𖡡 café

@✵ nam jaejin〘ᴄᴀsᴘɪᴀɴ〙ˣ.ᶜʰᵃᵒˢ lani took a deep breath, then another, and one more once again. the woman’s chest feeling particularly tight, restricting the proper space to relax, let alone think with all the events that had snowballed up until this point in her life. within studio grounds, and even the comfort of her own office, there hadn’t been a moment of peace regardless of just how well she had managed to shoulder everything on her own. not one person had to know whatever she was going through, from each smile or burst of laughter that was reeled out of her— lani would never speak on her struggles. it all had to pass at some point, much like always.

if anything, the dancer was partially convinced that she just needed a quick change of pace. a change of environment— and as of last resort, lani essentially thought of the one group she hadn’t seen in a while, her beloved chimera collective. finally would they get to meet after what felt like forever of spoiled plans, clashed schedules, and nothing that the group of friends could entirely help by themselves. this time, however, would be much different.

right? it had to be.

with time passing by at a painstaking speed. from 7:30 in the evening to 45, 8:15 to 40, and so forth; her once empty table was soon occupied, but only with a cup of coffee that was gradually turning cold much like her patience. were they ditching her? was any of them even planning on showing up in the first place? why didn’t they just say so? the expectant smile on her lips simmered down into a disappointed pout, dainty fingers tip-tapping away at the screen of her phone as she went through the messages that had been exchanged in the group chat thus far. then.. her gaze travelled to one person in particular, someone who almost always left them in the dust, nam jaejin.

that man surely lived up to the name lani associated him with— casper, the not-so-friendly ghost. it was almost funny, she thought, how ridiculous it would’ve been if he of all people were to just show up. he was barely ever around in the first place, so even though much like everyone else, his presence was much loved, lani essentially had to learn the hard way that sometimes it was best not to expect to not be met with heart-wrenching disappointment. because sometimes it just left her feeling like a fool, the same feeling that soon got the woman up to her feet as she prepared to take her leave after what had officially been some good long hours of waiting. “this is stupid. lani? you’re stupid—”