The First Attempt
Pssht—
I misted the spray over a table buried in toast crumbs, then shot a glare at the nameless man in a suit who was just pushing the cafe door open on his way out.
Ding!
You piece of shit... would it kill you to eat without trashing the place….
Shut up.
I wiped the wet and the crumbs off with a rag and straightened all the way up.
!
That was when I caught the bulge jutting from the front of my pants, and I folded at the waist in a hurry. No way. Was I actually out of my mind?
Shut up.
Four days had passed since I started this unpaid cafe job.
The work wasn't hard. How hard could one hour a day possibly be? I was unemployed. I already slept more than enough.
The no-fap, though—that was torture. A dick that got hard at the drop of a hat, the way it just had, kept landing me in dangerous spots. So much as meet a pretty woman's eyes on the street and I'd scramble out of there. My skin felt like it was drying out for no reason, and I was getting twitchy over nothing.
Of course, abstinence wasn't the only reason I'd gotten this raw.
Kim Yuna.
That woman, whose Beauty Rank came out Beauty, hadn't set foot in the cafe even once since I started working here. Not once, and I had no idea why.
This is your fault. I'm busting my ass out here, and the person this is actually about doesn't even show.
This is the second day of that. The second day. How are you planning to pay me back for my time?
Chio. The only reason I'm letting this slide is because it's you. You get that, right?
You'd think I'd have run into her coming or going. How had I failed to see her even once?
And the manager, who'd looked cold at a glance, swooped in the moment the customers cleared out, desperate to teach me something—anything. All that lie about opening my own cafe had done was wake up a completely useless passion for instruction. In the four days she hadn't come, the only thing that improved was my coffee.
Creak—
I told the manager I was stepping out to the bathroom and slipped through the back door. Leaning against the restroom wall, I checked the time on my phone.
"Even the temperature's legendary…."
Four days ago it had turned warm out of nowhere, and today it had turned cold just as fast. I shoved my hands into the apron pocket and stared up at the ceiling.
Haa—
Was I doing this because of the hypnosis, or was I actually just working a part-time job?
I put my back to the building wall and closed my eyes.
Yeah.
Even the army gets pretty easy once you're a senior corporal. But this place…
The day's routine flickered through my head. Arrive at the cafe at seven, pull on the shit-brown apron, set the toaster. Spray bottle and rag in hand, wipe every table for the dust that settled overnight. Make the drinks, wipe the tables customers had used, clear the piled-up dishes, and in whatever spare minute turned up, either scrub the floor or suffer through the manager's lessons.
I am never opening a cafe. Not later. Not ever.
I blinked my aching eyes and checked the phone again. 7:40. Two-thirds of the shift was already gone.
"Hmm. Another bust today, huh…."
Grumbling, I stepped back inside. Coming in from the cold to the warmth, the inside of my mask fogged almost at once. I was staring out the window with nothing much on my mind when someone in a black long puffer came through the door and caught my eye.
A familiar face...
Ding!
I hastily fixed my mask and ducked into the kitchen.
The manager took one look at Kim Yuna's face and greeted her like a regular.
"Welcome. Iced americano, same as usual?"
"Oh—yes. You remembered me?"
"Not many people come in for breakfast. You're a little late today, though."
"Ah… I slept in a bit. Hehe."
Smooth as anything, Kim Yuna pulled two slices of bread from the bag beside the toaster and dropped them in.
So that was the energy she saved for a good-looking guy. A completely different person from the one who worked the register.
She's loving this. Dying of joy over it.
Yeah. Jealous as hell, not gonna lie.
Short hair. She had a mask on again today, but the light touch of eye makeup made those already large eyes stand out even more. What I'd taken for a long puffer was a varsity jacket with the Hankuk University Department of Business Administration logo across the back. The zipper hung open, and under it an ocher turtleneck pushed her chest forward, long jeans below that.
More chest than I figured…
I was staring at Kim Yuna in a daze when the manager tapped my shoulder.
