Eli sat down for an interview for the 8th time of the day. The man seated opposite Eli was none other than the manager of the shopping mall. He looked like he was in his fourties. He was wearing a white T-shirt that looked too tight for him and a simple grey bermuda pants. He probably haven't shave in days because it looked untrimmed. And mainly, he was fat. The manager looked through Eli's application form for the interview for a few minutes and then set it on the table. 

  "You are...an ex-convict..." The manager said carefully, afraid to offend Eli in any way. Eli's face reddened with embarassment as he nodded. He hated it when people mention that to him, it made him feel like an outcast. It's been 3 weeks since Eli got bailed out of jail and he still couldn't find a job. No shop owners would hire an ex-convict and Eli had a extremely hard time finding a shop that would accepted him. "And, you want to work here as a cashier?" The manager's question snapped Eli back to reality.

  "Not necessarily a cashier, as long as it's a job that i get paid with, it will be fine." Eli answered, hope filling into his heart. He could actually get a job for once. To his utter dissapointment, the manager shook his head. 

  "I can't hire ex-convicts, it might affect my buisness if customers know that an ex-convict is working here. I'm sorry but i could not hire you." The manager apologize sincerely. Eli sighed inwardly and got up. He thanked the manager before leaving his office. As he walked out of the shopping mall, he checked the newspaper again. There was one more shop he haven't gone for the interview yet. At first, Eli felt reluctant to go. It was late and the shop owner was likely to refuse Eli too. But since Eli didn't want to return home early, he decided to go for a try.

  To his surprise, the shop was only ready to close when he arrived. There were only 1 worker cleaning the tables. It was a cafe. Stepping in, the worker apologize to him and told him they were close for the day. 

  "I'm here for the interview. If you could, can you tell me where the owner is?" Eli asked politely. The worker stopped working for a while than walked towards Eli and told him to sit down on a chair. Still a little daze, Eli obeyed him, although he didn't know why he did. 

  "I am the owner of this shop. My name is Yoon Seung-chul." The owner said, greeting Eli with a slight bow. Eli was surprised to see the owner working and was a little taken aback. Akwardly, Eli return the bow quickly. Seung-chul was probably in his thirties, he was wearing a black T-shirt with short jeans along with a black apron in front. When Seung-chul held out his hand for the application paper, Eli quickly handed it over to him. Like the other shop owners, Seung-chul carefully read through the application. After a while, he looked up at Eli. Expecting the words 'You are an ex-convict' to come out from his mouth, Eli was surprised when he asked a different question.

  "Are you hard-working enough?" Seung-chul asked, eyeing Eli carefully. Eli nodded quickly. "Then you're hired, i've read your application form and it doesn't look bad at all. Shop opens at 8 in the morning so you need to come 30 minutes earlier to get ready. And there's another worker i would like you to meet tomorrow." Seung-chul told Eli. Surprised, Eli nodded slowly and just before Seung-chul got ready to leave the table Eli's question burst out from his mouth before he could stop it.

  "Why did you hire me?" Eli asked. Seung-chul turned back to look at Eli then smiled warmly at him. 

  "Because people like you should deserve a chance to redeem yourself. And by the way, when you're introduced to the other worker tomorrow, don't mention the fact that you are an ex-convict, she has a horrible past with people like you. So keep it to yourself or you'll be fired." Seung-chul said and motion for Eli to leave the shop. Eli thanked him with a bow and left the shop. Still a little dazed, Eli walked home.

xxx 

   Eli arrived in front of the shop at the correct time and saw Seung-chul chatting to another person. They were talking that they didn't notice Eli walking towards them. When Eli got closer, Seung-chul greeted him quickly.

   "This is Kim Su Yung. She is also a worker here." Seung-chul introduced. Eli was stunned. The girl in front of him was stunning. She had brown bright eyes and long ginger hair. There was a kind twinkle in her eyes as she greeted Eli. 

   "My name is Kim Su Yung, i'm currently 18 years old. I work part time on weekdays and full-time on weekends. I'm a waitress here. It is a pleasure to meet you." She said bowing politely. Eli quickly return the bow and introduced himself.

   "My name is Kim Kyoung Jae. But you can call me Eli. I would be working here from now on so please take good care of me." Eli return her smile. Just then, Seung-chul clapped his hands and told them to get back to work. Eli spended 30 minutes on preparing the dishes and cleaning the table while Su Yung was cleaning the counter. Eli felt a million times better while working then spending 24 hours behind bars. At least here, he had something to do that could keep him busy.

  The busy first day for Eli went on and he felt satisfied with everything. But the words Seung-chul told him from yesterday still rang aloud in his head. The fact that Su Yung had a horrible past with convicts. Eli was really curious to what happen between Su Yung in the past.

[A/N] How's my first chapter? I know it's a little boring but the following chapters would be much more interesting so please be patient ^^ Chapter 2 will be updated soon =)

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