Dongwoo was a middle-aged man who looked as though he had seen better days long ago, long, long ago. He had a lot, a lot, going through his mind when he met optimistic Sungyeol. The first thing he questioned was just how responsible of a kid he was.

Dongwoo scanned Sungyeol with his eyes and asked, “How long are you planning on staying here?”

“I’m not entirely sure, for the foreseeable future at least,” Sungyeol replied courteously.

Dongoo rubbed his chin, “And you sure you want to work here?”

“Yes!”

“Why?”
Sungyeol, took a quick glance at Tzuyu from the corner of his eye- he went unnoticed, “Because the neighborhood is a very pleasing environment to work in, and it looks beautiful…”
“Okay…Well, are you free today?”

Sungyeol became enthusiastic at the thought of staying with Tzuyu, “Yes, sir! I can start working today!”

Dongwoo headed into the back, into his very small office, and brought out a visor and apron for Sungyeol to wear. Sungyeol quickly put them on and was proud to bear the company’s logo. He was proud to have finally gotten a job, and moreover, he was glad in having made his first step to ask Tzuyu out.

“Tzuyu, show him the ropes. I have to take care of some affairs…”

Like that, Dongwoo left, and the two were left alone. The whole store became quiet, and the silence brought about a sense of awkwardness that could be felt in the skin. Tzuyu went to the back and brought out a broom, afterwards gesturing for Sungyeol to take hold of it.

“You can sweep the floor for now… I’ll show you how to serve the ice cream when you’re done…”

“Okay!” Sungyeol replied with a broad smile.

Sungyeol reached for the broom with the secret hope of making contact with Tzuyu’s hand, but he failed. At any rate, Sungyeol made sure to make full use of the housekeeping skills he had developed as a result of his mother’s orders throughout the years. He made sure to sweep under every chair and table, every nook and cranny. However, although he did a fine job, Tzuyu took a deep sigh as she saw him sweep.

“You’re sweeping too hard,” she told him.

Sungyeol stopped, “Huh?”

Tzuyu walked over to him and repeated herself, “You’re sweeping too hard. The way you are sweeping, it’ll make the bristles bad for sweeping.”

Sungyeol was slightly confused, this is the way his mother taught him, could he have really be wrong?

Tzuyu took the broom away, “Here, let me show you.”

She then started sweeping, but to Sungyeol, it looked exactly the same as when he swept.

“I don’t get it…”

Tzuyu continued to sweep.

“I don’t get it…Isn’t that the way I sweep?”

“No, you sweep too briskly.”

At her response, Sungyeol only became further confused.

Seeing Sungyeol stare blankly at her made Tzuyu realize she wasn’t getting through to him. Sweeping efficiently was all about hand placement and the direction one gathered the trash in. The difference between her style of sweeping and Sungyeol’s was minute at best to the untrained eye, but in reality it made a world of difference. Tzuyu rolled her eyes at Sungyeol and gestured him to come near.

“Look,” she told him.

Sungyeol stared at her eyes, falling in love with them.

“Not my eyes, my hands!”

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Sungyeol responded with a hint of embarrassment.

“Look at the placement of my hands and then look at how I gather everything together, every single bit of trash I mean.”

“Okay, sure”

Tzuyu began to sweep again, but it still didn’t click in Sungyeol’s tiny mind.

Tzuyu noticed Sungyeol’s unchanged blank face and took a deep sigh. “Just come here,” she told him.

Sungyeol walked over to Tzuyu again and she gave him the broom to hold. Then out of a scene from a movie, Tzuyu stood behind Sungyeol and personally rearranged his hands to get the desired position. She thought nothing of it, but Sungyeol was downright shocked by the sudden encounter. His cheeks became red, heat immediately began to radiate off him, and his breathing changed. Nonetheless, Tzuyu began to move Sungyeol’s hands, and together they began to sweep.

“Understand now?” She asked.

She was still behind him, so Sungyeol felt her breath tickle down the nape of his neck.

“YES, I DO!”

