~The Ninth Heartbeat~
Lattes, Americanos & Macchiatos

Coffee shops; they were simple places to be yet so relaxing and notably romanticized at times. They would be intimately cozy whenever it was too cold to be outside, but also invigorating and fresh when the sun was overbearing. No matter what time of the year it was, the bittersweet fragrance of coffee always curiously roamed around, peeking itself into the noses of customers that visited.

To me, encountering that familiar scent was heartwarming for it indicated a delectable treat that would soon be ready to be savoured by my taste buds. The complex, full-bodied piquancy of coffee often was uniquely exquisite since it varied depending on the coffee blend. An Americano had a classic taste that was straightforwardly bitter and had slight acidic tones hidden underneath, while Cafe Lattes accounted for a lighter, creamier texture and weren’t as bitter. That made them a common choice for those whose with palates that weren’t as sophisticated. On the other hand,  there was an interesting blend I had discovered quite recently called yirgacheffe. I hadn’t gotten the chance to try it myself, but supposedly it was rumoured to have a strong fragrance and a balanced taste with flowery and berry elements embedded into it.

I always found it quite intriguing how the idea of coffee was just essentially hot bean water, yet it managed to garner such a big impact on the lives of many people. Thanks to my love for anything food-related, I developed a deep sense of appreciation for the fine art of drinking coffee and respected the baristas who put all their efforts into preparing the drinks for customers. Despite all that though, I never thought I’d live to see the day where I actually became a barista myself.

I silently stood in front of a glass door which had marked the entrance of a humble coffee shop located just outside the school campus. Right after I swore to to make up for stepping on Ga Eul, she had dragged me here claiming that the place needed some extra help considering it got busy during the cold season. Even if I wanted to, I couldn’t go back on my word now. I always kept my promises one way or the other, no matter what the circumstances were.

“Well? What are you waiting for Jin-sunbae? Head on in!” Ga Eul’s head peeked out from behind me, and I reluctantly looked towards her with a hesitant expression.

“W-well, I don’t know about this. Isn’t this place closed? Look here, the sign says that it doesn’t open until noon, but it’s still 10:30 am right now.” I rubbed the back of my neck. I hadn’t meant for it to be one, but whatever I was saying was starting to sound like a miserable attempt of me trying to convince Ga Eul to let me go free.

“Oh please, do you ever see staff members arrive at work right when it opens? Obviously not. However, we’re here earlier than usual so that I can teach you the basics of how to make coffee. You’ve never been a barista before have you?”

“Er… n-no I haven’t.” I muttered, noticeably more quiet. There was definitely no way I was getting out of this one.

“Yep, I thought so. Come on, we don’t have all the time in the world to appreciate the door! Let’s go in!” She exclaimed, pushing me from behind with her hands rested on my back. I yelped at the sudden force blatantly pushing me through the glass doors which backfired a little. As soon as we made it past the entrance, we had caught the attention of several staff members walking around inside the empty coffee shop, who were staring dead at us while the melodic tinkling of windchime bells mixed together with my baritone voice. I was flustered for a solid moment and wanted to die of sheer embarrassment, but was relieved when everybody continued on with what they were doing without paying much attention to us.

Looking all over the place, I took note of the lively atmosphere that lived in the humbly novel shop. It had originally looked like an awfully small shop on the outside, but the way the furniture had been organized inside created the illusion of
a comfortably roomy cafe. Located right at the entrance was the cashier and beside it, a few glass display cases of attractive baked goods that just emitted an alluring feeling of inviting you to buy one. Some butter croissants, a petit gâteau here and there and simple sandwiches just to name a few. There was also a large blackboard behind the counter which displayed in white chalky lines, the impressively diverse assortment of coffee, tea & mixed drinks that you could choose from.

The cafe itself extended all the way to the back, with a creamy white wall on which various modern contemporary paintings showcased their eye-catching colours. Small, rectangular coffee tables sat against the cream coloured wall, surrounded by sofa-like chairs that looked awfully comfortable to sit in. As I walked along the length of the shop, I noticed the logo that had been painted onto the wall in chocolate brown together with a simple butterfly design to adorn it. It said “Coffee of Dream,” which I found interestingly charming. Once I reached the back, I was met with another set of glass doors that opened out to a wooden patio containing a spiral staircase leading up onto the second floor which was entirely outdoors. I assumed that was only open during the warmer seasons when the hot sun would be out. That was considering it would’ve been too chilly to drink coffee outside at this time of the year but that was my personal opinion so hey, I could be wrong.

