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« 🥀 » 𝐜𝚑. 2

-͟͟͞͞➳ 𝐬𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐚

(𝓃.) 𝑎 𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑦, 𝑏𝑟𝑖𝑙𝑙𝑖𝑎𝑛𝑡 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑠ℎ 𝑜𝑟 𝑠𝑝𝑎𝑟𝑘; 𝑎 𝑠𝑚𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔; 𝑎 𝑏𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑙𝑦 𝑣𝑖𝑠𝑖𝑏𝑙𝑒 𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑒

The next time she sees him, he sees her too.

This time, it's outside of the university.

She has only one class today, so she heads out of campus, rubbing her hands from the cold, and to the nearest coffee shop, where there are a few people with earbuds in or snacking. She's wearing typical winter clothes with a thick coat over a sweater and a Ravenclaw-colored scarf wound around her neck, but the cold still seeps in.

By the time she notices him, it's too late, because she's already sitting at a small round table right next to the window with her hand fishing around in her bag for her wallet.

He's behind the counter in an employee uniform, taking orders with a radiant smile.

Counting it as inevitable after a few moments, she stands up and approaches the counter.

It's not like she has anything to do with this boy. It's just that she had stared at him for a bit a few days ago, which anybody could do. She had been staring that day because his annoyingly yellow hoodie had been too bright for her compared to the earthy tones and navy blue she prefers.

He greets her as she stops in front of the menu. "Hello, what'd you like to have today?"

"I'll have a—" Bomi glances at the menu overhead. "A signature hot chocolate, please."

"With, or without cream and marshmallows?" He asks.

Bomi's eyes flicker to his name tag. Ethan. She commits it to memory.

"Oh, um, would that make it too sweet?" She replies hastily, looking back up.

"Hm, that depends on the person. Not one for the sweet?" He returns, and she shrugs.

"I like chocolate, but not much else." Bomi answers.

"Well how about I'll add the cream but not the marshmallows and you can judge for yourself." He says, and the smile's still there on his face.

"Sure. Oh, and I'll have it here, no need for takeout." She says, pays, and pulls her padded coat closer around her to keep out the winter cold. She turns to leave.

"Oh, are you cold?" The boy asks, making her look back at him. "Want me to turn the heat up?"

"Yes, thank you." She says, and sits back down to watch from her seat as he tells a coworker to adjust the heat and starts making her hot chocolate.

She puts her headphones on and presses play on her favorite playlist, leaning slightly against the window. Her scarf acts as a cushion against her head, and the warmth of the heater and lack of sleep the night before take its toll on her. Soon, she starts to nod off slightly.

"Miss...?" A voice says, and Bomi is startled back to consciousness.

The boy is standing next to her table, steaming cup in hand. True to his word, cream is swirled on top and a small spoon sticks out.

"Oh, thank you." She says, taking her headphones off. She takes the mug and stirs a few times before letting it cool.

"So, do you go to Heliotrope Uni?" The boy asks, sitting down in the seat opposite her.

She looks at him, half in surprise because she's having hot chocolate with a stranger, but assumes he must be bored, since she's one of the only customers here right now.

"Yes. Do you?" She returns, and she knows the answer already, but she still raises her eyebrows when he nods in affirmation.

"What major?" She asks again.

He grins. "Art." He quirks his head in a question, and she answers accordingly.

"Biomedical engineering."

"Well, that sounds difficult!" He laughs. Then his smile turns warmer. "I'm Ethan."

"I knew that." Bomi gestures to his name tag. Before he has a chance to answer, she says, "I'm Bomi. Bomi Yoon."

"Bomi Yoon?" He inquires. "Isn't that a Korean name?"

Bomi nods.

"Thought so." He pauses. "My grandma's Asian, but I was born and raised here. That's why I look vaguely Asian but then, not."

"I came here for highschool and university. My parents are in Korea." Bomi tells him.

"Do you like it here, though?" Ethan asks, and his dark brown eyes are warmer than the cup of chocolate she's sipping.

"Yeah, it's nice."

Before they can say anything else, a group of people come bustling in through the doorway.

"That's my cue to leave, but I'll see you around?" The end of his sentence curves up like a question.

"Yeah, sure." Bomi says, and Ethan rushes off towards the counter again.

She finishes her drink, swaying slightly to the beat of the music from her headphones. Eventually, she leaves, as more people start to crowd the cafe.

As far as human beings go, Bomi thinks Ethan isn't so bad. 

That was awkward, wasn't it?

Also, if anyone cares, I do accept constructive criticism and feedback :)