25.

My hands grip on the barrel of the wooden broom as I sweep along the sidewalk, in front of Davichi Café. With every swift movement, the ends of the broom move dust, dirt, small pieces of trash, and fallen cherry blossom petals, into the small deposits of grass, alongside the street. Gentle blows from the wind cause more petals to fall from nearby trees, adding more to the mess that I have to sweep away. Five minutes later, after repeating cycles of sweeping away petals to only have newer ones replace the discarded ones, I decide to stop. A hum escapes from my sealed lips as I lean back against the front window of the café. I gaze down at the pink and white petal-speckled sidewalk.

Eh, I tried. This is the best I can do.

My eyelids begin to get heavy as my head turns up to the sky. Hues of auburn and burnt orange come into sight as I feel the sun beaming down on my face, the wind brushing against my body and a few petals softly falling upon my face. The hues slowly disappear and are replaced with the image of Minseok. My heartbeat commences to beat faster and one of my palms abandons the broom to rest on top of my chest.

…I like him…

A smile creeps on my face and I open my eyes.

I, Aya, like Kim Minseok.

My smile becomes brighter, causing my eyes to be reduced to small pearl-sized orbs and my lips widen to the bottoms of my cheeks. I continue to smile to myself as walk back into the main area of the café, with the broom in hand. I head over to the storage closet and place the broom in there.

I should tell him… He probably thinks I don't like him now.

A nearby customer raises his hand, requesting an extra napkin for his spilled tea. I excitedly nod and bounce over to the counter. In one motion, I reach over the counter, grab a few napkins, and walk back over to the customer. I hand them to him and politely bow, swiftly ending our encounter. I amble back to the counter, to take a seat on a mini stool, next to Won. My hand slides into my apron, feeling around for my phone. I pull it out, quickly navigating to the messaging application.    

How should I say it? 

My head turns to the window, causing my mind to drift off, thinking off all of the possible ways to confess to Minseok.

Hmm.. what about a classic ‘I like you.’?

“Soo…… anything new?”

Would that be too straightforward? How about, ‘Cherry blossoms and I have a love/hate relationship right now, but one thing I don’t hate is you’?

“Aya?”

Ugh, no.

“Earth to Aya.”

My smile drops off my face and turn my head to face Won.

“Good, you’re back. Soooooo, anything new?”

I raise an eyebrow at Won.

“Anything new? Ya know, with life and everything?”

I shrug and turn away, with the smile returning to my face.

“Hey, I know something’s up. I've never seen you smile this big. It's always the 'polite, innocent Aya-like' smile,” Won says, with a teenage girl’s voice.

While putting my phone back into my apron, I pull out my notepad and pencil. Flipping to a blank page, I begin to write a response.

“Ehh. And nothing is up.”

“Yes, there is,” Won stresses while poking me on the side. I can’t help but to smile.

“See! I knew it,” Won exclaims.

I shrug.

“What happened?”

“Things...”

“Wait.. is it with Minseok? Something happened?”

I nod and look away.

“You guys are getting married?”

I turn me head back with deadpan expression on face.

“So no…Did you guys go on a date?”

I shake my head.

“I know, “ he begins, ”He kissed you,” Won loudly whispers.

My cheeks began to warm up and my hands fly to my face, in hopes to calm myself.

“No,” Won say, in disbelief, while poking me.

I quickly nod with my face still in my hands. 

“About time! Hmm, if I didn’t know any better, you look like someone who just got their first kiss or something…,” Won teases, continuing to slowly poke me.

I wiggle away from his fingers and decide to get up and walk over to a far table. Won follows after me.

“Hey, hey Aya, can you come here really quick?” Hyun asks from behind the kitchen curtain. My head whips in the direction of his voice and I nod in response. After making a face at Won, I pace over to the curtain, swiftly pushing it aside, walking into the kitchen.  I pace around the counter and stop in front of the sight of Hyun, frantically scrolling down an article on his phone. I tap him on his arm, gaining his attention. Hyun scrolls the article to the top and hands the phone over to me. I glance down at the screen and the headline reads, 'DISPATCH REPORTS: KAI AND KRYSTAL ARE DATING'.

Isn't he a member of Minseok's group?

"This is all over the news. Aya, look at the comments.”

I skip over the body of the article to scroll down to the comments area.

“You'd expect the fans to be happier about it…," Hyun mumbles to himself.

BlackPearl12 says:

NO! Anyone but Krystal! KAIIIII WHYYYYYY?!?!

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xJongInWifex says:

I can't believe it. Well, down goes f(x)…. Who's with me?

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Nishikiri says:

Aww, they're cute together!

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Dom2kjd says:

Ugh Krystal's such a b*tch…. Can't stand her

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I continue to scroll down, reading through the comments.  There are more comments against the relationship than for it.

Ugh, I can't read anymore.

I hand Hyun his phone back.

"K-pop fans can be pretty ruthless. They fail to forget that the idols are humans too," Hyun mutters.

“I know Minseok is part of this group. You two seem to be getting close. I can’t imagine what would happen if something did happen between you and Minseok. Fans would definitely attack you. Be careful, Aya,” Hyun warns.

They would attack both of us and this can hurt his career. I don’t want that to happen.  

The vibration from my apron snaps me out of my thoughts. Pulling out my phone, a small notification appears on the screen.

Message --

Minseok

I unlock my phone and open the message.

-------------------------------------------------
To: Aya
From: Minseok

I wish I was at the café with you
right now. Ughh I’m bored out of
my mind. :p

Sent: 1:02pm

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I…I can’t confess…

Author's Note:

Alo everyone! Hope you're all doing well.

If you haven't seen, I posted a new oneshot, called: The Ex I Never Had. It would mean a lot if you checked it out!

Don't forget to comment!!