49. Summer Vacation Begins (2)
49. Summer Vacation Begins (2)
"......What should we do?"
Baek-seol said, turning to look at So-jeong.
Just looking at the cafe's sign and the menu board out front made her feel overwhelmed.
So-jeong was afraid of people, and Baek-seol disliked them, so they had always avoided places like this that attracted outgoing crowds.
"Ugh...... no."
But despite Baek-seol's words, So-jeong shook her head with a slightly nervous expression.
"I want to give it a try today."
"Really? Even though Ha-na recommended it, you don't have to push yourself."
"Mhm. It's not just that......"
So-jeong glanced up at Baek-seol. The bright summer sunlight hit her large, clear pupils, making them sparkle.
"Today is......"
So-jeong whispered so only the two of them could hear.
"Our first date with Baek-seol."
"Da..."
Baek-seol couldn't finish her word and covered her mouth with the back of her hand as she turned her head away.
'Dangerous.'
Thinking about it, So-jeong wasn't the type to hide her true feelings.
Although she was very shy, she had always expressed her affectionate feelings generously to those she cared about.
Baek-seol had fallen for So-jeong because of that kindness, and even while being friends with her, she had found great comfort in So-jeong's honest expressions, but.
'This is just too stimulating...'
After becoming lovers from friends, those pure expressions from So-jeong had become incredibly powerful.
Moreover, since they often came out of nowhere in unexpected situations like this, Baek-seol had recently begun to doubt whether her heart could handle it.
"Baek-seol? What's wrong?"
At So-jeong's voice, Baek-seol snapped back to attention with a start.
"It's nothing."
Forcing herself to maintain composure, Baek-seol spoke.
"So you're really okay with it?"
"Yeah. I'll give it a try today."
"Then let's go in."
Gently holding So-jeong's hand, Baek-seol opened the cafe door.
"Welcome~!"
As soon as the door opened, a lively, bright voice reminiscent of Ha-na echoed through the air.
"Will it be just the two of you?"
"Eeek......"
Despite her earlier resolve, So-jeong let out a small sound and shrunk back upon seeing the staff member approaching her warmly.
"Yes. Two people."
And as always, Baek-seol gently moved So-jeong behind her and dealt with the staff member instead.
"Okay~ I'll show you to your seats over here~"
Fortunately, the seats they were guided to were in a corner.
"Here are the menus, please call me when you're ready to order~"
After the staff member skillfully delivered the greeting and went to attend to other customers, So-jeong let out a sigh of relief as if her tension had melted away.
"There are so many people."
"Yeah."
But Baek-seol could see that So-jeong was in a much better state than before.
If it were So-jeong from high school, she might have honestly fainted amidst this noisy crowd.
But now, So-jeong was managing to sit here with her, even if with a slightly awkward smile, showing progress.
Seeing the results of So-jeong's steady efforts over the past few years, Baek-seol felt a sense of pride inwardly.
"Well, let's decide what to order first."
Baek-seol opened the menu planning to just get an Americano, but
"......"
the moment she looked at the menu, a shadow fell over her face again.
"Baek-seol?"
As So-jeong tilted her head curiously, Baek-seol silently turned the menu around and handed it to her.
"Umm... Sweet Sweet☆Choco Pretzel Frappe, Rainbow Muffin, Vanilla Ice Cream Gulp Gulp....?"
The menus were as flashy as the store's advertisements, filled with strange names and combinations Baek-seol had never seen before.
"I don't even see Americano on the menu. Do they even sell it?"
As she pressed firmly on her throbbing temples, So-jeong burst out laughing from across the table.
"Huh?"
"Ah, the menu names are all so cute and fun."
So-jeong pointed at the pictures on the menu one by one.
"What do you think this 'Kimbap Roll Cake' is? It's called a roll cake but it looks like real kimbap. What does it taste like? Wow, there's even something called a Fresh Flower Cake, Baek-seol. Can you actually eat the flowers?"
Baek-seol stared blankly for a moment at So-jeong, who was flipping through the menu with sparkling eyes.
Honestly, she hadn't known So-jeong liked these kinds of desserts. They'd never had the chance to come to a place like this together.
Seeing this new side of So-jeong after years together was both surprising and pleasant.
Above all, So-jeong, who was now examining the various menus so intently that the people around them faded from view, looked truly beautiful.
'Maybe this isn't so bad after all.'
While thinking that, a sudden suspicion crossed Baek-seol's mind: could Ha-na have anticipated even this and recommended this cafe to So-jeong?
