"Both of you is a bitter black coffee and it shows"

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You were tired.

You were beyond tired, actually. You were exhausted. It was a very long day for you to start your summer. No, you were certainly not a college student and you don’t get a typical fun summer holiday, but fun for you has a whole different meaning.

Beep. You just arrived at your apartment when a message notification popped up from your phone, and damn, how you wish you turned your phone off earlier.

Miss Kim, I’m expecting the answer by tomorrow. I would really glad if you take the offer and make things go easier and smoother.

You sighed for the nth time in a day as you threw your phone and your whole body to the sofa. That’s when you suddenly decided to walk to your kitchen to make some coffee, just because coffee is the only thing that understands you. You should’ve realized that luck hasn’t been with you all day long as you find out that you are running out of coffee.

You were annoyed. Guess it’s true that sometimes things you love still can let you down. And it hurts more, which is . But, no, you weren’t hurt because of the damned coffee, you are not that naïve.

You decided to drive to the nearest coffee shop, because being inside the huge apartment alone can be very suffocating, at least for you. What do people actually know about loneliness? Well, they know nothing.

Oh goodness, it’s like the world was testing you in some kind of way. There was a man, right in front of the shop’s door and he was on the phone, screaming furiously. He was mad and you were not taking any risk of getting killed just because you want to get inside a coffee shop. It would be a pretty epic headline, wouldn’t it?

You decided to walk passed him eventually, muttering an ‘excuse me’ to him and that’s when you saw his face for the first time. Damn, that jawline though. He stared at you a couple seconds before moving away from the door. You bowed slightly to him before you entered.

As soon as you got to the counter, the barista immediately flashed a smile at you. “Your order, Miss?”. “A large cup of black coffee,” You answered shortly, as you searched for your card. “Rough day, huh?” The barista replied with a big grin. “Uh, yeah,”. Again, you answered nonchalantly. “You know what? For a pretty lady like you, I think it would be so much better if you order our signature chamomile tea, it helps you to relax and -,”.

“There are people on the line,”. A deep voice came from behind you, making you turned your head automatically, when you found out it was the scary guy earlier. “If she wants a coffee then just give her a damn coffee,” He said without looking away from his phone. You were speechless; this guy is scary indeed. His voice held so much power, and intimidation, but that’s okay, your job requires that kind of voice too so you are used to it. “Uh, okay, you can take your order right there, miss, uh, Kim, next one, please,” The barista stuttered before you moved from the line.

He coughed a little and make you stopped your track and turned your head once again only to find his eyes met yours. That’s when you realize how well his face structure was. “One large cup of black coffee,” The other barista yelled and that’s when you broke the eye contact and walk away.

---

You decided staying at the coffee shop was better than being alone at home. You were checking your laptop, which you always bring wherever and whenever, simply because it was your only best friend. Your eyes locked on the screen, you were reading through piles of new e-mails. “Hoya,”. Oh , you knew that voice; it was the same voice that scared the barista. “What?” You raised your eyebrow confusedly when you saw the same scary guy, actually eyeing the empty seat next to you. He had his drink on his one hand, a laptop on his other hand and a cute smile on his face.  

“My name,” He answered with a playful smirk playing on his lips. “So?” You raised your brow, it’s clear that you don’t understand his intention because he looked like he could just kill everybody a couple minutes ago and now he was there in front of you and giving you a pout, which surprisingly kind of adorable. “May I sit here then?” The scary guy, or Hoya, pointed at the empty spot next to you. “Well, there are surely a lot of empty seat on this place but if that one attracts you the most then I can’t really argue with it, can I?” You shrugged.

“You are good with your words, aren’t you?” He said, after taking his seat. “I don’t know, you tell me,” You said flatly without looking away from your screen. “A giant black coffee and a wonderful skills with words,” Howon muttered. “Novelist?” He continued and his sentence successfully grabbed your attention. “Close,” You finally faced him and gave him a challenging look. “Ah, journalist,” Howon clicked his finger and smiled at you. “Lawyer,” You smirked.

“Even better,” Hoya smirked back. “Why are you here, Hoya-ssi?” You asked, something you should’ve done before you play the whole let-guess-your-job. “Now you are asking,” Hoya said as he leaned back to his chair and sipped his drink. “You are not a psychopath, aren’t you? Because if you went around looking and acting like earlier, you kind of giving people the idea,” You said. “No, besides, if you are preferring to that barista incident, I was actually saving you from a bad date, those pick-up lines he used were dead decades ago,” Hoya grinned and it was somehow, cute. “And what makes you think you will be a better companion?” You replied nonchalantly.

“I think I will understand,” Hoya shrugged. Now you are interested, it, you don’t care if he is a stalker, but you were staring at him now, and you realize, his eyes were actually screaming sadness when he finished those words. “People called it sonder,” Hoya continued. “That word is not even real,” You replied. “Not unreal, just isolated,” He gave you a weak smile. Weird, at that moment you feel like he actually understands you. “Why me? How can you be so sure that the barista you scare the out of, doesn’t really have an interesting story behind those cute flower boy smile?”.

“Like what?” Hoya leaned closer to the table. “Like, what if he has a little brother who is fighting cancer or his father dumped him when he was only five years old and becoming a barista is his only way to earn money?” You replied. “Clichés,” He smirked. “But what can I say? My ed up life story is also another clichés,” He continued. “Parent’s divorce?” You raised your brow. “Nope. A second child who is trying to shine but always blocked by his older brother’s shadow,” Hoya gave a slight smirk. “Ah, classic,” You replied.

“So, your parents are divorcing?” Hoya said while sipping his drink. You gave him an amused look as you leaned back to your seat. “Their first trial is on the end of this month, what’s your job?” You asked him. It is his turn to give you a stern look; you thought he would kill you because you have reached that sensitive topic of him. “Come on, strangers won’t judge other strangers,”. “I thought we passed as strangers,” He replied. Your mouth won’t stop, it’s entertaining to see his brow rose. “Daddy owns a multimillion worth company?” Your lips form a smirk when he suddenly chuckled at your statement. “Doctor,” He smiled at the end.

“Sometimes marriage is meant to be broke, why so sad about it? You gave an impression of a big girl who can live on her own,” Hoya said. “I hope you are not a child doctor, you look like you would kill every people you met,” You answered. “I’m not sad, I’m pissed. Not because they are divorcing, more like because they are both stubborn and won’t go with a smooth kind of divorce,” You continued.            

“And they gave you headache because you are a lawyer and they assumed you would help one of them to get more money than the other," Hoya stated. “You sounds experienced,” You were taken a bit taken aback. “Wild guess,” Hoya grinned.  “Personal experience sounds more convincing for me though,” You said. “Nah, my mommy and daddy,” Hoya said mockingly, he was gritting his teeth. “Are enjoying life to the fullest with their one and only favorite son who was crowned as the doctor of the year, last year, by Korean Doctor Association while forgetting that they h