Café Pit-a-Pat - Season 1 (COMPLETE)

Chapter 42

Aimlessly staring at the clear sky above him, Kimmon let his thoughts freely wander to the memories that had dominated his head since last night.  In stark contrast to the pleasant sunlight warming his face, he felt a dismal coldness steadily seeping into his heart.  More and more as his brain fixated on the image of a crying Copter, who had kept apologizing to him yesterday with endless tears.

"How are you holding up?"

A sudden voice ripped him out of his distressful musing.  Instinctively turning his head to the side, Kimmon found Tae standing right next to him and offering a comforting gaze.  

Slumping his shoulders, Kimmon gave out a weak smile.  "I guess I'm that obvious, huh?"

He felt a twinge of guilt when his own words reminded him of his unsatisfactory behavior as of late.  

After Copter had left the café, Kimmon went through the motions of busily working each day.  Not wanting to worry the Pit-a-Pat crew and incoming customers, he had tried his best to appear unaffected, but he eventually realized that his efforts were unsuccessful.  Everyone around him seemed to notice how utterly lifeless he was.  Especially today, when he frankly didn't have enough mental capacity or energy to even attempt to conceal his low spirits.      

Tae just returned a gentle smile.  "Were you able to get in touch with Copter?"

Kimmon hesitated for a bit, feeling a little embarrassed by the fact that Tae already knew the underlying reason for his current depression.  Even though, now that he thought about it, it really wasn't hard to connect all the dots.       

"I met him yesterday."

"Is he okay?"

"I don't think so," Kimmon revealed, his heart stinging as the image of Copter's tears flooded his head again.  "P'Tae.  He's hurting, and I don't know how to help him.  He said that he wants to be alone.  That he needs to be alone."

Shutting his eyes close, Kimmon dropped his head as waves of hopelessness violently washed over him.  His brows creased with concern, Tae silently stared at Kimmon.    

"You know, given how attached we all are to him, you would have thought that we knew everything about him," Tae eventually noted, breaking the quiet between them.  "But, ever since we lost touch with him, I realized that we don't.  That I really have no clue what problems he's going through right now."

At Tae's honest words, Kimmon opened his eyes and met the senior's contrite gaze.  After giving him a small smile, Tae continued.        

"But I do know that Copter is one of the sweetest people that I've ever encountered.  How he'll tend to everyone else's needs before taking care of himself.  And he really feels like my baby brother.  Someone who I wouldn't hesitate to spoil and protect at all costs, even though at times he actually seems much more matured than I could ever be."