick of your wrist, you created a hand that was very clearly telling her to go to hell.

"That's for you," you scoffed, setting down the milk pitcher with a resolute thud.

Joy was speechless for a moment, and then she burst out laughing.

"Oh my god," Joy gasped between bouts of laughter. "That's the most beautiful thing you've ever made!" She felt herself tearing up and wiped at her eyes. When she finally reopened her eyes she was face to face with... what looked like her star struck coworker. Your eyes were wide with what was probably awe, like you were looking at a shooting star instead of Joy's dumb laughter tears.

Joy was struck, too, for a moment, with the sudden thought that you actually looked quite nice when you weren't scowling. But before Joy could make fun of you for making such a stupid face, you shook yourself out of it and shifted your features into a smirk.

"Fine," you said with a jerk of your shoulder, beckoning Joy over to your side. "But you're gonna have to actually take your time with this one, you know. And you still at taking it slow."

"Yes, Ms. L/N," Joy said as she rolled her eyes. "I am not worthy of your teachings." This time, you used your actual hand to tell Joy off, and Joy chuckled under her breath as she filled up another cup with coffee. She sidled up next to you and nudged you with her elbow as her way of saying thanks, and a few moments later you hesitantly nudged her back.

After a week and a half of lots of practice and many poorly decorated lattes, the manager found out about all of the coffee that had been wasted and gave you and Joy a firm scolding. Neither of you had thought about the consequences of using so much coffee so frequently. Needless to say, you both felt pretty sheepish.

Now most of your practices consisted of Joy peeking over your shoulder as you did your latte art for actual customers. Joy was allowed one free coffee a day, though. It wasn't much, but it was still practice. And she needed the practice, because Joy apparently had "the artistic abilities of a potato".

And she had made some progress. It wasn't a lot of progress, sure, but she could at least pour the milk into some simple shapes, and that was a lot better than what she had been capable of two weeks ago.

During Joy's attempt of the day several days later, you were unusually quiet. Most of the time while Joy was trying to make some sort of picture (this time it was a cute kitten) you would be constantly criticizing her from over your shoulder, telling her how to make the proportions more believable or yelling at her to keep her hand steady so that her lines weren't shaky. But this time you weren't saying anything, and so when Joy finished up, she turned around and shot you a confused look.

"Have anything to say?" She asked her coworker, who looked like you did indeed have something on your mind. It took you a few seconds, but after a while your expression hardened and you spoke up.

"Why do you even want to learn how to do this?"

Joy had not been expecting that kind of question.

Apparently her confusion showed on her face, because you rolled her eyes and continued. "I mean, I get that it looks cool, but why are you so determined to learn how to make latte art? Is it just because you want to be better than me or something?"

"Pfff, don't flatter yourself," Joy said as nonchalantly as she could, although she could feel her face heat up because unfortunately that was kind of close to the truth. "It's not that I want to be better than you, I just... I want to be the best I can be, you know?" Joy said, biting her lip. "And I don't like it when there's something I can't do. It makes me feel like I'm a failure."

You nodded slightly, not breaking eye contact with Joy. "I understand the feeling."

Joy chuckled. "Yeah I know you do, miss perfectionist," she said with a smile. She turned back to her latte and waited a few moments before asking, "Why did you learn how to make latte art?"

You stayed quiet for several seconds. Joy almost turned back around to ask why you were taking so long to answer, but just as the thought crossed her mind you finally spoke up.

"It's embarrassing."

Joy spun back around immediately. She had never heard you sound so shy before and she really, really wanted to see that expression on your face.

It was a cute look for you.

"Well now you have to tell me!" Joy said, her voice light and teasing. She elbowed you in the side. "Come on, please?" You were frowning, but when you caught a look at Joy's puppy dog eyes you sighed and relented.

"It's how my parents met. My dad made lattes at a shop and he drew dumb, flirty pictures in my mom's coffee whenever she came in. And I thought it was romantic, so I asked him to teach me how to do it."

Joy pressed her hands against her cheeks and let out a slightly muffled "Awwwww!" She giggled and slapped your on the back. "That is the cutest thing I have ever heard. You starry-eyed sap."

