Not Part of the Plan

Chapter 5

My goal is to have most of this chapter take place at the cafe but we'll see.

I've actually had this chapter written for awhile but I put off publishing it until now because I wanted to stay a big ahead of myself.

...

"Yixing," Junmyeon said, surprised to see his coworker still here. "Don't you have class?" Yixing gave him a lopsided smile, turning back to work on his latest creation.

"I actually don't have class right now," Yixing replied. "My professor emailed and cancelled class. So I get to stay here for a bit longer." Junmyeon found himself smiling. He snatched his apron off its hook and tied it around his waist, looking over the trays of goodies Yixing had already prepared. "Minseok actually requested those sweet buns," Yixing said, amusement evident in his tone. "Jongdae wasn't kidding when he said that they were Minseok's favorite." Junmyeon chuckled, picking up the tray and carrying it out front. Minseok smiled, snatching a bun off the tray.

"Hey," Junmyeon protested with a smile. "Those are for guests." But Minseok took a bite, and Junmyeon shook his head. At least his boss liked what they baked. He set the tray in the display case.

"Junmyeon," Minseok said suddenly, causing the brown-haired male to turn around. "I want you to learn how to make coffees," Minseok continued, motioning him over. "Just in case Dae or I aren't here for some reason."

"You'd trust Yixing and I to run the shop without you?" Junmyeon asked, kind of surprised. Minseok loved this shop dearly, and it seemed rather out of character for him to leave his shop in the hands of two people he just hired. The blonde shrugged.

"I haven't had a full day off since the middle of my freshman year," he explained. "It would be nice to have once and awhile. I love this place, I really do. But it's kind of exhausting keeping it going every day. For so long it was just Dae and I, running this place between the two of us. But both of us are running out of steam, and I'd hate to see us lose the passion for this place that we had."

"That's...reasonable," Junmyeon replied. What could he even say to that? "Are you going to hire any more staff?" Minseok sighed, leaning his full weight against the back counter. There were very few customers right now, so they could talk for a bit.

"We almost have to," Minseok said. "The thing is though I'd probably have to appoint someone as a kind of assistant manager, and if it would be anyone it would obviously be Jongdae. But he doesn't want to work here. Not like I do. He only does it because I ask him to." A sad sort of smile graced the blonde's features. "He helps out because I ask him and he loves me. But I feel bad sometimes, because I know he doesn't like it as much as I do. He loves to bake, but he never wanted to do it for a shop. So I'd almost have to hire more people, just so I could keep this place afloat. I...I can't lose it. So much of my time and love has gone into this place. But it's also really unfair to Dae because I almost never get to spend any time with him."

"Oh," Junmyeon replied at last, casting his eyes downward. "I wish I knew how to help a little more," he added. "But I don't." Minseok laughed a quiet little laugh, pushing off the counter.

"I'll figure it out," he said, placing a hand on the younger male's shoulder. "But thank you. That means a lot." Junmyeon inclined his head, not quite knowing what to say anymore. "Anyway," Minseok continued, all business once again. "The next few orders I'll be showing you how to run and operate the equipment. Mostly the steamer and the grinder."

"Okay," Junmyeon agreed, feeling a little bubble of excitement beginning to form. He enjoyed this job. Very much. He glanced over as the bell above the door dinged, and his heart gave a little kick as he recognized Zitao. The black-haired male noticed him at the same time, and he broke into a huge grin.