When Last Night Didn't End

Epilogue: Crossroads and Points of No Return

The bell dinged when he pushed the door inside. The fresh smell of coffee and cream hit his nose as he strode past the stylish cushions and under the ambient golden lighting. A steady queue bled from the counter, two baristas already up to their necks with their orders. It's still early in the morning, though.

He found a spot in the line and waited like he didn't have somewhere else to be in thirty minutes. Several agonizing seconds later, he reached the front of the queue and the barista flashed him a strained smile. "Thank you for coming! What can I get you today?"

He rattled off his usual order, the barista's finger tapping on the screen in time. She asked him some clarificatory questions. Within seconds, he handed her the company card. "Charge everything there," he said. It's lucky his new workplace has such benefits. He could actually enjoy coffee that wasn't stale and made from the back of the pantry.

The barista handed him back his card, sliding a plastic coaster along with it. "It will beep when we have your order," she said. "Name?"

"Oh," he shook his head when he realized she was asking him his name. "Rin. Just...R-I-N."

The barista nodded absently, yanking an empty cup from somewhere behind the counter, scrawling on its side with a sharpie. "Next, please," she said—the only indication she didn't want to deal with him anymore. He retreated into the nearest cushion from the cashier and sank in it, crossing his legs. He's not planning to be here long, anyway.

His phone—a staple in his mundane life—showed him tons of morning updates. Emails, work chat messages, the news. His finger took its sweet time scrolling through each one. Then, he heard his name being called. He glanced at the plastic coaster. Wasn't blinking. That's weird.

He straightened and marched into the counter. There was a drink being handed out in the claim section. His fingers reached out for it but another figure beat him to it. "I'm Jin," said a voice so familiar it made him stop in his tracks. Also, Jin? He withdrew his hand just as she turned, her gaze brushing by his frame on its way towards the tables.

She paused. Whirled to him. "Rin?"

The words jumbled in the pipes of his brain as well inside his throat. "Hye-jin," he managed to breathe out. The first thing he noticed was how her hair was chopped to just behind her ears. What made her tick? "Nice to see you here."

Hye-jin frowned. She was not happy about being stood up. But maybe seeing Rin through some coincidence could overturn the tide. "Nice to see you too," she said. "How are you?"

Rin scratched the back of his neck. Hye-jin motioned for them to go to her things which she left on her seat. Leery as ever, Hye-jin. "I never knew you go here," he pulled the adjacent stool from where she perched. He spied an empty cup in her tray, its contents long sipped and gone. Was she here long, then?

"Ah, it's because of a client," her lips curled into a frown as she spat out the word. "We've been trying to get them to sign the waiver so we can finally proceed into making the game, but..." she blew a breath and threw a dismissive wave at the general vicinity of the shop. "Nowhere to be seen."

"Otherwise, I'd be somewhere uptown," she finished. Her straw made a popping sound when she drove it straight through the plastic lid. "You? I didn't peg you as a coffee enthusiast."

Rin snorted. It's been a while since he had talked to her about his choice of drinks. "It's an acquired taste," he said. "I've been coming here since I started in this block."

She arched her eyebrows. "Oh, that's nice," she said. "No more Ashley for you?"

At that, a small smile ripped through Rin's lips. "Yeah. No more Ashley," he shoved his fingers into his hair and mussed it. For some reason, he had outgrown the habit of pushing it off his forehead. "Gave me hell all throughout the process, though. She still badmouths me until now."