"You know, you really ought to stop eating so much salt, hyung."

Aron hummed, shoulders shrugging as he his fingers, one arm propping himself up on the bar counter. The smile spreading on his face was cheeky, saying 'what are you going to do about that' as he sprinkled more salt onto the plate of nuggets. Minhyun sighed, eyes closing as the elder laughed in glee, shaking his head at the childishness of this twenty-seven year old, and the only customer he's had this afternoon.

Despite all that, Minhyun doesn't mind his appearance. He's been working at this cafe for three years, and he met Aron a few months into his work, who quickly became a regular. And time was a quick way for him to get use to everything - from Aron's salt obsession to his never ending puns, from his childish demeanor to his serious side, glasses on and hair down as he set his laptop up, typing his hours away.

Minhyun love the cafe for it's quaintness in its secluded corner, perfect for him to work on his dishes while spending lazy afternoons with a book in hand. It offered a roof for any passerby on rainy days, and remained a popular spot for students and couples over the weekends with its minimalist interior and hopefully, good food, too. It was a warm shelter for those that lost their way in the depth of winter, like himself, a wanderer without a proper aim. The cafe owner had took him in, taught him how to whip up the menu, and now, it's akin to his own home. Well, a second home.

Now, he's loving the cafe even more because of the additional chatter that ringed in the room, coming from a boy who loved to disturb him for hours just to see him fume. For the sounds of keyboard smash that mashed in perfectly with the softer tapping of the summer rain against their windows. For the listening ear and free taste tester services offered whenever he needed. 

( He hate to admit it, but he had definitely grown to be more accustomed to the presence of someone else in the cafe permanently, especially after the cafe owner had sold it off to him and left for his own travels around the world with his wife. )

"Say, if you're done with the nuggets, want to try something new?" Minhyun laughed at the way Aron's eyes light up with interest, pushing away the now empty plate to make space. 

The taller male re-emerged from the kitchen quickly, setting down the plain piece of chocolate cake on the counter top. Eyes twinkling with amusement at the way Aron pouted, seemingly not too amazed by its looks, the male folded his arms, resting them on the table. "Yah, hyung~! At least look excited. This is a recipe that I've been trying for a really long time."

"Well, you've made chocolate cakes before too."

"This one's different. Trust me."

Minhyun's eyes followed the movements of those hands, watching as Aron took the time to savor it, his own gaze softening with a bashful smile when the elder looked pleasantly surprised. "It's dark chocolate, so you're not getting that sugary sweetness that you dislike," Minhyun poked his tongue out. It always made him happy to see customers devouring their food, so to see Aron chomp down on the cake was the biggest satisfaction he could have.

That is, until, he reached out for the salt.

"...hyung, don't tell me..."

"Why not? It'd be like salted caramel."

He cringed when the white speckle of salt felt atop the creamy fudge, glistening under the cafe lights like that of a devious touch. Minhyun scrunched his nose, straightening up in pure horror as Aron took a huge bite. Hands raised, covering the stunned, parted lips. 

"...you-!"

"Ahh~! It's amazing, it's just like salted caramel choco, knew it!"

"Of course- you just poured salt on it!"

"Hey, it's sprinkled. I sprinkled a little bit."

"By Kwak Aron standards that's a little but by normal standards that's a lot! I can cook a whole pot of soup with it!"

"That's exaggerating. Come on, Minhyun, try it. Okay, I'd lessen the salt for you."

"Ugh, hyung...! No way!"

The hand grabbing onto his elbow didn't allow him to duck any further. Minhyun let out a struggled noise, head tilting back, much like a cat stretching its spine to get away from the piece of cake with salt on it. Aron laughed, hand firm. There's no way to weasel out of it, Minhyun knew, but it was at least worth a try.

"Come on, it's just a tiny bit."

"Fine," he gave up grumpily, opening his mouth as he closed his eyes - a dramatic expression to get his point across. He was expecting the soft texture of his creamy cake being dropped, but it was a cool hand on his cheek that made him open his eyes, followed by the soft touch of Aron's lips.

"...!"

He could taste chocolate in the kiss, the bittersweet mixture that he created with the saltiness amidst it all. It wasn't bad at all, as much as he hate to admit it. But it was Aron's kiss, the slow, teasing swipe of his tongue along his bottom lip, that made it even better. Minhyun moan quietly, much like a whine, tongue lightly pressing against Aron's-

"I'm back! Aish, the rain is- what the ?! Yah, aish!"

Minhyun shoved Aron first, before he wiped the dribble of drool from the corner of his mouth. Ears painted pink with embarrassment at getting caught in the middle of a kiss, he let out awkward bouts of forced laughter to cover it up as Mingi yelled in the cafe, Aron's giggling maniac laughter echoing in the space. 

"You're literally just back from your honeymoon last week! Get a room!"

"Hey! I'm just fulfilling my taste-tester role here."

"Sure, I'm sure tasting your husband's lips was part of the role," Mingi gave a look of disgust, marching into the kitchen with all the groceries in heavy stomping. "Couples and their PDA, I swear-!"

The door slammed as the couple looked at each other, laughing. The raven shook his head, arms crossing before he looked up to the chef, grinning. "So, how did it taste?"

"...alright, you got me." The blush on Minhyun's cheeks deepened as he ran one hand through his hair. "I think I found a new idea for the menu."

"Oh? Don't I deserve a reward then?" Aron tilted his head upwards, smirk appearing. His eyes crinkled from the curl of his lips, expectant. Minhyun took a quick glance at the kitchen door.

"I'm going to come out in 5 minutes, do whatever you want but don't burn my eyes again when I'm out!" came from the inside, as if already know what his best friend is going to do. That was timely.

Minhyun cleared his throat, then leaned towards his lover. "Well, I guess you do deserve a quick treat..."