Joohyun’s not a coffee person. Never has been, and probably never will be, if she’s being honest. She drinks it out of necessity, thanks to her gruelling and soul- nine-to-five desk job as a video editor. It’s just her luck that she’s swamped with multiple deadlines this week, and she doesn’t think she can quite survive it without caffeine—which is exactly why she’s making her way to the café close to her office building for the first time in the two years since her employment.

As she steps into the quaint café lined with various bookshelves and potted plants, the morning sun streams in from the windows, and there’s a soft chime as she pushes the door open. It’s relatively quiet with few people, and Joohyun makes her way to the counter, eyeing the menu. Not that it makes much sense to her, but she tries anyway, squinting as she miserably attempts to decipher each variation of coffee.

She comes to a stop in front of the counter, and her gaze flickers to the blonde barista, patiently waiting for her order. The barista in question watches her with thinly veiled curiosity, a faint, friendly smile quirking her lips. She’s just a little shorter than Joohyun, with a bob of hair that ends just above her shoulders, dark brown eyes twinkling with warmth.

In other words, extremely, extremely pretty.

“Can I help you?” The barista suddenly pipes up, and Joohyun blinks, eyes darting back and forth between the blonde woman and the menu board. She opens , brain racing to say anything to stall for time, but nothing comes out. She gulps.

“I, uh… I’m not very familiar with drinking coffee, do you have any recommendations?” She says weakly. She’s already convinced that she’s made it into the barista’s bad books—because really, who likes an indecisive customer? — but her request is merely met with a bright smile and sparkling eyes.

“May I suggest an americano? Those are pretty standard.”

Joohyun gives a small shake of her head. “Sorry, I’m not much of heavy-duty coffee drinker. Do you have something a little lighter?”

The barista gives a thoughtful hum, wrinkling her nose.

“Or would you be interested in trying out a new drink? It’s my own creation, so it’s not exactly on the menu.” She scratches the back of her neck, grinning sheepishly. “I’m assuming you’re more of a tea person?”

“Correct.” Joohyun smiles.

“Well, that’s perfect. Interested in a dirty caramel matcha latte?”

Joohyun shrugs. “Sure, why not.” She’s not exactly sure what it means or contains, but it’s not like it makes much of a difference to her anyway—coffee is merely a means to getting the much-needed caffeine into her system—and it’s not like she knows the difference between the different variations. “How much is it?”

“Six dollars.” The blonde says automatically, and Joohyun pays with her card. “I’m charging it a little cheaper because it’s really more of an experiment than anything.” The barista adds as she busies herself with keying in the order, and Joohyun’s eyes dart down to her name tag, tilted haphazardly to the side on her apron.

Seungwan.

“Right, here you go! Go ahead and head on over there, your drink will be out in a second.” The barista—no, Seungwan— hands her the receipt and gives her another smile before turning to make Joohyun’s order.

Soon enough, Joohyun hears her name being called, and she’s face-to-face with Seungwan again, who hands her her cup of coffee.

“Thank you! Do come again.”

Joohyun murmurs her thanks, retrieving the cup of coffee, and their hands brush briefly before Joohyun’s pulling back and making her way out of the café.

Seungwan’s hands are warm amidst the chilly spring air.

Plopping herself down into her seat, Joohyun heaves a sigh. Her cup of coffee is still untouched, and Joohyun reaches out, clutching her drink as she waits for her computer to boot up, idly taking a sip as she watches the monitors light up one by one. The moment the drink touches the tip of her tongue, she’s met with a strong, almost pungent taste of matcha, mixed with the dark, bitter taste of espresso that doesn’t sit well at all on her tongue. To top it all off, there’s also an almost repulsively sweet undertone of caramel, and Joohyun has force herself to swallow the monstrosity of a concoction, wincing as the liquid slides down . She swallows again, just to make sure she doesn’t gag, and takes a sip of water for good measure. Settling into her seat, she logs in her computer and gets to work, coughing, the coffee eventually partially abandoned to the corner of her desk.

As the day goes by and Joohyun’s energy gradually depletes, she finds herself taking multiple sips of her drink despite its horrendous taste, desperate for her caffeine rush.

“You look like your dog died.” A voice interrupts Joohyun from her thoughts, and she turns, still frowning as she swallows yet another sip, only to find her colleague and friend, Sooyoung, leaning against her desk, arms crossed over her chest.

