CHAPTER TWELVE

New Barista

THE EARLY MORNING wind was brisk, gently curling Haeyoon’s hair around her face as she walked down the path towards her aunt’s café. The passing week had been eventful, like a whirlwind that swept her with mysteries that she had once deemed impossible. There are so many thoughts running in her mind and she found herself yearning for the one place that could offer her some kind of serenity that could help her think things through.

The soft tinkle of the bell could be heard as Haeyoon entered the small cozy café. A smile made its way on her lips as the familiar pleasant aroma of coffee and pastries assaulted her senses. Early weekends like this bring not too many customers, thus the comfortable silence embracing the place. It’s been just a week but she missed the place already. Her smile grew wider and she can’t wait to grab a metal bowl and whisk batter to create some sweet treats.

“Good morning, Yoonie!” a female voice chirped and she turned to see a grinning Minah poised behind the counter.

“Good morning,” she greeted back with equal enthusiasm as she rounded the counter to enter the changing room where the lockers are also located. The first thing that caught her eye on the bright white room was a black knapsack resting on top of the small wooden table that was put up against the wall. Her brows furrowed ever so slightly as she hang her own sling bag on a chair, wondering when did Minah’s taste on bags changed. She was sure that the girl was an avid fan of anything brightly colored and having a dark and not to mention boyish bag was so not her.

“Hey, Minah,” she walked up to the girl as she put on her baby blue apron. “I never expected that I’ll saw the day where you will use a black bag,” she remarked good-naturedly.

The girl gave her a questioning look before her face lit up with realization. “Oh, please, that bag is not mine,” Minah shook her head with a wave of her hand, her nails painted with frosty red catching sunlight, making it shimmer. “It is owned by our new employee.”

Haeyoon’s eyebrow went higher on her forehead, hands pausing midway in making a bow with her apron’s laces. “Aunty hired a new one?”

Her colleague bobbed her head, “Yeah, we needed a new barista anyway.”

“What happened to Yonghwa?” she asked. It seemed like a lot of things happened in the café, too.

“His studies demanded much of his time now so he was forced to resign last Tuesday,” the black haired girl shrugged. “College entrance exam must be a pain.”

“Oh, I see,” she muttered, finishing the bow of her apron in a secured knot. “Good thing aunty found immediate replacement.”

“Yeah, and it’s a bonus that the new barista is such a total cutie,” the girl giggled, her eyes turning up into a pair of dark crescents before leaning towards her to whisper, “Speak of the devil and he shall come.”

Someone emerged from behind the coffee bar and strode across the polished floor towards the counter.

“Hey, Minah, I just wanted to ask where—,” the boy stopped in mid-sentence when Haeyoon turned to face him. His eyes widened, irises a spiral of endless glittering obsidian. He was frozen on his spot as he took in the girl’s delicate features, an odd sense of familiarity, of comfort, hitting him with a sudden wave. He felt like he had seen her before but couldn’t quite figure out where and when.

Haeyoon couldn’t help but agree with Minah. The boy was such a fine sight with his sleek dark golden hair brushed up in an elegant way. His bright eyes, flickering with an emotion she can’t place a finger on, were framed with thick perfect brows. A straight proud nose ran down the middle of his gently curved face while his cheeks, his round smooth cheeks, strangely reminded her of hot steamed buns. His lips, that were slightly parted, revealed a pair of cute slightly buck-teeth.

There was a moment of thick silence before Minah grabbed the liberty of breaking it and introducing the two to each other. “Haeyoon, this is Minseok,” she said. “Minseok, our part-time awesome baker, Haeyoon.”

“Hi,” the boy uttered the moment he got his voice back. He stretched out a hand towards her. “I’ve actually heard a lot about you from Mrs. Lee.” He smiled amiably. “It’s nice to finally meet you.”

A faint blush adorned the girl’s cheeks and she reached out a hand to shake his. “I just hope it’s not about the tales of my clumsiness.”

