I hate tea, but yet I'm here (Open)

Brooke didn't know why she was here, she just was and now she wasn't about to leave because that would mean she would have to wait for her mother to stop shopping with her grandparents and she didn't want that. They always took forever and it annoyed her so very much. Brooke took a seat in the tea shop and ordered regular tea. 'Mine as well order something' even though she didn't drink tea. Just the smell of it annoyed her to her heart's content.

The young girl got her tea and just kept steering it and she watched as it spun around like a tornado. She really needed a hobby because this one sucked big time. The young Slytherin ordered a slice of pie as well and when it came out she began playing with it before she finally took a bite of it.

Stephen was supposed to go home for the summer. It wasn't that he wanted to, it was just that it was expected of him, as one of the heirs to the Han corporate empire. Ever since Eun Soo moved to the UK, though, Stephen figured there was no reason for him to go back. The only cousin he liked was in London, and he had no parents waiting for him back in Seoul.

He still thought about them, everyday, imagining them to be happily in each other's arms in who knows where souls end up.

One of his fondest memories of them was whenever they had tea in the afternoon. They always told Stephen stories, from ancient Korean folklore to funny stories from their days in the wizarding academy. He could still imagine the laugh lines around his father's eyes and her mother's dimpled smile. Though most of his uncles and wives never kissed their partner in front of their children, Stephen's parents were open with their affection, and they never failed to show Stephen love as well.

And now that they were gone, it was his duty to make other people happy and feel loved. Or at least, that was what he believed.

When he entered the tea shop that afternoon, memories of their stories and laughter came back as he watched a large group of friends having tea. They were quite loud, but that was alright—Stephen could see that they were merely enjoying being with friends, and that was something he always liked to see. Unfortunately, it seemed as if they weren't the only ones trying to enjoy their tea. The small shop was full, and there was only one table he could occupy... if the girl sitting on her own wouldn't mind having company.

He approached the girl hesitantly. 'Hi,' he said, 'would you mind if I share a table? It's just, the rest of the shop is full.'

Brooklyn took a sip of the tea she had ordered and rolled her eyes, she still didn't know why she showed up here or why she ordered tea but she did. She also ordered a water along with a piece of cake that had just arrived. The young Slytherin took a bite of the cake and was immediately in heaven and it was something that she loved to be in when she tasted sweets. If she never felt like she was in heaven she would throw a tantrum and get her way.

When someone interrupted her from her heaven sent piece of cake, she just agreed with what they said so she could get back to it. "Sure" although she knows what the boy said, she just didn't give a damn right now. The young Slytherin continued to eat her cake and occasionally hum with happiness when she took another bite of her cake.

The sight of the girl truly enjoying her cake made Stephen smile. He knew he should mind his own business, but it wasn't everyday that he saw people who looked that happy to be eating cake. When a waiter passed by, he ordered himself some lemon cake and tea. Stephen then brought out his trusty sketchbook from his bag, along with a newly sharpened pencil and eraser.

He tried to capture the shape of her face first, outlining from there her neck and shoulders. Next, he focused on her hair, and how it fell in waves past her shoulder. He then tried to draw her eyes, which only seemed to see the cake in front of her. Stephen smiled again and suppressed a chuckle as he traced the way her eyes lit up and the shape her lips took whenever she hummed in happiness. When he finished his rough sketch, he looked up at her again and tried to capture the reflection of sunlight on her hair.

Yes, perhaps he should be minding his own business. Perhaps he should just leave her alone. But he had an urge to capture her with his pencil, to make that beautiful scene stand still on paper. He ignored the lemon cake and tea as the waiter set it down and table, grasped by the urgency to portray her properly before she could finish her cake and leave.

When she was eating her cake in peace, she heard something and looked up. She saw the kid that had asked to sit with her drawing something in his sketchpad. She didn't know what to say, she didn't know if she should get up or leave the table, but then she realized she was here first and she was not moving at all. She'd wear this kid down until he left first. She took a sip of her water and looked at the boy sitting across from her.