“I don’t… have a dog?” Joohyun says, rather confusedly, and Sooyoung rolls her eyes.

“Are you okay? You look really upset.”

“I’m just…” Joohyun trails off. “Cranky.” She eventually decides, much to Sooyoung’s amusement.

“Why?”

“I’m tired and my coffee .” Joohyun sighs, reclining back into her chair before taking another sip. By now, the coffee is lukewarm, and Joohyun wrinkles her nose in distaste.

“Then stop drinking it.” Sooyoung deadpans.

“I can’t.”

It comes out a little more petulantly that Joohyun would’ve liked, but it’s almost three in the afternoon and she hasn’t had her lunch so quite frankly, Joohyun can’t exactly be arsed to care.

“Why not?”

“I need the caffeine,” Joohyun turns her attention back to her monitors, clicking away. “And the barista who made it was kind of cute.” She mumbles as an afterthought.

“You’re so weird.”

Pushing the door open to the café, Joohyun sighs in relief when she’s finally granted shelter from the chilly morning breeze. She straightens her coat, brushing stray strands of hair out of her face.

“Welcome!” A voice rings out, and Joohyun turns to find a familiar, blonde barista standing before her again, a bright smile on her face. Joohyun offers her a small smile, scanning the menu once more.

“So… how was the matcha latte?” Seungwan asks, and Joohyun blinks.

“Uh, it was—pretty interesting!” She says, rather haltingly, wincing inwardly at her tone. Sooyoung’s right—she really is a terrible liar.

“Is there any chance you’re going to be ordering that today too?” Seungwan seems to have been oblivious to Joohyun’s admittedly poor attempt at lying, because the blonde still looks as cheerful as ever. Joohyun swallows, blanching at the mere thought of having to drink the horrid combination of flavours again.

Yet, Seungwan’s looking at her so full of hope and with barely restrained excitement, Joohyun can’t quite find it in herself to reject the pretty barista.

“Sure!” She says despite her own misgivings, handing over her card, dread already settling into her stomach at the thought of the rest of her day spent sipping the wretched coffee.

It becomes like a routine.

Joohyun always comes into the café at eight in the morning on the dot, and Seungwan is almost always there, ready and eager. It becomes so much of a routine that Joohyun doesn’t actually have to tell Seungwan her order.

“The usual?” Is all Seungwan has to say, and Joohyun nods with a smile.

“You know, you’re the only one who actually orders this from me.” Seungwan comments offhandedly as she scribbles down Joohyun’s order. “On a regular basis, anyway.” She chuckles.

“Really?”

“Mhm. I mean, other people have tried it, but they’ve never asked for it again.” She shrugs.

Joohyun hums in acknowledgement, silently watching Seungwan bustle about behind the counter. As usual, the café is relatively empty with the morning crowd already long gone, granting Joohyun the leisure of making small talk with the barista.

“So, how was your day yesterday?” Seungwan’s voice is almost drowned out by the loud rumble of the coffee machine and clinking of metal.

“It was okay, this week’s going to be busy though.”

Seungwan laughs. “You always say that.”

Joohyun huffs out a laugh, averting her gaze. “I suppose so.”

“You work too hard.” Seungwan smiles gently, but Joohyun waves a hand vaguely, as if to dispel Seungwan’s words, warmth burning in her cheeks.

Then, Seungwan’s handing her the coffee, an unspoken end to their conversation, and Joohyun takes it from her.

“Good luck at work!” Seungwan calls out, and Joohyun bids her goodbye with a small, shy wave before slipping out of the café.

“You’re insane.”

“I think so too.”

Sooyoung’s clutching Joohyun’s cup of coffee, looking at her incredulously.

“You drink this every day?” She gapes.

“…Yes.” Joohyun shrinks lower into her chair.

“Joohyun.”

“I know, I know. I’m stupid and I should go talk to her instead of doing this.” She grumbles, placing her headphones from where it hangs around her neck and onto her desk instead.

“More like before you die of food poisoning,” Sooyoung sets the cup of coffee down on the desk, face scrunched up in distaste. “Is she really that pretty for you to risk your stomach for?”

 “You’re being dramatic.” Joohyun huffs.  “And yes, she is very pretty.” She pauses. “And cute… and nice.”

