Because I had been working so hard, I was able to earn myself a two week vacation. I had no idea what I was going to do with myself for two weeks, but I knew the first thing that I was going to do was go to the café after work. Because today was a Thursday, Junho was going to be there when I got off work. This time, I was going to order spaghetti and meatballs with a slice of strawberry shortcake. This was going to be my little gift to myself for working so hard.

I arrived at the café and found that it was closed. That was extremely random, seeing how it was always opened. Being a little disappointed, I began walking to my car when I saw someone sitting on the bus stop across the street. I couldn’t exactly make out who it was right away because it was rainy. I squinted to get a better view and to my surprise it was Junho. I was in no rush to get home so I decided to go and keep him company. The bus that he was waiting for always ran slow on rainy days. I know because I used to catch the bus before I saved enough to get a car.

I sat down next to him and folded up my umbrella. He turned to look at me and flashed that wonderful smile.

“Fancy seeing you today Mr. Hwang” he said a little teasingly. “You didn’t come to lunch today”

“I know” said I. “I had a lot or work to do today because not many people came to work. I was going to come to the café afterwards, but to my surprise it was closed. Any idea why?”

“We are getting a new floor put in. The work was going to be done by tomorrow morning, so it was no big deal.  I’m just wondering where in the hell this bus is. Every time it rains this happens” said Junho.

“I know. I used to catch this bus to get home. I could walk home, but sometimes I didn’t feel like it and would just wait for the bus. Now I have a car and don’t have to worry about that”

“Lucky you” he says. “It’s already been twenty minutes and not one bus had been seen in either direction.”

“Where do you live? Maybe I can take you home”

“I live all the way across town. I don’t want to trouble you; I’ll be fine”

“I insist. I don’t want you to catch a cold and get wet. It’s really nasty weather and you should get home as quick as possible.”

I was being sincere. I didn’t want him to get sick. The only thing he wore was his white collar shirt, black tie, and black pants, with a dark green hoodie. He pondered on whether or not he should take me up on my offer. I would not have been too upset if he declined again because he didn’t really know me that well, but I was hoping he would say yes anyway. He took another look at his watch and looked up the street. There was still no bus in sight.

“If it isn’t too much trouble…I would like a ride home” he finally said.

“No problem. My car is right across the street.”

We both got up and walked across the street. I didn’t have anything too special, but it was a nice Toyota. We both got in and drove off. I played some soft music so that the ride wouldn’t be completely silent and awkward. He didn’t want to say much and just looked outside the window at everything we passed. I was glad that I was able to do something for him, seeing how he was always doing something for me every day. Although it was his job to do what he was asked, he loved his job. Everyone who came into contact with him would smile and laugh. He was really a great person.

I pondered for some time if now would be a good time to tell him I liked him. I finally came to the conclusion that it might be too awkward and left it alone. We finally arrived at his apartment building. It was pretty decent for this part of town. He was about to get out of the car when he turned and looked at me.

“Thank you so much for bringing me home. I really appreciate it”

“No problem at all.”

“Were you hungry? I could make you some dinner if you would like.”

“Yes I would like some dinner please” I smiled. We both laughed at my cheesy smile and got out of the car.

I could never resist a good meal. We caught the elevator to his floor. It was so funny because we would try to avoid looking at one another in the eye and somehow our eyes would meet anyway. When they did, we both would blush and look away. I don’t think it could have been more obvious that there was something between us, but I didn’t want to bring it up.

We finally got to his door and walked in. It was cozy, not overly furnished, and the place smelled like vanilla bean candles. I already found myself feeling quite at home already. I sat down on the couch and he went into his room to go change. He told me to get comfortable and I did. A small part of me briefly imagined what it would be like to see Junho with no clothes on. The sight would have been quite beautiful. However, I knew that if I dwelled on this thought any further I might be finding myself getting stiff and that cannot happen. He soon came out with a t-shirt and some pajama pants. The pants were cute because they were black with white paw prints. He went in the kitchen and pulled out some pans and a pot.

“Did you have any particular dish that you wanted made?”

“Nope. I’ll eat whatever.”

“Good” he smiles. “I see that you aren’t hard to please”

He made some stir fry with corn muffins on the side. It was so delicious. He also made some iced tea. By this time I was really comfortable. I didn’t think that I wanted to go home. We sat on the couch and sipped on the tea. I don’t know how, but we got on the subject of pets.

“Do you have any pets?” he asked.

“No, but I like cats. I am always so busy with work that I fear I may not have time to spend with him.”

“Aww that’s too bad. I love kitty cats. I want a cat, but I don’t have a whole lot of money to get one. Sometimes I get lonely and it would be great to have someone to come home too.”

His explanation was too sweet. , I’d love to be the one he would come home too. It was a hypothetical thought, but a pleasant one nonetheless. After some more hours of talking and laughing, it was time for me to be heading home. He walked me to the door and he smiled.

“I guess it’s safe to say we are friends right?” I asked.

“Yes of course!” he smiled.

I laughed. He was so darn cute. He waved to me as I walked down the hall and I got on the elevator and proceeded to walk to my car. By the time I had gotten home it was ll:00 PM. I was really tired and I prepared for bed.

Once finally settled, I couldn’t go to sleep right away. All I could thing about was Junho. Just when I tried to close my eyes, I saw a flash of light. It was a shooting star. It is not very often that you see those and they say you should make a wish when you do. “This can’t possibly work” I thought. For the hell of it, I made one of the most random wishes one could ever make. “I wish that I could be Junho’s pet cat so that he won’t be lonely anymore.” I laughed at myself for being so serious with something so ridiculous. After some time, I finally went to sleep. I was not at all prepared for the surprise that awaited me the next morning.