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The cafe smelled sweet, like chocolate-mint and toasted marshmallows. It was dimly lit; not too bright, not too dark. I looked up the sign that read Bishounen Cafe: Korea. Then I looked around at the dark brown tables and booths and the large size of the beautiful room. I liked it already.
"Welcome to Bishounen Cafe," said a waiter. I wouldn't catch his eyes until later.
"Booth," Jung Hae said in a very bored tone. He could've at least said please, I thought, but remained quiet. His hands were warm as milk as they wrapped in mine. I had met Hae about two weeks ago. He was my first boyfriend, mind you. He was tall, toned, and had a pair of eyes like his father's, a movie star.
"Come on, MiYun," Hae's voice tugged me back to the smell of coffee brewing. My coral pink dress swung around my legs as I followed him, heads down, obediently.
Oh. I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Ham Mi Yun. Just your average girl. I'm not by any means rich, or poor. I'm just ok when it comes to looks. Only rarely do I dress up; that can be an exception to when I don't feel pretty. I've just graduated from University; valedictorian. I have a month to figure out what to do with my life...which quite frankly I don't have a clue.
"...and what would you like?" asked the waiter, sounding annoyed. I looked up to stare into the most beautiful pair of hypnotizing dark brown eyes. They were even better then Jung Hae's, and that's saying something. I looked him over. He had a body of a model, dirty-blond hair that matched him perfectly, a perfect god-like face, and...why was he looking at me like that? OHH. I still had to order...
"Um..oh. I'll have..." I stuttered like a fool. "...just...just plain hot chocolate."
"Be back in a minute then," he said turning to leave, but stopped himself. "By the way, my name's Nichkhun. I'll be your waiter, if you haven't figured that out yet." Then he left.
"You come to one of the hottest cafes in Korea and you order a plain hot chocolate?" Hae said. Luckily he hadn't caught me staring at Nichkhun's figure walking away.
"I guess..." I said quietly. It's been like this a lot recently. Jung Hae isn't acting like himself. Or maybe I had just fallen for his illusion, but I refused to let myself think about that. He's been more...aggressive. Greedy. Selfish. Careless. There we go. Those are the words.
He slid closer to me in our semi-circle booth, putting his right hand on my left thigh. We were in a darker corner of the cafe, so no one could see us. My heart skipped a beat. I should be wanting this right? But why do I feel afraid? When his hand slowing glided higher up my leg, I slid away.
"What?" He asked, sounding more piss at each passing minute.
"Nothing," I quickly replied, avoiding his gaze. But he only slid closer, this time putting one arm around my waist to pull me closer. By then, I was hyperventilating. I didn't realize I was struggling to get away until he put his lips so close to my ear.
He whispered forcefully, "I said, what's wrong?!"
I attempted to pull away (by now I was almost off the booth), but he held me tight with one hand inching upwards on my leg. With a huge thrust, I pulled away with so much force that I fell right out of the booth. Oh lord. I'm stronger than I thought. Well, at least I thought that until I looked up.
Our waiter, Nichkhun, had set our drinks on the table and now had my boyfriend by his collar. I slowly got up. Hae was struggling, but he was no match for Nichkhun.
"Do you know what I hate most?" Nichkhun whispered, loud enough that I could hear. "Guys who don't treat girls with respect."
The next minute blurred and flew by. Hae threw a punch at Nichkhun, who jumped back. In a matter of seconds, the two guys were on top of each other, throwing punches and kicks. The cafe was in an uproar; tables were turned over, glasses of various drinks were spilling, cups were shattering; people were yelling. But the two guys were still at it.
Finally, some other waiters pulled Nichkhun off of Hae. Both guys looked pretty beat up, but Hae was the one with the black guy. I couldn't stop staring at it as he walked slowly towards me. The whole time, I was only standing like a marble statue. I could see Nichkhun wrestling to free himself from the other waiters grasp, but they held him down hard.
June Hae's scowled, "If you haven't guessed yet, there's nothing between us anymore." He turned around and limped out of the cafe.
My knees gave way and I doubled over on the ground. I was just another average, foolish girl who believed any guy was her prince. I tried hard to hold the tears from forming in my eyes. I was pained and embarrassed. Every eye in the cafe was staring at me. But underneath all the pain, way deep underneath, I felt relief.
Relief to finally, forcefully, free myself from Jung Hae.
~~~
"What's the meaning of all this?!" Rain Bi said. He was the manager of Bishounen Cafe: Korea, and he did not look very happy.
"It was the bitch who started it. Not me," Nichkhun replied with anger. If only he had broken a few limbs and bones from that guy.
Rain sighed. He should have fired Nichkhun. But he knew he couldn't. Nichkhun was his friend. And more importantly, he had a very powerful dad.
Nichkhun Horvejkul was rich. You could call him a playboy, a rebel. His dad owns the world's largest and most successful jewelry company. Rain knew the only reason his friend was working at a cafe was because his father made him. Something about learning "new life experiences." Nichkhun had been holding up so far.
With a sigh and a stern warning, Rain left to go back into the kitchen to send out more employees to clean up the mess.
