The rain dripped down the awning of the little cafe. Twirling a stir stick between her fingers, she sipped at the hot latte in front of her. Suddenly, just as she was getting ready to close the cafe and go home, tinkling bells sounded as the door slammed open.

“Oh! Welcome to Cherry Tree Cafe. How can I help you?”

A dripping wet boy smiled shyly and ordered a macchiato. Moving quickly and deftly around the cafe, she made the drink. Before handing the cup to the boy, she darted into the greenhouse connected to the back of the cafe. Plucking a single, red ripe cherry, she placed some whipped cream and the cherry on the side of the plate.

“Here you are, a macchiato.”

“Thank you.”

She noticed that his navy blue hoodie and black jeans were soaked through from the rain.

“Would you like to go dry off in the back? We have a dryer,”

He looked up at her from long lashes in surprise and ducked his head.

“Thank you, I’d really like that.” he whispered.

She led him to the private washroom and returned to her post behind the counter. Staring out the window, she noted the rain pounding down harder, making the sky dark and gray, the outside a jacket of cold rain. The warm, comfortable lights of the cafe seemed like a beacon on the lonely, shadowy street. Moments later, the boy reappeared with his clothes drier than they were before. She grabbed her warm latte and a bowl of cherries from the back.

“While we’re stuck here hiding from the rain, wanna talk?” He smiled and pulled the chair out for her. Placing the cherries down and sitting, they began to talk.

“I’m Risao. I own this shop, inherited from my parents.”

“I’m Jeon Wonwoo. I was studying for exams and lost track of time. Then, it was just my luck that I got lost in the rain going home. Luckily, I spotted a light and found a wonderful cafe with a beautiful girl.” Risao blushed and looked down. Smiling, they continued to chatter on in the warm cafe, learning more about each other. A bright flash lit up the sky, noticed by both Wonwoo and Risao sitting near the window.

“I hope we don’t have a power outage. I get cold so easily, I rely a lot on the heat in here.” Risao stuttered. Wonwoo grabbed her hand and held