"kwenchana?" he asked. I was snapped out of my dilemma instantenously.

 

"oh... Ne." i aswered as i turned off the steamer and put the pitcher down.

 

"you were... Zoned out... Are u still thinking of what the douchebag said? Coz if you are, don't......" he replied.

 

I nodded in reply as i poured the milk Into the mug containing the espresso shot. 3/4 milk, and an inch of foam.... I mentally said to myself. I took a toothpick, and dipped it into the coffee....

 

"draw me something different today," he suddenly said. That caught me offguard. No customer has requested coffee art from me before... I looked at him, and saw that he was staring at his latte, curiously anticipating. I havent been practising. I just drew the first thing that came to mind....

 

"here u go mithra jin ssi.... I hope its ok. The bear looks.... Errr.... Yeah," i said scratching my the back of my head.

 

"thank you! He said. It's cute! But why did u draw me a bear?" he said amused.

 

"coz... Err... Its the first thing that came to mind....." i shyly replied.

 

" ouh... Can i have different latte art everytime i come here?" he asked, smiling as he took out his phone to take a photo of it.

 

"sure thing mithra jin ssi" i replied, slightly flustered. His smile shone so bright under the tungsten light of the cafe.

 

"ouh... By the way, how old are you? If i may ask...." he asked.

 

" err.... 27. Im not that young..... Sadly..." i replied.

 

" U're not that old... Im older still... So... U can call me oppa. Drop the -ssi. U make me sound like an uncle..." he said.

 

"oh.. So sorry mithra... Oppa. Didnt mean it like that... " i said, trembling a little coz i was afraid that i offended him, and also because my heart was beating too fast. He just asked me to call him oppa. Oh em to the freaking gee......

 

"haha. No worries!" he said again as he picked up his drink to walk to his seat.

 

"enjoy our drink!" i said from beyond the counter.

 

" i will!" he replied.

 

My heart was racing. All the pain and venom left behind from the previous customer seemed to have faded away. " Mithra Oppa, u're like a remedy to the venom. Ur smile is magic. Too bad u'll never see me as a woman. But its ok. At least, tonight,i can sleep with a smile... Thank you. " i said to myself, as i wiped the counter table while i watched him fiddling with his fone, sipping the cuppa coffee which i made.