2108, Korea

It was somewhere near the evening when Taekwoon pushed open the wooden door of his workplace. The smell of brewed coffee immediately lifting his tired soul as he walked towards the kitchen, greeting the staff and some customers before disappearing behind the double doors to get changed.

He immerged out of the back a few minutes later in his uniform – a simple white dress shirt with its sleeves folded to his elbows and black jeans which complemented his long legs – and finished the look with a half apron which fit nicely around his slender waist. His presence was intimidating for his quiet nature, superior height and broad shoulders but he was one of the reasons why the café was mainly filled with girls in the evening. Drinking the delicious coffee was just an excuse for them to gawk at his handsomeness but he didn’t really care, as long as they paid and enjoyed the coffee, he would gladly let them stare.

The atmosphere in the café was calm as his noisy co-worker, Jaehwan was on a break till eight –which was half an hour away – so he could work in peace till then.

Tying a knot on his apron and neatly tucking it so that he looked prim and proper, he looked up and was greeted with a pair of big eyes. But they weren’t the eyes he was so used to seeing, so used to staring into whenever he had a conversation with her face to face. These eyes were a dark shade of brown, almost raven if under low light and they were slightly smaller but still big nonetheless.

The girl gave him a subtle smile, looking at her feet to avoid his cold gaze. Taekwoon remembered her, she was a regular customer and would always be around when it was his shift.

“Welcome to Starlight, what would you like?” he spoke, staring at her intently as she looked up but still avoided his gaze, a light shade of pink on her cheeks as her eyes darted everywhere but at him.

“I’ll have an iced mocha latte, regular. And a slice of banana cake.” she replied, her voice soft and quiet.

“Very well. Your order will be ready soon, may I know your name?”

“Leah.”

“Please retrieve your order at the counter on your right when it is done, have a nice day Ms. Leah.”

She nodded shyly and walked to an empty table before sitting down, her long, honey brown curls swaying along with her movements. He couldn’t help but notice that she was very pretty, her perfect features showed that she wasn’t your typical Korean citizen. He was caught staring at her for a little too long when a sudden hand slid to rest on his broad shoulders.

“She’s pretty isn’t she?” the familiar voice of his noisy co-worker vibrated in his eardrums. His peaceful evening was disrupted earlier than he thought. “Sure,” Taekwoon replied, “If you say so Jaehwan.”

 “C’mon hyung, please don’t tell me you’re not the least bit interested in her? She’s Leah Park, a senior from my school.”

Taekwoon gave the younger a judging stare as if to say ‘so what if she’s your senior’ before he went to work on the said girl’s order. “She’s a major in theatre and the top in her class, in every semester. She already has a scholarship to Seoul’s Academy of Music in her palms and I even heard that she was offered a spot in Julliard. Plus her family’s filthy rich, they own properties all over Gangnam and Incheon. I say she likes you. I mean she only comes here when it’s your shift which is like every evening except on Sundays.” The younger babbled on as he opened the refrigerator to retrieve a slice of banana cake.

“Jaehwan, keep quiet. You’re so noisy.” The older retorted, pouring the finished drink into a cup.

“I’m just saying. She has a thing for you. Besides she’s half German so her face itself is a masterpiece.”

Jaehwan was right, this Leah girl was pretty. Very pretty and very talented. But he didn’t feel anything for her, not when his heart was