Marks of the Soul | Vmin

1- Jimin

Your soulmate might be one coffee away.

A deceitful invitation for those who pass by the on-campus coffee shop. Alluring words plastered all over its windows tempting the desperate with hopes of encountering their other half— if they spend enough money on coffee first.

Inside its brick walls, tired students were slouched on the comfortable sofas, grateful for the dim lights as they consumed the proper dose of caffeine before a long day of pretending to take notes.

The sickly sweet smell of baked goods had my fingers twitching in impatience as I waited in line for my morning fix, or maybe they were drumming along to the bright, cheery anthem drowning the shop's quiet chatter— two men singing about being each other's soulmates.

"Jimin! Hi!" The barista waved at me, snapping me out of my half-asleep state.

"Hey." I stepped up to the counter with a polite smile. "I'll never get used to how alive you can seem when it's this early."

He had a wide gummy smile on display every morning, undeniably the most awake person in the room.

"Some people just bring that out in me." He looked down.

I tilted my head, about to ask him what he meant when the girl behind me coughed, letting me know she thought I was taking too long to order. "I'll have—"

"A caramel macchiato and today's special."

I was taken aback. "How did you know?"

"It's always the same." He shrugged. "The macchiato for you and the special for your... Boyfriend?"

"Boyfriend?" my pitch heightened.

He nodded. "Tall. Handsome. Affectionate."

"Oh my horizons! Taehyung? No, he's not my boyfriend. We're just best friends. We live together in one of the student apartments right in front of the university. That's why we hang out around here a lot."

His eyes glistened. "You're single?"

"Chronically so." I dismissed with a chuckle.

"The one might be closer than you think..." He played with the hem of his apron.

I scrunched my eyebrows, not grasping until my eyes landed on the flyers on the walls. "Ah!" I nodded with a giggle, pointing at the adverts. "One coffee away?"

He opened his mouth but no words came out, gaping at the flyers as if he had never seen them before. "R-right." He forced out a laugh, scurrying away. "I'll go make your coffee."

Somewhat confused, I looked around the coffee shop to kill time, ignoring the girl behind me when she muttered 'finally' under her breath.

On a nearby table two friends were sitting together, one of them showing off the new soulmark she had gotten on her upper arm while the other ogled at its beauty. I found myself entranced by the mark as well.

All too quickly, a familiar craving dug its way out of my yearning heart, itching for a soulmate. In weak moments like these I understood how enticing that prior promise could be.

Maybe my soulmate was one coffee away.

"This might be that one coffee." The barista said, pulling me out of my thoughts.

"I'm sorry, what?"

"The coffee standing between you and your soulmate..." He slid the drinks towards me, hope igniting in his eyes before dimming away at my lack of understanding. "Never mind." He scratched the back of his neck.