Archive of Our Own

The first rule of working in a cat cafe that catered to adoption was to not get attached. The second was not to pick favorites. Jeno, apparently, was not very good at following rules as he effectively failed at both of these in his first week alone. Even now, after all this time, it was impossible to look at Mimi’s soft, fluffy face and not have his heart completely melt into goo.

His manager had told him from the start that Mimi had a bit of a personality—his polite way of saying she was a troublemaker. Her pickiness with people she cozied up to and her knack for getting into trouble contributed greatly to her lack of adopters, despite her beautiful, dainty looks. He was warned that the little ragamuffin would be constantly out to scam him, but for Jeno, it was already too late. He was in love.

After all, love was patience. Love was endurance.

Love was wearing a mask for 8 hour work shifts and regular prescriptions of diphenhydramine.

And sometimes love was dealing with the occasional break out of hives anyway.

Maybe because Mimi knew Jeno loved her or the stars just happened to align, she would tolerate him best of the cafe workers. In the same way that Solsol only stopped scream-meowing when Hendery paid attention to him, Mimi only seemed to listen when Jeno was the one attending her. Not that she listened all the time, but at least more than with the others.

Maybe that was the way cats showed love back. Or maybe they had favorite people too.

So when his manager approached him with an exasperated look one morning from the second he stepped into the cafe, Jeno could only assume another Mimi-related incident had taken place.

“Your girl’s intent on keeping her career as an escape artist,” the man told him with a sigh. As Jeno looped his apron over his head and adjusted his mask, his manager went on wearily, “She broke out of her crate again, freed Solsol and Rere, and then spilled a container of soap all over the floor in the back. Solsol got stuck in an overturned wastebasket somehow and has been crying all morning. Fortunately, Rere was just sleeping on the shoe rack.”

“The CCTV is pure chaos. So worth a watch,” Hendery cut in, appearing from behind with Solsol clinging desperately to his apron. The black cat’s claws were out and he looked mildly traumatized. Jeno felt for the poor boy; Mimi was a truly chaotic leader.

Their manager just shook his head. “Anyway, Jeno, if you could please convince Mimi to come out from wherever she’s hiding and check on her before customers arrive, that would be very helpful. Hendery and I have been calling for her ever since we arrived and she hasn’t shown herself yet.”

“Of course.”

Once fully suited for work, beret and apron in place, Jeno roamed into Do-Si-Do’s dining area to search for their illusive friend. He knew by now that calling to her wouldn’t work, so he tried a different technique: toys.

Mimi’s favorite was a well-loved green mouse that had a little jingle to it. Jeno often used it to bribe her into listening to him, though only she decided if she was actually willing. She’s played him many times; Jeno just hoped she would be cooperative today.

It took approximately eight minutes of jingling and desperate pleading before Mimi finally made herself known in the form of a small, prideful meow. Jeno honed his ears on the sound until he finally found her squeezed behind a bookcase. She wasn’t stuck, despite the narrow space; she just didn’t want to move. Jeno shook his head disbelievingly.

“How did you get back there, baby girl? Come on out now, the customers will be here soon. Don’t you want to meet some new friends?”

Like a queen, the little ragamuffin only then decided it worth her time to elegantly walk out from behind the case and curl around Jeno’s legs like she owned him. Which, if he were to be honest, she kind of did. Still, Jeno breathed a sigh of relief and let her take the mouse into her mouth before scooping her up and carrying her back to join the other cats.

“You found her?” Hendery asked when Jeno finally rejoined him behind the counter. “Where was she?”

“Behind the bookshelf,” Jeno sighed, rolling up his sleeves to wash his hands and forearms thoroughly.

“She’s a weird one,” Hendery laughed. “She totally ignored me and hyung. I knew cats could be picky but she’s next level! She doesn’t even play with the customers much, does she?”

“Who knows what that girl is thinking,” the manager similarly sighed as he joined them. “It’s been years and still near impossible to find adopters for her.”

Secretly, Jeno thought that wouldn’t be too terrible a thing. As much as he wanted Mimi to find a good, loving home, he also loved seeing her at work all the time. It felt like an extra sort of privilege that she seemed to feel the same about him.

The morning proceeded smoothly after that. A few customers came and went, but overall it was a quieter day than usual. After lunch, the cafe hit an uncharacteristic lull in which it was completely empty. So when the bell on the door sounded as it opened, Jeno couldn’t help but perk up.

To the sound of Jeno and Hendery’s synched greeting call, a single young blond man stepped into the cafe. With his soft pink sweater and even softer smile, he looked the picture of gentleness. He blew in like a cherry blossoms on a spring breeze, and maybe Jeno looked on just a second longer than he should have.

“Can I sit anywhere?”

It took Jeno a moment to realize he had been spoken to, and when he did, he straightened up and nodded immediately. Beside him, Hendery gave him a little side look before brusquely shoving a menu into his hands. What he intended with that look, Jeno chose not to acknowledge.

The table that the new patron had chosen was a small one near the far wall with two chairs opposing each other. It had the best view of the lounge area where most of the cats lazed about on their tree, and Jeno had to give him credit for the choice. That was his favorite table too.

Like a brilliant beam of sunlight, the young man’s smile turned to full wattage when Jeno approached his table with the menu.

“Thank you,” he said, voice surprisingly quiet and deep. While taking and flipping through the menu, he spoke earnestly, “It’s my first time here. My friend told me your espresso is really good.”

“Oh, yes,” Jeno replied automatically, customer service mode on. “We import espresso beans from different countries with a different weekly special. This week we have Colombian, which has a rich, medium-bodied flav—Mimi?!”

Jeno’s jaw nearly dropped open when his favorite finicky cat suddenly appeared from under the table (when had she snuck under there?) and leaped onto the customer’s lap. Mimi was not much of a lap cat and she was even pickier with strangers, yet she suddenly seemed to have no problem making herself at home perched in this young man’s lap. She was even purring. Was this guy some kind of cat whisperer?

“Oh!” The young man looked delighted, smile widening and hands immediately moving to stroke the content cat. “Is that this baby’s name? Hello, sweet Mimi.”

“I-I’m sorry for my sudden exclamation,” Jeno stammered out an apology in attempt to maintain professionalism. “Y-Yes, that’s Mimi. I’m sorry, she doesn’t usually so abruptly jump on customers like this. I can move her if she’s a bother.”

The customer laughed sunnily and moved to stroke the underside of Mimi’s white chin. “Not at all! That’s the charm of a cat cafe, right? Would you like to join me for coffee, pretty girl?”

Mimi purred in agreement, making Jeno stare in shock.

Was it a full moon? Because this had to have been some kind of rare manifestation of it.

Blissfully unaware, the customer just beamed. “I’ll have an iced americano with the Colombian beans.”

The best Jeno could muster was a nod before staggering back to the counter. Once there, he gripped Hendery’s shoulder in a mild daze.

“Owwww! Dude, you know you’re like, ridiculously strong, right? Ease up!” Hendery complained, squirming out of Jeno’s grip. “What’s wrong?”

Sheepish, Jeno apologized, “Sorry. I’m just shocked. Mimi jumped onto that customer’s lap when I was taking his order, and she’s still sitting with him.”

“What? No way.”

Once he confirmed it with his own eyes, Hendery let out a low whistle. “Miracles do happen, huh?”

“Right?”

“Or maybe she sensed he was a hottie and claimed him early.”

“Stop.”

“Don’t act like you didn’t notice, Sir Stares-A-Lot.”

With a shake of his head at Hendery’s waggling eyebrows, Jeno busied himself with preparing the customer’s order. Work first. Plus, Hendery’s suggestive comment didn’t warrant a proper response. Perhaps, though, he also subtly glanced over curiously every so often to see if the cat was still there. For her.

She was. In fact, she swung her coffee-colored plume tail back and forth in an almost teasing way as well. Was she taunting him?

Even when Jeno returned to the table to deliver the customer’s order, Mimi simply leveled him with a look of vague acknowledgement before nuzzling her face back into the young man’s palm. The customer looked completely charmed, as he cooed sweetly at her and complied with gratuitous pats, but Jeno felt a little stab of betrayal as he skulked away.

Cats just had to be heartbreakers, didn’t they?

It had taken a moderate amount of willpower to stop peeking over at Mimi and her newly designated favorite thereafter. His manager tasking him with restocking the pastry display was a welcome distraction; an opportunity to fuss over something else. He was in the middle of rotating the tartlets for the chocolate slabs to be displayed at the exact 45 degree angle that he liked when a pale pink blur of motion caught his attention.

The customer was waving for him, making Jeno scramble out of the pastry display to grab his order notepad and make his way back over with only a small amount of flustered energy.

With his brows knit upward and the slightest curve of a frown on his lips, the young man looked the epitome of “slightly troubled.” Concern was plastered visibly on his face, and when Jeno approached, he understood why.

“Sorry to bother you,” the customer started, looking up at Jeno with pleading eyes that made him feel weak. “But Mimi suddenly started trembling. I was worried that she might not be feeling well?”

The ever so slight shaking was enough at least to be visible, and Jeno had seen it immediately. When he extended a hand to reach for her, however, she dove off the customer’s lap and into his open bag in a heartbreaking game of keep away. Jeno was glad his face mask was covering the disappointed frown he knew he was now sporting.

“Mimi, are you not feeling well, baby?”

His question fell on deaf ears, as the ragamuffin stayed burrowed in the customer’s bag, not even bothering to spare him a look.

The cold shoulder immediately flooded Jeno with a sense of guilt. Perhaps she really was sick in some way. With her escape journey the night before and the hiding in the morning, maybe something had actually happened to her? The desire to kick himself for not properly looking her over in the morning was strong. Maybe she really was mad at him.

There was a gentle touch on the back of his hand, cool and soft. The customer had given him a reassuring pat and smile. And somehow, like a charm, Jeno eased on his tension and sighed.

Together, they managed to pull the trembling cat out of the bag—non-metaphorically speaking.

Once Mimi was in his arms, Jeno looked her all over in concern the same way the customer nervously watched him. She was still shaking a little, claws retracting in and out, and the sound she made was—

Hacking?

It was a little stroke of fortune that he happened to be wearing gloves still, which he utilized immediately to help relieve Mimi from what ailed her.

“Just a hairball,” Jeno told the young man sheepishly, hiding the evidence in his gloves and removing them for disposal.

The customer looked on in silent shock for a second longer, as if he were still processing the information. After a long moment, he laughed sheepishly with bright red ears.

“Oh. Oh my god. That’s embarrassing. I’m sorry.”

“Please don’t apologize,” Jeno said, finding his laughter contagious to laugh a little himself. “Mimi can be a little troublemaker. She got me too.”

“So it’s not just me being an obvious novice with cats?”

“With the way she cozied up to you, I think you’re pro enough.”

“You’re sweet.”

