⊹ 𑁍 noodle shop.

@ꕤ ⋮ ❛ k. yohan｡ as she busies herself behind the counter, fingers easily reaching for the bowls and cutleries, remembering each designated area like the back of her hand, jimin continues to listen to the latter intently, mumbling her own responses in return— although it might be too incoherent as she’s busy ladling up the soup in the back end of the kitchen. and so she repeats herself as she approaches him, placing the fully plated dish made specially for her ( favorite ) customer, a fond grin tugging along her lips as she notes the thinly sliced cucumbers shaped into a heart. “honestly, that’s crazy even to me. and i was thrown into this whole restaurant business too so — phew, i definitely understand.”

after pivoting on her heels to grab two cups of iced green tea, she returns to her seat opposite to him before settling down, a hum drawn in thought at his question. there wasn’t much lately — she’s been managing with the help of her grandpa still, so she’s definitely not in a position to complain. “i’ve been okay? life has been hectic but i think i’m slowly getting the hang of it.” mirroring the latter, jimin perches her chin into the palm of her hand, eyes flickering from the steaming dish in between to the face before her . . . and she swore she felt a tiny smile creep back onto her lips, even if he was just, well, idly sitting there.

“sounds like you’ve been busier than me, though. are you sure you’re eating all your meals and getting enough rest, kimyo? i know how you get when you have so much on your plate.” although it felt like months, maybe an entire year that’s gone by since they’ve been able to sit like this, just the two of them, nothing felt amiss. as if they pressed play to a tape that was put on hold for the duration where life got too busy, memories of their school years come flooding back — including those of jimin hopelessly falling for her classmate over the years. her cheeks heat up at the reverie, a streak of red blooming onto her features as she ducks her head down to take a sip, crunching the ice in hopes it’d cool her down. but there really was no use . . . he’s always had that effect on her. “i’ve missed you, actually. i’m glad you passed by today.”

@? ⋮ ❛ y. jimin｡ [ LOL SORRY BUT MA'AM IT WAS THE WRONG ORDER. also im sorry this post so late. ]

jaehyun continues to eat his meal, only speaking up once his mouth isn't so full of food anymore. he's already halfway through his rice and cutlet. "it's okay." he just says, before returning back to devouring the delicious before him. he's never picky about his food, and besides, he has first-handedly seen how hard and tirelessly the younger girl works. jimin already had a lot going in her life, he didn't need to add to such a workload as a customer. he already came in late enough every single time, right before closing. but it wasn't out of spite or to be a living pain to the store owner, it was because he just didn't like eating when the shop was filled with people. unfortunately, its down times were either early morning, or closing, and jaehyun could only make it for the later time, given his job and poor sleeping schedule. but perhaps, he would try and come earlier—

the thought dissipates as soon as it comes, the younger girl asking (practically bossing him) to help her close the store, already indirectly assigning him a task—sweeping up the floors. he looks at the broom, then back to jimin. the girl is grinning. he's probably going to be worked to the bone, but somehow, he doesn't mind. in fact, it's nice to see her smile. usually, he only gets a glare of annoyance to emerge from her eyes. "okay." he agrees, signing a deal of free labor with her. it was the least he could do, for always coming in to eat so late. jaehyun then returns to eating his food.

@? ⋮ ❛ k. seulgi｡ⁿᵃᵇᶦ [] it's okay baby, please take your time and your starter is chef's kith

after finishing a busy day at the cat cafe, i'm now riding on my electronic scooter until i'm parked by the noodle shop. i march into the shop happily, excited to eat some ramen that i always go to every week. i stand in front of a line, patiently waits as i get on my phone until it's close to my turn. i soon noticed i'm next since there is a person in front of me left, shimmies with excitement as i look up to see if there is any new ramen in the menu. figuring out what i want, i notice the person which was you, seems to be looking for your wallet but to no avail before i take out the amount of money i heard the cashier said.
i'll pay for it!
i said as i lean over to the side to give the cashier the money.

