WRITTEN BY: notahairnomore

SONG: Some (Bol4)

그냥 좋아한단    말도
안 되는               가요?
솔직                 하게 난
말하고              싶어요

🍬

– LEE JAEHYUN –

Meeting Hyunjae wasn't the meet-cute everyone wants. It was an event mainly influenced by our sleep-deprived stupidity.

"Are you telling this story again? Oh my gosh, it wasn't that embarrassing! And the only sleep-deprived one there was you!"

"You weren't the one shitting planets after that drink! And shut up, let me tell the story!"

In hindsight, I shouldn't have been wandering around campus at 1 am. I should've been in bed, prepared to wake up super early to finish a project due that morning. However, I found myself instead working into the late hours, unable to sleep. So there I was, at a coffee shop to buy tea so that, just maybe, I'd be able to fall asleep..

The first thing I noticed walking into the cafe was that the bell had the worst sound I'd ever heard before. Like, most bells have sweet jingles and pleasant sounds. This one was ugly and short.

"Stop roasting our cafe bell and tell the story!"

The second thing I noticed was that the coffee shop worker was really attractive. Even with his dark circles and eye bags, I found myself zoning out staring at him.

"Are you going to order something, or do you need longer to stare at me?"

"Oh! Um... can I get a black tea?"

He scrunched his nose. "Ew. At least put some milk in that or something."

"See, no normal barista getting their eight hours would insult their customer's taste."

"In my defense, anything that bitter is a crime."

I crossed my arms. "What, are you judging my tea order?"

"You're lucky that I'm not judging the fact that you're ordering tea at a coffee shop. Coffee's in the name for a reason," he responded. He started to make my drink, and suddenly, I felt anger wash over me.

"Fine. Add milk and honey, please..." her eyes wandered down to his name tag, "...Hyunjae."

Now might be the right time to mention that I'm lactose intolerant. Incredibly lactose intolerant.

Well, the next morning, I found myself unable to stop thinking about this strange barista.

"Hey, snap back to reality for a sec."

I looked at Changmin, raising an eyebrow at me. "Okay, what's got you so out of focus today?"

"Nothing, I just had a... weird experience last night."

It wouldn't be the last weird experience either, as I found myself back at the cafe ordering the same drink. On most nights, I just dumped out the drink the second that I left the cafe. Maybe that defeated the purpose of going to the cafe in the first place. Whatever. On the other nights (usually when I stayed in a conversation with Hyunjae for a while), I drank most of it.

Eventually, I knew his work schedule. He worked at the cafe every day except for Mondays, Saturdays, and Sundays. On Tuesdays and Fridays, he worked from 2 pm to 5 pm. On Wednesdays and Thursdays, he worked from 9 to 2 am, which was when the cafe closed.

"Oh yeah, what kind of a cafe stays open until 2 am?"

"One for college students, apparently."

I suspected that he worked at a few other places, but there was no solid evidence for my theory.

Changmin told me that I looked both happier and more tired since going to that cafe. I told him that he needed to shut up and focus on his essay. But, unfortunately, his words have already gotten to my head.

There was no way Hyunjae was getting to me in that way. I couldn't hold good, happy feelings towards the barista who only causes me pain! No, he was just attractive. Yeah! My heart was confusing emotions because he was so hot!

"So you thought I was hot, hm?"

"I hope you choke on a large ice cube and can't breathe until it melts."

The next night, I decided to test myself, just to make sure that I truly wasn't in love with him.

"I'd like a black tea with milk and honey, please."

He gave me a smile: a dazzling one where his perfectly straight teeth shone and his eyes crinkled gorgeously. Curse his good looks. "Of course, the 1-am special."

I remembered the advice I gave to Changmin when he had his own love issues. Check the heart. Is it beating fast?

I didn't even need to feel my heart. It was pounding furiously as if it was ready to jump out of my chest. Shit.

That was okay. There was more to test. Maybe my heart needed to calm down from walking so much.

Step two. Is your face hot and red?

Once again, I didn't have to check, but this time it was because of that damned barista.

"Hey, your face is red. Like, tomato red."

I surprisingly didn't swear at him! Instead, I felt my face, and whoa, I was hot (and not just in the visual sense). Double shit!

Oh well, that was all just a coincidence, right? The last step was what mattered.

"Well, my loyal 1-am-customer, your drink is ready."

I went to grab it from his hands, making eye contact with him. And, triple shit, I froze up almost instantly. His eyes are like black holes, pulling me closer and closer into them, trapping all the stars inside of them.

"Hey, you gonna take your order, or do you want to keep lovingly staring into each others eyes? Cuz, as much as I'd enjoy that, the store closes soon."

Quadruple shit. And after that drink? Make that quintuple.

—

"What do I do? How do I confess? I think he likes me back, but what if he doesn't? Why can't he just disappear and let me live in peace!"

Changmin raised an eyebrow. "As if you'd want that. Listen, he likes you. That's obvious as day. He literally flirted with you last night."

I glared at him. "Don't act like you know anything about romance. Do you not remember the entirety of last year?"

"What happened to Changmin last year?"

"None of your business, nosy."

"Just confess! That's exactly what you told me to do last year!"

"Yeah, and you guys broke up three months later."

"Yeah, but we still dated!"

Note to self: friends have the worst love advice and can never be trusted.

—

"I like you. No, that's too straightforwards. I know we don't know each other that well, but I think I like you, and I'd like to get to know you better. Ugh, too many words, he'll interrupt me and make fun of me."

Before I knew it, I was outside of the cafe. There he stood, wiping down the counters. His sleeves were rolled up, and were his arms always that muscular?

I was five seconds from walking away when he suddenly looked up, smiling when he noticed me. He ran to open the door. "Come in! Why are you just standing there?" He took my hand and led me in. "Do you want the usual?"

I thought for a moment before shaking my head. "No. Just a black tea, please."

"Ew. That's so bitter though! What happened to the milk and honey?"

"I'm lactose intolerant."

The look on his face was priceless. His jaw dropped open, his eyes went wide, and finally, he didn't look so unnaturally handsome. He became human for a moment, like some god realizing some crazy fact about humans. "Shit."

"Literally. Also, since I'm just nonstop revealing things about myself, I might as well confess that I've had a slight crush on you since, I don't know, maybe the first time you judged my bitter tea choices. And it's kind of embarrassing to admit, but I spent the past five minutes walking here and asking myself how to confess to you, and maybe I should shut up now, but you're really hot and I'm mid panic, and---"

"Slow down a sec. I need to process all that. You're lactose intolerant and have been drinking tea with milk in it. You like me. You think I'm hot."

I nodded, because words were too much at the moment. He laughed and motioned to a table. "Well, sit, then. I'll have your drink out in a moment."

When he finished my drink, he brought it over and sat on the chair across from me. "Well, I like you too, if you haven't realized yet. But let's take things slow, shall we?"

I nodded. "I like that."

"Well, hello there, stranger. I'm Lee Jaehyun, I'm a barista at Sunlight and Moonbeam Cafe, and I'm in my sophomore year of college, majoring in art. And you are?"

"I'm Park Jiyoon. I'm also in my sophomore year of college, and I'm majoring in architecture."

His smile once again managed to dazzle me away, and I realized that maybe I had a little more than a crush on him.

Well, shit.

"Literally."

"Shut up!"