By Zephyria 
On his way to work, Haon rubbed his arms several times.
Even though he had dozed off briefly in the car, he didn’t feel light on his feet. The heat from last night and the fatigue from today’s travel hit him all at once, making his steps slower than usual.
Cha Jeong-won really did drop him off at the café. The coffee talk must have been a joke, as he drove off right after letting Haon out.
Watching the car drive away, Haon bit his lip for no reason.
Somehow, he felt like he was constantly being swayed by Cha Jeong-won.
As he opened the café door, the familiar chime rang. Warm air and the scent of coffee rushed in simultaneously. And right in the middle of that familiarity, a completely unfamiliar face popped up.
It was Cha Seo-jun.
Haon reflexively stopped in his tracks.
“……Are you getting a taste for popping up like this?”
“Hyung, your reactions are pretty fun, though.”
Cha Seo-jun replied far too naturally.
Haon looked him up and down.
“You……”
“I’m a part-timer here.”
“What? Since when?”
“Since yesterday.”
As Cha Seo-jun said this, flicking his apron strings with his finger, it somehow looked like he was showing off.
Multiple thoughts rose and vanished simultaneously.
Did you come here knowing I work here? Why would someone who doesn’t need a part-time job suddenly start one?
But Haon kept his mouth shut, only rolling his eyes to glance inside the bar.
Woo Sun-woo was coming out.
The calculator in his head started turning.
Since they said they’d only need him until they hired the next part-timer, did that mean he should quit now? If so, should he work until today and then quit, or should he just leave now?
It seemed better to ask clearly rather than just thinking to himself.
“So, should I work just today? Or should I go back?”
He had no intention of stubbornly insisting on working now that he was here. He didn’t want to put Woo Sun-woo in an awkward position by doing that.
Woo Sun-woo seemed to ponder for a moment, then glanced around the café interior and shook his head.
“Actually, I’d really appreciate it if you could keep working for a while longer.”
That was the answer Haon had hoped for.
But just as he was about to say okay, thinking Woo Sun-woo might just be the type who couldn’t say harsh things— Ding-dong.
The café door opened, and a group of people came in. Not just one or two. They poured in, literally poured in.
Haon stopped counting. There were roughly twenty of them.
“Welcome.”
Cha Seo-jun, pretending not to be surprised, stood ready to take orders and began taking them very skillfully.
“Will that be for here or to go?”
Before that question even finished, the person at the front said brightly, “No, we plan to drink it here.”
Cha Seo-jun’s gaze subtly swept over the seating area. A few quick-witted ones had already grabbed seats. They were soon all taken.
“There are no seats left?”
When Cha Seo-jun cautiously asked, the other person replied with an even more excited-looking face.
“It’s fine. We can drink standing up.”
The customer’s eyes sparkled. It was the face of someone who seemed to have been in a good mood even before coming to the café.
Haon, somewhat dazed, went inside. He tied on his apron, washed his hands, and started making coffee. His body moved on its own.
Woo Sun-woo also stood behind the bar.
“Let’s handle the orders first.”
“Yes.”
The bar was narrow, so their shoulders brushed and elbows bumped. But there was no time to mind that.
Orders piled up. Cha Seo-jun’s order-taking speed grew even faster.
Why would someone who lacks nothing suddenly want to work part-time? While that thought crossed his mind, watching Cha Seo-jun work, he was fast and perceptive. Even in the busy rush, he kept checking on Haon and helping whenever needed.
Working in a frenzy, time flew by. Strangely, customers kept coming. Even as one group left, another came in.
By the time they could finally catch their breath, it was already evening.
Haon rotated his stiff arms. His shoulders felt heavy.
Even on regular days, there were many customers, but today was exceptionally busy. Haon took a sip of water and looked at Woo Sun-woo.
“Is today some special day? Is there a festival nearby or something?”
Woo Sun-woo smiled as if he knew everything.
“Word must have gotten out.”
His voice sounded meaningful. Before Haon could ask more, Woo Sun-woo continued.
“Haon.”
“Yes.”
“About what we were discussing earlier that got cut off. I’m sorry to bring this up, but could you keep working from now on?”
“Uh……”
It really was sudden.
Originally, he had planned to work only a few days and then leave. But during that time, because of Cha Jeong-won, his plans had been disrupted and his expenses had increased. More than he’d thought.
Haon disliked that such practical calculations came to mind, so he smiled a beat late.