@? ⋮ ❛ m. jia｡ [ aaaa i'm sorry for the wait and the length! but here goes the starter >< ]

throwing her body on the couch with a soft oomf, seulgi then felt her whole body shiver under the layer of fatigue she was trying to shoo away in series of yawns and stretches throughout the day, arms and legs up in the air whilst mouth open for a prolonged yawn. clock says it's 6:30, both early and late when it comes to planning and preparing her meal; as so she grumbles, slumped on her small couch with heavy blinks, anticipating the growing headache heavy on top of her head.

she knew — and even reprimanded herself on the night — that staying up too late to watch reruns of kitchen nightmares not worth it if she have a shift by tomorrow morning. it was fun while it lasted: her stare intent on her small, rectangular screen enough to tell that the stale food on the screen piped hot with every diss the blonde chef threw at delirious owners and/or chefs, too caught up with the chaos that unfolds every second of it. an episode turned into two, to three, that it then was way past 5 am. if she decided to nap by then, she should have called for a leave; however, time is gold — and so she stormed in her workplace with no sleep and hopes for caffeine to push her throughout the day.

to say that it was a busy day at work an understatement, more on the cleaning side than of the working behind the counter. there sure was a handful (or two) of townsfolk to stop by and ask for some recommendations, and seulgi was more then delighted to extend a hand despite groggy, and entertain buyers with the best of her ability — both hands and arms were busy when it comes to arranging the books back to its shelves after her plan on changing the "layout" once again a failure. the afternoon was more busy than the morning, more books she have to arrange and dust and more shelves she have to fill and stack. quick feet made beelines through shelves and counter and backroom until six pm; lunch and nap both forgotten, brain fried and malfunctioning. how she managed to function with caffeine almost all day is a bewilderment on her part as well; she made it back home in one piece if we look on the brighter side, and she thinks it's more important than anything else.

as she remembered, her hand then rests on top of her belly to pat gently. no wonder her stomach kept on grumbling in the middle of work. followed with her memory of missing lunch, she also remembered reading a small promotion the owner made in the town group chat few nights ago. seulgi then wondered whether or not the noodle shop is still open.

light on her steps and changing her top with a more comfortable hoodie, excitement is rich in seulgi's face once seeing it's still open. the place, despite a little packed, reeks comfort and /food/ that waft in the air in a blanket of warmth, the smell enough for saliva to cover a thin sheet on top of her tongue. the lady promised herself to stop by and have bowls for the rest of her allowance when both time and money let her; tonight may not be the ideal timing, if talking about expenses, but she figured it won't hurt much to treat herself even a small bowl. he can never hide her grin, the small bouncing on her feet obvious —patience ever thick despite looking half aware and barely awake in the middle of the line.

it only appears then that she's fully aware and too awake when the person behind the counter asked for her bill. out of instinct, her hand then reaches inside the front pockets of her hoodie, horror heavy in her wide-eyed stare. it's empty!

no, she remembered she left with her wallet in hand — or she must have forgotten about it and dashed out of the door as soon as she had her hoodie on. it will be a little — no, too /much/ embarrassing — if she asked to let the line wait while she run back to her room and go back in with a furious line of costumers waiting for her, even more so on running out of the store with food wasted because of her clumsiness. tapping on her pockets, she didn't find her smaller purse and her words out. with every abrupt open of comes in a tightlipped close, mind too slow and sleepy to come up with an excuse or an apology — or anything. digging herself more on her hole, seulgi then taps on her pockets once again. it looks like she's stalling — she clearly is, please don't be fooled — embarrassingly and dumbfoundedly so, but she have no other choice but to; feet pinned on the floor and letting whatever deity from above to judge her whilst encouraging the shame she have put herself into further.

the soft mutters around her turned excruciating and loud with every heartbeat, the look from the person on the other side of the counter, even if still holds its gentleness, now intimidating on her skin; heat rising up to her neck and heavy on her cheeks, tips of her ears burning in fuels of embarrassment. if anything, she prays the earth to open up and swallow her whole by an instant, or have someone kick her out for holding the line a little longer. either way may be as embarrassing at it seems, but then aforementioned could be the best option in such situation. will an angel hear such prayer, she don't know, but she knows she has the all the patience the world could give until it happens.