I looked over at Hwang Ga Eul, who had already taken off her duffle coat. That had revealed a pinkish-coral turtleneck she wore together with her denim jeans underneath a mocha brown apron firmly tied across her waist. She was in the middle of skillfully tying her hair into a messy bun, holding a hair scrunchie in her teeth. I hadn’t even seen her do anything yet, but in my eyes she already looked like a natural barista. She seemed like she knew what she was doing.

 I, on the other hand, had changed out of my pyjamas before we left the dorms and was now wearing something much   more fashionable. I had a slight amount of trouble deciding at first, but I eventually settled on wearing a dark dress   shirt and a black knitted sweater that had a strip of white running across the chest area, together with a black pair of   ripped skinny jeans. Just to add a bit of colour onto all the black, I wore a beige winter coat that ran all the way down   to my thighs. It was a simple, casual yet chic outfit if I had to say so myself. It made me look good, and I was satisfied   with that.

 Ga Eul looked up to meet eyes with me, and motioned for me to come over behind the counter. I nonchalantly made   my way over to where she was, and she abruptly placed a mocha colour apron similar to hers into my arms.

  “You better keep that promise of yours Kim Seokjin! No going back on it now.” She exclaimed, her usual bright   expression shaping her face.

  “Me? Go back on my word? Please, I always make sure to fulfill my promises until the end. And that’ll stay completely true for as long as my name is Kim Seokjin!” I gloated.

“I want you to find her for me. Could you do that?”

I was passively reminded of Ara’s request as her voice flashed through my mind for a brief second. But it quickly disappeared within the next so I brushed it off, mentally preparing myself for the day. I gave a light sigh, deciding to follow whatever Ga Eul told me to do. I slipped off my jacket and hung it on the nearby coat rack beside her duffle coat, proceeding to tie the barista apron around myself.

Or at least, I tried to. It was embarrassingly more difficult than I had expected. Any knot I attempted to make would fluidly unravel itself within seconds, reducing my struggle down to nothing but loose strings of fabric. I hadn’t realized I was this bad at putting on a simple apron until now and I could feel my face heating up while I struggled to successfully tie the garment around myself.

“Pfft!”

My ears were literally on fire. It seems I unintentionally managed to catch Ga Eul’s full attention.

“Jin-sunbae, you seem to be struggling a bit with that hahaha! Hold on a minute, take your hands away. I’ll teach you the easy way to tie it.”

I felt her cool hands brush over mine as she took the strings from me and wrapped it completely around my waist, where she ended up standing in front of me. She was being too close again, but I couldn’t do anything about it since she was helping me with my apron. I tried to focus my attention on the espresso machines, or anywhere but at Hwang Ga Eul. That didn’t work out too well, and I found myself looking at her hands tying a perfect little bow at my stomach area. She was taller than I'd expected with only a couple inches difference in our heights; I assumed it was probably because her small frame made her look petite, but that wasn't a bad thing.

“Luckily for you sunbae, you have a relatively skinny waist so you can just wrap the strings around yourself and tie the knot in front instead of in the back. Got that?” She glanced up at me, and our eyes met, only a couple of centimeters away from each other. For a second, I stopped breathing completely, as if it was going to help the situation in some way. I hadn’t expected her to look up so quickly after helping me tie the apron, and our faces were distressingly close. I managed to notice something peculiar about her face though; the glint in her eyes was strangely familiar.

No, what are you thinking? She looks nothing like her. There’s no way.

“U-uh, yeah. Right, gotcha. Th-thanks a bunch.” I turned my head towards the right, escaping the close proximity by heading over the espresso machines. Suddenly in my mind, learning how to make a simple cup of coffee became the most interesting thing in the world. I could hear Ga Eul just chuckling behind my back, as if she was unfazed by the entire thing. Unlike me. My ears blazed fiercely and I was panicking maniacally on the inside. I could only imagine how red they must’ve been.

How in the world does she always manage to make me blush one way or another? God, she makes it look as if it’s too easy.

“So, where do we start?”