Chapter Text
You can recall the first time you saw him. Big, hulking, and wearing a hood that was quite blatantly a t-shirt with holes cut into it. You'd know given that you've seen your friends do that a dozen times in highschool because they thought it was trendy and fun to have cut off sleeves, not realizing their parents would inevitably get pretty damn mad at them for it. Those were the times.
You work evening shift most of the time, and though people would probably understandably be pretty wary of someone coming in with such a getup, you found yourself just kind of intrigued. He didn't seem to have any weird intentions, mostly just looking throughout the aisles and ignoring your polite yet scripted greeting. Seemed to know what he wanted right away, at least. He got himself a tiny pack of watermelon flavored gum and asked for a small pack of some cigarettes. His voice was not as deep as some might've thought it should've been.
Though obviously you weren't lacking in self preservation enough to not be ready to act if he had decided to get hostile all of a sudden, the expression that you could make out from the mask, you knew too well. Exhaustion, the desire to go home and lay down in bed and hope the sheets devour you whole. His icy blue eyes scanned your face as you processed his order, getting out his change.
You wonder what he's thinking about. Part of you was screaming "MURDEROUS INTENT!" but the other half was rationalizing that he was probably just wondering why you were so calm even with his appearance. It'd be understandable to be so curious.
He shrugs on a worn, tattered coat that you didn't even realize he had tied around his waist, and utters one of the only five words you've heard him speak since he got in.
"Danke," and then he lumbers towards the doors.
"Thank you, come again," you say, but unlike the other times you've said so, you think that it was a lot more genuine. He seems to realize this, too, and gives you a final glance before silently nodding and walking into the night.
He's been a regular since that day. Of course, it was probably easy for him to decide that after a seemingly long shift of...whatever he does for work, that a convenience store with already cooked food would be better than going home and cooking. You felt that struggle, after all, having taken leftover pieces of pizza after your shift was done and gobbling them down like a starved dog before crashing to sleep. This job, simple as it was, was also extremely exhausting for some reason. Customer service struggles.
You learned a bit about him since then. Engaging in small talk with customers when there was no one else around was something that you tend to do. Be it to calm your own nerves, quell boredom, or just because you wanted to talk. Some were more receptive than others, of course. König, he said he was named, was closer to the "not very talkative" end of the spectrum. But unlike most people who were like that, you notice that he's...quite attentive, even if he's not been one to really reply so far.
You'd talk to him about yourself, giving little tidbits. Ask him how his day was. If he gave you an answer that wasn't just a "so-so" hand motion or an exhausted glower, you'd ask him what he did. Usually that's when he'd stop the conversation, not responding. He seemed grateful every time you got the hint.
Eventually, he started talking to you a bit more. You knew he was European, probably German or Austrian or something, just from how his accent sounded when he did speak. And he spoke German quite a bit, in little phrases or words. Probably more comforting and easier to express himself when he's not talking in another language.
Which, brings up another thing you quickly learned. He was very...anxious. Nervous. He couldn't stand still, was fidgeting with his hands whenever you made eye contact with him, and, of course, kept his sentences brief as he could. Sometimes he'd come in here, clearly high off of adrenaline, and he'd be a bit more expressive, but you're not sure how lucid his mind was during those moments. He wasn't on drugs, but it was clear that on those nights, something must've happened. He still wasn't any more talkative than he usually is, though, so that told you that even then his anxiety must've reigned supreme when it came to strangers.
You like to think that in the course of the month or so you've known him, however, that you've somewhat broken that overly anxious shell of his. Gradually, he started to speak to you more. And, by speak, I mean he initiates the conversations rather than being the one receiving the initiation. He asks how your friends are doing, what your cat's name is and what breed she is (if you must know, by the way, she's a tortoiseshell cat named Liliana), and overall just started chiming in more in conversations that you'd have expected to be mostly one-sided.
He was engaging, and you knew that must be good. Dealing with social anxiety yourself, you knew you made long steps that were...extremely hard to make, to say the least. But he was getting there.
You weren't pressuring him either. You didn't push him to reply, waiting for him to speak at his own pace, and most importantly...
...you didn't seem to view him as odd or scary or anything.
It must be pretty rare if treating him with basic human respect was enough to make him clearly start to like talking to you. It got to a point where you recall coworkers saying that the "masked weirdo" that comes in, only ever talks to you. Whenever you weren't there, whether it be because you were doing work outside of the store or because it was too early for your shift, he would be as blunt as when you first met. Hell, if he came in with someone else, he'd let them do all the talking for him. You've talked to him and his friends before, so clearly it wasn't just because he was anxious.
Once you heard that he just straight up left right after realizing that it wasn't you behind the counter, just someone who looked vaguely similar from a distance.
It was amusing, if not weird, but honestly there was some charm to it. You've had customers that are attached to you before, the regulars that come in around the same time every evening for a meal, or for a drink, or for a smoke, whatever. It seems that König has become one of those regulars, but in the back of your mind, you start feeling like there might be a potential for a connection.
It's raining.
He's never liked the rain.