@? ⋮ ❛ y. jimin｡ he finds himself methodically moving through the boxes and crates; once one was placed in the storage, the next box would follow, and so on. working in silence, only nodding whenever jimin would advise him to place the box at a specific place, he had made quick work of the towering supplies that were once looming over the noodle shop owner. "and we're done!" he says whilst donning a triumphant grin, turning to face his friend as she walked over. "ah- dont worry about this, they'll be dandy if i rest just a while." lifting his gaze from his own hands to meet his friend's gaze, the look of concern from jimin doesn't go unnoticed by yohan, who felt rather bashful that someone was worried about his wellbeing.

if the giant man-child's enthusiasm wasn't already apparent by the wide grin splayed across his visage, yohan's face lights up like the sunrise at the mention of kalguksu. it had truthfully been ages since he had last stepped foot in yooth to have a taste of the delicious handmade noodles made by jimin as well as her grandfather. prior to inheriting the dojang, being an instructor alongside finishing his degree had kept him busy from early morning to well into the evening. needless to say, he missed the taste which reminded him of his younger years when he would pay a visit fresh out of taekwondo practice. he takes a seat behind the counter, resting his chin upon the palm of his hand as he looked over at jimin.

"oh well- more like overwhelmed. my parents left for a year long vacation without even telling me, but that's not the most surprising part. they handed the dojang over to me now, so i've just been running around and just- trying to keep the ship afloat." he replied, straightening up. "you? have you been well?"

@ꕤ ⋮ ❛ j. jaehyun｡ [ ALL THAT FOR THE WRONG ORDER I'M GOING TO CRY]

there was no thought that crosses her mind. maybe it was the long working hours finally hitting her right in the head, or maybe it was the weather and she could possibly be catching a cold. or, y'know, maybe it's the fact that she literally prepped and served her last customer a /wrong/ order. yet, the second he specifies what exactly his order meant, it was already too late for her to replate his dish. and all jimin could do was stare blankly ahead, weary gaze resting upon the top of his full head of hair— no comment, no reaction. it takes a while for her to bring herself back from her reverie, cutting off her trail of thoughts once she notices how there were no further complaints, and it drew a small sigh from her lips. "you could've told me earlier. i'd rather serve you something you actually wanted, even if you were hungry enough to eat anything," she's referring to the plate already half eaten.

retracing her steps back to where the wash cloth and bucket of soap was, she begins to work her way down one end of the countertop. as much as she wanted to close down the store and go home, it was a key principle to allow any and all customers to enjoy their food at their own pace, until they were content. although, jaehyun wasn't necessarily a slow eater, he just really had an odd schedule of meal times that prevents jimin from ever closing down early. and then, it hits her.

"hey, since you're here and you're kind of making me close down late. . . you should help me clean up." it was moreso an indirect demand than a request, a cheeky grin playing along the younger's lips as she grabs a broom by the corner of the room to drag it over to his seated figure. "what do you say? help out with some sweeping? it's just a little task. i'm sure big ol' officer jaehyun can manage."

@? ⋮ ❛ y. jimin｡ [ lmao sorry this post kinda trolls :P ]

he has absolute no reaction or emotion that even ounces his face at her surprised outburst. "sorry." jaehyun just says, addressing all of her statements in a deadpan voice, before pulling out one of the stools at the bar table of the restaurant. he is well aware that the younger girl despises his the timing of his arrival. taking off his jacket, he hangs it on the back of his stool before coming to a sit. he doesn't exchange any further words with the latter. it's quiet between them, as it usually is, jaehyun not one to talk, unless he was being talked to, and even then, he had selective hearing. he only responded to what he could. more than often, he enjoyed silence. instead, he preferred to observe, come to learn a person from what they /didn't/ say, what actions they committ, the way they interacted with their surroundings and everything in it.

she's tired; feint shadows lining the bottom of her eyes, her face's cheekbones more prominent than last week's, the tone of visage seemingly paler, but perhaps due to the one flourescent light that is above her, the one bulb inconsistent from the other incadescent lights that line the ceiling. the store's trademark uniform she spots looks baggier, the shoulders of her shirt lining up with the lower parts of shoulder—down even to where her bicep muscle would begin. there's a patch of what seems to be white dust on the right lower hem of her shirt. flour, as he had often seen her make endless noodles by hand. sometimes when jimin would scrape the leftover flour from the countertops into the garbage can, it would flutter about, especially if there was some density and abundance, resulting in her getting it onto her shirt.

she turns around, presenting him his food. he already knew she had been making the wrong dish, as soon as she had begun to prepare it, having watched her go towards the rice cooker, and not the big pot that contained the noodle shop's infamous broth. he looks down at the /tonkatsu/ served before him, then back up to the younger girl. "tonkotsu... ramen." he tells her quietly, but nonetheless, starts digging into the fried cutlet and rice on his plate. it's the first time he's tried the particular dish, and in all honesty, jaehyun can't complain. even if it wasn't the shop's signature dish, it was magnificient, tasting absolutely delicious. he wofls down the meal, shoveling spoonfuls of the katsu, the sauce and the warm, fluffy rice.

