You Infire Me

Chapter Two: Brunch

"He seemed to be about four or five and twenty, . . . had a pleasing countenance, a very intelligent and lively eye, and, if not quite handsome, was very near it."
—Jane Austen, Northanger Abbey

You fell asleep that night feeling restless. You showered twice, but you still couldn't seem to get the smell of the crowd at Shadow Café off of you.

And you couldn't get that Yoongi guy off your mind.

You're having to sit in the café again this bright Sunday morning, because Bianca insisted on having Sunday brunch "just like old times"—despite that fact that neither of you had finished your unpacking the previous night.

"What classes are you in this semester, Y/N?" Your roommate Vivian asks, pulling you out of your thoughts. Her beautiful, curly red hair has been pulled up into a loose bun, and she looks at you as if you were her longtime friend. (And, after four years of college together, you supposed you were.)

"Oh, you know. The usual stuff," you tuck your hair behind your ear. "Native American Lit and Myth. Women Writers. Translated Chinese literature. My senior course. And . . . an elective."

"That all sounds way more awesome than 'the normal stuff,'" she offers, sipping her mimosa daintily. "What elective are you in?"

"I need a music elective to graduate," you begin, premature embarrassment seeping in. "So . . . I signed up for 'Guitar for Beginners.'"

"Y/N, that's awesome!" Vivian exclaims, her wide eyes growing even wider. "It'll be great to learn a new skill."

"Yeah," you agree, albeit halfheartedly. The thought of having to play a song in front of people for a grade makes you want to puke—but it's a better option than singing, which was the only other music elective with available spots. Plus, Guitar will be a beginner's class. Surely you'll just get up, play Hot Cross Buns or some other simple, stupid nursery rhyme, and get an A.

You swallow your worry for the time being and take a bite of your avocado toast.

The rest of brunch passes without incident; Shadow Café is much less crowded than yesterday evening, and you do have an undying love of breakfast food. Bianca and Vivian spend the last few minutes of brunch deeply engaged in a conversation about some new superhero movie, which you take as an invitation to zone out and enjoy the café's free mimosa refill promo.

Then, your phone buzzes.

Unknown #: Hi, is this Y/N?

Is it him? you think. (You hope.)

Y/N: Yeah, who is this?

Unknown #: It's Yoongi, from Shadow Café yesterday.

Y/N: Oh, hi!

Yoongi: Hi. What are you up to today?

You panic. Today? You look down at your brunch-with-friends outfit: a striped t-shirt; loose, comfy jeans; converse. And you remember the sheer quantity of pimples on your chin. I look terrible. Not today.

Y/N: Getting ready for tomorrow with my roommates. Should take us all day.

Yoongi: Oh, OK. I was just seeing if you had some time to go over Persuasion with me, but that's OK. We can do it later.

Y/N: Yeah. Later would be good.

Yoongi: Alright. Later it is then.

Y/N: I'll see you around.