↬ cafe.

@⁰³ sooyoung h. Sooyoung didn't even need to say it. It was quite clear in her eyes that the profile issued before her was a fake, a mere catfish. He felt horrible for the frustration that he had shown her, especially due to the fact that this girl was indeed not the person he was speaking to. He had always told himself to be careful how he spoke to others, as he doesn't know what it going on in their lives, and the day he didn't bit him right in the .

"I can tell that much," he said with a sigh, pulling his phone away. Even though he had already believed her, the man still looked at her phone that showed solid proof that she wasn't the person who made the profile. "Okay, that's fine. I am really sorry...but, um." Hoseok took a long moment to pause and scroll through the photos on her profile. "How the hell did this person get all these photos of you? Do you post a lot on social media or something? And more importantly, why would they direct a man you don't know to your workplace? Honestly, it's really odd that this person catfished me so well they knew where to find you." He had a ton of questions regarding this odd predicament, yet he held them back. It was probably overwhelming enough for her.

@⁰⁴ doyoung k. he earned an irritated eye roll from his words, "well i suggest you leave that out of your shift because you need to learn how to separate your pettiness from working as the store's 'manager'. is that the attitude you want your employees to see?" she now retorts nonchalantly, checking on her nails before giving him an innocent smile. doyeon wanted to leave but her banter with him was rather entertaining despite the small irk that crawled under her skin. "lucky for me, some of the people here already know who i am and i'm pretty sure they wouldn't do that to a regular customer, would they?" she questioned, making her realize that for every trip that she had to this cafe, she had never encounted doyoung; not even once. "maybe think about the fact that i didn't even know you existed until today. and that's fine, i've had multiple people tell me that so im immune to people saying that to me by now."

@⁰¹ yibo w. Taeyang wasnt sure how that would work really. He wasnt the type who could start a conversation with random people, especially on the whole setting called dates. He never liked the concept either. He would be too awkward but he had already said it and there was no backing out. "Maybe i could go on those dates instead of you. Although if your mother sends in your photos to your dates, it will be hard to fake it. So you will have to make sure she doesnt. Your father just wants you to meet them up. Atleast for now. The girls will tell her you met her and hopefully that will be enough for your mother." Taeyang wasnt sure if it would fully work but that was the only thing he could think of in that moment.

@⁰¹ taeyang c. Yibo wasn't entirely sure if he was too preoccupied with his problems or his hearing has abandoned him, but as soon as the words left his former roommate's lips, his head slowly turned. His eyebrows furrowed in question and his lips parted as in an attempt to speak, but didn't know what words to voice. "Come again?" He leaned in, elbows on table, his face more intrigued this time rather than perplexed. "Did I hear that right? How... how would that work?" Yibo was, for the lack of better wording, stunned. He neither expected nor believed Taeyang would offer something like that. It was too much to ask, but... Yibo felt the slightest relief rush through his tensed muscles.

@⁰¹ yibo w. Taeyang didnt really think his mom was gonna stop. He had seen this happen to one of his neighbour. In the end the guy was emotionally blackmailed into marrying some girl. Taeyang's father had tried to talk some sense into his parents but when they started bad mouthing Taeyang instead for his preferences, his dad lost his cool and got into a really bad verbal fight. They still did not speak to each other.

"I am not sure what i can do but let me know if you need help. Its not like i can take your place..."He trails off as soon as he says that, the gears in his head moving and he doesnt know if the idea was good or bad considering who he was and how he was but it somehow made sense to him. "Let me take your place"

@⁰¹ taeyang c. "She just did," Yibo pointed at his phone with a sigh. "The girl must have ratted me out," he said as he reached to unlock the screen, looking at the missed call notification and the incoming text messages. If there was anything Yibo could freely and surely tell about his mother, was that she is persistent and really hardworking. With those two traits, this was going to turn into a battle of wits at least.