Her brown eyes really wanted to know what he was sketching but she didn't want to seem pushy. Wait what! When was she never pushy?! Why was she actually thinking of being nice to this boy?! Nope, she needed to stop these thoughts right now! "What are you drawing?" She took a sip of her water and continued to stare at him until he showed her.

Sketching the girl was one thing, but to impose his sketch on her—well, Stephen figured it might come off as creepy, given how he had chosen to sit with her (even though he technically had no choice in the matter, since the tea shop was full). On the other hand, if he honestly told her what—or rather, who he was drawing and why, it might not come off as too weird, and he thought maybe she might even like it.

He had certainly tried his best. He knew the sketch would look best in watercolour, but since he didn’t have the time and proper materials, he figured he could just charm the sketch a bit so that her hair was a flowing curtain and a hint of a sparkle could be seen in her half-closed eyes. Hesitantly, he tore the page from the sketchbook and handed it over to her. ‘I’m sorry for drawing you without permission,’ he said, ‘but I was waiting for my order, and I thought the view from where I’m seated was perfect.’

It definitely wasn’t just the rays of sunlight dancing on her hair, or how the cake was also beautifully made—a girl who looked happy always made Stephen happy, and again, he was reminded of those times when their tiny family had afternoon tea. Shyly, Stephen looked back down on his cake and scooped up a spoonful, hoping the girl wasn’t upset with him.

Brooklyn took the picture and looked right at it. She then looked at the boy that was sitting in front of her. She couldn't believe that he was seriously drawing her but then she had to admit that the drawing was good, but she be damned if she ever told him that. The young Slytherin sighed and took a bite of her little snack and looked at him. "Its good, never had someone draw me before" she said to him honestly. He better get used to it because wasn't going to be nice to this boy again.

"So why draw me? I'm nothing interesting, there is probably a lot more people in here that look more interesting and yet you draw me. Why?" She wanted to know why he drew her when he could have drawn anyone else in this tea shop. She wasn't being picky she just wanted to know why and if she had to demand it then she would. She would use her Slytherin tactic to get him to answer her damn questions whether he wanted to or not. The young Slytherin took a sip of her water and waited for the obvious non-Slytherin to answer her.

One thing Stephen liked about his skin tone was that despite feeling embarrassed easily, his skin rarely showed it—unlike some of his paler friends, Stephen never flushed, and if one looked closely, the only indication of his embarrassment could be seen in the way he avoided someone's gaze. That was precisely what he was doing when the girl spoke again, complimenting his drawing while demanding why he had drawn her out of everyone else in the tea shop.

Why had he, indeed? Certainly the small slanted ray of sunlight wasn't just beautiful where she was seated. Out of everyone in the tea shop, though, she was the one who stood out to him, perhaps because she was alone, or maybe even because of that smile on her face while she was eating her cake.

Stephen slowly looked up, trying to gauge what kind of response she was expecting from him. Unfortunately, unlike his cousin, he couldn't read people as well, and he could only assume that she was trying to figure out whether he was a creep. Deciding to tell her the truth, Stephen spoke. 'Well, the practical reason is because you're right in front of me.' He smiled a little as he indicated where she was seated. 'But, to be honest with you, I just thought... I just thought you looked really beautiful, enjoying your cake and looking as if you're the sort of person to live in the moment.'

Feeling self-conscious, Stephen looked down on his cake again. 'I'm sorry if I'm overstepping boundaries. But I wanted to tell you the truth. I won't do it again if it bothers you, and you can throw away the drawing.'

She listened to his reply when he spoke to her. She was shocked at his answer to her question, no one ever said that about her. It made her want to smile but she didn't. Brooklyn always called herself beautiful but never heard someone else say it to her. "Honestly, no one has ever told me that before. Beautiful I mean. So this is new" Brooklyn watched as he apologized to her for overstepping and she gave a small smile before she wiped it away.

"I'll keep it" Brooklyn said as she put the picture in her bag. It was a beautiful picture and she had to admit that he did a great job in the matter of it. "I'm Brooklyn Rae by the way" she hesitantly held her hand out to the boy to shake. She wasn't used to this but he was nice enough to draw her so why not?