1.
Mornings are usually a hectic mess for Lin Zihan. Waking up at the c***k of dawn, his day at the restaurant started with cleaning the kitchen and deciding the day's rotational menu. Then there's inventory checking to do, bringing in the newly delivered supplies, baking all the pastries and preparing the first batch of brewed tea, among other things.
But 15 minutes before the doors at The Grapefruit Folks open officially, the whirlwind of tasks winded down, giving the raven just enough time to take a breather. Inhaling the bittersweet scent of the freshly brewed grapefruit tea while the soft melody from the wind chimes tinkled in the kitchen, Zihan leaned back against the wooden chair. Weather forecast predicted clear skies with some Spring breeze, which makes for a perfect temperature to go for his rounds in the orchard later on. It was yet another slow day, away from the stressful city life with banging pots and pans around him, and crowds of human chatter and yelling.
What more could he have asked for-
The kitchen door slammed open, breaking the peaceful moment as a young male strode in with a huff and an elaborated eye roll. "He's here. Again. For the love of god, when will he finally register that 'not interested' means 'no'?"
Zihan looked up, eyes following Dan Feng as he prance around the kitchen, temper clearly riled up. The chef doesn't blame him, though. After all, the brunet had pretty much barged into their space, gave unnecessary comments on the restaurant, and held an air of entitlement with his so-called 'business proposals'. He's seen enough of these 'investors' in the past at his stint as a head chef, but he still found himself irked by the person's attitude.
Not to mention, Dan Feng had always been a little hot-tempered. To put it in a nice way, Dan Feng's a very passionate individual, especially when it came to the restaurant. After all, he was there since Zihan had conceived the concept, and was the one who helped to design the overall look of the space.
And no one liked their efforts being undermined.
"Dan Feng."
"Well, I guess third time's the charm but..." the male continued to ramble away, running one hand through his hair roughly before throwing his hands in the air, "that thing isn't a charm by any means though!"
"Alright, alright," Zihan sighed, finally setting down his cup of lukewarm tea as he stood up, making his way out of the kitchen. "Dan Feng, you get ready to open the doors. Let me handle him today."
"But!" Blocking his path quickly with outstretched hands, Dan Feng shook his head aggressively. "No! I- What if