"No ," Yibo rolled his eyes at the comment. He would not listen to her ever again. "I-...I'm hoping this will stop. That if she sees I'm actually serious about Zhan she will stop. I think she's just under the impression that I'm confused, irresponsible and this is just my 'rebellious phase'," he said with an air-quotes gesture. "But I'm scared she-," Yibo went quiet, glancing over his continuously lighting up phone, buzzing with countless of messages, his attention caught by one particular message. '- i'll sell you bike', Yibo read to himself. He let out a sigh, head dropping. "I'm scared she'd go to extremes like this. Now she's threatening to sell my stuff if I don't put effort into this."

@⁰¹ yibo w. Taeyang internally frowned at knowing Zhan had limited knowledge of what was going on and he wasnt sure half told truths would do them any good but he decided not to comment on it. It was better if he tried to maintain a certain distance with their history. "Do you think she is gonna try this again?" There was a possibility that Yibo's mother would not let this go easily, if the unexpected surprise blind date was anything to go by.

"You might want to avoid going anywhere your mother tells you to." This would have been funny if it wasnt about his family being extremely homophobic. His eyes caught up enough of the caller id to figure out it was the other's mother calling. "Are you sure about keeping this detail from Zhan?

@⁰² doyeon k. “My pettiness is a me thing, not a manager thing,” quips Doyoung quickly with a roll of his eyes. Was she going to get her coffee and leave, or what? “Listen, I’ll make sure to let everyone here know that your name isn’t Kimdoy or Doyeon, or whatever. Every drink you’re getting from now on: Name Stealer.” A small ‘tsk’ leaves his mouth before he shrugs, frame leaning casually against the counter, which he then makes move to clean with a towel in a quick swipe. “If you didn’t want to have a similar name as me, you’d have changed it by now. Also, hot coffee is way better than cold.”

@⁰³ hoseok j. What the hell is he playing at? She's about to refute his accusations when he pulls out his phone and then quickly turns it so she can see his screen. Honestly, she's not sure what she was expecting, but it was sure not this. Because on the screen is her own picture smiling right back at her, then another, and another, and another. She's not sure how many there are. She doesn't care, her focus on the name "Sooyoung" in bold white letters in front of her pictures. The whole thing has her flustered. She's not even sure what to say and where to start.

"Well," she begins, although there's a long pause before she speaks again. "The girl in those photos is me," she agrees with a nod, "but I'm not the person you've been talking to." In an attempt to prove it, she pulls out her own phone as well and unlocks it in front of him as she swipes through the apps. There's not a single dating app in sight. "I don't even know what app that is, and I can pull up the App Store if you want me to prove that I've never downloaded it. I don't have a dating profile."

@⁰¹ taeyang c. "Yeah," Yibo agreed with a dejected nod of his head, forehead rubbing against the table top. "The thing is, they never cared. They literally never gave a . Grandma and grandpa are okay with it. Maybe if those two paid more attention to me growing up, they would realize like my grandma that I wasn't uh..."Yibo lifted his head up to look at Taeyang, stopping his blabbering mouth at once.

"He knows... about them not approving," Yibo hesitated and bit his lower lips slightly pondering how to put the facts down for the other to understand. But before he could, the next inquiry followed. "Dude," he breathed out almost fuming with fury. "I didn't know. The woman that birthed me gave me a call that I better go here, that she made an appointment for me. I thought it was school related! Then the chick shows up, all cutesy and and tells me that her mother knows mine and they set us up. Like who the does that in this day and age?" Yibo was evidently distressed and angry. "We're not a powerful family to have to 'keep the royal ing blood'. And she was texting someone I assume was my dear mother all the time. When she fired all her shots to strike up a conversation, she came at me with bikes, skateboards, racing and she shouldn't have known I'm interested in-" and just as he was about to continue his verbal rampage of dissing both the blind date and his parents, his phone beeped, lighting up with his mother's caller ID. "Great," Yibo barked and silenced the phone right away.

@⁰¹ yibo w. Taeyang wasnt fazed by how Yibo spoke. They were at a point where it was a given that it was just the way they were and there was no real malice behind them. He would probably freak out if they suddenly got all chummy and soft with their words instead. He listened carefully, letting the words play in his head and realised what was going on. "So they set you up on blind dates because you told them you were dating a guy? Looks like they think this is a phase that will pass away if you start focusing on the girls. " It was a simple observation on his part. He was grateful his parents were quite open minded and he didnt have to hide the fact that he swung both ways. It was his dad who figured out he wasnt attracted to just the girls and had told him jokingly he was lucky he had lots of options to choose from. Shaking his head at the fond memory, he focused on Yibo.

