The Café Interview
Nice to meet you.
Looks like I got here first.
Leaving the house with deliberate leisure had paid off. Arriving at the meeting place ahead of everyone else would leave the impression of a diligent man — and that, of course, was exactly according to Kim Jaejun's calculations.
After checking the group chat shared by Kayak and the two editor candidates, Jaejun slipped his phone back into his pocket.
A short walk later, the café that was their destination began to come into view. He paused by a nearby building and checked his reflection in the glass, scanning for anything out of place.
Hair's fine. Clothes aren't wrinkled…
Appearance: pass. The impoverished unemployed uncle who used to wander the neighborhood was nowhere to be found. In his place stood a neatly put-together young man.
Should I order something ahead?
As the first to arrive, the thought of pre-ordering drinks and desserts crossed his mind. People always said a few light finger foods helped ease the tension at a gathering. And while Jaejun hardly claimed to understand the female heart, he had picked up somewhere that women liked sweet things. Laying out a modest spread of desserts might just earn him a few points with Kayak. After all, before she was an interviewer, she was still a woman.
Should I ask what kind of dessert she likes? No — that would be too obvious. It'd look like I was just fishing for an excuse to order ahead.
And if he ordered something she didn't care for, that would be its own kind of ordeal. Jaejun paced back and forth for a moment, fretting over it. He was still debating whether to message Kayak about her preferences before stepping inside when—
—*%$#—!
A raised voice cut through the air. A man's voice, sharp with anger, as if mid-argument. Jaejun turned toward the sound.
"Hey, I have a meeting with someone! You're just lying about not having plans!"
A rather pretty-faced man — the classic pretty-boy freeloader type, in Jaejun's estimation.
Listen to him yapping away…
Jaejun had a habit of scowling whenever he saw that kind of pretty boy, and his face twisted for a moment — then slowly smoothed out, a flicker of surprise crossing his features.
Because the beauty standing in front of the man was someone he knew.
A woman with an expressionless face. Reading the emotion in it, she was clearly annoyed, wishing the man in front of her would just leave already. The rigid set of her features was a world apart from the way she looked when talking with his niece, and Jaejun hesitated for a beat.
Should I help?
The hesitation didn't last long. His schedule wasn't tight, and spending a few minutes before the interview was more than doable.
"Thank you, Sihyeon's uncle."
The man who'd been clinging like a leech took one look at Sihyeon's uncle suddenly appearing, spat something about her already having a boyfriend, and bolted. For all that persistence, it was a rather anticlimactic exit — though given the circumstances, it made perfect sense.
"Don't mention it. It wasn't anything difficult."
Looking awkward at the thanks, he scratched the back of his head with a hand the size of a pot lid. Forearms nearly as thick as my thighs, a broad back. The outer layer hid most of it, but it couldn't escape my eyes. This guy was seriously strong.
And as impressive as that trained physique was, the real issue was his face. I'd noticed it last time too — his features ran sharp, almost severe. Matched with that body, Sihyeon's uncle carried a heavy, oppressive presence just standing there. No wonder the other guy had run for it.
"Did you deliberately roughen your voice earlier?"
"Ah — actually, that one's closer to my real voice. But my mother and Sihyeon both suggested I try raising the tone a bit. Said if I speak too low, people get scared."
Mm. Fair point. Even I, the person he was talking to, had found that voice pretty threatening. Hearing it for the first time, I only recognized him as Sihyeon's uncle after I saw his face.
Truth be told, it took me a second. His appearance and clothes were completely different — like he was headed somewhere important.
"By the way, what brings you to this neighborhood…?"
"I have a meeting. Came to see someone."
"Ah, right. You did mention you had plans…"
The place and the outfit had changed, but his mannerisms were exactly the same. Still unable to meet my eyes properly as he talked, fingers fidgeting on top of it. A man who could be that intimidating one moment and this bashful the next — the contrast was somehow funny, and I asked with a faint smile.
"What about you, then? What brings you here?"
"Ah, me? I, uh — I have a meeting too. Well, more precisely, an interview. I'm supposed to interview around here."
"Oh, an interview. Hope it goes well."
"Thank you, haha… Well, I'll be going, then."
He gave a quick bow, turned on his heel, and strode off with long steps. I watched his back for a moment, then started walking myself.
And we met again.
Right in front of the café that Editor Candidate Number Two — the fan-channel operator Kim Jaejun — had pinned as the location.
"We meet again?"
"W-well… this is where my interview is. You're here too…?"
"Yes. This is my meeting place as well."
What a coincidence—.
Having just said goodbye only to run into each other again, he opened the door with an awkward smile.
"Good luck."
