Coffee and Cigarettes and Everything in Between

Winter

"Finally!" Your friend Ningning says as she walks toward us with a huge smile on her face. You look at me with an apologetic smile. "Yes, she's loud." I can tell now and even from before at the coffee shop.

"Great to finally meet you outside the café." She says with sarcasm as she stands in front of me. I offered my hand. "Hi, I'm Winter." She takes it and shakes it gladly. "Ning Yizhou, glad to be formally acquainted with my unnie's girlfriend."

"That's way too formal. Baby she's just messing with you. You can call her Ningning." 

"Way to steal my thunder unnie." She says as she rolled her eyes at you. Stomping her feet, she hook her arm on my arm and started walking, leaving you to trail behind us. I look back at you to see if you're following. Shaking your head, you started walking and mouthed, "it's okay".

"Where to go?" Ningning says more to herself than me.

It's both your day off so we decided to go to the mall. It was just supposed to be you and me but you said that Ningning wanted to meet me outside the confines of the café. I agreed. It's also a good opportunity for me to know your bestfriend. You've met Giselle before so I guess it's my time to meet Ningning.

"So which suits me better?" Ningning asked as she face us with two different colored blouse on each of her hand. Our time today was spent doing a shopping spree. A "Ningning" shopping spree to be exact. We are like parents taking their daughter to the mall for the very first time. Every store that we go to there's always a certain item that catches her eye. 

"I think the red one." I answered her. 

"Really?" She asked amused. "You think it will go well with me?"

"Yeah. Well see your eyes are like feline ones but they're on the bigger side, your eyelashes are also very long and your face have that V shape right? That's why I think red will suit you better. I think bold colors will compliment your facial features more than lighter shades like grey, white or even blue but black is an exception. Black suits everyone."

"I think I just found my new shopping bestie. You may be demoted soon unnie." 

"So should I go now?" 

"But seriously unnie she's like ten times better than you when it comes to shopping advices. All you ever say to me is just choose the one that you like better. You can pull it off anyway." Ningning says imitating your voice, complete with the hand gestures and all.

You kick her leg. "Because it's the truth!"

She smiles sweetly at you. "I know but at least give some advice other than that. See? Winter even talked about compliments, colors and stuff and everything."

"No, it's not like that. I really don't know much about shopping, I just figured from your looks which color will go well with you. You know considering that I work with colors and shades all the time."

"Maybe I should date a painter too. What do you think unnie?" She says as she lean on the clothe rack.

"Maybe, but not this one. Go get your own."

"Winter are you sure you don't have a younger brother?"

"I only have one and he's thirty one."

"Maybe a cousin?" She asks hopeful.

"I'm not close with my cousins sorry." I answered crashing her hopes.

"I'm gonna be single forever." She says as she looks at the distance. You snorted. "Ningning you're only twenty-two."

She looks at the both of us. A deep sigh escape her lips. "Twenty-two and single."

"Come on let's pay already before you rant about your love life." You said as you rolled your eyes at her while I'm just watching the two of you bicker, trying hard to stifle my laugh. Ningning is surely amusing.

"It's just "life" unnie." She says as she sit down between us. Her lips pouting while staring at the white tiled floor.

You stand up abruptly and held her left arm. "Whatever you say Ningning. Come on Winter hold her other arm and let's go to the cashier before she grabs anoth