The dreadful Sunday came faster than she would’ve liked.

Clutching the white folder tightly to her chest, Mihwa stood in front of the two-storey pâtisserie. Its red-bricked vintage exterior and well-displayed pastries seemed to mock her very existence. The familiar smell of her family’s dessert store would usually put her at ease, but for some reason, it only intensified her discomfort.

“I think I’m going to be sick…” She mumbled to herself, slowly giving in to her anxiety.

“Hey, cupcake, relax.” Seungcheol said as he reached out to pat her back. His light touch was enough to make her jolt, pulling her back to reality. The smile he gave her was warm and bright, it almost blinded Mihwa. She nodded weakly in return. Her frustratingly attractive childhood friend wasn’t helping either.

Slowly, they made their way into the pâtisserie, looking around in search for a large group of boys.

“S.Coups! Mihwa!” A voice called to them from behind the counter. Mihwa turned to see the manager of the morning shift, Kim Jonghyun, smirking at them. “They’re upstairs.”

“Thanks, JR-hyung,” Seungcheol waved at him before he and Mihwa walked to the stairs.

“S.Coups? JR? What was that?” She asked, making her way up.

“Oh, um,” The older boy laughed shyly. “Just some weird nicknames we gave each other when we worked together.”

“That’s cute.” She mused as they reached the second floor.

To Mihwa’s surprise, Seungcheol blushed. “W-what? No, n-not really.”

She didn’t even have time to process his strange reaction as two boys suddenly jumped at Seungcheol, sending three of them flying towards the wall. A loud thud was heard, followed by pained groans and boisterous laughter.

“Hyung! We missed you!” One of the boys cried, clutching Seungcheol tightly. Meanwhile, the second boy had already turned his attention to Mihwa who froze under his curious gaze.

“Who’s this? A girlfriend?” He feigned a scandalized expression. “Are you cheating on Jeonghan-hyung?”

“Seokmin, knock it off.” An attractive light haired boy called from a nearby table, four other boys were seated around it. “You’re making her uncomfortable.”

Mihwa recognized him as Yoon Jeonghan, the one she mistook for a female. Seeing him in real life heightened her insecurities. Damn, he was probably– no, scratch that, definitely prettier than her.

She caught sight of Mingyu, Wonwoo’s bestfriend, trying to get her attention.

“Lee Mihwa!” He waved enthusiastically. “Over here!”

Sighing in relief, she waved back. At least she knew another person here.

Seungcheol finally broke free from the boy’s grip, grumbling about lack of respect and making his way to the table while dragging the other one along. Mihwa followed quietly, eyes fixated on her white folder. She looked up cautiously only to lock gazes with Jisoo, the boy from her homemakers’ class two years ago. His stare was blank and unreadable.

Oh, just murder me already, she mentally sobbed.

“Okay, guys,” Seungcheol started, breaking the silence. “I’m Choi Seungcheol. I guess all of you already know me because we trained together for a while, before I applied for Le Napoléon’s internship a few months ago and got assigned to the Busan branch–”

“We missed you so much, hyung.”

“Shush, Mingyu.”

“Sorry, Jihoon-hyung.”         

“Anyway,” Seungcheol continued. “You guys applied for the same internship and now, Mihwa and I are tasked to see which of you can work full-time. But all of you aren’t just assigned to the kitchen, by the way. You’ll alternate between the kitchen, front desk and service.”

The boy nudged Mihwa, signalling her to say what she had to say.

“Oh, um, hello, I’m Lee Mihwa, nice to meet you all,” She bowed her head slightly. “I’m not sure if all of you recognize me, but I’m from KIS, as well. I’m a year younger than Mingyu-oppa–”

“Oy, Jisoo, isn’t that your dongsaeng from homemakers’ clu– ouch.”

“She’s speaking, Jun, please don’t interrupt.”

“Ah, as I was saying,” Mihwa gulped. She had to get this over with. “I’m sure you’ve all been briefed about it earlier, but as part-time interns, you guys are assigned to weekday afternoon shifts only for about six weeks. I have your schedules here with me and I’ll distribute them later while we have the tour of the shop. Um, any questions?”

“You’re Wonwoo’s cousin, right?” A small, light haired boy raised his hand. “Does that make you maître pâtissier Lee Sungil’s daughter?”

