Life . That was the only thing Daehyun knew for sure.

His entire week has pretty much been a total disaster, but as he finally woke up after unconsciously snoozing his alarm for an hour and saw the glaring digits of the clock, he was absolutely certain he wanted to just die right on the spot. Just go back to sleep and never wake up again.

This decision, however, was short lived, as he reluctantly remembered all these trivial, insignificant things like his responsibilities and goals. Grimacing at the scratching pain in his throat and the absence of any will to live whatsoever, Daehyun finally managed to get out of bed. And after struggling to find his music sheets with unprepared homework for the day for a solid 20 minutes and trying to find a decently smelling t-shirt only to fail miserably, he finally decided he was officially done.

Just in time, his phone buzzed, Himchan's massage consisting of 'Where the hell are you, I'm not covering for your lazy again" appearing on the screen. Daehyun opened his mouth, ready to let out a stream of profanities. Just to find out that his voice was all but gone.

He decided that collapsing on the bed would be the most adequate and mature decision for the time being.

<><><><><><><><>

Two days later found Daehyun all but late again, rushing to get his caffeine fix from the campus' little coffee shop. He didn't care how he would explain himself, he was running on exactly two hours of sleep and pure hatred for the world at this point. And his voice had barely gotten better.

As he was waiting for his turn to order, (last person in the queue, of course) he decided to quickly and objectively reflect on his situation: he was moody, sleep-deprived, late for his one important class of the year and in a major artist's block. Top that with some sore throat and you'll get every Vocal Performance major's worst nightmare.

to be me, he thought, only slightly considering the possibility of him being a little too overdramatic. He needed his ultra sugary coffee, and he needed it now.

Without even attempting a smile, he quickly murmured his order, eyes glued on the cream-colored counter in front of him.

'I'm sorry, could you please repeat? I didn't quite catch your order?', said a warm, clear voice. It sounded like it was full of smiles, sunshine and all that . Not that Daehyun paid attention to these things, of course.

He lifted his eyes and was met with one of the cutest human beings he had ever seen. The boy in front of him wasn't very tall, but wasn't exactly short either - though the huge pink sweater that he looked like he was drowning in made him look small, fluffy and petite. He had pretty, gentle eyes and a smile which scrunched up his cheeks in a way that could only be described as utterly adorable. A pocket-sized ball of cuteness.

Needless to say, Daehyun was soft. And Daehyun was never soft. Never. A little too prone to mental breakdowns, constant need of affection and melodrama, yes, always ready to appreciate beauty as it is, yes, but soft - hell no. That was for the sappy, weak bastards, like Yongguk, with his disgusting infatuation with Himchan. Daehyun almost cringed at the sole thought.

The pretty boy was still smiling at him though, seemingly waiting for him to answer. Oh, snap, how does one act like a normal person again?

'Um, yeah, can I have like the-- the Caramel Macchiato? With like, extra whipped cream and marshmallows?', despising the way his voice cracked, he continued, 'I'm sorry, I'm not really adequate right now, I--', Daehyun let out a nervous chuckle, sheepishly avoiding eye contact.

I'm not a sappy, weak bastard, I'm not a sappy, weak bastard, I'm not a sappy, weak bastard, I'm not--

The pretty boy laughed. Daehyun wished for death right then and there. His laugh was the most adorable and pure thing he had ever heard in his sorry life, god damn it.

'Tough day, huh? I feel you. Uni's a real pain in the sometimes.', the boy cleared his throat a little nervously, 'Anything else?'

'Um, I--', Daehyun trailed off, stuttering. He was suddenly overcome with the thought of just asking for the other boy's number, but exactly how pathetic and desperate would that be?

But really, how much worse could this day get? By the looks of it, he was obviously not going to make it to his class on time, given the tempo of the recent events. So at least he would make use of the time he spent getting to the coffee shop, right? What would it cost him to ask the cute guy out? His pride? Pfft, as if he had any of that left at this point.

He took a deep breath, fully aware of the questioning gaze the waiting barista was sending his way. He finally decided it, just go for it and looked up.

'Um, can I-- Get your number?', he cleared his throat, half-because it hurt like a , half-because of the awkwardness that was just swallowing him whole, 'So maybe we could like-- you know, go out sometime? Like, on a date?', he felt his face heat up and the stunned expression of the pretty boy wasn't helping at all.

So he did what he does everytime he's nervous - he started rambling.

'I mean-- only if you want to, of course, I-- um, like, I know we don't really know each other but you're easily the most beautiful thing I've ever seen and I--', quickly realizing what he just said, Daehyun silently cursed his existence once again, 'Oh my God, I'm so sorry if this made you uncomfortable, I just--', his voice faltered, hands fiddling and cheeks burning.

Everything suddenly felt strangely quiet and he could hear his heartbeat going thumpthumpthump against his ribcage. He had never felt so humiliated and hopeful all at once.

So he decided to take a chance and looked up to see the other's reaction. He was frankly surprised to find the boy's cheeks positively flushed, stunned expression slowly melting into a happy smile. The barista raised his hand - 'fucking sweater pows, oh my ing God' - covering his smile, his eyes shyly darting downcast.

'I-- yes. I would like that.', he stated softly, smile evident through his voice while he fiddled with a post-it note, the tips of his ears still red.

'Here', the pretty boy exclaimed, passing the small sheet of paper with the precious digits, 'Text me or call me when you can.'

Another smile was directed at Daehyun's direction and he felt as if his heart was going to give out any time soon. (It would be completely worth it though.)

'I-- thank you.', Daehyun managed a small smile as he walked out of the shop, a dazed, but content expression plastered on his face.

He walked three whole blocks before realizing he never really got his coffee.