Minseok let out a soft chortle as he let go of her hand. “Don’t worry, she also told me that you bake the best cakes in town to compensate.”

Though quite embarrassed, Haeyoon broke out into a brilliant smile. “Trust my dear aunty to exaggerate my baking skills.”

THE DAY WENT by peacefully with some friendly chatter here and there. Customers increased as the time dragged on and the batch of red velvet cupcakes Haeyoon baked was sold out as soon as it came out of the oven.

“Your cupcakes are a hit,” Minseok grinned at her from behind the bar as she passed by. She had just served the last piece of her creation along with a caramel macchiato. “Now I’m really curious to what they taste like.”

She paused, tray perched in her hands. “You’re lucky, I’m making another batch,” she said, grinning back at him. Minseok was easy to talk to and Haeyoon found immediate comfort in his company, like an old friend. He radiated a cheerful aura and she can’t help but be drawn to his genuine smiles.

“Awesome,” his eyes lit up, momentarily straying away from the coffee grinder but his hands were still in their careful circling motion. “I’ll look forward to that.”

She let out a soft giggle before treading her way back to the kitchen.

“Hey,” Minah’s head popped up on the other side of the window that separated the counter and kitchen. “How come none of your cute friends visited today?”

She looked up from the metal bowl, whisk in hand. An amused smile curved on her lips when she saw the slight pout on the girl’s face. “And here I thought that Minseok is your new eye-candy.”

“He is!” Minah exclaimed animatedly thought still mindful to keep it in a low volume, lest the boy in question hear them. “But you know I live by the saying ‘the more the merrier’.” 

Haeyoon chuckled at her friend’s silliness. “Perhaps they’re all busy,” she shrugged. It’s been a while since she last saw Mark and the others and she was admittedly missing them.

Before Minah could utter a reply, a customer walked up the cashier and the girl swiftly assumed her job.

Time flew fast and before they knew it, it was already five in the afternoon and time to close down. She took it upon herself to lock the place instead of her aunt because the good lady had some important meeting to attend to.

“See you next week, Haeyoonie,” Minah waved goodbye as she slung her chic yellow bag across her torso. 

“Yeah, sure, be careful on your way home,” she waved back with a pleasant smile.

“I really owe you one.” The girl shot her an apologetic smile before disappearing behind the front door. Apparently, the girl had some impromptu baby-sitting pleaded by her neighbor. She can’t possibly decline the kind lady and the pay so she had no choice but to leave early and leave Haeyoon behind to tend to her assigned cleaning chores.

The other crews, a boy and a girl, already left, too, and the only people on the almost empty café were her and Minseok.

“I’m done with the tables,” Minseok poked his head through the kitchen door when she was almost done putting away the cleaned utensils she used earlier. “I also locked and rolled down the front.”

“I’m done here, too,” she told him. The boy nodded and left her to close the lights and the door.

“Do you have someone to fetch you?” Minseok asked her when they passed each other by the lockers. “It’s getting dark outside.”

“Yes,” she removed her apron and hung it inside her locker. She picked up her bag and fished for her phone. “My brother will.”

After another once-over, checking the place for opened windows and unplugged appliances, they went out through the back door and locked it up.

“So…” Minseok trailed off, gripping the straps of his bag. “Where is your brother?”

“He texted me just now that he’ll be ten minutes late,” she said as she checked Yoongi’s message once again. “I’ll just wait for him here, you go ahead.” 

“No, no,” Minseok shook his head in a vehement refusal as if the thought of leaving the girl alone on her own is such an appalling idea. “I can’t leave you here alone. I’ll wait with you.”

“Are you sure?” Haeyoon asked in a slight frown. She hated being a burden to other people. “I’ll be fine, really. I don’t want to keep you from anything.”

“Nah, it’s no big deal,” Minseok shot her a smile that told her that he’s totally fine with waiting with her. She muttered a ‘thanks’ accompanied by a genuine smile of her own.

