HEXELG

CAFFEINE & CODE
A GL slow-burn romance by HEXELG

She's just the barista.
She's the most feared CEO in the city.
Neither of them expected to become the most important part of each other's routine.

Rina Cha is shy, clumsy, and just trying to survive her shifts at Syntek Corp's elite café. Her idea of danger is spilling oat milk on a customer-not walking into the executive elevator and meeting Kira Yoon, the company's untouchable CEO.

Kira runs the tech empire like a machine-flawless, cold, and emotionless. She doesn't do distractions. Especially not flustered girls with crooked foam hearts on their lattes.

But somehow, Rina becomes her only exception.

Now, Rina is bringing Kira coffee every day... and something deeper is brewing between them. In a world of polished glass, power suits, and unspoken rules, can softness survive?

Or will Kira code her heart out of reach?

Caffeine & Code

Kira's makeshift office was a corner table in the café.

Laptops open. Notebooks scattered. Empty coffee cups forming a monument to late nights and bright ideas.

Rina stood at the whiteboard wall, marker in hand, sketching their first org chart:

"K+R Technologies"CEO & Co-Founder: Kira YoonCOO & Co-Founder: Rina MinLead Engineer: TBDEthics Advisor: TBD

She stepped back. "Looks official."

Kira smiled—wry, hopeful. "Because it is."

A knock at the café back door interrupted their brainstorming.

Kira looked up. Rina's eyes widened when a nervous-looking young woman poked her head in.

"Um… sorry to bother you," she said."But I heard you… left Syntek. And you're starting something new?"

"I was on Helena's team. I couldn't stomach how she treated you. I… I quit this morning."

Kira exchanged a glance with Rina. "What's your name?"

"Jin Seo. I'm a senior developer. And I want in."

Rina grinned. "Welcome to the team, Jin."

Kira and Jin sat across from a lean-look VC partner in a midtown office.

"So you're building a 'people-first' tech company? No board, no investors… then how do you scale?"

"We scale by trust. By ethics. By making something people actually want—not just chasing market share."

The partner leaned back. "That's… idealistic. Risky. I'm out."

Rina reached over and squeezed Kira's hand. "Thank you for your time."

Back at the café, Kira slumped into a chair. Jin brewed them shots of espresso—no frills.

Rina slid in next to Kira. "VCs don't get it."

Kira closed her eyes. "Maybe they're not our people."

Rina smiled, tugging on Kira's sleeve: "Then we'll find the ones who are."

That evening, Rina posted their founding manifesto on social media:

"K+R Technologies: Built with ethics. Powered by people. Join us if you dare to care."

Two nonprofit groups offering partnership

A small angel investor asking for a meeting

Kira blinked at the screen. "That… actually worked."

Rina laughed. "It's because you fight for what matters."

Kira reached for Rina's hand. "And because you make people believe in us."

Building Blocks