Suhee’s order came along with Yongguk’s coffee, a steaming latte and a delicate slice of moist cheesecake. Daehyun seemed to ogle at the cake even as he placed the items down on the wooden table, making the girl laugh and her brother to raise an eyebrow.

“A slice of heaven right there,” the waiter clarified, smiling brightly at the two. His eyes lingered on Yongguk a split second longer, meeting his gaze until the older man broke the eye-contact by clearing his throat. Not embarrassed in the least, Daehyun retreated after wishing them a good meal.

Suhee stared at his back, slightly open-mouthed. “Wow, Daehyunnie totally checked you out,” she stated, shifting her gaze back to Yongguk. “I think he likes you, oppa,” the girl dramatically concluded before bursting into giggles again.

The blonde swatted at her shoulder, turning slightly pink. “Stop, I already have Jieun, okay?” Suhee shrugged with a sweet eyesmile on her face. “Well, you never know. In case you might want to expand you ual orientat- Ow, Gukkie oppa, I’m joking!”

Yongguk narrowed his eyes at the pouting girl before he took a sip of his black coffee, making a face. “Needs more sugar,” the man shook his head, ignoring Suhee’s incredulous expression as he tore the tops off three sugar packets and added the contents into his cup.

The next half-hour or so was spent with Yongguk talking about the latest song he composed. It was one of the things Suhee was happy and proud of, having her perfectionist brother actually valuing her opinion on his music. Pulling out a small music player and earphones from his pocket, he offered a side to Suhee, who nodded and listened curiously.

The notes flowed together into a lilting piano melody albeit with a strong beat, giving the signature feel of an R&B ballad. Yongguk had rapped some parts in it, the tentative lyrics echoing in her ears. Talent with words seemed to run in their family.

“I think it’s awesome, but the bass seems to be slightly overpowering. And the beat could be sped up a little,” Suhee said finally, handing the earphone back to Yongguk. He nodded. “I was thinking that too, changing around the rhythm. Once the vocals are in, the bass should be less loud though.” The man gave her a gummy smile, standing up. “Thanks for the input. Uh– excuse oppa for a minute, I need to go to the bathroom…”

“Okay,” the girl smiled before switching her attention back to her drink as she waited, sipping at it contentedly. Suhee reached out to flip through the textbook hand she had borrowed from the university library earlier, only to bump her hand into another’s.

Blinking, she looked up to see Youngjae standing near, surveying her with doe eyes and smiling gently. Butterflies awakened in her stomach at sight of his plump curved lips, her textbook in his hand. “H-hi,” Suhee found her voice cracking as she greeted him, reciprocating with a shy smile.

“Mhm~ Oh, since when did you pick up Psychology?” The brunette waiter cocked his head to the side, gazing at the big print of its title. He flipped through the pages briefly before placing it back into Suhee’s hands. “Looks familiar as well, I’ve probably used it before in class.”

The brown-eyed girl felt a warm feeling blossom in her chest from just listening to the boy’s voice. “Oh, this? Actually… we’re discussing about psychological and psychiatric injuries in class, so I thought I’d do some background reading on the topic. It’s certainly more than I expected though.” Suhee reached up to curl a strand of hair behind her ear, wrinkling her nose in mock-distaste.

Her answer made Youngjae guffaw and place a hand on her head, ruffling the hair lightly. Suhee looked up at him, her eyes sparkling with mirth and slight shyness at the touch. “What, you thought Psychology was easy, didn’t you?” She nodded cheerfully and watched the boy laugh more. “I thought you didn’t condone socializing during working hours, Youngjae-sshi.”

Their contact had been somewhat of a touch-and-go thing, ever since he walked her home that time. It wasn’t that they got uncomfortable each other – more like they never had the chance to hang out after that. In the café, conversations with Youngjae were always short and… correct, if Suhee could put it that way.

The waiter grinned, sliding into Yongguk’s seat. “I just clocked out. Early shift today. Besides, your brother thanked me for ‘taking care of you’–” He waggled his eyebrows at that phrase, making Suhee snort. “He seems pretty cool. Oh nuna, by the way, if you need me to explain some of the basics of Psychology to you, I can help. I had pretty good grades back in university,” Youngjae offered.

Suhee looked at him, slightly startled. “B-but aren’t you busy with work and all? Unless you consider this like tutoring? How much–” She was swiftly interrupted by the brunette. “Hey, we’re friends. No fees needed. I only remember the basic stuff anyway.” Youngjae stated firmly.

“In that case…” the girl bit her lip, considering. I can’t let him do such a big favor without any return, and if he wouldn’t accept monetary rewards, there must be something else I could do… “Ah! I know what I can give you in return,” Suhee smiled widely, holding his wrist in excitement. “You stay by yourself, right? I bet you haven’t tasted home-cooked food in a long time.” Youngjae shook his head. “Then you should come over for dinner! Omma’s kimchi jjigae is the best you’ll ever taste.”

She leaned back as a grin started to decorate the ex-student’s face. “Sounds like a good plan to me. I’ve been living off microwavable food for weeks,” Youngjae sighed.

“I have to let you know though,” Suhee’s enthusiasm faltered at what she was about to reveal to the other. Maybe it wasn’t that good of an idea after all. “My mom can be a little erratic sometimes, I hope you don’t mind… She was depressed for a while when my biological father died when our old house burned down–”

The girl trailed off when she saw the shocked look on Youngjae’s face. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to tell you my long sob story.” Suhee laughed awkwardly, cringing at herself. “She has a bipolar personality disorder. But she's a lot better since she started medication and like I said, she’s the best chef ever.”

As the form of Yongguk approached, the boy stood and nodded, pulling out a pen and writing his number on a napkin before handing it to the girl. “I bet. I don’t mind in the least. Let me know when you’re free, nuna?” He smiled easily, pale skin glowing in the late afternoon sun.

Suhee nodded brightly. “I will!”

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Unedited, but I wanted to post this as a gift to raccoontist who always waits patiently for my updates ^___^ I'll get back to it tomorrow.

My god everyone keeps smiling in my fic. Their cheek muscles must hurt 3