an iced latte (and your number,) please!
finding another cute café to become a regular in is good enough, crushing on their barista is just an added bonus to it.
pairing/s: uni!student!dokyeom x gn!barista!reader
warnings: food mentions
genre: fluff, first meetings
word count: 876
a/n: this is really just a self indulgent fic :)))))
Dokyeom finds himself leaving his lecture hall with a heavy sigh.
Yes, technically his school day is over — but just the though of his list of essays to finish, and notes to rewrite, and… another sigh.
Mentally preparing himself, he starts his 10-minute walk towards his favourite café. It's his favourite, for 1. Their prices are not too bad for a broke college student and 2. It's near to campus, therefore he doesn't tire himself further just by making his way. It's the perfect place to relax himself even for a bit before going through the rigorous task of finishing all his assignment.
Hence why he already feels himself start to relax upon seeing the neon 'OPEN' sign.
It was only short-lived. Upon seeing the cafe interior, it seems that everyone had the same idea as him. He can try and wait for one to clear up, but the number of open laptops and stressed looking expressions tells him not one will be free anytime soon.
He huffs to himself. He can either walk back to his apartment and try to be productive (despite knowing he will never finish one activity when he’s in his own bedroom) or walk a bit further and finally try that café Chan had been raving about the past two weeks.
“Hyung! I swear they make the best mochas! Not to mention the delicious carrot cake.”
Chan's excited voice echoes in his head as he chooses the latter, determined to get something done. When the café finally comes in to view, he realises why Chan raved about the place so much.
Other than looking clean, which he realises - should be given, but the dark wood furniture and bookshelves surrounding room gave it a nice ambiance. This made him think how rare it was to see cafés these days without the harsh bright lights and just white walls.
The bell rings as he enters, alerting the one barista behind the counter. He feels himself growing shy as they smile at him. “Hello! Welcome to Café Rooster!,” they greet him with a wave.
“Hello,” he replies, almost quietly. Why was he suddenly feeling so flustered. And why is this place so welcoming. And why is the barista so cute. Why— okay!
He mentally composes himself, eyes darting towards the menu. It’s simple. Only serving the basics of coffee drinks with the occasional seasonal drink advertised. Dokyeom finally approaches the till, now face-to-face with the cute barista who has been oh-so patient as he decided his order.
“Thanks for waiting,” he finds himself saying to them. “It’s no problem at all. Take your time!” they reply back, smile so kind and warm.
He places his order at once — an iced latte with honeycomb syrup, and a slice of carrot cake. The barista rings his order in, telling him to take a seat as he waits.
He chooses a seat, placing all his things down. As he listens to the hum of the coffee grinder, and the soft music playing in the background, his shoulders start to relax a little. He prepares his things. Laptop open, notebooks and various papers next to it, headphones turned on, ready to put on. As soon as he opens a word document, the barista comes over with a tray. “There you go. Enjoy!”
“Thank you so much!”
“You’re very welcome! Long afternoon ahead, huh?” they ask, an empathetic smile on their place. Dokyeom unknowingly sighs, rubbing the back of his neck as he nods. “Well, I won’t disturb you any longer. Good luck! If you need any refills, it’s free. Just ask!” The barista says before walking away.
Dokyeom ended up finishing all his tasks that same afternoon. Although finishing half an hour before closing, the barista only waves him off. “It’s okay, really! I know how it feels, I’m a student too!” they tell him as he apologises again. Only other two people had come in after him, and both had left before him too.
“Really? Sebong uni?”
“Yep! Majoring in sociology!”
Dokyeom hums in surprise. “I’ve got a friend in sociology too! You might know him! His name is Chan.”
“Ah! Lee Chan! I'm surprised he hasn't mentioned us to each other yet. Did he recommend you our place? We don’t really get new faces that often, you know. You’re the first one in a while!”
“He did, actually. No wonder though, everything’s great.”
The barista before him blushes. “Thanks! I’m Y/N, by the way. My parents own the place, actually. It's their day off today so I popped in to help. And Chan… he comes in almost every other day.”
“Nice to meet you. My name’s Dokyeom. I’d love to talk a little longer, but I already feel bad holding you up. I’ll see you again, though!” he says, walking towards the door. Y/N giggles, giving him a wave good-bye as he exits.
The cool air hugs himself as the sun sets next to him. He’s practically skipping home. Happy about the lack of responsibilities for the next two days and the newly found cafe that he already deemed his favourite.
“Ah shit…” he curses to himself quietly as he enters his apartment.
I forgot to ask for her number.
thank you so much for staying till the end! reblogs and likes are deeply appreciated!