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It had accidentally become a habit. Typically, Yoohyeon’s day-to-day basis of being part of Earth’s mightiest heroes consists of waking up, fighting back some planet-threatening crisis, saving a few souls in distress, then getting saved by Minji in a press conference before she makes herself a fool by saying the wrong words, and make it back in time to join Gahyun for a drink back up the tower. Somehow, she doesn’t know when exactly it started. Yoohyeon started waking up just a tad bit earlier than the rest, and instead of picking up the beautifully brewed pot of coffee, she takes a long, normal walk through the cold morning air to a quaint little coffee shop hidden from the bustling energy of the busy city.
Costume shed, Mjolnir sitting high up in her room, Yoohyeon stands outside the store, feeling even more naked than ever, and not because of the lack of her usual glamour. She is fairly certain that her face and identity are well known enough for her not to need to announce her name, but there was always something intriguing that kept her coming back again and again. Huffing as she turns to the reflective surface of the cafe window, she runs a hand through her short blonde hair with a small frown upon her face before taking a deep breath and nodding.
Today was going to be the day.
Taking a few determined steps up to the cafe, she pushes open the door, and there she is. The person of interest; the mystery that muddies her mind with confusion and uncertainty about her own capabilities. As usual, she was behind the counter, staring off blankly into space, occasionally mumbling a word or two to herself. Somehow, looking at the woman at a distance seemed to strip the hero of her confidence. Yet, the little mocking voice in the back of the mind that sounded suspiciously like Gahyun reminded her of her purpose.
-
“How do you do it?”
Tearing herself away from the conversation, Gahyun would turn to Yoohyeon with a look of confusion.
“Do what?”
“This. All of this.”
Yoohyeon remembered how the young and rich genius would raise an eyebrow and turn to follow the vague hand gesturing back to the party, then back at her.
“You might need to be a bit more specific than this, I think.”
Groaning from the inability to explain, the god of thunder ran a hand through her blonde hair while looking at the party filled with gorgeous faces and famous names, none of which actually piqued her attention.
“Oh no, Kim Yoohyeon. I know that look.”
Snapping her head back, shock spread across her face as she tried to keep herself composed, brushing away the teasing look the younger woman was giving her. Straightening her back and looking away, Yoohyeon tried to block out the incessant questioning before she bumped into a waitress walking by, nearly knocking her over. Reflexes kick in as she quickly catches her with an arm, and the other flawlessly balances the tray of entrees. As she helped the waitress up to her feet properly, she could only watch as the waitress’s face turned a deep shade of red before bowing multiple times, plucking the tray from her hands, and quickly shuffling away towards the kitchen hallway. An arm soon hooked around her shoulder as she heard Gahyun's voice by her ear.
“She’s cute, isn’t she? Ow-”
Rubbing at the spot she was elbowed with her free hand, Gahyun let out an annoyed sigh.
“And to think I was going to give you advice, seeing how you acted just now.”
Shrugging off the arm around her shoulder, Yoohyeon gave her a look that made the younger woman let out a laugh as she slowly backed away with both hands held up slightly by her own shoulders.
“You already got the looks, personality, and superpowers down.”
She said with a shrug as she picked a flute of champagne off a server walking by, doing a little twirl while still backing up.
“All you need, is confidence to go for it.”
Doing a little toast and taking a sip from her glass, Gahyun shoots Yoohyeon a finger gun and a wink before disappearing in the sea of party-goers, leaving the taller woman standing there alone in thought until Yubin stopped between where they were standing and gave a sigh before unwillingly following after Gahyun into the crowd.
-
Yoohyeon was pretty sure there was something else missing, but as Handong once told her, if she can’t remember something, that thing probably isn’t that important anyways Who said otherworldly gods have perfect memory anyway? Everyone has flaws! Shaking her head to snap out of it, she realized that she had been standing in the doorway with the door held open for a little longer than humanly socially normal, and that the once distracted brown eyes were now focused and locked onto her. Feeling heat rise up her cheeks, Yoohyeon cleared her throat as she let go of the door handle to take another step in.
Disaster struck when Yoohyeon realized a moment too late that she moved her limbs in the wrong order, and she felt the weight of the door swing close, trapping her shoes between the slightly elevated step of the doorframe and the somewhat heavy door, and her body was already in momentum to move forward. There were two options at the moment. One, she could yank her foot free and possibly heroically catch herself, but that would probably mean damaging the beautifully decorated cafe door. Option two was thrown out the window the moment she thought of upsetting the pretty barista and being banned from this place. Accepting defeat, she closed her eyes as the ground came closer in view.
Pain is something Yoohyeon, as a hero was familiar with. She has been punched, stabbed, thrown against a wall and fought against the wildest looking foes to protect what she loves. Yet, the pain of humiliation was one she could never get used to, despite however much Bora had teased her when they sparred. Rather than reacting to the pain of the fall, she felt herself flush red as she heard footsteps approaching and stop right by her.
“Are you… okay?”
Holding back a whine when hearing the familiar raspy voice, she slowly pushed herself up, foot finally free from being confined, still refusing to look her way.
“I’m fine…”
Wincing at the way her voice cracked slightly at a nervously higher pitch, she licked her dry lips to soothe herself and finally look up. Her first thought went blank at the closeness of proximity before she realized that the other’s eyes were originally locked onto her lips that darted back up to meet hers.
