"Hey, you two! Please, don't get mixed up with the tables again, more customers are waiting impatiently for their free drinks, okay?" The young energetic owner of a modest corner cafe urged her only workers both to work efficiently as well as speedily in face of more people thronging into the place. So much for a nice beginning on this festive occasion, the promotion offer she ingenuously thought up was working well beyond expectations.
"Yes, boss!" The pair responded aloud and rushed about picking up drinks from the bar counter and distributed them like busy bees, even nearly knocking into each other at a few instances.
Watching from her seat by the window, Gui Gui smiled at such active and easy-going youngsters, delighting her experience of the season. She sipped on her cup of hot macchiato topped with soft chewy marshmallows, warming her heart, "Throbbing Reflections Cafe...really nice setting...even though it's Christmas all by myself..."
Pulling the door to enter inside, he was surprised by the chalkboard written 'Free Christmas Drink All Day Giveaway!' Smilingly, he deemed it timely and checked his watch before looking all around the crowded cafe, "Phew, not too late either...still another half hour to go before midnight..."
Scanning for a possible seat available, one customer got up from a next-to-window seat, grabbed his tray of leftover sandwich and left to pay the cashier who was none other than the confidently beaming youthful lady owner.
Aaron headed over to take that seat in all enthusiasm...
Gui Gui nodded lightly to express friendly mannerism while moving her drink closer to allow him more space.
"Thanks, Miss," he said in appreciation of her thoughtfulness.
"Sir, you have a choice of free hot beverage on this cold winter night, regardless of whether you are purchasing any food item...Please pick one from this list..." The guy waiter approached and inquired of him.
"Oh, I see...wonderful," he remarked and ran his finger down the long menu of flowery names of each drink. In the end, he decided, "I still prefer marshmallow macchiato..."
Right opposite him, Gui Gui composedly tried to suppress a smile...
He then hesitated briefly before requesting a little further, "If you don't mind, I prefer mine slightly cold, along with a bit of caramel...?"
"Coming right up!" The jolly waiter chanted.
While waiting, he was captivated by the snowy scene outside the window and marvelled, to which Gui Gui bemusedly observed and was tempted to follow his gaze as a result.
"Oh dear," he uttered distractingly to himself, but nevertheless within her earshot, after a while of quiet fascination, wondering if he has exceeded the time limit of his street car parking. He stood up immediately and squirming his way from amongst the overwhelming crowd of the cafe, he hurried to exit the cafe.
Gui Gui was puzzled by his abrupt haste, and the other girl server also came with his cup of macchiato all ready since it was not needed to be steaming hot, asking her if she had ordered another one.
"Well, I...," she stammered. Glancing out of the window, she happened to notice sharply from one side a little small bag of gift left by him on the chair across from her.
She gave a quick thought and too rose from her seat, taking his thing and the drink from the waitress on behalf, mouthed a fast thanks and marched out of the cafe.
Once in the open under the drifting, glistening snow, Gui Gui sought earnestly for a sight of him...Somehow, gripping tightly onto the things in her hands, she sensed an enthralling connection with this night's unanticipated novelty tugging onto her impetuous sentiments, an unwavering throbbing of her heart...which she certainly has never encountered before...