From the moment Jeno had picked her up, Mimi had kept him at a distance with her two front paws pressed against his chest and face turned away from him. She must have gotten tired of his casual banter with the handsome customer, because she then utilized his chest like a springboard to push away from him, out of his arms and onto her new favorite’s unsuspecting chest.

Eyes blowing wide at the sudden movement, the young man snapped his hands up to catch the troublemaking cat.

...only to have his elbow knock his mostly full cup over the edge of the table, spilling its contents down the length of Jeno’s legs.

“Oh,” the young man breathed, arms still full of Mimi, eyes wide as saucers. “Ohmygod.”

Jeno, to his credit, managed to stay calm and still during all of it. It wasn’t the first time he had suffered a spill at work, though it admittedly might have been the worst. With the way Mimi looked at him from her comfortable spot against the customer’s soft pink sweater, Jeno was beginning to feel a stronger confirmation. She was definitely playing him.

“It’s okay,” he reassured again, rolling his apron together. “That’s what aprons are for, right?”

The customer still looked horrified despite the reassurance. “Your pants… I am so sorry.”

Somehow, the situation became funny to Jeno. He laughed, “Told you she was a troublemaker.”

With excellent timing, Hendery appeared at his side dutifully with a mop and a reassuring pat. He offered the customer a tiny bow before addressing Jeno with a good natured grin.

“Another day, another disaster, my king? I’ll get this. Go change in the back.”

With that, Jeno excused himself, not missing the way the handsome customer looked on after him guiltily. Mimi, on the other hand, remained completely remorseless, happily curled up on his lap. The stab of betrayal was truly harsh, Jeno thought to himself as he ducked into the back.

When misfortune started, it seemed to just keep rolling.

At least, that was what Jeno was finding as he awkwardly changed into his manager’s extra pants. Because he didn’t live far, he typically came to work in uniform, minus the apron and hat, which he had always found to be an advantage. With the day’s developments, it began to feel more like a disadvantage. Especially as their manager was the only one with extra slacks around.

Extra slacks that were a bit tight and hung short, leaving a modest strip of his ankles visible to the world like a scandalous woman in Victorian times.

Jeno sighed and mentally made note to give up on ankle socks in the future. Long or no go from now on.

When he returned to the front, Hendery had just finished remaking another iced americano. His coworker wasted no time dropping his eyes down the length of Jeno’s body before choking out a laugh.

“I feel like I’m seeing something I’m not supposed to,” he laughed in a manner close to a howl. “Is this allowed to be free content?”

Jeno frowned and clicked his tongue in response, feeling his ears burn a little hot regardless. Despite the merciless teasing, Hendery took off his own apron and offered it—a gesture Jeno immediately accepted. At least he could cover the top…tight areas.

“I’m going home during my break,” Jeno warned, securing the apron over himself modestly.

“So it’s not free content after all…”

“Please stop talking.”

Although it was truly an attempt to avoid further mockery that Jeno snatched the completed americano from his coworker, the weirdly knowing look Hendery had on gave him an uncomfortable vibe. There was more teasing lying in wait for him, Jeno knew. Hendery always kept a full arsenal and wasn’t afraid to use it.

Back at the customer’s table, Mimi had decided it apt to snooze away once the commotion was over while the young man silently fussed with a fancy looking camera. When Jeno placed the fresh cup down on the table, he spotted a small pink label on the top of the camera, reading “NANA” with a tiny scribble of a bunny. Vaguely, he wondered if that was the customer’s name.

“You didn’t have to bring me another drink,” the young man said sheepishly, placing the camera down on the table.

“Don’t worry,” Jeno immediately reassured. “The spill was more our Mimi’s fault than yours anyway.”

The expression on the customer’s face showed that he was clearly unconvinced, but he didn’t bring it up again either. Instead he asked with a smile, “Are your pants okay?”

Jeno grimaced under his mask. “I’m dry for the most part, so...that’s something.”

“I see these might be a little short.”

“More breeze to dry my socks?”

The customer laughed at that, a bright sound that tickled Jeno’s ears. It was clear and charming in a way that suited him very well, he decided.

“You’re a photographer?” Jeno found himself blurting out.

The young man blinked at him slowly, as if it took a moment to process the question, then smiled and patted his camera fondly.

“It’s mostly just a hobby, but I do love photography. I love capturing beautiful moments.” That said, he picked the camera up and switched it on.

“Actually, that’s why I’m here. I heard there were lots of cute subjects here.” He stroked Mimi’s head for emphasis with a chuckle. “The good coffee happens to be a bonus.”

He turned and held up his camera for Jeno to look, which he immediately did. Displayed on the tiny screen was a beautiful portrait of Mimi laying on her back and reaching for his lens, and as the young man let the reel pass, there were more pictures of the cat tree in the distance with the others playing and sleeping. Each photo was bright and well-framed; they felt warm and loving with obvious care put into each shot. The slideshow made Jeno’s heart melt a little.

“You’re incredible,” he complimented sincerely. “These are really great. You brought out the charm in this place so well. Maybe we should hire you for promo photos.”

The customer laughed brightly at that. “Are you sure you still want me around after ruining your pants and socks?”

Jeno couldn’t help but chuckle a little in response. Clearing his throat, he answered in a joking manner, “You might be the only customer Mimi has ever stuck to so I’ll make an exception for you.”

There was a long moment after that—silent but pleasant. It should have felt awkward, Jeno acknowledged. Especially after everything that had happened, not to mention his uncharacteristic attempt at uninvited small talk. But he felt surprisingly comfortable, in the same way he would have if it had been a friend in front of him.

“You guys serve pastries too, right? Could you recommend me your favorite?”

The sudden question caught Jeno off guard. But when he broke out of his daze, the young man was smiling up at him like he was the only person in the world. With the full weight of his attention, Jeno felt the calm devolve into something inexplicably flustered.

“We, uh, have a macaron trio that I really like. It comes with French vanilla, earl grey, and strawberry flavors.”

“If that’s what you like, I’ll order one.”

The constant barrage of sunny smiles was enough to allow Jeno to photosynthesize, he was sure. There was a dizzying charm in them, enough to make Jeno’s palms slightly sweaty and his tongue trip over his words. So much for feeling comfortable.

Though before he managed to say anything else, Mimi decided to wake up then and leap off the customer’s lap. Like she was finally issuing an apology, she rubbed herself soothingly around Jeno’s exposed ankles before squatting on top of his shoes, effectively trapping him in place. Jeno couldn’t help but sigh. Reluctant, but endeared.

“She seems sorry too,” the customer chuckled.

“Nana?”

At the sudden call, the blond suddenly perked up to look behind Jeno. If it was even possible, his smile bloomed even larger with recognition and he stood up, freed from the lap weight of the cat. Jeno, on the other hand, was helplessly trapped and could do nothing but silently look on as the customer reached up to embrace an even taller man with darker blond hair and a camera hanging off his shoulder.

Now, it was a little awkward. To be standing that close while others were hugging, that was. But Mimi didn’t seem to get the memo.

“Mimi, please,” Jeno whispered under his breath, staring down at her.

Unaffected, she simply looked back with her little golden eyes, knowing full well she had Jeno’s heart in her little furry paws.

Sighing yet again, Jeno rolled his sleeves down as far as they would go before reaching down to pick up the mischievous ragamuffin to free his feet. By the time he stood straight again, “Nana” and the new arrival, who was just as shockingly handsome, were both looking at him.

“Uh,” Jeno began, feeling unnerved. Holding a flailing cat in his arms was definitely not helping. “May I take your order?”

The taller patron laughed but mercifully gave his order. He recited it and seated himself on the other side of the table with practiced familiarity, making it clear it wasn’t his first time there. And while Jeno put Mimi down again (she immediately clambered back into the first customer’s lap), it became further evident as Fafa bounded over excitedly and pounced up and down at the new arrival’s lanky legs.

It made sense that Fafa liked him. He was exactly her type: tall.

Back behind the counter, Hendery was doing an exceptionally poor job of pretending he hadn’t been watching. Actively narrating didn’t help.

“Ah yes, and here we go. The spot that I was cleaning on this counter has now been thoroughly cleaned. Because I have been wiping it. The whole time.”

Jeno rolled his eyes and busied himself with the orders.

“Bummer though,” Hendery went on, uninvited, patting Jeno’s shoulder.

“Huh?”

“Hottie’s got a date, huh?” Looking like an actor in a tragedy, Hendery shook his head in condolence. “Mimi was so close to bagging herself another dad.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Maybe you should have left the apron off after all.”

Jeno gave him a disturbed look.

“What? If you aren’t going to show off that handsome face, you could have at least shown off your other assets.”

Jeno considered it an actual blessing from above that two more customers walked in at that moment, making Hendery have to leave him with a wink. Though he wasn’t the violent type, sometimes he wanted to sock his friend. On the arm only, though. They hadn’t reached face level ever, and Jeno hoped they never would.

While Jeno prepared a tray with their orders, he spied the two customers conversing cheerfully and snapping photos of each other or the cats. Every so often, they leaned close across the table to look at each other’s cameras and shared bursts of laughter. They did seem close.

But since it wasn’t Jeno’s habit to spy on customers, he finished up prepping their orders without looking up again.

Delivering the order, on the other hand, was slightly different. As soon as he approached the table, “Nana” turned his full attention to him and smiled in that bright sunny way again. Before Jeno could remove the plate of macarons from his tray, the young man stopped him with a gentle hand.

“Actually,” he began slowly. Jeno wasn’t sure if his eyes were deceiving him, but he looked almost...bashful. “I ordered that for you. You said you like it, right?”

Across the table, the taller patron looked on in great interest, widened eyes trained up at Jeno’s face while casually sipping his iced americano from one hand and petting Fafa with his other. The extra audience made Jeno feel extra self-conscious; he half expected this to be a prank of some sort.

The extended silence must have worn down the young man’s nerves, because he laughed sheepishly to fill the void. The sound of it was terribly endearing somehow.

“I know it’s not much, but it’s the least I can do. For the spill.”

“T-Thank you,” Jeno finally stammered out. “But you really didn’t have to. It’s no trouble.”

Maybe it was a hallucination in his dumbstruck haze or maybe Jeno was just a goner, but in that moment, those eyes seemed to sparkle back at him.

“I wanted to.”

It was those sparkling eyes Jeno spent the rest of the day thinking about. Even when the customer eventually left, drifting out with a tiny wave and gentle smile (plus a cutely scribbled “thank you” and bunny at the bottom of his receipt), Jeno remembered the curve of his eyes, the soft honey hues, the glittering twinkle. And when he slowly ate those macarons at the end of the day, the same macarons he had eaten so many times before, they somehow tasted extra sweet.

Despite telling Hendery it was the fact that Mimi had stuck to him that made the customer memorable, Jeno reluctantly conceded to the butterflies to privately admit:

Maybe that “Nana” was just his type.

