As soon as we woke up, we got dressed and indulged ourselves on the free hotel breakfast before checking out. Then, I started driving across town towards Wheein’s childhood home.

I couldn’t help myself from sneaking glances at Wheein as I drove.

Wheein was staring out the window, her glasses reflecting the sceneries as we passed by them. She had a wistful smile on her face, probably reminiscing her youthful days there. She was sitting so still, I wasn’t sure if she was awake or asleep until I steered the car down a street lined with neat-looking houses on each side and she abruptly sat up.

“We’re almost there,” she said gleefully and flashed her brightest smile at me, her lone dimple more prominent than ever. “Just up ahead.”

We pulled to a stop in front of a modest two-storey house where a middle-aged couple were busy cleaning the front lawn. They looked up when they saw the car and frowned, probably trying to guess who their visitors are. Their faces cleared and wide smiles crept on their faces when they saw Wheein hopping out of the car and running towards them.

I followed Wheein, but stopped a few feet away, giving the Jungs their own family time. I looked on with a smile as the older Jungs scolded Wheein for not informing them of her arrival and a moment later, they were smothering her in hugs and kisses, saying how much they missed her while scolding her once again for not coming home often. Wheein pouted and whined, but she was clearly enjoying all the attention and affection directed at her.

Seeing the Jungs together, my thoughts drifted towards my own family – my mother, my father, my beloved cousin and my three dogs. Their faces floated across my mind briefly, enough to make me feel homesick, before I was dragged away from my thoughts by a sweet voice and a gentle tug on my arm.

“Omma, Appa,” Wheein said cheerfully and I realized that she was already beside me, hugging onto my right arm, as she led me towards her parents, “this is my friend, Byul.”

As I stood in front of them, I could feel the older Jungs giving me appraising looks, from my head to my toe. Suddenly, I felt a nervous flutter in my stomach. I cast a quick glance down at my clothes – a light blue buttoned-up shirt, dark blue skinny jeans, and white sneakers; casual and appropriate enough to meet a friend’s parents. Even if I would be taking said friend on a date after this trip is over.

“H-Hello,” I said as I bowed politely at them both, for once my stutter was a result of my nervousness, “m-my name is B-Byul.”

“Nice to meet you, Byul-ssi,” Mr. Jung said with a warm smile. “It’s rare to see Wheein bringing home a friend other than Hyejin.”

“Appa!” Wheein cried and my mouth twitched when I saw her cheeks turning a bright pink colour. “I have friends other than Hyejin too, you know…”

Mr. Jung chuckled. “I can see that now,” he teased.

Wheein pouted and pressed herself closer to me, tightening her hold on my arm. My stomach flipped as I realized I could feel her s pressing against my bare skin – of course I had to wear short sleeves – and I had to shut my eyes briefly, mustering every self-control inside me and reminding myself that her parents were right in front of us.

“So Byul-ssi…” the deliberate drawl coming from Mrs. Jung was the perfect distraction from the wild thoughts running inside my head and I gladly shifted my attention to her, “…who are you and what are your intentions with my daughter?”

I wasn’t surprised by her question because Wheein had warned me that her parents could assume things about us. I had something prepared in case it ever came up, but Wheein beat me to it.

“Omma!” she cried, staring at her mother in disbelief. “Why are you interrogating her like this? She’s just a friend!”

“‘Just a friend’, hm?” Mrs. Jung tilted her head and smirked, looking pointedly at the younger Jung. “I don’t know any friends who hold their friends’ arm as possessively as you are doing now, Wheeinie.”

Wheein swiftly released my arm and I didn’t have to look at her to know she was blushing furiously. I let out a chuckle in spite of myself and gave Mrs. Jung a sheepish grin.

“I am a-a friend for now,” I said, very much aware of my choice of words and the curious look on the older woman’s face, “b-but I do intend t-to take Wheein o-out on a-a date once w-we return to Seoul.”

I felt a tug at the hem of my shirt and I glanced down to see Wheein staring at me with a what-do-you-think-you’re-doing look on her face. I mouthed “it’s going to be okay” and gave her hand a reassuring squeeze.

“You didn’t exactly answer the first part of my question,” Mrs. Jung said with her eyes narrowed suspiciously at me, “but I am satisfied with your answer. For now.”

Wheein let out a sigh of relief and I had to bite back an amused smile. I didn’t think it was such a horrible ordeal, since the older Jungs seemed okay with me wanting to date their daughter, but I supposed it was a very big deal for Wheein.

Mr. Jung cleared his throat and smiled. “Now that we are done with the introductions, let’s get you two settled in.”

After unloading our bags from the car and handing Kkomo over to his doting grandparents, Wheein led me up to her old room where we would be sharing for the rest of our trip here.