"Does Zhan know about this? And do you have to go on dates? Why dont you not show up at all?" The questions spilled from his lips without his control over it. Out of all that, he was mostly concerned about this would affect his relationship with Zhan.

@⁰¹ taeyang c. Yibo eyed Taeyang with narrowed eyes. He asked him for help, didn't he? And it was just fair. "Watch your tone, dude," Yibo commented, monotonously at best as he didn't really mind being put on the spot. Actually, he did want to tell someone and whine about it.

The next moment, it was Yibo smacking his elbows down onto the table, burying his face into his hands with a long, exhausted groan. He knocked his cap off finally with his fingers, revealing himself, not feeling the incognito anymore. "It was a date," he admitted. "Set up by my parents," this time, he took his hands off of his face and looked tiredly across the table at Taeyang. "I don't even know who the chick was," he gestured vaguely, obviously not giving a flying . "Go ahead, curse me out, but know I have nothing to do with this. Except telling my parents that I'm dating Zhan, a guy," Yibo finally let go. He was more exhausted than ever. His energy was drained by not only his usual activities and studying, recharged by spending time with Zhan and doing what he enjoyed, but now, this thought occupied every single moment of his day. How to get out of it? How to put an end to it and et his parents to stop. "Why can't they be like other parents and disown me? That would be so much easier," he grunted again, his head hitting the table forehead first. "This is ed up, dude."

@⁰¹ yibo w. Taeyang really had no interest in how the girl reacted, he was more concerned about what Yibo was doing and if Zhan was aware of it or not. Giving a small nod at the girl out of courtesy, he moved to get up and followed Yibo and settled down on the seat across from him. Taeyang looked unbothered on the outside but he was itching to find out what was happening.

"That looked like a date to me." He commented without much of a hesitation on his part. He said what he saw. "You have a lot of explanation to do." He leaned back against the seat with his arms crossed across his chest and looked at Yibo. If he knew any better, he would know Taeyang wanted answers and he was not going to back out till he got them. "Now spill"

@⁰¹ taeyang c. It was embarrassing. That and also awkward. Yibo was seated in front of his girl, whose name he didn't care to memorize, for close to an hour now. He had so many other things he could be doing. The sitting position was of a bored child at a family gathering that just couldn't get its parents to leave, all crooked and slowly hurting. This was not it. Not even when the girl, every now and then, tried to fire up a conversation, find the interests they might share. Needless to say, the freshman threw her a glance, silently asking her to 'be so kind and shut the up, because he wasn't interested'. Yibo didn't even care to order anything for himself. He wanted to be gone. And that urged him to text his last resort for an escape; Taeyang.

Yibo wore a cap, the shield pulled down to cover most of his face and a face mask, pulled under his chin out of mere courtesy. He didn't want to be seen. This was nothing he wanted to be remembered or known for. When he finally heard the voice of his former roommate, Yibo almost jumped out of his chair. "Thank god," he couldn't be bothered to keep his voice down. "Yeah, yeah, project," Yibo looked up at Taeyang. Smart dude he was. He looked at the girl across from him."You won't mind?" It was rhetorical and he didn't wait for an answer. "I have more important business to attend to. Tell my mother I hate her for this, thanks, bye." Yibo didn't spare her the next glance. He just stood up quickly, gathered his backpack and skateboard, urging Taeyang by the elbow to a different seat inside the cafe, as far away from the girl as possible. "Dude, you saved my neck," Yibo ground out sincerely as he took a seat on the other end of the cafe.

@⁰¹ yibo w. Taeyang had been reading through a book he needed to write a review on when he had gotten the text. At first, he had thought his ex roomie had simply been drunk and texted him but then it wasnt as common for the other to ask him for help. Even though they may never admit it out loud, they were both a little childish and had a case of male ego that got in the way at times. Grabbing a jacket, he slipped it around him before placing his phone inside and headed towards th cafe after ensuring he had bookmarked the page he was reading. Thankfully it wasnt that long of a way and soon enough, he saw the cafe. His steps were quick as he crossed the street to get to the other side where the cafe stood. It was a nice little place, cozy and offered nice beverages. He could smell the coffee beans as soon he opened the door and walked inside, his eyes flickering around to find the person who brought him here.

