Entering the small, charming bakery on the corner between his studio and the subway station, Changkyun walks up to the counter, his usual order on his tongue already. This week had been particularly busy, his schedule crammed as he produced his upcoming album, and Changkyun needed his weekly pick-me-up before he went back to his studio for the night. He exhaled tiredly through his nose, his bleached bangs falling into his forehead as he peered over at the baker behind the register. His nametag read ‘Kihyun’, and there was something innately charming about the precise, orderly way he held himself. Changkyun had always secretly admired him.

“Just a slice of chocolate cake and a coffee,” Changkyun ordered, pulling out his wallet. The baker nodded and fetched the cake, placing it carefully on a plate before setting it down onto the counter before Changkyun. As the baker went to make his coffee, Changkyun glanced over at the slice of cake, confusion furrowing his brow as he sees pink and red decorating the normally all chocolate cake. Looking closer, Changkyun realizes that the flashes of color are actually small hearts, and he feels his cheeks heat up. Flickering his gaze over to the baker, Changkyun smiles nervously.

“So… there are hearts on my cake,” Changkyun says aloud, watching the man set down his coffee with a quirked brow. Nodding his head absently, the baker taps the order into the register, pulling up the total but otherwise not acknowledging the comment. Swallowing, Changkyun continues. “Are you uh… flirting with me?” he asked, chuckling a bit. The baker ruffles up, a flush of indignation on his cheeks.

“You do realize it’s Valentine’s Day, right?” Kihyun asked, rapping his fingers on the counter as he awaited his customer’s payment. “Look over at the display case, all the baked goods have hearts,” he continues, gesturing towards the large display. Changkyun rarely ever looked at it anymore, having long since deigned the chocolate cake the best. Getting embarrassed at his own naiveté, Changkyun puts his card in the machine, his face flushed.

“Uh… yeah, yeah… right,” Changkyun half-mumbled to himself, typing in his PIN number and awaiting the instructions of the machine as he pointedly avoided eye-contact with the attractive baker behind the counter. “Sorry,” Changkyun adds, pulling out his card and scurrying away with his treats. Kihyun watched him walk away to the little table by the window he always went to, a sense of regret coming over him. Frowning a bit, Kihyun runs his hands over his apron, watching the younger man with burgeoning curiosity.

Now sitting at his table, Changkyun finds his gaze locked on the tiny little innocent hearts on his delicious-looking chocolate cake. God, he was such a dork… He didn’t even realize it was Valentine’s Day and here he was single as for another year and making a fool of himself in front of a hot baker that he saw far too frequently to not be embarrassed about. He picked up his fork, digging it into the supple, creamy cake before bringing it to his lips.

He didn’t really think about his relationship status much anymore, but now that it was practically shoved in his face, Changkyun couldn’t help but feel melancholic about the whole day. Glancing around him, Changkyun sees a few other tables occupied, but almost all of them were cute, young couples with their heart-covered baked goods looking absurdly happy and stable in their relationship. Feeling his jaw tighten, Changkyun looks over at the empty chair across from him, and thinks about just how lonely he really was most of the time. He liked being alone, and definitely understood blissful solitude, but he craved affection and romantic attention, too.

Falling deeper into his negative thoughts, Changkyun holds the bite of chocolate cake on his fork, never quite bringing it to his mouth as he stared blankly at the chair across from him. Watching him from the counter, Kihyun bites his lip, guilt nipping at his conscious. He didn’t mean to shut the kid down, but watching him sulk was more frustrating than it was guilt-inducing, and Kihyun walked around the counter to hopefully set things straight.

“Does everything taste alright?” Kihyun asked, breaking the ice as he stood beside Changkyun’s table. Jolting out of his thoughts, Changkyun looks over at Kihyun, his expression blank as he observed the baker. He looked about as composed as usual, but there was something about the look in his eyes that let Changkyun know this wasn’t just about the quality of his baked goods.

“Of course,” Changkyun replied softly, nodding a bit as he finally took the first bite. Kihyun watched the mournful look on the boy’s face and huffed out a breath of air, deciding to cut the and just say it.

