People quickly forgot about the early evening heat that the summer had brought once again along with the muggy humidity lingering in the city streets. In a matter of moments, the streets were crawling with onlookers. Fans bickered with each other to get a better look while clue-less foreigners tried to push their way through the crowds.

Outside one of the best coffee shops on Radio Road, Leo Jung pulled off the same, tired, model-like poses to the cameras. At every break, he would stare, bored, at the crowd. Every time he had one of these pop-up photo sessions, the fans would gather just for him. Some of these fans would protect him when groundless rumors spread about him and the others would turn against him in a heartbeat. He held in a yawn, trying to seem interested in the same, tired magazine shoot. The same interview questions would be featured in this magazine and a few fans, which he recognized at being at all of his other events, cajoled in the distance. It was always the same women who batted their eye-lashes at him hoping that they would be the next one to be bedded by the celebrity.

"Leo! Why don't you show us a smile?" The photographer smiled at him, hoping to convince the celebrity. Blinking, Leo remained silent and kept the bland expressions. The photographer's smile quickly faded. Leo didn't have to guess that the photographer would talk badly about him to the magazine editors and probably anyone else who would listen. He couldn't care less, though. Throughout his career, he had built a reputation of having a horrible personality, but that seemed to intrigue his fans further. His fan club continued to grow and he was constantly the most searched celebrity on the internet servers.

"Today is the day!" Leo's personal manager, Hwang Brian, rubbed his hands together as he approached the celebrity. Eyebrows raised, Leo feigned interest in what his manager was muttering about. It was probably another date or a promising meeting from the company's CEO. "It's pay day! This gig will have us rolling in money. It was tough to get them to accept you with your reputation, but look how well everything turned out. We should celebrate. The club, then? Bar hopping and, oooh! Maybe some of those ladies would like to come."

He could see the desire in his manager's eyes. Brian was always looking at one beautiful woman or another that seemed to surround him. They would agree to go on a date with him, but when they realized they weren't going to become acquainted with a celebrity, they would walk away without a glance back.

"Brian hyung, I already told you. All of this money is going to charity. Besides, it is my nephew's birthday. I'm not going to miss it for anything."

He rolled his head, feeling a headache beginning to form and a desperate need to get out of this place. If he didn't leave soon, he would be forced to spend too much time appeasing his fans with autographs and pictures.

"No! Not all of it. Come on Leo! You could afford to buy a car or move out of your family's house. You could even buy your parents a new house! Why! Why do have to give all of the money to charity?" Brian emphasized the word 'all' as he began to whine. It made him wonder if Brian really was older than he was.

"I like living at my parent's house, thank you. Donating the money is for a good cause and we make perfectly good amount of money already. Single parents have a really hard time and I want to make their lives simpler. They shouldn't have to stress about how to put food on the table for their kids."

Brian mumbled something that Leo was sure he didn't want to hear. A moment later, his manager took a deep breath, accepted that he would never see any of the money they were earning today and dropped it.

"Jung Leo-shi, we have finished up some of the pictures if you would like to monitor them. If you like them we can do the rest back at the office." One of the project managers had rely to lead the both of them to a stand-up office, which had been placed in the middle of the street. In the distance, Leo could see the flashing red and blue lights of a police car that was blocking the street off. When he looked at his watch, he saw that it was 6 in the evening. Rush hour. How many people would he be inconveniencing due to his photo shoot?

"Bae Hana, stop cleaning! You are such a silly girl. Don't you know who is outside right now? Be like every other girl and smear your pretty make-up all over this window." Hana's co-worker, Han MiJin, waved at her. She continued to mop the floor. One of the customers, in her haste to see whatever celebrity was holding up traffic, had dropped her steaming cup of coffee all over the floor of the shop.

"You do realize that I am the one who cleans that glass every day, right? Why would I add to all the dirty print and germs that are left behind?"

Her friend sighed loudly, but couldn't remove herself from the window. It was a rare chance to see a celebrity in the city at this time. Things like this didn't happen very often. Of course, when the celebrity was Jung Leo, anyone would be crazy to not stop what they were doing and gawk at the man. He was simply perfection. He had a great body, the vocals of a god and the visuals to match.