Like a solid stroke of fortune, he didn’t have to struggle long in tortuous wait to see if “Nana” would ever return. Within a few days, the bells on the door chimed, and in he walked again. Dressed in pale pink again that so charmingly complemented his light blond hair, with another sunbeam-bright smile, that “Nana” blew back in.

“Welcome back,” Jeno greeted pleasantly as he brought the menu over. Same seat, same table.

“Oh good, you remember me,” the young man laughed.

“You’re hard to forget.”

The admission was punctuated with Mimi’s sudden appearance at their feet, staring at the blond expectantly with wide eyes.

“I missed you too,” he said cheerily. Though he probably meant Mimi and reached over to pick her up as a point, Jeno still kept the words privately in his chest like a happy spell.

“What would you like today?”

“Another americano, please. Oh, but Lee Jeno, wait a moment.”

The sudden call of his name made Jeno blink in surprise. “You know my name?”

The young man chuckled in amusement while pulling something out of his bag. “Mm, it says on your name tag?”

Oh yeah. Jeno flushed at the realization. Fortunately, his trusty mask was in place to shield him from exposure.

“Anyway, I wanted to give this to you.”

It was a small paper package, plaid patterned and neatly taped. Like a gift. Jeno was confused to say the least. It was hard to resist taking though, especially with two pairs of earnest round eyes (both “Nana” and Mimi’s) staring expectantly up at him. Swallowing slowly, he took the package graciously.

“T-Thank you,” he stuttered to the customer’s delighted expression. “I’ll op—o-oh, you want me to open it now?”

The paper was plain and common, one of those standard packagings from any gift shop, but Jeno took extreme care in opening it as if it were precious. He felt unnecessarily nervous. Perhaps a little giddy as well. It wasn’t every day he was randomly given gifts by customers, let alone an attractive individual he may or may not have the beginnings of a crush on.

It was socks. Dark blue to pair with his uniform and a single tiny embroidered kitten face on it. Simple, subtle, cute.

“You were wearing wet socks the rest of the afternoon last time right? I still felt bad… When I saw these, I thought of you.”

There was no good way to appropriately express the dizzying and mildly nauseous feeling Jeno was experiencing. It was confusing but flattering, and over all, terribly sweet. Though his instinct was to stutter out more thanks and tell him he didn’t have to do such a thing, he instead somehow found the will to joke brazenly: “Are you arming me for more future spills?”

“No more from me, I promise,” the blond replied with a grin, holding both hands up in surrender.

“The macarons, now this,” Jeno started, tucking the socks safely and preciously into his apron pocket, “I think you’ve more than made up for one little spill. You just like giving gifts, don’t you?”

“Maybe?”

With one more smile, Jeno excused himself to fetch the customer’s order. He didn’t miss the way Hendery waggled his eyebrows again and flashed him two thumbs up—whatever that was supposed to mean. Instead, he busied himself with his job: making coffee. It was a good day. Good enough that he figured he should give a little back.

When Jeno returned to his table, the handsome blond was cheerfully snapping photos of Mimi on his lap with his phone while whispering lavish praises. Leave it to a photographer to never miss an opportunity to take pictures, Jeno thought in fond amusement.

“What’s this?” the young man asked in surprise when Jeno placed an extra plate down on his table beside his ordered drink.

“You gifted me the macarons last time, so let me treat you to them this time,” Jeno answered as if it were obvious. “I really do like them, and I hope you do too.”

The sweet and sunny smile the young man flashed back at him, another one for photosynthesis, was plenty payment enough, Jeno thought privately to himself. It was warm and trapping enough that Jeno didn’t want to walk away. And if it weren’t for his manager calling for him to retrieve Fafa from the top of the bookshelf where she had climbed, Jeno might have lingered a little longer.

It wasn’t until much later, after Fafa had been apprehended from her climbing adventure and Rere was moved from his sleeping position in the potted plant, that Jeno was able to return to Mimi and the blond customer’s table. Mimi was continuing her streak of keeping someone company, making Jeno suppose he would just have to accept it. Though, he also supposed, if it was this customer, he wouldn’t really mind.

To Jeno’s surprise and slight disappointment, there was one macaron left on the young man’s plate when he returned. While his coffee cup was empty and the other two cookies were missing, the lone pink macaron lay leftover on his plate with a tiny nibble of it missing.

“Was that one not to your taste?”

“Oh,” the customer breathed, looking a little sheepish. “They were delicious. I’m just, um, not a big fan of strawberry. I loved the other two though, honestly. Thank you for treating me.”

“You don’t like strawberry?” Jeno couldn’t help but smile. “Why does that feel like a surprise somehow?”

“If you’re assuming that because I like to wear pink, it’s not the first time I’ve heard it,” he said with a theatrical sigh. “If it helps, I do like peach and raspberry. Just...not strawberry.”

“I’ll keep that in mind for future recommendations,” Jeno promised.

“Are you baiting me into becoming a regular?”

Jeno regarded him for a moment then: seated comfortably with Mimi planted cozily in his lap, head resting on his palm while propped up on the table, all the while smiling most charmingly. Definitely, he thought to himself silently. He definitely wouldn’t mind seeing him regularly.

“Maybe?”

The blond laughed brightly at the mimic of his earlier comment. The way he smiled and laughed at everything gave Jeno a perhaps unwarranted boost of confidence, a little hope that maybe he wasn’t the only one feeling a little spark of something between them.

“Hmm,” the young man said slowly, looking thoughtful. “Cute cats, good coffee, sweet staff… I suppose I wouldn’t mind. I do have one condition though.”

Surprised, Jeno blinked. “What?”

“Nana” smiled in a gentle inviting way, saccharine enough that Jeno felt like he was the one being baited like a honey bee to nectar.

“You’ll have to remember my name. I’m Jaemin. Na Jaemin. Deal, Lee Jeno?”

“Deal, Na Jaemin,” Jeno answered immediately, trying not to mind the way his stomach was full of knots. In attempt to play off his eagerness, he added jokingly, “Any friend of Mimi’s is a friend of mine.”

The smile he fixed Jeno with next made his heart stutter a beat: pink lips curled up, pearly white teeth peeking, eyes curved prettily to match. Mimi sat up then to point her dainty pink nose to the underside of Jaemin’s chin as well, like a sort of nuzzle of approval. With a cat as picky as her, Jeno was readily willing to consider it a sign—or maybe a blessing on their friendship.

Whatever it was, he had nothing but good feelings. And Na Jaemin was the source.

Much to Jeno’s delight but simultaneous internal distress, Na Jaemin kept his word about becoming a regular. He appeared once or twice a week; sometimes even three if Jeno was lucky. At each visit he sat at his usual table without fail and was consistently greeted by not only Jeno, but Mimi as well. It really did seem as if she had taken particular interest in him. Honestly, Jeno still hadn’t recovered from the shock.

Perhaps he and Mimi were more alike than he thought.

“—so that’s why my friends will be dropping by a bunch starting today, I guess.”

Fully distracted by his thoughts, Jeno missed nearly everything Hendery had been saying. In fact, he only became vaguely aware of his surroundings when his coworker started waving his hand in front of his face. Did he look that dazed?

“Hello? Earth to Jeno? You’ve been wiping that same cup for like twelve minutes.”

Okay, maybe he did look incriminatingly dazed.

“Sorry,” Jeno apologized sheepishly with the little sense he had left.

He surrendered the cup when Hendery reached to free it from his meticulous wipe down. As unpredictable as his coworker could be, Hendery really was reliable, Jeno thought to himself. Many times before and surely many times to come, Hendery would be there, offering just the right kind of insight when Jeno needed another angle. And although there weren’t many people Jeno felt he could talk to easily, he knew Hendery was one he could count on. It probably wouldn’t hurt to ask his opinion.

“Hey, Hendery?”

“Yes, my king?”

“Have you ever—” Jeno cleared his throat. “—had, um, a...c-crush…”

The topic piqued Hendery’s interest immediately, as he put away the cups at lightning speed and smoothly slid over to Jeno’s side with a wide grin. Helpfully, he supplied when Jeno trailed off, “On a customer?”

“Uh, y-yeah.”

“You talking about your crush on Nana?”

“Wh—? How did…? Wait, why are you calling him that?”

Hendery waved dismissively. “What, was I supposed to keep calling him ‘hottie’ forever? He came on your day off once, like a while ago. But don’t worry, we had a little chat and I set him straight with your schedule.”

Dumbstruck, Jeno stared. “You what?”

“Hey, you should be thanking me. Now he only comes when you’re working. Coincidence? I think not.”

It took longer than Jeno was proud of to figure out what Hendery was insinuating, and when it finally clicked, Jeno felt inexplicably nervous again.

“Don’t look like that,” Hendery chided, giving him a solid pat on the shoulder. “You’re acting like it wasn’t extremely obvious you were completely taken with him from the moment he first walked in here. Your face was, and continues to be, so obvious.”

“But I’m wearing a mask?” Jeno protested with wide eyes.

Unfazed, Hendery took two of his fingers to point at his own eyes before turning them to point at Jeno’s. With full and utter confidence, he stated, “I’m a master at reading your eye sliver. But really, you’re just that obvious.”

Jeno wanted to protest again at the accusation, but he didn’t really have anything to state that would prove otherwise. So instead he glumly wrung the towel in his hands as if he were choking out his imaginary demons.

“Honestly though,” Hendery interrupted thoughtfully, “if anything, you should feel encouraged. He comes all the time—alone now, by the way—and chats with you only. And didn’t he only start after you asked him?”

“I didn’t ask explicitly,” Jeno mumbled. “It was mostly a joke.” He sighed. “Maybe he just likes coffee? Or maybe it’s Mimi. It feels really good to be a cat’s favorite, you know? Makes you feel powerful.”

Hendery animatedly waved his hands again like windshield wipers dashing Jeno’s words.

“No, no,” he said firmly. “I get the gut feeling he’s coming here looking for you. My gut feeling is never wrong.”

Jeno raised an eyebrow. “Didn’t your ‘gut feeling’ tell you it was safe to eat a tart off the floor the other day?”

“Yeah, and I didn’t die, so where’s the problem? I scraped the floor-touching side off, by the way.”

“Sure.”

“You should try asking him out,” Hendery deflected. “He’s already showing signs of interest and he hasn’t even seen your whole face. Imagine how smitten he’ll be when he gets the full picture. Have you seen yourself?”

“Stop.”

Despite his dry protest, Jeno did consider it a little. Over the past few weeks, they had spent a lot of time talking. Most of it felt like innocuous chit chat—about general interests and whatnot. Jeno had learned countless general facts about him. Like how despite all the pink he wore, his favorite color was actually white. Or that he had picked up photography as a teenager and practiced it lovingly ever since. Or that his favorite scent was fresh lilacs.

