A/N: Some fluff <3

Ollie's POV

The following morning, I ran late to the cafe and slept past the twelve alarms I had set in my half-awake state. Then again, I couldn't really call it running late, as it's not like I worked there or had any specific reason to be there aside from just wanting to sit down and enjoy my coffee at my usual place watching Haruto work.

But as I pulled open the doors to the cafe, Haruto wasn't behind the counter, only Janice and Mi-young. Their heads turned to me before both pointed to my table simultaneously.

Haruto was, in fact, here, but not in his usual uniform or apron, and not in his seat, but my seat. There was an aloof smile as he looked at me with his head rested on his arms that rested on the table. It vaguely reminded me of the mischievous look the girls would give me when they had tea to spill.

As I approached the table, I asked, "what's all this about?"

"The cafe's closing early today. We've got inventory, and the girls wanna do a deep clean of the place." He gestured to the seat where he normally sat. "You can sit if you'd like."

Pulling out the chair and sitting, I eyed him warily. "Shouldn't you be helping out with that, then? You're not even in uniform."

He smirked. "I made plans for today. I'm helping them to clean after they close at six."

"Oh." I tilted my head. "Well, shouldn't you be going out, then? I wouldn't want to be late."

His smile was unnerving, and mirrored what any villain in a movie wore. If he had plans to go out with friends or even a date, as much as I didn't like that idea, sitting here in a cafe wasn't adding up.

"I won't be late," he said. "There isn't a set time."

"Well, have fun," I said slowly, enunciating the words slowly in hopes it didn't come off as rude as it sounded in my head.

"Well," he drawled. "Those plans actually involve you. If you'd like, of course."

"Me?" I wanted to facepalm; who else would he have meant, Ollie? "Where..."

He smiled. "There's a shop I think you'd like. A boba tea place. Just a couple of blocks away, actually."

"Boba?"

Haruto nodded. "Usually milk or herbal teas with tapioca pearls?"

"I've seen and heard about them but haven't really tried it. Maybe those canned ones?"

He shook his head. "Those are the worst representation of boba. Guess you really should join me if you'd like."

I narrowed my eyes at him but nodded slowly; there wasn't any reason I would turn down an opportunity to hang out with Haruto.

"Sure, I'd love that."

"Let's get out of here." He grinned before standing, getting Janice's attention.

"Have fun!" she said from behind the espresso machine.

I looked at him with a knowing look before heading out the door. "You already told her?"

He smirked. "Of course. Once she knew about my plan to take you to this boba shop, she immediately told me to strip out of my uniform and go; she said the deep cleaning could wait till after I return."

"You're ridiculous," I said.

"Maybe I am, but I thought that's what you like about me."

I made a face as he led the way to his car, glad he couldn't see the blush that was working its way to my face. "Maybe."

***

A few people were in the shop, but not nearly as crowded as he made the place sound with how popular the drinks were. Most were couples or groups of teenagers sitting at the barstools, but most seemed too engrossed in their phones or conversations to pay us any mind. Way more comforting than that dreadful food court and mall we had visited.

The place had cute little knickknacks, the counters and walls, and a cute chalkboard where people could write whatever they liked—a cute drawing of a corgi on the board and a few names with hearts around them.

"I prefer a good standard black milk tea, but I like the honeydew and taro. You'd probably like the coffee or brown sugar milk tea." He gestured to the board. "You can choose how sweet or any other fun add-ons. Feel free to try anything."

Despite how organized the menu was, deciding on a drink felt like a big deal, especially when I read the price tag, which was well above what I'd pay for a white mocha cold brew. I gulped before turning to him, "surprise me? I'm not sure what I'd like better."

He nodded. "Brown sugar is always a great place to start. Based on your coffee sweetness, 25% should be good."

"Sure, that," I said. Haruto chuckled before heading over to the register, swiftly ordering both of our drinks with ease. He swiped his card before I could even think to hand out my card to him, but knowing Haruto, he wouldn't have let me pay if I had brought it out.

It didn't take long for our drinks to be ready, which was surprising when I noticed how colorful some of the other patrons' drinks were.

The cups were by far the cutest thing they had, shaped like one of those milk cartons you'd find in school lunches, with imprinted logos on the sides.

"Are these puns?" My fingers grazed over the handwritten letters on the cup.

He laughed as I read the pun on my cup.

Love you oolong time.

And on his read, what a matcha.

"Cute, aren't they?" He placed his straw in his drink, breaking the plastic seal with a pop. "They must've had some downtime to write on the cups. I should ask Janice to do some coffee puns on ours."

I scoffed, failing to pop the seal open with my straw a couple of times before finally getting it. "Your customers might get the wrong impression. I'd imagine they'll think you're flirting more than usual."

"You're right." He hummed. "Guess I could just write on yours."

"Run your flirty puns by me? I'm not sure I'd be the best judge."

He laughed. "I think you're the perfect person to run them through."

"I'd say they're all corny."

He shrugged. "I'll find one you like, don't you worry. There's gotta be one that you'd like."

"Yeah, yeah. I doubt it, but sure. I'll score it out of ten. Though, I'm not sure there are many puns around coffee, is there?"

He tilted his head and nodded before gesturing to my drink. "How is it?"

