just ash

chapter 9

Ash huffed out a breath as she stared at her computer screen. She was on her third cup of tea and was almost done with the chapter she had been working on all afternoon. Her productivity had been good until about seven o'clock, which was when she began looking at the clock on the wall every few minutes. The keyboard on her computer clacked as she forced herself to pound out a couple paragraphs before she glanced at the clock again.

Seven forty-five...shit.

There was really no point in trying to focus on her work anymore. As she snapped her computer closed, she grabbed her teacup and swallowed the rest of the cooled liquid, grimacing as a couple tea leaf chunks made their way down her throat. The tea did little to settle her uneasy stomach which had been twisting in knots for the past hour and a half.

What the hell were her and Namjoon going to talk about?

Should she just pretend like the previous evening had never happened? Namjoon had never explicitly said he was the leader of Bangtan Sonyeondan, so should she act like she was still clueless? He had to know she knew, though. Would he have to stop seeing Ash? Would he need to change his number? What if throughout the day he had decided meeting up with her was a horrible idea?

Ash nervously ran a hand through her hair a few times, then decided to braid it back. She leaned over to put her computer into her book bag, and then grabbed a scrunchie. After it was placed in her mouth, she reached back to start a French braid at the crown of her head. Then, when she was conveniently halfway down, the door to the coffee shop jingled, and in walked Kim Namjoon.

Her hands froze in her hair; shit, he looked good.

He was wearing a black beanie despite the lingering heat of the afternoon. The mask concealing half of his face matched his crisp white t-shirt, and he wore a casual khaki jacket over loose jeans and sneakers. An over-the-shoulder bag hung heavily at his waist. The moment his eyes landed on her, they brightened, and Ash couldn't help but smile around her scrunchie. She nodded her head in greeting, and Namjoon closed the gap between them in a couple long strides.

"Hey, Ash," he said enthusiastically. He eyed the empty cup in front of her. "I'm gonna grab a coffee. Do you want some more tea?"

Ash willed her fingers to move, but they remained firmly planted in her thick crown of hair. So, she opened her mouth wide, letting her scrunchie fall into her lap. Namjoon's cheeks squished up, his eyes smiling at her movement.

"Yes, but I can get it! Just give me a minute," she replied, and he shook his head, grabbing her cup.

"Don't worry about it, I got you."

He walked to the counter before Ash could object, so she sighed and watched as he interacted with the barista. She finished her braid quickly and tied it off, then watched as Namjoon and the older woman behind the counter laughed. They clearly knew each other, and Ash wondered if Namjoon was a regular here, too.

When he returned to the table with two steaming mugs, Ash pulled her tea closer to herself, gently blowing on it before opening her mouth to speak.

"So, come here often?"

He chuckled at her question. Once he was seated across from Ash, he shrugged his jacket off and pulled his mask underneath his chin. Ash felt her heart flutter as her eyes drank in his smooth skin, plump lips, and adorable nose. Her drunken memories may have been fuzzy, but her intoxicated brain had been right about one thing; this man was radiant.

"Actually, yeah, I do come here a lot. My studio isn't far from here, and for some reason this shop is always empty. I like to write lyrics here," he said. Ash's eyebrows shot up. She took his words as a go-ahead to talk about his idol identity.