“Is Irene here today?” Jongdae drummed his fingers on the cafe countertop nervously. It was Wednesday morning, 7:00 am, and he was going to be seriously pissed if he had to waste 5 minutes of quality sleep time down here, instead of in the warm reaches of his bed. 

 I’m a lazy , I admit it.

 He looked around in the cafe, pretending to be interested at a red hair that had fallen on the ground.

 Nope. Nada. Zilch. Nobody.

 Weird, Jongdae thought. The cafe opened at 5:00 am sharp every morning. Even if pigs started flying, the cafe would still open at 5:00 am sharp every morning.

 “Hello?” he called out. He didn’t expect a voice to answer back, but it did.

 It was refreshingly light and clear, with a joyful lilt at the end. Perfect for reading children’s audiobooks, Jongdae mused. And also definitely not Irene.

 The stranger came out of the other end of the kitchen, tugging at his uniform sleeves(a white collared shirt, dress pants and a striped apron). He stopped to stare at Jongdae. Or rather, Jongdae stared at him. He couldn’t look away. The new barista was a man, with rounded cheeks, pale complexion, fluffy blonde hair, and large, feline eyes that sparkled with curiosity. Without meaning to, Jongdae’s eyes stared down at his full lips, and accentuated jawline. His arms were surprisingly toned, where the rolled up sleeves met skin, and there was a warm aura to him. Jongdae wasn’t sure if he wanted to wrap him up in a hug, or keep on ogling. The two stood there, eyes boring into each other until the barista cleared his throat.

 “A-Are you checking me out?” The stranger cocked his head at Jongdae, crossing his arms.

 Oh shi-Jongdae felt heat creep up his neck, twisting around his cheeks.

 “NO!” he snapped instinctively. The barista seemed startled for a second, before a smile played across his lips.

 Kim Jongdae, why the hell are you staring?

 After a silent pause, the barista walked over to greet him, extending an arm. “My name is Minseok. I’m the new hire. It’s very nice to meet you.” Jongdae gave Minseok’s hand a quick and awkward shake, and suddenly become hyper aware of his own insecurities.

 He was staring too! Oh god, I forgot to brush my teeth today. My hair looks like a rat’s nest. Is this the same crusty hoodie that I’ve worn for six times and forgotten to wash? And those eyebags! I’ve really let myself go…

 He shook his head at the ground. Stop it. You’re being ridiculous. He probably doesn’t even care about you, much less what you look like today. Jongdae didn’t even notice that the barista was still gazing at him until he snapped his head back up.

 Jesus Christ.

“How rude of me! I’m supposed to take your order!” Minseok nervously laughed and walked behind the counter. “What can I get you today?”

 “Is Irene here?”

 “Irene?” Minseok turned and yelled into the kitchen. “Is Irene here today?”

 The head chef, Sunny, poked her head out from the corner. “She called in sick today. Is there a problem with that?” She blinked once, then twice, before disappearing to pipe meringues.

 “No, it’s just..” Jongdae shook his head and thought about how he should phrase this. “We had a deal going on, where she basically promised me two months worth of free bagels.”

 Minseok looked unconvinced.

 “Really.” “I’m serious!” Jongdae whined, before realizing how pathetic he sounded.

 Minseok placed his elbows on the counter and leaned forward until their noses were almost touching, so close that Jongdae could see his reflection in his honey colored eyes.

 I’m such a creep. Someone save me from this.

“Can you look me in the eyes and tell me that’s true? Or are you just the typical common crook, looking for some free food?”

 “Wha-I-I-What?” Jongdae stammered, eyes darting around the cafe for someone to save him. “I need to uh-uh-use the washroom!” he quickly declared.

 Minseok watched with an amused expression as the boy retreated to the back corner of the cafe, ditching his backpack on the ground.

 “You’re scaring away our best customer,” Sunny chastised. She stood behind Minseok, hands on her hips. “He’s been coming here every morning for two years now.”

 “Sorry, boss.” He grinned to himself. “Is he going to be okay, or what? He looks like he's just had an existential crisis because of those bagels.”

 Silently, Minseok slipped a hand behind his back and reached into the display case.

 “Minseok,” Sunny warned, “you’re not supposed to give out free food. It’s a business, not a charity.”

 “Yes, ma’am.” Minseok sighed, and watched as Sunny rolled a trolley of eclairs back into the oven.

 Finally, Jongdae came out of the washroom, looking confused and disheveled.

 “Excuse me sir, are you okay? I didn’t catch your name before.”

 “It’s Jongdae. I’m leaving now, so don’t bother.” Jongdae refused to look at the barista while he quickly grabbed his backpack and fled the cafe.

 I’m such a stupid- idiot, he brooded. Can’t I have one interaction without making it socially awkward? And those bagels. Ugh. Jongdae nearly broke into a sprint as he tore down the apartment sidewalk. He couldn’t wait to put as much distance possible between him and Minseok.

 As he stomped up the stairs(Jongdae needed to vent out his energy), his foot caught on the edge of a step and he tumbled backwards, clinging onto the railing for support. Jongdae yelped, and his knee scraped the concrete step, exposing the raw pink flesh underneath.

 The scrape was nothing too bad, nothing that a large bandaid couldn’t fix. The skin was ripped off, with little dots of blood pooling at the surface. He rolled his pant leg back down and winced.

🥖🥖🥖

 “What’s that in your bag?” Baekhyun asked. Jongdae was back in the apartment, taking off his jacket when Baekhyun pointed out the paper bag that was sticking out of his backpack.

 “Huh?” Jongdae asked.

 He swung the bag onto the floor and opened up the back pocket, pulling out a crinkly package, stamped with EXODUS on the front. As he peeled back the layers of packaging, the smell of bagels hit him.

 Jongdae couldn’t help but smile.