But there were many more little things about Jaemin that Jeno had found captivating. Like the fact that he genuinely seemed to care if Jeno had eaten properly or if his day was going well. Or the way he so lovingly spoke to Mimi with dozens of pretty praises. Or the way he looked Jeno in the eyes when they spoke as if no one else were around. As if no one else mattered.

Truthfully, he felt tempted more than once to ask; to expand their world past the confines of the cafe. He was tempted to see if maybe he wasn’t the only one who wanted to know the other better. The confidence to do so just wasn’t quite ever there. Not to mention—

“It’d be unprofessional of me, wouldn’t it?” he sighed.

“What would be unprofessional of you?”

Trapped in the labyrinth of thoughts, Jeno had completely missed when the door jingled again to announce the arrival of the bakery assistant who usually dropped off their orders. Suddenly, it wasn’t just Hendery standing before him, but an additional presence leaning casually over the counter and examining him with inquisitive eyes and a mildly devious expression.

“Hey, Haechan,” greeted Hendery cheerfully. “Jeno has a crush on a regular but is too scared to ask him out. So they’ve just been coyly flirting with each other like high schoolers for weeks.”

Jeno shot him a frown that he hoped portrayed the intense sense of betrayal he felt, thus appropriately shaming him. With Hendery as the target though, needless to say, it didn’t work.

And Haechan, being who he was, reveled in the fresh gossip, wasting not even a second to make his opinion known:

“Relax, Jeno. You’re a cafe barista, not a CEO soliciting his secretary or something. Why not try asking out a cute patron? You want to be a lonely catboy for the rest of your life?”

Jeno grimaced. “Please don’t call me a catboy.”

“You’re a boy that likes cats though?”

“You’re not helping, Hendery.”

“Anyway,” Haechan continued while simultaneously moving his crates of pastries to the counter, “I wouldn’t miss the opportunity if I were you. Life’s all about seizing opportunities. Why not give it a shot?”

He wasn’t necessarily wrong; the schematics of actually asking someone out was just daunting.

Resigned, Jeno muttered, “I’ll consider it.”

“Good, it’s decided then,” Haechan declared conclusively like some kind of sports coach deciding on a play. “Now sign for my pastries, catboy.”

Jeno made a miffed sort of sound at the name again but took the baker’s receipt anyway.

“I don’t know what you have against our strawberry macarons all of a sudden, but there’s been more around at the bakery for me to snack on, so thanks for that,” Haechan informed him when he took the signed paper back.

“S-Seasonal flavor change,” Jeno stuttered, staring down at the rows of light pink peach macarons on the counter.

Looking suspicious, Haechan raised an eyebrow. Thankfully, he didn’t press the matter. “It’s the middle of the season, but whatever. Anything for the man of my dreams.”

“Um, thanks?”

Haechan shot him an exasperated look, coupled with an impressive rolling of his eyes. As if it were overtly obvious, he stated matter-of-factly, “Not you. Your manager. Where is my adorable kitten anyway?”

“About to feed the cats, Sunshine,” Hendery told him with a grin. “Want to go say hi?”

“Go see the love of my life and the babies? See ya.”

And with that and not so much as a wave more, Haechan disappeared behind them into the lounge at break-neck speed.

“Now that’s a good example of seizing opportunities,” Hendery commented. “Take note, my king.”

He had a point, but Jeno shook his head anyway. “Haechan’s got at least five loves of his life.”

“All the more reason to seize opportunities. Speaking of which…! Welcome back, Nana.”

As if summoned, Jaemin appeared through the jingling door, armed with a devastatingly sweet smile. It was almost unfair how handsome he looked, even with wind tousled hair and simple clothes. Like always, Jeno felt the air catch in his throat at the sight of him. And like always, he stared perhaps a little longer than he should have.

“Hi, Hendery, Jeno,” Jaemin greeted cheerfully as he approached the counter. “Restocking today?”

“Yup,” Hendery answered in Jeno’s silence. “Got a few changes to the menu.”

“White peach macarons?” Jaemin noted, looking down at the labeled cookies on the counter. “My favorite flavor. I’ll have to try some.”

Because Hendery wasn’t blind or easily fooled, he turned to Jeno with a grin wide enough to flex his whole face. The way he nudged Jeno with his elbow and did his usual eyebrow waggle was not subtle in the slightest. The only saving grace was that Jaemin was still distractedly looking down at the pastries while it occurred. Jeno willed the earth to open up and swallow him.

“A-Anyway, would you like your usual table?”

“I actually can’t stay today.” Jaemin gave them both a regretful look over his signature smile. “I just came to say hi and pick up some coffee.”

His eyes slowly shifted over to Jeno, giving him a wistful look that increased his heart rate. Jeno felt like he had been turned to stone with that look, rooting him into the ground and making him forget how to move.

“I do wish we could chat more though.”

“You can!” Hendery, ever helpful, spoke up loudly, clapping a hand down soundly onto Jeno’s shoulder. “Jeno here usually takes his breaks around 4 pm each day. But he’s really boring so he just hangs out and plays with the cats. Why don’t you come around that time and get to know each other better?”

When Jaemin looked at Hendery in surprise, Jeno felt his soul dive back into his body, forcing him to at least make an attempt at damage control.

“He means the cats,” he choked out. “You can get to know the cats better.”

“Yeah, definitely what I meant. Absolutely. Without a doubt. Anyway, I’ll go make your coffee.”

That said, Hendery retreated with another thumbs up. He also, as he went, overtly mouthed an uninvited “you’re welcome” at Jeno when Jaemin was blocked from view. The man was lawless, and Jeno for a moment considered re-evaluating his high regard of him.

Left alone with the object of his torment, Jeno turned slowly, resigning himself to his fate.

“Would you mind?”

“Huh?”

Jaemin smiled at him with the patience of a saint. He clarified, “If I visited during your breaks.”

Hoping the surprise wasn’t too obvious in his eyes, Jeno couldn’t help but stare. “You’d want to?”

“It’s fun talking to you when you’re serving me, but I do feel bad about taking up so much of your time,” Jaemin admitted with a chuckle. “I think it would be nice to get to know each other better.”

The nerves were definitely returning. That was probably why although Jeno’s brain screamed for him to say something charming or at the very least coherent  in response, all he managed to muster instead was:

“Y-Yeah?”

“Mmhmm,” Jaemin hummed. Then, to Jeno’s utter shock, he winked. “Mimi and I are close but I could use a formal introduction to the other babies, right?”

“Oh. Oh y-yeah, the cats. Yeah, definitely. To get to know them better. Of course you can come.”

Jeno was still mentally kicking himself and fumbling over his own tongue when Hendery returned with Jaemin’s usual. To distract himself while Hendery finished the transaction, Jeno focused all of his attention on bagging two peach macarons as if it were the most complicated task in existence. Anything to shield himself from further embarrassment.

Before Jaemin left though, he shyly handed the bag over.

He smiled in full, radiant delight. The effect of it made Jeno grateful that Hendery had given him the space to be flustered in peace.

“For me?”

Slowly, Jeno nodded. “A bribe. So that you’ll come back.”

When Jaemin took the bag, their fingers brushed together ever so slightly. Almost unnecessarily. Still, Jeno reveled in the burning trail of heat the touch left. With Jaemin’s promise to see him soon echoing in his ears, Jeno thought dizzily to himself:

I’m done for.

Whether by will of angels or trickster devils, Jaemin really did start showing up during Jeno’s breaks.

To Jeno, it was unexpected—no matter what Hendery said. So it was hard to hide his bumbling shock when Jaemin joined him in the lounge with his usual iced americano in one hand and cat treats (probably from Hendery) in the other. Still, Jeno was proud to have kept his composure well enough to not drop the brush he was holding, although Lala did bat at his hand when his motions stopped.

When he spotted the pretty white cat sitting in Jeno’s lap, Jaemin broke out into a wide, toothy smile and a soft coo.

“Even on your break, you’re so dedicated to them.”

Having Lala to occupy his hands did well to still his nerves, even though she mewled impatiently at the interruption. Grateful to have a task to focus on instead of his internal panic, Jeno went back to brushing her dutifully.

“You probably could have guessed, but I really love cats,” Jeno admitted.

Lala chose that moment to purr in agreement. Of all of the cats at Do-Si-Do, she probably loved being brushed the best.

“Cute,” Jaemin commented, smiling fondly.

Jeno wasn’t entirely sure if he meant Lala or him, but he decided not to press it, lest he disappoint himself. He simply slid over a fraction to give Jaemin enough room to sit comfortably beside him on the floor.

Humming thoughtfully, Jaemin looked over to Lala and extended a finger to stroke under her chin. “I don’t see this child often.”

“This is Lala,” Jeno introduced as her white plume tail twitched. “She usually likes to stick to the cat tree, but she’ll come running if you have a brush.”

He offered Jaemin the brush, which he happily took before moving to carefully brush the cat in Jeno’s lap. While Jaemin watched Lala, Jeno looked him over instead, feeling something bubbly in his chest at the way Jaemin’s eyes lit up every time Lala purred.

“What a sweet girl!”

Tearing his eyes away, Jeno looked back down at Lala. “Mmm, you could say Lala’s the opposite of Mimi. She looks like she may be trouble, but she’s actually very well-behaved and sweet.”

“Mimi’s sweet too,” Jaemin defended with a chuckle.

“Specifically to you.”

“Yup.”

As if summoned, Mimi made her way over then. Upon assessing the situation, she wasted no time stepping into Jeno’s lap, squeezing herself between Lala and the brush Jaemin held. Lala meowed in protest, but went completely ignored by the ragamuffin.

“Mimi,” Jeno sighed. “I already brushed you. It’s Lala’s turn now. Or are you just trying to get close to Jaemin again?”

Jaemin chuckled again at Jeno’s chastising and reached to take Mimi into his lap while surrendering the brush back to Jeno.

“The others have a hard time handling her,” Jeno said as he resumed brushing Lala. “Mimi can be really picky.”

Looking completely charmed, Jaemin commented, “It’s cute that they all have different personalities. Can I give her a treat?”

“At the risk of encouraging her meddling behavior…sure. Go ahead.”

Jaemin winked at him. “You’re a lenient father, Lee Jeno.”

Jeno fumbled a little at that, trying hard not to think about what else Jaemin could call him besides father.

The lure of treats was enough to cause the other cats to bound over. Within moments, Rere was rubbing himself lovingly against Jaemin’s arm, Fafa was attempting to climb his back, and even Solsol appeared to meow loudly at a safe distance (out of Mimi’s reach). Only Lala stayed where she was, complacent under Jeno’s brushing.

“Only one each,” Jeno cautioned, giving each cat a stern look rather than Jaemin himself. “Behave yourselves.”