When she was satisfied that the floor was clean, Hana retreated into the back of the shop. She had no interested in fighting with other women to get a glimpse of some, said, celebrity. However, she was thankful that he had shown up. Business had slowed down significantly and her shift was almost over. It was perfect time to get ready to leave. She pulled her black apron over her head, running her fingers over the white, threaded letters of her name. She was rolling up her apron when MiJin came running into the back. It was surprising that her friend had parted ways with the glass of the window.

"He is coming! He is coming here! He is going to order coffee. He loves coffee!" MiJin was frantic and muttering crazily to herself. Hana shook her head, pushing herself to her tippy-toes to reach for her backpack.

"You have to do it, Hana. I can't go out there like this." MiJin grabbed her arms, pulling her away from her bag.

"Don't be silly MiJin. I have to go, my shift is nearly up."

"What?! You can't go. You can't leave me here alone."

MiJin's voice hushed just as the bell on the shop's door rattled, letting them know someone had just entered.

"Han MiJin, you better let me leave right now."

MiJin was already staring at her with puppy dog eyes and her hands rubbed together, pleading and begging. Hana sighed, giving up on her attempt at leaving. She couldn't say no to her friend.

"One drink and that is it."

MiJin jumped, hugging her as tight as possible. A moment later, Hana was being pushed out into the shop. She brushed her dress down and began to pull at her short sleeves to fix her dress.

"Excuse me, do you work here?"

The voice was quiet, manly but authoritative. Hana raised her head, eyes meeting the light brown eyes of a young man. She took a moment to look over his features. Black jeans hugged his waist down to his calves. A gray shirt matched well to his black pants and there was some unknown logo spread over the area of his collarbone. Behind him, one man was working hard at not getting trampled by the crowd of females who were peering into the shop.

"I do. Can I help you with something?"

Hana finally found her voice as she moved behind the counter, one eye staying on the crowd of females in case they were able to break free of the man holding them back. The last thing she needed was to get trampled on.

"The largest caramel latte you got, please."

The man took back her attention as she moved in front of the counter. Momentarily, their eyes met and the man rose a curious eyebrow at her. She shrugged and turned away from him to start making the drink.

"Coming right up."

There was a few moments of silence as she worked on the drink. To break the silence, Hana began humming quietly to herself. Jung Leo shifted himself into one of the high top seats, watching Hana's every move as he did.

"How long have you worked here?"

"About a year and a half."

Hana answered his question, her curiosity not peaking in the least. She was almost finished when she noticed her friend staring at her from the back room. She rolled her eyes, ignoring her friend's dreamy look.

"Hana...shi. Correct?"

She swiveled her head, their eyes meeting once again. She realized he probably got her name off of the sign on the table. Jung Leo's eyes had turned chilly, forcing a shiver down her spine and goose bumps raced along her arms. Is this cold, stunning look the reason why he is so famous?

"Yes, did I do something wrong?"

She looked away from him, noticing that the coffee looked how it should. She placed a small topping of whip cream on top of the coffee and an even smaller portion of caramel on top of that.

"No, not at all. It just seems like you know how I like my coffee. I was about to tell you, but it wasn't necessary."

Her cheeks began to burn from his comment. Did he think she was some obsessed fan that would be posting their entire encounter on her SNS right after he left the shop? She shrugged, placing the lid on the cup before handing it over to the celebrity. She then made a show of cleaning up the counter so she had a reason not to meet his eyes.

"That is just how I like my coffee so I guess it is a habit to make it the same way."

She glanced back up, finding that he was still staring at her as he held his coffee.

"Was there something else you needed?"

He shook his head, his silence expanding between them. Hana turned towards the sink, needing something to do till Leo decided to leave the shop. Dishes was the best solution to this problem.

"Okay, so you are a barista. Is there anything else you do?"

Her eyebrow furrowed. They had just met, why was he asking such personal questions? What could it hurt if she answered him honestly? She turned the sink on, soaking a rag in the warm, soapy water before beginning to clean the dishes.

"I'm a student."

For some reason she wanted to say more. It had been a long time since someone was generally interested in what she was doing and even longer since she had been able to talk about it. She held her tongue, figuring he would get bored with her talk.

"Where do you go to school? Is this for your first degree?"

"Seoul National University. I already have my first degree, this will be for my masters."

