Love Recipe

Love Recipe

She sat outside the café and mindlessly watch people pass her by.

One. Two. Three

She counted. That’s another 3 seconds past her time. Of all days of days, why does her friend Tiffany need to cancel on her today. She knew how much she tries to forget about today. It was the day he left. She smiled and just shook her head. Maybe destiny is playing with her again. Maybe destiny has no one to play with so it’s her again. Her eyes went from watching the road to the cup of coffee sitting on her table.

She doesn’t even like coffee to begin with. She was a tea person. Coffee gives her tummy aches and yet there she was, on this autumn afternoon, with her very own cup of cappuccino.

What a big joke.

She chuckled as she picked up the cup and brought it to her lips and sipped. It’s no longer hot, the warmth earlier was long gone. How long she has been sitting there, she doesn’t know, she put the cup down and she swiped her phone for the time.

2 hours.

2 hours of sitting there and doing nothing.

Then her eyes caught the wallpaper picture. It was them during her birthday. The happiest birthday since they celebrated their birthdays together that day.

She sighed, closed her eyes and held her phone to her chest

“I miss you so much oppa”

The sting in her eyes that has grown quite familiar has begun once again.

“Joohyunah” a soft voice broke her reverie

She opened her eyes abruptly and looked up to find Yuri’s smiling face

“I thought it was you”

“Hi unnie”

Yuri sat across her and touch her cup “Want me to get you a fresh batch?”

“no thank you, I was planning to go anyways”

The older woman looked at her solemnly “one of my staff told me you’ve been sitting her for awhile, are you okay?”

Her lips forced a smile “I’m trying to be”

“Why don’t you just follow him?”

Yes she has heard that before, and in fact a lot of times, from her family, from her friends, from his family and their friends

“Why don’t you just follow him?”

“Why don’t I just follow him?”

“Joohyunah…”

“Sorry unnie”

“What have you been doing the whole day today?”

“I rode the bike in the rain”

“But you hate the rain”

Joohyun laughed “I know right?”

“And you don’t like sports, or anything strenuous that will require hand a body coordination”

“Exactly”

“And then what?”

“I was supposed to meet Tiffany unnie for lunch but she had an emergency and needs to stay with little Hani so I ate lunch by myself at the pasta house and decided to get a cup of coffee”

Yuri pursed her lips thinking if it’s alright to say it or not. She had known Yonghwa and Joohyun for the last 5 years, the couple met at that café, Joohyun was a sophomore and Yonghwa a senior, both in college. She also knew both individually as they have been patrons of her family’s café. Joohyun the tea enthusiast and Yonghwa the coffee addict.

One day they were forced to sit at the same table since it was one of those full packed night when students from the university were cramming for the exams and needed a little boost of caffeine in their veins. And that’s how their story began.

When she officially took over managing the business, she formally introduced herself only to find out that Joohyun’s bestfriend Tiffany was Yuri’s cousin. She became friends with them immediately. Forgiveness Café has been part of Yonghwa and hers’ history.

“Hyunnie, haven’t you noticed? Everything that you have done today is exactly what Yonghwa would’ve been doing if he was here?”

Her vision started to blurred as tears began to form in her eyes. Yes she has been doing exactly that, for one whole year they have been apart. She doesn’t want to admit it but that is exactly that. Everything that Yonghwa has done, she has been doing also, at first she doesn’t want to admit it since it was easier to explain that it has been a routine, but 12 months after they broke up, can she still say it’s a routine?

She swallowed the lump that has formed in .

“I heard he was still adjusting” Yuri added “What is keeping you Joohyun?”

She blinked and two fat tears fell “I’m sca