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Jiwon isn’t sure why he keeps coming back to this cafe. He thinks it could be because of the atmosphere. It’s warm inside, and even though the bite of winter has long since passed, the spring sun simply doesn’t warm him to the bones like the heat in the little coffee shop. He thinks that maybe its the atmosphere of the place that draws him back again and again. Though the shop is small, its filled with round wooden tables meant for two or three people. Jiwon’s seat of choice is the worn, corduroy, wing-back armchair that allows you to sink deep into it’s comfort. It’s flanked by an equally worn love seat that gives Hanbin plenty of space to spread out on when he accompanies Jiwon. There is a second hand coffee table in between the armchair and the couch with enough space for them to spread out there binders and notebooks filled with sheet music and lyrics hastily scribbled down with whatever writing utensil that is readily available. There is also a outlet just close enough for the two of them to plug their laptops into when they get caught up in work and spend hours writing and rewriting things in the little shop.
Jiwon thinks that maybe he like this particular coffee shop so much because their coffee is honestly amazing. The owner is a young man named Jinhwan, whose only a year older than Jiwon himself. He is at the coffee shop every day, even if he is not technically working. The shop is like his baby and he takes great pride in the quality of the food and drinks they serve. He has three other employees at his beck and call. Yunhyung, a cashier and barista whose amicable nature and willingness to talk to anybody about anything makes him an ideal employee and someone Jiwon would consider an acquaintance, at the very least.
Donghyuk sometimes takes over the bar making the drinks but his specialty and the reason he was hired was his skills in the kitchen. He is an excellent baker and everything sold at the little coffee shop tastes like heaven. Customer, definitely not Jiwon, sometimes speculate about whether he’s mixing a little cocaine in with the flour and sugar. If you ever ask Donghyuk how he makes his baked goods so addicting he will just lean in, with a too-innocent-to-be-trusted smile and whisper “It’s a secret,” before turning away, cackling, and disappearing into the kitchen. Trust Jiwon. He knows from experience. He personally thinks that with a reaction like that, Donghyuk must be hiding something but he decides to drop it in favour of returning to the fluffy, half eaten scone sitting on the plate in front of him. He thinks that, in the grand scheme of things, it doesn’t really matter how much cocaine he’s putting in his baked goods, as long as he keeps making them.
Chanwoo is a new addition to the little coffee shop. He’s just a kid, too. Still in high school but with an amount of sass that rivals even Hanbin on no sleep and too much caffeine with a deadline looming over him. The worst part about it that he looks so innocent, with his floppy brown hair, round cheeks and big, warm doe like eyes. He looks like a soft adorable puppy or, like, the fluffiest penguin. Jiwon can’t quite decide which is more accurate.
So maybe it is protection from the bracing wind of early spring. Or the way they can spread their work over every available surface without being bothered. Or the excellent coffee or the unique character of the people who worked there. Over the several months of coming here Jiwon hadn’t been able to pinpoint exactly what kept drawing him to the little coffee shop.
Hanbin had his own theory that it was because of a certain customer that also frequented the shop. He was wrong, of course. Dead wrong. The fact that Jiwon’s preferred seat faced a secluded corner of the shop where a young man with white-blonde hair often sat? That was simply a coincidence and had absolutely nothing to do with the adorable little furrow that appeared between the other’s eyebrows as he concentrated on his laptop, long, pale fingers tapping away frantically, as if trying to chase the words before they slipped out of his mind vanishing into the coffee scented air. His love for the coffee shop had nothing to do with that.
“Why don’t you just go talk to him or something?” Hanbin asked from where he was currently sprawled on the couch.
Jiwon snapped out of his deep and extremely constructive pondering and looked down at his best friend like he was completely ridiculous. Why would he even want to talk to blonde, eye brow furrow, nice hands, coffee shop corner guy? It wasn’t like he thought he was cute or anything. In fact, he thought precisely the opposite. The guy was a distraction. Jiwon was only a couple weeks away from a deadline and he had made no progress beyond a couple of lines fit for a sappy, cliche love song. People called him a lyrical genius but coffee guy was swiftly ruining that reputation.
“What are you talking about? Why would I want to go talk to him?” Jiwon looked back down at the sheet music disappointed to find that in the two hours they had been there he had only doodled circles and spirals in the margins.