Jaemin, on the other hand, was completely delighted, trying to pet each cat within reach despite Mimi’s attempts to interfere.

“Ah,” he suddenly started when Fafa successfully climbed up to his shoulder. “This is the child that Johnny-hyung always plays with. Fafa?”

“Your tall friend?” Jeno inquired, remembering the other tall, handsome blond man Jaemin had been with on his first visit. When Jaemin nodded, Jeno went on, “Probably because she’s his type. She loves climbing things and people. The taller the better.”

“Makes sense then,” Jaemin commented in amusement, offering the little orange and white cat a treat. “She has such small legs. I’m impressed she climbs so well.”

“She’s the youngest and most adventurous one here.”

Jeno watched fondly as Jaemin continued to play with each cat lovingly. If his heart could grow any bigger, it probably did in that moment. To distract himself, he continued the introductions.

“Rere’s the gray striped one. He loves cuddling with people, so he’s really popular with the other patrons. And you know Solsol, he’s the one Hendery is always chasing around. You know those really loud meows that sound like screams you hear sometimes? That’s him.”

“What a cute family.”

Jaemin smiled sweetly, putting the leftover treats away after abiding to Jeno’s strict one only rule. With the temptation of treats no longer there (and Mimi’s persistent swatting), the other cats dispersed to play in other areas again. Even Lala, who Jeno had finished brushing, elegantly stepped out of his lap to climb the cat tree again. Only Mimi lingered, stretching over to take Lala’s place in Jeno’s lap possessively. Jeno’s weak heart melted at the action.

“I was wondering, actually,” Jaemin began slowly, sliding even closer to Jeno to stay in arm’s reach of Mimi. “If you don’t mind me asking, why are you always wearing a mask?”

Jeno did his best to pretend his heart didn’t leap into his throat when Jaemin reached over to gently stroke the cat in his lap.

“I-It’s not a big secret or anything,” he said distractedly. “I’m just allergic to fur.”

Jaemin gaped at him incredulously. “You’re…allergic?”

“Um, yeah. Is that bad?”

“No, I’m just surprised. I mean, you work with cats all day.”

“I make coffee too,” Jeno defended with a sniff.

“You know what I mean,” Jaemin laughed, nudging him with his elbow. “Do you have any of your own?”

“No,” Jeno shook his head, running his hand over Mimi’s soft belly next to Jaemin’s hand. “Spending some time with them at work and having them in my home all day are two different things. Plus, even if I could manage to be with them all the time without having a reaction, my apartment complex doesn’t allow pets. But that’s why I work here.”

“You really do love cats, huh?”

“Guilty,” sighed Jeno, holding his gloved hands up in surrender.

“Cute.”

Jeno hadn’t been sure earlier, but this time, it was difficult to mistake who Jaemin was talking about. The handsome blond had his full sunny smile pointed directly at him, complete with his sparkling honeyed eyes curved in just the way Jeno admired. It took all the self-control in Jeno’s body to keep himself from panicking. It probably already counted as an achievement that he didn’t completely roll himself in the opposite direction already.

Suddenly, he was reminded of Haechan’s words and Hendery’s nagging encouragement. He should seize opportunities; it wouldn’t hurt to at least try, right? With Jaemin close to him like this, with his candy-sweet smile, with his warming gaze, Jeno felt encouraged. Empowered, even. He felt like if he asked now, Jaemin might actually say yes.

“Hey,” Jaemin interrupted, before Jeno could actually open his mouth. He looked uncharacteristically hesitant, almost bashful in a way that reminded Jeno of when he first treated him to macarons. Still, because he was Na Jaemin, the most confident flower Jeno knew, he held his gaze and continued to speak.

“Would you want to hang out sometime? Like outside of the cafe.”

Jeno couldn’t believe his ears. Did...Jaemin just beat him to it?

“It’s okay if you don’t want to. I know this probably seems kind of strange—”

“No,” Jeno interrupted this time. “I’d like to. I, um, wanted to ask you too, actually.”

The relief that visibly flooded onto Jaemin’s face was as much as Jeno felt in his chest. He couldn’t help but feel giddy at it.

“I have the day off on Sunday,” Jeno told him. “Would that work?”

“It’s perfect,” Jaemin replied, looking similarly cheered. “Can’t wait.”

Because Jeno couldn’t handle hiding the butterflies acting up in his stomach anymore, he ducked his head to direct his wide smile down at Mimi instead. She did nothing but stare back at him with narrowed eyes and content purring; still, it was enough. The touch of her fur, the vibrations from her purring, and Jaemin’s pretty pale hands on her stomach was enough to convince him the moment was real.

Suddenly, Jaemin laughed.

“Oh, and Jeno?”

“Y-Yeah?”

Jaemin’s eyes sparkled brilliantly. “Thanks for wearing the socks I gave you.”

He actually wore them all the time, but Jaemin didn’t need to know that. So instead, Jeno just smiled with all the bubbly feelings he felt, lifting up to his eyes. He hoped he sparkled even a fraction as much and beautifully as Jaemin did.

Because Hendery was always watching or he just had impeccable instincts, he figured out what had transpired almost immediately. And because he was the friend that he was, he danced around Jeno and loudly applauded him for essentially only doing the bare minimum. Still, it was nice to have someone else manifest the giddiness that he couldn’t express.

“I’m proud of you, my king.”

“I wasn’t even the one that asked in the end,” Jeno muttered.

“But you agreed at least, so we’re making some kind of progress. What are you guys going to do?”

Jeno shrugged. “I don’t know. He said he had a place he wanted to show me.”

At that, Hendery whistled, looking impressed. “Nana’s taking the lead, is he? I knew I could trust him.”

“You didn’t trust me?”

“Hmmmm?”

“Wow, thanks.”

Despite the teasing, Jeno appreciated Hendery’s enthusiasm. The positive energy was keeping him hyped up; a significantly better option than being freaked out on his own.

“We’ll have to tell Haechan about you finally scoring a date.”

The wording of it there made Jeno pause, as he suddenly realized. Was it a date? Like an actual date with full-fledged romantic intention? As much as he wanted it to be, was that actually Jaemin’s intention?

“Oh no,” Hendery started, catching Jeno’s changing expression. “I know that look. What’s wrong?”

“I just,” Jeno frowned. “I’m not sure if it’s a date? He just said ‘hang out.’ That could be anything, right? Friends hang out. You and I hang out.”

“Nope, nuhuh, we’re not doing that.” Hendery waved his hand again. “Don’t overthink things unnecessarily.”

“It’s a very broad term!”

“Jeno,” Hendery began patiently, placing both hands on his shoulders. “Don’t freak out. No matter what, you still get to spend some time with Nana without having to worry about work. If it ends up being a date, awesome. If not, you can work up to it. Just be yourself and enjoy it.”

He gave an honest effort to try not to think about it for the rest of the week, but it was inevitable. He had even been too preoccupied to maintain a normal conversation when Hendery introduced his friends to him. All he could think of how he was going to manage to not be a complete and utter disaster on Sunday, date or not.

By Saturday, Jeno had done probably any and everything possible that could be done around the cafe in attempt to preoccupy himself. In fact, he was so efficient, his manager even commended him for his effort. He was distractedly mopping the floor behind the counter for the third time that day when a long shadow suddenly eclipsed him.

Alarmed, Jeno looked up, only to be greeted with a smile from a semi-stranger.

“Hi there,” the tall blond man said cheerily. “Not sure if you remember me, but I came with Jaemin before.”

Jeno remembered him; of course he did. The tall friend that Fafa liked to climb, the one Jaemin had mentioned a few times, the person Jeno occasionally nervously thought of in mild concern—he didn’t have confidence he’d win against a rival like that.

“Johnny…right?”

“Right!” The tall man laughed cheerfully. In that manner, he did remind Jeno of Jaemin. “Did Jaemin mention me? Honestly, I was surprised when he told me he became a regular here after my recommendation. Not that I blame him, I like it here too. I guess it makes even more sense if he was coming to see you too.”

The little revelation made Jeno’s stomach flip, feeling as if he had been tumbling around doing somersaults. He wasn’t sure what to say in response, so he simply made a general sound of acknowledgment instead.

Relentlessly, Johnny continued: “I heard the two of you are meeting up tomorrow?”

Jeno didn’t miss the generic way the question was worded. It seemed he would still have to be tortured on the nature of their outing until the day itself.

“Um. Yeah.”

“Can I give you a tip, Lee Jeno?”

The question caught Jeno off-guard, and he was sure he made it known by the way his eyes blew wide open. Johnny, however, just grinned wider.

“I’m sure you know our Nana’s a photographer,” Johnny began, leaning comfortably on the counter as he spoke. “But since he’s always taking pictures, he never gets photographed himself, you know? He actually really likes to be in pictures too though.”

Jeno took what Johnny was saying in stride. And although the feeling of anxious rivalry was rapidly subsiding with the more he spoke, Jeno still remained helplessly mute.

If he was aware of the various phases of shock he was putting Jeno through, Johnny didn’t show it. He just continued coolly like a well-meaning older brother (he probably was).

“Anyway, I suggest you try taking some pictures of him. Or with him would probably be even better. It’ll make him happy.”

It actually was a good tip, Jeno accepted. Really, all he did want was to make Jaemin happy—to be the one to put that brilliant sun-bright smile on his face.

“Hmm, good to know,” Johnny suddenly spoke, shocking Jeno to the core.

Had he accidentally said his thoughts aloud? Jeno could feel his palms start to sweat nervously. Thankfully, Johnny didn’t seem to mind the slip of tongue. In fact, he looked more pleased than anything; which inexplicably somehow just made Jeno feel more anxious.

“You seem like a nice kid. Anyway, I hope you take the tip to heart, Lee Jeno. Just so you know,” Johnny winked, “Nana’s smile when he gets photographed is the cutest.”

With that and a cheery wave, he departed, along with the remnants of Jeno’s sanity.

It had only taken Jeno about an hour of stressfully pacing his room and overturning the contents of his closet before he decided on what to wear—something he considered an actual feat. The actual nightmare of trying to decide between dressing up or down weighed on him like an anchor at sea while a turbulent maelstrom of thoughts stormed in his mind. Dress up to show he was serious? Or dress down to remain casual in case it wasn’t actually a date?

In short, he was an absolute mess.

But, he reminded himself somewhat proudly, he had at least kept being a mess reduced to an hour’s limit. In the end, he tried to go for something in between.

They had agreed to meet in front of Do-Si-Do for convenience, and by the time his workplace came into view, Jeno was shocked to see Jaemin already waiting. Jeno knew he was early, he had planned on it, yet Jaemin still arrived before him. Tall, lean, and breathtaking as always, Jaemin stood out among the crowd, even at a distance. Nervous energy sent Jeno’s chest buzzing, but he remembered Hendery’s reassurance and steeled himself. His friend was right; he had to be himself.