It made him think of too many things when it was raining, be it because the atmosphere messed with his thoughts and emotions, or because it just reminds him of days in his childhood he'd rather forget about. Not like he could truly forget what made him who he is today. He has too many people to blame for the sequence of events that built his current life. It's not like he entirely hates where he is either, but honestly, sometimes he just wishes for the mundane.
He knows that he'd probably be hunted down or worse for just going AWOL, but there are moments he wishes that he could just...have a normal life. A consistent life. One that wouldn't leave him doubting himself or turning into a killing machine, only for the realization of what he'd done the day before to hit him like a train the next morning. Leaving him with more than just an aching body.
Since he knows that he can't really strive for that normalcy, at least, not at this point in his life...the little things he can achieve are things that he is extremely grateful for. When he's not off on a mission, he appreciates things like going to the grocery store, or walking in the park, or watching the sun set. But even then, he's never felt entirely normal doing those things. It's kind of hard to whenever people stare at you like you're about to rob or kill them. Not even like he could blame them neither, but this hood has become too important to him for him to really try and live without it. He feels like perception of him would worsen if he took it off anyway.
But then he decided to go to the convenience store that was just a block or so away from the apartment he had placed himself in.
And suddenly it was like...he truly did feel that warmth. The same warmth of a homemade meal, of seeing your beloved pet waiting for you at the door, of seeing a family member you've missed for so long.
The clerk working inside, he's not sure why, but he felt such joy. Objectively, he knew, that anyone would have the right to be suspicious of him. He looked like someone right out of a video game, someone who's bad news. But being treated normally, and being sent off with such a nice tone of voice...he knew he liked this person. But obviously, it could've just been momentary.
...temporary happiness is still happiness, is it not?
So he went back again and again. It helps that the place was close, the prices decent, and of course, that he'd get to see that person again and again if he went at the right time of night. Sometimes he didn't, so he'd leave or just purchase what he wants and get out of there. Other times he'd go with friends and have to share the company of this new favorite person, which was fine, but he also found himself wishing that he'd had gotten to go alone.
Tonight, he managed to make it out by himself, but at the cost of getting caught in the rain.
It was a long day, and he realized a bit late that it was almost the closing time of the convenience store. It wasn't 24/7 like some of the others in the area, and he knew he had to hurry if he wanted to get there before they'd close up. Unfortunate, then, that the weather decided that it'd also stop being pleasant.
König sighs to himself in frustration, but before he can even process the exasperation entirely, he sees just the person he wants to see, but...
...well, the store floor is being swept and the lights are being shut off.
...
...
...
You step outside to empty the dustpan into one of the trashes, mentally noting that you should probably pin it on one of your other coworkers just in case the manager for some reason got upset. Looking out into the streets, you see...well, the rain, and mentally curse a little bit. But you also see König, just approaching. Oof, yikes, you were getting ready to flip everything off and go back in to get your stuff.
"König, it's good to see you again, man," you greet him with a smile. The taller man looks down at you before staring into the now dimmed lighting of the store.
"...it is closing time, no? Am I...too late to get something to drink?" he asks.
"Ehm, well..." you take a second, looking between him, the store, and the streets. They were empty, you doubt that anyone will really come in if you guys are quick enough. Plus, he was a regular...and, honestly, for some reason you find yourself feeling guilty at the thought of turning him away in the rain. "...you know what? I'll make an exception for you," you say, winking at him, "Let's hurry so no one bothers us," you joke, opening the door for him to step inside.
You catch his fingers twitching a little bit as he enters with a quiet "danke," making you smile.
You get him what he wants to drink--a simple Coke, fountain drink, no ice. You also get him his usual brand of cigarettes since he was apparently out. He said earlier in the week that he was trying to stop, but until he finds a better way to relieve stress, he's going to keep doing this. You feel bad, but, understand. Plus, it's not like you were trained in the art of intervention.
"It's super shitty that it started raining as soon as I was getting ready to go," you say, giving him his change before starting the process of shutting the register monitors off, "I didn't bring an umbrella and only have a hoodie with me," you look at him with an embarrassed grin.
He doesn't say anything, so you just continue your work.
After finally closing the store, you're ready to bid him goodbye once you get your things--feeling a bit shy that he decided to wait in the front for you--but the moment you two step outside, he's opening his jacket and holding it over your head with one arm. You look up at him, a tad confused, and he stares down at you for a moment before looking away. If you didn't know better, you'd say you saw the faintest movement of eyebrows, like they were creasing together. Was he embarrassed?
"...I...can walk you home," he offers, "Or, um...more accurately...closer to your street, ja?" he looks down at you again after seemingly building up the courage, "The hood is extra cover. Plus, I am used to working in rain," he adds.
"...yeah, that'd be nice," his jacket was thicker, despite its age, and it did provide more decent cover from the admittedly heavier than expected rain, "Thank you, man. I'll repay you somehow, if you want."
He shakes his head as you begin walking, staring down at you with a sort of admiration. Affection? Or maybe just general happiness.
"There is no need. I'm happy to do this for you."
Maybe that's when you got a crush.
Maybe.