Tristan and his classmates were walking downstairs from a footbridge. Kevin and Kenneth were busy chatting, while Samantha smiled next to Tristan, humming happily. Despite Tristan’s hesitation earlier, he secretly looked forward to their hangout.

They reached the end of the stairs that lead directly to Light Mall. “Can we eat first? I’m starving!” Kenneth cried out. Samantha and Tristan shook their head playfully, while Kevin chuckled instead.

While on their way to the mall entrance, Tristan noticed a garden wallpaper covering a store in the mall’s corner.

He walked closer to read the name of the store that was printed in the middle of the wallpaper.

'Kofienrest Cafe'

He glanced at a poster below the wallpaper.

'Hiring! Barista!'

Suddenly, Samantha scooted beside him. “What’chu checking there, Tris?”. Her eyes scanned at the name of the shop, and her eyes widened a little from recognition. “Oh, cool. Didn’t know they’re opening a branch here.”

Her words triggered some bits of memories that slowly formed into a flashback in Tristan’s mind. “Oh! That’s why the name was familiar! We’ve been there back at Eton Centris!”

“Yup! Are you planning to apply as a barista?” she half teased, but her tone showed a hint of seriousness.

“Me? I don’t know how to make espresso drinks, though.”

Samantha snorted, slightly shaking her head in amusement. “You can always learn, Tris. Being a barista sounds like a great job. Who knows, maybe you'll find a girlfriend this time.” She finished with a shrug.

“Hey guys! Let’s go!” Kevin shouted in the distance. They turned around and saw him and Kenneth standing in front of the entrance, looking at them. “Sorry!” Tristan shouted back. They ran back and joined the two as they began their hang out around Light Mall, enjoying their remaining hours together as high school classmates.

“Sorry guys, I have to go home now.” Samantha said, looking at the time on her phone, “It’s already late, and I don’t want to get scolded by my papa.”

“It’s alright, maybe we should all go home.” Tristan said, “But this was an awesome day with you guys! Thank you for treating me and Samantha!”

“No worries dude! Happy birthday again!” Kenneth playfully smacked Tristan in the back, and all of them shared their last round of laughter for a long time.

They exited the mall and headed to the footbridge. While walking, Samantha nudged Tristan with her elbow, then pointed at the under construction cafe with her lips. “Just try Tris, maybe you’ll end up liking it.”

Tristan shrugged, “We’ll see.”

Later on, Tristan waved farewell to Samantha as they went on their separate ways, a final warmth at his heart as he began to walk back to his own home. Eventually, he reached his home, “Hey mom! I’m back!” he shouted in the kitchen.

He went upstairs to his room, changed clothes to something more comfortable, then plopped on his bed, letting its softness relax his body.

Tristan grabbed his phone, opened the Facebook app, and scrolled down his feed. His classmates and schoolmates posted their pictures of the graduation celebration party, but one post caught his attention the most when he saw his mother posted a picture of them together. Seeing her proud look made him feel loved.

“My sweet child had graduated from senior high school!”

After a few minutes, Tristan suddenly remembered the barista position earlier. He didn't know why, but something about it enticed him. So, out of curiosity, he looked up the cafe’s Facebook page.

The first thing he noticed was the high reviews, which didn’t surprise him. Then he saw their pinned post, a hiring poster for their upcoming branch in Light Mall. But to his surprise, senior high school graduates and first-timers can apply, feeling a weird sensation of excitement.

“You can always learn, Tris. Barista sounds like a great job.” Samantha’s words echoed in his mind.

Tristan stared at his ceiling. The idea of making coffees for a living irked his interest. He could see himself making espresso drinks in a cute cafe surrounded by coffee lovers like him.

But Tristan was uncertain if they would hire him. Even if the cafe accepts first-time applicants, there’s a high chance the cafe will prioritize experienced baristas.

“Just try Tris, maybe you’ll end up liking it.”

Tristan took his time, weighting the pros and cons. But after a while, he made up his mind.

Tristan jumped out of his bed, sat down in his chair, then turned on his computer. After it finished booting up, he opened his resume file and began updating it. He leaned close to the screen, double checking every detail to make sure every detail was accurate.

Once done, he went to the cafe’s Facebook page, clicked on the message button, and began to type a message, expressing his interest in the position, then attached his resume.

Here goes nothing. He paused before pressing the Enter key, sending his message to the cafe’s account.

Tristan began his journey of looking up jobs on many websites. But after an hour, Tristan felt disheartened as he could only apply for three jobs. Some jobs that piqued his interest either required a bachelor’s degree or were too far from his home.

Suddenly, his negative emotions ceased when he let out a yawn.

Tristan turned off his computer, laid down on his bed, and covered his body with a blanket. He chuckled at the thought of working at a cafe, making coffee and serving them a hot, caffeinated beverage. A smile on his face,

He couldn’t wait to receive that sweet, sweet call.

A week had passed. Tristan was eating lunch in front of his computer, too engrossed watching a YouTube video. When out of the blue, his phone ringtone blasted around the room. He almost threw up the food in his mouth as he jolted in his chair from shock.

When he realized his phone was ringing, he stiffened as a pang of anxiety shot throughout his body. He quickly gulped a glass of water, then grabbed his phone to see who called.

Tristan took a deep breath to calm his nerves before he answered the call. “Hello, is this Tristan Sarmiento?” a middle-aged woman asked.

“A-ah yes, I am.”

“Hello Tristan, I am Miss Garcia from Kofienrest Cafe. You applied for a barista position, correct?”

Tristan tensed, his heart beat fast. “Y-yes ma’am.”

There was a few seconds of silence before Mrs. Garcia continued, “Do you have any barista experience?”

“N-No, Ma’am.” he shook his head. “But I am willing to learn and train how to make all kinds of drinks and be a good barista.” He cringed a little when he realized he had over shared too much. Sweats began to form on his forehead.

Mrs. Garcia let out a faint chuckle. “No worries, Tristan. Lack of experience isn’t an issue as long as you’re open-minded about learning new things.”

Tristan sighed as he felt a slight relief from the encouragement.

“Are you available for an interview this Friday?”

And it was short-lived as Tristan stiffened again, but for a different reason. Mrs. Garcia’s words felt like music to his ears.

“Y-Yes, Ma’am!”

Mrs. Garcia chuckled again, “Alright, the interview will be on our Eton Centris branch at nine in the morning. You can ask any baristas for help at my office. Good luck Tristan.” She said in an assuring tone before she ended the call.

After the three beeps of disconnection, Tristan stared at his phone in disbelief, mind slowly comprehended what had just happened. And when it hit, his expression brightened up from excitement. “Yes! Yes! Yes!” he jumped up and down, complete with fist pumps. “Can’t believe I’ll have a chance!”

A part of him still couldn't believe he had got an interview offer, but the joy he felt overshadowed it. In the middle of his glee, he let out a gasp when an idea popped into his mind. “I need to study now!” He bounced back to his chair, chowed the rest of his lunch, then placed the dirty dishware on the floor.

Tristan looked up articles about first-time baristas, excitement coursing through his body. He opened every article he could find and read every single one of them. And to his absolute luck, Tristan also found two articles about potential barista interview questions and how to answer them. So he didn’t hesitate to read them as well.

He even started watching vlogs of baristas’ daily lives working in a cafe on YouTube. To familiarize himself with the work environment, and to hear their personal thoughts about working as a barista.

Tristan grasped every piece of information he could squeeze in his mind. He didn’t stop researching for hours until he felt nauseous from staring too close at his monitor.

He shut off his computer, got up on his chair, and plopped on his bed with glee. He let out some silent giggles, as he still felt high from excitement.