Couldn't Care Less // Espresso x Madeleine // CRK

chapter six

a/n: oml, 2k reads!! tysm for the support!

The sun started to set.

Espresso sat on a small swing in the sweet playground. A light breeze swept through, rustling his hair.

He heard footsteps behind him. Thinking it was Madeleine, he suddenly became conscious of his appearance. Espresso adjusted his glasses carefully, but the cookie who took a seat on the swing next to him wasn't the blond. Instead, it was Latte.

Espresso frowned, disappointed.

"Hey!" Latte greeted. "I was wondering where you'd gone. I came to your house, but since you weren't there, I figured I should check here." She dragged her feet on the playground floor. "Still not over your childhood phase, I assume?"

Espresso shrugged, staring at the sun disappearing behind the land. "Old habits die hard, I guess."

Latte laughed. "Little brother, you're actually pretty fun to be around when you stop being so hardworking."

It reminded Espresso of the date with Madeleine, and how Madeleine had told him something of the same concept.

Gods, he really needed to stop thinking about that cookie.

"I was wondering something," Latte said, breaking Espresso out of his thoughts. "I thought it'd be nice to have a little dinner tonight, together. You know, sibling bonding time."

Espresso considered it. "Okay. Only this once. And only for you."

Latte grinned and nudged him. He felt a little more comforted now, a little less uncertain about himself. Even with or without love, he'd always have Latte, right?

The family strolled down the street together, laughing along the way. Latte found a childhood restaurant earlier the day, making it the perfect place for the two to eat together. It'd been a while since they'd even had dinner with each other- Latte had been busy at Parfaedia and Espresso had been invested in his work. The pair had only realized the other lived at the same kingdom recently. In those few months, though, they grew close.

The air seemed to give off an aura of nostalgia. Espresso smiled as Latte spoke of the unusual encounter with Almond cookie, but it was tinged with a kind of melancholy. He wondered if this had something to do with the past days with Madeleine. Perhaps Madeleine had infected him with this kindness- or maybe even sadness. Or maybe Espresso was just overreacting.

He had to remind himself to stop thinking about Madeleine.

Espresso and Latte entered the restaurant, the door making a soft ring. The waiter guided them to a table and Latte struck a conversation up automatically.

"So, how was your expedition yesterday? I heard you passed out." She mentioned.

Espresso shifted uncomfortably. He'd almost forgot about the whole expedition- instead, he had replaced the memory with one about his and Madeleine's dance. "I'm okay, I just overworked myself a little bit. You know, catching up on my work and everything."

Latte raised her eyebrow. "I thought you'd finished your project?"

"Well... there was an accident, to say the least. M-"

"Madeleine ruined your project?"

Espresso didn't respond. He felt embarrassed that Latte could read him perfectly. Before he could retort, Latte's phone began to ring uncontrollably.

She took it out of her pocket and glanced at it. Then she looked back at Espresso. "Sorry, I have to take this. It's important." Latte hurried out of the restaurant to answer the phone before Espresso could say anything else.