Coffee and Cake

A blanket of clouds covered Seoul that morning. The pavement was wet, the air crisp and the faint smell of petrichor lingered. It was still early, but time didn't concern Chanyeol. He just wanted to enjoy the peaceful calm of the morning, while it was still there.

Unlike the weather, Chanyeol was feeling energized and hot, under all the layers he put on. Too lazy to take any extra layers off, he stopped for a minute, to appreciate the birds chirping and the soft hum of deliveries being made before stores opened. He inhaled sharply, and exhaled contentedly, pushing hot air between his teeth and the distinct smell of hot coffee hit him in the face.

Chanyeol walked down the street until he found the source of the rich scent, a small coffee shop wedged between a general store and a stationery shop. Chanyeol checked if it was open, and to his luck it was. He pushed the door open gratefully.

A rush of hot air pushed itself into Chanyeol's face, and so he took of his coat, gloves and scarf, stuffing the gloves into his coat pocket, and draping the coat and scarf over his forearm. He looked around the empty shop, lit by orange, low-hanging lightbulbs. He made his way to the counter, staring up at the menu on the wall. Then he looked down.

That's when Chanyeol saw him, all sharp edges and neatly combed hair. Pale skin and dark eyes. Tight shirt and firm muscles.

"Good morning!" Chanyeol smiled brightly.

The barista hadn't seemed to notice the strangely happy customer walk through the door, and looked up sharply from the speck of dust he was staring at.

"What would you like?" the barista looked down at the cash register, ready to punch in the order.

Chanyeol rubbed his hands together and chewed his lip. "What's your most popular order?"

The barista stared blankly into the customer's eyes, not noticing the cheeky glint that hid in the corner of them. "I don't remember the orders. I just make them." He looked down again.

Chanyeol put his hands on the counter and leaned forward like a child "Come on, you must have an idea of your most popular order," he ran his eyes slowly up the barista's upper body, till he found his nametag, "Sehun."

Sehun, the barista exhaled impatiently. "No, I really don't. But there's today's special." He pointed to the blackboard situated on the wall to the right of the menu.

Chanyeol stared at Sehun, unsure what to make of him. "I'll have that then," he said, tilting his head slightly.

"Great. That's one cappuccino and a slice of mud cake. Is that all?" Sehun punched the respective buttons disinterestedly.

Chanyeol nodded. "How much?"

"6000 won." Sehun rested his arm on the top of the cash register, palm facing upwards, eyes down. Chanyeol checked his jeans pocket, coat pocket, breast pocket. No money.

"Shit," he mumbled, furiously rechecking all his pockets. Sehun looked up.

"What?" he said, with the ever so slightest hint of concern in his voice.

"I've left my wallet at home. I didn't think I was gonna buy anything." Chanyeol waited expectantly, not wanting to leave the small coffee shop, at least of his own accord.

Sehun looked him up and down, expression unreadable. He sighed, and shut the register drawer. "Don't worry about it. It's not like we're gonna be open for much longer." He turned around and grabbed a mug from the shelf above the coffee machine and started to make Chanyeol's order.

"Wait, what? Thanks, I think." Chanyeol sat on one of the stools near the serving bench. "And what do you mean you're not gonna be open for much longer?"

"Did you know this place existed before you stumbled across it this morning?" Sehun said flatly, while his hands moved expertly, making the order.

Chanyeol was slightly taken aback. "Well, no. But I don-,"

"Exactly. This is such a small coffee shop, a family business, slowly being suffocated by all the commercial ones. We used to be so popular, customers in and out constantly. Well, not anymore." Sehun had finished making the cappuccino, and handed it to Chanyeol. "Careful, it's hot."

Chanyeol took the mug from Sehun, and brushed against his cold fingers. His fingertips warmed, and that feeling flowed through his body until he could feel it right in his cheeks. Sehun was right - the coffee was hot. But that didn't explain what Chanyeol was feeling.

Sehun cut a piece of the mud cake perfectly, and laid it on its side on a saucer.

"Here," Sehun slid the saucer and a fork across the bench. "Made it myself." His tone was more cynical than proud, and that confused Chanyeol.

"Have you been working here long?" Chanyeol stuffed a piece of cake into his mouth, surprised by how tasty it was.

"Long? Like I said, family business. I've been working here my whole life," he turned and vigorously cleaned the milk frother on the coffee machine.

"Wow." Chanyeol wasn't sure he was marvelling at the length of time Sehun had been working in the small shop for, or, the way his shoulder blades moved beneath his black figure-hugging shirt as he cleaned the machine.

"So what are you gonna do about it?" Chanyeol sipped at the coffee, and winced at the heat.

"Shut it down, sell the space and the furniture. And then use the money to buy a commercially run franchise of Starbucks. The only question is when it's gonna happen." Sehun sighed. The coffee machine was sparkling clean now. But he didn't turn around.

"That sucks." Chanyeol was finishing the last of his cake now.

"Yeah."

A silence.

"I'm not sure what to say now. Did I say something wrong?" Chanyeol bit his lip.

Sehun turned and ran a hand through his hair. "No you didn't. Are you done?" But he didn't wait for an answer. He placed the dishes in the empty dishwasher, and closed it.

"I guess I'll be going now." Chanyeol smiled and picked up his coat and scarf. "Thanks for the coffee and everything. I'll be back with payment, before you shut down," he assured him.

"Yeah, right." Sehun scoffed. "It was nice talking to you." He turned back to the machine, wiping the stainless steel determinedly.

"Yeah, you too." Chanyeol regretfully pushed open the door and stepped out into the crisp air, with a grin on his face.