Then Cha Seo-jun chimed in.
“Yeah. Let’s work together. I want to learn from you, Haon-hyung.”
As he said this, he leaned slightly toward Haon.
“If it’s like today from now on, the two of us probably won’t be able to handle it alone.”
“That’s true, but I only planned to work for a few days……”
“I’ll raise your hourly wage and adjust your hours.”
It was nice that he was considering his circumstances, but Cha Jeong-won was on his mind. If he came out to work part-time like today, they’d have less time together.
Money or Cha Jeong-won.
Was there no way to earn money and keep Cha Jeong-won?
“What about the other part-timer?”
“I’ll keep the job posting up for now. So, could you stay until we hire one more and they get the hang of things?”
“Uh……. If it’s just that much, yes.”
Seeing Haon’s heart ultimately leaning toward agreeing, the corners of Woo Sun-woo’s mouth lifted. And then he suddenly said, “Shall we have a celebration dinner?”
“Ah. A celebration dinner?”
Jeong-won sunbae said he’d come pick me up……
“I’ll make a call and be right back.”
Haon quickly said to avoid ruining the mood.
Coincidentally, Cha Seo-jun loudly exclaimed, “Great!” and pushed the mood further.
Feeling that momentum, Haon couldn’t outright refuse, so he picked up his phone first. It would be difficult to make the call inside, so he planned to step outside.
He’d call Jeong-won sunbae, ask him, and if he didn’t like it, he’d decline the dinner.
Thinking that, as he grabbed the door, he simultaneously encountered the door—no, Cha Jeong-won.
Haon’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Why are you here?”
Cha Jeong-won glanced at Haon’s phone once, then lifted his gaze to look at Haon’s face and spoke calmly.
“It was past the time you were supposed to finish, and you didn’t call, so I came to check.”
“Were you worried about me?”
“Yes.”
At those words, his throat tickled for no reason.
Cha Jeong-won added briefly.
“Let’s go.”
“Actually, I have something to tell you.”
Just then, the café door opened, and Woo Sun-woo and Cha Seo-jun came out. They still wore expressions of not having fully come down from the earlier excitement.
Cha Seo-jun, not yet noticing Cha Jeong-won, looked at Haon and asked, “Hyung, are you still on the phone?”
Then, realizing Cha Jeong-won was there, his shoulders reflexively hunched up.
Cha Jeong-won looked at Haon expressionlessly. His eyes silently asked.
“We decided to work together from today.”
“Living next door, working together……”
Cha Jeong-won’s voice cut off abruptly.
So Cha Seo-jun, on the contrary, puffed out his chest and spoke up.
“What about it? I rented that place because it’s close to school, clean, and nice, and I applied here because they were hiring part-timers.”
The longer he spoke, the more it sounded like an excuse.
“You said you were helping with my graduation project, even going to the art gallery.”
“Those were all things I really wanted to do once I got into university.”
Cha Seo-jun pretended to be confident until the end, but it was just a pretense.
“No matter what you say, hyung, I won’t back down.”
So he’s shouting even though he knows he’ll get scolded.
Seeing him make excuses left and right, as if trying to avoid getting scolded by his hyung, made Haon feel uncomfortable.
Unable to bear watching Cha Seo-jun’s shrinking back, Haon took a step forward.
“Isn’t he just as cute as when he was a freshman?”
He tried to lighten the mood with a joke.
Of course, Cha Jeong-won had never seen his own freshman days.
“I suppose so.”
So it meant, just let it go.
“Oh, right, the boss suggested we go for a celebration dinner……”
Even as he spoke, Haon watched Cha Jeong-won’s reaction.
After all, it wasn’t easy to ask if it was okay to go for a dinner when his boyfriend had even come to pick him up from work.
So Haon spoke very quietly, only for Cha Jeong-won to hear.
“If you don’t like it, sunbae, I won’t go.”
As expected, Cha Jeong-won’s expression didn’t brighten much. He started thinking he should just go home.
Cha Jeong-won seemed to ponder for a moment, looking over Haon, Cha Seo-jun, Woo Sun-woo, and even the café, before replying.
“Go.”
“Huh? Really?”
To readily allow this… He really is a boyfriend who’s only nice to me.
Before Haon could reply that he understood, Cha Jeong-won added.
“I’m coming too.”
“…….”
So he’s not just a boyfriend who’s nice only to me, but a clingy boyfriend.