Chapter Text
As the sensible university student Kim Soleum was, he took pride in finishing work on time and earning good grades like most ordinary people did.
Well… at least that was what he told himself to think, and what he attempted to fulfil. But, seriously, did people actually find these assignments fun? How did some duel university and jobs at the same time? Kim Soleum should've just taken the other route and found a job to support himself instead of following the crowd and continuing to study his damn biology course.
Now? Soleum landed himself a dorm. A shared dorm, with the worst roommate possible. Of course, he just had to be paired with Baek Saheon of all people.
'I can't even have free time or sleep in peace…'
What kind of person moves in to a shared dorm and decides that personal space isn't a thing? Was it a regular to talk out loud late into the night with no regard to the other person in the room? What about keeping your mess to your side of the room?
And that blaring alarm…
What kind of psychopath has the intro music of a horror movie as their alarm!
That was all he could take. A week into uni, he already couldn't stand being in the same room as Saheon and his stupid display of some animal skull with horns (whether it was real or not, he wished not to know). Each day spent there felt like a free ticket to the grave with how he prayed every night to not be murdered.
Now, Kim Soleum found himself swinging open the door of the familiar cafe once more. As he let it close behind him, he was immediately welcomed by the soothing music and quiet atmosphere, showering himself in the warmth that resided, contrasting with the wintery breeze out. Seriously, this cafe was a gem! How was it not more popular?
It was only a few minutes down from the university dorms, yet he never saw many people visit. Sure, there was another, more popular cafe in the other direction, but their coffee and drinks… they were trash. Plus, that place was much louder and crowded all the time. There was no way people would actually choose to work there when this place was only a minute or two further walking distance.
Flower Golden Cafe.
Kim Soleum sighed as he took in the coziness, stepping over to the ordering counter. A sign had been put up.
'A new deal?'
[Buy 1 Large Drink and receive a 40% discount on any of the marked cookies! Only available today :)]
Oh? A discount, huh… he couldn't ignore this deal, especially if it meant he could fill his stomach at least a little right now! Soleum scanned over the menu, passing the drinks and landing his eyes on the cookie selection. There was a large selection of cute, animal cookies decorated with icing, and it seemed they were the main ones the discount applied to.
"Hmm…"
"Are you ready to order?"
"Ah, yes. Could I have…"
Holy shit. Did Kim Soleum accidentally step into heaven? Did he encounter a model or someone he was never meant to see? Was it legal to have a face carved so damn perfectly? He froze as he gazed over at the man behind the counter.
Simple, brown hair with bangs not quite parted in the centre, though it only made the face more handsome with the strands framing the left eye, which seemed to have a sapphire planted directly in the middle, emitting a shine that he couldn't tear his eyes off of. It contrasted with the iris colour, which was dark, almost black, but it only made the highlight shine more, like a lone star on a moonless night.
Was the cafe just a shell for the real gem or what?
"Oh, have you not decided yet? Or is it that…"
"No—sorry, I'd like to have the deal please," Kim Soleum almost panicked as he formed a sentence. "A large strawberry latte please, warm. And…"
Sheep, goat, badger...
"The deer cookie please."
"Ah? Deer cookie… hm? That one isn't supposed to be marked for the deal. Someone must have made a mistake there…"
"Sorry, um… I'll have—"
"But I'll make it a deal for you, okay? I trust you won't tell my manager~"
Kim Soleum was about to drop to the ground. "A-Ah… thank you very much." Maybe it was the warmth inside the cafe that made it so he felt like he was burning up a little. He took out his wallet to pay, looking down to prevent his eyes from wandering again.
"Thank you! I'll get your order done and ready in bit, alright?" The cashier smiled as he handed over the receipt cheerfully. Kim Soleum could only nod as he watched the brown-haired turn around, stunned.
'Holy shit. He has a whole scar on his neck.'
He forced himself to tear his eyes off before his mind could get lost further, wandering back to the far corner of the cafe where he usually worked. Thankfully, it was unoccupied. He settled down on the soft seat against the wall, unzipping his bag and pulling out his black laptop.
'Damn assignment… they didn't make the instructions clear enough.'
The criteria sheet Kim Soleum had been given was full of information, yet it somehow wasn't clear enough! But he never ended up asking his professor for a better explanation, so here he was, doing more work than what was probably necessary to ensure he didn't miss out on anything.
What kind of idiot would get up early in the cold morning just to go out to a cafe and work until who knows when?
