0520

Grey painted the skies as if the clouds dry the colours of the world and decided that it would look better in monochromatic colours. Instead of crimson-coloured blossoms, Jihoon was greeted by the soft knocking on his window.The steady trickles of the rain reminded him of days when his feet would dance along with the familiar rhythm.

Jihoon did not enjoy it. Not at all.

The morning spring almost made him forget how the the rain sounded and echoed thru his apartment into his ears.

The silver sheets of rain was so loud that he couldn’t hear his heartbeat.

The water droplets from the grey skies raced to the ground as if they don’t have anything to do that day. They successfully created the perfect mood of cosiness and laziness.

After Jihoon’s contemplation of whether he would go to work or just give in the mood and laze around, he decided that it was better to start getting used to waking up to the beat of the rain.

After all, the gloomy mornings was numbered.

“Good morning everyone, thank you for tuning in. It has been two weeks since the basketball team Houkkoch lost against the Wanyang, 86-88. Wanyang even the finals series, 2-2 in the 2017 Collegian Basketball League. KD finished with 23 points on 9 out of 11 shootings from the fie-

Jihoon wore his pink oversized hoodie, a pair of jeans that he bought around 3 years ago, and his favourite yellow worn-out sneakers. The colours of his clothes were like a mockery to the world he’s living in.

He was now ready for work. He grabbed a bread for his breakfast and turned the radio off. Beside his radio were some medals and trophies he won in the dance competitions he participated before. There were also countless of pictures posted on the wall.

Jihoon took them when he was in high school with a mind-set that he could pause his life at that moment.  Those frames were filled with memories that were not enough just to be captured by his eyes and to be marked down in his mind.

Maybe a glance was enough to Jihoon to be back in his glory days, with his life stretched before him.

Maybe it was enough to bring him back to reality.

Before leaving his apartment, Jihoon made a wish for the clouds to stop crying for he was worried about his yellow sneakers. He made a small glance back to his apartment, turned and walked away.

The downpour this morning had stopped, but Jihoon still felt beads of water against his skin.

On his way to the small café he had been working as a barista for around 5 months now, Jihoon walked through the trees of creams and pinks that lined the avenue. He noticed that the leaves and branches were drooped down because of the weight of the raindrops.

Jihoon would have skipped his way through the wet ground while avoiding the small craters the rain graved. He would have enjoyed skipping through it but he didn’t dare to dirty his shoes just to feel the coldness under his feet.

His eyes caught the flowers on the ground and thought that their petals must had rained down in the same way the droplets from the skies made their way to the ground.

It was almost time to shred the beautiful spring flowers that had blossomed and painted the roads and gardens with every colour from pastels to fuchsia and dark reds.

The spring was beginning to end.

It was meant to end.

When Jihoon turned around the corner, he saw the café he had been working in for, a café called Bom Kiseu. It was just a small café at the end corner of the road where the trees of creams and pinks had lined up. Jihoon greeted the manager as soon as he arrived. Then he changed to his uniform and started working.

And as one swung the wooden door open, it would not be hard for them to notice that the air was thick with the aroma of freshly brewed coffee. The vibrant yet cosy interior of the café made Jihoon smile internally. The café had given him a warm feeling.

The same feeling he missed because the gloominess of the morning-

-the same warmth his heart yearned.

The hues of grey were still visible even if the rain was long gone.

It was noticeable that there was a small number of people inside the café. Jihoon quietly let out a sigh since he thought that the rain would bring lots of customer in the café. He was glad that it didn’t.

There were around seven customers, five of those were caffeinated and two were giggling about a guy over some decaf coffee.

As the door opened wide, some people glanced up out of curiosity.  Some quickly returned to what they were previously doing when the same door swung close.

A new face.

Jihoon felt the hair on his skin stood up as the cold wind harshly passed by him until he chose to glance at the new customer. The boy was soaked in the rain. Some skin can be seen through his white button-up shirt and four-

-four customers stared at the boy. Jihoon counted.

He also counted the times his heart skipped a beat

-two. His heart skipped twice.

While Jihoon was amused in listening and counting his heartbeat, he did not notice the creaking sound of the wooden floor as the new customer walked confidently to him.

“Excuse me”

Interrupted by a deep silky voice, Jihoon took a deep breath, shook his head, and tried to regain his focus on the customer.

In front of him was a boy way taller than him.  He would had to look up in order to see the person. But the boy suddenly leaned onto the café’s cashier table.

Jihoon was taken aback and took a small step backward.

While the boy was choosing his order, Jihoon took the chance and observed the boy in front of him. It wouldn’t hurt to say that the boy was good-looking, a familiar-looking one,

-like a déjà vu, Jihoon wouldn’t dare to experience all over again.

The boy’s lips were colours of the flowers Jihoon had seen before. Those that were in full bloom, the freshest and the sweetest ones.

On the boy’s left cheek there was a subtle indention, maybe a dimple near the corner of his mouth. Jihoon thought that it would be predominantly noticeable when the boy would smile.

The boy’s gaze could hold Jihoon captivated. Like sharp blades that could dissect him slowly and painfully- but so much sadness, coldness and loneliness seated deep through those black orbs. He wondered what could be the reason for this young boy to lose his sleep when he noticed the shadows under the boy’s eyes. 

To Jihoon, the boy is so enchanting you could forget the upcoming tempest.

The boy