A Still Day or A Hurricane | Jungkook

Part 35

You enter Blue Side the next morning with a mission. Shaking from nervousness more than the cold, you let the warmth of the cafe temporarily comfort you before facing Jungkook.

You're not surprised he's not the one on the counter, but you know he's here; Jimin did say that Jungkook has been taking full day shifts to get his mind off you, although he reckons it's probably his friend hoping you'd give in and pass by for some dessert.

Dea looks at you cautiously with a hint of disappointment on her face. She's Jungkook's age but she's always treated him like a little brother, and she's told you enough stories about him sulking in the cafe and burning caramels and fillings during the time you ghosted him. You won't be surprised if you're not her favorite person right now.

"Hi, I, uh," you peek at the display counter. "Can I get a whole cheesecake, please? The classic one."

"Is there anything else?" She says with a leveled voice.

"Yes. Can I have your head pastry chef do some lettering on it?"

"We don't do that," she replies dryly.

"Can I, uh," you stammer, trying to come up with something else, your eyes flitting to the kitchen door that you hope will open soon. If you need to stand here until he comes out, then you will.

Dea sighs loudly and says your name. "Are you trying to see him so you could tell him you don't want him again or so you could apologize?"

"Definitely not the first one. I do want to apologize, and maybe something more," you respond, your lips slowly turning up to mirror Dea's.

"Fine. Hey, kid," he nudges the new employee next to her. "Get Jeon out here. Say that Mrs. Choi wants him to customize a cake so he should bring his piping bag."

"Why me?" He asks nervously. "We don't do that piping thing."

"We don't, so if I ask him, he'll tell me off but you're new so he'll be nice, and he'll follow you. So go."

The young man nods upon realizing she's right, so he walks to the kitchen, leaving you with Dea who's chuckling at you.

"Thanks for coming. I like having Jeon here everyday but not when he's snappy and not laughing. He's annoying when he's not happy," she chuckles, processing your order.

Now that's one version of him you haven't seen. You wonder how he is when he's not his usual silly self. Maybe he'll let you see it one day.

The door opens and your face perks up, quickly falling at his frowning face, as if he's not all too happy to see you.

"I guess the kid over there heard the wrong name," Jungkook glares at Dea who shrugs and tries to act innocent.

"What do you want written on the cake, Ms. Kim?" Jungkook asks too professionally, piping bag in his hand and ready to start.

"Jeon Jungkook, please have lunch with me," you say.

He looks up at you warily. "What?"

"That's what I want written down - Jeon Jungkook, please have lunch with me," you clarify.

"Why?"

"To make up for avoiding you. Again. And to say how sorry I am and explain myself to you because you deserve that. And also because, uh, Heejin misses you," you reason. "So, uh, would you like to have lunch with me?"

"Huh," he cocks an eyebrow, his tongue poking his inner cheek. "Depends on where it will lead."

"A date, hopefully. And then another one and maybe another one," you say nervously.

"I thought that wasn't part of your plan," he says, his face slightly falling.

"It wasn't. You weren't. But you kinda crashed into my life and messed a lot of things up and I... uh, I liked it. A lot. And a week without you has been terrible and dull," you admit.

"So Heejin's not the only one missing me?"

"Definitely not. Her mother does, too."

"Okay, so... lunch and then a date?" He turns hopeful. "Spending time with you doing whatever? Getting to know you better in the process?"

"Hopefully, yes. If it's something you still want, but I understand if you don't anymore," your voice cracks a little. "And if you agree, then you have to know that I tend to be rigid and uptight sometimes," you start to ramble, thankful for the slow morning today at the cafe.

"I like things done my way and sometimes I won't budge, but I try. I get blunt and serious often and I'm not always the most fun person to be around. I obsess over the littlest things and spend too much time worrying. I also have the most beautiful little angel of a daughter who is the love of my life and will come first all the time and I'm still learning to be a mother and I'm probably not gonna be the best girlfriend at the start but—"

"Girlfriend?" He asks, his doe-eyes blinding you with how wide they'd gotten.

"Well, that's why I'm hoping for a date. For you to make up your mind if you want me to be one and—"

You're cut off by the cheesecake being pushed in front of you with a messily-lettered YES on top and you can't help the smile that immediately forms on your face. You turn to face him and he has a shy one in his, too, and you missed it terribly.

"You really mean that?" You bite your lip.

"___, I didn't wait for you everyday the past week just to turn away from you," he admits. "I'm not that hard to get rid of. And you're not an easy person to give up on."

"Okay, good," you mumble, feeling your cheeks burn but also wanting to cry at the same time. "Uhm, here's the cake that I bought for you," you say, pushing the cake towards him.

"Hey, hey. Enjoy this with me," he offers, slightly pulling on your wrist.

You're tempted to stay. And maybe drown in those eyes that haven't lost their glimmer as they look at you, and it's the hope you hang onto as a reminder that you haven't lost him yet, that you haven't completely screwed everything up.

"I'd love to but I have to pick up Heejin from Joon's and then watch Tae's show. I left her there because I didn't want to use her just so you'd say yes to me."

"I would say yes either way."

"You scared me a bit there, though," you pout, and he thinks you're the most adorable like this.

"I still gave in pretty quickly. So, uh, lunch?"

"Tomorrow, at the indoor park. The weather will be nice and Heejin hasn't forgiven me for last week. I won't cowardly run away again, I promise."

"Okay," he smiles, playing with his lip ring that you know he does when he's nervous.

"I'll take care of everything, don't worry. And she'll be joining us for every date, is that okay?"

"Of course," he answers excitedly, and with the way he looks, you just want tomorrow to come quicker.

He slices the cake into two, leaving the bigger size with the word yes and gives it to you in a to-go package.

"I'll see you, okay?" You say.

"I'll see you," he replies, with his heart in his throat and then in his hands, beating erratically at the thought of spending tomorrow with you.