WORDS. |Kim Seungmin

Eleven.

"Are you sure that it is a good idea?"

"Hmm? What?" Aria snapped out from her thoughts when Changbin talked.

Her eyes were glued to the cafe's door just like they had been for the past two hours. Changbin was wiping the counter beside her, waiting for the first customer after they reopened the café following the mini-break they had. The sun had already set but the boy didn't show up as Aria expected.

"Stop glaring at the door!" Changbin whined.

"I'm not."

"You are! You jump in your place whenever a customer walks in. You are being skeptical."

Aria huffed, she turned around, gave her back to the door, and leaned to the counter. She crossed her arms to her chest mimicking what Changbin did after he was done wiping the counter. He stood facing her, ready to scold his friend but he stopped himself from doing so when he noticed how distracted she was.

"I can't help it." She shrugged.

"I don't know, Aria. I don't know if that is going to work. I mean, he's mute. How are you going to do that project? It's a project, not an assignment. You'll have to work together for more than a month."

"I think I'll figure that out if he comes."

Changbin squinted his eyes at her before he talks again. "Just be honest with me. You don't give two fucks about the whole project thing. You just wanted to feed your curiosity about him."

"Okay, yes! I'm super curious. He's been ticking my nerves lately that I can't stop my curious brain cells from questioning about him. And you," She pointed at Changbin's face. "helped in growing this curiosity even bigger when you said he might be a Punished. What might this fallen angel have done to be a Punished? He looks so cute, so fresh and so innocent to be anything near that. And when he walks down the campus, he loo-"

"Woah, woah!" Changbin interrupted her. "Slow down, woman! Jesus, you rap faster than I do." He chuckled.

Aria sighed and dropped her head down. She pouted a little and ruffled her short dyed blonde hair in frustration. Changbin giggled, earning a death glare from her who didn't know that he wasn't teasing her but he was giggling at the scene.

"We have a customer, Aria." Changbin said before he moves closer to her and whispers. "You'd better sort your hair out." He patted her shoulder.

"Whatever, shortie." She snapped at him, rolling her eyes before she turns to face the new customer. "Welcome to Beans&Bread café. How ca-"

Aria's words got trapped in her throat once she lifted her head to meet the new customer who was no one except the bubble tea boy. He stood there awkwardly but smiled at her once his eyes met hers.

The ivory shirt and white ripped jeans he was wearing made Aria think that the moon got bored from being friends with the stars and decided to make new ones with human beings on earth, specifically, human beings in Beans&Bread café.

Aria who was caught off guard, blinked a few times before she could recover from his surprising arrival after she thought that he ditched her. "Umm, Hey." She welcomed him shortly.

The boy smiled even wider then gave her a little bow. His eyes moved to Changbin who was trying his best in muffling his laughter. The boy bowed down to Changbin too, making the boy return the gesture. He looked back at Aria before he looks around him at the empty tables.

"Yeah, it's always that quiet on Mondays. That's why I suggested meeting here." She said, rubbing her sweaty palms against her apron. "You can take whatever table you want and I'll be there in a moment. Bubble tea, right?" She asked earning a nod from the boy before he starts walking to the corner table by the window.


Once he was away, she turned to Changbin who was red with congested neck veins as he was keeping his laughter for way too long. She glared at him but didn't comment since she didn't want to make a scene, especially with the bubble tea boy being around.