"Are you here for free coffee again?" Andrew asked, raising an eyebrow. "I think you should start paying for your coffee, even if we've been best friends since middle school, Chase."
"Stop being a cheap steak, Andy! This is why I don't like being friends with broke people," Chase replied, a smug grin plastered on his face.
"I'm the owner of this building, Chase, where you come for free coffee every afternoon, and you dare call me cheap? At least I don't work under someone who drains me dry with too much workload," Andrew shot back, smirking.
"I'm working hard to take care of you," Chase muttered under his breath.
"Ah, take care of me? Come on, honey, leave the care taking to me," Andrew said, giving Chase a playful side-eye.
"Whatever, man. By the way, the guy I met at the bar yesterday was sooo fine… Dude was hot, and damn, his body was fire! We shared a kiss, and he was a great kisser—his lips tasted like milk and honey," Chase said, making an exaggerated cute face.
"Haven't you been going out too much lately, Chase? Any problems?" Andrew asked, a hint of concern in his voice.
"But Andy, a lot of hot guys have been showing up at the bar lately! I just can't help myself. I probably want to start a relationship too," Chase replied, his eyes sparkling with excitement.
"Well, if you say so, Chase," Andrew replied, rolling his eyes.
"I'm so tired! The café is packed today. I know people love my coffee and all, but isn't this too much?" Andrew said with a smirk.
"My fated partner should hurry up before I get snatched away!" Andrew exclaimed dramatically.
"Shut up, man! You've been saying that since middle school," Chase retorted, rolling his eyes.
"Dude, shut up! I know my man is coming really soon—petite, handsome, and beautiful. My dream man! We'll go on walks together, have late-night dinners, and try out my new cake recipe together. I can feel it, I can even smell it!" Andrew declared, his enthusiasm palpable.
"I know…" Chase said, trying to suppress a chuckle.
"One iced tea, please, with the cheesecake," a customer requested before Chase could finish his thought.
"Sure, coming right up! Timmy, get the order!" Andrew called out.
"Yes, sir!" replied Timmy, a young boy about eighteen or nineteen, wearing a blue shirt and black pants.
"Here's your order, ma'am," Timmy said, handing it over.
"Thank you!" the woman in red replied, smiling as she took it.
"Chase, you're distracting me from my work. Isn't your break time over yet?" Andrew asked, tapping his foot impatiently.
"I really want to quit! This job will be the end of my life!" Chase said, his face contorted in distress.
"I thought you said you were working hard to take care of me, or have you given up?" Andrew laughed, a smirk forming on his face.
"I seriously will kill you one day," Chase said, standing up to leave.
"I don't gain anything from being best friends with you," he added, making an exasperated face as he reached for the door.
"Hahaha, hustle hard, Chase!" Andrew laughed heartily.
"Boss, you're too much!" Lisa chimed in, giggling.
"It's always so chaotic in here," a girl sitting by the window said, smiling.
---
"Don't forget to close the shop, Lisa, and Timmy, take some leftover cake home to share with your siblings. I know how hard you're working to take care of them," Andrew said, smiling warmly.
"Thank you, sir!" Timmy replied, bowing his head slightly.
As Andrew walked home from work, the air felt strangely calming. The sun cast a golden glow, signaling that night was approaching.
Looking at his wristwatch, he muttered, "6:30! I need to get home fast; I can't miss the hot man reality TV show today. The participants are deciding who the straight man is, and I still need to stop by the bookstore to get volume two of *Men Are in Love*—the BL manhwa!" He quickened his pace.
Thinking to himself, he mused, "I've read in books that there are many universes, multiverses. But my world is a bit special. Everyone is born with a destined partner once in their lifetime. The golden thread of fate connects people to their fated partner, regardless of gender. While it's difficult to meet your fated partner—only about twenty percent of people do—I, Andrew Sebastian, a 27-year-old hot gay man (to be specific, a top, hopefully), still believe."
His friends always joke with him, asking how he knows he's a top and gay when he's been single all his life.
"I've had a lot of crushes since middle school—seriously, a lot of guys, and some of them liked me too. But as the most romantic and faithful guy who strongly believes in the golden thread of fate, I have to save myself for my destined one, even if it might be difficult to meet them."
"Not Chase always saying I'm going to die single. What an annoying guy," he thought, his face scrunching up in annoyance.
"I want to find my one and only man, and I know he's out there. Hot, sexy, cute. 'Fate, I believe in you!'" he almost screamed out loud.
"Say yes! Say yes!" a loud crowd cheered as a man proposed to his lover—a young man, probably in his twenties, acting all shy with a rose in hand, candlelight surrounding them. It was as if the universe agreed to their union, with a sudden calm wind and butterflies swirling around them.
"Look at them, TCH—couples. I know that relationship won't last long. His partner isn't even that cute; look at his nose! Too big! Why must they show everyone they're in love?" Andrew scoffed.
And then, bam!
"Call an ambulance!"
Andrew had just been hit by a truck.
"This is why you shouldn't wish bad things on people! Their relationship is going to last; I know it will! Is this how I'm going to die without ever tasting love, not even once?! So Chase was right! Fate, why do you hate me?" Andrew thought as his consciousness slowly faded away, tears brimming in his eyes.
Not far away, the sound of an ambulance siren grew closer.