The alarm clock rang: "Kring... kring..." Groaning, I reached over to silence it. Still lying in bed, I gazed blankly at the ceiling, lazy to start the day. "Weekdays, ugh."

With the responsibilities I have in work, I forced myself upright. "Time for work," I sighed, folding my bed.

My morning routine kicked in: cooking breakfast, setting it aside, and having a 30-minute bath and dressing up. Seated at the table, I ate my meal and sip my coffee, lost in thought as I gazed out the window. The silence around the house hugged me.

"It sunk in," I murmured, "I'm living the life I've always wanted—"

The alarm interrupted my thoughts, reminding me to leave for work or else I’ll be late.

I gathered my things for work hurriedly and opened the door. “ahhh!” I exclaimed in annoyance as an envelope fell out, stuck between the door and its frame. With the limited time I have to arrive at work, I threw it inside the house. Unsure of what it is all about, I didn’t bother to think about it much. All I could think of is if I can make it in time to the train station. I was really anxious if I could catch the first train. The trains from my hometown to work only run at 7:00 a.m and 10:00 a.m. If I missed the 7:00 a.m train, I’d have to wait three hours for the next one, which would make me late for my important meeting.

“Wait, wait!” I shouted desperately as I pleaded with the last man entering the train to alert the train conductor that someone was still trying to get on. I sighed heavily. “Just in time,” I said as soon as I entered the train.

I bowed and thanked the man who saved me from missing it, then proceeded to find an available seat. As usual, I plugged in my earphones and looked at the view outside the window because it is my daily routine whenever I go to work and ride the train. It helps me relax my mind, and I feel like I’m surrounded by peace.

After a few minutes had passed, I didn’t even notice that we were already midway to our destination because I was so focused on admiring the view while reminiscing about the good old days.

My thoughts were suddenly interrupted when the train driver made an announcement that instantly made me panic.

“Dear passengers, Hozukyō Station sincerely apologizes for the inconvenience ahead during the midway of our transportation. Rest assured that we are doing the best we can to fix the problem as soon as possible. For the moment, please step outside and take some fresh air while we work on resolving the issue. Again, we sincerely apologize for this inconvenience and ask for everyone’s understanding regarding our situation. Thank you!”

I was planning to stay in my seat until the conflict was resolved, but a guy suddenly approached me.

“Hey, don’t you want to go outside and get some fresh air?” he asked while offering me a smile.

“No, I’m good,” I replied.

I was about to plug my earphones back in when he suddenly held my wrist to stop me, which made me frown in surprise.

“Uh, sorry. I didn’t mean to,” he quickly apologized. “I was just thinking that you’d be the only one staying here. Wouldn’t that be awkward with the workers?” he asked jokingly before letting out a small giggle.

He actually had a point.

I looked out the window and started thinking twice about whether I should go outside or not. In the middle of my decision-making, he interrupted my thoughts once again.

“Okay, it’s up to you then. I just think it would be a pity if you wasted your time staying inside the train instead of appreciating the beautiful scenery outside,” he said before pausing. “Alright, I’ll get going then.”

After bidding goodbye, he flashed me a smile and stepped outside.

I wasn’t really planning to stand up from my seat, but the signal suddenly disappeared, so I had no choice but to go outside and find a place with signal.

Lucky me. There really wasn’t any signal anywhere.

I sighed in disbelief. Why do things like this have to happen at the worst possible time, especially when I’m in a rush? How unfortunate can I be?

I couldn’t help but look at the sky since I felt like my tears could fall at any moment.

“Kenji,” I whispered while staring at the sky.

I couldn’t do anything but let out a heavy sigh.

Since I had nothing else to do, I decided to take a look around the area. Everything looked peaceful, refreshing, and free. How come I never noticed this before? Not even once.

My eyes wandered toward the people taking pictures, but the guy from earlier suddenly caught my attention.

He was sitting alone on a bench, trying to figure something out.

Out of curiosity, I approached him and realized he was struggling to understand how the manual coffee maker works.

He had already poured way too much coffee grounds into the filter and was about to pour boiling water all at once.

“Wait, let me help you,” I said, trying to stop him from making an even bigger mess.

He looked at me with surprise. “Huh? Did I do something wrong?”

“You shouldn’t pour all the water at once,” I explained while taking the kettle from his hand. “And that’s too much coffee grounds. The taste will become too bitter if you put in that much.”

“Oh…” he muttered awkwardly while scratching the back of his neck. “So that explains why the last one tasted terrible.”

I couldn’t help but let out a small laugh.

“You have to pour the water slowly,” I continued. “Little by little, so the flavor comes out properly. That’s how manual coffee works.”

He stared at me quietly before smiling. “You really know a lot about this, huh?”

“I work for a coffee company,” I said while demonstrating to him how the manual brewer worked.

“We specialize in experimenting with and producing different coffee blends.”

I paused for a moment before looking at him.

“Plus, my fiancé and I own a coffee shop,” I added with a small smile.

After finishing the coffee, I carefully handed the cup to him.

“Take a sip.”

He slowly brought the cup to his lips before taking a careful sip. Afterward, he observed the drink quietly, as if trying to understand the taste lingering on his tongue.

“How was it?” I asked.

His face instantly lit up.

“It’s delicious,” he admitted honestly.

“This is actually my first time tasting coffee this good. I used to hate it, so I never really drink it often.” He let out a small laugh.

“I honestly don’t know why I suddenly had the urge to try it again. Weird, right?”

I simply smiled at him.

“Go on,” I encouraged. “Try making it yourself.”

I handed him the dripper and kettle before stepping slightly aside to watch him.

“Am I doing it right?” he asked nervously.

“Yeah, just don’t add too much coffee grounds since it’ll taste too bitter if you overdo it,” I explained.

“Are you really that curious about coffee to the point that you bought a coffee maker? It still looks new.” I glanced at the equipment before looking back at him.

“You mentioned earlier that you used to hate coffee, right? So why are you suddenly interested in it now?”

I hesitated for a moment.

“I don’t mean to pry into your personal life,” I quickly added, “but I’m honestly curious. It’s just confusing how someone could hate coffee for so long, then suddenly become interested enough to buy a whole coffee maker.”

“Hmmm…” he hummed softly while staring at the cup in his hands. “I don’t really know either. After I got discharged from the hospital, my perception of coffee suddenly changed.”

He paused before continuing.

“Ever since I was a child, I never liked its taste or even its smell. Honestly, strong coffee scents used to make me vomit.” He awkwardly laughed. “I remember my stomach would get upset whenever I tried forcing myself to drink it.”

He looked down at the coffee maker.

“But after leaving the hospital, I suddenly wanted to drink coffee. And it didn’t stop there—I even had the urge to buy a coffee maker.” He shook his head lightly. “I also think what happened to me is weird.”

“Hm. That’s unusual… but interesting,” I remarked quietly while staring at the beautiful view of the mountains and river ahead of us.

The peaceful scenery somehow made the atmosphere calmer.

“What’s that smell?” I suddenly asked in confusion.

I quickly turned toward him and immediately realized the coffee grounds were starting to burn because he had accidentally poured the water too aggressively, causing the filter to overflow.

“Wait—”

I quickly took the kettle from his hands before the entire setup became a mess.