There weren’t many customers tonight. Jeongyeon had finished stock taking earlier and was relaxing in her seat, arms resting on the counter.

Her line of sight rested on the clock. 10:53PM. A six-hour shift flew by yet again, she mumbled to herself.

The bell jingled soon after, and by this time Jeongyeon could already recognize the girl.

“Oh! It’s you again,” Jeongyeon said as hoodie girl placed a butter bread on the counter, and the latter smiled sheepishly.

Jeongyeon scanned the bread’s barcode and a wave of realization hit her. “Butter bread again tonight, huh?” She chuckled.

“Huh?”

“You bought this yesterday too, didn’t you?”

Hoodie girl thought for a moment. “Nope, I bought egg tarts yesterday.”

“Ah, then it must’ve been two days ago,” Jeongyeon handed the girl her change. 

“It was cheesecake,” the girl corrected with a laugh. 

“Ohhh…no wonder it felt familiar,” Jeongyeon laughed along, realizing her mistake. She recalled their transactions, her scanning a small yellow food at night, a few minutes before closing. Different foods, similar vibes.

Jeongyeon observed as she kept her change. Just then, her stomach rumbled. 

“Actually…” Jeongyeon started. “Do you mind taking a longer break today? I’m a little hungry so I’m thinking we could eat together, and my shift is about to end too.”

Hoodie girl smiled in understanding. “Of course.”

Jeongyeon lifted the ramyeon with her chopsticks to disperse the hot vapour. “So, how’s your painting going?” The two of them were seated side by side, at the long table by the glass wall.

The girl slowed down her chewing, having a complex expression.

Jeongyeon noticed and quickly took back her words. “Sorry, It’s alright if you don’t want to talk about it.”

Both ate in peaceful quietness for awhile, before hoodie girl broke the silence with a question.

“You found it familiar just now, right? The fact that I always come in to buy food that’s yellow.”

“Oh yeah.” Jeongyeon glanced at her ramyeon. Yellow, too. “May I ask why?”

“Yellow…” She held out her half eaten butter bread. “it gives a bright and cheerful vibe, doesn’t it? Seeing it gives us strength. Or at least, it gives me strength. Even when I face setbacks or dark times, yellow reminds me to smile.

“But having a smile on the outside is only superficial,” she continued. “Consuming yellow food makes me feel energised, and I become happier on the inside too.”

The whole time she was explaining, Jeongyeon was carefully listening. She nodded slowly as she took in all the information. “Wow, that was pretty deep, “she remarked as she let the details sink in. “But it’s meaningful too.”

Sana smiled and looked at Jeongyeon. “So to answer your question about my project...my painting has no traces of yellow, ironically. It’s all blues and purples.” 

Jeongyeon nodded in understanding, and once again it was quiet.

The two of them finished their food and walked out of the convenience store together.

“Thank you for listening to my sentiments,” the girl said, her face slightly lit up. “I’m going to add some yellow to my painting. It’s all thanks to you, Jeongyeon.” She had read her name from her name tag earlier.

But all I did was listen, she thought, even though guessing that was exactly the reason. “Thank you for eating with me too, uh...” Jeongyeon trailed off, looking at her. 

“Sana.”

Jeongyeon grinned. “Thank you, Sana. All the best for your painting.”

“I believe in you,” she added.

As she and Sana went in different directions, Jeongyeon was lost in her thoughts, her mind processing what Sana has said about the colour yellow and being happy. Remembering that the painting was about Sana’s feelings, it made her wonder if this late night customer had more to her cheerful facade than it seemed.