"i never knew just what it was,

about this old coffee shop i love so much."

becoming a barista was one of the only things jeon jungkook wished to accomplish in life. it wasn't exactly the most fancy job in the world — he too, understood — but there was something about creating magic in the drips of coffee that drew him in. the sound of mugs clinking against the marble island, those acoustic songs that were played through a speaker, and the smell of grounded beans colliding with foamed milk — he loved every single one of them. 

it wasn't all rainbows and sunshine when he first told his family about the plan. most parents would want their kids to pursue mediocre dreams; doctors, lawyers, teachers, prosecutors — you name it. everything spiralled down even further when he asked to drop out of medical school to open his own cafe. 

at first, his parents weren't convinced. they still weren't until this very moment. just why the hell would you throw such a bright opportunity to do something that was completely adventurous? wasn't it a little bit reckless?

but whatever came after,

jungkook was ready.

he had made a pact with himself to do something he wanted to do, instead of living up to people's expectations and abandoning his own. it wasn't the life he wished to live — or anyone, for that matter. everyone deserved a second chance at reality, no exception. to love, appreciate and accept themselves regardless of who they once were. jungkook was once a boy with no dreams, who boxed his prolonged ideas aside because he was too scared to make a move.

and now, he wasn't that person anymore.

he stood tall on his own; happily living his life no matter how simple and unpromising it is. jeon's cafe might not be the biggest, most popular coffee shop in the midst of downtown seoul, but it held a very special place in jungkook's heart. every single day, he looked at himself in the mirror and realised that becoming a barista was one of the greatest decisions he had ever made. and the same should went with other aspects too.

it also wasn't a coincidence when heavy rain suddenly poured down in the middle of summer, particularly one tuesday afternoon. everything was normal — songs being played, customers came and left; enjoying their drinks and baked goods as they talked about the things jungkook and his only employee, hoseok, didn't care to intrude . . . until a certain brown-haired man stepped inside the picture.

the initial thing jungkook noticed about him was the soft honey tan skin that complimented his light brown hair. it was more than the shades of light brown, for it reminded him of latte and all that caffeine goodness he kept falling in love with. the scarf and oversized coat he wore seemed to be made of silk, as smooth as his gaze when they accidentally locked into his own. 

for the first time in forever, jungkook's heart skipped its beat.

"one caramel macchiato, please," the customer ordered, deep voice sending chills down his spine.

"n-name?" jungkook almost stuttered. he swore he could hear hoseok frantically laughing in the background, for he was never one to act all shy and awkward around his own customers. "a-and which size? tall, grande, venti?"

"kim taehyung," kim taehyung answered with a rectangular smile. "make it grande."

"o-okay."

scanning through the endless list of additional syrups and toppings, taehyung's eyes widened at one particular bullet point before he pointed at the menu board. "ah, can you sprinkle a dash of cinnamon powder on the top of my drink?"

"wait, c-cinnamon powder?" jungkook unconsciously furrowed his eyebrows. such an unusual combination. "you put cinnamon powder on your caramel macchiato?"

taehyung stretched his mouth even further, his perfectly aligned white teeth being showcased to the younger man. it really did things to his heart. "you see, i have this really huge amount of love towards cinnamon powder, probably because my grandma used to make it herself and- oh, dear god, i'm rambling again."

"no, no. keep it going," jungkook wrote taehyung's request on the paper cup and flashed him an equally big smile. "i don't mind psychobabbles."

"really? we must be soulmates, then!"

jungkook could feel his heart metaphorically bursting out of his ribcages. as they continued to converse over the little things — until the point where hoseok had to take over his position for a solid ten minutes because he was too engrossed in their own bubbles — they realised that the most beautiful moments in life were crafted over the ones we never expected to happen.

it was as if the time stopped ticking and the world stopped spinning around its axis. something bigger must have metastasised within the universe, for this was the only beginning of jungkook and taehyung's nebula. it wasn't a love story, or any of those nicholas sparks-john green cliches combusted into one. it was simply boy met boy.