up becomes down ✩ taewin

three

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There's nothing like sitting alone in a desolate coffee shop, with the strong scent of mocha and cappuccino invading your senses to help stabilize concentration. The silence, other than a few employees chattering from behind the register and the humming of the machines is calming.

It's the perfect place for what I'm about to do. Much better than the school library, which was never as quiet as a library should be, and it's preferred over being cooped up in my bedroom. A change in scenery is always a good thing. I'm cooped in my room enough, as I never have anything else to do, so it's nice to be able to get out and be somewhere public. Somewhere in the real world, but somewhere I can still feel like my privacy is intact.

I wave over at the girl working working the cash register - she was attractive by societal standards and went to my school, but I never felt compelled to actually speak to her - before taking a seat in one of the booths, stuffed backpack in hand.

My fingers pinch the bag's zipper, gliding it open in a swift motion. I retrieve a hard-cover copy of Please Look After Mom and a thick Korean language book, dropping them both on the table with a thud. Reading novels has proven to be an effective way of learning Korean for me, as I keep the book of translations on the side if there's a word or two that I may have forgotten.

I spread the pages where I last left the bookmark, and dive right into the story. There are times where there's the need to take a glance at my trusty collection of translations, but I can tell that I'm already getting better, even after a few months. I find myself looking at it less with each passing session, as I memorize how to read certain words and the meanings behind them.

I could do this for hours on end, without any problems. Sitting here by myself, ingesting the caffeinated fumes with my nose between a well-written book. Fiction, or non-fiction. Often times I come in and begin reading alone, not noticing the shop being filled up to the brim by other customers as I'm encapsulated in my own little world. It's my favorite, and quite frankly, only pastime.

I make it to the bottom of another page - my first of the day without needing to use the translation book - when the bell at the entrance dings. I don't look up, and I'm generally unfazed. I can hear almost everything they're doing, though. Whoever it is orders something that I'm not able to make out, and laughs a little too much at cashier girl accidentally dropping whatever it is she dropped. They offer to help her pick it up, she says it's okay, and she heads to the back to confirm their order.

Great, now back to what I came here for. This book, and ignoring my surroundings. It's silent once again. I finish another page, so I peel the corner to turn to the next one...

"Do you come here a lot?" A male voice coming from beside me questions.

It's also a voice that I don't recognize. I let out a soft sigh, jamming the bookmark into the crease before closing the book. I'm at a part that I'm really enjoying, but it won't hurt to take a couple of minutes to at least take a shot at being social.

"Yeah, I do," I say without turning to face them.

The stranger casually takes a seat in the opposite side of the booth, basically diminishing my attempt to avoid making eye contract. This guy had a rough look. Not particularly unkempt or anything, but he seems like he would have the ability to decimate me in a fight and make it look like an untimely accident. Okay, not really, I'm definitely just being dramatic. But he still makes me feel uneasy.