Ryujin
The morning after their date, Ryujin found herself waking up earlier than usual. She started the day feeling perky, and even had the energy to make herself a breakfast sandwich.
She drove herself to her favorite coffee shop and was about to get Yeji her fix when she remembered the small coffee shop near uni – the one where she saw Yeji at, hanging out with the barista and all.
She took a quick turn and decided to fuel her curiosity.
When Ryujin got to the cafe, the same barista was manning the counter. The latter looked up and smiled upon hearing the door chime.
"Good morning! It's quite cold today. What can I get you?"
Charmer, she thought. How can people feel this chippy at this hour in the morning? And probably everyday, too.
"Ah, hello." She replied coolly and pretended to look at the menu. Clearly, she didn't plan enough on what to say once she got to the place.
She stared at the menu for a whole minute before hearing the other girl clear her throat.
"If you're having a hard time choosing, I can recommend some. If you could just tell me the taste that you're looking for."
Still, a soft smile was on her face.
Ryujin smiled back. She actually seemed really nice.
"I'll get a large matcha fusion, please. And the other one... let me think."
She turned to the girl and played coy.
"I'm getting a drink for a... friend. And I saw her here one or two times before but I'm not sure if you remember her."
She paused.
"Long hair, cat eyes, and about 5 '5. She often brings books with her - Engineering books."
Recognition lit up the girl's face.
"Oh, Yeji?"
"Y-yeah. She's the one." Ryujin was taken aback but didn't offer any other comments.
"She's been here a few times, yes. Well, she likes a couple of things. But it depends, when she's studying she usually gets the iced americano. A brewed coffee with two sugar if the weather's cold."
Ryujin was a little stunned at the fact that she actually knows what she likes.
"I- I don't think she has exams this week" was all that she was able to say.
"Oh, then a regular cappuccino will do. I'll whip those up for you right away."
The barista turned to walk towards the coffee maker as Ryujin sat at the nearest table, doing some contemplating on how she has known Yeji for quite some time but doesn't even know her coffee order. She has never paid that much attention before.
She quickly opened her notes app and typed in the order – something to remember the next time they hangout in a coffee shop.
After ten minutes, the barista handed her the order. She took a peek at her name tag and saw that her name is Jiwoo.
"Here's your order. Enjoy!"
Ryujin nodded and motioned to stand up when Jiwoo turned around to say a quick remark.
"Oh, and say hi to Yeji for me. If that's okay."
She smiled widely and walked back to the counter to assist a new customer who came in.
When Ryujin reached Yeji's building, she had already given up on wiping the crease on her forehead because of the earlier incident – which she clearly brought to herself.
She bumped into the feline eye right away and Yeji instantly brightened up upon seeing her – she almost forgot what she was so annoyed about. Almost.
"Hey."
"Hi."
She handed her the coffee and was answered by a wide grin from the girl.
"I had an early errand and thought I'd get you your coffee before class."
Yeji took a sip and thanked her.
"This is so thoughtful. Just the way I like it on slow days, like today."
She would've enjoyed the feline eye's gratitude if it's not for the fact that she wasn't the one who actually decided on the order. She took a deep breath and smiled back.
"Of course. I'll see you at the library today?"
"Uh, actually... probably not."
Yeji bit her lip lightly and paused.
"I have to be somewhere later today and I might not be able to do some readings. But I'll see you around?"
Slightly defeated, Ryujin nodded and said her goodbye.
She spent the rest of the morning recalling incidents from their hangout the day before – did she somehow ruin it before it even started?
She decided to spend the rest of the day with Lia, repetitively telling her the same short exchange and forcing her best friend to come up with explanations on what she might have done wrong.
When she was finally able to run into Yeji in the library a couple of days later, she already had a hundred scenarios in her head on how their conversation would go – all of which led to the feline eye telling her that she read everything wrong. And that they don't share the same feelings. At all. So she took her time pretending to look at some books before sitting down.
Yeji finally looked up when she sat across hers and flashed a quick smile.
"Hey."
"Hi."
"You got anything you needed help with today?" The girl asked politely.
"Uhm, no- not really. I just thought of keeping you company."
"Oh, alright, and thanks." She immediately went back to whatever she was doing and maintained her focus.
Ryujin, on the other hand, was starting to sweat due to the blandness of the exchange. Yeji seemed relaxed and natural, but she couldn't help but overthink things. Shouldn't everything be progressing by now? After the date, she thought that they would hang out more and eventually confess their mutual feelings. Kinda like the ones in movies.
How does this work again?
She glanced at Yeji again and cannot seem to find any trace of anxiety or animosity. It must really be only her that has been thinking about... things.
Feeling defeated, she started to reach for her laptop to watch some videos when Yeji's phone broke the silence.
The feline eye glanced quickly at the phone's screen before pausing and checking the notification. She raised both of her eyebrows and smiled a little.
Ryujin looked away immediately, feeling like she's intruding on a private moment. She couldn't ignore the suddening tightening in her stomach. Was it the girl from the coffee shop? Someone else?
She took a few deep breaths and stood up.
"I-I forgot there's somewhere I need to be in a few minutes."
She said weakly.
Yeji had a confused look on her face, but nodded nonetheless.
"See you around?"
She didn't wait for a response and walked immediately away from the table.
She's started to regret giving in to her feelings and suddenly reminded of how easy and carefree she was before this whole Yeji spectacle.
Sighing, she shook her head and continued walking to the park.