Brewed Coffee
Our Timeless MemoriesShe smelled of freshly picked chamomile- like his backyard.
Yi Fan owned a huge estate, on which he grew many types of fruits as well as tea. Why did I start growing chamomile again? He didn't remember. But the girl was back again today, yes- he had asked her and she had affirmed that she had indeed been there the day before, and she was pouring him tea again.
She was dressed in a vanilla white sundress and chamomile flowers arranged in a perfect crown decorated the top of her head. He never bothered to ask her about where she came from- frankly he didn't really care. Yi Fan simply accepted the fact that she seemed to appear at that exact time everday.
"Did you get those from my backyard?""
"Oh- n-no," she stuttered, "I got these from back home. I have a small field too- my best friend planted them for me."
"Oh really? That's pretty neat," Yi Fan smiled geniunely, "what's his name?"
"His name is Kris." That name seemed to ring a small bell in Yi Fan's head- as if he had heard it before. He shrugged off the feeling. Probably just a coincidence. Taking the small cup that she offered in his hands, he breathed in the scent of warm chamomile.
"Is chamomile tea your favorite drink? I mean since you have a field and all," he inquired.
"Oh- no. It's good but I prefer coffee." A wistful smile played on her lips as she took a deep breath. "Your home smells like coffee."
"Yeah- it does. I wonder why really, I keep smelling it lately as well. And I am very sorry to ask- but I don't think I ever got your name?" Yi Fan felt slightly awkward asking this pretty girl such a question. She felt all too familiar, not like a stranger that he barely knew.
"Joohyun. Seo Joohyun," she replied, an all too familiar gloom veiling her delicate features.
"Nice to meet you Joohyun," Yi Fan replied happily, stirring his tea gently. He studied her from across the table- noticed the way that the sunshine fell upon her face- like the face of a sad angel. She seemed quite distracted by the smell of coffee, something he had grown use to lately.
"Did you...perhaps...brew any coffee today?"
"No? I don't like coffee- only the smell is nice."
There was a sudden whizzing sound from the kitchen that caused the both of them to turn in that direction. He noticed the way her eyebrows furrowed distraughtly as she looked at him, as if she were searching through him for some sort of answer- an answer she couldn't find.
Yi Fan watched her curiously as she stood up from her seat, almost knocking the chair over and glided into the kitchen. He followed her quietly and watched her pull out the plug from the coffee maker- which he didn't remember ever turning on, her hands shaky as she moved to slowly pour the contents down the sink.
"Wait! Stop! Don't waste good coffee," he shrieked and dashed towards her.
She jumped back sharply- bumping into the fridge and knocking over a box that was sitting on top. The contents spilled out onto the tile floor- turning out to be bags and bags of dried chamomile. She hastily kneeled down to pick them up, rapidly at first- then slowly, almost gingerly. All Yi Fan could do was stand and watch- his hand still gripping the coffee pot tightly.
For some reason, he could never bare to dump the cold coffee he often found after a long day- even though he disliked it. So he forced himself to down the bitter drink.
He abhored sugar in his coffee even more though for some reason; he slightly remembered a soft nagging voice telling him that straight black coffee was the best form of discipline for the mind and body. Yi Fan set the pot down on the counter- now empty, and leaned down to help the girl. She had stopped attempting to place the bags back into the box.
She stared blankly at the ground- a distant look clouding her brown eyes.
"It's alright- don't worry about it. They're still in the bags anyways," Yi Fan attempted to comfort her. Why is she crying? All she did was spill a few tea bags.
"M-my friend and I promised each other...that we would dry enough tea- he promised that he would collect enough tea for us to drink everyday for the rest of our lives."
Yi Fan furrowed his eyebrows, "well...did you two not find enough tea? I can give you some- I mean, I do have a whole field of this stuff. I don't even drink it much."
"No, it's fine," she answered softly- her voice barely audible- like scattered raindrops on a summer's day. She glanced at the clock- it was five in the afternoon. "I think I'll be going then," she said, quickly placing the last bags into the box and putting it atop the counter. "See you tomorrow then. Oh- and don't forget to drink the coffee after you make it tomorow, or else the whole house will smell like it."
She gave him a small smile, overshadowed by her large, sad eyes, and went out to the backyard from the sliding screen door in his kitchen.
"Hey! Hey- that's not the way out! You're going to the back," he yelled after her, running out to catch her.
But when he got outside- she was already gone.
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