The girl, Nichkhun thought. She at least owes me a thank-you.
He turned around, trying to find me, but I was already gone.
~~~
It was a week later after the incident that I decided to go back to the cafe, merely on the thought of buying something a little more extravagant then a hot chocolate (that I hadn't even got to taste).
This time, I sat down on the terrace of the cafe, the sun shining brightly into my dark black sunglasses. After I had received my new chocolate-caramel frappachino with extra whip cream, I saw him from the corners of my eyes. I hadn't noticed that he was observing me the whole time.
Nichkhun got up to walk inside before I stopped him.
"Hey. Nichkhun. That's your name right?" He stopped, but didn't turn around. "About last time...thank you."
He scowled, invisible from my line of vision. Nichkhun walked towards me and rested a hand on the high table. He looked like a model the way the light hit his hair and traced his glowing eyes.
"Let me ask you something. Why were you dumb enough to go out with a bitch like him?" He said coolly.
I choked up a little bit of my frappachino, "Excuse me?"
"You heard me."
"Look...I don't know who you think you are...but-" I was cut short. In my mini build-up to a tantrum, I had taken off my sunglasses, knocking the table on accident. Now, a bit of my delicious cold drink was on my new black and yellow shirt.
"Damn," I swore under my breath. From above me, I could hear Nichkhun laughing. Naturally, I looked up to tell him to please leave. Instead, I just stared like a doe. He was so amazingly cute when he smiled. His lips, smile, perfect face, and shut eyes were enough to make any girl's stomach fill with butterflies.
He looked at me and grinned, "Hey, I was just kidding. Sorry if you took it that seriously."
For the next hour, we talked (well...talked and attempted to get the brown liquid off my shirt...). I learned about his rich dad who was the president of It, a jewelry company, and his mom who was the top designer of the jewelry. He learned about my parents who taught at the University and my not-so-exciting life. He was so sweet and kind, it was like falling in love all over again. Except, now that I've had some experience with one boyfriend, I willed myself to put a barrier around my heart.
I thought to myself, let's see if you're tough enough to break it down.
~~~
Another two weeks passed. Nichkhun had asked me out multiple times, and each time was better then the last. Horse-back riding, karaoke, the movies, bowling, even bungee jumping. Yes. Bungee jumping. But don't ask me how that horrific experience went...
"WELCOME TO BISHOUNEN CAFE!!" waiters screamed as I entered the cafe. I jumped slightly. That always frightens me...
It was noon, and the breeze inside the cafe was so much nicer then the scorching heat outside. I took a seat on one of the booths as I watched Nichkhun coming towards me. He walked confidently, too confidently. Then a thought occurred. Was Nichkhun some sort of...playboy? He sure looked like it. And how does a guy like him not have a girlfriend yet? I forced myself to push the thoughts out of my head.
We talked and laughed for awhile before I pulled out a small silver box. I inhaled.
"What's in there?" he asked, a glint of suspicion in his eyes.
I smiled, "It's really cheesy...but..."
Nichkhun gently took the box out of my hands.
"It looks really pretty...not sure if you would like it or not...I designed them myself..." I continued babbling though my brain obviously told me to stop.
I beamed when he opened the box and broke out in a huge smile, "I like them."
He took out the matching silver couple rings, and holding my right hand in his, he slid the ring onto one of my fingers. The engraved design sparkled.
"Now you look even more adorable then you already do," he said, pulling out the other ring for himself.
"Hey. What does this say?" Nichkhun squinted to look at the inner part of the ring.
"You and I," he read.
I could feel the heat rushing to my face, "Like I said...it's pretty cheesy..."
"No. I like it," he smiled, and right then and there, he broke through the first layer of the barrier.
~~~
It was midnight, the cafe's closing time, when I tiptoed through the cafe, hunting down Nichkhun. I never showed up this late, but my parents had some late-night tests to grade, so I decided to sneak out (...well okay I left them a note...I was never that much of a rebel...) and surprise my new boyfriend (...I think it's unofficial though...). It was pitch dark in the now-empty cafe.
I tiptoed into the back corner of the cafe, hoping to find him cleaning some booths and tables in the more private section, but what I found instead made my heart drop and my mind explode like unending fireworks.
That was Nichkhun alright; his dirty blond hair could be spotted a mile away. Next to him...more like half-way on top of him, was a girl with long, straight black hair, and a super tiny black skirt with a matching strapless shirt. I think you could guess by now what they were doing.
I stood still, too stunned to move, too hurt to think. Well this sucks. It certainly explained the playboy question. Damn, I thought, why hadn't I payed closer attention to my instincts?
After a couple seconds, the girl opened her eyes and saw me staring slightly open-mouthed. She stopped sucking on his face. I backed away, turned around, and sprinted for the door.
Behind me, I could hear growing footsteps. I almost reached the front door when a warm hand grabbed me back by my elbow. I was forced to turn around, my face then buried in his chest and shoulders. I inhaled, holding in his smell of fresh coffee and mint, savouring the moment. But a second later, I pushed him back and pulled away, remembering what was going on.
"MiYun," Nichkhun almost never called me by my first name. "It's not what it looks like..."