“Look, I didn’t mean to turn you down or anything,” Kihyun said, regretting how cold his words sounded. Biting his lip, Kihyun rubbed his forearm anxiously, retracting his words. “I’m sorry if I came off like that earlier,” Kihyun added. Changkyun blinked a few times as he processed the words leaving Kihyun’s mouth, and he replied, feeling guilty for making Kihyun feel guilty.

“N-No, it’s okay, seriously,” Changkyun reassured, but Kihyun merely nodded in response as if he wasn’t buying it. He looked down at the table before continuing. “It’s just that I didn’t realize it was Valentine’s Day and I’m single… again…” Changkyun confessed, chuckling a bit in self-deprecation. He could feel Kihyun’s gaze on him, pity in his eyes, and he looked up, the sight affirming his thoughts. “I’m okay, you don’t need to look at me like that.”

Kihyun watched his regular customer reassure him of his happy mood with eyes filled with loneliness, and he couldn’t just stand here and act like he didn’t. Frowning, Kihyun gets an idea, his eyes darting over to the front of the store. His bread baker Hyunwoo had taken over the counter, and there weren’t that many people in line right now, either. It would be fine if he took a break, and besides, this kid looked like he could use some company.

“I’m actually single, too,” Kihyun confessed, moving to sit down across from his customer, his eyes twinkling. “I uh… I can be your date for Valentine’s,” Kihyun offered, watching the look of shock cross over Changkyun’s face, followed by a pink flush coating his cheeks. Panicking a bit, Kihyun raised his hands, his eyes wide. “But don’t misunderstand! It’s only for today,” Kihyun added, looking away as he adjusted his apron nervously. Changkyun chuckled softly at that, observing Kihyun just a bit closer.

He never would’ve anticipated that his day would take a turn like this- sitting across from the cute baker he always saw but never truly knew. He was so kind, asking to sit with him like this just because he saw how lonely Changkyun was. It made his heart jump into his throat, and he chuckled nervously, eyes looking anywhere but Kihyun’s as he forked another bite of chocolate cake into his mouth

“I think I’d like that,” Changkyun said, his voice soft and low as he finally locked gazes with Kihyun again. Smiling a bit, Kihyun adjusts his position, crossing his knees as he leaned across the counter.

“So, tell me about yourself~” Conversation flowed between them easier than either could’ve anticipated, and they soon found themselves on common ground. Changkyun’s appreciation for good music impressed Kihyun, and they bonded over their shared passion for it. Changkyun learned that Kihyun was actually a singer, and was awe-struck at the ear-melting tones of Kihyun’s voice after listening to a sample of a song cover. They talked about collaborating, and hanging out more, and Changkyun’s heart raced in his chest. 

“Kihyun-ah!” a warm, low voice suddenly called from across the small bakery. His eyes snapping up, Kihyun sees just how long the line had gotten at the register, and processes the terrified look in Hyunwoo’s eyes. Jolting a bit, Kihyun looks at his watch and winces.

“Oh crap, I need to get back to work,” Kihyun said, looking over at Changkyun with regret on his features. “I guess our date has to be cut short early, sorry about that,” Kihyun apologized, smiling softly. Changkyun nodded his head in sympathy, honestly flattered that Kihyun would spend this much time with a practical stranger while he was supposed to be working. Kicking his feet a bit in shyness, Changkyun looked up at Kihyun with twinkling eyes.

“I understand,” Changkyun said, blinking several times in nervousness. “But maybe… next time we can talk for longer?” he proposed, keeping the word ‘date’ out of his proposition. He couldn’t forget what Kihyun said about this being only for today… he shouldn’t assume that Kihyun would be interested. Straightening his apron after standing up, Kihyun smiles down at Changkyun, a sense of newfound affection coming over him. He was starting to like this kid, and how could he say no to a face like that?

“It’s a date~” Kihyun said before walking away, his steps confident and stable as he went to relieve Hyunwoo of his duty. Watching him, Changkyun feels his face heat up and he sputters, his eyes wide. He supposed Kihyun had changed his mind about that… Biting his lip, Changkyun looked down at his empty plate, staring at the remaining heart decoration with a sense of gratitude. 

“Yeah… it’s a date <3”