Chapter 8: Make Me Laugh --REPOSTED

        You heard him laugh innocently on the other side of the phone. “Oh did I say I would be back tonight? I meant that I would not be back until Monday evening.” You let out the breath you had held captive. “You scared me,” replied. “I can tell. It sounds like you never want me to come back.” “Vanilla and I were enjoying having a girls only weekend,” you say quickly. “Really?” he asks. “We painted each other’s nails, we watched Star King together.” Nick laughs. “We even started tried braiding each other’s hair.” Nick is still laughing. “How did that work out?” he managed to get out. “Not bad actually. My fingernails look like a Picasso painting.” Nick laughs.
       
        “So,” you begin after an awkward silence, “how is Jejudo?” “Nice, as always.” You just nod. “Have you ever been?” Nick asks. “Once,” you reply. “I went when I was three years old so I don’t remember it honestly.” You hear someone talking in the background. “Do you have to go?” you ask. “Yeah,” he says slowly, “I think so. I’m glad you two are doing alright.” You wait for him to say ‘bye’ or hang up but he doesn’t. Instead he asks how your apartment is going. “It’s going.” “That’s good,” he replies. “Did you want to say ‘hi’ to Vanilla?” “Sure.” You walk over to Vanilla, pick her up, and put the phone as close to as possible. You hear her purr softly as you assume Nick is speaking to her. Vanilla begins to squirm and hops out of your arms. You bring the phone back up
       

You lay your phone back on the dining room table. Vanilla strolled over to you and began brushing herself up against your leg. You instinctively sneezed. Medicine. You walked back over to where you kept your medicine and took the designated amount before swallowing it down with a swig from your water bottle. The doorbell rang. You rushed over and opened to door. It was the leader of the plumbing/floor repair crew. “Good news,” he says. “The damage is only in the kitchen. The bathroom faucets are fully functioning. However, we had brought the wrong size pipes to replace the damaged ones. The ones we needed were back ordered but we should be able to get the right ones soon. We should still be able to finish close to schedule.”  You had forgotten that today was Saturday. Your exam was Tuesday at 1:00pm. “By close to schedule, you mean..” “Sometime Tuesday morning,” he clarified.  

You take hold of Vanilla and head back to Nick’s apartment. You try to call Nick and tell him about the apartment situation. “Hello?” you hear. You start explaining the situation before you hear laughter and Nick’s voice saying that he is unable to answer the phone. You laugh at yourself. You start to leave a message but immediately end the call and just send a text. You hated leaving voice messages because you always felt awkward when leaving them. A couple hours later you get a response.

That’s too bad. It is impossible for you to find a place to stay so why don’t you stay at my place...I hope you don’t snore. -Nick

Another response comes in right after.

You don’t snore right? -Nick

You laugh and respond back.

No but I sometimes talk in my sleep. you

You both end up texting each other back and forth the rest of the day. He tells you all about Jeju island.

        You spent the most of Sunday reading, and ultimately finishing, the medical dictionary. By the time you were on the last page your head felt as if it was going to explode. Still, you endured. You dozed off a few minutes after finishing and jolted when you heard the doorbell go off. You heard a thud and a screech. You looked down and realized you had knocked not only your book but also Vanilla off of the couch. “Sorry Vanilla.” You heard her grumble a response as you made your way to the door. Before you stood two girls.  Both were probably in their teenage years. They held their cellphones firmly in their grasp. The looks of surprise on the girls’ faces confused you. “Are-are-” one of the girls stuttered before clamping shut. “Can I help you?” you began. The other girl seemed to become angry. You looked at both of the girls, first the shy one then the other. “Excuse me, is there anything-” “Yah!” Your head snapped to the girl who had been giving you angry looks.

“What?” you say tilting your head, your eyebrows scrunched together.  “You shouldn’t be here!” the same girl yelled. “Bo Min-ah, don’t,” the other girl protested. “The website must have been wrong.” “Wrong my ! It clearly said that he lives here.” “Wait,” you interrupt but they continue to fight with one another. After minutes of this you decide it is best to leave them alone since they have obviously forgotten about you. You shut the door quietly and they eventually go away. Vanilla looks up at you to for an explanation. “Crazy girls,” you say as you wind your finger around your ear. She turns away from you and situates herself comfortably on the couch facing the television.

The rest of the day goes by without any other major events. You review your notes and take breaks often. The Monday was the same except for the fact that your mother called. Vanilla seemed to become friendlier and friendlier. You were not the kind of person that needed to be around others constantly and the desire to study prevented you from interacting too much with the outside world. You and Vanilla found ways to amuse each other. Nick would text late in the morning and early in the evening asking if everything was all right. Your life for the past few days was pretty uneventful. Fortunately the television and occasional texts from your friends. You had not planned on going to the airport to meet Nick but he offered to cook you dinner and you could not refuse free food. You made it out of the apartment around six to meet Nick.

You stood awkwardly in the Kimhae airport. You looked at your watch. It was 7:41PM. You stopped by your apartment before you left for the airport and saw the guys still working. Ms. Choi happened to be there and promised she would watch after your apartment for you. You were grateful to her but she seemed to have been benefiting just as much if not more than you. She really hit it off with the older men, yet she focused mostly on the youngest. You smiled as you recall how flirtatious Ms. Choi was with the men. She was wearing the robe you remember her wearing the night you were with Nick. You were now under the impression that the gown had a special purpose and that was to lure men.  By the end of the day, she was sure to have a husband or a boyfriend at the very least.

