~EXO IMAGINES (Valentine's Day Special)~

Xiumin: Latte D'amour

I never knew what love meant... and I didn't believe in love at first sight... but that was before I met him.

I rushed into my usual coffee shop and took a seat. I was dead tired after all the work I did that day, and I had to treat myself to a refreshing cup of coffee. 

"______-ah, are you alright?" the owner of the shop, Sumin greeted me.

"Unnie! Aish, no I'm not. I'm going to die of exhaustion. My boss is so harsh on me!" I complained. 

Sumin-unnie just laughed and replied, "I'll get you something to eat. Just sit and wait."

I smiled at her then waited as she told me. Not long after unnie left, a young man with small feature came to me.

"What would you like to drink, miss?" he asked me. I couldn't recognize him, so I guessed he was the new barista Sumin-unnie employed. 

"Uh... I'll have a latte, please," I answered with a smile. The new barista was actually really cute, and he smiled sweetly like a child. I'll have to tell unnie that she found the right barista... I thought.

He looked at me with a troubled look on his face and blushed a bit, "I'm terribly sorry... I'm new here, so I don't really know how to make a... latte. I can make you a mocha if you want!"

I laughed at his honesty. "It's okay. Just make whatever you want. I trust you."

The barista beamed and bowed, "Komapsumnida!" Awh, such a sweetheart...

Unnie returned with a slice of cheesecake and I nudged her, "Yah, unnie, looks like you've got yourself quite a barista there. He's pretty cute."

"Huh? I don't even know what you're talking about. Here, just eat this. It's in the house." She left after that to serve other customers.

"Really? Gomawo, unnie!" I took a bite of the cheesecake and let out a pleased sigh. Unnie's pastries were the best in the world. The barista came back with the mocha, but didn't leave after he placed it on the table. He just stood there, his sparkling eyes stuck to me like glue. I didn't realize he was waiting for my reaction to the coffee until I was finished the cheesecake. 

"Oh, you're waiting for me?" I asked, pointing to myself. He nodded shyly, and I smiled. I took a sip of the mocha. Although it was just a normal cup of coffee, it made me happier than usual. "It's really good! Now I'm feeling better. Thank you." He smile happily then skipped back to his counter. 

The next day, I stopped by the same coffee shop. Naturally, the young barista was still there, with a large group of girls surrounding him. He smiled at me when I walked in, and I felt my heart skip a beat. What am I doing? Why am I acting this way? I asked myself. I sat down and opened up one of my documents to read. Suddenly, a hand served me a cup of latte. The foam formed a delicate and perfect heart on the coffee, with soft designs around it. It was beautiful.

"I'm sorry, but I didn't order anyth-" I looked up and saw him. "Oh, it's you?"

"I know you didn't order yet, but I still owe you a latte, so here it is. I learned how to make it last-minute, so please don't mind..."

I tried it. The creamy, smooth drink entered my mouth and its bitter-sweet taste lingered in it. It was fairly unique. I haven't tried anything like it. "What is it?" I decided to ask.

"My latte d'amour. I created the drink myself. It's made from my love, that's why there's no other drink on the world like it," he blushed.

"It's delicious! Makes me a tad sad in a way, but it touches my heart... I must sound really wierd, eh? A drink touches my heart, heh. Thank you, though," I blabbered in front of him, I didn't act like this to anyone else, just him. Usually I knew what I was doing, or at least I'd act like I did. But when he was in front of me, it's like I wanted to be perfect.

"No problem," he smiled. I could've sworn that I could feel my heart about to leap out of my chest. 

"Uh... I'm _____," I stuck a hand to him.

"Xiumin," he replied, taking it before he left for his fans (that were still crowding his counter).

I went to the cafe the day after that, but he wasn't there. 

"Hey, unnie, where's Xiumin?" I asked Sumin.

"Xiu...min? Oh, you mean the friend our new barista brought to work a few days ago? He doesn't work here! I think he's at work, or at some fansigning meet. Heard he's a kpop singer," she told me before leaving me alone, at the door. 

I decided that I would wait for the day he reappears in my life, and would work part-time at the coffee shop while I'm at it, as a waitress. Sure, it was hard work, but for some reason, when I thought of Xiumin, all the fatigue will go away. I'm not in love... am I? I kept asking myself day after day.

One day, while I was bringing a guest their drink, I accidentally tripped and spilled it on a tall, muscular man. 

"I'm so sorry! I'll clean it up right away!" I apologized. He took me by the wrist and shoved me on the wall.

"Not so fast, young lady. If you want me to forget what happened, you'll have to give me a kiss." 

I backed up against the wall, which was a stupid idea, because he then leaned closer to me and exhaled on my neck. 

"C'mon, just one kiss, babe," he twisted his head and went closer to my face.

"NO! XIUMIN! HELP ME!" I screamed, arousing laughter from the man.

A foot randomly attacked the back of his knee, and he knelt to the floor. Xiumin stood behind him, and grabbed me to his side, blocking me with his back. I felt safe behind him, but most importantly, I was really happy he was there when I needed him the most.

"Don't you dare lay a finger on her," he warned the man. He tugged me away from the shop, onto the cold streets at night. 

"Xiumin, are you alright?" I noticed a dark look on his face.

The look vanished as he faced me kindly, "Yes. How about you? Are you hurt? Did that guy try anything on you?"

"No, you came just in time..." 

"I have something to say to you," we both said at the same time, "Oh, you go first."

"You can go first," I insisted

"Okay, then. *Ahem*, _____-ah... Nanun noreul... joahaeyo. Will you go out with me? I promise you I'll be able to protect you, to love you, to make you the happiest girl in the world. I-" I stopped him from saying anything more with a long, sincere kiss. 

"I love you too," I told him after the kiss. "More than anything else in the world." 

"Xiumin-ssi! You left this on the counter!" Sumin called out for us with a cup in her hands. It was his latte d'amour. The design on the coffee was the same, but this time there was my name in the heart. I gasped and put my hands to my mouth.

"Yeah, I was planning on asking you out with this, but then the whole ruckus happened with the pervert... Mianhae," he apologized, scratching the side of his head. I took the cup by its ear and smelled the nice, warm fragrance from the coffee. 

"Here, you try it," I placed the cup in front if him and he took a sip. The foam formed a moustache under his nose, and I giggled. He then kissed me, and the moustache was formed on my skin as well, but who cares? As long as he was with me... That's all I needed.