Tzuyu gently pushed him away and ordered for him to continue. At first Tzuyu noticed his manner of sweeping went unchanged and deemed him hopeless, but then she noticed something different…

It was around 11, the sun was bright that day, and as a result, it shone extremely bright inside the store. Yet, the way it shone down Sungyeol as he began to sweep in front of the store’s windows, it looked as though he was the one radiating the light. The sunlight created a stunning halation around Sungyeol, and for a slight moment, Tzuyu was amazed. He looked like an angel as he was sweeping, like an angel that danced gracefully, handsomely, mesmerizingly, like an angel who only knew beauty and perfection as he danced in the golden courts of God…

“Am I doing good? The sun was getting in my eyes, but was I doing good?” Sungyeol asked with much anticipation.
“No, you’re hopeless,” Tzuyu replied.

Sungyeol frowned in disappointment, “For reals?”

Then Tzuyu smiled and let out a small laugh, “No, just kidding.”

“That’s a sigh of relief!”

“Yeah, you’re a slow learner, but you did good in the end.”

Sungyeol finished up and put away the broom after he picked up the trash. He then went to stand in front of the cash register next to Tzuyu, waiting for his first customer. The quietness set in again, but Sungyeol had a shard of confidence to break the tension.

“So…is it usually empty around these hours?”

“Yes.”

“Okay…”

Sungyeol made small talk! That was a homerun then and there for him, he was ecstatic.

“Oh, I forgot! I should show you the way we were taught to serve.”

Sungyeol was all ears and eyes as he gleaned all of Tzuyu’s instructions. From serving in a cup to serving a cone, Tzuyu made sure to teach him everything.

“Also, be patient when dealing with kids…They can spill.”

“Yeah, sure, no prob! I love children. I wish I had a younger brother or sister!”
“Yeah…okay…It’s probably not as great as you think it is…”

Then the door opened and in came a mother and her young child, a boy around 5 or 6 years old. The kid held the pure image of a sweet child in overalls, yet it was all a farce. The boy wouldn’t stop tugging at his mother’s skirt. You could hear the mother whispering to her child, Calm down, you’re embarrassing me. Sungyeol knew from the moment he stepped in hell would be raised. Pity for the mother was the natural sentiment that stirred in Sungyeol’s heart. She looked exhausted, as though she had gone through countless nights without so much as shutting an eye.

When the mother approached the counter, she asked her child what he wanted.

“Chocolate, give it to me!” the boy exclaimed as she pointed at Tzuyu.

That didn’t sit well with Sungyeol, he didn’t like the idea of Tzuyu getting bossed around by a kid, “It’s not nice to point.”

Tzuyu smiled at the kid and replied, “Chocolate it is!” She then made these eyes at Sungyeol, as if to say DON’T TALK LIKE THAT TO CUSTOMERS.

Tzuyu served the kid and the mother, who ate vanilla. When the two took a seat, Tzuyu began to explain to Sungyeol some of the do’s and don’ts about their field of work.

“Don’t talk to a kid like that first of all, you’re not their parent…”

Sungyeol became apologetic and insisted he did it because of her, because he didn’t like the way the kid spoke.

“It’s okay, he’s just a kid who doesn’t know better.”

“Fine…” he groaned.

From the corner of Sungyeol’s eye, he was able to notice a forthcoming tragedy. The kid had gotten a sugar rush all of a sudden and began flinging around his ice cream all over the place, and then at his mom.

Sungyeol saw Tzuyu sigh and he began to question just how often such a situation would occur.

“Does stuff like this happen all the time?”

“No,” Tzuyu nodded, “this is the first time…Maybe you bring in bad luck?”

As the two were speaking, they noticed the mother cleaning up the mess her child made. Sungyeol rushed over to her and said, “I’ll take care of it.”

“Thanks,” the mother replied.

“No problem, but maybe you should spank him…My mom spanked me whenever I misbehaved and I turned out fine!”
“Okay…”
Even though the mother continued to clean up after her child, Sungyeol insisted on finishing the work for her, so the mother relented. Shortly after, the mother and child left the store, but not before the kid stomped on Sungyeol’s foot.

“These shoes were new,” he sighed.

Tzuyu laughed at Sungyeol’s dismay and all Sungyeol could do was reply with an uneasy smile. If Tzuyu wasn’t there, if the mother wasn’t there, Sungyeol would’ve loved to chase after the kid and show him some discipline. Notwithstanding, Sungyeol was responsible enough to realize his place, and the fact that he couldn’t afford to lose this new job, so he let his anger drift away with the wind.

A while passed before another customer came in, this time a young lady. The first thing the customer noticed was Sungyeol’s looks, he was her type…

“Hi, what do you recommend?” she asked Sungyeol.