"......No way."
Even for someone as perceptive as Ha-na, that seemed unlikely.
Baek-seol shook her head slightly and dismissed the thought.
***
After deciding on their orders, So-jeong and Baek-seol called over a staff member who happened to be passing by.
So-jeong ordered the Kimbap Roll Cake she'd been interested in from the start, and Baek-seol ordered the Fresh Flower Cake that So-jeong had shown the next most interest in.
Fortunately, when Baek-seol asked the staff member if they had Americano while ordering, they immediately added it to the list.
"Whew."
After finishing the order, Baek-seol quickly scanned the people gathered in the cafe.
While the dessert cafe was mostly filled with couples, there were also quite a few groups of women who seemed to be friends.
They seemed to be there more to take pictures of the food than to eat it, stacking various desserts on their tables and squealing excitedly as they busily clicked their phone cameras.
Amidst the couples gazing lovingly into each other's eyes and the friends who came to take pictures of pretty desserts, So-jeong and Baek-seol, who had come simply to enjoy desserts together, stood out as quite different.
'......That's not the only thing that makes us different.'
Among all the people here, no one would think that So-jeong and Baek-seol were anything more than simple friends.
That fact might have seemed rather lonely, but Baek-seol quite liked it.
A relationship only she and So-jeong knew about. A secret just between the two of them.
Being the only one who knew about it made Baek-seol feel like she was someone more special to So-jeong.
Contrary to her expectations, Baek-seol's secret desire for exclusivity hadn't disappeared even after they actually started dating.
It's just that now, she was so satisfied with the reality of So-jeong looking at her specially and telling her she loved her, that her possessive urges had no reason to surface.
"By the way, So-jeong."
Thinking she shouldn't get too lost in her own thoughts, Baek-seol called out to So-jeong.
"Yeah?"
"You said Ha-na recommended this cafe to you, right?"
"Huh? Yeah, that's right."
"Did Ha-na recommend other places besides this one?"
"Of course."
So-jeong said, taking out her phone.
"Last time we met, we talked about that all day. There are so~ many places besides this one."
As she said this, So-jeong opened a memo saved on her phone and showed it to Baek-seol.
Indeed, her memo was densely packed with places to enjoy and events to attend during the vacation.
"If we tried to do everything written here, we wouldn't have enough time even if we went every day."
"Ahaha, actually, Ha-na told me to pick a few favorites from this list."
"What does Ha-na want to do? She'll probably want to go out with you too, right?"
"Huh?" So-jeong tilted her head.
"No, Ha-na picked these for me to go with Baek-seol."
"Really?"
Baek-seol raised an eyebrow slightly.
"That's surprising. I thought she'd try everything to spend more time with you."
"Ahaha...... Maybe she's busy meeting with other friends?"
"Hmm......"
Baek-seol didn't think Ha-na, who had stuck to So-jeong all semester, would give up time with her for just that reason, but she decided not to dig deeper.
After all, it meant she could have So-jeong all to herself.
"Well, since we're at the cafe anyway, should we decide together where to go during summer vacation?"
"Yeah, let's do that."
While they were having this conversation, the staff member brought the desserts So-jeong and Baek-seol had ordered.
"Wow, they're real flowers."
So-jeong marveled at the edible flowers placed on the Fresh Flower Cake in front of Baek-seol.
"Now that I think about it, you used to like flowers, So-jeong."
"Yeah. I like how they're quiet yet each have their own beautiful color."
Noticing that So-jeong was paying more attention to her cake than to the Kimbap Roll Cake in front of her, Baek-seol cut a piece of the cake and offered it to So-jeong.
"Don't just look at it, have a bite."
"Oh, really? Thanks, I'll give you some of mine too."
Placing the kimbap-shaped roll cake in front of Baek-seol, So-jeong happily looked at the piece of cake Baek-seol had given her, then plucked off the small white flower decorating it.
"Aren't you going to eat that?"
"No. It seems too pretty to eat."
So-jeong smiled gently as she smelled the flower's fragrance.
"Huhu, it smells nice too."
The cafe filled with warm light.
Cozy, comforting, and slightly upbeat music.
And within it, So-jeong, gently smiling with a pure white flower held to her lips.
"......"
As if in a painting, Baek-seol's time seemed to stop, completely filled with So-jeong.
"......Yeah."
Baek-seol nodded slightly.
"It's really beautiful."
Suddenly, Baek-seol began to look forward to the summer vacation ahead.