Last Night at the Café

Opening

A / N

Welcome to the final chapter of LNATC! I hope you enjoy! Remember to vote and comment!

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3 months later

SEOLLAL'S CHA YEN was selling well.

The orange drink topped with a generous dollop of sweet cream was a combination of strong Ceylon tea and a careful blend of star anise, orange blossom water and crushed tamarind seeds. Carefully measured evaporated and condensed milk was poured in from the top, allowing the white milk to infuse itself into the bright orange tea.

Second to it was the Mango Tea with Coconut Cream. It looked deceptively like an Iced Americano, save for the generous cubes of fresh mango sitting at the bottom, and the layer of sweet cream on top.

Home's social media campaign had done its trick and all morning, they had customers coming in for cups of the icy, milky drink. The cha yen tart, a Thai milk tea version of Home's infamous chocolate tart, and slices of mango cake topped with fresh pomelo weren't doing too bad either; in fact the kitchen was a wonderful amalgamation of citrus and milky tea, it made her pause and sigh happily whenever she entered it.

She left her family at the living room setting to join Kazu behind the counter.

"You haven't left your spot all morning," she said.

He had been bent over the counter all day, putting orders together. The rare occasions he stepped out had been to speak to customers and greet her family.

"Your idea worked," he said, his eyes crinkling into a smile.

They had started posting teaser's onto Home's Instagram page, drumming up attention two weeks before its launch. Kazu's friend, an influencer with a substantial following on YouTube, had dropped by as well to review their menu. The girl sat perched at the window seat setting with another YouTuber friend of hers, their table full of drinks and baked goods.

"You worked hard," she murmured, quickly leaning into his side to wrap an arm around his waist. Then she nodded at where Talli was displaying the food to the camera with a bright voice. "I didn't know Talli-ssi is your friend. I watch all her videos! It's so surreal to see her in real life."

He nodded slowly, his gaze traversing around the crowded cafe.

"We were high school classmates. She's half-Thai and because of that we stuck together in school."

"She's so pretty," she gushed, her mouth curled into an adoring smile behind her mask.

She was so tempted to ask her for an autograph - and maybe a photograph too if she was lucky - but her professionalism held her back. With her soft pink hair, her impeccable style encapsulated in the checkered suit she wore paired with black booties, and her daring eyeshadow, a sparkling silver that glittered under the light, Talli seemed to come from another world. Seollal knew it was silly to feel drab beside her, but in her simple sweater and jeans, her hair tied into a bun, she was work-ready, and not camera-ready.

His gaze flickered to her.

"We didn't date, if you were wondering."

She clicked her tongue as she narrowed her eyes at him.

"I didn't say anything."

"Wait, don't move." He reached a hand to her shoulder. "You have something on your neck."

Confusion turned into surprise when she felt cool metal glancing off her skin. She strained her eyes downwards, but could only catch sight of his fingers affixing a slim, silver chain to her neck.