Hanbin peered up at him from the couch, eyes narrowed in suspicion. Jiwon didn’t look up from his paper, intent on ignoring his supposed best friend until he disappeared.
Unfortunately for Jiwon, ignoring things until they go away isn’t a constructive way of dealing with your problems.
Hanbin heaves himself up from the couch looking around the little shop. He finally spots Jinhwan cleaning the tables near them and beckons him over. Jinhwan has had a soft spot for Hanbin and Jiwon every since the obnoxious duo had walked into the otherwise quiet coffee shop. Especially Hanbin, though no matter how many times Jiwon told him to just ask his friend out, Jinhwan was too afraid of being rejected to go through with it. Harbin was the same though. Assertive in the fact that Jinhwan was just naturally touchy and he was really nice to everyone. Jiwon had argued that he didn’t give free refills to everyone but Hanbin had just ignored him. It was very similar to the situation that was happening right now, actually, except this time Hanbin was the one doing the nagging.
“What can I do for you?” Jinhwan asked as he walked over.
“Who is that kid sitting in the corner?” Harbin asked in a hushed whisper. Jinhwan’s eye brows flew up towards his hairline.
“Um, his name is Junhwe, I think? He’s a university student, studying journalism? writing? I don’t really remember. Yunhyeong is pretty close to him actually. I think they went to high school together?” Jinhwan answered looking mildly confused at the sudden questions. “Why do you want to know?” he asked.
“Well, Jiwon seems to have a bit of a crush on him.” Hanbin answered, throwing a smirk in his friends direction. Jiwon thought Jinhwan looked a little relieved but that wasn’t his biggest concern right now.
“I do not!” Jiwon said a little too loudly with a little too much conviction and coffee boy, Junhwe, looked up from his laptop in surprise at the commotion. Jiwon quickly buried his head in his note book, but he could feel his face heating up from embarrassment.
“Awwwwwww, our little Jiwon has a little crush!” Jinhwan cooed. “I promise I will do everything in my power to help you woo Junhwe.”
“I don’t need your help wooing anyone. I am the master of getting people to like me!” Jiwon said indignantly. Jinhwan raised an eyebrow, lips curling into his signature innocent smile that never meant anything good.
“Prove it, then. Go over and ask him out right now.”
Jiwon knew there was no backing out now. He rose from his seat and began to walk to the table Junhwe was sitting at, trying to hype himself up as he went. He could do this! He was the best! Ain’t nothing gonna bring him down! He was the top diggity dog in this whole—
“Can I help you?”
Turns out the shop was much smaller than Jiwon had anticipated and therefore the walk across the room had taken much less time than he thought it would. Now he was standing in front of Junhwe’s table and the other was looking up at him from his seat, one eyebrow raised in question. Jiwon froze. turns out pretty people are frequently much prettier up close. Junhwe had sharp angled eyes and long eyelashes. His skin was pale and smooth and it looked really soft, almost velvety up close. Because Jiwon was so enraptured with Junhwe’s appearance he noticed the blush starting to flood his face, high on his cheeks and over the bridge of his nose, not to mention the bright crimson flush on the tips of his ears. Jiwon thought it was adorable. Junhwe was beginning to fidget under Jiwon’s searching gaze. He looked back down at his laptop and hunched his shoulders as if trying to disappear from Jiwon’s view. His eyes then darted back up, searching the rest of the cafe for Jinhwan or Yunhyeong or honestly anyone that would save him from the awkwardness. Unfortunately for Junhwe, Hanbin and Jinhwan were just observing from the other side of the shop trying to contain there laughter.
“Well, um, I actually have to go, uh, like, now so… If you’ll just excuse me..” Junhwe said closing his laptop and sliding it into his bag and standing. Jiwon’s eyes widened,
“Wait!” he practically yelled right in Junhwe’s face. Junhwe stopped gathering his things and looked at Jiwon, clearly startled by the others sudden outburst. Jiwon definitely had his attention now.
“I think your really cute, and you have nice hands and I guess I don’t really know anything about you but I’ve been watching you for a while and… Wait, no, not like that. Um, well, what I mean is your cute and Jinhwan seems to like you and he likes us, Hanbin and me, I mean, so he must have good taste, you know, which is a good character reference for me so you know that I’m not like creepy, or weird or anything and I just think that we should date?” Hanbin could be heard on the other side of the room, attempting to stifle his laugher while Jinhwan just shook his head with a fond smile on his lips.
