Seung-Bae leaned against the coffee shop counter and waited for the iced mochas he’d ordered to be ready.  He and Haenyeo were the only customers in the cafe, and the barista moved with drowsy sluggishness induced by the warm afternoon.

Across the shop, the owner, a middle aged woman in a breezy tunic imprinted with fist-sized peonies, bounced a ball of yarn in front of a frisky, grey kitten.  The animal took the bait, flying into the air to catch its prey with infantile claws. 

Seung-Bae chuckled.

The rest of the cats ignored the display. They were engrossed in their own collective drama. Seung-Bae’s eyes narrowed as the scene registered. Half of the café’s residents had gathered around Haenyeo and were rubbing at her ankles, swiping their whiskery faces against her skin and purring as if she was catnip. The tabby he’d petted earlier had even jumped up onto her lap and was pawing playfully at her hair. The other half of the feline population stood off at a distance, watching and pacing as they cried out in displeasure.

Seung-Bae had never seen anything like it.  But Haenyeo didn’t seem to mind.  She the animal in her arms and gazed out the window, unaffected by the commotion at her feet. He’d been right about the white dress, despite it’s almost cliché femininity. She looked lovely, soft and glowing in the pale, afternoon light.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small box. Inside, a pair of matching silver rings was nestled into a bed of blue satin. He’d never given a girl a couple ring before. But then he’d never felt like this before either. He’d never been with a person who made him feel so complete, like he’d found a part of himself he didn’t even know was missing. Even with his friends he’d never felt so content. He knew it then. He was going to give her the smaller of the matching rings and, after that, he was going to kiss her.

“Wow,” the barista said as she slid two plastic cups across the counter. “I’ve never seen our kids do that before. It looks like all of our males are over there with your girlfriend. Look at that...Eonni!” she called out to the owner, “Look at what your boys are doing.”  The owner looked, but didn’t move and stayed where she was, the creases appearing on her brow the only sign of her confusion.

Seung-Bae smiled his thanks and carried the drinks to the table.

“They seem to really like you,” he told her.

Haenyeo frowned.

“No,” he grinned. “It’s cute. Although it does make me a little jealous, I’m not really sure I like sharing you with other guys.”

She looked around in confusion.

Seung-Bae chuckled and lowered his head, hiding his amusement beneath the veil of his long bangs.

“Here,” he inserted a straw into one tall plastic cup and sat it on the table in front of her. Round chucks of ice bobbed and swirled with the creamy coffee inside. “Try this. It’s really good.”

She brought the straw to her lips and took a tentative sip.

“Let’s see.” Seung-Bae ped his backpack and dug around before pulling out two square boxes. “Might as well set these up now.” The boxes contained a pair of slim, touch-screen cell phones. They blinked and beeped, coming to life as he tapped. He spent several minutes busily bent over them before sending off a series of text messages to his friends letting them know he was back in service.

“This one is for you,” Seung-Bae held up a white rectangle and shook it; the tiny beaded charm he’d attached at one corner jangled against the cell’s hard plastic case. “I know you won’t want to use it to talk, but after what happened yesterday, I think you’d better have one in case of an emergency.”

Haenyeo looked at the phone. She her lips and frowned.

“Don’t worry. I’ll show you how to use it.”

Seung-Bae smiled to himself. It felt good to be doing things for her. For the first time in a long time, he felt in control. Long term plans were beginning to form in his mind. He had someone he was responsible for now, someone that needed him and had no interest in anyone else except for him, and it felt amazing.

He caught sight of a slight movement across the café.  An enormous ball of snow- white fluff shifted, then rose from the pillow she’d been sleeping on and ambled over to where the rest of the females cats were gathered, gossiping in cat-speak like a gaggle of appalled hens. The snow ball seemed to hold sway, and as she approached they fell silent, deferring as she paused to preen her abundant coat.

“Aigoo … Sophie, our sweet princess,” cooed the café owner. “Have you finally graced us with your presence?”

The royal feline stopped her lapping. Her eyes leveled and fixed on Haenyeo. Then, with a nasty, spitting hiss, she flew across the room and sank her teeth into the tender flesh of the girl’s leg.

Haenyeo let loose a single, strangled cry.

“Sophie!” cried the café owner.

“Omo!” cried Seung-Bae.

A pair of plump, round tears slipped from Haenyeo’s eyes.  Her lips pressed into a tight, tremulous line. She jumped to her feet and bolted out of the café door, the tabby still in her arms, Sophie rabid on her trail.

“Stop!” The café owner screamed and climbed to her feet to chase after her precious pets.  “Stop … you … you … cat thief!”

Seung-Bae snatched up the phones and boxes and clumsily clutched them to his chest. He grabbed his back-pack and ran after them.

“Stop! Sophie! Tiger!” the café owner howled, flying down the street as startled passers-by halted to stare.  “Stop! Thief! Stoooooop!”

“Haenyeo,” Seung-Bae shouted, stumbling after them and trying not to drop the packages in his arms.  “Stop!”

At the end of the city block, Haenyeo finally complied, whirling and searching until her eyes found his.  The tabby clung to her neck while Sophie nipped and scratched at her ankles. With a fed-up glare, Haenyeo punted the enraged white ball of fur with her foot.  Sophie sailed through the air, eyes wide with disbelief, and landed squarely in her owner’s arms.

“Ya!” the woman shrieked. “How can you treat a poor innocent creature like that!”

But Haenyeo had fled again, the tabby abandoned on the sidewalk.  Seung-Bae watched in alarm as she darted across the street, through oncoming traffic, and disappeared down a ramp leading to the Cheonggyecheon river walk.

He sprinted after her.