"Shut the hell up, . I am not a sap."

"You may be a potty mouth, but that doesn't make you less of a sap."

"'Potty mouth?' What are you, six? If you use that phrase ever again I will kick your ."

"Okay, then what about... toilet face-hole?"

"That's it. You are officially dead to me."

Everything changed three days later.

Your shift was almost over. One of the newer employees working the evening shift—Joy wasn't sure what her name was— was already in the shop, sitting at a table in the corner. Another customer was standing by the bar, waiting for their latte. The rest of the shop was empty and quiet, except for the white noise of yours and Joy's near-constant bickering.

Joy could hardly remember the days when you and her used to never speak to each other. It felt like they had always been... friends? Partners? Rivals? She didn't really have a good word for it. The only one that seemed appropriate was "close."

And just as your relationship had progressed, so too had Joy's latte art skills. She could make simple designs now, and she could even write short messages. Still, though, you said that Joy's penmanship was too shoddy to use on actual customer's drinks. So whenever a customer ordered a latte, Joy would just casually look over your shoulder and watch you work.

"I thought today you were drawing birds," Joy murmured, looking down at your art. You usually only stuck to one drawing a day, and so far today you had been drawing a flock of birds swirling around the edge of the cup. But the picture she was working on now certainly didn't look like any bird Joy had ever seen. It looked more like an intricate pattern—maybe a rose, or a mandala of sorts.

"I was," you said, your voice low and your eyes filled with concentration. "But the shift's almost over so I thought I'd try something new." Joy glanced away from the art and up to your face. You were sticking you tongue out of the side of your mouth, the way you only did when you were focusing really hard on whatever you were doing. It was always so adorable, and it gave Joy this weird fluttery feeling in her stomach whenever she saw it happen. But Joy would never admit that. Nor would she admit that she actually really liked the way that your hair fell across your forehead when you were leaning over like this, or the way your neck looked so elegant at this angle, or the way your eyes shone through the steam rising out of the coffee cup beneath you.

The words were out of Joy's mouth before she even knew she was thinking them.

"Holy you're gorgeous."

You looked up from the cup and shot Joy a questioning look. "What did you just say?"

Joy's shoulders shot up to her ears and she all but screamed, "I SAID HOLY I WANT TO GORGE MY EYES OUT."

"Wha—the word is gouge, not gorge—wait, where the hell are you going?"

Joy didn't turn back to respond. She just kept running out the door.

This was the only thing she could think of to do. She just needed to run as far away as she possibly could and then maybe she could leave those stupid thoughts behind and she wouldn't have to look at your stupidly beautiful face ever again—

"HEY."

Joy stopped dead in her tracks.

That was the most ferocious voice she had ever heard come out of your mouth.

Joy had never been more scared for her life than she was in that very moment.

"What the are you doing? Thank god the evening girl was there early to cover for us, but for 's sake, Joy." She heard your footsteps behind her, heading toward her at a quick and angry pace. "You can't just take off like that."

Joy's heart was slamming against her chest. It felt like she'd been running a marathon, instead of just racing down the block. "You didn't have to follow me," she said, still refusing to turn around.

"Of course I did," you replied without hesitation. "I had to make sure you were okay."

Joy was flattered. Probably too flattered for her own good. "Well, I'm fine, thank you for checking."

"You don't sound fine."

"I am."

"Then look at me."

Joy really, really did not want to look. She knew it was weird, that she didn't want to see you right now and she knew that she was going to have to eventually. So she figured she might as well rip the bandage off in one go.

She turned around, took two steps forward until she was just inches away from her coworker, and grabbed the sides of your face.

You looked shocked, for a moment, and then your expression settled into something that looked shy and quietly determined. Your cheeks were hot underneath Joy's hands.

Joy hadn't been sure why she wanted to do this. It wasn't just to prove to you that she was okay, that's for sure. No, she wanted to be close to you, and she wanted to see if she got the same fluttery feeling she had when she was looking at you bent over her latte art. And yeah, the feeling was definitely there.