“I thought I was going to be the early one,” Jeno commented with the best smile he could manage as he approached. “But here you are.”

Jaemin had been casually scrolling through his phone, and when Jeno came close, he closed it immediately and looked up with an even brighter smile.

“Here I am—oh.”

The abrupt halt in his words made Jeno’s smile immediately drop into an expression of concern. Inexplicably, Jaemin was staring at him. Hard. With widened eyes and moist lips faintly parted, he looked as if he had seen something shocking. Slowly, Jeno brought his hands up to his face.

“Is there something on my face?”

“No,” Jaemin immediately replied, still staring. “There isn’t.”

That said, he stepped closer to fill the space between them. The proximity was enough to make Jeno inhale sharply, as Jaemin advanced until mere centimeters separated their noses. Eye to eye, Jaemin scrutinized him in a way that made his ears feel flushed with heat.

“I could tell you were handsome under your mask,” Jaemin told him, holding his gaze. “But seeing your whole face like this for the first time… Jeno, you’re really, really handsome.”

Hendery made it a point to praise him on that aspect nearly every chance he got, so technically, Jeno should have been used to this. But there was no amount of previously uttered praises that could have prepared him for hearing those words from Na Jaemin himself. When Na Jaemin said those words, his heart fluttered. When Na Jaemin smiled at him like that, his breath was stolen away.

Date probability: higher.

“So you were just using me for my looks?”

The way Jaemin laughed in response made Jeno proud. Not only had he summoned enough will to joke despite his internal suffering, but had also been successful enough to make Jaemin laugh. Definitely a win.

“You’re ridiculous,” Jaemin laughed as he stepped back again. He regarded Jeno again for a long moment, lips still stretched into a wide smile. In the way that always sent Jeno’s soul to the moon, he winked. “You know I was using you for your connection to the cats.”

“You mean we don’t get joint custody of Mimi?”

“Hmm, I suppose we can compromise there. For her sake.”

The exchange was enough to help Jeno relax again, bringing a smile to his face that was wide enough to make his cheeks ache. Even just in their conversations at the cafe between service and receipts, Jeno had enjoyed how easy he found it to talk with Jaemin. It was always fun; it was soothing.

“I have a few regrets about where I’m taking you now,” Jaemin spoke up once they began walking. A wistful expression adorned his face as he spoke.

Jeno’s curiosity piqued. “Why’s that?”

“Do you have more masks?”

“You’re that unused to seeing my whole face?”

“Don’t even joke. I’d make your face my lock screen wallpaper in an instant just so I could see it every day.”

The absolute confidence with which Jaemin spoke made Jeno both flustered and envious. Envious that he could say such complimentary things so freely, and flustered that he really seemed to mean it. Truly, not even Hendery’s lavish compliments had ever made him feel as dazed. The crush was really doing a number on him.

“What’s stopping you?” Jeno found the will to say.

Jaemin looked at him with a slightly surprised expression. From what Jeno could gather, it didn’t appear to be a negative sort of a surprise; maybe more of a pleasant surprise. Or so he hoped.

“Hmm,” Jaemin began musingly. “Well if you’re offering, just wait for me to get the right shot.”

Date probability: higher again.

“Seriously though, do you have extra masks? I don’t know why I just assumed you would be masked.”

“I know. It’s hard to believe I was born with a face instead of a mask, right?”

“Oh hush,” Jaemin chastised. He seemed to be able to tell he was being teased, and Jeno couldn't help but grin. Jaemin being flustered for once was somewhat refreshing.

In the end, Jaemin bought him a pack of masks on the way. While he could have gotten functional plain ones, he instead insisted on pattern printed ones because he always had a flair for cute things. And while Jeno wanted to protest, seeing Jaemin’s eyes light up and  his joy brightened smile made the words die in his chest. So he put on the paw print patterned mask obediently and accepted his fate as a doomed man.

The rest of the walk was short enough that Jeno was unable to act on his urge to hold Jaemin’s hand. It was just dangling there, right within reach, free and unoccupied—but Jeno couldn’t work up the courage. Jaemin didn’t make a move to do so either though, much to Jeno’s barely acknowledged disappointment. Maybe it wasn’t a date after all?

When they finally stopped walking, Jeno understood why Jaemin had been insistent on the masks. He also had to re-evaluate yet again whether or not the outing was actually a date or not.

“An animal shelter?”

“Yeah,” Jaemin said cheerfully, standing proudly in front of the pastel colored building. “I volunteer here sometimes.”

Date probability: lower.

Despite whatever thoughts Jeno had, Jaemin’s proud and confident smile made it impossible for him to feel disappointed—not even a little. If anything, it had the opposite effect: the booming brilliance of it making Jeno’s heart melt like ice cream. Captivated, he smiled back, feeling it lift up to his eyes.

“Maybe it’s weird, but this is kind of a healing place for me,” Jaemin told him as they went inside. “I get to play with some animals and help them at the same time.”

“You’re an animal lover,” Jeno acknowledged warmly.

“Just like you,” Jaemin said with a grin. He paused in his steps to look at Jeno then, allowing Jeno to bask in the full glory of his infectious happiness.

Cute, Jeno irresistibly thought to himself.

“Come on, I’ll introduce you to my friends.”

Jaemin seemed to have been regular enough that they bypassed the workers at the front with not much more than simple greetings. They each greeted Jaemin with familiarity and ease, as if he had been returning home. The fact that Jaemin was as good-hearted as Jeno assumed just made him all the more smitten.

There was a variety of cats and dogs there, all of whom Jaemin introduced fondly just like Jeno had done with the cats at Do-Si-Do. With a bit of bias, Jeno took his time bowing to and petting each cat, introducing himself and speaking politely as if he were at an interview. Though he hadn’t meant to be purposefully funny, he still felt wholly pleased to make Jaemin laugh at his antics.

They met each dog as well, including one that Jaemin insisted looked like him. Considering how cute and happy the dog in question was, Jeno took it as a compliment. Only after that did Jaemin finally urge him along to a separate room with excitement bubbling out of him like a child. Jeno loved that expression on him, but he loved even more that Jaemin tugged him by the arm and pulled him close as they went.

The small side room they entered was quiet, with just a single large cage atop a steel counter. Jeno tilted his head as he gazed through the thin metal strips.

“Rabbits?”

“Bunnies,” Jaemin corrected sagely. “All rabbits are bunnies.”

With another excited tug, Jaemin pulled him up to the side of the cage where three snow-white rabbits no bigger than the size of Jeno’s palm sat. Once there, he only released Jeno’s arm to retrieve a cup of leafy greens from the counter. Happily, he explained, “I asked my friends here to leave some snacks for us to give them. You always share so much about Mimi with me, so I wanted to introduce you to these babies I love too. These are my close, personal friends.”

Jeno felt like nothing more than a sentient puddle at that point; like his entire being could melt into a cup if left to his own devices. Even if this wasn’t exactly a typical date location or even if it wasn’t a date at all, it suddenly felt like the most romantic gesture on the planet. And Jaemin’s endearing gaze on him really helped seal the deal.

Clearing his throat, Jeno took a lettuce leaf and stated seriously, “I’ll try to make a good first impression.”

“Oh?” Jaemin laughed.

“Mmm,” Jeno nodded slowly, fixing his gaze on the three sniffing bunnies that came up to the wall of the cage. He didn’t dare look anywhere else as he continued, “So I can get their approval to be with you.”

The silence that followed was a little unnerving, but Jeno didn’t have the resolve to check for Jaemin’s reaction yet. It took all of his will not to jump at the sensation of Jaemin coming closer, shoulder to shoulder, not more than a hair’s width away. The three snowball bunnies poked their twitching noses out between the thin bars as Jeno raised a leaf to them, focused fully on them and reminding himself to breathe.

“I’d better introduce you first then,” Jaemin murmured quietly, squatting down until he was eye-level with the rabbits.

“Cotton, Cloudy, Tofu,” he began with a serious tone despite the comical aspect of the names, “this is the guy I was telling you about. Lee Jeno, remember? The one I met at the cat cafe.”

Jeno felt his lips uncontrollably crack into a smile at the thought of Jaemin crouched in front of a rabbit cage, telling them about his day.

“Right, right,” Jaemin went on as if the rabbits had confirmed with their nibbling. “The kind, sweet one with the pretty eyes. The one I always have fun talking to. If he could take his mask off, you’d know he’s really handsome too—even more so than I told you.”

His heart skipped a beat at those words, and suddenly, Jeno couldn’t look anywhere but at Jaemin. He couldn’t look anywhere other than at the soft blond bangs that fell across his forehead, the long eyelashes spread like butterfly wings on his cheeks with each blink, the pink lips that glistened with every word, every praise he whispered and curved into a delicate smile. It was just impossible.

Impossible to look at anyone or anything else when Na Jaemin spoke about him in a tone like that, looking like that.

“That’s right,” Jaemin kept saying. “I brought him here to meet you guys today. Are you excited? Good, good. Tell me what you think, okay? It’s important.”

Clearing his throat, Jeno dropped down to squat next to Jaemin, lining his gaze up to the little trio. Green leaf extended like a peace offering, he began formally, “Hello, I’m Lee Jeno. Nice to meet you. Are you enjoying the lettuce? You are? I’m glad to hear it. My friend Mimi likes bananas. If you’re interested, maybe I can bring you some next time.”

“Are you bribing them too?” asked Jaemin with a little nudge of his shoulder.

Without answering, Jeno cleared his throat again and continued to address the rabbits.

“Cotton, Cloudy, Tofu. I hope you’ll allow me to come back to visit again.”

Jaemin hummed thoughtfully as the little rabbits finished eating the leaf Jeno offered. Jeno still hadn’t worked up the nerve to look over at him, so he kept his gaze safely on the rabbit trio even as Jaemin leaned closer to the cage and into his field of vision. The proximity was enough to make him feel warm.

“Hmm, I see,” Jaemin said to the rabbits. “You think so? Me too.”

“What’d they say?” Jeno asked, doing his best to appear nonchalant.

Laughing brightly, Jaemin bumped their shoulders again. “They think you’re nice.”

Jeno faked a frown that was a borderline pout. (But he didn’t pout, so that wasn’t a thing.)

“Just nice? Are you sure?”

“Handsome too.”

“I think they said something else too.”

“Is that so? What is it then?”

“I’m pretty sure,” Jeno breathed, slowly turning to let his gaze rest shyly on Jaemin’s beaming face, “I heard them say they think their friend Jaemin should try holding my hand.”

The smile on Jaemin’s face slowly changed from playful to something more endeared. It was a better outcome than Jeno had steeled himself for and set butterflies off wildly in his stomach. He held his breath as Jaemin’s lids dropped a little lower and he shifted, ever so slightly, just a fraction closer.