@ꕤ ⋮ ❛ k. yohan｡ yooji — she hasn't heard that name in a while. jimin doesn't even have to lift her head to know who that voice belonged to, yet she does just to assure it wasn't the fatigue taking a toll on her body, leading to her hallucinations. "oh . . . kimyo." she couldn't recall the last time she stood in such close proximity to him, the last probably being during her highschool years when they were deskmates. and like an unasked answer to her prayer, it was him out of everyone else in yeongwon, who came to her rescue. she could barely form coherent sentences, blankly nodding in response as her feet moved around the boxes to guide the latter towards the storage in the back. and the silence persisted for the remainder of the crates, only mumbles of "here" "be careful" "you got it?" "over there" as she stood on the side, helplessly watching the front of her store clear up thanks to him.

with the thump of the final box stacked ontop of the others, jimin finally approaches her old friend, eyes skimming up his taller stature until they rest upon his face. he still looked like the same, cute, puppy-like boy she was once infatuated with. at the thought, her lips curled into a sheepish grin, one filled with resurfaced fondness as she reaches over to gingerly wrap her fingers around his wrist. turning his palms face up, the concerned female took note of how red his hands were from all the heavy lifting — that, and the red tinge of his nose and ears, probably from the harsh winter breeze. "want to come in? i'll get you a bowl of kalguksu so you can warm up before you head back." she wasn't taking no for an answer, partly because she felt indebted that he had helped her out, and . . . well, it's just been a while. "make yourself at home, kimyo. i haven't seen you in so long . . . been busy?"

@ꕤ ⋮ ❛ j. jaehyun｡ 'alone at last.' jimin stretches her arms up into the air, letting out a drawled, disgruntled sound at the pops and cracks of her joints. it had be an excruciatingly long day, customers piling in one after the other — it was tough enough that the employee roster had scheduled for them to be short staffed, but with the drop in temperatures and the rise of winds, the young owner should've anticipated the high demand of warm broth and noodles on such a day. after the bustling and hustling during dinner rush hour, jimin had decided to let her employees off for the remainder of the night, noticing the stifled yawns and neck rolls that ensued the second the last customer left. they were tired, and she understood.

jimin, herself, felt the fatigue creeping up her legs as she leans against the countertop. don't get her wrong, she loves this job. she loves this place. it's just, on some days, it's a struggle to both manage and work various positions. she helps with the serving, with the finances, and she most definitely helps in the kitchen. but this was her responsibility. a faint smile tugs onto her lips as she heaves her body up to trudge into the back. "i should close down and head home," she mumbles out loud, too engrossed in locating the wash cloth and bucket of soap. the scuttling and moving of pots and pans masks the sound of someone entering, from the stomping of snow covered boots, to the soft ring of the door that shuts close behind him. and so, when the distracted female finally turns on her feet to face the front, she's met with the ghostly features of man, his deep timbre prompting jimin to quite literally jump as a yelp tumbles out of her lips. "jesus! you scared me!" she's clutching the tablecloth against her chest, feeling the rigorous palpitations of her heart as confusion stares back at the sudden appearance of the town's policeman. her eyes flicker from his face, to the money held out and placed upon the counter, then back up to him. what a joy.

biting back a sigh, she's placing her washing equipment aside to begin prepping his meal. officer jung jaehyun— everyone knew of him. she most definitely knew of him. 'min's favorite customer' her staffs would tease around when she grumbles about how late to closing time he'd arrive. every. single. time. but a customer was a customer. within minutes, she's placing a steaming plate of porkcutlet, blanketing white rice and smothered with Yooth's infamous sauce. "haven't seen you around in a while. busy?" she's learnt her lesson to /not/ strike up a conversation with the latter, already familiarized with his pattern of minimal speaking. yet, his absence from the shop hasn't gone by unnoticed, and admittedly, jimin was concerned . . . moreso curious as to what he's been occupied with. "you came in even later today. if you get here 5 minutes before closing time, i swear. . ." she lets the empty threat trail off, tone laced with lighthearted humor despite tired eyes that befell over her customer. "eat up."

