Page 28 of You Had Me At Annyeong!
The ponytailed girl seems a little unsure.
‘Um …’
‘FOUND THEM!’ Timira screams in delight from under the table where she’d crawled into during her emergency search mission.
The girl looks on curiously as Timira breaks into a little jig, looking lovingly at the cigarettes and caressing them like they were the object of her affection while humming Enrique’s ‘Escape’.
You can run
You can hide
But you can’t escape …
Timira picks up her tote and chucks the cigarette pack in. Walking up to the girl, she puts an arm around her shoulders.
‘Now, shall we get some coffee and get to know each other before I take you up on your offer?’
The young girl blushes a little. She tightens her hair tie and pats her skirt down.
‘There’s a café just a few blocks from here.’ It’s an international chain famous for its sugary, decadent iced frappes.
‘Ugh, no. There are too many of them back home. I’d like to try local roasters. There must be indie cafes here, no?’ Timira butts in before she can finish.
‘Yes, yes. Of course!’
‘That’s what I thought. I’ve heard so much about Korean coffee culture. In fact, there’s this café I kept seeing in a really popular drama my best friend got me hooked on to,Descendants of the Sun. Have you seen it?’
‘You mean the drama? Or the café?’
‘Both!’ Timira giggles.
Hanee isn’t the biggest K-drama fan and for the life of her, cannot seem to recall which café her boss is referring to.
‘Er,Seonbaenim. I saw the drama many years ago. I can’t quite recall the name of the coffee shop …’ Hanee speaks apologetically in a feeble voice.
‘Oh, chill, bubba! What do we have the Internet for? There’s got to be a Reddit thread on this! The world is full of K-dramaholics, I have come to realize.’
‘Dalkomm,’ Timira announces triumphantly after a quick search.
Hanee’s eyes light up almost immediately.
‘Ooh, they’re one of my favourite coffee chains. Excellent frappes, too. Seonbaenim, do you have a sweet tooth? They make terrific desserts!’
‘Then what are we waiting for? Let’s go!Vamos!’
Timira holds the girl’s arm and nearly pulls her along as she attempts to skip down the hallway, pinched feet notwithstanding, before halting abruptly. She turns towards herarm candy and announces innocently, ‘But I don’t even know your name!’
Flushed, the girl quickly shakes her arm free of Timira’s and bows nearly as low as they do in Korean telly dramas, Timira observes.
‘Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Kim Hanee. I interned here at SecondSkin right after graduating from management school and have just been accepted as a permanent employee. Assisting you is my first proper job.’
Hanee speaks breathlessly, without pausing, in perfect, but the adorably accented English that Timira has already decided is the cutest she has ever heard.
‘I hope I can be useful to you. Please look after me and teach me,Seonbaenim!’
Whoa! This is exactly like in the dramas. Less introduction, more presentation. Wow!
Thrilled to have a cute-as-a-button and seemingly kind ally after her most recent brush with workplace toxicity, Timira looks at Hanee with mother-like adoration and taps her head lightly.
