Wendy steps inside the quaint café, smiling when the smell of roasted coffee beans enters her nose. She makes her way towards the counter and grins widely when she recognises the sound of ‘Fly Me to the Moon’ playing softly in the background. She joins the line of people queuing for their coffee orders and steps closer to the counter when the people in front of her move to sit at the tables around the café.

Her name falls on the lopsided name badge of the person on the other side of the counter.

Seulgi.

“Hi,” Wendy says, glancing upwards and politely smiling at Seulgi.

She gasps when Seulgi’s grip on the coffee cup in her hands slips and the cup hits the counter with a solid thud and rolls around in its spot, the contents of the cup spilling everywhere on the table.

“Are you okay?” Wendy starts to say, only to widen her eyes as she watches the growing coffee stains on Seulgi’s white apron.

Seulgi’s too busy staring at her with hanging open to realise the state of her outfit.

“Are you okay?” Wendy says again, arching her eyebrows when Seulgi waves her hands in the air and smiles sheepishly at her.

“Absolutely, positively fine!” She says, knocking her hands on a jar of chocolate coconut energy balls and causing it to rock back and forth on the counter.

Absolutely, positively not, Seulgi thinks as her eyes narrow at the way Wendy chews on her bottom lip and frowns at her as her eyes flicker up and down her body. She looks down at her clothes and blanches at the coffee stains on her apron, a reminder of what had just happened a few seconds ago. Her head snaps back and she reddens in embarrassment. Seulgi waves her hands in front of her in a futile attempt to distract the customer from anywhere but her clothes.

“Someone will be with you in a moment!” Seulgi says, turning around and shoving Sooyoung towards the counter.

Poor Sooyoung just switches her gaze back and forth between the retreating Seulgi and the confused Wendy. It takes her a couple of seconds to realise exactly what’s going on and she grins in mirth, holding back the laughter threatening to escape from her lips.

“How can I help you?”

Seulgi paces back and forth in the back room, her mind a blur as she tries to recover from the embarrassing moment that transpired a few seconds ago. When she hears the door open behind her a few minutes later, she spins around and almost sighs in relief when Sooyoung offers a worried expression.

“What was that?”

“What was what?”

“Don’t act like nothing happened. You don’t usually get flustered or panic around customers or hide around in the back room,” Sooyoung says, smirking in amusement when Seulgi stops her pacing and shoots her a glare.

“Was I that obvious?”

Sooyoung laughs and pushes herself off the wall. She hands Seulgi a new apron, who gladly accepts the garment and wraps it around her front.

“If you mean obvious in the way that Wendy kept asking if you were okay when I was taking her coffee order and when she collected her drink, then yes. You were very obvious,” Sooyoung says, patting Seulgi’s shoulder and walking out of the back room.

Seulgi sighs and dumps her soiled apron into the laundry basket. She smooths the front of her new apron and takes a deep breath before exiting the room, her mind chanting the stranger’s name over and over again.

Wendy.

There are some days where Seulgi loves the morning shifts because she can take her time to set up the shop and make herself a flat white before the store opens for business. However, there are some days where Seulgi loathes the morning rush of customers entering their tiny store because of course, all problems under the sun must arise from 8am. She mentally recites the lists of problems they’ve had in the past and how to rectify those mistakes:

1. Understaffed because of transport problems: check the bus and train timetables the night before and plan the trip accordingly.
2. Incorrect coffee orders: check and double-check the customer’s name and order and label their coffee cup with the correct order.
3. Cranky customers in the queue: speak to them politely and try to quickly finish their order.

She’s in the middle of dealing with a particularly difficult customer who grumbles and shuffles over to the side when she spots a familiar figure step forward.

“Hi,” Wendy says, shyly tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

Seulgi’s not religious but she prays to whoever is looking above them that she doesn’t make a fool of herself for the second time in a row. “Hi Wendy. What can I get you?” She says, reaching for her permanent marker in the pocket of her apron.

“One small cappuccino with one sugar please. Usually I’d go for a caramel macchiato but the floor is receiving free coffee so I’m just getting something small today.”

If Wendy’s surprised that she knows her name even though they never did introductions in their previous conversation, she definitely doesn’t let it show on her face.

“One small cap with one sugar?” Seulgi clarifies, scribbling down the order on the coffee lid and re-capping her marker.

“Yes please,” Wendy says, smiling gently at Seulgi.

