This was bad. 

Yuri hadn't stepped foot into this cafe ever since Taeyeon given her the cold shoulder the other day. She was so insistent on not going to the cafe though she made Yoona grab some snacks for her time and again. Yoona didn't want to help Yuri with this, not after she looked so hurt after the small incident with Taeyeon but Yuri might feel worse if she didn't so she helped without asking.

Even though Tiffany was indefinitely pissed off with Taeyeon the previous week, she knew Taeyeon had been under tremendous stress and she had been cold to Yuri in a fit of overwhelming pressure. 

And so, Tiffany and Yoona became the two unfortunate middlemen in this situation. 

“She wants another brain cake?” Tiffany asked in astonishment, her jaw hanging as low as it could get, “I’ve already lost count of the number of brain cakes she’s eaten from the first time she was in this café till now.”

Yoona simply shrugged and took a seat near the counter, sipping on her macchiato as she checked for reports on her phone. She had been waiting patiently for Yuri’s text since this morning but it never came, so she assumed Yuri wanted the same order. Yuri rarely changed her orders since she wasn’t fussy but it was abnormally quiet today; no messages or calls, nothing.

What if something happened to Yuri back home?

After all, Yuri never slept till 11am or 12pm because of their work routines but it was already 1.30pm and there was still no response from the latter. 

Tiffany walked into the kitchen and looked around for the short baker, hoping to hint to Taeyeon that there was something wrong with Yuri. Yet, she couldn't see any Taeyeon anywhere, not even in the back where Taeyeon sat during her break. She could only hand the order to Sooyoung since Taeyeon wasn't here... 

“You’re asking me to bake it?” Sooyoung’s jaw dropped in shock, “you know I’m not very good at baking those disgusting things of hers!”

“What disgusting things?”

Sooyoung and Tiffany turned around and found Taeyeon adjusting her toque with a tired expression; she probably just woke up and came to work late. Taeyeon was late but no issue since the manager was never around in the day, her friends were definitely not going to rat her out either so Taeyeon wasn’t afraid. Furthermore, she’s been working her of for this café so she deserved a little leniency.

Tiffany rolled her eyes and flashed the notepad in Taeyeon’s face, “another brain cake and some bloody muffins.” Taeyeon just nodded silently and quickly washed her hands, preparing a sufficient amount of dough for the huge order, “tell Yuri that it’s going to take a while. I don’t have any of those on shelf yet.” Tiffany shrugged, “Yuri hasn’t been here for the past few days, so take your time.”

Taeyeon’s actions froze momentarily; she hadn’t even realised that Yuri didn’t come for the past few days and it made her wonder if it was because of her actions the other day. That couldn’t be the case though; Yuri was thick-skinned enough to play so many pranks and get all narcissistic with Tiffany – she couldn’t have been scared off by the cold shoulder she received last week.

“Oh well… she has suffered quite a bit.”

Sooyoung’s soft mumbling didn’t escape Taeyeon’s sharp ears, and it made Taeyeon wonder if something happened to Yuri without any of them knowing. Yuri had never gone MIA even when Taeyeon scolded her last time but this time, she had been missing for almost one week. Emphasizing once more, Yuri was a thick-skinned, childish woman but she did make Taeyeon smile once in a while. 

“Sooyoung-ah, you haven’t seen Yuri either?” Taeyeon tried to pretend as if she was busy and was merely passing a casual remark but Sooyoung saw through it almost immediately, “yeah. I heard even Yoona hasn’t received a single text the whole morning and it’s not something that always happens.”

If Yoona was also getting alarmed at the no-show from Yuri, it was saying something and Taeyeon was getting inevitably worried. She didn’t want to feel worried or feel empty inside but she did, and it was starting to affect her mind. Taeyeon mindlessly moved her hands to knead the dough, though her eyes were clearly showing how lost she was – what if something did happen to Yuri?

Taeyeon shoved the tray of dough into the oven and rested her palms on the table behind, waiting for the various desserts to bake. Her mind was running wild, and she didn't want to think about anything anymore but scenes and snippets of Yuri getting hurt or sick in bed was replaying over and over again - if that was the case, then Yuri must be lonely and suffering alone. 

Ding!

Sooyoung was busy making one of her favourite creations - blueberry vanilla cheesecake - and minding her own business when she didn't hear the sound of the oven opening. She turned over to remind Taeyeon about the baking time when she realised just how lost her colleague was. A sigh left her lips as she walked towards the oven, taking out Taey