The boy named Doyoon smiled and approached us.  He and Seungcheol hugged briefly.

                “What are you doing here?” Seungcheol asked.

                “The commute from my old place to the studio was too far, so I changed houses and transferred schools,” Doyoon explained. His eyes shifted to me.

                “Are you Seungcheol’s…?” His voice trailed off.

                “Friend. Yes,” I replied.

                “Ah, I should introduce you. This is Jang Doyoon.  He’s a trainee too, under the same company. He moved to Seoul from Busan,” Seungcheol said. “And Doyoon, this is Kim Mikyung, my…friend.”

                Doyoon extended his hand and I shook it.

                “Nice to meet you,” he said warmly. 

                Seungcheol cleared his throat. “Are you in this class?”

                “Yeah. I was looking for the teacher, but I guess its lunchtime. Are you in this class too?”

                “No, I’m just hanging out with Mimi.”

                Doyoon chuckled a little at the name and I looked down at my hands in embarrassment. 

                The bell rang, and there was already a commotion in the halls as students headed back to class. 

                Seungcheol glanced from me to Doyoon and back. “See you later,” he said before leaving. 

                “Cheol’s friend, huh?” Doyoon mused, regarding me with a slight smirk on his lips.

                Soojin appeared and sat noisily beside me. “Who’re you?” she asked Doyoon, an eyebrow raised.

                He opened his mouth to reply, but the loud voice of the teacher cut him off.

                “Jang Doyoon?”

                “Yes, that’s me,” Doyoon said, turning towards the front of the classroom. A wave of murmurs passed through and many of the girls were already sizing him up. 

                “You’re like an attractive boy magnet,” Soojin whispered to me.

                I scoffed and went back to studying, Seungcheol’s dumb rap in the back of my mind. 

-x-

                I didn’t want to go in alone, but Soojin had some mysterious, sudden appointment that rendered her unable to go, no matter what kind of timeframe I set.

                I considered not going in at all, shifting uncomfortably a few feet away from the café’s entrance.  A group of excited middle schoolers passed me and walked in, where they were promptly seated by one of the handsome servers. I strengthened my resolve. If middle schoolers could do it, why couldn’t I?

                “Hi! Welcome to Secret Garden,” a boy greeted as I entered. I tried not to laugh at the name of the place and let him direct me to a seat. He gave me a menu and then scuttled off to another table. I skimmed the choices, all overpriced, and clasped my hands together, looking around.  It better not be his day off…

                I zoned out, watching people go about their afternoon through the window. A little boy was crying in his mother’s arms as she bounced him up and down, trying to soothe him. A couple with their arms around each other’s waists took turns eating from an ice cream cone while laughing, lost in their own little world.

                I snapped out of my daze when I heard a plate being set in front of me. I started to say that I didn’t order anything when I locked eyes with Seungcheol.

                “I didn’t know what kind of cake you liked, so I went with cheesecake.”

                I looked down blankly at the pastry. “Oh. Thanks. How much is it?” I started to reach for my wallet.

                He shook his head and smiled. “Don’t worry about it. I told you I’d buy you cake if you came, didn’t I?”

                “Seungcheol, it’s fine. I needed a break from studying anyway. I was planning to come here.”

                He nudged my shoulder playfully. “Don’t lie.  I know you’re running through vocabulary in your head as we speak. You even brought your backpack with you.”

                I couldn’t help but smirk at that.  After all, he was right.

                “I’ll enjoy it, then,” I said, picking up the fork. Seungcheol sat in the seat across from me. He looked funny in the white collared shirt and black apron that all the other guys were wearing. Here, he seemed to adhere more to the dress code. At school, he wore his uniform rebelliously, his tie loosened, shirt untucked.

                “Aren’t you supposed to be, I don’t know, working?” I asked as I took my first bite. The cheesecake was good; I’d give the shop that. 

                “I’m on break,” he replied with a grin. Something told me that he wasn’t telling the truth. “So what do you think? Are you swooning at the sight of me yet? Do you admit that I belong with these other pretty boys?”

                I glanced at the other servers. “No.  Someone like Doyoon fits in more.”

                Seungcheol looked crestfallen.

                “But…” I trailed off, suddenly shy. The words I was thinking of already sounded incredibly cheesy in my head, and I couldn’t imagine them coming out of my mouth. 

                “But?” he pressed.

                I looked down at my cake. “You’re not like them. You have your own good parts.”

                He started smiling again and covered his face, trying to conceal his obvious enjoyment. “I would have given you a thousand cheesecakes to make you say that.”

                I kicked him under the table. “Stop acting so happy – it’s weirding me out. I didn’t really say much,” I muttered, feeling heat rush to my face. 

                “Seungcheol!  Stop flirting with your girlfriend and get back to work!” someone called from across the store. A few people looked towards us with knowing smiles, making my cheeks even warmer.

                Seungcheol rose. “Do you want to come to the studio with me later?  I’ll be done here in two hours.”

                I pressed my lips together, considering. I should be at home studying, but I had my books with me and it was Sunday. I could afford to have a distraction.

                “Sure.”

                I had my books spread on the table in front of me, but my eyes kept wandering to Seungcheol, watching him interact with the other customers. He was bright and energetic, and I saw more than a few girls whispering excitedly about him. He wasn’t only like an eager puppy around me. He seemed to know his way into the hearts of women.  Which made me wonder…

                “Have you ever had a girlfriend?” I asked him slowly as we walked to the studio. The sun was setting, casting its orange-yellow light over us. 

                A sly smirk tugged on his lips. “Why do you want to know?”

                “I was just wondering.” 

                He laughed. “No. I’ve never had a girlfriend before.”

                “Why not?”

                We came to the studio, and he opened the door.  He leaned towards me.

                “I’m waiting for the right person to let me into her heart.”