It wasnt long before he found Yibo, the corner of his lips twitching just the slightest at the sight that greeted him. Sitting across from a visibly awkward Yibo was a girl and it looked like they were having some sort of conversation going on. No matter how he looked at it, it looked like they were on a date. That certainly did not sit well with him, not when he knew Yibo was dating Zhan. But he was willing to give him benefit of the doubt. He walked towards the table they were seated at and saw an empty chair next to Yibo and simply sat down on it without much of a warning. "I see you are enjoying your date when you are supposed to be helping out with the group project thats due tomorrow" It took everything in him to keep his eyes from twitching from the obvious lie he just spewed when he couldnt lie that well to begin with.

@⁰³ sooyoung h. Confusion filled the man's face as he tried to figure out just what the girl was going on about. Of /course/ she told him to meet her here. "Yes?" Hoseok's own voice started to lace itself in uncertainty. He definitely didn't have the wrong girl, she looked exactly like the girl in the profile and she responded to the name that was on it as well. Was this some sort of game that she was playing with him? Did the other do this often with other men?

If it weren't for her accusations, Hoseok would have just doubted himself and left her alone. Flattered? Only seen her once? He had been speaking to her for quite some time before she offered meeting him here. "A new one? I don't know what kind of person you think I am but I'll assure you I'm not desperate enough to make up a fake meeting to get some girl." As he responded her, he pulled out his phone, quickly pulling up her dating profile, swiping through the pictures. They were certainly her. "So you're saying the woman in this profile named Sooyoung, that I've been speaking to for a couple of weeks isn't you?" With that he held up his phone, the screen turned towards the batista just so she could see just what he was talking about. "If you like playing games like this, that's fine. I don't appreciate my time being wasted, just like you supposedly to appreciate someone approaching you for ghosting them during your set meeting. Should I show you the messages that told me to come here too?"

@⁰³ bin m. If it were any other person, Hoseok would have asked them to not call him "ho", but he didn't exactly want to get on the other's bad side. Not only was the male his math tutor, but Hoseok heard a few things regarding the other's reputation. Of course, he didn't think the friendly seeming Bin would do anything to him, but he rather be safe than sorry. "You got here fast," he responded with a smile tugging at the corners of his lips, his fingers pushing the untouched mug to the opposite side of the table, as a gesture for Bin to take a seat. "You didn't run anyone over on the way here, did you?"

@⁰⁴ doyoung k. doyeon knew a white lie when she sees one, seemingly enough, the girl was too much of a frequent here to even believe in his white lie yet she opted to play along with the male. "for a manager, you really are petty for something so small." she spoke, cocking up an eyebrow at him before shaking her head, lips forming a small smirk upon hearing his words, "nice to see you've adopted the nickname i gave to you. might want to make up an original one though." she knew the banter was going too far, but she was having too much fun at seeing his reactions; easily getting a kick at how annoyed he was with her. "maybe consider the fact that i didn't ask to be named the way i am? who said i wanted to have such a similar name to someone like you."

@⁰³ hoseok j. "Huh?" The word slips out of before she's even able to register it, and she stops in her steps, taken aback by the aggressive tone in his voice. Him calling her by her name was something she could excuse. It was on her name tag, so he probably found it there. But — "*I* asked you to meet me?" To others, it might have sounded like she was affirming his statement. In reality, she was in disbelief. What was he talking about? She'd never seen him before. Unless...

"This is a new one," she mutters under her breath and follows up with a small scoff. Sooyoung turns around to meet his eyes, standing up a little straighter, and there's a finality in her voice when she speaks next. "Look, man, I really didn't want to have to do this but I don't appreciate your tone or your approach. I'm flattered you're interested in me, but I don't reciprocate your sentiments. Don't act like you know me when you've probably only seen me once. This will only end up embarrassing you."

