the bakery ✧ myg

Chapter 3

SAME DAY(TUESDAY)

He tilted his head. "Why are you blushing?"

I coughed and turned away, trying to hid my red cheeks. "Well... you're grandmother has told me quite a bit about you... and she keeps on wanting to set me up with you." I said awkwardly. He made a sound, and I saw the tops of his cheeks go red. I giggled awkwardly , which made him laugh awkwardly as well. We stood in silence for a couple of seconds when I heard the bell ring. I automatically changed my awkward demeanour to the cheery one I greet my customers with.

"Welcome to Stay Baking!" I said, and bowed politely. Two kids came in with their mother who was talking on the phone. The kids smiled at me and went to see all the treats while the mother trailed behind, still talking to whoever this person was. She wasn't paying any attention to her children, which made me feel sad. The guy cleared his throat, which brought my attention back to him. He gave me his phone, making me look up in confusion.

"Put your number in. Grannie would be happy to see I'm making the move instead of setting me up on a blind date." He laughed. I nodded and put my number in. Then he bowed and walked out quickly. I shook my head, needing to focus on my job. The kids were asking their mom if they can have a cookie, but their mom just shushed them. I clicked my tongue, and walked over to them. I bent down and smiled at their adorable faces.

"Do you guys want one of my special cookies that only good kids get?" I said. They both nodded excitedly, and I looked up at the mother that still has no clue what is happening. I frowned but quickly smiled at the kids. "Hold on, ok?" I got up and went behind the counter and took out the box that says "For people who look like they're having a bad day."
I got out the two sugar cookies shaped as a heart. The icing was chocolate and had sprinkles on them. Since they were kids, I added mini marshmallows and slightly roasted them with a blowtorch. I put it into two boxes that had the bakery name on it. I then brought it out and the kids ran over to me. I bent down again and handed the boxes over to them.

"Yay! Thank you pretty lady!" The boy said, smiling widely with his front tooth missing. I ruffled his hair and smiled. The girl poked my arm and I turned to her. "Thank you, but mommy said we came for a treat for our new daddy. She said she didn't want to waste money on us." She said with an innocent face. I frowned over at the woman, still talking on the phone. I sighed, but smiled back at them.

"It's okay sweetie, these are made specially for you two. If mommy wants something else, she's gonna have to bring it to me." I said, gradually getting louder so the mother could overhear. She looked over and apologized on the phone. I stood back up and walked over to the counter. She brought up the creme brûlée, and I put up the total.

"That'll be $8.00 please." I said with a fake smile. She pulled out the money, but hesitated to hand it to me.

"Why does my kids have those boxes? Whatever it is, I'm not paying for it." She said and glared at me.

"Oh, you're not paying a dime for that. I gave it to them as a treat. Don't worry, you don't have to spend anything on them." I said with a fake cheery smile. She scoffed and handed me the money. I handed her back her change and she walked off without looking back at the kids. They smiled at me.

"Thank you noona!"
"Thank you Unnie!" They said simultaneously. I smiled, but then I called out to them.

"Wait! Do you guys wanna take a picture?" I said, pulling out the Polaroid. They cheered and ran over to me. I bent down again for the third time. They both hugged me on the side and smiled widely. I smiled just as wide and took the picture. "Thank you cuties! What's your names?"

"I'm Maru and that's Hana." The boy said, while the girl nodded. I smiled and wrote down their names next to: "the two cuties! （≧∇≦)"

"Hana! Maru! Come out now!" I heard their mother call. I pouted at them, making them giggle.

"Try and find excuses to come and visit me!" I said, quickly hugging them. They nodded and ran out, waving bye to me as they left. I smiled to myself, and noticed that the clock read 7:51, closing time was coming up. I went and grabbed the broom, and swept up the floors. I put away all the pastries that would still be fresh tomorrow. I then packed all the things that would soon go bad and set it on the table near the door. Then I collected all my stuff, and grabbed a cookie from the rack. I bit into it and smiled. I love that I can bake, I can eat all the things I want whenever! I quickly finished it, then I looked around to make sure I finished tidying up.

I grabbed the box and walked outside, turning off the open sign and locking up shop. I was about to walk off but my phone started ringing.

Incoming call; Actual Trash

I smiled, and accepted the call.

"Hey stupid, how was work?" My sister said over the phone. I laughed.

"It was okay, Jihoons grandson came by today, he was kinda... weird? His voice though is" I put up my hands and did the "Ok" sign, totally forgetting that she can't see me.

"Soojung, did you forget that I can't see you." She laughed, making me facepalm.

"Yes... anyways, I like his voice. I couldn't see most of him though, he wore a mask and sunglasses inside." I shrugged.

"Maybe he's famous?" She said. I shrugged again.

"Who knows? Anyways, I'm bringing food to the kids now, gotta go bye!" I said quickly, hanging up after making kissing noises. After putting my phone in my pocket, I started walking to my favourite place.