“Oh, um, yes.”

“Whoa! That’s so cool!”

“Wait,” Seungcheol interrupted, catching everyone’s attention. “Are you all familiar with each other? Does Mihwa know all of you?”

She shot him a wide-eyed look. Of course she knew them; she practically went over each of their profiles for around a thousand times that week. Well, she didn’t know them personally, but still.

“Oh, forgive us for being rude, Mihwa-ssi, I’m Lee Jihoon, 96-liner.” The light haired boy extended his hand from across the table.

“Please call me Mihwa, Jihoon-ssi.” She said timidly, accepting the handshake. “I’m younger than you after all.”

“Lee Seokmin, I’m 19-years-old,” One of the boys from earlier grinned. Mihwa admitted that his smile was probably even more blinding than Seungcheol’s. “That sounds too formal though. You should call us your oppas, instead.”

“I’ll try?”

“Yoon Jeonghan, 95-liner,” The pretty male beside him said and Mihwa couldn’t help but stare. Everything about him seemed flawless. “I’ve heard about your accomplishments, Mihwa. Please take care of us.”

Mihwa felt her cheeks warm up at the smooth sound of his voice. For a second, she wondered if he used to be in glee club with Seungkwan. She made a mental note to ask her best friend later.

“You’re Chan’s noona! I used to take dance classes with him!” Exclaimed the guy who tackled Seungcheol. “Kwon Soonyoung, 96-liner.”

“Hong Jisoo, 95-liner,” Jisoo said curtly, giving her a tight-lipped smile. Mihwa tried her best not to flinch at his cold tone.

“Wen Junhui, 96-liner,” A seemingly quiet boy at the far end of the table spoke up. “You can call me Jun.”

“Kim Mingyu, but you can call me tonight,” Mingyu winked.

Mihwa grimaced at his usual attempt at flirting. She would’ve blushed profusely at this, but she’s been friends with him long enough for her to see through his façade. Whenever he pulled one of his coquettish antics on her, she would reply in kind through physical means. Mihwa wouldn’t hesitate to punch his handsome face even though she knows he’s just kidding. But right now, first impressions were important. No violence and death threats would come by Mingyu’s way… yet.

Clearing his throat, Seungcheol stood up and gestured towards the stairs. “Alright, guys, let’s head down so you can get familiar with how things work around here.”

Lining up obediently, Mihwa and the boys followed him downstairs where Jonghyun ushered them into the kitchen. Hushed remarks of awe and wonder were heard as they stepped into the room. The place was big enough to fit all of them and the machines and oven were in good condition. Not only was Le Napoléon known for its amazing pastries, but for its state-of-the-art facilities as well, a fact that Mihwa enjoyed thoroughly.

Jonghyun toured everyone through the whole pâtisserie, starting from the kitchen until the store’s pastry display in the front. Mihwa had distributed their schedules somewhere along the way. She noted that the boys were completely focused throughout the whole tour. It made her relieved that they were serious about this whole internship. That makes her job much easier.

“And there you have it, folks. Le Napoléon’s Samseong-Dong branch in all its glory,” Jonghyun beamed when it was over. “If you have any questions or need advice, you can always catch me on the morning shift.”

Everyone thanked him for his time as he said goodbye and made his way back into the store. The seven boys stood outside silently for a couple of minutes, still wonderstruck at the fact that they were actually going to work at Le Napoléon.

“Whoa,” Soonyoung sighed dreamily, turning towards his friends. “I’m oddly nervous and excited at the same time.”

“I know right? It feels surreal.” Jihoon said. The interns nodded in sincere agreement and Mihwa couldn’t help but smile at them.

“Ah, I seriously hope I don’t mess things up,” Seokmin chuckled nervously.

“Me too,” Jisoo added.

“Hey, now, don’t look so glum,” Seungcheol squeezed between him and Seokmin, slinging his arms over their shoulders. “Under Mihwa's and my guidance, you'll all be able to get that slot in the company.”

He beckoned the other guys to come closer and they obliged happily. Soon enough, they were all in a circle, giving each other a few words of encouragement and making some inspiring motto. Mihwa stared, a warm feeling spreading through her chest. Maybe it was a mixture of bliss and pride. They make a good team.

