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────୨ৎ────────୨ৎ────────୨ৎ────｡ ₊°༺❤︎༻°₊ ｡ First Date ｡ ₊°༺❤︎༻°₊ ｡────୨ৎ────────୨ৎ────────୨ৎ────
I fcked up.
Mizi blinked at the notepad Till was holding in front of her and Sua. Sua, not surprised by whatever dumb shit this little gremlin had gotten himself into, rolled her eyes and continued braiding random strands of Mizi’s hair.
“What do you mean?! The steps Sua and I told you were pretty straightforward. Approach the guy, introduce yourself, say something nice about him, then invite him for coffee. It shouldn’t be that hard. From the intel I have gathered from Hyuna, that guy knows Sign Language. What particular step did you mess up?”
Till visibly flushed, he slowly scribbled something on his notepad before showing it to her again while looking away.
He was too handsome. I fumbled…messed up my signs and raised my middle finger at him.
“I knew that you were emotionally and romantically dumb…but this is a whole other level. What do you mean by you raised your middle finger at the hot barista you have been ogling for days? We’ve been coming to this cafe for weeks, weeks. I’m physically and mentally sick of coffee now. Please let us be done with this so my taste buds can have a break from caffeine.” Sua deadpanned at the silly boy across from her.
“You don’t have to order coffee all the time, Sua. They also have milkshakes, chocolate drinks, and many more.” Mizi replied with a huff. “Our main goal after all here is to help Till snag the hot barista.”
“And who will finish the coffee drinks you keep on ordering?” Sua retorted.
Mizi coughed. “A-anyway! We’re here for Till and his lover boy. Till what happened after your middle finger incident?”
Till’s shoulder deflated in disappointment as he wrote down what happened this morning. As Sua had mentioned, he was emotionally and romantically dumb. He never knew it was possible for him to like individuals of the same gender until he saw the newly hired barista at the coffee shop near his Tattoo Studio.
He was not a fan of caffeine, but he found himself visiting the coffee shop from Monday to Sunday. Even on his day off. It kept him energetic and awake all night, but that was no different from when he ordered normal drinks, as he kept on ruminating about the guy all night. It was on his 7th cup that he finally saw the man’s nametag, which was always inexplicably covered from when he ordered the previous 6 cups.
Ivan.
His name flowed soundlessly from his lips. He didn’t know why, but it felt like the name truly suited this captivating individual. He had been struggling for inspos for tattoos, but now ideas are pouring out like crazy.
It was the 13th sketch of a familiar face that made Sua and Mizi realize as to why Till keeps insisting that they hang out at this particular coffee shop, which is 1 stop away from their apartment complex.
Till liked the Barista named Ivan.
It took 5 more cups of Frappuccino and 1 cup of Americano with Hyuna for him to learn more things other than his name. Aside from being a Barista, Ivan works as a model. He was one of the models that Luka, another friend of theirs who is pretty famous in the Fashion industry, always worked with. He wasn’t surprised.
Ivan had this charisma that even simple chores such as pouring coffee looked so sophisticated and attractive. Till liked the way he would smile and greet the customers before asking how many pumps of espresso they wanted. He never really looked at him when he was ordering. He would simply slip a paper containing his order and then wait nervously for a gorgeous pair of hands to give him his coffee.
Hyuna had told him that the guy knew sign language. He wanted to converse comfortably with him too, but he was too nervous. He was afraid he would fumble and sign something outrageous.
His fear finally came true like a self-fulfilling prophecy this morning. After gathering courage for a week, Till finally did something other than slipping a piece of paper containing his order to the counter…and that something is fumbling his fingers and raising his middle finger at Ivan.
Mortified, he didn’t wait for the man’s reaction and ran away. Now, they are discreetly watching the barista from a pastry shop across the coffee shop. He didn’t look pissed or whatever, but Till’s courage had fizzled out completely.
It's mortifying. How could I do that?
Till slumped into the table like a slime. There goes my first love.
“How can you give up after a single setback?” Mizi groaned.
What should I do? He must think that I’m a weirdo.
“I think you didn’t mess it up too much. If that was the case, why would he be here?” Sua murmured, gesturing at the guy who was slowly walking towards them.
Till felt as if thunder had struck him. His fight or flight instincts flared, but before his mind could make a decision, the guy was already in front of him. He smiled at the two girls before politely asking, “Hi, you should be Till’s friend? I am Ivan, Hyuna, and Luka’s acquaintance. Is it okay if you give me and him some space to talk?”
Mizi wanted to stay for the sake of gossip, but Sua quickly replied yes and pulled her girlfriend out of the way. Ivan watched the two girls speed-walk out of earshot before turning his attention back to the ice sculpture in front of him.
“You must be Till? Are you comfortable with me speaking, or do you want me to sign?”
It took Till five minutes to make sense of the words coming out of his gorgeous mouth or what his gorgeous fingers were signing. He quickly signed that either was fine and slumped back to his seat.
[ That’s great, I only started learning sign language two months ago. I’m afraid if I don’t speak, I won’t be able to remember what the sign for it was.]
Till was surprised at this information. Hyuna told him Ivan knew how to sign, but it turns out he only started learning? [ It’s okay, do you want me to write so we can talk comfortably? ]
Ivan shook his head no and continued communicating through sign. [ No, I want you to be comfortable. I learn very quickly. You can just teach me if I make some mistakes or don’t understand you. ]
[ Then…I want to start by apologizing. I didn’t mean to…raise my middle finger at you ]
Ivan blinked at him before laughing, [ That honestly caught me off guard. I thought you had some grudge against me, and my learning of sign language had been in vain ]
Till jolted back, the pencil on his notepad rolling off the table and falling to the pavement with a clunk. Ivan flashed him a dazzling smile as he eloquently introduced himself, almost as if he had been rehearsing it for the longest time. [ I want to introduce myself to you again. My name’s Ivan. You bought coffee in the shop I work in 2 months ago. I fell in love with you at first sight, so I started learning sign language as soon as I could. Are you interested in dating with the intention of long-term companionship and possibly marriage? ]
Till was frozen in shock for a good five minutes that Ivan visibly looked worried. [ Sorry, was I too forward? ]
Till blinked, then pointed at himself, placed his thumb and middle finger over his chest, and made a gesture. [ You like me? ]
Ivan looked a little embarrassed. [ I thought I was being obvious. I always put heart stickers in your cup. ]
Till recalled the bunch of cups he had kept in a special cupboard in his studio apartment. Now that Ivan has mentioned it, they do have heart stickers. All of them. Oh God. The hot guy likes him back.
Seeing his non-responsive state. Ivan looked visibly deflated, like a dog who got told off by his owner. This sobered up Till. This was his chance. He needs to shoot his shot. It’s now or never.
Till pointed at the dark-haired youth, [ Ivan ]
Then pointed at himself [My name is Till, I am a tattoo artist not too far away from here.]
He felt his cheeks heat up when he felt his undaunting gaze towards him. He took a deep breath before motioning his fingers to both him and Ivan. He slid his palms against each other and placed a fist under his chin.
Ivan’s eyes widened. The glimmer of happiness in those eyes was something Till realized he wanted to see for a long…long….long…long time.
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Resources used:
https://www.tiktok.com/@its.patzc/video/7177954899928288539
https://www.tiktok.com/@adeleonova/video/7346978345894137121