"No," Tzuyu had responded .
Sungyeol  was devastated. He stood there outside the shop's entrance in silence for several minutes. Tzuyu's quick answer had him standing still like a deer before headlights.  People would pass by, but he remained unmoved. His heart had been ripped out with a single word, all that remained was the empty husk of a man. 

A cold breeze blew by Sungyeol, reviving him. He began to walk toward his bus stop, slowly dragging his feet along. Across the street, where the antiques store laid, the old owner noticed Sungyeol and waved goodbye. Sungyeol saw but he feigned ignorance, choosing to keep on his way. He continued to walk lethargically until he reached the bus stop, where a female high school student also stood waiting. She admired Sungyeol's beauty and so she stared intently at him. Sungyeol didn't notice, he was still in shock from being turned down.

When the bus was near in sight, Sungyeol began prepping his bus fare, but as he was counting a coin fell to the ground. The female student picked it up for him, hoping he would talk to her, he simply said "Thanks". When the bus arrived Sungyeol took the seat way in the back and the girl followed him, taking the seat next to him.

Sungyeol was a tad annoyed, he just wanted to be alone. He placed his chin in his hand and looked out the window. The lights that illuminated the city was a temporary distraction from the hurt that was gnawing him inside.

After 15 or so minutes passed, the girl, who only noticed his handsome form finally said, "Hi!"
 Sungyeol was caught off guard, "You talking to me?"
 " Yeah, " the girl told him.
 " Hi, " Sungyeol said back.

The girl was happy talking to him. She was a curious girl, so she asked,  "Do you have a girlfriend?"

Sungyeol wasn't really paying attention to her.
"Do you have one?" she asked again, this time tugging on his sleeve.
The girl was beautiful, she was a bright person who carried an innocent shine in her eyes. Her smile was also quite radiant, and her skin was fairer than fine porcelain.
 "Have one what?"
 " A girlfriend! "
 "No, unfortunately..." Sungyeol responded plaintively.
 The girl noticed the sadness in his response, "You got dumped?"
 "No, " he replied, "never even went out with her. She turned me down..."
 "I'm sorry to hear that." The girl smiled, "My name's Dahyun. Yours?"

Her smile was contagious, it prompted Sungyeol to smile in return. He began feeling a little less sad.

 "Mine's Sungyeol," he noticed her school uniform, "You go to school nearby?"
 "Yeah, the school I go to is better than the one closest to my home, so my parents made me go there even though it takes a while to get there. "
 "I see. You always take the bus?"
 "No, someone usually picks me up, but everyone was busy today. "
 "Okay, well...nice to meet you."

 Sungyeol stared out the window, checking to see if his stop was nearby. It was, only a few minutes left until he reached it. He decided to get up and stand in front of the exit, but Dahyun tugged on his pants.
 "I'm glad I took the bus today because I met you," she told him.

 Sungyeol smiled at her, "You're cute, but maybe you should find a boy your age."

 He took a step forward after removing her hand, but Dahyun quickly called out, "Sungyeol, you take the bus everyday?"

 "I don't know, I have a feeling this might be the last time I ride it... "

Dahyun slumped back into her chair and gazed at Sungyeol's back, disappointed by his answer. The bus stopped and Sungyeol jumped onto the sidewalk as though he were a cute child. He began walking at a steady pace and decided to stare back at the bus which by that point began to drive away. He caught a glimpse of Dahyun who followed him with her eyes. She waved goodbye and he smiled at her, then he turned around and continued to walk. 

It was a short walk from the stop to his home, only around 10 minutes or so. His neighborhood was mostly quiet, though the loud roaring of speeding cars would bother the people on occasion. Sungyeol, as he walked, noticed an old classmate from high school walking alongside his presumed girlfriend. He couldn't help but feel awkard, so he briskly walked past them, hoping to go unnoticed. He managed to do so, but his old classmate took a quick look back.  Sungyeol knew he looked back but he was unwilling to engage in any contact whatosever. 

