Chapter Text
You had been working at the coffee shop your best friend owned and had somehow convinced you to work at all day, waiting for this moment. The clock struck twelve o clock, midnight, and you jumped a little with joy. You loved your best friend to bits, but working in a coffee shop was not what you had intended to do on your days off. This was the case for a few reasons. One, you hardly ever had days off and when you did you liked to relax on your couch with a good book or movie, and two, you absolutely despised coffee. The look of it and the smell of it were disgusting in your regard. So when your best friend had asked you about working at their coffee shop on the weekends because they were understaffed your first response had been no. They had begged and pleaded until you had finally consented to a trial run, and as the night ended you had decided that your answer would be a firm no.
You took off your apron and swept the sweat off your forehead as you began to close up shop. As you stepped out from behind the counter the shop bell rang and someone entered the door. You were about to tell them that the shop was closed and that they should try again tomorrow until you glanced up and saw who they were. Harley Quinn was standing in the doorway of your best friend’s coffee shop and all you could do was stand there slack jawed and speechless.
“Hiya! Are you guys still open?” she asked with an over enthusiastic wave.
You just nodded and put your apron back on. “What can I get you?” you asked politely.
Harley sat down and said, “An iced caramel latte with extra whipped cream.”
You nodded lamely again and began to make her order. As the coffee machine was starting up again you turned to face Harley. This opportunity could probably only be given to a person once, you should definitely make the best of it, you thought.
“So, what’s Harley Quinn, the most infamous vigilante in Gotham doing in her local coffee shop so late?” you asked, brushing a hand through your hair.
“I’ve been out fighting for my life all day, and I needed my caffeine fix before I went out to do any more day-saving,” Harley said, spinning around on her chair for emphasis.
“Gotcha. Well, I’ve heard the coffee here is amazing so hopefully it’ll do the trick,” you said.
Harley looked at you quizzically, “You haven’t had the coffee before?”
“Nope. Actually, I really hate coffee to be honest,” you replied, sticking your tongue out sheepishly.
“Oh! Really? Then what’re you doing in a coffee shop, puddin?” Harley asked.
You began to add the syrup to her drink and said, “My friend asked me to step in for her while she was away and well, she’s always been there for me so I figured I should do the same for her.”
Harley smiled as you piled whipped cream on her drink. You handed it to her and she mumbled a quick thank you before taking a swig.
“So what’s the verdict? Is it good?” you asked, genuinely curious.
She nodded happily and took another sip.
After placing the cup back on the counter she beamed at you, “Thanks! It’s delicious!”
You giggled at her. She had whipped cream on her cheek. You pointed to the spot and said, “You’ve got something…”
“Oh! Could you get that for me, sugah?” she asked.
Without a second thought you leaned over, swiped the whipped cream off her cheek, and licked it off your finger. It tasted artificially sweet. Your face turned bright red as you realized what you had done. Now it was Harley’s turn to giggle.
She reached over the counter and grabbed something, “Sorry. Next time I’ll just use a napkin.” she said as she dabbed at her lips with the cloth.
She swallowed more of her drink happily and you noticed something. Harley was bleeding. She had numerous cuts up and down her arms and her nose was bleeding. Now, this didn’t come to much of a surprise to you. Weren’t superheroes always bleeding anyways? But what did shock you was the fact that she hadn’t mentioned it or asked for medical assistance. You came to the conclusion that she was probably injured or bleeding so frequently that it seemed normal to her, and this saddened you.
You reached out and placed a hand on her arm. “Harley, you’re bleeding,” you stated.
“Am I?” she stretched her arms out and looked down at them, “Oh goodness, I am.”
She licked her finger and began rubbing at one of the bloody cuts. You panicked and pushed her hand away. Harley looked up at you in confusion.
You blushed and said, “You shouldn’t do that, it’ll get infected.” You thought over what you were going to say for a moment. “Hey, how about you come over to my place? I’ve got some medical supplies there and you could shower and put on a set of fresh clothes,” you proposed.
“Wow, going to your place already? Bold move,” Harley said with a wink.
“Shush. I’m serious. I only live a few minutes away and the shop should be closed anyway,” you said.
“You kept the shop open for me?” she asked and when you nodded she said, “Alright pudin, under one condition. You give me your name and number. You know, for future emergencies,” She wiggled her eyebrows at her, and god it was adorable.
“Deal.” You pulled out a scrap of paper from your apron and wrote down your name and number.
Harley read it, stuffed it in her pocket, and smiled, “Y/N, huh. Nice ta meetcha. Now, lead the way to your palace, princess.”
You giggled and led her out the door by the hand.