Sungyeol was unsure what to respond, since he wasn’t all too familiar with the various flavors their stores carried.

Tzuyu noticed his unease, so she replied for him, “The strawberry swirl is excellent.”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t ask you,” the customer glanced at Tzuyu’s nametag, “Tzuyu…”

A spark of anger was kindled in Tzuyu, yet her professionalism shined in that she kept her composure.

“I’ll recommend our vanilla,” Sungyeol replied as he considered that no one could go wrong with the fundamentals.

“Okay, thanks! I’ll have that.”

Sungyeol rang her up and Tzuyu served her. The customer left the store after she winked at Sungyeol and mouthed out the words, I’ll be back, y. He just faked a smile and waved bye.

“She was rude, huh?”

“Yeah…customers aren’t usually that rude though…I think you do bring bad luck or something.”

Sungyeol scratched his head, “I think I have good luck though! I saved an old man’s life yesterday and he gave me a fancy watch in return for saving him.”

By now, it was a little past noon and Tzuyu knew the store might get filled on a warm afternoon like today’s, so she warned Sungyeol. She was right, a group of college kids rushed in the doors and began to cue in line to get their ice cream. Sungyeol rang them all up and Tzuyu did her best in serving them. For the last customer, Sungyeol insisted on serving up the scoops of ice cream. Tzuyu was unwilling to leave the task up to him, she feared he might mess up, but Sungyeol kept insisting, forcing her to yield.

She hovered over his shoulder as he slowly, but surely, served the ice cream, all the while the customer crossed his arms over the slowness of the process. Tzuyu noticed his displeasure, became antsy, and mumbled, Hurry up! Sungyeol was oblivious to her words, he didn’t quite hear her. It was all for naught however, Sungyeol finished putting the sprinkles the customer wanted and was already handing it over- then Tzuyu sneezed. Sungyeol was startled by her sudden sneeze, and to his misfortune, the ice cream launched from his hand into the customer’s face.

“I’m so sorry,” Sungyeol begged, “I’ll give you your money back, and I’ll give you the same order for free.”

The customer sighed and gave Sungyeol a nasty look, “I’m not coming here ever again.”

“Please forgive me!” Sungyeol pleaded.

Tzuyu’s eyes locked onto the customer’s “Please forgive us!”

Her eyes were a thing of beauty, able to produce a sense of serenity and joy when one looked into them. The customer too became smitten by her.

“Okay,” he told them, “Only if you give me my money back and repeat my order like you said, punk.”

The two breathed in a sigh of  relief and did as Sungyeol promised. When the customer left, Tzuyu told Sungyeol the order was coming out of his paycheck.

“Yeah, that’s fine,” he replied.

The day passed with no further hiccups, and when time came for the store to close, Sungyeol took advantage. He had bid his time, waiting for just the right moment. Sungyeol contemplated as to how he should confess. To him, it wasn’t a matter of “if”, it was not a matter of “when”, because he had already settled he would confess that very evening. To Sungyeol, it was a matter of “how”, just how he should confess; should he simply ask her out for a date, should he prepare a grandiose scheme? Ultimately, he opted for a sincere route, he would simply ask her out and together they could decide where to go from there.

They were closing shop, Sungyeol tidied up his shirt and approached Tzuyu. Her eyes looked up to him, Sungyeol swallowed his spit in nervousness and asked, “Can I ask you something?”

“Okay,” Tzuyu responded, “What do you need?”

A cool breeze came along that particular evening. Tzuyu pulled her hair behind her ear, a perfect still image that was burned into Sungyeol’s retinas. Sungyeol knew he had just had to go out with her, the saying of love at first sight became a true proverb to him from the very moment he laid eyes on her. He wanted to travel to new worlds with her, to a place across the rainbow bridge, to a small place of heaven where his love for her could manifest and serve as a frame for her beauty. His eyes spoke of a pure love as he looked intently into hers. They glistened more and more as each second passed by…

“Will you go out with me?” he asked her.

Tzuyu’s response was prompt and succinct, “No.”

Sungyeol was crushed. To him, it was as though the heavens rolled back and life as he knew it had ended. She quietly walked away and Sungyeol was left heartbroken as he saw her vanish from his field of view.

“Is this when people go ahead and get drunk?” he asked.