It's the middle of Autumn in Seoul, at 2:55 in the morning.

The neon sign hung ominously amidst the Seoulite air, a large loopy M looming overheard as Amber shifted from foot to foot. The breeze is cold at her nape, bristles of her short hair grazing the back of her neck as she shivered. In hindsight, she should've brought an extra coat, and maybe mismatched socks to go with her haphazardly worn Nike sneakers. But really, who could blame her? She's got money to burn, an empty stomach, and a trusty old number in her phone, always ready on speed dial number one.

At 2 AM, Amber Liu is faced with this dilemma: To go or not to go, to let it slip or face the extreme McDonald's craving that woke her up in the middle of the deadest times of the day. She lay awake in her bed, staring at the plaster in her ceiling and thinking about greasy-cut potatoes and ice-cold milkshakes, cocooned in the warmth of her blanket. It's October after all, and Seoul is currently clothed in an icy chill brought about by the impending winter season. Stepping outside at this time would be insanity. But if Amber Liu is anything, she is nothing but crazy, so she does the next logical thing.

Which brings him here, in an almost empty Gangnam street of fast food goodness, hair in a disarray and phone in hand. He has a too thin shirt underneath his coat, holes on its neckline and hem, paired with heavy bags under his eyes and saliva stained lips. Looking at him like this, almost dragging his sneaker-clad feet, no one would ever guess that he's a model.

"Remind me again why I'm here?" He muttered. Amber just laughed at his groggy state and looped her arm on his, dragging him to the glass doors of McDonald's.

"One, because you're a great person. Two, because you can't really say no to me. And three, because I know you like midnight cheeseburgers as much as I do."

As if on cue, the gorgeous smell of grilled ground beef, fluffy bread, melting cheese, and the undeniable secret sauce greeted their noses. Amber took a good wiff and felt the protest of her tummy even more. Even the sound of the milkshake machine is making water.

"Oh thank god for 24 hour service." She says with a sigh. Henry was about to make a retort about how Amber ruined his precious sleep, but his eyes got a glimpse of the french fries currently soaked in boiling oil, and he could do nothing but gulp.

“Oh Amber Liu” he said, opening the glass doors, as his own stomach grumbles for the greasy goodness that they were about to devour.

--

“Tell me” Henry mutters with full of Big Mac. “How could this one dish taste so heavenly?” Amber giggles at that and takes a sip of her Vanilla milkshake. “Aren’t you happy that I called you?” Henry just mockingly smiled as an answer.

“Now my child, listen” Amber said while picking at her fries. The grease falls off her fingers, and she uses the emblazoned tissue papers to get rid of it. “This is one of a kind: An unmatched lecture by the one only Amber Liu. The Science of the Big Mac” She proceeded then to take her unfinished burger, two bites from the end.

“Step 1: the bread. A soft, buttery bun sprinkled with sesame seeds on top. Fluffy on the inside, crispy on the outside, with a melt-in-your-mouth texture that is just like no other. Not unassuming, but also not strong enough that it would outshine everything else that makes up this heavenly thing of a burger.

“Next, the beef” Amber continues, lifting the bread of her burger to reveal the patty. “Perfect little circles of beef, ground and shaped to fit perfectly under this bun. Juicy, chewy, greasy; all the perfect elements of meat. Grilled on both sides in just the right amount to bring out all of that meaty flavor. Once you bite into it, the juice just oozes out to graze your taste buds with just the most perfect seasoning of salt and pepper.

“And finally, the sauce. That little kick of acidity to cut all that fatty goodness. A minx that is, a secret that no one will ever know. But aren’t we lucky enough just to experience this- this – explosion of flavors in our mouth.

“Topped with the freshest vegetables, and the right amount of cheese to not throw off its perfect ratio, and you have this” At the end of her words, Amber shoves the whole unfinished thing in . “The best goddamn thing this fast food chain has ever given us humans” she says with full.

Henry laughs at that. “And that” he says, as he dips his fries in tomato ketchup. “Is why you are the greatest theoretical physicist in the world, Amber Liu.” Amber just winks in response.

--

They walked around the block hand in hand, stomachs too full to sit in Henry’s car. The grease and starch sat at the bottom of their intestines, and just the thought of having their abdomens slouched while they drove around the empty streets made them queasy. So they opted for this, walking around the block until one of two things dawned on them: Sleep or digestion.

The autumn chill assaulted every fiber of their body, as a result, Amber snuggled in closer to Henry’s side. He wraps her arm on her shoulder as an answer.

“This reminds me of Tokyo” henry whispered, a trail of smoke coming out of his mouth. “Tokyo, you mean the time that you were too chicken to kiss me?” Amber teased. Henry retorted by tightening his grip on her. “No. Tokyo meaning the time we walked around the city while we were drunk and stupid, and we ended up having the best time of our lives.”

“And we ate ramen”

“And fed cats in the park”

“And you were too chicken to kiss me.”

Henry laughed at that, and pulled her in closer. They stopped under a street light then, not unlike the one in the park where they tossed canned tuna to stray cats. He turned her so that they were facing each other, faces inches from each other and sharing the minimal heat that they could produce in this cold.

“How about now?”

“What about now?”

“Can I kiss you now?”

She placed her arms across his shoulders, palms gripping the back of his neck. She stood in the tip of her toes and pulled his face closer to hers, shortening the distance between their cold lips and sealing the night with a kiss. Short, sweet, and beautiful.

“You most certainly can”

So he did.

--

They cruised through the empty concrete lanes, the street lights reflecting off the side view mirrors, Amber watched as the lights blended into one straight beam as they sped through Seoul, and Henry watched as the street lights shone against her eyes. Finally, they arrived in front of her apartment complex. By then, hints of the morning to come were starting to break through the dark sky.

“Thank you for coming with me.” Amber says, as she stood in front of the entrance with Henry in front of her. “Of course, and as always, I will be here to satisfy your greatest craving.”

“What?” she asked, and Henry stooped down to her eye level and said. “Me.”

She scrunched up her nose. “Not my best pick-up line?” he asked with a laugh. Amber shook her head. “But also, not entirely untrue.” Henry laughed pushing Amber closer to her front door to signal the end of their escapade.

“I’ll see you tomorrow then?” she asked. “As always” he answered, watching her enter her complex. When he was sure that she was inside the elevator, he walked back to his car and drove back to the comforts of his own room, with a satisfied grin of spending a once again satisfying midnight with his girlfriend.

That night, Amber Liu lied on her bed, her stomach full and her fingers and toes thawing under the warmth of her blanket. She was sound asleep. Her phone dings from the nightstand:

Good Night :-) it said.

It was a good night, indeed.

-fin