To his surprise, and to mine, I let out a laugh, "That's what they all say...isn't it?" I turned around to leave, but he caught me once again.
I stared right into his eyes, the same eyes that had made me melt, "I thought you were different."
"I am," he replied, eyes pleading.
All I could do was shake my head and walk out the door.
~~~
The music blared. The array of lights scattered throughout the room and terrace outside. It was just another dance at the Bishounen Cafe. I stood there inside the door, transfixed, in my pure red, strapless dress and matching black and red masquerade mask. The dance was masquerade themed.
It was my first step inside the cafe in a month. Ever since the...erm... Nichkhun incident. A whole month had passed, and my career was shining brighter. Since the couple rings design, I realized I had loved to design jewelry. And sure enough, now I'm working full-time as a novice jewelry designer at, you guessed it, It, the very rich jewelry company that Nichkhun's dad owns.
Now what was I doing back here again, you ask? Well, no matter how close or far away I am, I have to admit I like Bishounen Cafe. And not just because of all the cute waiters, or him, but because I had grown fond of this place. It was special to me. It was a place I could go to to just simply relax. I missed this cafe. That was reason #1. Reason #2 is because I wanted to get the other couple ring back from Nichkhun. It was just another painful reminder of yet another tragic-ending relationship.
My plan was simple: Find Nichkhun. Get ring back. Get hell out of cafe.
Easy, right? Well, it was a lot harder than it sounded.
A slow but up-beat song came on, and before I knew it, someone had grabbed me by the hand and dragged me outside to the terrace where a mini-dance floor was set up. I admit, I was anxious that it was Nichkhun. Even hopeful. But when I stared into the light brown, hawk-like eyes, I knew my guilty pleasure hadn't come true. I couldn't make out his face though, because of the mask. Actually, where's Nichkhun? What mask is he wearing?
Oh what the heck, I thought, one dance wouldn't hurt. Half-way through the song, the stranger's hand on my waist was a bit searching. He moved it slowly downwards, towards my bottom. I clenched my teeth and used my hand to move his hand back to it's starting position. A couple verses later, his hand moved back down. I elbowed him slightly, causing him to jump back. Without another glance, I turned around and walked back in towards the cafe.
Little did I know, Nichkhun was sitting on a railing on the terrace, watching the whole scene. He followed me inside.
In the cafe, I paused. Should I go back out to search for Nichkhun? Could I possibly find him underneath a mask in this crowd? Why am I a little bit more anxious than I should be? What do I do now? Why am I asking so many questions..?
I shook my head and walked to the nearest door. It was labeled "roof." Without thinking, I opened the door and walked up the flight of stairs.
When I opened the roof door, I actually smiled. The air up here was so fresh. The stars shone like individual greetings. I walked to the edge where there was a mid-sized wall to prevent people from falling off. I stared out at the city and Korea.
I leaned on the wall, and sighed loudly, hands clasped in front of me. From behind me came a voice.
"Anything new lately?"
That voice. It was so familiar. I didn't dare turn around. I shut my eyes closed, as if this whole night could've been just another dream.
But he was too close for me not to notice. I opened my left eye to peek at him.
And there he was.
Nichkhun was standing so perfectly still, my heart evaporated all over again. He was wearing a blue mask that matched his blue and black ensemble. Apparently waiters did not have to dress up as waiters at a masquerade dance. It was the first time I had seen him in a month. My head spun, and I caught myself on the ledge before I could fall.
What had happened to that damn barrier..., I thought.
"Nichkhun..." I started to ask him for the ring back, but I couldn't bring myself to say it.
"MiYun..." he stated, obviously following my lead.
"Nevermind..." I sighed. Just let him keep it. I turned around to leave, but I didn't get very far.
In a split second, my eyes were closed, his left hand was on my lower back, his right on the back of my neck, and his deliciously soft lips were on mine. There was a feeling like thunder that shot straight down my spine. I shivered.
A couple of seconds later, he pulled back slightly so his lips were only a mere two inches away from mine.
"I'm sorry," he whispered. My eyes were still closed. "I didn't mean to. I really didn't."
He continued, "I quit yesterday night."
"What?" I replied in a whisper. I don't know why, but the news caught me off guard. "Why? What about your dad?"
Nichkhun laughed, "I quit because I was going to go look for you. Do you know how hard it is to have a full-time job while thinking about a certain someone else? And about my dad. He said...he said I've been acting different lately. Something about putting me through a month and a half of working at a cafe is enough. He thinks I'm ready to start learning about the trades and secrets of being a CEO of a huge company."
"That's great," I said, leaning in.
He kissed me again, this time with more force. And unlike last time, I kissed back, my arms wrapped gently around his neck. I pulled him closer.
There was something in the air that night. Was it cupid? Had he shot us? But I knew Nichkhun was mine. There just wasn't anyone else who could compare.
Our longing kiss ended, and he hugged me. My arms wrapped around his body in response, and my head rested between his shoulder and the base of his neck. He smelled like heaven and chocolate.
Quietly, Nichkhun grinned and whispered, "Just you and I."
I smiled. You and I.
