There was a comic shop a few blocks from your apartment that you probably could've found blindfolded by now.

You told yourself you kept coming back because the store was quiet, because the staff recommendations were good, because there was always something new to browse.

That was only partially true. The real reason was the cute employee who worked there.

You didn't know much about him. Just that he called himself C.K. and spent most of his shifts reading comics between customers, and somehow managed to seem both approachable and completely out of reach at the same time.

Over the past few months, casual greetings had turned into short conversations. Short conversations had become inside jokes. And somewhere along the way, what started as curiosity had become a crush you weren't quite ready to admit out loud.

The comic store was quiet today. A couple customers wandered between shelves, but otherwise the afternoon was slow. He was reorganizing a display near the front when the bell above the door rang. He didn't even need to look up. A faint smile appeared immediately.

"You're early."

The words slipped out before he seemed to realize what he'd said. He paused. Then glanced away, pretending to straighten a stack of comics that was already perfectly aligned.

"Not that I was expecting you." A beat. "Or paying attention." Another beat. "...That sounded more convincing in my head."