Seulgi grabs a milk jug and sets to work frothing and steaming the milk. She observes how Wendy steps to the side but remains close to the counter and leans forward to watch what she’s doing (not that it’s interesting; it’s just coffee after all).

“Are you okay from last time?” Wendy asks, her voice gentle with concern.

“I’m fine! It wasn’t anything bad; just coffee stains. Nothing new,” Seulgi says, laughing nervously as her fingers fumble for a disposable coffee cup. She blushes when the corners of Wendy’s lips turn upwards into a smirk, her cheeks turning crimson when Wendy places her arms on the counter and leans her face on her palm.

“Tell me about it,” Wendy says, smiling softly when Seulgi ducks her head and knocks over the cup containing paper straws.

Great way to show you’re not nervous, Kang Seulgi.

“Well, you drop a few things every now and then,” She says, reaching forward to gather the paper straws together. She reddens when her fingers brush Wendy’s, who beams at her and hands her the remaining straws. Seulgi mutters a soft ‘thank you’ and returns her attention to the coffee order, simultaneously trying her best not to glance up at Wendy’s curious eyes and ignore the warm feeling in her chest.

She successfully manages to complete the order and hands Wendy her cup of coffee, trying her best not to gasp when their fingers brush against each other a second time.

Wendy gives her a warm smile and turns to leave, her short black hair blowing gently as she walks towards the door.

Seulgi sighs and stares at her retreating form until Joohyun yells at her to make the next coffee order.

Seulgi’s in the middle of toasting a ham and cheese croissant when she notices a flushed Wendy enter the shop. She waves and hands the toasted croissant to the waiting customer before washing her hands and stepping forward to the counter.

“Sorry I'm latte,” Wendy says, handing over her glass cup. Seulgi hums and pauses, her head snapping up when she registers Wendy’s words.

“Did you just make a coffee pun?”

Wendy nods and dramatically flips her hair over her shoulder. “That I did. It's my way of espresso myself.”

Seulgi laughs heartily as she prepares a shot of espresso into the cup. Wendy clicks her tongue and watches as she carefully pours the frothed milk into the cup and reaches for the whipped cream.

“You should try it sometime Seulgi. It's worth a shot.”

“You're not going to stop with the puns, are you?”

“Nope. You can brew it though.”

Seulgi pinches her nose bridge to stop herself from laughing and fails ultimately when she makes eye contact with Wendy.

She reddens in embarrassment a couple of hours later when Irene catches her giggling to herself as she thinks of her encounter with Wendy in the morning.

Seulgi soon notices a pattern in Wendy’s routine; she always arrives at 8:30am for her caramel macchiato unless she’s with her friend Yeri, in which case she steps inside the café at 8:45am. She passes by and waves inside the shop at 5:45pm when she’s finished with work for the day, a wide beam spreading across her face whenever Seulgi glances up from the counter and returns the greeting.

Sometimes Wendy sticks around in the morning for a conversation and tells her what goes on in her workplace, much to Seulgi’s amusement because she doesn’t understand any of the technical jargon Wendy says. Still, she tries her best to listen and ask questions, chuckling to herself when Wendy begins to speak in an animated fashion to her about the latest project she’s working on with her team.

Seulgi’s eyes fall on her wristwatch. Right on cue, the doors to the coffee shop open and Wendy enters. Her black hair, now reaching her shoulders, tickles her face as she makes her way towards the counter and hands Seulgi her glass cup.

“Good morning,” Seulgi says, already getting to work on her coffee order. Wendy smiles and reaches inside the pockets of her coat, frowning when she can’t find what she’s looking for.

“Drat. I left my wallet in my bag in the office,” She says, patting herself down to make sure she’s searched everywhere on her body.

Seulgi smiles sympathetically and hands over her reusable coffee cup.

“Coffee’s on me.”

Wendy gasps and shakes her head. “Seulgi, you don’t have to do that.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Seulgi says, releasing a silvery laugh when Wendy sighs at her insistence and accepts the free coffee.

(She later finds out from Sooyoung by text that Wendy had returned to the store after work and paid for her coffee and had left a box of macarons for her as a thank you gift.

It makes her realise that she’s falling too fast and hard for a certain Wendy.)

“I was so stupid last time,” Wendy says when she comes in the next time Seulgi serves her.

Seulgi carefully pours the coffee into her cup, her eyes flickering up to stare at Wendy. “What do you mean?”

