Hoya got to the coffee shop about 10 minutes earlier than the agreed time. He decided to stand outside to wait for her. He was nervous, he hadn't been out on a date in a while. In fact, he didn't even know if having coffee was considered a “date.” Dongwoo had mercilessly about the fact that Hoya was worried about what to wear to go out for coffee. Hoya decided to not his friend's teasing, nor the pranks he pulled at the bookstore, affect his good mood. He finally settled on a collared shirt, jeans and sneakers. Hopefully, it didn't look like he was trying to hard. Should I have gotten her flowers? Is that too much?

Jenny was hurrying her steps. She knew she had 3 minutes to spare and was surprised when see saw Hoya already waiting for her. He leaning against the wall just to the left of the entrance of the coffee shop. This isn't fair. He's just standing there and he looks good. Jenny sighed.

Hoya waved when he saw Jenny heading his way.

“Hi.” she said almost out of breath. “I hope I didn't keep you waiting.”

“It's OK. Should we head in?” asked Hoya.

“Sure.” Jenny answered. Hoya opened the door for her and they stood in line together.

“How was the rest of your work day?” inquired Hoya.

As she turned to look at him, she noticed that he was wearing a different shirt and that his hair was styled differently from this morning. She debated on whether or not to comment, but kept it to herself for the time being. “It was good. It only gets kinda crazy when you guys are around.”

“Hope we don't 'cause too much trouble.”

“It's nothing, it's a nice change of pace.” Jenny said with a smile.

It was their turn to order. Jenny got a french vanilla cappucino for herself, Hoya got a black coffee for him. Hoya was about to pay for both coffees when Jenny stopped him.

“I can pay for my own coffee.” said Jenny. Hoya was taken aback by Jenny's comment. In the years since he's become a professional athlete, no woman he had taken out on a date had ever offered to pay for their share.

“I insist.” said Hoya.

“I thought this coffee was supposed to be a way for me to apologize. I'll pay.” said Jenny. The clerk was getting frustrated and Hoya suggested a compromise.

“You pay for mine and I'll pay for yours. How does that sound?”

Jenny laughed. “You know it's comes down to the same thing, right?”

“I know, but it's the principle that's different.” clarified Hoya.

Jenny decided to just roll with it and go with Hoya's suggestion. After they had finished paying for each others coffees, Jenny glanced around the coffee shop and saw a few patrons glance their way. When her eyes met with their, they quickly glanced away.

“People are looking.” said Jenny.

Hoya didn't usually notice such things, but saw that Jenny was right. Years of being a professional athlete made him immune to people's stares but he had to remind himself to this might be slightly alarming for Jenny.

“Don't mind them.” Hoya said. “I guess it's a good thing we got our coffee to go.”

Their orders came soon enough and Hoya suggested heading someplace else to talk, somewhere less public. They settled on a park about 2 blocks away from the coffee shop. Besides moms and their kids, the park more was more or less empty. They sat down of a park bench and observed their surroundings. Hoya was the first to break the silence.

“You know, I haven't had a woman offer to pay for something herself in years.”

Jenny took a sip of her coffee then replied. “I may not make tons of money playing sports, but I can still afford to pay my own coffee.”

That drew a smile from Hoya. “An independent woman. I can respect that.”

“Thanks. Can I ask you a question?”

“Sure.”

“Do you really not notice when people stare at you?”

Hoya thought about how to answer the question best and decided to go with the truth. “I honestly don't anymore. When I was still a rookie, I might have but nowadays, I guess I don't pay that much attention to it.” He explained further. “Most people tend to leave me alone. Some stop me to ask for autographs and pictures, but besides that, I'm just like anyone else. I'm sorry if I put you in a uncomfortable position.”

“It's fine. It's just...” Jenny let out a small chuckle.

“What?”

“Now that I've been around you guys a couple of times I guess the whole 'mystique' around you has been erased a little.” Hoya couldn't decide if this was a good thing. Jenny continued. “It's a good thing. Makes you guys more real and a little less like people from my TV.” Jenny laughed and Hoya laughed along with her.

“Glad to hear that.” said Hoya after the laughter died down. There was silence once again.

“So...” Jenny started.

“So...” Hoya replied.

“Why'd you ask me out for coffee anyways?” asked Jenny.

“You intrigue me.” said Hoya.

“Me?” said Jenny, genuinely surprised. “I work in a bookstore. I don't think the life I lead can exactly be described as 'exciting'”.

Hoya decided to lay it on the line. Jenny saw Hoya's expression turn serious. “I'm attracted to you. And if I'm not mistaken, I think you're attracted to me too.” said Hoya as he held Jenny's gaze. Seeing as how she didn't look away, Hoya saw this as confirmation and continued. “For now, I just want to get to know you. Maybe you'd care to get to know me too and who knows where this might go...”

Jenny swallowed the lump that had formed in and then smiled. “Where do we start?” she asked.

Thankful that he wasn't rejected right off the bat, Hoya let out a wide smile. “Let's start at the very beginning.”