Caramel Macchiato
Caffeinated Love [Hiatus]
Caramel Macchiato
With two other orders besides Junhong's and Daehyun's, I darted to the kitchen.
"One caramel frappachino, one latte and an iced americano." I quickly said, rushing over to the confectionary corner to pull out Daehyun's five slices of cheesecake. I placed them on a plate and removed the plastic lining the cake.
Yongguk stood in the corner, watching Anna as she made the beverages, scribbling into a previously non-existent notebook. His tongue peeked out of his lips in his concentration, and it all the more made him look like a little kid. I held in the urge to laugh at his actions, but settled on a fond smile.
As if knowing I was looking at him, Yongguk spared me a glance and smiled, warming my insides. I looked away, not wanting to make things awkward.
Anna prepared the drinks painstakingly, one by one, setting them on the counter beside the coffee machine. She turned around expectantly after she was done.
Closing his notebook, Yongguk strode over to Anna and picked up two of the beverages, before nodding his head at the other one - a silent message to tell me to get the other one.
"Thanks," I mumbled, stepping forward to grab the caramel frappachino.
Heading out of the kitchen with the orders in hand, I handed Junhong his drink and Daehyun his cakes.
"Thank you, Junhong and Daehyun. See you again," I smiled at the both of them, waving to them. I could see Yongguk passing the beverages to the customers out of the corners of my eyes, his smile causing blood to rise to my cheeks.
"Thanks, noona," Junhong murmured, snapping my attention back to him. He seemed a little reluctant to leave, but Daehyun pulled him away to a nearby seat.
I turned slightly to see Yongguk glaring at Junhong's back. Why was he angry? Did Junhong do something wrong?
He noticed I was staring and gave me a reassuring smile, before making his way to the kitchen.
'Well, that's weird.' I thought to myself, quickly attending to another customer.
The day past by quickly, clear skies becoming dark with the passing of time.
"Have a nice day!" I called out, smiling to the last customer of the day. It was eight plus then,
'Ahh...' I thought, clutching at my sore throat. 'How I wish for a drink...' I thought, shaking my head before making a move to clear the tables.
I grabbed a tray and piled the used plates and cups onto it, wiping the tables clean of liquid and crumbs. "Christy, I'm going home first." Anna called, and I looked up to see her wave goodbye. I waved back to her, smiling.
Heading to the kitchen, I dumped all the dirty plates into the sink. I caught sight of Yongguk at the coffee machine, but took no heed of what he was doing.
I scrubbed at the plates and cups, rinsing them thoroughly and then setting them to dry. I heard the slow trickle of liquid to my side, but did not dwell too much on it. I patted down my wet hands on my apron, then taking it off to hang it on the wall.
"Christy..?" Yongguk called, and I turned around to see him approaching me with a drink. He looked nervous for some reason, coming to a stop before me and holding the drink out.
I looked down to see the familiar colours of brown and white — caramel macchiato.
"Here... I made it for you. Caramel macchiato." He said hesitantly, as if afraid of my answer.
"Why do you seem scared of my reply?" I asked, reaching out for the drink. My fingers brushed against the back of his hand for the drink, cold against his warm fingers. I briefly wondered what it would be like holding hands with him.
"Afraid that you'll reject my offer," he admitted, rubbing the back of his neck, cheeks a little pink. I laughed at his cuteness.
I stirred the drink until it became a light brown, and lifted it to my lips. The cold liquid slid down my throat, bringing me relief.
"It's good for a first try. But how much milk did you put in?" I commented. ""I put in one quarter's worth. Is it not enough?" He asked, almost pouting. "You have to put in half a cup's worth of milk." I laughed, taking another sip of the drink.
We stood in comfortable silence for a while. "How's being boss of your own cafe?" I asked, thumbing the handle of the cup. "Good. Fun." He grinned, a childlike reflection of his inner happiness. I turned my head away and my heartbeat rose to thump against my ribcage. Not wanting let things become awkward, I reached past him for the caramel syrup and topped off my drink with a criss-cross of sugary goodness.
Satisfied with my end product, I grinned, putting the bottle of caramel syrup away. I brought the drink to my lips and sipped at it.
"Christy?" I turned to face him so quickly that his fingertip lightly grazed my lips. I froze at his touch. Yongguk looked very surprised, his beautiful eyes widening in shock. He retracted his hand immediately when he snapped out of it and realised he was touching my lips. I exhaled the breath I did not know I was holding. "S-sorry. There was just caramel syrup at the corner of your lips," he spluttered, raising his hands in an 'I-surrender' way.
I shook my head nervously, telling him it's fine. I away the caramel syrup at the corner of my lips and looked up at him, bursting into bashful laughter when I realized he was feeling the same — embarrassed.
The smile I have come to love tugged on his lips, and I couldn't help but smile, too.
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