Joohyun avoids Sooyoung’s gaze, which she knows is most definitely trained on her, opting instead to idly click around her video editing software.

“What’s her name?”

“Seungwan.”

“Does she know yours?”

“I would assume so.”

“Have you two talked?”

Joohyun pauses. “Does small talk count?”

“No.”

Joohyun sighs. “Then no.”

There’s a noise of disapproval from Sooyoung.

“Well, at least she seems funny.” Sooyoung gestures to the cup sleeve, where a messy ‘You mocha me happy!’ lies, complete with a smiley face. It’s pretty cute and kind of adorable, if Joohyun’s being honest.

“You know, I don’t think she’d be offended if you ordered something else.”

“But I feel bad. I’m the only one who orders it from her, and she always looks so happy whenever I get it.” Despite her best efforts, a whine still slips into her voice, and Sooyoung shakes her head, exasperated.

The moment Joohyun steps into the café, laptop clutched in her arms and her backpack slung over one shoulder, she’s met with the unusually loud bustling of baristas and humming of coffee machines. Slipping past the long queue of customers, she barely manages to secure a table before making her way over to the counter and joining the ever-increasing line of coffee-drinkers. Somewhere between the hurried movements of two other baristas, Joohyun spots the familiar, petite figure of Seungwan, weaving expertly between her coworkers as she juggles multiple orders, brows furrowed in concentration, working with ferocious efficiency.

It takes a while before Joohyun finds herself standing in front of the counter. Clutching her phone, Joohyun takes in a deep breath, biting her lip anxiously. She’s determined to order a different drink today, as per Sooyoung’s advice—to strike a conversation starter, was what she’d said, but as Joohyun ruminates upon Sooyoung’s words, she finds herself increasingly doubting the credibility of such advice.

Still, something is better than nothing, and Joohyun can’t quite possibly leave all the talking to Seungwan all the time.

And also because maybe then she’ll finally grant her stomach some much-needed reprieve.

“Hi, what can I get—”

Seungwan cuts herself off abruptly as recognition lights her eyes, and a bright smile forms. “Hey! It’s you. Are you getting your usual?” Seungwan looks just shy of frazzled, fingers already poised to tap in Joohyun’s usual order, and Joohyun swallows, her request for a new drink suddenly fizzling out on the tip of her tongue. It wouldn’t be fair to disappoint the barista, especially at such a hectic juncture of her shift, and Seungwan’s already ready and anticipating for her usual choice of coffee, and she doesn’t think it’d be very nice to change her order all of the sudden.

“Yeah!” She winds up saying instead yet again, and Joohyun pays with her card with practiced ease, regret already settling in her stomach. It’s almost laughable, really, at how easily Joohyun becomes swayed by the blonde.

“Sorry I can’t chat today, we’re a little busy, but if you want a refill later just let me know.” Seungwan shoots her a genuine smile despite the chaos around her before handing Joohyun her receipt, promptly turning away to make the next few orders.

The crowd eventually thins out and the café settles into its usual tranquillity once more, granting Joohyun peace and quiet, tucked away at a table in the corner.

Then, there’s the faint sound of approaching footsteps through her earbuds, and Joohyun glances up to find Seungwan before her, hands tucked into her apron pockets, biting her lip nervously as she rocks on the balls of her feet.

“Hey, you want a refill?” Seungwan gestures to the nearly empty mug somewhat awkwardly, and Joohyun removes her earbuds.

“Yes, please.” With that, Seungwan’s picking up her mug wordlessly, turning and making her way back to behind the counter. The barista returns within minutes with a full mug of her strange invention, and Joohyun murmurs her thanks, trying not to think about the next few hours spent drinking yet another cup of it.

“You, uh, don’t usually come in on weekends.” Seungwan’s looking down at her feet. Lifting the mug to her lips, Joohyun takes a sip, fighting back the grimace that threatens to show. She places the mug down, and gives a smalls shrug.

“My neighbours were having loud and my earpieces aren’t exactly noise-cancelling, so.”

Seungwan blinks.

“Oh.”

There’s a few seconds of somewhat awkward silence, and as Seungwan opens , about to say more, she’s interrupted by an indignant “Seungwan, where are you?!”. The blonde shoots Joohyun an apologetic look.