@⁰³ hoseok j. Almost breaking several road laws, Bin drove to the cafe in record time. Coffee was his drug of choice at the moment, the other ones getting too expensive for him. When Hoseok said he had free coffee, Bin had to take that offer right away. The two mens' online interaction for this last minute meetup made him chuckle as he thought of the perfect girl to set the other male on a date with. As he pulls open the door, he spots the male in a seat right next to the wall. "Sup, Ho!"

@⁰² christopher b. pointing out the obvious only made it worse. taeyong’s cheeks had gone pink, but the moment chris mentioned it, they were darkening in hue. shaking his head — even if it made him a bit woozy — taeyong mustered the strength to give his roommate a smile. “i-i’m fine, haha, don’t worry about me- i think...” he trailed off slightly, almost falling asleep for a second. blinking harshly to wake himself up, the younger rubbed his eyes, blowing his bangs out of his eyes. “i’m fine- i’m just really tired...”

hearing chris suggest that they takeout was god’s way of telling taeyong he existed. maybe chris was god. he couldn’t find a fault with that. “yes- yes please,” the prince whined just a tad bit, hugging his backpack close to his chest. it was a good thing he was half asleep, or he would have died from how chris’s lips were to his cheek.

it was only when chris stepped away that he realized he wasn’t hugging his backpack — it was chris’s. immediately, he buried his nose into the fabric and took a deep breath. smelled just like home. just like chris. he dozed off just like that: smiling into the fabric of his roommate’s backpack.

@⁰² taeyong l. taeyong's sudden jolting startled him, causing him to almost push the younger off in a natural defensive reflex of sorts. and he actually would've, if not for the fact that this was lee taeyong, otherwise known as the bestest roommate he's ever had (definitely a biased opinion, because taeyong's the /only/ roommate he ever had. the kids he used to share a room with in his childhood orphanage, he never actually considered roommates but he digresses), and the fact that they were out in public and starting a scene is the very last thing he'd want. "are you okay? did i accidentally hurt you or something?" he asked, disregarding the younger's attempt at small talk and putting his well-being first (like he always does, intentionally or otherwise). "you're a little red yongs, you're starting to worry me." chris voiced out, expression overflowing with concern.

just then, their order buzzer rang. chris made a few careful moves to detach the younger off of him, ensuring that he was still seated upright and comfortably. "i'll see if i can request for them to change our orders to take-out. give me a moment, alright? i'll be back." chris hummed, instinctively leaning in as if to press a peck onto taeyong's flushed cheek. however, he caught himself before the distance closed and settled for a light rub on taeyong's shoulder instead, heading over to the collection counter to settle their orders after.

@⁰² christopher b. one moment, his half his face was mingling with the cool table; the next, strong arms were guiding his practically lifeless body to lean against the best warmth in the entire world. it was a bit uncomfortable for his neck, but he would rather die ten different ways first than complain. the only thing keeping him going right now was the fact that if he got to stay awake, he would be able to spend time with chris. the roommate he was pining for; the roommate he probably didn’t have a chance with in a million years.

that, and the low, rough voice in his ears.

‘-i’ll you after.’

as if the prince was zapped, taeyong bolted upright, feeling his cheeks heat up to the temperature of the sun’s core. there was /no/ way he had heard right. instead of trying to figure out what chris had said, taeyong instead rubbed his eyes and faced his roommate with a weak grin. “yes. food- i- i’m.. so hungry. and.. anyway- how was your day?”

@⁰² taeyong l. in the months that they've been living together, chris had to admit that he had actually never seen the younger so sleep-deprived and truth be told, it was incredibly endearing. taeyong was a cute clingy kind of sleep-deprived; it should've been unsurprising given his personality, really. chris shifted his chair so that he was now seated next to the younger instead of across him (as was the table's initial layout), gently tugging taeyong's lithe frame up and against his sturdy torso. "it's a condition called insomnia, yongs. i'm not proud of it, but i'm glad it lets me get things done. that, and also a very unhealthy daily dose of coffee." chris hummed gently, almost directly into taeyong's ear. "stay with me yongs, we'll head home after eating and i'll tuck you in after."

