Chapter Text
The light shone through the curtains, filling the room. Dew blinked his eyes open and looked at his clock on his bedside table. It was 8 am; luckily, he didn't have any classes early in the morning, so he took his time getting up. He checked his phone to see who messaged him, but replying just yet. He showered, put on a white shirt and black pants, packed his bag, and went downstairs to make himself two boiled eggs and bacon.
While he was eating his breakfast, he got a call from Nani.
"What's up?" Dew spoke first.
"Where are you?
"In my house."
"Can you get-" Dew cut Nani off before he could finish his sentence. "No, I won't."
"Wow, why are you so cold right from the morning? I didn't even finish what I was gonna say." Dew rolled his eyes in a friendly way. "I know what you are gonna ask for, so no, I won't get you your favorite drink from that one place we went to that one time."
"But-" Dew cut the call, again, not letting him finish his sentence. He put his plate by the sink, got his car and house keys, before looking around his living room, checking to see if he forgot anything. After he made sure he had everything he needed, he locked his door and drove to his university. By the time he got there, it was 10, and he had about an hour before his lecture, so he went to his favorite spot: the library, specifically, in the back, between the bookshelves. He liked it because it's always quiet, and not many people come to that area.
He sat against one of the shelves and got out his iPad and earphones, plugging them into his phone. He started sketching the barista. Again. He started from his face shape to his body structure, and then going back to the face to add the details. The almond-shaped eyes and soft lips turned up, smiling gently. He had one mole under his lip and one above his jaw on the right side, as well as three moles on his neck. On the left side of his face, he had two more right under his cheekbone. Shiny black hair parted in the middle, and bangs falling just a bit below the eyebrows.
It's been 2 days since he last saw him, and he didn't have time to go back to the cafe either. So when he did have time to draw, he only drew the barista. Dew was happy that he took an interest in art in his early years, because now he isn't afraid that he'd forget even the tiniest detail of the face he saw for less than an hour.
Till now, Dew has drawn him five times, and now it's the sixth time. Dew didn't get tired of drawing him as he did with most things; in fact, the face that never left his mind. Drawing those beautiful eyes and angelic smile over and over again made Dew feel that much better. Drawing the barista felt like a second nature now, and every time, Dew found himself smiling as he drew.
He continued to draw, finishing up a side profile, his earphones playing cheerful songs; he almost didn't notice a person getting a book from a shelf beside him. He glanced over at the last second, catching a glimpse of the same face he was drawing. The same hair, side profile, and Dew swore he saw moles on the person's neck. He got up quickly, taking fast strides in the direction he saw the person go into. His pulse quickened, hoping he might see the guy again. He searched through all of the rows and shelves, and even checked the sitting area, but he didn't see anyone who looked like him.
Dew felt stupid to think he might see the guy at his university. Did he really hallucinate seeing him? Did his brain play tricks on him? Maybe drawing the barista for so long caused this.
He looked at his watch; it was 10:54. He walked back to his belongings and packed. He kept replaying the part as the person walked away. In his mind, the blurry face matched his memory.
Dew continued to ponder until he arrived at his class. He sat down in his usual seat beside his friends. They all greeted him, but he didn't notice until someone waved in front of his face.
"Huh?" Dew was snapped out of his thoughts. "What happened?" One of his friends answered, "Nothing, we just said hi to you, but you seemed out of it. Everything okay? You never dozed off before."
"Yeah, I'm fine." Was he fine?
The class started, and Dew was about to focus, but he had never not paid attention in class, so his mind cleared up a bit. He decided that he was going to ignore what happened in the library. After putting in a lot of thought, it made the most sense that he imagined it.
At the end of the class, his mind was fully cleared. His friend stretched his arms beside him. "Guys, should we go to lunch now? I'm starvinggg."
Everyone nodded and agreed. "Let's go to the usual place then."
Their usual place is a half cafe, half restaurant type of place. It sells everything from go to drinks to a full-course meal, which is good for Dew since he eats more than his friends.
At the eatery, they took their seats. Four people around one table. They wrote their dishes on a piece of paper and gave it to the server.
"Oh, Dew, I've been meaning to ask how your date with that girl you met online?" One of his friends asked.
"The date was fine, but we didn't really click, so we haven't really talked after that," Dew replied.
"Damn. I forgot you have really high standards."
He had always been confused when people said to him. He didn't really have standards; it was more so that he just wanted to be close to them. But he got tired of saying that, instead, he just playfully smiled. They talked for a few more minutes, and then their food arrived.
Just as Dew was about to put the spoon into his mouth, he saw him through the glass. This time, it wasn't just a blur of a person; he could see those almond eyes he'd dreamed about, the soft lips he drew and shaped pink.
He looks even more beautiful in direct sunlight. Time, for Dew, slowed down once again.