“I could have paid with my phone but I got a little distracted and flustered about my wallet that I forgot I had my phone on me.”

Seulgi laughs kindly and shakes her head, punching in the price for the caramel macchiato on the eftpos machine. Wendy taps her card on the screen and reaches for her coffee cup, smiling when Seulgi's fingers brush against hers.

Seulgi watches Wendy leave with a large grin on her face, which makes her smile to herself at the thought of her.

There are some days where Seulgi loves the morning shifts and her routine to start the day and she can narrow it down to three reasons:

1. She can take her time opening up the shop and make herself her own flat white to start the day.
2. Some customers, especially the regulars, always strike up a conversation with her.
3. Wendy.

It surprises her when Wendy doesn't show up at the café at her usual time of 8:30am for two weeks. At first she thinks Wendy's probably too busy to visit but the more time she spends dwelling on that thought, she starts to think that maybe she had accidentally or unknowingly said something that hurt her.

Which is why it surprises Seulgi when Wendy turns up two weeks later with a shy smile on her face.

“Hey,” She says, accepting Wendy's cup and busying herself with her order.

“Hi Seulgi,” Wendy says softly, leaning to the side of the counter as she watches Seulgi prepare her order. Strangely, the store is empty except for them and the rest of the staff.

“How are you? I haven’t seen you for a while.”

“I'm feeling better. I was working from home for the past two weeks because I came down with a cold so that's why I couldn't come in for my morning coffee.”

Seulgi nods but doesn’t say anything else, instead choosing to let the silence envelope their conversation. She finishes the order and hands Wendy her cup, blinking when she remains standing to the side.

“What was it like when I was gone?” Wendy asks, her voice gentle with a hint of shyness.

Seulgi blinks when Sooyoung materialises on her side out of nowhere and places a cookie on top of her cup.

“Seulgi missed you so much!” Sooyoung says, ignoring the glare she receives from her friend. She smirks when Wendy looks at her with confusion written across her face and leans forward over the counter to whisper (read: say out loud) in her ear. “You’re her favourite customer,” Sooyoung adds, squealing when Seulgi pinches her arm and pulls her away from the counter.

Wendy watches the interaction with amusement, leaning her head on her palm as she watches Seulgi push Sooyoung far away from the counter.

“Did you miss me?” She asks when Seulgi returns to the counter, smirking when she flushes red immediately at the sudden question.

“Yes,” Seulgi admits quietly and ducks her head to hide her crimson cheeks. She hears a silvery giggle from the other side of the counter but refuses to raise her head, instead keeping her eyes trained on her fingers.

“You know, that wouldn’t be too much of a problem if you’re my girlfriend.”

Seulgi snaps her head up in surprise and blinks at Wendy. “What?”

Wendy giggles, the sound melodious and bright to Seulgi’s ears. “For someone who’s pretty clumsy, I also didn’t think you were pretty dense.”

“What?” Seulgi says again. Wendy rolls her eyes and reaches inside her purse for a business card.

“I’d like to go on a date with you sometime but not a coffee date. I don’t think I can drink anyone else’s coffee except yours,” Wendy says, pressing the card into Seulgi’s hands. She tilts her head to the side when Seulgi stands frozen, agape at the sudden turn of events.

“Seulgi?”

“Y-Yes?” Seulgi says, shaking her head to focus on Wendy.

Beautiful Wendy, who bashfully twirls her hair with her fingers and contemplates the situation in front of her. Gorgeous Wendy, who leans forward and presses a light peck on her cheek and turns her head to the side to whisper in her ears.

“You’re the best part of all my days,” She says softly, stepping back and giving Seulgi a warm smile before turning around to exit the coffee shop.

Seulgi stares at the card in her hands, noting the crossed out office phone number and the words ‘P.T.O’. She turns the card in her hands, her fingers running over the neatly written personal phone number and handwriting on the surface.

Where have you bean all my life? I like you so mocha. Call me – your admirer who buys coffee every morning to see your cute face.

– Seungwan

A/N: I first posted a snippet of this on my Twitter back in June and I only got around to finishing this story now when my timeline started to fill up with posts of Wendy. She's finally back 😭

I also got a little carried away with the coffee puns but honestly, I think it suits Wendy and Seulgi perfectly.

You can find me on Twitter for drabbles/ficlets when I'm not writing a story or you can ask me anything on Curiouscat.