Chapter Text
The two were sitting in the quaint little diner a few blocks down from the filming studio. Till had told Ivan about it as they headed over, claiming it was a “slightly chaotic” place. It was, in fact, the polar opposite of that. The ambiance was calm, with soft music playing in the background. The two men sat across from each other in a booth located in the far corner of the diner.
“So, this is where you eat? It’s surprisingly tranquil and relaxing. I wouldn’t expect something like this from you. You seem like the type of person to enjoy more chaotic places.” Ivan comments, looking around at the calm room, taking in the sight of customers talking softly and enjoying themselves.
Till watched Ivan look around for a few moments before speaking up again, “Yeah, it’s normally way more chaotic than this. This is one of the … calmer days.”
Ivan chuckled, turning back to Till, “Calmer days? I think you just come in here because you want a calm place to eat, right, Sunbae?”
Till merely shrugged at his question, “Maybe you’re right, maybe you’re wrong. I’m not telling my secrets.”
Ivan pouted, putting on the biggest puppy-dog eyes he could muster, “Oh come on, tell me! You’re no fun!”
“Well, that’s just too bad, I’m not telling you.” Till teased, smirking, and leaning into his palm. “Maybe I will one day, who knows?”
Ivan huffed and turned away, crossing his arms as he looked out the window. “You’re so mean to me, Sunbae!” Ivan muttered, pouting as he stared outside. Till began to laugh at Ivan’s childish behavior, rather than getting frustrated with how stubborn he was. This only made Ivan continue to pout.
“Oh, c'mon, cheer up! I’ll tell you if you really want to know that badly.” Till said between laughs, taking a moment to compose himself before continuing to speak. “Since you want to know so bad, I do enjoy the quiet. It’s a nice change from the studio, really.”
“Aha! I knew it!” Ivan grinned, proud of himself. His smile faltered, and he nodded sympathetically. “But… yeah, you’re right. Even though I was only there for about two hours… it was way too noisy and chaotic for my taste.”
A young barista came up to their table holding a notepad. She was wearing a short green skirt along with a white apron and shirt. “Hey, Till! Long time no see! Who’s this you got with you? I haven’t seen him around before.”
Till turned to the girl, giving her a small nod. “Hey, Ace. It sure has been a while since I’ve seen you. This is Ivan, he’ll be working with me for a while, so I decided to help him with introductions. The first days are always the hardest.”
The girl wore a grin on her face as she nodded. She turned to Ivan and gave him a wave. “Hey, Ivan! My name is Ace. Till here is my loyal customer- most of the time,” she paused to shoot a glare at Till, “anyways, nice to meet you!”
Ivan glanced up at her and waved back, even if slightly. “Yeah, nice to meet you…” Once again, Ivan felt like he wanted to hide behind Till, but he knew he couldn’t. Swallowing his fear, he offered her an extended hand to shake. She graciously accepted, giving a rather firm handshake while maintaining her picture-perfect smile.
“Well, what would you like? Till, the usual?” Ace turned to Till and held her pen steady over the page, waiting for him to respond. As soon as Till nodded, she immediately wrote something down and turned to Ivan once again. “And what would you like? Take your time, I’m in no rush whatsoever. Till always manages to come during our least busiest times, so I get out of doing actual work.”
Ivan glanced at the menu for a moment before putting it down. “Can I have one order of Jumeok-bap(rice balls)? Ace nodded and wrote on her notepad. She grabbed the menus that had been placed on their table and headed back to the kitchen.
“You’re into sweets, huh? I’ve heard Jumeok-bap is actually pretty delightful. I haven’t had it before, but Hyuna has told me it’s good.” Till rested both of his elbows on the table, holding his forearms and palms up to rest his head upon them.
“Ah- I am, actually. I’ve always had a sweet tooth, ever since I was young. What about you? Do you like spicy food?” Ivan asked, leaning forward and resting his arms on the table to give Till his full attention.
Till thought for a second before he nodded. “I guess I do, yeah. I just prefer it over unseasoned things; they’re so tasteless.”
“I get that, yeah. So, how long have you been coming here? The barista - Ace, was it? Seemed like she knew you well.” Ivan asked, staring intently at Till. Before Till could respond, Ace came back over to their table carrying the food they ordered.
“Here you two go! Freshly made for my favorite customer and his coworker. I also asked the chef to add extra spice, just like you like it, Till.” Ace set down the dishes in front of them both before placing chopsticks next to them. She wandered over to a nearby table, once again showing that bright grin.
The two settled into a comfortable silence as they ate. Ivan watched Till eat and couldn’t help but chuckle to himself at how fast he was scarfing down his bowl of food. Ivan had heard people talk about how fond Till was of spicy buldak, but it was different to actually watch him eat. Till heard Ivan chuckle and only raised an eyebrow before returning to his food.
Till quickly devoured his food, practically licking the bowl clean. This allowed Till to watch Ivan for a change. Contrarily, Ivan took his time to savor his food. He treated every bite graciously, being careful not to waste any. Till found this fascinating, as he usually doesn’t like to waste time just for a simple meal. Ivan occasionally glanced up and gave Till a soft smile. Once Ivan finished eating, Ace came back to collect their plates.
“I hope you two enjoyed! Come back anytime! I’d stay to chat a bit longer, but rush hour is just picking up. Also, good luck on your first day, Ivan!” Ace stacked their plates efficiently, giving a small nod as she headed back to the kitchen. Till stood up and offered a hand to Ivan. Ivan grabbed his hand and allowed Till to pull him up.
“Thank you, Sunbae! Much appreciated. Oh- also, thank you so much for showing me this place! The food was delicious!” Ivan grinned as he looked slightly down at Till.
“It’s no problem, really. I normally take Hyuna out for lunch, but as you can tell, she was busy. You’re a lot less chatty than she is, which is definitely nice. She can be such a chatterbox sometimes.” Till grabbed the bill and began heading towards the counter to pay for their meal.
“Ah- Sunbae! You should let me pay! After all, you’ve already been so nice to me today. It's only ₩5520 ($3.64), it won’t be a big deal!” Ivan offered, holding out a hand to take the bill.
“Well… if you’re sure, alright. I won’t pass up on a free meal.” Ivan handed over the bill to Ivan. They walked together to the counter so Ivan could pay for the meals. With Till waving one final goodbye to Ace, they set off back for the studio.