It wasn't terrible, definitely different from what I was used to drinking, but still delicious. "A bit sweeter than I expected, but still delicious. The tapioca pearls are a bit chewier than I thought."

"Something to get used to, but this place is one of the best." He gestured to the menu board. "Their variety is less than most boba shops, but they really focus on fresher ingredients, including the tea leaves, milk, and syrups. Especially with the fruit drinks, they try to use the freshest fruit for the syrups."

I pursed my lips. "What, you worked here too? Expert at crafting boba drinks too?"

He laughed. "No, a childhood friend owns a shop a block away. They heard about this place and considered them their rival."

"How scandalous? Betraying your friend to take me to a rival boba place?"

"I figured you'd appreciate the higher-quality drinks. My friend's place provides people with cheaper products and a greater variety, which attracts more people than this place." He sipped his drink. "It's usually always packed at their shop."

Haruto was always so considerate that it shouldn't have surprised me at that point, but it was still such a nice gesture. "Thanks, that means a lot."

"You're welcome." He smiled. "We could also visit their shop when it's not as busy if you'd like to try some other flavors they offer."

"I'd like that. Although, this almost feels illegal." I sent him a pointed look. "Getting drinks from somewhere, not your cafe."

He laughed. "Only illegal if you don't enjoy yourself. Would make it seem like I kidnapped you if you didn't."

"Of course, I'm enjoying this." I took another sip of the drink. "As weird as the texture of the tapioca is."

"I could've ordered one without if you wanted."

"Boba without the boba? Isn't that illegal?"

He smirked. "No, then it'd be a simple milk tea, which many people order. Perfectly legal."

I hummed, glancing at the crowd behind him. "I haven't seen one person in here with a drink without the boba."

"That's because they're known for their in-house made tapioca," he said. "And for their unique cups, of course."

"Definitely cute. I wonder how they even make these," I said, holding the cup up to admire the beveled edges and the imprinted logo. "Doesn't seem cheap at all."

"A hundred percent worth it, though," he commented. "Plus, it's even better with people you like a latte."

It took a second for the joke to hit me, and when it did, I rolled my eyes, lightly punching his arm for the pun. "That was the corniest pun of all. Don't write that on the cups at the cafe, please."

"Oh, come on," he implored. "I think that was one of my best."

"You wish."

***

I let Haruto have control over his radio, letting him play soft pop songs in the background. I only recognized a few of the artists, and a couple of the songs sounded foreign, presumably in Korean. It didn't take long to reach the area of town I was more familiar with, but I almost wished the car ride had been longer. Despite sitting in relative silence, it never felt awkward whenever he gave me a ride home.

Haruto didn't sing along to any of the songs before, but by the taps of his fingers on the steering wheel, it was endearing to watch him drum out the melody of the songs on the radio, especially when we got caught at the red lights.

I found myself wishing to get caught in all the red lights if it meant more time sitting in his car with him. It wasn't a long car ride to my apartment, and I dreaded the second he pulled into the guest parking. I didn't want to leave the car, even though I knew he had to go back to the cafe, and I was starting to act like some clingy boyfriend for not wanting to leave his side.

"Thanks for the ride," I told him, slowly peeling away from the seat and opening the door. "And for the boba. I enjoyed it a lot."

Just as I was about to shut the passenger side door, he fumbled with his seatbelt before opening the door. "Wait, Ollie."

"What are you—"

"I forgot something," he said as he closed the driver's side door, walking around his car.

"What did you forget?" I patted my pocket, wondering if I forgot I was holding something of his, but Haruto's hand grazed mine after a few fruitless pats. "Did I hold on to a charger or something?

When his hand remained atop mine, I looked up, a gentle smile gracing his face. "Not that."

"Then," I trailed as he removed his hand from mine and placed it on my shoulder.

"This," he said before leaning forward. Instinctively I took a step backward, but with his loose grip on my shoulder and the shock of whatever he was trying to do, I froze just as he planted a kiss on my cheek.

Like Haruto, his lips were gentle, almost tentative, before he slowly stepped back from me. I was sure there was a panicked, frazzled, maybe even dead look on my face as my brain tried to comprehend what just happened.

"I hope that was okay," his words were barely above a whisper. The smile he had worn faded into worry as his eyes searched mine. I blinked. What the—

"Yeah—yeah, I don't...I don't mind—" I let out a breath. "I just wasn't ex—expecting that...."

The corner of Haruto's lips rose—the same lips that had touched my cheek—a fact I couldn't get over no matter how hard I tried. Okay? Okay? More than okay? I thought. Right?

"Didn't mean to frighten you," he said, running a hand through his hair. "I'll let you rest. See you tomorrow?"

I gulped. "Uh, yeah. Yeah, see you at the cafe."

"Bye, Ollie." He smiled before returning to the driver's side door.

"Bye, thanks for the—" I stopped myself from nearly pointing to my cheek. Thanks for the cheek kiss? What are you saying? "For the boba."

I couldn't tell if he had heard me, but he waved and got into the car. Like last time, he waited until I was just at the door before pulling out of the stall and driving off.

"So third time's a bust," Herb said as the door shut behind me. He hadn't lifted his head from the newspaper he was reading. "Next time?"