It was late at night now. Nikki had gone to his apartment after Chirp's, having gotten way more drunk than he'd intended. Seo-Yoon's company had just been that good. Who'd have known she was so good at winning drinking games? Just who was she? As much as I didn't want to know, I couldn't help but be intrigued. Everything in me was saying I didn't want to know her, but was that selfish? She was Gyeong-Wan's best friend. He liked her. But, no, getting close to her... It felt wrong. Everyone else seemed to like her and I had to admit she was charming, but...

I swept up the front of French Cup, going around the chairs. Being careful, though deep in thought. We'd all parted in front of Chirp's. I wanted Gyeong-Wan to come with me, but he'd told me he wanted to see her back to her hotel. She pulled at his arm, grinning at everybody. It made me almost twitch. She was going home tomorrow. She was getting on a plane. It made sense that he'd want to see her back to her hotel. They hadn't seen each other in a long time. They were childhood best friends.

But seeing them go off into the distance together, arm in arm... I wanted to go off into the distance with him arm in arm...

Suddenly I was longing for him too much. My phone was bluetoothing to the speakers in here, my calming French music coming out. But, thinking about him. Hearing him speak Korean to both Kim-san and her. His soothing tones, much more confident in Korean than in Japanese. My hand went to my pocket and I found myself shuffling through my Spotify. I pressed the first Korean song I discovered on there. A pop song by some girl group. Immediately, the music switched to something unfamiliar, but the language was his. It was a fast song, something to dance to. I didn't feel like dancing, but the words were comforting. I worked to the pace of it, much faster than before. I had to admit, it was making me feel a little better. He'd said before that he didn't like this kind of music, that he thought it was something akin to soulless, but I kind of...I kind of liked it. Because of him...

I was too into it to notice the door open and close. The music was too loud for the chime over the door to be heard. The only thing that brought me out of it was a small hand tugging at my apron. I jumped hugely and my hand dove immediately into my pocket to turn off the music. My eyes fell on a young boy, dressed neatly in an expensive looking puffy jacket and khakis and holding a small paper bag with what looked like sparklers sticking out of it, and as I rose them an identically dressed boy but older was there. Standing next to them was a woman who was a bit portly in red designer clothes and perfect hair.

She bowed slightly. "I'm so sorry," she stammered. "I saw your closed sign. We knocked several times, but it is an emergency. My youngest boy, he says he needs to use the restroom and can't wait until we get back to our hotel. Can he use yours?"

Oh, of course he could. I nodded rapidly before I even said anything. "Yes, absolutely. It's that door to the right." I pointed. The boy immediately started going for it and his older brother yanked the paper bag out of his hand before he disappeared into it. The door slammed and in the quiet the lock reverberated throughout the space. 

The woman made a deep sigh, plopping down into a mint green curly-cued chair. She looked exhausted. The older boy sat across from her, laying the bag on the table. I wanted to do something for her. Two boys, by herself? Where had she come from? That bag...

"Did you go shopping for fireworks?" I asked, dropping my broom against the wall. 

"Yes," she admitted, sweeping her hair back and messing it up. "It was farther than I thought. My boys want to celebrate New Year's how we always do, and that's with fireworks. Their father is working through it this year, so I wanted them to have comforts of home."

"Oh. Where's home?" I settled in near them, standing next to their table like they were customers. But, they were customers. It didn't matter if we were closed. It looked like she could use something nice. We did still have leftover items. I'd intended to give some to Yuko, but maybe they'd enjoy them? 

"Akita prefecture," she explained. "It's famous for fireworks. I'm so sorry to them that we can't enjoy like we usually do. We were only able to find so little here. I'm at least glad we found some."

"I'm so sorry. Um, you traveled so far. Would you enjoy a strawberry tart or an espresso? I'm sorry we don't have coffee made, but I can prepare an espresso easily." Somehow, I wanted to make an impression on them. She'd mentioned that they'd been on the way to a hotel. Could that mean the Modern? They were so nice, compared to others I'd seen from there. And Gyeong-Wan... His kind expression appeared in my mind. His smile. If they were from the Modern, I wanted to treat them nicely. He might be there now... 

"Ohh, that would be amazing. Yes, to both of them. It wouldn't impose?" Her face brightened. This was what I'd wanted. 

