hoping for love | kth

|| part #11 ||

|- meili pov -|

I warmly smiled at the middle-aged woman, handing her a white paper bag, slightly heavy with the weight of two pecan pies and dark chocolate cupcakes.

"Thank you for coming!" I said as she left the bakery.

Sighing, I turned around and leaned on the bakery's counter, running my fingers through my now oily hair.

I should plan on washing it today.

The bell on the door ringed. I turned around, not even looking up at who it was.

"Hello, welcome to Ambrosia and Nectar," I mumbled, clearing the crumbs on the counter.

"We're friends now, you don't have to keep on welcoming me."

I looked up.

Taehyung.

I smirked. "What're you doing here?" I turned around as the oven dinged behind me. I grabbed the oven mitten hanging from the rack and opened the oven's metal door, the smell of mandarin orange and dark chocolate wafting through the bakery.

I gingerly set down the tray of golden pastries on the counter, slipping off the mitt for a second, only to tuck away a loose strand of my hair. I put the glove back on.

"That smells good," Taehyung said, his eyes cemented on the pastries. I grabbed the tray, lightly pushed the swinging door to the kitchen, and moved the tray onto a cooling rack before stepping back toward the counter.

"You didn't answer my question," I said, finally taking my mittens off, pressing my palms onto the counter as I talked to Taehyung. "What're you doing here?"

"Getting something to eat," he replied, pressing his hands against the opposite side of the counter as if to mock me.

I smirked again. "What do you want?"

"What you just took out of the oven," he said, standing on his tiptoes, trying to peek into the kitchen.

As if that would work; the door was closed.

I grabbed a small paper bag and a pair of clear plastic gloves.

"Only one?"

He nodded. I snuck into the kitchen and took one of the pastries and slipped it into the bag.

I opened the door and re-entered the bakery itself.

"Here," I handed Taehyung the bag.

"How much?"

"3,370 won," I replied, typing into the cash register.

"Will you do me a favor?"

I sighed before looking up at him. "You want me to sit with you?"

His cheeks turned a light shade of pink. "Yeah."

"Fine, but pay for the food first," I said, extending my hand for payment. He handed me two ten thousand bills.

"Keep the rest, Meili," Taehyung said, walking over to one of the few seats in the bakery. "It's for yesterday."

I raised my eyebrows. "Are you kidding? Taehyung, this is bull crap, I'm not taking payment for being nice."

"Well, I won't pay for your meal this time, hmm? Just take the money."

I slipped the bill into my pocket.

"Thanks."

"No problem," Taehyung replied.

I smiled as I stepped out from behind the counter and sat down with Taehyung.

"So, how's your day?" He asked.

"It's going," I replied. "Bit stressed for my test tomorrow."

He smiled. "You'll be fine. But, you know, if you were in my class, you wouldn't have a test tomorrow."

"Yeah, but I'm not in your class," I replied casually. "Dumb head."

"Nerd."

I blinked. "Thank you. "

He smiled. "So, friend, do you have any means of contact that I can reach you at?"

I smirked. "Like a phone number?"

"Don't be so flirtatious," he replied sarcastically.

"Shut up," I said. "Do you want the contact information or no?"

He nodded.

"Gimme your phone," I said, extending my hand. He unlocked his phone and passed me a cracked iPhone 6.

I pressed the "Contacts" icon and typed in my number under the name "Meili."

"Thanks," Taehyung smiled brightly, taking a bite of his pastry. There was chocolate all over his mouth.

The door's bell rang and a costumer entered, a stern looking woman, short black hair parted in the middle, a striped handbag at her side.

I swiftly got up from my seat and walked over to the counter, greeting the woman.

"Yes, hello, I'm in a bit of a rush, I need a birthday cake for my granddaughter for next Thursday," she spoke speedily, scrambling in her handbag. "Here is the design, she's turning four years old."

I smiled. "Our cake artist comes in tomorrow, I can take the notes that you need for the cake and hand him the design."

She smiled tightly before launching into what flavor and icing she wanted for the cake. I hurriedly scribbled down some notes on the back of the paper she had handed me for the design.

"Thank you," I said as she finally left. "Please come again!"

The door closed with a light thud.

"That was a long order," Taehyung piped up.

I had almost forgotten that he was still here.

I stared at him before replying.

"Wipe your mouth, Tae."

I grabbed the design paper and was about to slip into the back room before Taehyung stopped me.

"Did you just call me 'Tae'?"

I slowly turned around, confident that my cheeks were dusted with pink.

Why did I call him that?

What the heck was I thinking?

It seemed he noticed my embarrassment, as his response was kind.

"It's fine, I like being called Tae, anyway," he said, getting up from his seat. "My name's a mouthful, you should make it easier for yourself."

"Thanks."

"No problem!" he replied, excitedly. "See you later, friend!"

He walked to the door before stepping out, his silhouette becoming farther and farther away.

I smiled before feeling a sensation in the pit of my stomach.

Happiness.

I felt genuinely happy.

hoping for more happiness,

meili

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Hello! I'm sorry that I haven't updated in awhile, school was getting a bit hectic. I will try to update more regularly from now on.

Also, did you watch MAMA?

I watched a few performances and speeches for the awards; it was so cool!