“Just hand holding?” Jaemin murmured this time, peeking at Jeno through the veil of his bangs. “Are you sure?”

Never had Jeno wished more in his life that he wasn’t cursed with allergies. The mask he wore now felt like an impediment, a barrier keeping him from asking for what he really wanted. With the way Jaemin looked at him, he felt like he could actually say what he wanted and even have it fulfilled. His hand twitched in desire to rip the thing off.

—but the jarring sound of his phone loudly vibrating in his pocket immediately ruined the moment.

Jaemin turned away and uttered soothing words to the rabbits, who had all stood on their hind feet in alarm at the sudden sound. The loss of attention made Jeno glumly wish he had just switched his phone on do not disturb, at the same time curious enough to wonder who could be calling him. No one called him on his day off; no one called him in general.

“It’s my manager,” Jeno announced in surprise when he took out his phone. He felt perplexed; his manager never tried to contact him on a non-work day.

“You should answer,” Jaemin told him firmly. “What if there’s an emergency?”

There were very few emergencies that could possibly have required his attention, Jeno thought to himself. But if it was specifically him his manager was looking for… Jeno bit his lower lip in concern and answered the phone.

“Hello?”

“Oh, Jeno. I’m so glad you answered.” the older man's voice immediately flooded the receiver, and even through the greeting, Jeno could tell he was frazzled about something. “Sorry to bother you on your day off.”

“It’s okay,” Jeno reassured as Jaemin watched him quietly. “Did something happen?”

The manager sighed and confirmed Jeno's suspicions. “It’s Mimi. I think something’s wrong with her. She suddenly started meowing really loudly in a strange way and won’t let anyone near her. She keeps running away or hissing and scratching at anyone who touches her.”

Jeno was alarmed. Mimi was hissing? She may have played favorites but she had never hissed at or attacked anyone before.

“I want to take her to the vet, but none of us can catch her,” he continued, sounding increasingly more stressed. “I really hate to ask, but would you mind trying to take her? She may just obey if it’s you.”

“Of course,” Jeno replied without hesitation. “I’ll be right there.”

It was only after he hung up that he felt some regret pool in his gut. Date or not, this was definitely not how he had wanted his day with Jaemin to end.

“Something’s wrong with Mimi.”

“Oh,” Jaemin breathed, eyes growing wide with immediate concern. Not missing a beat, he stood up abruptly. “Let’s go!”

Bewildered, Jeno staggered up as well. “You’ll come too?”

“For Mimi? Of course I will!” Jaemin touched his shoulder. “And, you know…I’ll be there for you.”

His chest filled inexplicably with warmth then, like sunbursts and dripping fondness. Just how many times more could Na Jaemin make him feel that way? Jeno didn’t know. And if he were to be honest, he didn’t want to stop counting.

“Thank you.”

The cafe was full of customers when Jeno burst through the door. It made another sort of sense why his manager had called. Aside from being unable to catch Mimi, the cafe had far too many people to allow for more staff to leave. After briefly making eye contact with the older man behind the counter, Jeno beelined for the lounge area with Jaemin trailing behind him.

The other cats were scattered about, between nuzzling up to other customers and playing on their own. Jeno easily spotted each one: Rere cozying up to a table of girls in school uniforms, Fafa climbing the shoulder of a man trying to play with her, Solsol wide eyed and meowing loudly from under a chair, and Lala curled up on the cat tree with her long white tail swinging. Only Mimi was noticeably absent.

With Jaemin’s help, he checked all of Mimi’s usual hiding places without avail. Even calling her name and  jingling her favorite mouse toy didn’t get her to resurface. Jeno was beginning to feel frantic as more time passed, like a manifestation of guilt. With all the days he had spent worrying about the nature of his outing with Jaemin, he hadn’t paid as much attention to Mimi. She always relied on him specifically; how could he let her down like this?

“Jeno.” Jaemin came to his side and gently placed a hand on his shoulder. “It’s going to be all right. We’ll find her.”

The reassurance helped settle the knots in his stomach, but only a little. The best Jeno could manage was a tiny smile. Through his mask, he wasn’t even sure if Jaemin could tell. Nevertheless, Jaemin gave a little smile back as if he had sensed the gesture. That much made Jeno’s heart clench.

It had taken a few more minutes of searching before Jaemin finally called out to him. Jeno wasted no time rushing to his side breathlessly, kneeling on the floor beside him, and peering into a small cabinet on the floor where they kept extra cat litter. There in the darkness, squatting on a torn open bag, was Mimi.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Jeno pressed his chest down to the floor in attempt to reach out for her. “Mimi,” he beckoned. “Come here, baby girl.”

To Jeno’s shock, she swatted at his hand and yowled at him, a sound not quite a hiss but definitely more angry than anything he had heard from her before. It was a little heartbreaking. The concern that she may have injuries or some kind of illness still plagued Jeno deeply. So he had to get her out, no matter what.

With no other choice, Jeno reached in and pulled her out, much to her discontent. She bit his hands and clawed at him angrily, meowing loudly when he pulled her up against his chest. In the meantime, Jaemin had obtained a carrier from Hendery and held the door open with wide eyes. Mimi’s erratic behavior hadn’t only shocked Jeno.

It had been an entirely other feat to get Mimi into the carrier and to the vet. Fortunately, the animal hospital wasn’t far; though Jeno still fast walked nearly to the point of jogging to get there. If it weren’t for Jaemin’s calming cool grip on his arm, he might have lost his mind with worry.

The technicians at the hospital were kind and accommodating, assuring them that they didn’t have many patients that day and that a doctor would be able to see Mimi shortly. Miraculously, within no time, a technician took Mimi’s carrier to the back with a reassuring smile. As he and Jaemin waited, Jeno wrung his reddening hands nervously.

“Jeno, your hands,” Jaemin breathed in concern.

Angry red marks and hives of hypersensitivity flared up on his hands and wrists from Mimi’s bite and scratch marks. And while they did itch and ache, Jeno couldn’t bring himself to care. Not when he didn’t know if Mimi was okay.

“I should have been looking after her better,” Jeno lamented, squeezing his own fingers. “I know she doesn’t listen to the others well. I should have paid more attention to her. I was just…so distracted lately.”

“Jeno,” Jaemin began again, calmly. Slowly, he placed his hands over Jeno’s and unwrapped their tight hold on his aching fingers. Jaemin’s fingers were cool to the touch, soothing against the heat of his hypersensitivity.

“This isn’t your fault. Sometimes things just happen beyond our control. What’s important is that you’re here now.”

His touch had a way of consoling him, enough so to calm the wild thumping of his heart. Though if it skipped a beat once or twice more, it was for a different reason. Jeno let Jaemin loosely hold his hands all the way until the technician called them to the back.

“Hello,” the vet greeted pleasantly when Jeno and Jaemin stepped into the room. Her eyes subtly dipped down, seemingly noting their linked hands. With a kind smile, she asked, “Are you Mimi’s owners?”

It felt like there was another intention there, and if Jeno were more sane, he may have felt more flustered at the prospect. But he wasn’t, so he instead nervously explained, “We’re from Do-Si-Do. Is Mimi okay?”

“Ah, that lovely cafe,” the vet replied in recognition. “No wonder she seemed familiar.”

She gathered a few things as she spoke, including Mimi’s carrier. The door was open, and Jeno craned his neck to catch a glimpse inside. To his relief, Mimi poked her face out once the carrier was set in front of them. Eyes gentle and rounded again with her soft tail swinging, she looked to be back to her usual sweet self.

The vet smiled at Jeno’s noticeable look of relief. “Mimi’s fine,” she reassured. “Seems she ate something bad and just had a bit of constipation. That’s why you found her in litter and why she was upset at her stomach being compressed.”

Jeno’s eyes blew wide in poorly contained shock. “C-Constipation?”

“That’s right,” the vet confirmed kindly. “She’s had some laxatives and was able to go easily, so it seems like she’s back to normal now. I’ll write you a prescription as well should the issue arise again.”

As the vet busied herself with the prescription, Jeno stared at Jaemin in shock. The other simply gave him a little amused chuckle and stepped forward to extend a hand at Mimi. With the ragamuffin feeling like herself again, she wasted no time snuggling up against his hand lovingly just as she usually did.

“We were worried about you, Mimi,” Jaemin told her with a soft smile. “Jeno was going crazy, you know?”

She tilted her head and meowed in response.

The little action was enough to finally dissolve the rest of Jeno’s tension. The stress bled from his body and nothing was left but the absurdity of it all. With the crushing burden of concern off his shoulders, Jeno slumped forward and looked down at her gloomily.

“Mimi… You scammed me again, didn’t you?”

All she offered was a tiny mew in response. At the hand he extended, she pressed her head up against it, soothingly licking the red marks on his fingers. She was sorry, he knew. And with the way she had him, Jeno felt his heart melt a hundred times over. He couldn’t stay mad at her.

“It’s good it wasn’t anything serious,” Jaemin commented as they leisurely walked back to Do-Si-Do.

“I guess I’ll have to add ‘drama queen’ to her list of characteristics,” Jeno sighed, holding the carrier in one hand and running a hand through his hair with the other.

Beside him, Jaemin chuckled. “This whole thing reminds me of our first meeting at the cafe. Guess it makes a good story for a first date, doesn’t it?”

At that, Jeno froze completely. His legs quit working on the spot; he just…halted. Had he heard correctly? Did Jaemin finally end his torment? That casually?

“Why’d you stop walking?” Jaemin asked, a twinge of nervousness betraying him in the tone of his voice.

Uncontrollably, Jeno blurted out, “Was this a date?”

Jaemin stared back at him, eyes going slightly wide.

“Uh…was it not?”

“N-No,” Jeno stuttered in shock. “I mean, yes? I mean…I wasn’t sure? I wanted it to be. But only if you wanted it to be.”

There was a long moment of silence in which they just stood. On the side of the street with a cat carrier in hand and people passing by, they both stood and looked at each other in stunned and somewhat awkward silence. At least, external silence. In Jeno’s ears, all he could hear was the deafening sound of his heart pounding loudly.

“I wasn’t sure at first either,” Jaemin admitted after a while. His ears were tinted pink, betraying his mild embarrassment. Jeno couldn’t stop staring. Quietly, he continued, “I wasn’t sure if you wanted it to be, I mean.”

Apparently, his crush wasn’t actually as obvious as Hendery had made it out to be then. Jeno felt a small amount of pride retained at that, at the same time, a little relieved. So he hadn’t been the only one suffering in doubt?

“What convinced you in the end?”

Jaemin chuckled again. “I’d say you wanting to impress my bunny friends and hold my hand was convincing enough.”

“I did though,” Jeno muttered under his breath. “Still do.”

