Coffee~Bitter Struck By Cheese Balls - A Riveting & Heart-Palpitating Love Story

The Encounter

A young woman known as Angela stumbled around on the bustling streets of Seoul as crystal-like tears trickled down her prominent, apple white cheeks. Transparent bullets besieged her glass heart—which was already shattered into shards. The wads of agony raining down on her caused her to reminisce on her treacherous past and provoked further negative emotions and thoughts. The downweighting rain added onto her downscaling feelings—causing her to want to scream out, "Hah! Look at that, even the Lord is crying for me." Buzz! Bing! Bing! Buzz! Her heavy-weighted, burdening phone reverberated in her back pocket as her former boyfriend made desperate attempts to contact her, slowly eating at her phone's battery. However the irritating buzzes were silent to her as she nonchalantly, feebly searched for shelter from this cruel world. Ducking into the nearest local coffee shop, she felt a familiar sense of warmth envelop her petite frame as she felt the pleasant air brush against her.

Tugging at her plaid, cool-colored scarf, she observed the vicinity until she laid her gloomy, dark chocolate brown eyes on a cozy spot snuggled in the narrow corner of the coffee shop. Making her final decision, she sluggishly dragged her feet to the seemingly comfortable corner and postured herself on a chair. As she evoked the unfortunate events that recently happened to her, her once innocent, doe-like eyes which were so full of a potential luminous glow became empty. The more her eyes became emptier and emptier, the more she became more lost into her thoughts and she thought about it again and again and again and again until—

"For such a beautiful lady, why do you look so gloomy?" A masculine voice spoke, immediately breaking her train of thought. Her soft eyes wandered and wandered until found the source of the voice. The host was a man in his early twenties with a buzzcut resting on his egg-shaped head. He fashioned a typical coffee barista uniform and a bright, teasing smile on his face, striking a blush on Angela's toned cheeks.

"Let me pour you one cup of coffee to cheer you up," the mysterious man chimed, flashing her a flirtatious look before departing for the back counter.

"W-wait—" Angela tried to stop the unknown man. Wasn't this way too sudden? Her relationship just ended, and there's already someone flirting with her?

"Is there something else I could help you with ma'am? Or are you fine, just like the way you look," the man—who was already occupied with brewing her coffee—inquired, the tone of his voice sugar-glazed and sweet like candy in his veins.

"E-eh?! W-what?!" Angela stuttered, not expecting such a sudden comment. "What do you mean by that?!" she nearly shrieked, struggling to find her words. "Besides, I'm not THAT old," she started. "I have a name you know. Refer to me as something else, at least. Call me Angela."

"Perhaps I have offended you? Well, Angela, I can tell you that for one, you are my puppet master. You tug my heartstrings," the mischievous coffee barista smirked, clearly pleased with her reactions.

"Now that you have my name, what's yours?" Angela retorted, focusing her gaze on the playful coffee barista. For a moment, they stared into each others' mesmerizing, dark chocolate chip eyes. She felt his eyes peer deep into her soul and melt her heart.

"You'll just have to wait and see. But if you're really that impatient, you can call me baby~" He teased in a soothing tone while, pouring the freshly brewed coffee—which he prepared with his heart and soul for Angela—into the warm delicate mug that had the coffee shop's logo engraved on it. He moved with hasty, yet rhythmic and graceful steps to Angela's corner and placed the mug on the coffee table accompanying the chair she was sitting on. As Angela picked up the mug with both of her hands to warm them, she felt a small folded note under the mug.

1-LUV-VIN-GELA

I've been thinking about you a latte...

Call me? <3

The name's Vincent, since you're so desperate to know my name, cutie~

Angela's once pale face heated up as if she was being cooked alive. Is this egghead serious?! Despite her mind objecting to keeping the note, she folded the note and put it in her back pocket. At the moment, she couldn't comprehend a single thing that was happening to her right now. Was this guy seriously flirting with her?

"How's the coffee?" the now familiar, silky sweet voice rang behind her, making her face burn up twice as fast the moment she heard it. Is she really getting flattered by all these dumb pick-up lines?

"W-what do you want, stupid?! Your coffee is terrible...!" she sputtered, despite the coffee tasting absolutely delicious to her. The cup of café latte with an aromatic and distinct smell was delicate and pleasing to her nose had a sweet and creamy—yet bitter—taste. It was all in all, the best cup of coffee that had touched her sensitive taste buds, and that wasn't because she had started to grow a little fond of the coffee barista that made it, herself.

"Ah...I worked really hard on it, you know. To please you," Vincent's tone changed into a sulky, bitter tone—a drastic change from the overly enthusiastic voice from earlier.

"Uhm, uh..." Angela stammered. "I mean...I wasn't being serious," she drew her gaze away from the dramatic boy. "It's really good...I mean it," she whispered, too shy to confess something like that to someone who was trying to make moves on her.

"Are you serious?" Vincent said dumbfounded. "Th-that means a lot, especially coming from you." He swallowed down a lump in his throat. He mustered all his courage and made his move. "Do you want to go to the movies with me later today? I have an extra ticket. If you don't mind, I-I could even pick you up. Just give me a call..."

Angela flashed Vincent a rare smile. "Hmmm," she paused. "I'll think about it~" she playfully caressed Vincent's hand before sipping the last of her coffee and rising from her chair. As she strutted over to the entrance, she glanced at her phone that was no longer buzzing.

"Perhaps I will give him a call..." she whispered.