Café del Amor (DISCONTINUED)

1

"P'Milk, the new worker's gonna arrive today!"

"Is that so? That's great, View... Call me if she arrives so that I can properly introduce myself."

The girl named View Benyapa, one of the core workers of the café, nodded and hurried back to the storage room so she can tell her friends about the new girl, whereas Milk went back to arranging and organizing some stuffs.

Milk Pansa Vosbien, whose ancestry are Chinese, Danish, Mon, and Thai, owns the famous "Café del Amor" that is widely known for its deliciously brewed coffee and wondrous pastries. She's currently residing at the main branch in Thailand, where she all started her business.

She's in her mid twenties, very attractive yet timid, cool yet warm-hearted, and has a very kind heart. Of course, because of her 'near-perfect' nature, she got so many suitors from both genders, but she hasn't met the one yet. Her friends had been bugging her to find a new boyfriend or girlfriend, especially because she only had one ex— a girl from her college days.

Her friends are worried about her, knowing so well that Milk is too timid to talk about her own love life. They didn't want their friend to grow old alone, so they wanted her to quickly settle down with a lover.

"Miw~"

"June, what are you doing here? Didn't you told me you had a shoot today?"

"Oh, c'mon, can't you give a warmer welcome to your best friend?"

Milk laughed but proceeded to hug her best friend, June Wanwimol, who's a model and free-lance photographer. It was still 7 o'clock in the morning, so Milk decided to accompany her for a while. Their chitchat got interrupted by View, who said that the new worker had arrived, all while giving a glare to June, who never stopped flirting with her.

"June, excuse me for a while, I have to welcome the new worker."

"Ah, don't bother, I'll be going too. Maybe I can meet this new face along the way..."

"Okay then..."

And so, View led them to where the new worker was, and they were met by a young lady. Milk thought that she might be on her early twenties, considering how she got the young look. The girl was very eye-catching especially with her baby face and vibrant aura, she was like the Sun.

"Hello, I'm Love Pattranite."

"Ah, so you're the new girl. Nice to meet you, I'm Milk, owner of the shop."

"Nice to meet you too..."

Love politely bowed and smiled, showcasing her cute whisker dimples that made her look like a cat. Of course, even Milk wasn't an exception to that thought— she mentally took note of how the girl resembles an orange cat. She can't help but smile back, affected by Love's contagious positivity.

"P'Milk, Love is a fresh graduate of Culinary Arts majoring in Baking and Pastries, earning a degree in Paris, and she also studied as a Barista at Italy. She wanted to work here to gain more experience, and based on her profile, she was the top of her class."

"That's good news, I'm glad to have you here, Love."

"Thank you, Ms. Vosbien..."

"Oh, please just call me 'P'Milk' too..."

"Yeah, and call me P'June too! I'm June Wanwimol, the owner's best friend. Pleasure to meet a pretty girl like you, Love."

June gave her a flirty smile, holding out a hand for her to shake, which Love shyly accepted. Milk and View can only sigh at June's usual antics before Milk ushered her out of the shop so she could go to work.

"Sorry about her, she gets too playful sometimes."

"Ah, it's fine, P'Milk... I don't really mind."

"P'Milk, I will get back to work now. You'd be the one to give instructions to Love, right?"

"Yeah, I can handle that. Thanks, View..."

"See you around, View!"

That left the two of them standing still, turning to look at each other after View left. Milk smiled at the younger one before she started giving her brief instructions about how the work goes, and even introduced her to her new coworkers. After finishing the small tour, Milk offered her a drink and a pastry so they could sit and talk more as a mini-interview, and Love politely accepted.

"So, why did you study culinary arts?"

"Well... My grandma used to bake me cupcakes everyday when I was a kid so when she passed away, my dream to become a baker just became stronger because I wanted to continue doing what my grandma loved. I also love baking and cooking, it reminds me of my grandma a lot..."

"Oh... That's an amazing inspiration, I'm sure your grandma is very proud of you..."

Love smiled shyly, fiddling with the coffee cup. Milk smiled at the sight, reminiscing her younger years. Oh, how she missed goofing around with her friends without much care, but she's more than happy that they all finally achieved their dreams.

"How about you, P'Milk?"

"Hmm?"

"Why did you start this café?"

Love asked, propping her arms on the table, staring at her with soft eyes and a warm smile. Milk thought that her innocent look completely matched her soft voice, and it made the younger girl even more charming.

"Just because..."

Milk couldn't really tell her that it was because of her ex-girlfriend who dreamed of building a pastry shop together with her, planning to run a business with her until they get old and pass it on to the next generation. She couldn't tell the younger one that the dream got stuck with her, despite the tragic accident that happened to her past lover. No, definitely no.

"Oh, I guess you can't tell me right now, it's alright, P'Milk!"

"Well, are you really curious?"

"I am, but I can wait, Phi..."

Love answered with an innocent smile before she proceeded to eat the chocolate cake in front of her. And then Milk thought that maybe it wouldn't be so bad to open up to someone, especially to a person who's willing to wait.