━ 𝘁𝘅𝘁 𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀

it's you

"One iced Americano?" The barista asked knowingly as the raven-haired boy nodded, giving her a soft smile. He had been a frequent customer at the café for a few months now, often sitting at the corner by the window-his favourite spot- while enjoying his cup of iced Americano and doing his work on his laptop.

If he was being honest, the coffee was one thing he went back for, but it was also to see the barista. She was good at her work and always seen with a smile on her face, greeting every customer enthusiastically and never failing to put a smile on their faces as well, even if they looked upset before stepping into the café. Whether young or old, she just had that power to make people happy and had that charm around her that Kai absolutely loved.

A few moments later, he was already typing furiously on his laptop, eyebrows scrunched up in concentration. He was so focused he didn't even notice the barista heading towards him with his order. "Here's your iced Americano." She said, setting it down on the smooth wooden table. He looked up in surprise. She usually didn't bring customers' orders to their tables. She must've sensed that as she pointed to his laptop. "You looked busy, so I thought I might as well bring it to you, there are no other customers for now." She explained, the corners of her lips curled upwards into a cute smile before turning back to the counter. "Thanks-" Kai started but stopped at that as he realised he didn't know her name. "It's Jihan, and you're welcome-" "Kai." He answered and couldn't resist the smile he had been holding, Jihan's positivity rubbing off him. The door chime tinkled and a customer walked in as Jihan jumped, as if startled out of her daze. "Well Kai, enjoy your drink and I'll get going or I'm prepared to be jobless." She laughed lightly-heartedly, scurrying back to the counter as Kai turned back to his laptop, chuckling softly to himself. He especially liked how his name rolled off her tongue so smoothly. She's kind of cute, he thought, before focusing on his work once more.

He didn't know how long he had been sitting there typing away furiously but when he lifted his head, there were already no customers around except for him and Jihan and another waitress was cleaning the tables and sweeping the floor. Jihan was holding a broom and a dustpan, sweeping the floor quickly and making sure not a speck of dust was left. A moment later, she looked up to see if Kai was still immersed in his work and found herself looking into his dark brown eyes. She waved enthusiastically before going over to him. "You must be busy, I've been checking on you for the past two hours and you never looked up once," She commented, looking thoughtful. Kai could only rub his nape, embarrassed that she had noticed his workaholic side and that he had occupied a seat for so long. "Sorry for staying for so long, there must've been customers waiting for a seat," He apologized and she shook her head. "It's fine, it's not like we get many customers anyway, feel free to spend your afternoons here without anyone chasing you out." She laughed, producing a tinkling sound, her eyes curving into crescents. He joined in, tickled by her laughter.

"Are you free after this?" Kai asked, once their laughter died down and Jihan was ready to knock off. "Yep, I was planning to get dinner before going to visit my grandma." She said, removing her apron and folding it neatly. "I know a nice place for dinner, care to join me?" He asked, his cheeks slightly tinted pink. He had never really asked a girl out before and was new to it, afraid that he would make Jihan uncomfortable. But his worries soon disappeared when Jihan smiled her signature bunny smile. "Sure!"

Jihan grabbed her bag and met Kai outside the café where he was waiting. When he saw her, he smiled before they began walking to a restaurant Kai recommended. As they walked, their shoulders occasionally bumped into each other's and Kai could feel his face burning up. It was his first time feeling this way even by the smallest things and he found it even more surprising when he liked this feeling.

When they got to the restaurant, they were relieved that there wasn't a queue yet as they were rather early and got seated before ordering their food. "I'm curious about something," Jihan began, her mouth quirked into a smile. "Go ahead." "What exactly do you work as? You always look so concentrated while doing your work that I've been wanting to know what you do." Jihan confessed, tilting her head in curiosity. "My job?" Kai asked, a little caught off guard by the question as he didn't expect her to be curious about his job. "Don't laugh, I work as a children's book illustrator." He said as her eyes widened in surprise. "Why would I laugh? It's cute." She commented, still amazed by his job. He blushed at her words before asking timidly, "I can show you some of my illustrations if you want." "Really? I'd be happy to see them!" She exclaimed, clasping her hands together. "I hope you love penguins because I draw quite a bit of them, dolphins and bears too." He added, passing his tablet to her as she smiled and took it over, examining the drawings. "Aww, they're adorable." She gushed, her heart melting at the cute figures. The penguins all had tiny ribbons on their necks, making them look like small businessmen yet looking cute at the same time. The dolphins had happy smiling eyes that would melt anyone's heart upon seeing them and bears had small cute ears and adorable paws that looked fluffy. In short, all of them were lovable and made Jihan's smile brighten. Kai sighed quietly in relief as he watched Jihan point out her favourite ones, her eyes sparkling.