“I believe in you guys,” She said softly, hoping her comment would go unnoticed. But it didn’t. Mingyu caught her smiling at them.

“Mihwa! Come here!” He smirked at her flustered expression, bounding towards her.

“No, thank you, oppa– ah!” Mihwa squealed when Mingyu pulled her into the group, putting her between Jihoon and Jeonghan. She fit snuggly, realizing that she was even smaller than the light-haired boy.

“Let’s make a team name!” Soonyoung exclaimed, nudging Seungcheol. The eldest grinned at the suggestion.

“Hey, that’s a cool idea. Why not?”

“What would it be though?” Jun asked.

“A play on words! Hm, we’re like, nine people running a high-end dessert shop,” Mingyu rambled on, clearly enthusiastic. “Nine teenagers, in short, Nineteen! With pastries, we can be Sweet Nineteen! Whoa we sound like a boy band already!”

“Now that’s just plain weird.” Jihoon snorted, earning a playful punch from the younger boy.

Jeonghan shrugged. “Only seven of us will be working hard though, since Seungcheol-hyung and Mihwa are technically managers.”

“Seventeen, then?” Jisoo joked.

“Yeah, that definitely sounds cooler than Mingyu’s Nineteen.” Soonyoung quipped and the other guys agreed.

“You all .”

“So, that’s what we are now? Seventeen?” Seungcheol grinned, looking to Mihwa for confirmation.

She was too preoccupied with her thoughts on how amazing these guys are. Their teamwork, their enthusiasm and their talent– and they haven’t even started yet. Hopefully, her dad would hire all of them.

“Mihwa?” He called again.

Unfortunately for her, she only caught snippets of the conversation. Genuinely confused, Mihwa’s face scrunched up.

“Oh, sorry, what? Sweet bean? Patbingsu?”

There was a long, awkward silence before whole group erupted in a fit of uncontrollable laughter. Realizing her mistake, Mihwa buried her face in her hands. She misheard Seventeen for sweet beans. Oh God, she was going to die of shame while everyone else died of laughter.

“I can’t, it’s too hilarious–”

“How did you even think of patbingsu?”

“Oh my goodness–”

“You’re too cute, Mihwa.” Still laughing, Jeonghan wiped a tear away from his eye and patted her head. The unexpected comment surprised her, causing Mihwa to turn a darker shade of pink.

“So we're team Sweet Bean, then?” Jisoo teased, his usually guarded expression wasn’t hiding his amusement anymore.

“No, no, no, the name Seventeen is great!” Mihwa shook her head frantically. She wasn’t going to let them commemorate her crappy listening skills by making it the “team name”. Nope. Not today.

Mihwa wasn’t sure if her slip up was something to fuss over though, because Jisoo’s gaze finally seemed to soften when she looked him in the eye. Although, he turned away abruptly when he caught himself staring for too long, a subtle blush creeping up his cheeks. He's still the same old bashful gentleman she met years ago.

Admittedly, Mihwa missed Jisoo. He was a great friend and cooking mentor back in high-school before she went and messed their friendship up. Maybe this chance encounter was the heavens telling her to make amends. Yes, make amends, make friends and get the hell out of this dessert industry. 

“Seventeen.” Seungcheol finalized, smiling from ear-to-ear when the interns gave a joyful yell.

Mihwa mirrored that smile, feeling a little more positive about the whole situation. Yeah, she still disliked the pâtisserie business, but working with these guys seemed like a lot of fun.

Maybe this summer job wouldn't be so bad after all.

---

A/N:

#TEAMSWEETBEAN #TEAMPATBINGSU #TEAMSEVENBEAN #NUEST'sJRCAMEO

nah Mihwa, i'm pretty sure things will progressively get worse lel trust me on this one, i'm, like, the author

A GLIMPSE OF JISOO & MIHWA'S BACKSTORY??? feat. frustratingly attractive Choi "childhood friend" Seungcheol

tbh the sevenbean mishap actually happened to me and my mom (except it she thought it was sugar bean lel) but it was perf anyway

this chapter is also dedicated to her... because of that misunderstanding... and because it's almost MOTHER'S DAY!!!

bless her soul for putting up with a little like me ( ◡‿◡ *)