The first time I saw him was when I was still in college, working hard in a public cafeteria where the food didn’t taste too good, but was hot when served and came cheap with every serving.  I had swept the floor an hour ago when he came walking in looking like a mix between a hot mess and an exotic model: hair dyed blood red, the sharp curve of his jawline contoured by a light dusting of scruff, and a set of gorgeous monolid eyes framed by thick eyebrows.

What a stunning man.

Although his clothes didn’t match, he pulled off the peculiar assortment of colors well.  The selection reminded me of those messy sketches Heechul had strewn all over his room, back when he still lived at home and hadn’t yet left South Korea to pursue a career in fashion.

While setting aside the fact this place distributed food to the homeless, maybe if he hadn’t stumbled around so much upon his entry, I would have gone with the assumption that he was a model…  A very, very lost model.  

In any case, his striking looks and clumsy gait trapped me to him on the instant, and as he ran a hand through his hair, my eyes caught the fluctuating spikes of frustration that knotted his features.

For a moment, I wondered why he seemed so lost.

Then, his dark gaze swept the area, passing me in the process, and I almost choked on my next breath.  Only the numerous years spent dishing out reflexive smiles spared me from embarrassment.  Donning a smile, I dipped my head at him as I would when greeting any other customer, but he either ignored me or he didn’t see.

In the interest of preserving my self-confidence, I leaned toward the latter judgment.

Forcing my attention to return to my assigned task of serving kimchi into little cups of rice, I picked up the large commercial-sized spoon and stirred the bubbling pan, making sure to rotate the cabbage floating at the top.

This was how I spent most of my nights, helping to prepare and serve meals well into the wee hours of the morning.  Working at a public cafeteria was straightforward and simple money.  Cook, serve meals, clean; repeat the cycle while waiting for the arrival of the morning shift to herald the end of my suffering.

Staring down at the green and orange vegetables illuminated by golden overhead lights, I fiddled with the plastic stretched over my hands while battling the urge to yawn.

Since starting college, exhaustion had become a steadfast loyal companion of mine.  Seemingly reluctant to ever leave my side, its influence touched upon all aspects of my life, leaving me slow on the uptake with just about everything.  But with finals only two weeks away, studying continued to eclipse all priorities aside from work…  And work wasn’t so bad when there weren’t random, extremely good-looking men showing up out of nowhere and causing somewhat of a ruckus.

Although I pinpointed his voice in no time, I kept my head down.  It was easier for me to handle things this way: avoid the attention of others, pretend like they didn’t exist, and they would no doubt reflect the sentiment.  It was a tried and true method of mine, but.  It wasn’t every day such a novel occurrence turned up at my workplace.

I was intrigued, there was no denying it, nor could I deny the qualities that comprised the person I am today.  Qualities of which included a withdrawn personality, an insatiable desire to learn and observe and interact, among other things…

However, once I mustered enough confidence to peer up, my eyes widened and I blinked once, twice, struck incredulous by the spectacle.  Scant yards away, Exotic Model Man had seated himself before ordering—but that wasn’t the problem.  

Sprawled over the table like that, it looked like he’d reached for something on the other side but gave up when he got about halfway there.

My brows drew together.

Now, we served free meals to the homeless, but that didn’t mean we allowed the homeless to sleep here.

Slanting an anxious glance to my right, I noticed Miyeong manning her station, and since her attention often revolved around the condition of her manicured nails, I wasn’t all too affected when I saw her eyes once more glued to her hand.  Though I was troubled to note she didn’t have on a hairnet, thus violating health regulations.  Then came the belated recognition that if she could inspect her manicure, it meant she had neglected her gloves as well…  That was strike two.

Our eyes met without warning and the sudden compulsion to glance aside claimed me for only a split-second.  Damned near cramped my neck powering through that one, but I didn’t break eye-contact.  Heechul would’ve been proud.

Jerking my chin sent her attention to the man seated near my station and she regarded him with stark indifference before turning back to me with her eyes narrowed.  Lined in jet black and set aglow by the overhead lamps, she stared me down until I swallowed out of nervous habit.

Gosh, she’s pretty, I thought while swallowing.  And demanding.

The plastic gloves came off first, then my apron, the thin mesh hairnet pulled next, spilling locks of chestnut brown hair that enclosed my face and neck in a rush.  Barely long enough to graze my shoulders, but long enough to safeguard me from her penetrating stare.  Unease fastened my attention to the floor as I pulled a black band off of my wrist and gathered messy locks, tying it all up quickly.

I probably shouldn’t have glanced at her, but I did, and she had reserved me a heated glare.  Okay, okay.  No more hesitation.  She was older than me, had been an employee here for longer than me, and had the authority to tell me what to do.  This was just another part of adulthood.

Standing less than a meter away from where he sat sprawled and apparently dead to the world, I cleared my throat, which earned me nothing.  Stepping forward, I tapped his shoulder with intent then bounced back when he shifted minutely…  He hardly stirred.

I frowned.  Asleep already?

Daring to tap his shoulder again, I applied enough force to possibly dent a marshmallow — this time, he flew up while belting out a startled shout that scared the ever-living out of me.

Spluttering, he spun around twice before asking, “What — who?  What’s wrong?”

I waved once at him, to catch his attention, then pointed at the large red sign hung on the entrance wall: 

ALL HOMELESS
EAT FOR FREE.
NO SLEEPING.
NO LOITERING.

Unable to offer anything more than my thin, toothless smile, I bowed despite knowing I could never impart my genuine commiseration.  If there was one major downside to this job it was when my employers forced me to maintain the pretense that claimed I wasn’t affected by my actions.  

If this man didn’t have a home, then my job wasn’t only serving hot meals, but it was also sending less fortunate citizens out onto the streets to possibly catch their death.

My eyes squeezed shut at the thought, hating the shades of gray between right and wrong.

“What the—who the hell touched me?  That wasn’t an accident.  Speak up now, before I get angry!”  Exotic Model Man glowered.  “Do you think it’s ing funny to mess with a blind person?”

I snapped upright so fast my back popped.

“Say something!”

, , — from shock yielded the sudden rush of adrenaline that blanked my mind of any sensible thought.  Mouth parted and gaping like a fish, I stood there for over long seconds.

The act of offending anyone was the last thing I would ever want, much less someone who had a disability—hell, I had no idea he was blind!  I figured he was drowsy, maybe even drunk since inebriation could easily explain his tactless movements… besides, it wasn’t the first time a drunk homeless person had caused a scene here!

Panic sprang from the pit of my stomach and lanced ice into my gut as the instict to fetch my only means of communication overtook me.  Sticky notes.  For as long as I could remember, I kept with me a writing utensil and a sticky note pad.  Always.  Be it a plain yellow pad or the multicolored variety, even stickies encased in a custom leather wrap, I never left home without it.  I kept these two items on my person at any time, to explain —

I’m mute.

Well, those items were usually on my person.  Just not now.  Because that,