the steady hum of the espresso machine and quiet chatter fill the cozy space as ciela hunches over her phone, scrolling through tracks on her latest project. reviewing some last-minute tweaks for a demo she's supposed to present later in the day. The line at the counter inches forward, but ciela's attention stays fixed on her work. She barely registers the barista calling out her order
"two iced americanos and one vanilla latte!"
"oh, that's me! sorry, sorry!" ciela snaps out of her focus, quickly shoving her phone in her bag, she juggles the drink tray carefully, balancing the three cups while her mind races with thoughts about pitch corrections and beat timings. she steps away from the counter, biting her lip as she mentally checks the order
"okay, two iced americanos... latte..."
and that's when it happens.
as she turns toward the door, her shoulder collides with someone solid. time seems to slow as one of the iced americanos tilts dangerously, the lid popping off. a cold splash soaks straight through a formerly clean, white t-shirt.
ciela gasps, eyes widening as she takes in the damage.
lucky for her, standing before her is lee haechan, one of the most well known idols, some could argue his face is also the most handsomest. but right now, his face is the dictionary definition of frustrated. though she barley notices due to his face being covered. though, his brows are clearly furrowed. behind the mask, his lips curled downward in a scowl as he stares down at the large coffee stain spreading across his shirt.
"seriously?" he mutters, voice heavy with frustration.
"i'm so sorry," ciela blurts out, panic flickering in her voice as she frantically places the damanged and surviving drinks on the counter and grabs napkins. "i wasn't paying attention—let me-" she reaches out to dab at his shirt, but haechan takes a step back, his hand shooting up.
"don't." His tone is sharp, and it cuts straight through her apology. "just... stop."
the barista glances over at the scene, clearly awkward but unsure of what to do. ciela freezes mid-reach, the napkins crumpling slightly in her grip. she watches as haechan sighs deeply, grabbing his cap to run a hand through his hair before muttering under his breath, "this day just keeps getting worse."
at that, something in ciela shifts.
"look," she starts, straightening her shoulders as her brows knit together. "i said i'm sorry. it's not like i did this on purpose."
haechan fixes her with an unimpressed stare. "right, because I really wanted to wear an iced americano today."
"couldn't have guessed myself." ciela's tone drips with sarcasm as she scoffs. "you're acting like i ruined your whole week or something. it's just a shirt. haven't you ever heard of dry cleaning?"
haechan stares at her for a moment, shaking his head in disbelief. "unbelievable," he mutters, before brushing past her to head back toward the counter. "i'll order my own coffee."
ciela stands there, rooted in place, her jaw tightening as frustration simmers in her chest. are you serious? are you actually serious?" she mutters to herself, watching him order his own drink. meanwhile, she faces back to her own drinks on the counter. one of the iced americanos being completely ruined, and the remaining one looking... somewhat decent.
"fine. you know what?" she huffs, snatching the good ice americano away. "i hope your day stays as bad as your attitude," she mutters under her breath, though he's too far to hear.
leaving the ruined iced americano, ciela spins on her heel and storms out of the coffee shop, the door jingling loudly behind her.
outside, she takes a deep breath of the cool air, gripping the americano a little tighter than necessary. the chill nips at her cheeks, but it does little to cool the simmering frustration bubbling inside her.
"welcome to korea, ciela," she mumbles to herself sarcastically, before trudging off toward sm entertainment, where she knows her next few hours will be spent presenting that demo she's been tirelessly perfecting.
as she walks down the busy street, the noise of traffic and hurried pedestrians fills the space around her. her thoughts replay the interaction like a broken record.
"who even does that?" she grumbles aloud. she'd planned to bring that drink for her manager, but she's half-tempted to chuck it into a bin. "acting like I spilled coffee on him just to ruin his day."
by the time she arrives at the sm building, her mood is still sour. she strides into the lobby, flashing her ID to the receptionist, and heads toward the elevator. as the doors slide shut, her reflection in the mirrored walls catches her eye.
"get it together," she mutters, taking a steadying breath. "it's just one idiot who can't control his emotions. so why should i let it affect mine? you've got work to do."
meanwhile, back at the coffee shop, haechan sits at a corner table, with his perfectly made latte in hand, brows knitted as he scrolls through his phone.
manager
you still have two dance practices to record, and then you're free for the night.
as he reads the message, he sighs and falls back on the chair, exhaustion threatening to creep up on him. "free" my ass.
as he tries to remember what even happened in his day, he remembered the encounter from earlier.
"that girl," he mutters, recalling ciela's remarks. "it's just a shirt... unbelievable."
his schedule had already been packed, and running into someone as stubborn as her felt like the final straw. still, as he absentmindedly sips his drink, the corners of his mouth twitch slightly.
"dry cleaning, though?" he mumbles under his breath, almost amused despite himself.
"whatever. not like i'll see her again." he says as he goes catch up on some gaming he'd been dying to continue.
for now, neither of them knows how small this world is—and just how soon they'll be running into each other again, whether they like it or not.
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