* * *

“Alright, I’ll reschedule for 4:30. Thanks for your understanding. See you later.”

Because of the sudden change in his appointment, Siyoung found himself with a bit of time to kill.

After hanging up the phone, he wandered around near his office before stepping into Jaeyoon’s café on the first floor.

The manager, who recognized Siyoung, greeted him warmly.

“Oh, hey, oppa. Long time no see.”

“‘Long time’? Didn’t we see each other just a few days ago?”

“Well, it’s been a while since you came by the café! You used to come by every morning—why not anymore?”

The café had been closed for renovations for a while, and ever since Siyoung learned about the baby, he’d tried to cut back on coffee, figuring it might be better for him.

Even after the café reopened, he hadn’t felt the urge to stop by.

Not wanting to explain all that, he offered a convenient excuse.

“Went for a health checkup recently, and they said I should ease up on coffee. I stopped drinking it and kinda just lost the taste for it.”

“Oh yeah, my friend went to the hospital recently too, and the doctor told her to cut back on coffee. Turns out her esophagus is all messed up. She says she’s practically a zombie now—dying for coffee every day.”

The manager chuckled as he shared his story.

It was a slow time of day, and he and Siyoung had grown fairly comfortable chatting over the months.

“Did you have problems with your esophagus too?”

“No, not that. It’s just… I was starting to get a bit of gastritis. They told me it’d be best to cut back.”

“Oh, I see. But I didn’t think you were drinking that much?”

“It’s different for everyone, I guess…”

“True enough. Well, in that case, you should try something besides coffee. What’ll you have?”

Siyoung ordered a fruit tea and took a seat.

Thanks to recent renovations, the place looked great, and with a few more customers than usual, it was clear business had picked up.

“Looks like the renovations were a good idea. Busier than usual.”

“Yeah, the algorithm picked us up on social media a bit. And today’s just because it’s one of the days the boss comes in.”

“Oh, right, it’s Friday. When does he usually come by?”

“It’s never a set time. Sometimes he’s here early; sometimes it’s around five. He usually texts when he’s on his way, but I haven’t heard from him yet.”

If Siyoung wanted to make his appointment on time, he’d have to leave by around four.

Hopefully, he could avoid running into Jaeyoon.

Taking a sip of his drink, Siyoung exchanged some light conversation with the manager.

“We started getting a lot of weekend traffic recently from social media, and it just so happened the boss was here one day. I know most of the regulars who come just to see him, but lately, there’s definitely been a lot more.”

“People actually come here just to catch a glimpse? Impressive.”

“We even had one guy try to get his number once. Got turned down hard. No one else has tried to confess since then, but… you can tell there are some with intentions.”

The manager shook his head, recalling the customer who had boldly declared his interest in Jaeyoon, only to be firmly rejected.

“Well, that’s probably for the best. No girlfriend means he’s free to draw in more customers.”

“Sometimes, it feels like you care more about sales than Jaeyoon does.”

“Of course I do! The boss may not need it, but the more sales we get, the higher my incentive. I just wish Jeonghyun would stop by every now and then too. I hear he’s close with the boss.”

The manager looked disappointed as he imagined the boost in customer interest if Jeonghyun made more appearances.

“Maybe I’ll ask him to drop by sometime. Oh, speak of the devil—here’s the boss.”

“Huh?”

Siyoung quickly turned around, surprised.

He said he’d give a heads-up before coming.

But already?

He stood up awkwardly as Jaeyoon entered.

“What the—Siyoung, what are you doing here?”

“Oh, I got off early and had some time to kill… I was just about to head out.”

If he left now, he’d have a bit of waiting at the hospital, but staying longer meant Jaeyoon would likely start asking all kinds of questions—why he got off early, what kind of appointment needed him to leave work.

Quickly, Siyoung gathered his things.

“You’re off for the day? I thought you’d just stopped by.”

“Yeah, that’s it. I’ll see you later.”

“You barely just got here, though.”

Siyoung left in a hurry, and the manager watched him go, a bit disappointed.

“Not coffee today—he went with tea, huh?”

“Yeah. He said the doctor told him to cut back because of his gastritis.”

“Gastritis?”

Wasn’t that weeks ago? Is it still bothering him? Jaeyoon’s face filled with concern.

