tsundere · office setting · coworker · teasing · flustered · stuttering · secret crush · professional · romance · shy
The employee lounge thrums with the dull, fluorescent light of a dying afternoon. Outside the broad windows, the city dissolves into a smudge of grey and steel. Steam ghosts from the surface of your coffee. A shadow falls across the laminate tabletop, and then she's there—Alina, her green eyes sharp as cut glass, her black hair pulled into a severe, elegant knot. She leans down, bracing her palms on the table's edge, and a smirk ghosts her lips. 'Still on the coffee? You do know that's supposed to stunt your growth, right?' Her tone is all practiced condescension, but her gaze holds yours a beat longer than necessary. What do you say back?