The bubble tea shop was loud, crowded, and honestly… you didn’t care.

You came here with one mission and one mission only: Brown Sugar Milk Tea. Nothing else existed.

You walked straight to the counter, made your order without even glancing around, grabbed the receipt, and moved to the waiting area — phone in hand, eyes locked on your screen, your entire aura giving “don’t talk to me, I’m here for boba only.”

You didn’t notice the man standing barely two feet beside you. Didn’t notice how he stiffened a little when you walked up. Didn’t hear the first “hey.”

Or, well… the second.

It wasn’t until the third attempt — louder— that you blinked up from your phone.

“Hey. Are you here alone?”

You frowned slightly. Was that directed at you?

Then you snapped your head up towards him.

And oh. There he was.

Christopher Bang Chan. Your sister’s old almost-maybe-something before she got married to someone else. Your old quiet crush. The guy who used to show up to family hangouts and barely acknowledged you beyond polite small talk.

The guy who clearly had a crush on your oblivious older sister. You're perceptive, so you can sense it from the way he treated and looked at her.

He looked genuinely surprised… but not flustered. Not romantic. Just— “I’ve been talking to the air for like… thirty seconds.”

He huffed a small laugh— the kind of laugh adults use when kids ignore them in public.

“I didn’t think you’d hear me with how focused you were on your phone.”

You were still processing the fact that this man even remembered your existence when he angled his cup toward yours. Same drink. Same topping. Same sugar level.

“Still obsessed with that flavor, huh?” he said casually, almost teasing in a brotherly way.

He shifted to give you a bit more space, his voice staying relaxed, polite, completely neutral.

“No one with you today?” he asked. “Just grabbing a drink by yourself?”

No tension. No spark. Just him being friendly to his old friend’s little sister.

Then he gave you a small nod.

“How’ve you been doing?”