For: meimei13

Partner: Seventeen's Joshua

I hope you like it! Sorry for the long wait~

Mei came out of her new, rundown apartment and stepped onto Time Square. She looked around at all the bright lights in awe with her notebook clutched against her chest.

"It's just the beginning." She smiled to herself before making her way to the cafe/diner down the street. She looked at the job offer flyer and ripped it off before going inside.

A round, jolly man greeted her with a bright smile. 

Mei smiled back. "I came for the job offer. Is it still available?"

The man dropped the rag he was using to wipe the counter. "Of course!" 

Mei took her resume out of her notebook and handed it to him. The man shook his hands and head. "You don't have to turn a resume in. I can tell that you'll work hard just by the look on your face. You're hired!"

Mei went back to her apartment and started to unpack. She would start working as a waitress the next day so she wanted to rest as much as she could.

She plopped down on her bed and sighed as she stared up at her off-white colored ceiling. She held her necklace locket and opened it. She smiled at the picture of her mother.

"I'm finally in the big city mom. Now, I just have to work my way up to become an official songwriter." She caressed the picture before kissing it once and drifting off to sleep.

The next morning, Mei got dressed and walked to the cafe. "Good morning, sir!" 

The man was wiping the tables and looked up. "Hi, Mei! Ready for your first day?" Mei beamed and saluted him. "Yes, sir!"

Mei wiped the dirty tables and waited the customers. She put the dirty dishes away and almost bumped into the owner. "Oops, sorry sir."

The man chuckled and patted her shoulder. "It's okay. Aren't you working a little too hard? Here." He gave her a cup of freshly brewed coffee. "You can take a break."

"Oh, thank you sir." Mei took the coffee and decided to roam around the spacious diner part of the shop. She gasped in awe when she saw a mini stage at the back.

She walked on and looked at all the instruments. There was a keyboard, drumset, piano, and mic stand. She traced the keys on the keyboard with a small smile on her face. She was so concentrated on the keyboard that she didn't notice that she was walking toward the end of the stage.

"Ah!" She yelped as she fell forward. The cup flew out of her hand as she landed in someone's arms. 

"Are you okay?" 

Mei looked up at the gentle voice and gulped. A handsome man with cat-like eyes looked at her in concern. Mei quickly straightened up and lowered her head. "I'm okay, thank you."

She looked up and gasped at the coffee stain on his white shirt. "Oh my gosh! Your shirt!" 

He looked down and chuckled. "It's alright. I can always buy a new one." Mei stuck her lower lip out as she kept apologizing. "Ah! I'll make you a coffee for free." 

She was about to walk past him when he grabbed her arm. "Careful." She looked at him in confusion.

He pointed at the ground. Mei followed his finger and her jaw went slack when she saw the broken glass cup on the floor. "Oh my," she quickly bent down and started to pick up the pieces.

The young man held her hand back again. "You're going to cut yourself." Mei looked at him and was once again shocked by his beauty. "R-Right. I'll go get a broom." Mei scrambled toward the pantry near the main counter and the young man laughed.

When Mei came back, the young man was gone. She frowned and cleaned the mess up. When she looked back at the keyboard, she noticed a note stuck onto it. 

"Don't worry about the shirt, and see you on Friday?" Mei furrowed her brows. Her heart fluttered as a thought crossed her mind. "Is he...asking me out?" Mei squealed and quickly cupped and looked around to see if anyone saw or heard her.

She looked at the note again and smiled before putting it in her pocket and going back to work.

On Friday night, the diner was rather more packed than usual. 

"Is there a sepcial event today?" Mei asked the owner.

"Oh right, you don't know. Every Friday night, we hold a mini concert here, so people crowd around to watch the performance."

Mei nodded in understanding. I wonder who it is. Right when she finished her thought, the back door opened and the customers started to clap and cheer.

Mei's jaw dropped when she saw the young man from earlier. What is he...that's what he meant by tonight.

The young man walked onto the stage holding a guitar with his friends. He made eye contact with her and winked, making her blush. 

His friends and he set up their instruments and he grabbed the mic. He introduced the band and Mei applauded with the customers.

"Tonight, I will be singing a new song I wrote that was inspired by a certain clumsy, cute waitress that I was thankful to meet a couple days ago." Mei felt her body heating up as he never broke eye contact with her as he smiled.

He started strumming as the keyboard came in.

Mei stopped what she was doing and melted to his sweet voice as he sang. The customers swayed along to the song as it came to an end. Mei enthusiastically clapped and smiled as he looked at her and winked again.

After the performance was over, it was time to close up the diner and cafe. Mei was about to lock the doors when she felt a presence behind her. She turned around and almost fell back because he was standing so close to her.

He caught her waist again and helped her stand still. "Thanks," Mei mumbled. 

"Did you like the song? It was for you." 

Mei's heart fluttered. "It was really good. I enjoyed it."

"Oh, look at me, I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Joshua." Mei smiled, "I'm Mei."

"Um, are you...free after?"

Mei's mouth went dry as she stuttered, "U-Uh, y-yeah I am." She looked at her attire. "Let me just." She struggled to take off her apron as her hands shook with nervousness. 

Joshua chuckled and Mei's breath hitched when he wrapped his arms around her to untie the apron. He put it on the counter and smiled. "Ready now?"

Mei nodded, "Yes." Her voice was small as her cheeks grew red. "Great. My car is in the back." He grabbed her hand and walked her to the back door.