When Sungeyol returned home, he began thinking whether he should tell his parents at all about the job he had just gotten- that way he could simply quit the next day without going through the shame of being labeled "unsteady". He turned the knob and was welcomed by his mother.
"You got a job?" she asked.
 "Uhmm, yeah. I did," he replied without thinking.
 "That's good," his father told him as he came out of the bathroom.
Sungyeol took a deep sigh because he felt he was now obligated to continue working. But his father came by and told him he was proud of his actions. He also gave him the pocket watch the old man gifted to him the day prior, explaining that he had fixed it during one of his breaks.
 "Thanks," he told his father.
 But his father noticed the hint of sadness mingled in his response.
 "You okay, son?"
 "Yeah, just tired, " Sungyeol replied.
Sungyeol wasn't lying however, he was drained, but most of his current disposition came from being rejected by his dream girl. 
After taking a shower and eating dinner, Sungyeol shut himself up in his room. He plugged his ear buds into his ears and took a few moments of rest. He had shut his eyes for the duration of a couple of songs and then played on his phone some, afterwards checking his inbox for any messages (there was none). It was a quiet time for him, and he took advantage of it to set some things straight within his mind. He debated whether he should quit or man-up and be an adult for once and go to work tomorrow. But how can I look at her, he asked himself. He sighed and opted to live up to his parents' expectations.

I'll be a man and  go to work, look her in the eye, and then...I still like her. I'm not going to give up on her...

Sungyeol reaffirmed his feelings for her and chose to go to sleep with the sheer determination that one day she'll accept him. He put the alarm at 8:25 and fell asleep. Work started at 10, and the bus ride was 30-40 minutes, in addition to the walking which was around another 20 minutes, so 8:25 was a good time to wake up for him.

The next morning Sungyeol arose with a new perspective on life, one filled with hope and the decision to continue despite the temptation to quit. He combed his hair, dressed himself nicely and headed out after drinking some milk and eating a slice of bread.
 "There goes my little man," his mother told him as she saw him off. 

With determination at the forefront, Sungyeol waited for the bus for a few minutes before it arrived. It was packed. Sungyeol squirmed his way to the back and kept his sight on the window, looking out for his stop. It wouldn't be another half hour until he reached his stop. He got off and walked the 20 minutes it took to get to work. He saw the old man from the antiques store and waved hello this time. As soon as he knew it he was in front of the ice cream store's window. He pushed the door but it wouldn't budge, it was closed. Tzuyu spotted him attempting to break in and went over to open the door.

 "You're supposed to come in from the back," she told him as she let him in.

 Sungyeol felt dumb. The first impression of the day was one of silliness muddled with embarrassment. Yet, what began to puzzle him was the fact that she was seemingly unphased by yesterday's confession. Did Tzuyu have a heart of steel, or did she really just not care? Either way, Sungyeol asked Tzuyu what he was to do.
 "When do we make the ice cream?" he asked.
 "The owner is the only one who makes it, he says that's what makes this store special... "
 "Who's the owner?"
 "The manager."
 "So...what do I do?"
 " You can put your stuff down in the break room and put your apron on for now."
 "Okay," but Sungyeol was curious , "you're not bothered by yesterday?"
 Tzuyu turned around to look at him, "What do you mean?"
 "Working with a guy who confessed to you, doesn't it bother you? "
 "No, you're not the first one..."

Well, huh, Sungyeol thought to himself. He considered maybe that's why he had been turned down so quickly, because she had gotten used to being asked out.

 "Actually, I'm glad you came to work. Most of the guys who confessed to me never came to work the next day and sent their resignation letter by mail or slipped it in under the door."

 Sungyeol smiled as he quickly thought back to how he nearly chose to do the same just last night.  If it was true, and it was, that he was not the first to attempt to get close to Tzuyu by means of working with her meant a world of change in his heart. All those other guys were just that, other guys, but he was the guy  who actually stayed. He became confident.

 "You don't have to worry about that, I'm here to stay!" he told her.
 Tzuyu raised her brow, "Yeah, please don't quit on me just because I said no to you."

 It was time to open shop, and Sungyeol felt glad because to him, Tzuyu's word were indirectly telling him that she needs him. A few minutes later, Dongwoo their boss came in and greeted the two. He called Sungyeol over and patted his shoulder.

 "I hope you're not here because of the girl," he told Sungyeol .
Sungyeol was slightly puzzled.

 "Yeah, a lot of the guys that had your position joined because she's pretty; they confessed, got shut down, and then quit. You don't want that kind of worker around..."

 Sungyeol chuckled awkwardly.

 "Anyways, here is the nametag i made for you. You only get one, so pin it to your apron and don't ever lose it."

 "Sure, boss. Now I can say that I'm a proud member of... " Sungyeol could not recall the shop's name, "Bask-"

Tzuyu interceded, "Dolce  Vita," she looked at Sungyeol , "he just couldn't pronounce it."

 "Yeah, what she said! " Sungyeol agreed.

Dongwoo  walked away to the back to personally prepare some more of their trademark ice cream, wondering if the store's name was an overzealous one.