"The hell are you doing. Iced americano."
"Ah… right."
I snatched up the portafilter and the tamper, locked the filter into the machine, and hit the button. As the espresso started to run, I angled my head and stole a look at her. She was mid-conversation with the manager at the register.
"So when did you start the cafe?"
"The cafe? I was just working part-time, and then…"
I turned back to the paper cup and swallowed on a dry throat. The two of them were talking. Neither had a scrap of attention to spare for this side of the counter. If I was going to do something, this was the moment.
Yeah. Who knows when I'll get another chance.
The Powder of Dread. I carried it on me everywhere, terrified I'd lose it. I dropped ice into the cup and slid my other hand into my pocket at the same time.
"Agh—!"
A vicious pain lanced through my fingertip. Rotten, miserable luck—the needle I'd brought to smear blood on the packet had stabbed me right where the nail met the skin.
I—I don't know.
I yanked my arm out of the pocket and, without meaning to, cracked my elbow into the shot glass sitting on the machine.
Crash—!
There wasn't a fraction of a second to catch it. Espresso poured across the floor, and Kim Yuna and the manager both looked over.
I froze stiff, a cup of ice still in one hand.
"…."
"…."
"…."
Black drops splattered across the wooden shelf crawled downward. Cold sweat ran down my forehead with them. The manager stared at the soaked floor, then dipped his head toward Kim Yuna.
"I'm sorry. Do you have a minute? I'll remake it right away and bring it over."
"Ah…. Haha, I'm… i-it's fine…."
Kim Yuna laughed awkwardly and flicked a glance my way. I touched around my mouth, checking the mask was still on. Terrifying. Those eyes could've killed a man.
The manager smacked my back.
"Hurry up and get a rag and wipe that. I'll make the coffee."
"Yes…."
I ducked my head, shot into the storage closet beside the kitchen, grabbed a mop and a rag, and came back out. The manager let out a short sigh.
"Go ahead and take your toast. I'll have the coffee right over."
"Ah… ahem, take your time. I've got plenty of it anyway."
Kim Yuna collected her toast and trotted off to a table. I watched the manager's face, careful about it, and asked.
"Should I wipe it up now?"
He nodded on his way out of the kitchen, the fresh americano in hand. I crouched and started on the floor.
I know. Just be quiet for a second.
Through the wall came the manager's apologies and Kim Yuna's laugh, telling him it was fine. It was my screwup, and that only pissed me off more. I glared at the black liquid seeping into the dry rag and swallowed the boil in my gut.
Even after getting the hypnosis ability I'd dreamed of, a mistake like this... I stared blankly down at the blue rag turning black and bit my lip.
"Hoo…."
I'd been angry at first. The longer it sat, though, the more it felt like a relief. At least it hadn't been the kind of mistake you can't take back. I picked up the rag and got to my feet, slow.
Yeah. Thanks for giving me the space.
Right. You said it only activates if I get blood on the picture, yeah?
Thank god.
By the time the floor and the shelf were wiped and the dishes were done, it was eight on the dot. Quitting time, in other words. I was getting ready to leave in a corner of the kitchen when Kim Yuna came up to the counter to return her tray. The manager bowed his head to see her off.
"Take care."
"Yep! I'll come again!"
She left the cafe with a bright smile in her eyes. I stared after her back, then peeled off the apron and bowed to the manager.
"Manager, I… I'm sorry. About earlier…."
"Nah. You were due a mistake sometime. What are you, a robot? Be grateful you didn't get hurt."
"Still, the smell…."
"I said it's fine. So the place smells a little like coffee beans—so what. An americano isn't even an expensive drink. Is it already almost eight? If your time's up, head out. Good work today."
Kind. But handsome.
I'd always been taught that a handsome man was someone you suspected first.
It's the truth. Don't ask.
"Manager. I can come in tomorrow too, right?"
"Why wouldn't you? Who do you take me for."
He patted my back a couple of times. I could've sworn I saw a halo. It felt like I'd just been handed one more chance.