To be honest, she was really thankful for the boy’s company because the alley where the back side of the café was located gave her the creeps. Perhaps, it rooted from her earlier encounter with the cloaked man which happened on an alley as well. A shudder ran through her and she forced the memory to the back of her mind.

“Anyway, Minseok do you—,” her attempt on striking conversation was cut when they heard the clattering noise of trash cans that bounced off the concrete walls of the narrow passage. They whipped their heads and saw three grown-up men in business attires with their ties either hanging loosely on their neck or completely off. One look at them and anyone can tell that they are drunk out of their wits, especially with the way they staggered towards the two youths.

When one of the drunken men took notice of them, he let out a low whistle, a Cheshire smile appearing on his red face. “Oh, wow, a pretty lady!”

His other companion perked up and pinned Haeyoon with a malicious stare. “Lucky!” He slurred. “Wanna have some fun, little missy?

A shiver ran down her spine and her heartbeat doubled its pace. Haeyoon started panicking on the inside, alarm bells ringing in her head. She felt a gentle grip on her arm before she was pulled against Minseok’s side protectively. She looked up and saw how his jaw tightened and his eyes darkened.

“Just stay behind me, okay?” he whispered to her before stepping protectively in front of her.

“L-let’s just run away,” she hissed at him in a shaky voice. They would surely stand no chance against three grown-up men.

“Aww, why are you hiding little miss beautiful from us, boy?” the third man spoke as he continued to advance towards them, his two other companions in tow. “We won’t hurt you, you know. You just have to give her to us.”

“Yeah,” the other smiled wickedly at them. “You won’t get hurt if you’ll just obey us like a good boy.”

One of the men reached out to them and she was surprised when Minseok let out a powerful punch straight towards his gut. The man doubled over as he clutched his middle in pain. The two other men saw this and they charged towards Minseok at the same time. Haeyoon could only watch in horror as the boy managed to land a blow on one of them but wasn’t able to avoid the second man’s attack. Minseok slid across the pavement, his shoulder hitting the wall.

“Minseok!” she was about to ran to his aid when one of the men stood in front of her, his towering built and devious sickening grin freezing her in place, before grabbing both of her wrists. “Let me go!” she yelled at his face as she struggled and kicked hard against him but to no avail.

Her blood ran cold and her heart threatened to fall out of her chest when the man pulled her harshly against him. His face dove to nuzzle her neck and it summoned unpleasant goose-bumps on her skin, making her insides twist in fear and repulsion. His grubby hands crawled over her body, touching places that aren’t meant to be touched. She squeezed her eyes shut and let a scream tore through . She was heaving and shaking so badly when she realized that no one is holding her anymore. Her knees buckled beneath her before her eyes fluttered open.

The scene that greeted made her eyes open as wide as saucers.

The three men were sprawled and unmoving on the ground while Minseok was standing several feet in front of her with eyes swimming and gleaming with so many emotions. As the boy looked at the men, red fury easily topped the list of his emotions but when they came to rest at Haeyoon, they softened in an instant.

“What happened?” she asked breathlessly more to herself than to the boy. She was shocked to see the men lying and looking lifeless on the pavement but what surprised her more was their utterly pale skin color. It was like they were frozen, literally. Their lips were purplish and their skin glistened with…a thin sheet of frost.

“I froze them to put them to sleep,” Minseok told her, taking small careful steps towards her. “But don’t worry, they’re not dead. They’ll return to normal after a few minutes.”

She continued looking at him with wide eyes and the boy must’ve have mistaken her reaction as fear because he stopped a meter away from her and spoke in a way someone would to a wounded animal. “Are you okay? Did they hurt you? Please, don’t be scared, Haeyoon. I won’t hurt you.” He gave her a gentle pleading look. “I promise, just please, trust me.”

Haeyoon can’t see a symbol on him that would tell her if he’s a Guardian or not but her instinct was telling her that he was one of them so she asked, “Are you…a Guardian?”