“Sorry, I have to get back to work.” She jerks a thumb towards the counter. “Enjoy your drink!” She offers Joohyun a small wave before quickly turning tail and making her way back, leaving Joohyun to slowly watch her disappear into the kitchen.

“Here, try it!” Pushing a freshly brewed cup of her dirty matcha latte with caramel into Yerim’s hands, Seungwan’s grinning proudly as her co-worker takes a tentative sip, eyeing her warily. A part-timer who’s still in university, most of Yerim’s shift had coincided with Seungwan’s, and over the past few years, Yerim’s come to be Seungwan’s trusty right-hand man behind the counter, and overall, a good friend.

Occasionally the bane of Seungwan’s existence, but really, the pros outweigh the cons, so Seungwan isn’t exactly complaining.

It seems like Yerim has chosen today to be an , because almost immediately, there’s a hurried pattering of footsteps as Yerim hauls herself to the sink, spitting out the coffee. Turning on the tap, she rinses out , sputtering.

“Wow, rude.” Seungwan mutters.

“What in ever loving was in that?” Yerim’s turning towards her now, disgust written clear as day on her face.

“An espresso shot in matcha latte, plus caramel.”

“Why would you ever do that?” Yerim’s voice borders on offended, and Seungwan frowns.

“It’s not that bad!” Seungwan says defensively. She pauses. “Joohyun likes it.” She mumbles, looking away.

She’s met with a confused look. “I… have no idea who that is.”

“You don’t remember Joohyun?” Seungwan furrows her eyebrows.

“There’s about fifty over people that come in everyday, how am I supposed to know who Joohyun is?” Yerim snorts.

“She’s the really pretty one I told you about.” Seungwan lowers her voice, her gaze drifting to the aforementioned woman sitting in the corner of the establishment, and suddenly Yerim’s giving her a knowing look, a smug grin already forming.

“The one you’re crushing on?”

“Shut up.”

Slipping her book into her bag, Joohyun’s wiggling her foot into her shoe, grimacing. It’s a weekend morning, which usually means that, one, Joohyun does not venture outside of her home unless necessary, and two, said mornings would have usually been spent in the corner of her couch, reading novels in her pyjamas. Instead, Joohyun finds herself dressed in a cream cashmere sweater and jeans, tote bag slung over a shoulder as she navigates down the familiar path to the café.

It’s a shoddy excuse to frequent the café more often at this point, and Joohyun’s well aware of it. It’s pretty embarrassing, but Joohyun’s just a little too intrigued by the blonde barista to care. There’s an almost inexplicable pull that draws Joohyun to Seungwan—the whimsical sort of energy and unusually warm friendliness, despite Joohyun’s shyness and relative aloof façade that would’ve driven many away by now.

Unfortunately for her, as she pushes open the familiar doors, she immediately notices the lack of the familiar blonde behind the counters, and she deflates a little. It’s nothing new, but Joohyun always hopes to see Seungwan all the same, even if they don’t exactly talk. “Welcome, what can I get you?” A bored voice snaps her attention to the cashier, and Joohyun blinks. The barista before her is a short, younger woman who looks barely in her twenties, with her black hair tied up in a messy bun.

“Um, just a cup of green tea, please.”

The barista—Yerim, according to her name tag—watches her carefully for a few seconds, finger hovering over the touchscreen.

“You’re Joohyun, right?” She finally asks, and Joohyun hitches her bag higher up her shoulder.

“Yes,” She replies, somewhat uncertainly, confusion in her voice. Has she really been that much of a regular that even Seungwan’s coworkers know her name?

“I can make Seungwan’s coffee for you if you’d like. She left the recipe with me just in case you came in on her off days.” Yerim offers.

It takes Joohyun a good few seconds of consideration before she eventually shakes her head, and Yerim nods, shrugging.

“Whatever floats your boat.” She types in Joohyun’s order, gesturing for the older woman to pay as she grabs a mug.

The abruptness takes Joohyun aback a little – after all, she’s become rather acquainted with Seungwan’s attempts at small talks, no matter how brief they’ve been. It feels a little weird to be left standing alone at the counter, waiting quietly for her coffee instead of Seungwan’s voice carrying over the rumble of the coffee machine as the barista holds a conversation with her while making Joohyun her coffee.

As Joohyun makes her way to her shadowy corner in the café with her mug of green tea, she’s very aware of the pang of absence of a certain blonde barista.