A few days after classes began and Hayoon already found herself seeking refuge at Dear Me. Having gotten used to the solitude from her days working in the library, she struggled to feel at ease when surrounded by students wherever she went. Furthermore, she had a mountain of readings to go through for her lectures and as much as she loved Baekhyun, there were moments where she would be overcome with the temptation to strangle the boy to silence for Byun Baekhyun was an endless bundle of chatter. She was thankful that she had not revealed the location of her secret hideout to Baekhyun just yet, otherwise she would never be able to escape the male. The only other people who knew she frequented this place were Chanyeol and Junmyeon — and most likely Soojung too by default — and it was unlikely that either would tell Baekhyun. Possibly Chanyeol if Baekhyun nagged him long enough, but that was a worry that Hayoon would deal with once it happened. No point adding more troubles to her already full plate.

As icing on the cake, the coffee shop was currently empty, meaning Hayoon was the only customer and had the whole place to herself. Eyes never leaving the computer screen as she skimmed through the reading assigned by her professor, Hayoon reached for her coffee, enjoying the rich aroma of the single-origin beans. She then took a careful bite of the quiche lorraine that she had ordered. Humming in delight, Hayoon was thoroughly enjoying the creamy custard combined with the soft crunch of the pastry crust.

Sensing an unfamiliar presence behind her, Hayoon froze, quiche half-chewed in . Turning slowly to look over her shoulder, Hayoon came face to face with a navy apron with Dear Me embroidered at the side, the stains of chocolate and flour served as a sign that it was not Minseok. Hayoon’s eyes traced up, searching for the face of the unknown presence and found a pair of large brooding eyes staring down at her, digging holes through her skull. Swallowing loudly, Hayoon adjusted her glasses that were slipping down her nose.

The unknown male’s eyes flickered back and forth between Hayoon and the empty chair across from her before finally deciding to sit down, placing his arms on the table in front of him, fingers interlocked together. Hayoon grew increasingly uneasy with the strange behaviour of the male and glanced towards the counter in the hopes of having Minseok come to her rescue. As luck would have it though, Minseok seemed to have disappeared somewhere, most like roasting a fresh batch of beans.

Still under the gaze of the male who Hayoon assumed was the infamous big boss of the kitchen, the girl subconsciously shrunk back into her chair in a weak attempt to hide behind her computer screen. Carefully peaking over the computer, Hayoon exhaled softly.

“Can I help you?”

Hearing her speak, the male leaned closer towards her, his gaze never leaving her face.

“Why did you make that face when you ate the matcha blondie last time? Was it too dense? Was the texture grainy because the sugar was not mixed in properly? Was the ratio of the matcha off making it was too bitter? No that’s not possible, I made sure to balance it out with plenty of white chocolate.”

The male fired out question after question, not giving Hayoon the time to even register them fully. From what he was asking and the way he behaved, it was clear that the male sitting in front of her was indeed who she suspected him to be. From the looks of it, her reaction to the matcha blondie last time had not gone unnoticed by him and was the cause of her current predicament.

The male waited patiently for Hayoon’s response, sitting so still that Hayoon wondered whether he had turned into a statue.

“Well…” Hayoon cleared , her index drawing invisible circles across the keyboard of her computer while her eyes trailed towards the food display, the matcha blondie in question positioned right in the middle as if mocking Hayoon. “The texture was perfect, not grainy at all. It was rich and