“At some point in time, everyone plays a game of masquerade out of an innate survival instinct.”

It was the first time in eight years that I was meeting Dongwoo ever since he left to Canada for his studies. As much as I hated to admit it, we had noticeably drifted apart. We still talked once in a while over SNS, but it was nothing compared to the impeccable relationship we had before. Perhaps it was inevitable; it happens a lot – and not to mention, eight years is indeed a long time – but I thought our relationship was stronger than that, that it wasn’t just the conventional. But really, what I was most frustrated about was how I didn’t put in enough effort to keep our friendship going when in reality, I missed him so much. And when my chance came to prove the worth of our relationship, I was sure as heck not letting it pass.

Restlessly, I paced back and forth in front of the arrival gate, craning my neck every now and then to see if he was approaching. With all honesty, I knew that I might not be able to recognize him with the long passage of time, and Dongwoo knew that too, so we had already notified each other on what we were wearing. All that uncertainty definitely didn’t help in quelling my nerves as I tried to plan what to say and do once I met him.

If the flight information boards are accurate, he should be arriving anytime now – dark green camo print jacket with white tank top and black ripped jeans! Is that really –

While I was helplessly gaping at him, trying to figure out if that man was Dongwoo, he had walked up to me with the widest smile on his face. I scrunched my eyebrows in utter confusion. I’d anticipated that he might look different and mentally prepared myself for the gap between memory and reality, but I could barely find any trace of the Dongwoo I remembered in the appearance of the man who stood before me then. His jaw seemed much less pronounced than Dongwoo’s, and his nose and chin a tad sharper. Did he perhaps… get plastic surgery overseas…?

He widened his eyes in response to my unwelcome disposition and asked if anything was wrong. With a stutter, I lied through my teeth and frantically said no. He grinned heartily, and I saw a hint of Dongwoo in that. Slightly comforted by the tinge of familiarity, I smiled in return. No matter how much his looks have changed, Dongwoo is still Dongwoo, right?

“You look so different from how I remembered you,” I admitted with a chuckle. “It’s not a bad thing though.”

He let slip a lopsided smile. “Well, it has been eight years, Joohee. You look different from how I remembered you too.”

“No way!” I cried in disgruntlement and then laughed before continuing with an overwrought lament, "I haven't changed since middle school!"

As we conversed, my feelings of uneasiness soon dissipated. I suggested getting a cup of coffee at a café within the airport so we could catch up a bit before heading back home. Over the short coffee break, we talked about everything under the sun – from our detestable math tutor back in elementary school whose hobby was to make every student cry with his snide remarks, to the recent elections, to a couple from our class who got married just a month ago, and of course, how we had been in the time that we were apart. I even commented on how he was still wearing gloves though we’re indoors, and laughed at his vulnerability to the cold. Everything went by smoothly until then; Dongwoo seemed to be himself for the most part, and as I looked at him, I began to find more and more similarities with the Dongwoo I remembered. I just felt so elated that we’d reunited, that I would finally have the chance to make up for what I failed to do before.

There was just one huge elephant in the room that we hadn’t addressed in our wide range of conversation. That is, the deaths of both our parents six months earlier. The whole incident was shrouded in mystery. Dongwoo’s parents’ death looked like a fatal slip down the hill on a stormy day, while my parents were involved in a hit-and-run road accident. The consecutive deaths were too much to be a coincidence, honestly speaking. And just recently, I’d found some items my parents left behind which could shed light on the truth. I had the mp3 player and photographs, both sealed in a confidential paper document, ready in my bag. I wanted to show them to Dongwoo as soon as the atmosphere was apt.

“Joohee,” he called just as we were about to head for the taxi stand, “Can you accompany me somewhere first? My friend works here and I want to see him for a while.”

“We haven’t met in eight years too,” he added with a chuckle.

“Oh, of course,” I cooed, “You should definitely meet him!”

“I’m sorry to take up your time like this,” he muttered under his breath as we walked, “But since he happened to be here, I thought it’d be good to just –”

“Come on, this is nothing,” I casually said and inserted a tease, “Am I that selfish in your eyes?”

He lightly laughed and then replied, “No, not at all! Thanks Joohee, for accommodating me like this.”

There was a pause before he finished off. “You’ve always been such a warm person.” He then faced me with a toothy smile. I giggled a little bashfully and hit him on the shoulder. “Stop it. How am I supposed to respond when you’re overly appreciative like this?” I grumbled in a blithe manner.

