I didn’t give up. I still had hope and went on a date with a different guy. I liked him because he was playful and handsome. We messaged each other almost all-day and everyday. It was if he had already known each other. We could talk about anything.

We settled for a meet and greet at a mall, but we decided to make it exciting. We decided that we should try to find each other. I pulled up to the mall and called him.

“I’m here.”

“Me to! Let’s count down.”

“1..2..3….Go!”

I walked into the mall like I was a tourist. I looked in every single store and around every single corner. However, I didn’t have a hard time finding him, but disappointment struck me when I saw him. He had on basketball shorts, a faded white t-shirt, and old dirty sneakers. He looked like he hadn’t washed his hair in weeks. He even had crust in between his eyes. It was not a pretty sight, but I didn’t treat him any less of a person. I just made it clear that we should just be friends. He didn’t get mad like the other guy and said he got that often. I tried to help him and give him tips on why he got turned down so much, but he didn’t want to change.

That afternoon, I felt as if it wasn’t worth trying anymore. I put myself out there to only meet liars and individuals who weren’t self-motivated. Why is it so hard to find someone who has similar goals and interest? I felt as if people already took all the plenty of fish that were supposedly in the sea and there were none left for me. I was about to delete my page when I had received a message. I opened it and it was a whole paragraph. I wasn’t going to read it, but I gave it the benefit of the doubt.

I read your profile and you seem to be a very sophisticated individual like myself. I usually don’t send messages let alone messages as long as I am about to write. I would like to get to know you more as I see that we have a lot in common. I may not be the perfect choice in your eyes, but I would like if you just give me a chance and get to know me. I’m not perfect as I have flaws just like anyone else. I can be moody and I can appear to be standoffish. I haven’t had a relationship in two years and I have trust issues, but I promise if things become serious I won’t break your heart.

I decided to reply back and see what happens. He put his self out there and admitted to things that I would of probably had to find out later. I respected him for that. I clicked on his page to read his profile. He didn’t have much written, which made me curious about him. He only had one picture and it was small. I was leery and felt that this may be another let down. I walked away from my computer to get some water from the fridge. When I came back I had a new message. I didn’t expect him to reply.

From that day on, I found out more about him and I became more interested. However, from all this disappointment I’ve had from the online dating. I didn’t want to get too excited. There was still a chance that he may not be the person I think he is. He gave me his number and told me text or call anytime. I programmed it in my phone, but I wasn’t ready to call yet. I decided to settle with a simple text. I had asked questions about what he does for a living, what he likes to do, and why he didn’t say much on his profile. Every reply he gave me didn’t quite answer the question. He was mysterious. It was almost as if he was hiding something. Did he have a secret?

We had been talking for a couple of weeks now and he finally started to open up. He also sent me more pictures. I finally had a clear view of what he looked like. He was so handsome I felt like it was to good to be true. He called me everyday even when he had a busy day. His schedule seemed to vary from being busy to days where he has nothing to do. He had mentioned a food festival this weekend. I think he was hinting that he wanted me to go with him. He finally asked me and I agreed. He offered to pick me up and take me, but I declined the offer just in case it happened to be disaster.

When the weekend had finally approached I got anxious. I was excited and nervous at the same time. I couldn’t even eat. I just wanted everything to be perfect. When I left my driveway I hooked up my GPS. I put in the location and left my driveway. When I left and got on the highway traffic turned into a standstill and a 20min drive turned into a 40min. drive. When I finally arrived I called him to let him know was I there. I shifted through the crowds till there was a opening in the crowd. The aroma from all the food filled my nose and my stomach started to growl. I was suddenly distracted from the food and my eyes focused on a man standing in the distance. He was tall and looked as if he was posing for a magazine. He didn’t move like he wasn’t human. He looked like a statue. A gust of wind blew and strands of his hair stirred with the wind. I got closer and realized it was him. It was my date! I looked at him in awe.

“Seung-hyun?”

“Seungri?”

He held out his hand. “Nice to meet you.”

I looked at him and didn’t blink.

“Are you hungry?”

I felt like I was drooling. I knew he was talking to me, but it didn’t register in my head. He placed his hand on my shoulder.

“Did you already eat?”

“Oh… yes I’m hungry. Sorry it’s just your really handsome.”

He smiled. “Thank you.”

“Did you see anything you wanted?”

I looked around and out of everything in sight ice cream is what called my name. I saw Seung-hyun glance in the distance and his eyes lid up. I looked at where his focus was and it was paddleboats. He looked at me.

“Would you like to go?”

We grabbed ice cream and practically ran to boats like we were little kids. When we got there we regained our composure and acted our age again. He got in first. Then, I got in beside him. I ate my ice cream and paddled like I was in a race. I looked down at the water then I felt nauseous. Sung-hyun looked at me.

“Are you ok?”

I looked at him then everything got blurry. The next thing you know we were out of the boat and he had throw up all over him. He cleaned himself as best as he could then carried me to his car.

“I’m going to take you home. What’s your address?”

I gave him my address and he carried me all the way to my apartment.

“Do you need anything?”

“I’ll be fine.”

“If you need anything call me.”

He closed the door behind him and walked away. I laid on my couch and closed my eyes. When I woke up I had a missed call and text message. I checked and it was Seung-hyun checking on me. I felt bad for ruining our first date. I think I should have eaten before I left and had more than just ice cream.