"Put it right there... And these fresh cream boxes should be in the chiller..." Karin points her finger to where the industrial chiller is. The deliveryman pushes the cart towards the chiller.
"Unnie, where should we put these new cups?" asks Sweet.
"They should be in the lower cabinet at the counter. Finish up the old stock before using that one," says Karin. Sweet nods.
Everything is set for about an hour. The cafe is ready to reopen after lunch break. Customers swarm into the cafe, some of them eager to try the new menu; coconut latte.
Karin is busy behind the counter, attending to the customers one by one with patience and of course, wearing her corporate smile.
"Americano. Double shot. Half ice,"
"Ame coming right-"
Karin pauses.
The man, who is standing in front of her, smiling while waiting for her response.
"Unnie, let me attend him..." Sweet quickly took over her place. Karin slowly backs off and handles the coffee-making area. Sweet is talking to the man. The man nods and smiles from time to time.
"Unnie, Ame half ice..."
"Coming!" she quickly prepares the order. Sweet takes the coffee from her and gives the coffee to the man before he taps his card at the machine.
Gradually, the crowd is getting smaller. Until the end of the lunch break, there are not many customers left. Sweet quickly runs into the kitchen when she sees Karin is busy cleaning behind the counter.
"Hey there!"
Karin looks up.
"Oh?"
***
"I hope you don't mind if we can talk in private like this," says Khittan.
Right now, they are inside his car. Khittan managed to persuade Karin to come with him. He came to the cafe this morning to meet her. He almost got a chance to talk to Karin when Sweet suddenly filled her place.
"You shouldn't be here, Your Highness..."
"I just came for a coffee. Is that wrong?"
Sweet blinks. She's lost for words.
"Look, Sweet.. Just act subtly. We both keeping a secret from Karin. If you act suspiciously, she will notice it right away," said Khittan as pretended to grab a tissue and a piece of straw.
"I hope it's only for good intentions..."
"Trust me. I just came for a coffee..."
A white lie does not even count as a sin. Khittan purposely came so he could talk to Karin. Ever since last night, he has missed her so much.
"Sorry about last night," says Karin. Although she is in the middle of a conversation with Khittan, her eyes gazing outside the window.
"You don't have to. I deserve that slap. I think I should be grateful that it's only a slap..." Khittan chuckles.
***
"Ask yourself. Did you love your boyfriend?"
Their eyes met. Karin paused a bit. Khittan's eyes slowly moved from her eyes down to her lips. He could hear her heavy breath escape from her lips.
"I don't think so, am I right?"
"What did you know about my life, huh?"
"Believe me. I know you more than anyone knows you. At least, four times of reincarnation..." Karin pushes him a bit.
"How did you-"
Khittan placed his thumb against her lips. He missed that lips so much. The sweetness and sticking feeling of the aftermath of a deep kiss. He remembered the first time they kissed. The same night that they marked their relationship in such an intimate way.
"Khit... What are you doing?" Karin asks. Her hand still grabbed his collar, trying to make at least a room and create a space between them. It gets smaller and closer.
"Try to claim what's mine,"
Karin's eyes got wide. She stuttered a bit.
"Karin?" Khittan called her. Karin looked at him.
"Can you call my name again?" Khittan asked.
"Khittan..."
"Nope. The other one," Khittan slowly whispered to her.
"Khit. Khit..."
Khittan smiled and slowly landed his kiss on Karin's lips. The action was so sudden that Karin pushed him away and...
Pang!
"Unlock the car. Now!"
***
"I just wanna know about the incarnation thing that you mentioned. Nothing more," says Karin. The main reason why she agrees to meet Khittan is to find out more about the incarnation thing that he mentioned.
After the accident, Karin experienced a series of dreams. In the dream, she met a man who shared the same vibe as Khittan. It bothered him so much that she decided to meet a mediator to find out why she experienced such a horrifying nightmare.
It's not that the therapist was not doing her job well, but some things like dreams, nightmares, and spiritual needs more than just a therapist. That's why she decided to meet a mediator.
"Do you still have those dreams?" asks Khittan.
"Did you?" Karin asks him back. Khittan stares at Karin.
"How did you know?" he asks.
"Just like how you know about me.."
"If only you know how I know,"
"Can we just skip to the important part? If we keep the guessing game, this will go nowhere!" Karin starts losing her cool.
"You're my wife!"
Silence.
"When did we get married? Is it before the accident?" Karin calmly asks.
"No. We got married in our previous life. At least three times of reincarnation," Khittan replies.
"So, I'm not exactly your wife. More like used to be your wife, but not anymore," Karin casually talks back.
Khittan shakes his head in tiny.
"I don't know how to describe the relationship, to be honest. It feels right and wrong at the same time," he replies. "But, the fact that you have those dreams, it's because you still hold a grudge against me for killing you in the past," he gazes at Karin.
"The mediator did mention that. But..."
"But?"
Karin looks at Khittan, her sights have a deep meaning within. She stares at the man for quite some time.
"Khit, I forgive you for what you did to me in our past life. Even if you were a bad husband who treated me like trash, I appreciate the effort of you to drag me out from The House of the Sun,"
Khittan is shocked by Karin's statement.
"To be honest, even living with them was hell for me. There's not much difference anyway. So, today I wanna end this grudge. Let's just forget what happened between us in the past and move on," says Karin.
"You think, you can just... Let go of everything... Just like that?" asks Khittan.
"Yes. I'm letting go now. Let's move on,"
"Karin..." Khittan grabs her hand tight. His heart feels heavy.
"Moving on, Khit. You have Ivry. I have Jun Seo. Let's live our own life," Karin's words have become heavier and denser.
"I can. But, you do not know how deep this thing is. The feelings that I have for you, are not something that I can throw away just like that. The bond that we created, it's more than just being together in the past," Khittan pours out his feelings. "We love each other so much that we hurt each other so deeply. The scar will exist forever," he continues.
Karin wears her stoic face. She understands the feeling that Khittan has for her. But, it's all in the past. To keep everyone in peace, she should forgive him and herself as well.
This is all for good...
She pulls her hand immediately.
"Goodbye, Khittan. I hope the next time we meet, we gonna be happy with each other's partners. Take care of Ivry. She loves you so much," Karin pushes open the car's door and leaves the scene in tears.
I should let him go at ease, but why does it feel even more hurtful? Am I falling in love with him? For real? But we just knew each other! What's with this overwhelming feeling?!
She quickly runs into the cafe, leaving Khittan, shedding tears alone in his car.
Finally, I lost her... For good...