The next question was, was it a platonic fluttery feeling? Something like admiration, or respect, the kind of feeling when you're looking at a work of art? Or was it a romantic feeling, like she wanted to kiss the crap out of the cute, grumpy face that was currently squished between her hands?

It was definitely both.

"Yup!" Joy chirped, her voice nearly cracking with just the one word. "Totally fine." She moved her hands off of your face and clapped them around the your arm. You looked like you were about to say something, but before you could open Joy said, "Well, I gotta run, but I'll see you tomorrow!" She stumbled backward, gave probably the most awkward wave ever, and ran down the road. And this time, you did not run after her.

Well. That happened.

...So what was she going to do now?

Joy had hardly gotten any sleep last night.

She knew what she wanted to do. She stayed up for hours thinking it through, exactly how it was going to go down. She came into the shop thirty minutes early just to prepare everything and now she was standing there, just inside the entrance to the café, holding a coffee cup in her hand and waiting for you to come in for their shift.

felt dry. Her hands were shaking, and she tried to will them to stop so that she didn't disturb the liquid in her cup. She couldn't mess this up. This was too important.

She stood there, waiting, for a few minutes until finally the door opened and you made her way inside. You locked eyes with Joy immediately, then looked away and scowled. "I see you got here early for once," you grumbled, and you started walking past your coworker, still staring at the ground.

"Wait!" Joy exclaimed, her heart beating rapidly in her chest. "Please. I have something to say."

You slowly looked up at Joy. She looked like she hadn't gotten much sleep last night either. You felt a pang of guilt, and she quickly held out the cup in her hand.

Confused, you looked down at the cup and then gave a quiet gasp. Joy had written a message into the foam of a latte.

I'm sorry I was a jerk.

You were quiet for a few moments, and then you said, "Well, good. You should be." But your words had no bite to them, and the glare you shot at Joy was incredibly subdued by the blush on your cheeks.

Joy set the cup down on the table beside them and held out her hand to you. "There are a few more in the back," she said quietly, embarrassed about what was yet to come. You looked at the hand extended to you and then slowly took it, interlocking Joy's fingers with your own.

Joy quickly led her coworker behind the counter and revealed a line of coffee cups that stretched down the bar. Each cup contained a milky latte and a short message. You looked down at the first one in line.

I was just nervous

Joy tugged on your hand and led you to the next one.

Because I realized _ _ _

"Is that supposed to be an ellipsis?"

"Yeah. Dots are hard."

"Oh, okay."

You weren't moving, your eyes glued to the cup in front of you. "...Well, come on," Joy said quietly, "there's still more to read." You moved to stand over the next latte.

I think you're amazing

You took in a sharp breath. Joy could feel her heart stop, but she quickly pulled her coworker over to the next cup.

And beautiful

And talented

And I like you a lot

You stared at this cup for a long time. Joy couldn't bring herself to look at your face.

You moved on to the next latte.

So I want to ask

Joy was the one pushing you this time, trying to get to the last cup.

Will you go on a aate with me?

Joy blanched at the sight of the message. "It's, uh, supposed to say 'date.'"

Your chuckled softly. "Your handwriting is terrible," you said, squeezing Joy's hand just a little bit tighter.

Joy finally looked up at you. The sight of you smiling softly down at the coffee cup in front of you both almost left her speechless. Almost. But she still had something she needed to ask.

"So... is that a yes?"

You turned away from the latte, pressed Joy against the wall, and kissed her.

It was one of those kisses where everything just fell perfectly into place. Yiy kissed Joy, and Joy kissed you back, and suddenly everything was right.

Then, several minutes later, you pulled away, your breathing just a bit labored, and shot Joy a teasing smile.

"Are you even going to have any money left for a date after you pay the shop back for all of these lattes?"

"...."

You laughed, and Joy thought it was probably the most beautiful thing she'd ever heard. "We'll figure something out."

Joy grinned and reached up to press another kiss to your lips, which was quickly returned with enthusiasm. At this point, there was absolutely no doubt in her mind.

Joy definitely liked her new coworker.