I nodded enthusiastically. "It would be my pleasure. Um, on the house. I couldn't sell you anything after hours." Making an excuse. The tarts were now old, having sat out all day in our temperature controlled showcase, and now having been in the refrigerator for a few hours. From the way this family was sitting, practically slung over their chairs, they were definitely tired. It didn't seem like the younger boy would be coming out any time soon, too. 

"Oh no, I have to pay you something."

"No really, it's alright. You have your kids with you. It's no problem." I hurried behind the counter to start her espresso, thinking about what I could grab for the kids to drink. We didn't get a lot of kids in here. My mind realized I could make chocolate milk with the supplies I had. How perfect. The kitchen door swung behind me as I entered, and I found myself proud of my sparkling clean surfaces. Soon, I'd be starting the puff pastry dough for tomorrow's offerings. I didn't yet know what my special items would be, but maybe I'd be inspired.

In a few minutes, the strawberry tarts were on nice plates with paper lace doilies, the chocolate milks prepared. I'd added a bit more chocolate syrup than I would have, because kids love sweeter things. I even put more chocolate syrup as dipping sauce on two of the plates, because I knew the tarts weren't as sweet due to how I usually made them for adults. Even if this family was only here for a short time, I wanted them to still be satisfied.

As I came out of the kitchen carrying the plates precariously but professionally, I saw the older boy had brought out of some the fireworks and spread them on the table. He'd also taken off his coat, with it neatly on the back of his chair, revealing a crisp polo shirt. His mom was reading the back of the sparklers package that I'd seen sticking out of the bag. There were snakes, snappers, firecrackers. It did seem like such a small offering of fireworks compared to what they were probably used to. It made me long to tell them that there was going to be a big fireworks show somehow nearby, but I didn't know about anything like that. Just to make them happier. It had to be disappointing with their father busy. Somewhere in my heart, it brought longing out for my own father. 

The plates clinked down around the fireworks. She straightened up immediately in respect, scooping some of the fireworks into the bag. The boy handed her some more, and soon they were neatly put away. She tucked them under her chair, and they further respectfully said thankful words over their meals. I gave them a small bow, and went behind the counter to fetch the now finished espresso. 

After a while, I went back to cleaning, spraying a cloth with glass cleaner and going about my showcase from behind the counter. I made swirling motions as I secretly watched them. They were very polite, eating in small bites. No doubt they were of a more affluent class. It reminded me of Gyeong-Wan, all that I'd learned about him recently. How he was from a similar class. Watching the his boy, it made me wonder about him. Would he have been dressed like this as a kid? Expected to eat this politely? A kid would definitely want to dive into that tart. But, even the tiny swiping at his chocolate sauce was carefully orchestrated. Would the younger boy eat like that, too?

The bathroom door opened and the younger boy emerged. He absolutely looked overjoyed to see the treats waiting for him at the table. He say down quickly and made a small prayer bow before digging in. This kind of restraint. I didn't have that. What fearsome training these people had. And yet, he began eating in tiny bites just like the other boy. 

It made me feel almost a little sad for them. Was this the kind of world that Gyeong-Wan was running from? Not able to dive into a free tart and chocolate milk? Having to make yourself wait? 

They all ate silently, and I tried to match their silence out of respect. It was so hard. My cloth made a squeal against the glass, making me jump. They didn't make any moves, so into eating and...well, being perfect. But, being perfect? That reminded me of Seo-Yoon. Inside, a small blip of distaste went up. I hid it well, but it made me move faster.

A little embarrassed, I went back into my kitchen and laid out my things for making dough. As soon as they left, I'd have to get to work. I was looking forward to it, being able to clear my mind and only think about this delicate process. Preparing took longer than I intended, but it had to be done. 

When I came back out, they were gone. Curiously, they'd gathered their dishes and these were neatly piled on the counter, even the chocolate milk glasses stacked. I stared at it, in small awe. Nobody who'd come in here had ever done that before. This kind of respect, not leaving their dishes on the table for me to clean up. Making it easier for me. I began picking up the dishes, piling them into my arms, when I paused.

Complete shock descended over me. My loose hand touched the bill on the counter, which had been hidden by the plates, sliding it off the counter into my fingertips. I held it up, in disbelief.

Ten thousand yen. Worth far, far more than what they'd eaten. 

I straightened up, my eyes darting to the door. They'd maybe just left. Could I give it back? Surely they'd gone to the right, if they were going towards the Modern. Oh, but... I stared at it again. Unsure what to do. 

I held it in my hand for a while, just in shock.