Because he had excellent hearing, or maybe just because he was good at knowing, Jaemin stepped forward and gingerly poked his index finger at Jeno’s hand. The little motion made Jeno seize up immediately in a bout of nerves. It helped a little that Jaemin looked just as cautiously nervous, his usually bold eyes averted away and down at the floor.

Even though Jeno felt like he had always been the nervous one, the one internally panicking while Jaemin seemed almost shamelessly affectionate, Jeno didn’t want to be the one to back down now. The sound of his pulse quickened in his ears and he unfurled his own index finger, curling it around Jaemin’s and pulling his hand close. It wasn’t fully a hand hold, more of a linking of fingers. Still it was enough. When Jaemin lifted his head again to look at him, Jeno saw the sparkles in his eyes light up like fireworks.

“Na Jaemin,” he began slowly, meeting his gaze. He wouldn’t back down this time. “I’ve had a crush on you.”

Jeno had always thought Jaemin’s smiles were brilliant, but this one put them all to shame. He smiled like a sunrise, radiant and proud awash with rosy pink hues. He looked like everything Jeno could imagine happiness was and everything he'd ever wanted all rolled together.

“Well, Lee Jeno,” Jaemin finally said smoothly, sliding in closer to fill the space between them. “I’m happy to hear that. Because, you know, I’ve had a crush on you too.”

It was another moment that Jeno cursed the existence of his allergies. With one hand occupied with holding Mimi’s carrier and the other stubbornly linked to Jaemin’s, he had no method to pull his damn mask down and get what he really wanted: a kiss.

Fortunately for him, Jaemin had a free hand and knew exactly what he was thinking.

Grinning, he lifted his hand to pull Jeno’s mask down with a finger and leaned in the rest of the way to finally put Jeno out of his misery.

This time, Jeno saw fireworks.

“No need to act like it’s the end of the world, Jeno.”

Despite Hendery’s reassurances, Jeno couldn’t help feeling melancholic. After years, it was finally Mimi’s last week at Do-Si-Do.

As it turned out, the friends that Hendery had been trying to tell him about and had introduced him to were frequenting the cafe to look for a cat to adopt. Jeno would have known this, Hendery informed him, if he had been paying attention weeks ago when they actually met. Or if he had been properly paying attention any of those times Hendery had attempted to tell him about said friends. Jeno did accept his guilt in that part. It was his own fault his head had been too full of romantic torment at the time.

“I spoke to Kun about it already,” Hendery told him with a consoling pat, “and he promised to bring her back to play every so often. You’ll still get to see her plenty.”

Kun was a nice guy, Jeno had acknowledged. He was kind and gentle with the cats, and according to Hendery, he kept a neat house and was responsible to boot. Apparently, Kun’s roommate was also an experienced cat owner with two of his own, so Mimi would have a nice family to play with. When Jeno expressed concern about the ragamuffin’s finicky personality, Hendery just reassured that after managing his chaotic roommate and his two cats, Kun would be able to handle anything.

Most importantly of all, Mimi really seemed to like Kun.

Jeno was happy for her and Kun both, genuinely. It was just a little bittersweet to relinquish being her caretaker.

“Don’t look so depressed, my king,” Hendery said again reassuringly. “Enjoy her last week at the cafe.”

The door jingled then, making them both look up.

Hendery grinned. “Look, your boyfriend is here. The day’s looking up already.”

Jaemin blew in like a breath of fresh air like always. Smiling, shining, and clad in pink like always. After all this time, Jeno thought he would have gotten used to seeing him come through that door. But no matter how many times he came and went, Jeno still felt a little clench of his heart, a little feeling of breathlessness each time. And just like always, he looked on just a little longer than he needed to.

Like always, Jaemin sat at the same table in the same seat. And like always, Mimi clambered into his lap to join him, purring away in his lap without a hint of shame. It was close enough to Jeno’s break that he slid into the seat across from him when he brought Jaemin’s usual drink and a plate of macarons over. In a slight show of dramatism, Jeno sighed and rested his head in his hands.

“Still feeling sad?”

When he peeked up, Jaemin was smiling sweetly at him—he always was. His smile held the cure for depression, Jeno was convinced. At least, his smile held the cure for his personal depression. And though he did feel a little better just seeing that smile, Jeno persisted with the dramatics just a touch longer by exhaling another sigh.

The bait worked, as Jaemin let out a chuckle and extended a hand across the table to gently pat his head.

“She’ll have a good home,” Jaemin reinforced softly with his gentle strokes. “And you’ll still be able to see her.”

“I know,” Jeno admitted glumly, looking up to meet Jaemin’s gaze. “I’m just going to miss having her here. No matter what new ‘Mimi’ we find for this place, they just won’t be her.”

“Mmm, not easy to replace your favorite, is it?”

“Nope,” Jeno sighed.

“Not even if it’s me?”

“Huh?”

The question caught Jeno off-guard, making him lift his head and look across the table in confusion. Mysteriously, Jaemin was busy fishing something out of his bag while simultaneously balancing Mimi in his lap. Jeno didn’t know what to expect, so he simply waited.

It was…cat ears.

As if he had been completely turned to stone, the only thing Jeno could do was stare as Jaemin put on a cat ear headband. He even had the audacity to wink and purse his lips to let out the tiniest mew. Jaemin must not have thought this through in relation to Jeno’s health, because Jeno felt his blood pressure shoot through the roof.

Na Jaemin had always been bold and confident, but Jeno had never expected this. He felt his mouth go dry in sheer, utter shock.

“Can’t I be your favorite, Jeno-yah?” he asked with a saccharine yet dangerously devious grin. “My name sort of fits even, doesn’t it? Nana, Mimi. Shall I sit on your lap?”

Eloquently, Jeno replied, “I…? W-Wuh?”

The brain short-circuiting response seemed to have been what Jaemin was looking for, because he sat back then and laughed to his heart’s content. Jeno knew he had been thoroughly teased, but at the same time had to embarrassingly admit there was something there. Maybe he did want Jaemin to sit in his lap. And he definitely, definitely wanted to make him purr.

But those weren’t workplace appropriate thoughts.

“You should have seen your face,” Jaemin laughed wholeheartedly, wiping a few stray tears from the corners of his eyes. “Did you like it that much?”

“You’ll like when I make you purr in my lap,” he still muttered uncontrollably. Oops.

“Hmm,” Jaemin said thoughtfully. “Make it a promise.”

Before more teasing could pass between them, Mimi sat up in Jaemin’s lap, reminding them both that she was present. She leveled Jeno with accusing eyes then, as if she had understood everything. And while logically, he knew he should haven’t felt judged by a cat, he definitely did in that moment.

“Yes, Mimi?” Jaemin immediately cooed, returning his attention to her. “Sorry you had to hear that. Jeno just has a lot of thoughts, you know? Right, right. Of course you know. But don’t worry, I’ll take good care of him when you go off to your new home.”

Jaemin looked up at him then, smiling dazzlingly.

“I’ll make sure he won’t be lonely.”

Jeno knew that much was true. Even without Mimi at his side, he knew his days wouldn’t be boring or lonely. Not with Na Jaemin at his side instead. It made him wonder sometimes if Mimi had somehow been astute enough to know. Did she know how Jaemin would make him feel in the future and stuck to him from that very first day? Did she pick Jaemin out for him in that regard?

In that moment, he couldn’t help but find Jaemin irrevocably beautiful. Despite the teasing and silly cat ear headband, Na Jaemin was radiant; the perfect picture.

“Hold on,” Jeno said suddenly, hand flying into his pocket to dig out his phone. “I want to take a picture.”

“You want to take a picture of me?” Jaemin asked in surprise.

“Yeah,” Jeno told him, holding up his phone to frame the shot. “I guess I understand what you meant about photography. I want to capture this beautiful moment too.”

The smile that Jaemin flashed him when he took the shot really was the cutest he’d ever seen, just like Johnny had promised. Whether it was because of the photo though, or because Jaemin was looking at him through the lens, Jeno didn’t know. But with that smile captured forever in his photo as a reminder, Jeno vowed to try more and more and more.

“There. You and Mimi are my wallpaper now. I beat you to it.”

Jaemin pouted visibly, puckering his lower lip out with practiced expertise.

“No fair,” he complained, shifting Mimi so he could fish out his own phone. “I’m going to take one too then.”

Without another word, he stood up from his seat and rounded the table with Mimi in hand. With a tap, he pushed Jeno away from the table and took a seat firmly in his lap.

Jeno felt infinitely blessed that there was a lull in service that day, leaving no customers around to see their antics and in turn, no coworkers around to tease him. Even if there had been, he thought guiltily to himself, he probably wouldn’t have relinquished his hold on Jaemin’s waist or let him go anyway. Even he wanted to be a little selfish sometimes.

“Wait,” Jaemin said suddenly, turning to face Jeno. “Mimi and I can’t be the only cats in this picture.”

For the second time that day, Jeno echoed in confusion, “Huh?”

He leaned backwards over the little table in a surprising demonstration of flexibility and picked up a black marker from where it rested against the wall. Jaemin didn’t bother with an explanation as he uncapped the marker; he almost never did. He simply put the tip to Jeno’s plain white mask and hummed in contentment. After a few lines of marking, Jaemin recapped it and nodded in satisfaction.

“There.”

It wasn’t until Jaemin lifted his phone in front camera mode did Jeno see his reflection and what Jaemin had drawn on his mask: a tiny heart-shaped nose and three whiskers on each side. He couldn’t help but guffaw in response.

“You’re ridiculous.”

“And you’re ridiculously cute.”

“Hendery and Haechan are never going to stop calling me ‘catboy’ if they see this.”

“Well, you can’t deny what you are forever.”

Jeno didn’t have to be told to smile after that, as laughter bubbled out from his chest effervescently. Once Jaemin was satisfied with his photos and setting his wallpaper, he put his phone away. He didn’t, however, get up from Jeno’s lap. Not that Jeno minded.

Mimi didn’t seem to mind either, as she twisted to affectionately nuzzle Jaemin’s chest and the hand that Jeno had on his shoulder. Her soft purrs and the warmth from Jaemin’s body in proximity filled Jeno’s heart up to max. He hadn’t realized he could be this happy.

“Hmm? What’s that, sweet Mimi?” Jaemin murmured when the little ragamuffin suddenly meowed. “Yeah? You think so? Mmhmm. I think so too.”

“What now?” Jeno asked, feeling an uncontrollable smile creep up on his lips.

“She said,” Jaemin began slowly, turning to face Jeno with a playful smile, “that she thinks her friend Jeno should kiss me right now.”

Jeno felt his heart thump loudly against his rib cage and those giddy little butterflies acting up there again. Maybe it was a rule not to get attached or play favorites, or for the sake of his allergies not to take his mask off in the cafe. But for Jeno, it was already too late.

“I better do what she says then.”

Without hesitation, he yanked down his mask and pressed forward to kiss the sweet pink lips that awaited him.

He was in love.