“It’s still acting up?”

“I’m not sure. He just said he’d cut back and lost the taste for it.”

“Hopefully, that’s all it is. When did he get here?”

“He was here about thirty minutes.”

With customers starting to glance at the counter, the manager figured he’d get some orders soon and put on his gloves.

When Jaeyoon was around, customers tended to linger, ordering in rounds to talk to him.

“Better get your apron on. I’ll handle the drinks.”

“…I’ll be back; just need to check on something upstairs. I’ll return before the evening shift.”

“Boss? Boss?”

Jaeyoon left his bag and apron at the counter, slipping out before the manager could get an answer.

The customers sighed, clearly disappointed.

“Did he leave for the day?”

“No, he said he’d be back.”

One customer bravely approached the manager to ask if Jaeyoon would return, and seemed reassured by the answer as they took their seat again.

But as the afternoon shift changed to the evening rush, Jaeyoon still hadn’t returned.

---

“You’re here? Oh, wait—it’s not Jeonghyun.”

“Were you expecting him? Why?”

“I just… had something to do. Siyoung left already.”

“I know. Saw him downstairs.”

“He said he had a hospital appointment but stopped by the café?”

“Hospital?”

Jaeyoon’s face tensed slightly.

Could the gastritis be more than just a minor issue?

“Which hospital?”

“I didn’t ask.”

“Why didn’t you? That’s the most important part.”

Only after Siyoung left did Yeonseok realize he should have asked, feeling a bit sheepish.

“Guess I forgot… had some stuff to take care of.”

“What stuff?”

“Don’t you get the feeling Siyoung’s hiding something lately?”

Jaeyoon froze.

He had thought that too but had brushed it off as just work stress.

“…He said it was because of job stuff.”

“Well, that might not be a lie, but I don’t think that’s all of it.”

Yeonseok stood up. If he looked hard enough, he’d find something.

He hadn’t planned to involve Jaeyoon, but now that he was here, he didn’t mind making him an accomplice.

“Time to find out. Whatever it is Siyoung’s hiding.”

“And how are you going to do that?”

“Dig through his things. Something’s bound to turn up.”

“What?”

Jaeyoon’s eyes widened in shock.

Going through someone’s stuff?

That never crossed his mind.

Even if he was frustrated, invading a friend’s privacy felt wrong.

“Did you even ask Siyoung?”

“Who would actually say something like that? He wouldn’t get permission anyway, and if he did try, he’d just hide everything suspicious. You know how careless he can be sometimes—he’d probably leave at least one clue lying around.”

“But still…”

Jaeyoon gripped his phone tightly, looking as if he was about to call Siyoung right away.

Yeonseok quickly took the phone from his hand.

“Hey, give it back.”

“Don’t you want to know what Siyoung’s hiding?”

“… I am curious, but Siyoung will tell me himself if it’s important.”

“So naïve, so trusting. If he was going to tell you, he would have done it already. The fact that he hasn’t said anything by now means he probably doesn’t intend to. By the time you find out, we might not even be able to help him. What if it’s something serious? He went to the hospital again today. What if it’s because he’s sick?”

“….”

Jaeyoon couldn’t respond and pressed his lips together tightly.

As much as he considered Siyoung a close friend, Siyoung didn’t always open up about everything.

If anything, Siyoung would be more likely to keep things hidden to avoid burdening others.

‘If it were something else, I’d just pretend not to know… but this could be about his health. Maybe it’s better to find out now, even if he’s upset about it…’

His resolve wavered, especially after hearing something on the way over that he couldn’t ignore.

Sensing Jaeyoon’s unease, Yeonseok slipped the phone into a drawer.

“Then I’ll take that as a yes.”

“What? Why is Kim Jaeyoon here?”

It was just after 4 p.m. when Hyun arrived at the office and noticed Jaeyoon.

Yeonseok had suggested bringing in more people so there would be fewer complaints if they were scolded.

Hyun agreed to go along with it and headed straight to Siyoung’s desk.

“…What’s this?”

Hyun frowned as he picked up something lying on Siyoung’s desk.

As Jaeyoon and Yeonseok came up behind him and saw what Hyun was holding, they quickly snatched it from his hand.

* * *