Seoul, SK…

 

My name is Zoie and I’ve been staying here for almost 5 months now.  I am working as a consultant for a company in Hongdae and do some part time job as well to earn money for my future.

 

 It was a bright sunny day I am here in my favorite place in the park. Under a tree, reading my favorite book. I usually spend my weekends here because it’s so quiet and it is a great place to stay.  And today seems to be another normal day for me, not until I came across a guy who was running after his dog (which happens to run towards me).  I was shocked when the dog came near me and lied down on my legs.

 

“Wow, you’re such a cute dog!” I said while patting the dogs head.

 

Then, a guy in hoodie approaches me and said “mianhe, are you ok?”.

 

“Yes, I’m fine. You have a cute dog. What’s his name?”  I asked. 

 

“His name is Boss. I’m sorry that my dog bother you Miss. It seems that my dog likes you. Come boss, let’s go home” Bae said while trying to get Boss.

 

“It’s alright. Let him stay here for a moment” I replied.

 

“Kamsahamnida” The guy said and I continued reading my book.

 

The guy just kept on staring at me, then he said “By the way, I’m Bae, and it seems that this is the first time that I saw you here” he said.

 

 “Oh, my name is Zoie and I’ve been staying here for five months now and  I often stay under this tree during weekends because it’s a place to unwind since it is quiet here” I replied.

 

“Oh I see. Well this is the first time for me to reach this part of the park and your right, it is a good place to unwind” he said.

 

We are still chatting when his phone rang and it seems that it is an important call, he excused himself and said that they need to go now because something came up. I just nodded and bid farewell to him and to his cute dog. I watched them as they walk away and also fixed myself so I can go home because it’s time for me to cook dinner for me and Justine.

 

                Well, I am living with my best friend Justine who is a nurse in a hospital in Korea as well. Unlike me, she has been staying here for 2 years and that gosh, she is fluent in Korean. She is the one who is teaching me some Korean terms and phrases which I need in my everyday life (to make my life easier as she says).  She’s addicted to Kpop and Hallyu (whatever that means). While me, I’m just a home buddy who likes to read. I can’t watch TV because I still can’t understand what they are saying. So I decided to just spend my time reading my books and playing games on my phone.

 

                “I’m home.” I said while entering our small unit. And as usual, Justine is sitting in front of the tv seriously watching her favorite Korean drama, with a tissue in her hand and a box of popcorn on the table.

 

“Hello, sis. Where have you been?” she said without looking at me.

 

 “I just went out and stayed in the park” I replied while preparing our dinner.

 

I already finished cooking, so I prepare the table and called her out to eat. While we were eating, I told her about what happen in the park. And she started to fire questions about the guy that I’ve met.

 

“What’s his name?  Is he cute? What does he look like? Omo, omo..” she asked.

 

“His name is Bae. And yes, he is kinda cute however he is wearing hoodie and cap so I can’t really see him that much. But he looks kind, but I like his dog. He is sooo cute.” I said.

 

To cut the story short, we spent our night talking about this guy with his dog.

 

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                It is Sunday morning, time for my daily morning routine. I got up at 4:30 AM and put on my running shoes and tied my hair. I put on my earplugs and started playing music while I start jogging to the park. The weather is so nice and there are few people doing exercise here too. Then, I come across this guy and his dog again walking in the park just like other people.

 

The guy saw me and said “Good morning Zoie”.

 

 I stopped and greet him as well. The dog barked at me, it seems that he wants to be approached as well (well, my instinct told me that…keke) so I sit and pat the dog. “Good morning Boss!" I said and kissed his head.

 

“It’s so nice to see you again! Do you also run every morning?” Bae asked.

 

“Yes, it is one of my morning rituals to keep myself fit” I replied.

 

“Oh, it is such a good feeling to know that. Especially Boss seems to like you a lot.” He said.

 

“Ha-ha. Same here. I like Boss too because he is too cute and playful. I remember my dogs back at home” I said.

 

After chatting, he asked me for a coffee which I agreed too. And both of us are sitting outside the coffee shop, we are talking about our lives, and he said that he is the shy type (which is obvious) and that he seldom go to parties and also likes staying at home with boss. And I told him some information about myself to and the reason why I am here in Korea.

 

“Oh, it seems that you are the bread winner in your family. Your parents must be proud of you because you are doing an excellent job even though you are far away from them” he said.

 

“Yes. They are my inspiration and that everything I am right now is because of them.” I replied.

 

Then the sun started to shine, I check on my watch and it is almost 6 AM.  “Oh, it’s time for me to go home now.” I said.

 

“Is that so? Let us walk you through your home” he offered.

 

“No need. I can manage. Thank you for the coffee” I said.

 

“Don’t mention it. By the way Zoie, is it OK if I get  your number?” he shyly asked.

 

“Sure! Here’s my number” and gave my number to him before going back home.

 

 

BAE’s POV:

 

                Since the first day that I met Zoie, I became very relaxed with her. She is such a sweet lady who always makes me feel comfortable whenever I’m with her. And now that I saw her again in the park, I asked her for coffee and tried to get to know more about her. And I am lucky that she agreed with no hesitations.

 

 This is the first for me to ask a girl out (even though it is just a coffee break). Everyone knows that I am a celebrity; life has been more complicated since everything we do is being followed by paparazzi. But being with this girl seems that I can be just like a normal person. I am happy to find one like her. And it’s time for her to go back home.

 

I’ve been shy enough to ask for her number. I’m afraid to be rejected because it seems that she does not know who I am and that she can consider me as a stranger but I am lucky enough to get her number. And since then, we text each other and became good friends.