"Yes… You have a nice time too."
We went in together, then split off to take separate empty seats. I was watching him settle into a spot far enough away to still be in my line of sight, pulling out my phone, when—
Vrrr—
Arrived?
I lifted my head like a meerkat and checked the entrance. The door was firmly shut. He must have come in around the time I was picking my seat.
So he was already inside. Editor Candidate Number One hadn't shown up yet, but we might as well grab a table together first.
I picked up my phone and called him right away.
Click—
He must have been holding his phone, because it connected immediately.
"I'm inside the café too. Go around behind the counter — there's a sofa seat further in."
"Yes, I'll head over."
A deep, steady voice. Maybe it was just me, but it sounded vaguely familiar.
That was when it happened.
Sihyeon's uncle, sitting across the way, shot up from his seat. A few people glanced over, but only for a moment. I figured something had come up, or maybe he was just changing seats, and lost interest.
But when he started walking toward me with the look of someone searching for a person, I muttered under my breath on a hunch.
"Um… Mr. Kim Jaejun?"
"Huh? How do you know my name…?"
Well, well. Speak of the devil and he shall appear — my guess had been right. How could I have been so blind to what was right under my nose? Feeling slightly ridiculous, I gestured him over.
"Have a seat here."
"Y-yes? No, I — I need to find someone…"
"I'm Kayak."
He froze — grinding to a halt like a robot with a short circuit. As he slowly sat down, I said with a lift of the corner of my mouth:
"We'll start the interview once Miss Yu Sia arrives."
"Aah, I'm the last one…!"
Spending the whole morning agonizing over what to wear had been the cause of her lateness. Getting so worked up over meeting her idol that she couldn't even keep a simple appointment — she'd become that kind of person.
Yu Sia hurried along with a woeful expression, one hand flying over her phone as she typed.
Thump-thump-thump—
How long did she keep walking like that?
At last Yu Sia arrived in front of the café she'd been shown in the photo. Just as Jaejun had done, she gave her outfit one final check, steadied her breathing against the nerves, and finally stepped inside. Then, following Kayak's directions, she made her way around behind the counter.
Where is she?
Looking this way and that, Sia scanned the room. The café was more popular than expected — people occupied seats in every direction. Should she ask exactly which table? Or just call the number she had saved?
She was still thinking it over when she realized she wouldn't need to.
Inside this space, people's gazes were subtly drawn toward one corner. It was a busy world where everyone had their own lives to live. People cared less about strangers than you'd think. Unless a celebrity walked in, it was rare for a crowd to pay this kind of attention.
A celebrity…?
There was a presence sitting in the café that seemed to glow just by existing. Most people, describing a celebrity, would say things like a face the size of a fist, features sharp and distinct—. Sia, who had never had any connection to people like that in her life, was only now realizing how true those words were.
Snow-white skin. Large blue eyes. And silver hair.
A woman of somewhat exotic beauty sat in a corner seat, talking with the person beside her. The scene could have been described as a celebrity and her bodyguard — or, for that matter, Beauty and the Beast.
Either way, the first thought that struck her was simply: She's beautiful. The silver-haired woman was beautiful. Beautiful enough to briefly steal the soul of Yu Sia, who had come in looking for Kayak.
Of course, the reason she stared wasn't beauty alone.
The woman was the spitting image of someone. A game character that lived in Sia's memory.
Camilla?
The woman in modern clothes and Camilla in her dresses and armor were different from the outfit up — and yet, looking at the face alone, the resemblance was startling. Camilla was beautiful enough to take first place in every Abyss Gallery appearance ranking poll. Sia found herself quietly marveling that a face like that could exist in real life, then snapped back to herself.
This isn't the time — where is she? Where is she sitting?
With a little jolt, Sia started craning her neck this way and that again. She'd been told it was around here, so where—
That was when it happened.
Sia's eyes met those of the Camilla lookalike. The woman's eyes widened slightly, and then she raised a hand and began to wave.
I-is she calling me?
Why?
Sia was a little flustered, but she started walking over slowly. Even as she approached step by uncertain step, the woman kept locking eyes with her, a subtle smile playing at the corners of her mouth.
And so, when Sia finally reached the table — and found herself wondering why the man sitting there was so thoroughly red in the face —
"Hello, Siasia."
The woman spoke.
"Eh — eh…?"
A voice she'd heard often. A voice she'd been hearing every single day, lately. Moderately low, the kind that resonated in your ears — and its owner was sitting right in front of her.
Watching Sia freeze in a full stun state, the woman laughed behind her hand as if she understood perfectly. Then she gave a short, polite cough and dipped her head slightly.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Kayak."