By Zephyria 
One of the plants Eun-ha was growing died again. Eun-ha stood on the terrace with a watering can, looking down at the pot with a serious expression. This place was south-facing and open, with a parking lot and a wide alley right next to it, and no tall buildings around.
Every day, it gets bright sunshine. If the sun feels too strong, he could unfold the Awning to adjust the amount of sunlight. On humid days, he took the trouble to move the plants inside the cafe, despite the effort it took. He managed them every day without fail and kept the amount of water exactly as recommended. But still, it died. What could be the problem? He couldn’t figure it out at all.
Eun-ha was devoted to gardening. It was a hobby he had been pursuing for over a year. At first, it was a lighthearted endeavor. Growing them wasn’t even the main purpose from the start. He simply adopted them as ornamental plants. The terrace scenery after the interior decoration was quite different from the picture he had vaguely envisioned.
It was neat but bland, and it felt empty somehow. One spring, at the age of twenty-seven, Eun-ha stood between the tables, pondering, and thought that if lush plants decorated the space, the overall appearance would look much better.
After deciding, he acted quickly. The opening date was just around the corner, so there was no time to dawdle. He went around large flower complexes, selling his feet, and began buying them one by one. Things that looked cool and beautiful.
The terrace, decorated with plants he liked, boasted an even more splendid view. The greenish color brought a psychological refreshment and stability. Eun-ha complimented his own taste and was pleased. He was quite satisfied. Everything was like that. It was a time when the newly opened cafe was sailing smoothly.
And it didn’t take even two months to realize that it was a very temporary satisfaction. As if waiting for it, the plants withered away.
He knew that each plant had different cultivation instructions, but frankly, he had never bothered to look them up. He just thought that if he gave them plenty of sunlight and water, they would be fine. Plants live with light and water, after all.
His complacent ignorance led to complete failure, and Eun-ha realized his recklessness and tasted a bitter sense of frustration. At the same time, he felt self-reproach. Seeing the disastrous results of his careless choices made him feel very bad. That’s when Eun-ha became serious about plants.
He has been studying and studying, pouring his heart and soul into his hobby for a little over a year now. Now, Eun-ha has quite an eye for it. He has definitely moved beyond the beginner level. But, even so, the plant died.
There’s nothing he can do. Eun-ha, who was regretfully stroking the withered leaves, picked up the pot and placed it in front of the storage door in the corner of the terrace.
After carefully checking the plants that were still doing well and repeatedly reviewing to make sure he hadn’t missed anything, he came down to the first floor. It was just past 9:30, so the inside was quiet. There were no customers staying, and only students taking morning classes occasionally took out.
Jeong-ho, who had skillfully finished preparing the counter and was mopping the spacious first floor with a mop, noticed Eun-ha and gave him a puzzled look. Eun-ha rubbed his cheek. His face didn’t look very good.
“What’s wrong?”
“A plant died.”
“Ah… which one? When I saw it last week, one of them was all withered. Was it the Australian flower? That one.”
“That’s it. Australian plum.”
He had stubbornly ignored the gradually withering appearance, and only today did he pronounce it dead. He never wanted to admit that it had died again. He thought he could really grow it well this time.
As he was feeling troubled, Jeong-ho, who was resting his chin on his elbow at the end of the mop, tilted his head.
“But CEO.”
“Yeah.”
“Aren’t there easy-to-grow plants too? When I looked up the species on the terrace last time, they were all difficult to grow. And when they wither, you always bring back the same species… I’m just curious. Why are you taking the difficult path?”
“Why am I doing meaningless hard work?”
“No. No. Hey, when did I say that? That’s not what I meant.”
Jeong-ho frantically waved his hands at the joke. His flustered gestures were full of childishness. Jeong-ho was twenty-one years old. Eun-ha smiled slightly and shrugged his shoulders.
“Just because I want to grow it well. Because I chose it. It’s not good to choose something because you like it and then give up because it’s difficult.”
“Ah… that’s a really cool reason.”
“Is it?”
“Yes. You have a sense of responsibility, and you have enough wealth to support it.”
“…Um.”
“I saw the prices when I was searching… they were more expensive than I thought? Like, hundreds of thousands of won for one, and some were over a million won… If you add up all the ones that have withered and been disposed of, how much would that be…?”
“Here we go again.”
“You don’t deny it either, CEO. The rumor that you’re a second-generation chaebol.”
“If you’re going to talk nonsense, go finish cleaning.”
“Hey, I know how many cars you have, CEO, so it’s not nonsense. To set up a large cafe like this in the first place—”
“Jeong-ho.”
“Yes. I’m sorry.”
Jeong-ho swallowed his joke and answered politely as if he was pretending. Eun-ha gave him a tolerant look as if to say, ‘As if I didn’t know.’ His movements, starting to clean every corner of the cafe again, were enthusiastic.
Jeong-ho was a part-time worker hired when the cafe opened. When he only read his resume, he didn’t catch his eye much. He was just twenty years old and had no significant experience.
However, he noticed the small things he showed during the short interview and changed his mind, choosing him over the two experienced candidates he was originally considering.
In conclusion, it was a good choice. Jeong-ho was a pleasant and positive person. He was so sociable that he never frowned, no matter how illogical a troublemaker came in. It was rare to find someone with that kind of personality, regardless of age. In addition, he was quick and smart, so it was easy to work with him.
He was cheerful and youthful, like a young man in his early twenties, and Eun-ha liked the fact that his bright inner self seemed to be contagious when he was with him.
It felt like I could become that bright too.
That’s when it happened. A customer came in with the sound of the doorbell. Eun-ha gestured to Jeong-ho, who was about to head to the counter, to stop and went to stand there instead. Two or more part-time workers were assigned per time slot, but Jeong-ho was solely responsible for the relatively quiet opening time.
It wasn’t that there was less work to do just because there were fewer customers, so Eun-ha came to work early every day to manage the plants and help out at the counter. Then, when the next part-time worker came, he would rest on the second floor, take care of the plants, or go out to run errands.
Soon, Jeong-ho, who had finished cleaning, returned to the counter. Eun-ha greeted the customers with him. When it was quiet, they would have light small talk. That’s how time passed, and it was around 10:30 when they arrived. At the sound of the doorbell, Eun-ha inadvertently looked at the entrance.
Ah. It was that man.
“Welcome.”
Eun-ha, who spoke as if by inertia, stood in front of the counter, leaving Jeong-ho, who was making a drink, behind. He scanned the approaching man with a blank expression. His eyes first went to his long eyes. Black pupils, the mole below them, and several piercings that greatly aided his overall cold impression.
He had been noticeable from the first time he saw him. Because he had a face that was difficult not to notice.
So, his first impression wasn’t so bad after all…
Slightly, he met Eun-ha’s eyes. He opened his mouth slowly with an emotionless face.
“Hello.”
Not many customers bothered to say hello when ordering.
If there was a customer who visited every day for over a month without fail and greeted him every day, this customer was the only one.
These days, Eun-ha found that annoying.