You began to walk in circles as you waited for Nick. The woman on the intercom called out many arrivals and departures and a few missing children reports before you heard a friendly voice call you. “Da Eun-ah!” You turn around and there is Nick walking over to you. He is not alone. There is also another guy standing beside him. Both are wearing shades, hats, and baggy clothing. You began to wonder if they were involved in some kind of lucrative business where they had to hide their identities. The guy beside him was very bulky as opposed to the very lanky Nick. Both walked towards you and greeted you warmly. “So this is the neighbor?” the other guy asks Nick. The other guy smiles and introduces himself. “You must be an angel sent from heaven. My neighbors would never do what you did for Nick. Vanilla can be quite the.. difficult cat.”

“I wouldn’t say that,” you reply defensively. “Women are just like cats. We can be a bit complicated but are easily won over by food and shiny things.” The other guy laughs while Nick smiles. “You have a great sense of humor,” the other guy says. “I can see why Nick was in stitches after your last call.” Your face turns bright red. ‘He told them,’ you thought. ‘Well, there’s one other guy I will never get.’ “Really,” you say slowly. “Yeah. Even after your conversation, Nick could not help but laugh. He was practically choking on the water he was drinking after your call. Came up his nose too!” It was Nick’s turn to be embarrassed. “I doubt that.” “No,” his friend tells you, “I swear it’s the truth.” You guys talk for a while before Nick reminds everyone that it is time for you guys to leave.

“It was nice meeting you,” you say to the guy who was pulling out his cellphone. “Yeah, same here. We’ll talk later Nick,” he says as he walks away. “So how was the flight?” “The usual. Bad food and bad movies. Thank goodness we landed safely or I would have had to write a complaint.” You smile and chuckle at his attempt for a joke. He smiles back at you. “Sorry. Jet Lag tends to affect my sense of humor. Believe it or not but I am usually funny.” He shrugs his shoulders as you both walk through the automatic doors. “I guess I will have to try harder to make you laugh.”

Supermarket is not the right word to describe the grocery store you both ended up at. You were used to shopping at the local market where farmers sold their food. This place was twice the size of a soccer field. There were thousands and thousands of people going about their business to the point where you felt suffocated. You gripped your basket tightly as Nick walked briskly up and down the aisles, picking up different things here and there. “I’m pretty sure I am out of this,” he says as he tosses some kind of spice into the basket. Even though you and Nick are not a couple, you cannot help but think about the time when your boyfriend took you shopping with him. He wanted to try cooking a meal for you. Let’s just say it was a miracle the firefighters did not have to come. You pretty much cooked every meal for him. He did not like going out to eat but he did not know how to cook himself and at the time if he asked you to jump you would ask ‘How high?’ This is probably why you do not cook unless you are in the mood to.

You began to fear the worst as you heard a mixture of noises coming from the stovetop. Nick started telling you how one of his friends lost his luggage and how he had to borrow clothing from everyone else because he was too stingy to buy new ones. He also told you a few other stories that made you laugh uncontrollably. “What did I tell you?” He asked. “You have a gift. You should have your own comedy show.” “Oh boy,” he says in perfect English as you see a large flame come from the stove. “Are you okay?” you ask walking over to him. “Yep. Everything is fine. I’m just a little drowsy from the flight. I’m fine now though.” “Are you-” He puts the skillet down. You can tell that it smells amazing being so close. He takes your shoulders and walks you back to the chair and where he seats you in it.

You both are both silent while you eat. It is not because you ran out of things to talk about but rather you were both so hungry and the food was so good that there was no time to fit in conversation. You go to the sink and wash the dishes, even though Nick insists that you use the dishwasher. “I like washing them by hand. Besides, it saves energy and I feel that I have contributed.” He still tries to convince you to use the dishwasher but you continue to refuse. “I need this!” you insist. He backs away after giving you his plate and utensils before he begins to watch television and play with Vanilla who has awoken from her nap. When we had come back she was sleeping peacefully on my pillow. Nick thought it would be better to let her sleep.

Everyone winds down. You all end up watching a few variety shows before bed. Nick changes his bed sheets and you make your pallet on the couch. “Have you been sleeping on the couch this entire time?” he asks looking your way. You nod. “I told you you could sleep on my bed. I changed the sheets before I left.” “It’s not that. I just don’t like the idea of sleeping in someone else’s bed. Would you feel comfortable sleeping in my bed?” “I see your point.” It is quiet before you realize you did not like the response he gave you. “What do you mean ‘I see your point?’” you ask before continuing. “I’m a clean person,” you say defensively. He is silent. “Yah!” He laughs. “I’m just fooling around with you,” he says jokingly.

The scratching becomes more persistent and you start to hear meowing. Vanilla. It has grown to the point where you fear Nick will wake up from the noise. You open the door halfway and try to shoo her away. This agitates her and she begins to whine. You try to reach out and grab her but she backs away. You take a few steps out. She backs away more. You walk out further and before you know it you bump into something hard, well not that hard. You hear the object grunt and your face becomes hot. You feel a familiar touch on your shoulders.

Your eyes widen as he places his phone on yours. He touches his phone a few times and before you know it the deed is done. “I’ll text you when I get there.” You nod. “Oh crap! I forgot.” He jumps runs back to the room. He stops outside the door and waves back at you. You manage a wave back. ‘I think I just agreed to a date.’