@? ⋮ ❛ y. jimin｡ "whew, it looks like i got in enough miles today." stopping in his tracks, yohan takes out his earbuds and carefully places them back in the powder blue case. the frigid air had colored the tips of his nose and ears a vivid red. despite claiming to taking part in such an exhausting workout, yohan gave off the impression that he had downed five shots of espresso. early mornings, whether on a workday or not, were always reserved for yohan's daily jog. jogging was the one part of his daily routine that he never skipped – even in the middle of january when the temperature dipped past zero on a regular basis. the rush of adrenaline from the early morning runs gave him the push to go through the rest of the day.

after just a moment of unwinding and taking in his surroundings he spots the familiar owner of the noodle shop struggling to haul boxes into her building. yohan sprinted over almost immediately, only slowing down to stop himself from stumbling over. "oh my god yooji, youre going to injure yourself at this rate. why wasn't anyone...nevermind, i'll help." yohan chides, his brows pinching together as he dons a concerned scowl at jimin. it's not much of a scowl as it is a pout, however. instinctively picking up a crate from the large piles that were standing before the shop, he turns to her and gestures to the remaining boxes with his chin "i'll carry these all in, and you can tell me where to put'em."

@? ⋮ ❛ y. jimin｡ the wind scathes his skin, whipping flurries that sting with every stride jaehyun takes. it's a wicked blizzard that's about to begin, but despite the wrath that mother nature seems to be releasing over yeongwon, there's still a delicate visage to the relentless weather. sometimes, when the wind settles, jaehyun can see the intricate patterns of snowflakes hover about. he absolutely hates the cold, but to see the mundane beauty of the snowflakes makes him feel like he's in a winter wonderland.

he wades through the piling snow, before another mundane joy wafts to his nose—broth; hot, savory, delicious broth that has layers deep, enriched layers of flavors. it's that broth that makes him travel to the very noodle shop like a madman, even if the weather outside is horrendous. finally making it inside the shop, he takes a moment to stomp and shake off the snow that covers his boots, not wanting melted snow to litter the shop's floors, other than on the doormat at its entrance.

he looks to the clock on the wall. he's made it just in time, 10 minutes before closing. taking the hood of his jacket off his head, jaehyun walks straight to the lone female worker in the shop. he's surprised, he's been here enough times to know that the owner's granddaughter; yoo jimin, doesn't work closing shifts alone, as the dinner rush extends often into the late nights of yeongwon. the fondness for the restaurant had made jaehyun search it up; read all about its history, its ownership, its story. a family business that one grandfather had started at 25, in 1983, and whom had worked extremely hard to make it the local gem it was today. following suit, the young granddaughter whom had become in charge, over the years, helping to keep her grandfather's legacy to continue. walking up to where the said granddaughter is, jaehyun states his order, without so much as a greeting, handing more than enough cash to cover the cost of his meal, tips included. "one tonkotsu. large."

@ꕤ ⋮ ❛ k. yohan｡ beads of sweat stream down jimin's arms for the fifth time in that single minute. the sun, merciless despite the winter spell that has fallen over yeongwon, continues to pester the exhausted girl. she hadn't expected /all/ of her ordered materials for the noodle shop renovation to arrive at the same day. and she definitely did not expect for the workers to simply drop stacks of heavy boxes by the entrance of her quaint store, only to disappear without even the consideration that she may or may not need help. and boy, could she really use a pair of extra hands to help haul the cardboard boxes and crates into the storage room of the restaurant. "c'mon, jimin. just one more — " her breathless voice barely manages to squeeze out a grunt, putting in the final morsel of strength that exists in her body as she heaves a box into her arms, letting the weight rest against her frame to begin waddling towards the back. one trip took around eight minutes, with an additional two for her to pause, breathe, and roll the aching joints that's been far too strained in the few hours since she's begun putting the items away. with an exasperated sigh, jimin drags her feet back outside to eye the remaining boxes — the daunting towers, there was just too many. she wasn't sure if she could even open up the store for today at this rate.