“Please?” Jiwon added as an after thought.
The blush on Junhwe’s cheeks had only gotten darker as Jiwon covered him in emotional word vomit.
“I don’t know you.” was all Junhwe said. Like that was a clear answer to everything Jiwon had just spewed. Jiwon could sense a rejection when it was coming and he could feel his face start to fall. He had totally blown it. Why did he have to screw up the things he actually wanted to get right. What happened to the genius lyricists who wove poetry and melody together like it was meant to be.
“Yeah, uh, sorry about that. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable or anything, I just—“
“But I’d like to?”
Jiwon’s eyebrows shot towards his hairline and he snapped his head up to look at Junhwe so fast he thought he was going to break his neck.
“You what?”
“I’d like to get to know you? I mean if your serious about this.” Junhwe looked and Jiwon warily, like he expected him to laugh in his face or something.
“Of course I’m serious! Okay, uh, well, we should exchange numbers or something, right?” Jiwon’s heart was hammering in his chest. He couldn’t believe Junhwe had actually said yes after his garbage confession. He honestly felt like he might be in shock.
Junhwe reached into his pocket to grab his phone and then he handed it to Jiwon with a nervous little smile. Jiwon couldn’t help his curiosity. He really wanted to know why Junhoe had said yes but, you know the whole “Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth.” thing.
As he programmed his number into Junhwe’s phone he couldn’t help but ask why.
“Oh. Well, I actually saw you the first time you came in here and I thought you were cute too so…” Jiwon’s head snapped up to look at Junhwe, disbelief written clearly across his face.
“You thought I was cute?”
Junhwe looked down at the table and nodded his head with a nervous little laugh, running his fingers through his hair. Jiwon thought it was adorable. Turns out most of the things Junhwe did, Jiwon thought was adorable.
“Oh! My name is Jiwon by the way.” He said just then realizing that they had yet to introduce themselves even though he already knew Junhwe’s name.
“I know. I’m Junhwe.” Junhwe answered.
“Wait, what do you mean you know?”
“I already knew your name.” The blush that had begun to fade from Junhwe’s cheeks returned full force and with a vengeance. “I kind of asked Jinhwan about you a couple of weeks ago.”
Jiwon couldn’t keep the smile from creeping onto his face. So Junhwe had asked about him. That meant that Junhwe really did like him back. Jiwon was on cloud nine. He knew that his smile was pushing his cheeks up and turning his eyes into little crescents. Junhwe reached over and punched him in the arm.
“Shut up.”
“I didn’t say anything.”
“Your face says it all, you butthole. Don’t make fun of me or I won’t go out with you.”
Junhwe sounded like a petulant child, bottom lip jutting out in a pout. Jiwon thought it was adorable. This “Jiwon finding stuff Junhwe does adorable” was becoming a kind of cliche. This time he said it out loud.
“You’re really adorable you know.”
Junhwe scoffed. Jiwon smiled. On the other side of the room Jinhwan shook Hanbin’s arm while cooing at the knew couple and Hanbin just smiled, glad that his best friend had succeeded in his attempt at wooing Junhwe.
Later that night Jiwon was unable to fall asleep. His phone heavy with a new contact and his brain active with the possibilities of the movie date set up for the next day. As he lay in his bed, unable to fall asleep, the clock nearing midnight, his phone buzzed against the mattress. He grabbed it curious to see who could be texting him this late.
From: Junhwe
hey, are you asleep?
From: Jiwon
no
From: Junhwe
why not?
From: Jiwon
could ask you the same
From: Junhwe
:(
From: Jiwon
I’m excited for tomorrow
From: Junhwe
ew
From: Jiwon
:)
Jiwon waited a couple minutes for Junhwe to respond before putting his phone down, deciding that if he didn’t want to be a zombie for his and Hanbin’s writing session tomorrow he should try and get some sleep.
Just as he was about to slip into dreamland, his phone buzzed again.
From: Junhwe
I’m excited too
Jiwon fell asleep with a smile on his lips. That night he dreamt of blonde hair and sharp, cat-like eyes and everything smelt like coffee.