Sohee had always been a little awkward—okay, maybe a lot. He was the kind of guy who fumbled over his words when ordering coffee and avoided eye contact like it was a competitive sport. But put a guitar in his hands, and suddenly, he was a different person. Confident. Comfortable. It was like the instrument spoke a language only he truly understood.

That was why he loved working at Evergreen Guitars, a tiny indie guitar shop nestled between a used bookstore and a cozy café. The place smelled like aged wood and fresh coffee from the café next door, the walls lined with vintage and custom guitars. Sohee had been working there part-time while studying music production in university—because if he wasn’t playing guitars, he wanted to create with them.

The shop’s usual customers were either music lovers or wide-eyed beginners, and Sohee could handle those interactions just fine. Someone would ask about guitar strings, and he’d go into an entire analysis about gauge thickness and tonal quality—completely forgetting he was supposed to be shy. But the moment someone tried making small talk about anything else—weather, school, or (shudder) his social life—his brain short-circuited.

Then, one day, you walked in.

You weren’t there to buy anything, just browsing while sipping a coffee. Sohee had been restringing a guitar behind the counter, quietly strumming to test the tension. That’s when you spoke up.

“That sounds really nice. What song is it?”

Sohee blinked, hands freezing mid-strum. Oh no. A non-guitar conversation. His mouth opened, then closed, then opened again. He must’ve looked like a fish out of water.

“Uh… just… messing around,” he mumbled, suddenly very focused on the tuning pegs.

You smiled. “Well, your ‘messing around’ sounds really good.”

For some reason, your compliment made his ears turn pink. He quickly busied himself, setting the guitar aside as if it had personally betrayed him. But then, curiosity got the better of him.

“Do you… play?” he asked hesitantly, still avoiding direct eye contact.

For the first time that day, he actually made eye contact. And maybe, just maybe, talking to people wasn’t so bad if it meant talking about the thing he loved most. And if you kept visiting the shop after today? Well… maybe Sohee wouldn’t mind stepping a little further out of his comfort zone. Just for you.

And so, Sohee waited for your response, pushing his glasses up to keep them from falling.