"mingyu!" a raspy voice could be heard from afar, echoing through the enclosed bedroom.
"kim mingyu!!" the voice got louder as it got closer to the room.
"KIM MINGYU!!" the last time that was ever said that morning, making the brown haired boy jump up from his bed in fear. mingyu rubbed his eyes as he panned the room which was still dark with only some sunlight coming through the small windows beside his bed. feeling rather exhausted from gaming for the whole night, he pushed the duvets off of him and got up to the dining room.
after taking the steps of the marbled spiral staircase, mingyu sees his grandma cooking breakfast. breakfast was important to him because he got to spend time with her since his parents were always overseas for work.
"breakfast is ready, dear" mrs lee said as she served the food in front of the younger one who was sitting on the table with excitement. today's menu was mandu (korean dumplings) and mingyu was starving. he ate with his grandma as they conversed about the simple things like the weather and what the day before was like. the bond between grandma and grandson was closer than ever.
"i'm full now, halmeoni (grandma), don't worry, i'll wash the dishes!" mingyu insisted as he got up from his chair and headed to the kitchen to wash all of the dishes. mrs lee watched as he hummed the same song every morning when he washed the dishes. mrs lee was proud of herself for raising a gentleman despite the absence of his parents, which made her smile warmly.
the morning had passed and it hit noon, mingyu wanted to find a job so he could save up some money to get his grandma a luxurious massaging chair for her birthday. his grandma always complained about body aches and he didn't want her to go through that pain constantly, so he decided a massaging chair would be the best fit as a birthday present.
despite growing up in an affluent family, mingyu wasn't a spoiled brat unlike the other rich teens. he had learnt to spend his money wisely on the things he really needed. he remained humble and kind as his grandma taught him how life wasn't always about materialistic things. he never yelled at his grandma nor his parents and would always stay obedient.
mingyu found a local cafe that was hiring, the name of the cafe itself caught his attention as the name was exactly the same as his grandma's surname. he wanted to apply there solely to imagine that his grandma owned the cafe.
today was his interview and he was prepared. with his useful yet unnecessary documents on one side of his waist and his confidence on the other, he was surely ready for the interview. he dressed up in a white button-up shirt with two buttons unbuttoned and black dress pants to give a good impression for the interview. he said his goodbyes to his grandma and head out to the cafe, which located just opposite of his residential building.
before mingyu entered the cafe, his confidence suddenly left his soul. he was shaking, not knowing what to say if he saw the manager. that was when he saw a male in an apron sitting beside the window and observing the sunset, which made him chuckle to himself thinking how silly this guy is for not doing his job and just zoning out. when he entered the cafe and hearing the bell ring, the daydreaming boy suddenly shot up from his seat and welcomed mingyu in.
"welcome to lee's cafe! please help yourself." the shorter male said with a small smile on his face. the aura from the jet black hair and rounded glasses made mingyu speechless. he didn't know what to say and just stood there awkwardly. that was when the male in the grey apron broke the silence.
"hi there, please take a seat and make yourself comfortable." the man reassured mingyu. at this point, mingyu was too stunned to even make a short reply and fidgeted his fingers. but he mustered enough courage to speak. "oh, i'm not here for coffee. i'm actually here for an interview. is your manager here perhaps?" he said as he looked down at the male due to the differences in their height.
"yea, he is here. i'll go fetch him for you!" the shorter smiled as he left mingyu by the entrance alone. a few minutes later, a man with grey hair approached mingyu and shook his hand. the elder brought him to a table for the interview, making all mingyu's muscles tense up in nervousness.
"hey there mingyu! i'm lee eunho, but you can call me however you like, maybe even uncle haha." he joked, making the younger smile in relief as he knew he would be interviewed by an easy-going guy. the manager then sat up straight and clasped his hands into a ball and placed them on the table. "so mingyu, tell me about yourself, doesn't have to be a long one." he questioned mingyu, making him a bit nervous.
"uhhh, so i am currently in senior high and almost graduating high school in a few months. the reason why i want to take up this job is because i want to learn self-discipline and earn some spare cash." mingyu spoke with confidence in which mr lee was impressed with his answer.
"pretty well-organised yourself, i see. so what are your hobbies?" mr lee continued to question mingyu. "i play games during my free time and i'm starting to pick up a new hobby." mingyu replied with a smile. "you play games too? sorry, i can't be as ecstatic as i was when i interviewed wonwoo. haha, but anyways what's your other hobby?" mr lee asked again after mentioning wonwoo, making mingyu quite unsure about what he was about to say because the name sounded rather familiar.
"i'm starting to pick up baking. i bake cookies with my grandma and i don't mind trying to learn how to bake more pastr-" mingyu was interrupted by mr lee's sudden action. he reached his hand out and told mingyu was hired and that he would start tomorrow. mingyu was in disbelief that what he said about baking was the only thing that got him hired. he shook his hand and got up from seat and packed his things before he headed home.
before he left the cafe, he noticed that the black haired male standing behind the cafe's counter had been eyeing him for some reason. at the same time, the blonde haired girl suddenly pointed at him, causing mingyu to tilt his head in confusion. he noticed that the worker was embarrassed and fled the scene. without the flustered male out of sight, mingyu brushed it off and left the cafe.