Minseok looked taken a back for a brief moment before he closed the distance between them and knelt in front of her. “Yes, I am. I remember everything now and I strongly believe that it was all because of you.” His brows pinched as he searched her face. “How did you know?”

“I have already met some of your brothers,” she said in a soft voice, her strength was not yet completely back and her insides still felt like jelly.

Minseok’s eyes widened as they gleamed brightly against the setting sun. There was a play of emotions in his obsidian orbs; surprise, relief, happiness and longing. “They are alive.”

Despite herself, Haeyoon couldn’t help but let out a small smile. The boy’s joyful smile was enough to send warmth into her heart, easing it to its rhythmic calm pattern. “Yes, they are.”

IT TOOK ONE hell of an explanation to placate the ever overprotective Yoongi. He can’t believe that his being late for just ten minutes would lead his sister to such harm. He almost got a heart attack the moment he got into the place and when Minseok told him the gist of the story, he didn’t hesitate to call a police and ambulance (the three men were still unconscious though not frozen anymore).

With the promise of meeting the next day and bringing the other Guardians as well, Haeyoon and Minseok parted ways after the cops gathered their statements.

“Are you really okay?” Yoongi asked his sister for the umpteenth time since they got home. He felt like Haeyoon was not telling him everything. “Is that really all that happened?”

The girl tried to show a smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. She thought that her brother didn’t have to know every single detail of the man’s assault on her, it would only upset him and she was sure that he wouldn’t hesitate to barge into the police station and strangle the man with his own hands. Also, the fact that she met a new Guardian is not something to be disclosed to him yet. “Yes, I’m just scared…and shocked.” She couldn’t help the tremor that run through her when the man’s horrible face fleeted in her mind, rousing a queasy feeling all over again. She had never been so violated in her whole life.

The young man sighed before sitting beside her on her bed and pulling her into a comfortable warm hug. “I’m sorry for being late.”

“No,” Haeyoon shook her head against his chest, her words muffled by the fabric of his shirt. “It’s not your fault.” She snuggled closer to the protective embrace of her brother, inhaling his calming scent of fresh laundry and the lingering smell of the cologne he used that morning.

A comfortable silence settled upon them as Yoongi tenderly her hair just like how her mom would everytime she was sad, making her realize how much she missed their parents.

“I miss mom and dad,” she murmured, tightening her hold on Yoongi.

“Same here,” he sighed. “You can go to rest now if you want to. I’ll just order a take away for us.”

Yoongi was about to pull away when Haeyoon stopped him. “Can you…can you stay for a bit longer?” she looked up at him with begging glassy eyes, she was trying so hard to not let her tears overflow because she knew that it will make him pry into the incident more. “Just until I fall asleep, please?” she whispered her last word, biting back a sob. She realized that she can’t bear to be alone for now. She had yet to grasp the extent of the trauma she had obtained from the previous physical assault.

Yoongi was caught off guard by the look his sister gave him. It made his heart twist in any painful way possible. He knew that there was more to what happened than she was letting on but he wasn’t planning on questioning her right now. With her current situation, all he could do was to offer comfort and the security that he wouldn’t go anywhere else until she was fine again.

With a reassuring smile, he muttered a small “Okay” before tucking Haeyoon under the covers and gently her hair until she fell asleep.

After making sure that his sister was deep in her slumber, he placed a soft kiss on her forehead before walking out of the room.

“Is she okay?” he looked up and saw a very worried Jungkook fidgeting in front of Haeyoon’s room.

Yoongi brushed a hand through his hair before letting out his twentieth sigh for the day. “Honestly…I don’t know and I wish I can make her feel better.”

Jungkook’s face crumpled further and Yoongi reached out a hand to pat his head comfortingly. “She’ll be fine. Haeyoon’s a strong girl.” He managed a tight smile for the young boy’s benefit. “Come one, I’ll just order a take away for us.”

Giving her door one last longing concerned look, Jungkook gave a slight nod and followed Yoongi down the stairs. 

Jungkook knows that Haeyoon isn’t fine at all.

He can feel her anyway.