@⁰² doyeon k. Pursing his lips, he throws a look in her direction—perhaps one with a bit more attitude than should be permitted in a professional workspace, but he had never been particularly skilled in holding his expressions, especially when tested—and smirks. "I think I'm allowed to do anything, I'm the manager," he promptly lies, in case she were to push forward. A white lie, which won't hurt her. "What do you mean, really? It's the truth, Name Stealer." Rather obnoxiously (really, he was bringing it too far) he glances at his nails, before giving her a once-over. "Maybe consider changing your name?"

@⁰² christopher b. like a wire finally being able to let the tension go, taeyong was essentially jelly in chris’s able hands, only his willpower not to make a complete fool of himself keeping him upright. he clutched onto his roommate with all the strength he had: which was close to zero. still, it kept him stable enough for chris to order and manoeuvre them back to a table booth by the windows.

the moment his met the with the cushioned seat, he felt his body lurch forward, groaning softly. “this... feels so yucky,” complained the prince, sliding further down so he was half draped over the table. “how do you—“ a yawn “manage to... like... stay up do late and... function...?” taeyong half-mumbled, half spoke his words into the wooden table.

@⁰² taeyong l. the way the younger automatically nuzzled into his shoulder, began drawling and seemingly not paying heed to his earlier words and even going lax in his arms was more than enough to convince chris that taeyong was dangerously close to being out of it. wrapping one sturdy arm around the younger's /slim-toned/ waist, chris made to have taeyong's arm drape itself around his nape as he took the few steps to reach the counter, giving a sheepish smile to the staff behind the counter when she had on a surprised (yet sympathetic) expression. he hoped that the smile was explanation enough, being thankful that his anxiety did not choose today to spike and spiral out of control.

after having ordered 2 sets of a relatively simple meal (a hot caramel macchiato and some belgian waffles with a chicken cutlet) for them, chris led taeyong to the table he was occupying, ensuring that the younger did not pass out harshly and injure himself from knocking his head against the table or anything like that.

@⁰² christopher b. weirdly, chris was right. he would know exactly what exhaustion looked like, which simultaneously warmed his heart and made it ache with pain. “i had a lab report.. stayed on campus the entire night,” he said with a soft yawn, not even protesting being pulled closer to the other. if his roommate questioned why taeyong was nuzzling into his shoulder like a cat, he was going to blame it on the delirium due to his lack of sleep. ”i’m glad skitty has an automatic feeder... i hope you didn’t wait up,” he continued, not even really hearing chris’s words. simply engulfed by the man’s comforting scent, taeyong felt his entire body just go lax.

“uhm.. i’ll have whatever you’re eating..? i can’t really think right now,” he admitted with a sheepish smile. staying up almost all night had balls, but if that’s what allowed him to snuggle up against chris in a public café, he couldn’t complain.

@⁰² taeyong l. upon closer inspection of his handsome roommate only did chris realise the slightly puffed eyes, the warm but tired smile and the overall mood of basically struggling to function. "before we talk about me, what happened to you? you look like you could drop dead any moment, and that's coming from an insomniac!" he lightly chided, tugging his roommate closer so that he could at least support him with his own weight. "actually, tell me about it later once you've settled down. here, i'll treat you to brunch, or lunch if you've already had breakfast. take your pick." chris continued, not wanting taeyong to start relating his night before right there and then whilst he was barely functioning.

@⁰² christopher b. rare were the mornings where he was pressed for time, considering taeyong was good about sleeping early and waking up early so he could cook himself and chris their lunches, and make breakfast for the both of them too.

however, the poor prince had completely slacked on one of his lab reports: it ended up in him actually spending the night... at campus. he and his friends had barely finished and submitted their lab reports in time. they crashed for a few precious hours in the back of their next lecture hall, figuring they might as well stay for their classes. which was why taeyong had been a complete zombie all morning. now, done with everything for the day, he trudged to a cafe that had been given good reviews by his friends.

what he hadn’t expected was to hear the same voice that featured in his dreams occasionally. sauntering over to his roommate, taeyong smiled sleepily. he may have had an exhausting day, but one glimpse at chris solved all problems. “what are you doing here, chrissie pooh?”