Back at the table, the EXO boys had gotten settled into their seats with the manager, Changsun, and his wife, Ara, at the head of the table. There was one empty chair.

“Where’s Kris?” asked Changsun.

“He was taking too long getting ready so we left without him. Don’t worry, we called another taxi for him,” said Suho with a grin.

Jade reemerged from the employee lounge after recuperating from her embarrassing moment. She buried her nerves and approached the table with a stack of menus in her arms.

“Hello everyone, my name is Jade and I’ll be your server for today. Please let me know if you need anything!”

Baekhyun, Luhan, and Chanyeol exchanged a mischievous look.

“Miss Jade, could you sing for us again?” said Baekhyun.

Jade raised a bemused eyebrow. “Only if you guys will be my backup singers.”

The boys all shouted “Yes!” in unison.

Jade beamed. “Maybe next time.”

The manager glanced at his wife with a bemused look. His boys were especially talkative today.

After everyone finished clamoring to order their drinks, Jade brought out a huge tray of glasses. She struggled under the weight, but made it to the table without spilling a single drop. Luhan got up and tried to help by quickly removing drinks from one side of the tray. However, this upset the careful balance she had maintained and she stumbled backward. A firm hand pressed into the small of her back and stopped her fall but it was too late. Most of the drinks had already drenched Jade from the neck down and the glasses shattered on the ground. She felt a stinging sensation and looked down to discover a gash on her shin and tiny nicks all over her ankles.

“Are you okay?” Tears had welled up in Jade’s eyes but she looked up and locked eyes with Kris. His hand remained gently placed on her back and his concerned face was too much for her to handle. Luckily, Ho Dong rushed to her rescue and after profuse apologies, sent her back to the employee lounge.

Jade looked at her reflection in the mirror and laughed dryly at what a mess she’d become. The door to the lounge opened. Jonghyun entered and embraced her from behind. “Come on, let’s get you cleaned up.”

After bandaging her wounds, she went behind the changing screen to get out of her wet clothes and change into her normal clothes. “Jonghyun…I think someone else should take over for me…”

Jade stepped out in her hot pink Doraemon shirt, dark skinny jeans, and green Converse shoes. “I look like a 12 year old. I can’t serve VIP guests like this! I’ll ask Ho Dong if I can work in the back today.”

For the rest of lunch time, Jade hid herself in the back. She hated every minute of it because she was now into the realm of Min Sook, who was already furious with her for breaking glasses and wasting so many drinks. The grumpy chef took every opportunity to chastise her. Whenever Jade had to emerge from the kitchen, she kept her head down. She chanced one look over at EXO’s table to see that Jonghyun had replaced her as their server. Although he wore a smile on his face, Jade could tell he was not his usual charming self. His eyes were only focused on the centerpiece on the table. Finally, EXO finished eating and left. Jade finished the rest of her shift in silence. The hours passed and finally, it was 6pm so she grabbed her bag and headed out the door.

Ho Dong chased after her. “Wait! Can you work overtime today? EXO’s coming back here for dinner…and the boys specifically asked for you as their server.”

“But oppa, my uniform is ruined!”

Ho Dong did his trademark eye crinkling laugh. “I knew you’d say that. Please stay? They really liked you!” Seeing the incredulous look on Jade’s face, Ho Dong quickly added, “I’ll pay you triple.”

“Deal!"