Mrs. Jung was a bit apprehensive about letting me stay in the same room as Wheein, but Wheein reminded her that they didn’t have a guest room and they had never let a guest sleep on the couch before. I also chimed in, assuring her that I wasn’t planning on doing anything to Wheein before we actually go on that date. Although I did conveniently left out the part about kissing her daughter senselessly until then. It was a small victory for us when Mrs. Jung relented with the condition that the door must not be locked and left slightly ajar. Wheein had complained at first, but then reluctantly agreed after Mrs. Jung pointed out that she had no problem letting her daughter sleep on the couch.

As we started to unpack our bags, I brought up the earlier conversation with her parents.

“I-I’m sorry I went ahead a-and told y-your parents about the d-date…”

“It’s fine,” Wheein sighed as she kicked her bag to a corner of the room and sat down at the edge of the bed, “I didn’t think they would be okay with it, to be honest, since I had never dated a woman before…”

Her words trailed off and she gave me a small smile. I smiled back, completely understanding where she was coming from. Wheein had told me that she had experimented during her high school and college days, but she had never gone on an actual date with a woman before – her parents weren’t supposed to know about her “experiments” either, so I guessed it came as a surprise to her when they didn’t react negatively towards me when I expressed my desire to date her.

“S-Seems like it w-wouldn’t make a d-difference if you d-date a man o-or a woman,” I nodded at the slightly ajar door and chuckled, “I-I think your m-mother would h-have insisted the s-same arrangement.”

Wheein let out a groan and fell backwards onto the mattress, arms draped over her eyes. “I never had my exes stay here before, so I wouldn’t really know…”

I felt a tug at my gut and I stalked towards the bed, kneeling on the mattress beside Wheein. “S-So I’m the f-first person you ever h-had in here?” I asked, conscious of how my voice had dipped at the thought.

Wheein’s mouth curved into a mischievous smirk. “You are not the first,” she giggled as she removed her arms to stare up at me, “Hyejin was the first.”

I frowned. I knew that name – Mr. Jung had mentioned her; Wheein’s friend. “I-I mean r-romantically…”

“Her too.”

I blinked. Suddenly, I thought about how Wheein had experimented and how she never brought her exes over. Then, everything started to fall into place.

“O-Oh,” I said, my mouth forming a big “O”, “s-so she w-was the o-one you experimented with?”

“She was,” Wheein admitted. “We had feelings for each other, but we didn’t date because we realized that what we feel is above and beyond any romance ever existed on earth.” She paused as her eyes became misty with nostalgia and formed a fond smile before adding softly, “We’re soulmates.”

I felt a twinge in my chest. Who was this Hyejin person? She, whose very memory had put that smile on Wheein’s face. I also felt thankful to her because it was one of the most beautiful smile to ever graced Wheein’s face.

“Where is she n-now?”

I found myself asking as I laid down next to Wheein and stared up at the ceiling that was littered with glow-in-the-dark stars. My heart thumped, thinking that little Wheein had been staring up at these stars before she sleeps; the stars that were my namesake.

Perhaps it was fate.

I smiled to myself as the thought fleeted through my head.

“I don’t know,” Wheein sighed, pulling me out of my thoughts, “it has been a while since we last talked.”

I rolled onto my side to face her and frowned in concern. “Is everything okay between you two?”

Wheein laughed and shifted until she was facing me. “Yes,” she said with a smile. “We’ve both been busy, but we never forget to text each other. Sparingly, these days, but still.”

I smiled back, genuinely and with relief – the thought of a broken friendship always made me feel sad. Even if said friendship involved a girl who Wheein had proclaimed as her soulmate. But knowing that there was someone out there watching out for Wheein made me feel at ease somehow.

I figured meeting Wheein’s most precious person would be an important step if we were to start dating, so I asked, “W-Will I get to m-meet her?”

Wheein’s eyes narrowed. “Why?”

“She’s y-your friend, y-your soulmate, s-so I think it w-would be-”

“No.”

I blinked, surprised at the stubbornness in her voice. “Is s-something wrong, Wheein?”

She shook her head and sighed. “Nothing’s wrong,” she mumbled, pouting her lips as she scooted closer to me, one hand gripping the front of my shirt, “I just want you all to myself for now, Byul-ah.”

My heart started beating erratically at the hint of possessiveness in her voice – it was the kind of thrill, the kind of excitement that could only come from being wanted by someone. I had felt that before and I sorely missed it; I missed that feeling of belonging to someone and I didn’t mind at all that that person was now Wheein.

I propped myself up on one elbow and stared at her for a moment. She was still pouting, her lips looked soft and practically begging to be kissed; her long dark hair spread out across the sheet and I had to stifle a groan as I imagined making love to her on that very bed; her glasses sat perfectly on her nose, reflecting the stars on the ceiling; her cheeks were tainted in pink and her breathing was labored, probably excited and anticipating my next move. I gently took off her glasses with my free hand and tucked it into my shirt pocket. I could clearly see her eyes now – brown and dark with lust as they stared back up at me.

I smiled as I tucked a stray hair behind her ear. “Y-You don’t have t-to worry, Wheein-ah,” I murmured as I leaned down to capture her lips, “I-I am all y-yours.”