She didn't look up from what she was doing, afraid that she wouldn't be able to look away if she did.

"That isn't an easy school to get in to. What are you studying?"

"Animal science and biology."

"Wow, that is amazing. They say that field is just as rigorous as a physician. You must like animals, then."

She nodded, noticing the lightness in his tone all of a sudden. Her hands stopped washing the dishes though she didn't raise her eyes from the bubbly water. Dogs were her favorite, cats a very close second, but she loved and cared for all animals and their welfare. It seemed like a crazy thing to have as a dream or to get someone excited over, but it was hers. She turned to find Leo sipping on his coffee, but his eyes widened at the look she gave him.

"That is your passion, isn't it?"

She nodded in reply. Her fear became a reality. She was unable to look away from him. In the mater of ten minutes, this man had figured out her passion. It was a passion that anyone else could rarely comprehend but it seemed like he understood. To add, they were having a real conversation.

"What is your full name, Hana-shi?"

She turned back to the dishes, the question frightening her into looking away. She bit her lower lip, his question digging into her mind. Why did he need to know her full name? She didn't have to tell him. She didn't want him to know, did she?

"It's Bae! Bae Hana."

Han MiJin had escaped her hiding place, showing off a mischievous smile. Hana's mouth dropped open but she was quick to snap it shut. Jung Leo flew out of his seat, but managed to keep the coffee cup safely in his hands.

"Han MiJin, you can give people a heart attack that way." Hana gently scolded, shaking her head as she returned to the dishes. MiJin pouted at her before turning to Jung Leo with a glowing smile.

"Hello! I'm Hana's best friend, MiJin. Welcome to our humble coffee shop. We sell the best coffee in all of Gangnam and arguably Seoul as well." MiJin sparked up the conversation immediately. She was flamboyant and loud, but maybe that is why Hana enjoyed her company on most days. Hana didn't have to indulge her much. MiJin could keep the conversation going for the both of them.

"Jung Leo, but you probably already knew that." Leo introduced himself as he stood frozen in his spot, the warmth of the conversation they were having was fading.

"Han MiJin, Bae Hana did you..."

The owner of the coffee shop rushed in. His hair was disheveled and a hat was misplaced on top of his head. His shirt was inside out which made it quite obvious that he had just gotten out of bed to come running over to the shop. Once he saw Jung Leo, he straightened and brushed his clothes from imaginary dirt.

"Jung Leo-shi, how gracious of you to stop by my shop. I'm sorry if the hospitality has been less than expected. Can I assist you in any way?"

Leo's face suddenly turned cold and he began to scrutinize the man, deciding he didn't make a very good boss or owner. His eyes then turned to Hana who was busy working on the dishes once again. Didn't she think that she was being treated unfairly?

"The hospitality has been great. Thank you. I'm sorry to have disturbed your place of business. I should probably go now."

"You are welcome to stay as long as you want."

"Thank you but I must be going."

At that, Hana stopped cleaning the dishes, wiped her hands off and approached the register.

"Your total is $3000 won."

Leo smiled at her as the owner and her friend, MiJin, turned surprised looks in her direction. She didn't seem to notice them.

"Hana, he is a celebrity! You are asking him to pay?"

The owner hissed angrily at her.

"He is a human being too, just like the rest of us. Why shouldn't he pay?"

Hana hissed back, then remembered she was arguing in front of a customer. Leo's smile widened till he was grinning at her. He placed his coffee down on the counter so he could take his wallet out and hand her a $5000 won bill.

"You may keep the change. Thank you Hana-shi. I enjoyed our conversation and maybe I'll see you around some time."

She thought about his parting comment as Leo walked to the front entrance. Cameras began flashing instantaneously and the screams of crazed women became louder for a brief moment. She tried to deny that she wanted to see him again.

"Bae Hana, I should fire you right now, but seeing as how we are bound to get busy, I wont. How late are you working till?"

After looking at her watch, she raised her eyes to meet those of her boss.

"I was supposed to leave fifteen minutes ago."

"Ah well it is good you are still here. I need you to close tonight and we aren't closing until 1am. See you ladies tomorrow."

He walked out of the shop before she could protest. She had opened the shop at 8am and now she had to stay till 1am? She growled in frustration and paced into the back of the shop. If only this job wasn't her sole source of income.