Lee Siyeon was an enigma to Yoohyeon. Nothing about the woman before her made sense from the very first meeting, when the hero made a wrong turn and ended up in this cosy place. She remembers how she was trying to escape from the crowd of superhero fans, not that she didn’t appreciate them, but socializing was more of the others’ thing. Her entrance was loud inside the quiet and peaceful place, but this barista welcomed her confusedly as if not expecting anyone to come in. She remembers studying her for any traces of knowing who she was, before deciding that it was safe. That was when her eyes drifted down to the little pinned nametag with a slight scribble of a name, and an oddly drawn animal. Lee Siyeon.
Yoohyeon could feel the way her heart pounded in her chest, taking in how Siyeon was seated comfortably in a squat next to her fallen self, and it took everything out of her to snap out of the daze.
“Are you sure you don’t have a concussion or something of the sort? You seem out of it.”
Shaking her head in response, she watched as the woman’s eyebrow rose questioningly before she processed her words in her head once more and vigorously nodded.
“I’m fine, I promise!”
Shooting an unconvincing grin and hearing her own awkward laughter, Yoohyeon cringed outwardly before looking around and scrambled to pick up the few things that flew out of her jacket pocket. A few sweets, the phone that Minji insisted she hold, and an old school flip wallet that opened to display her Lee Industries custom-created identity card that Gahyun made as a joke but turned out useful when it came to cross-region missions. Reaching for her wallet, a smaller pair of hands got hold of it first as Siyeon stared at the identity card for a moment that made Yoohyeon hold her breath. She was busted for sure for hiding her identity, and Siyeon is definitely going to hate her and-
“Lee Industries, huh. No wonder you always tip more than the actual drinks.”
Blinking blankly at the statement, Yoohyeon shakily takes back the offered wallet and shoved it back into her pocket. Slowly standing up, she offered a hand to the barista automatically, which she accepted. The hero expected Siyeon to let go once she stood up too, but there was a long silence as they both stood right by the door, hand in hand. Siyeon’s gaze was still directed at her, and only then did Yoohyeon realize the slight height difference between them as she looked everywhere but into her eyes. Only when she felt a slight pinch on her hand did Yoohyeon look down at the grip the other woman had of her hand, the other joining and pinching the back skin of her hand. Not knowing how to approach this, nor wanting to ruin the small moment, Yoohyeon cleared her throat and attempted at a small conversation.
“So uh… I don’t think we have actually talked much before.”
Greeted with silence, Yoohyeon tried again.
“You know, the cafe always seems to be empty when I come in. Is business doing okay?”
“I live here.”
Not expecting a reply, Yoohyeon flinched slightly, snapping the other woman out of her intense concentration.
“The ground floor was meant to be more of my hangout spot.”
Finally letting go of her hand, Yoohyeon took the chance as she finally gave a good look around the place. The more she looked, the more she recognized signs of personalisation around the place before her eyes snapped onto the chalkboard menu propped up on the counter.
“B-but you were… taking my order for drinks and…”
“You look like you needed a drink when you came here the first time.”
Horror slowly filled the hero as she put the pieces together.
“I… was a home intruder.”
“Yeap.”
Hearing the casual tone, confusion soon covered her expression.
“I barged into your home. And you offered me coffee?”
Siyeon nodded and shrugged as if it wasn’t a big deal.
“And since you started coming more and more often, I figured to make it more realistic.”
“What about your nametag?”
“I got fired from my actual job that morning and forgot to take it off.”
There was yet another long moment of silence before Yoohyeon broke it with a chuckle, and with it, Siyeon started chuckling before they both broke into proper laughter. At an inhale, Siyeon looked Yoohyeon in the eye before questioning.
“Why are we laughing again?”
At that, Yoohyeon laughed even harder before wiping away the tears that she had shed unknowingly. Taking a deep breath, Yoohyeon stood up straight once more and offered a hand out to shake with a smile.
“Nice to meet you, Lee Siyeon. I’m Kim Yoohyeon. I find you very interesting.”
Looking down at the offered hand, Siyeon reached out to give a firm shake.
“Nice to meet you, Yoohyeon. I find you very interesting too.”
Clearing her throat once more, Yoohyeon decided to give it a shot.
“So uh… I hope I’m not banned from here, but of course, I understand if you don’t want me coming around anymore.”
Siyeon snorts before shaking her head as she pulls back and gestures around her.
“You’re funny too. Feel free to come back anytime.”
Watching as the other woman walked her way back to behind the counter and started up the coffee machine, Yoohyeon couldn’t help but smile and approach the setup, remembering the first time this happened.
“Could I maybe get a cappuccino? Skimmed milk, if you have any.”
Hearing a chuckle from behind the machine as the steam wand activates, Yoohyeon leaned against the counter, watching Siyeon’s smooth movements, but in a much more relaxed state than the first time around. From the way she pulled the shot to the way she concentrated while steaming the milk, a beautifully made cup of cappuccino decorated with a heart on the foam was placed in front of Yoohyeon. Pulling out her wallet once more, she slipped out a fifty-dollar note, and right before she was about to hand it over to Siyeon, she pulled it back.
Raising an eyebrow at her antics, Siyeon huffed and held her hand out, waiting.
Biting at her lips, Yoohyeon placed the folded note in her hand, but instead of handing it over, she gently held her hand.
“Can I possibly also have your number?”