 

 I went back to our dorm with a huge smile in my face. Jiyong noticed my mood upon entering the dorm and said “It seems that something good happen to you today. Can you tell me about it?”.

 

 “Aniyo, GD it’s just that the weather is fine today.” I replied and went to my room to avoid further interrogation by my best friend.

 

I texted Zoie and asked her if we can meet in the park again tomorrow and she replied “Sure. It will be nice to have someone to accompany me in the morning. Don’t forget to bring Boss with you. ^_^”.

 

I texted her back.  “Sure. Boss will like it too. See you at 5 AM then?”.

 

“OK. See you at 5AM in the park. Good day!".

 

 I am so happy and excited to see her once again. I prepared myself for our rehearsal afterwards. The day went fast and before i go to bed, I checked on Boss who is now sleeping. I also set the alarm to make sure that i will wake up early.

 

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It’s 4:30 in the morning, I was about to take Boss for the morning run. I checked him out and he is still lying in his bed and that’s not usual. He usually gets up earlier than me and he often my face to wake me up . I went beside him to check and it seems that he is sick, he did not touch his food and I feel that he is sick.

 

I bring him to the nearest veterinary to have him checked. The doctor said that Boss needs to be confined for 2 days for further tests. I feel so pity when they put dextrose in his foot and Boss is looking at me with his puppy eyes, and I feel that he is hurt right now but I can’t do anything but to follow the veterinarian.

 

Then Zoie texted me up and said that she is already in the park. I suddenly remembered that we should be seeing her today. I texted her back “I’m sorry Zoie but we can’t make it today. I rushed Boss to the nearest clinic to have him checked because he is not feeling well.”

 

She replied back “Oh. What happened to him? Is Boss alright now?”

 

“Boss is a bit better now. He is currently confined and will stay here for 2 days for further tests” I replied.

 

“Oh. I feel sorry for boss right now. Is it ok to visit him? I want to know his condition.” She replied back.

 

“Sure. You can visit anytime.” And I gave her the clinic’s address.

 

I stayed with Boss and inform Jiyong about what happen so that he can ask YG to give me a day off.

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Zoie’s POV:

 

I am now in the park waiting for Bae and Boss to arrive. I even brought some dog treats for Boss. It’s almost 5AM and they are still not here. I fished for my phone in my back pocket and texted Bae. And I felt sad when I read Bae’s reply “I’m sorry Zoie but we can’t make it today. I rushed Boss to the nearest clinic to have him checked because he is not feeling well.”

 

I replied back “Oh. What happened to him? Is Boss alright now?” and I felt relieved when he said that he is fine and that Boss is now ok but will need to stay in the clinic for 2 more days.

 

 I decided to go home to prepare for work. I will visit Boss after work and will bring the dog treats that I have for him.

 

I spend the whole day at work doing my work routines and discussions with the manager for the new marketing strategies. And everything went well and my proposal is accepted by the managers.

 

 I waited for the day to end so I can go home. I texted Bae and inform him that I am going to the clinic to visit Boss. And he said that he is there and will be waiting for me. I called for a cab and asked to take me to the veterinary clinic.

 

Upon entering the clinic, I saw Bae standing near a window and looking at Boss.

 

“Hi” I said.

 

 He looked at me and a bitter smile welcomed me. “Hello. I’m sorry that we failed to meet you up today.” He said.

 

“It’s ok. I understand it. And Boss’ health is important right now. Here, I was supposed to give it to Boss this morning” and I gave him the dog treats for Boss.

 

 “Thank you. Do you want to see him? We can enter his room” He said.

 

He assisted me and I went close to Boss who is currently lying in the clinic bed. I touched his head and silly as I may sound but I talked to Boss “Hello Boss. I’ve been waiting for you this morning at the park but you didn’t show up. Please be strong and be healthy so that we can run in the morning. I know you are a tough dog.” I said to Boss. Then boss my hands as if it is a sign that he agree to it and that he understood me.

 

 I stayed in the clinic for few more hours; suddenly my stomach growled remembering that I haven’t eaten yet. “It seems that you’re hungry. Do you want something to eat?” he said.

 

 “No, I’m fine. I can just eat later.” I replied.

 

“No, you must eat too. There is a restaurant across the street. Let’s go” he authoritatively said.

 

We went to the restaurant and ordered our meal. While we were eating, we had a little chat about our day. And afterwards we went back to the clinic.

 

 It’s already 10PM and I decided to go home. “Thank you for visiting Boss and for accompanying me as well.” Bae said.

 

 “It’s ok. I also wanted to make sure that Boss is ok. Just keep me posted about boss ok?” I replied and I bid my goodbye.

 

 

Author’s POV:  

 

Boss had a surgery because he was diagnosed with herniated disc, Bae stayed all night waiting for the surgery to finish, praying that Boss will be fine. The doctor went out of the operating room and informed Bae that Boss did not make it. He died while undergoing the surgery. Upon hearing that, Bae was shocked and cannot believe that Boss already left him. He immediately texted Zoie, Bigbang members and his brother to inform them about the sad news.

 

 The guys immediately went to the hospital to help Bae. Jiyong consoled him since he also is close to Boss since his dog Gaho is Boss’ playmate and best friend too. Few minutes later, Zoie also arrived to comfort Bae. And there she met all Bigbang members but still unaware that they are the known BIGBANG. She just stayed beside Bae to support him and assist him in paying the hospital bills and to bring Boss back home.

 

Everyone can see how deeply Bae is affected by Boss’ death. But with the help and support of everyone, he slowly managed to accept the situation. He is also thankful to Zoie who never left him while he is feeling down. And from thereon, he started to feel something for her and decided to tell Zoie the truth about who he is, the soonest possible time.