"Haah…"
As Soleum waited for his document to load, footsteps approached his table before coming to a step just beside him, the colourful blue uniform of the cafe peaking in from the very corner of his peripheral vision.
"Your order's here!"
Two items were set before him: a cute deer cookie, simply yet skillfully decorated and likely made prior to allow for the icing to dry, and the drink he frequented and enjoyed, though…
There was an extra drizzle of strawberry syrup on top, forming a sort of shape.
"…Cat?"
The worker laughed awkwardly, "Ah… It was supposed to be a tiger, but it's a little wonky. Sorry, it's probably unusual."
"It's okay, um. I like cats… a lot. Thank you."
"Really? That's good then~"
Silence filled the air as the worker smiled down at Soleum, who felt pressured and couldn't bring himself to do anything other than quietly stare at the odd looking tiger atop his drink.
Ding—the entrance bell sang.
"Oh, a customer—I'll be going, enjoy!"
Before he knew it, Soleum was alone again, silently watching the man walking back to behind the counter for a few seconds before taking out his phone from his pocket, discretely snapping a picture of the drink's top before also positioning the cookie next to said drink and taking another picture.
The next thing he knew, he had already started downing the drink, and maybe it was just his tired head combined with the cold weather, but the strawberries seemed to be sweeter than usual, despite them not being in season.
»-♡→
"Hmm? You're still here?"
Kim Soleum glanced to the side and up. It was the worker again.
"Wow, how many hours has it been? You really work hard I guess…" He sighed and dropped down to sit beside Soleum.
"Don't you have work to do, um…"
"Just Choi is fine~ Don't worry too much, I'm on break right now!" Choi gestured his hands as he talked. "You know, it's my first day working here."
"Ah," Kim Soleum nodded. No wonder he hadn't seen this man before. But why was he sitting next to him… he needed to focus on his task right now.
"Hmm, what's that?" Choi leaned over curiously, eyes glued on the laptop screen.
"University assignment. It's not that interesting, really."
Choi was staring intensely at something. Soleum only felt his chest tighten nervously as he did so.
"You… Your cursor is a cat?" Choi tilted his head with a surprised look before smiling. Kim Soleum couldn't help but quickly turn his screen away, arm between his laptop and the other for extra security. His lips formed a straight line as he hid his emnbarrassment.
"Ah—hey1 I'm not trying to embarrass you!" Choi put his hands up as if he had just been framed and caught by the police. He put on a look on his face that could almost be described as pathetic.
The background seemed to blur warmly as Kim Soleum glared at Choi, who was in focus. If you observed close enough, you could see two puppy ears drooped atop his head in shame. If you focused even further, you could imagine a tail hanging low as well.
"…" Kim Soleum slowly turned his laptop back to the angle it was prior, cat cursor exposed to both pairs of eyes.
Choi let out a sigh of relief, letting his hands fall back to his sides as he continued to observe the other's screen. Soleum could only pray Choi didn't notice his staggered movements as he went through the stress of typing up his assignment while being watched by a stranger.
"Hey, is your profile picture a cat too?"
Kim Soleum was about to knock over the table.
»-♡→
'Finally, I finished my assignment and even editted through it twice.' Kim Soleum sighed as he submitted his work before logging off. Shutting his laptop and storing it away, he grabbed his bag, ready to return to his room and take a big nap, knowing Baek Saheon would be gone right now. He couldn't waste this precious time!
He felt relaxed as he had lifted the assignment off his shoulders, though there would always be more ready to counter him. Still, this was better than rushing last minute—now he has time to rest his mind before the next one!
Soleum stood up before realising how stiff his body had become from sitting and working for so long. Still, he didn't let it stop him as he started walking away, towards the entrance once again to leave.
"You're leaving now?" A voice called out to him as he walked past the counter. It was Choi again.
Soleum simply nodded in response, turning slightly to face the other.
There was a second of silence. Choi observed him, eyes flicking between multiple places before landing on his eyes again. "Alright. Thank you for coming!"
Soleum was once more greeted with the cheeky smile, bright enough to go one on one with the sun itself. "Thank you," he replied quietly as he continued walking towards the door. As soon as he opened it, he was met with the familiar cool breeze, accompanied with a little wind. The cafe atmosphere was much preferred, but he knew he had to go back now.
The door closed with a click; the sign signalling that it was open swung behind it, swaying like a hand waving goodbye. Soleum turned to his left to walk back to his dorm, shuffling slightly to better cover himself up from the cold. Maybe he should've taken another hot drink to go.