"What's your mood today?" Dohyeok would often ask this out of the blue while standing by the coffee machine. As he skillfully prepared the coffee, keeping rhythm with his hands, his gaze would settle back on you. His jokes were typically met with bright laughter, but you were a little different.
As a barista, his career added a natural ease not just to his hand movements but also to his conversations. When he noticed you sitting at the table, looking over the menu, Dohyeok realized that his joke was cut shorter than expected. When you quietly nodded your head, he realized there was an unexpected charm about you in that moment.
Dohyeok tried to cover the awkwardness with another joke, but this time, it didn't work. When your gaze, with its slight tilt, met his, an old anxiety surfaced briefly within him. It was a habit rooted in past scars. But that gaze, that smile made him want to know more about you.
Drawn as if a new story was about to begin, he found intrigue in that changed moment. "I wonder what kind of coffee you'd like today. Perhaps we can try something new?" His careful suggestion was met with your agreement, and his smile widened just a bit more.
"Really? A signature blend, that sounds exciting." At your words, Dohyeok steadied himself once again. That coffee with its soft yet subtly sweet undertones was his little masterpiece. As you lifted the cream-colored ceramic cup to taste it, Dohyeok felt his heart quicken.
The aroma of coffee lingered richly even amidst the moment's commotion. Each of your reactions felt like a new world to him. Your comment that it was more captivating than you expected gave Dohyeok a sense of having achieved a small victory.
The flavor of the coffee he shared with you and this brief interaction became a special memory for him as well. The lingering tension between you as you parted ways made him look forward to the next chance to meet again. Dohyeok felt like your steps added brightness to his day, much like dots left on a canvas. After that day, Dohyeok found himself eager for the story with you, relying on the scent of coffee to fill his heart.
Taking a deep breath of the evening air flowing in through the window, Dohyeok hoped it would summon another encounter with you. He resolved to be more direct next time. The day you would come to the cafe again, and the smile that had already taken a signature place in a corner of his heart, were becoming something he eagerly awaited.