Just then, he gestured towards a stairwell nearby. “There’s a shortcut through here,” he explained. “Oh,” I responded, and followed him with no qualms. We’d climbed about two flights of stairs when Dongwoo suddenly stopped in his tracks, and I nearly crashed right into his back. He swiveled around to look at me with solemn eyes and said, “I’m really sorry, Joohee.” I gave no discernable reaction. He bit his lower lip a little and repeated, “Really, sorry.”

“What –” My words were violently interrupted by Dongwoo’s hard shove on my left shoulder. As my back landed with a hard thud against the dirt-stained cement wall, a bolt of pain raced through my arm. In the fleeting two seconds that Dongwoo and I locked gazes with each other, his eyes were colder than a prolonged Siberian winter. In sheer minutes, he had unmistakably become a complete stranger. Before I could gather a response, Dongwoo lifted a hand to my neck and pinned me against the wall with tremendous force. His fingers dug into my flesh as he pressed harder, and my windpipe was gradually obstructed. I haphazardly swung my right leg upwards in a kick but the attack was easily dodged. Dongwoo reached into his back pocket with his free hand.

Suddenly, a jarring ruckus sounded from above – of the stairwell door swinging open and hasty footsteps galloping in our direction. As soon as his feet touched down on the surface we stood upon, the stranger aggressively struck Dongwoo’s abdomen, ing him onto the stiff ground. It was only then that I noticed the revolver tightly gripped in Dongwoo’s right hand. I had myself pressed against the wall, unsteadily holding onto the textured surface with trembling hands while observing everything from a safe distance. He winced and looked up at the man with a pronounced frown distorting his brows and forehead. “What are you –” he exclaimed, but the man came upon him immediately and landed a tough blow on his right cheek. In a low voice, he muttered something inaudible to my ears. Dongwoo shot him a glare and sneered, “You can’t be serious…”

The man shut his eyes for moment, distress evident in the cloudy drops rolling down his sideburns. With a persisting glower at Dongwoo, he cocked his head towards the door.

Dongwoo scrambled to his feet and, without even throwing me a last glance, sprinted off down the steps. I was left alone in the narrow stairwell with the other man.

“Are you alright?” he gently asked.

Still unable to muster speech, I nodded profusely at him. I didn’t have time to figure everything out, but my instinct told me to leave. My eyes darted across the entire stairwell, as if trying to find a feasible escape plan. Anticipating him to approach me in the following seconds, I took off for the nearest exit door above. I felt sort of guilty because he just saved me from impending death, and there I was trying to escape him, but my startled heart didn’t want to deal with another stranger just yet.

It turned out that he didn’t even have to give chase to stop me. “Choi Joohee!” he called out, loudly, boisterously. There was something familiar about his voice and the way he talked, but I couldn’t pinpoint exactly what. I peered down at him from about a storey above. “How do you know my name?” I returned, keeping my tone as nonchalant as I could.

His tough facial features softened into a warm smile. “Joohee, it’s me.”

I stared right into his dark orbs and studied his face thoroughly for the first time. The longer I stared silently, the more the corner of his eyes seemed to droop. I found myself heading back towards the man.

I stood in front of him, and he stayed still. The smile on his lips seemed to have faded a little. I had in mind the only thing left to say, but the closer I got to spilling them, the faster my heart rate picked up. I felt my lips turn numb, and pushed the words out of my tense throat before the opportunity was missed.

“Dongwoo?”

My breathing was shallow and sharp, and every chilly breath slicing past my lips further messed up its erratic rhythm.

He broke into a delightful guffaw – even if we were to be in a huge crowd, I would be able to recognize that sound and find him. “It really is you,” I said airily, my befuddled nerves failing to conjure an appropriate facial expression just yet.

“Joohee,” he called again, and once I’d recognized that voice of his, every word he spoke sent a trigger signal to my tear glands. “Sorry I’m late.”

He took a few large steps and closed the gap between us. With a soft touch, he held my head and placed it against his chest. I didn’t budge.

“Sorry that you have to go through all this.” With tears lining my cheeks, I shook my head. “It’s all my fault,” he said. His warm hand tousled my hair just slightly, and then soothingly patted my back.

“But long time no see,” he carried on in a choked voice, “And I’m glad we met again.”

“I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.”

– Matthew 10:16 (NIV)