After saying goodbye to Seojin, I proceeded to checking-in. I made sure to checked twice that my papers were in order. A smiled drew on my lips when I thought about the first time I met the BLAQ brothers. I couldn’t believe that it was just two weeks ago. I sighed thinking that maybe under other circumstances; my story with Byunghee would have been different. I closed my eyes to stop myself from tearing up. ‘Why was I getting so emotional? The last time I felt this way was when Jinsoo left. Still it was not the same, I grew up with Ben and I’ve known him all my life, but I have known this guy for two weeks and I am feeling this way?’  It’s probably better this way, there’s no way it would have worked out between us anyway.

When it became my turn to check-in, the woman looked at me with an annoyed look, I returned her look and asked, “Is there something wrong ma’am?” “Miss, you canceled your flight…” I looked at her, eyes wide open “That’s impossible; I have to leave Korea today, why would I cancel my flight?” She didn’t say anything and raised her shoulders to me. “I wouldn’t know your reasons miss…” I was getting impatient so I cut her off “Ma’am, I made my reservation and I am pretty damn sure that I did not cancel it. So please don’t tell me what I did and didn’t do. If there has been a mistake, it was from your side. Do you think that I am stupid to cancel my flight and then show up here?” She looked panicked for a little bit, I was getting nervous and loud and the people behind me impatient, they started to make a fuss, and so the supervisor came and took me aside.

“Miss, I am sorry for the misunderstanding. But we are full and you will not be able to board this flight today…” I couldn’t let her finish “What are you saying? I can’t leave today?” I was about to freak out. “Well, we have another flight in four hours; you could wait and see if we have any cancellations, if so we will let you know, and we will reimburse you your return ticket price, so you will travel free of charge, complement of the company.”

I calmed myself a little “Okay then, I’ll wait.” I debated it in my head; I would rather wait a couple of hours, as long as I leave today. It has been four hours already, and nobody has cancelled their reservation and I was getting more nervous. I didn’t call my mom because I knew that she would call me back every hour which would freak me out more, and I was still hoping to make it by the last flight. There were only three flights leaving for the U.S today and the second one just boarded. So I decided to call my boss to explain to him what was happening. He picked up on the third ring “Hello?” I took a deep breath and plunge in “Hi, boss it’s Ana how are you?” I was imagining him sitting in his chair playing with his mustache “Oh! Ana, how are you. How was your vacation, are you back home yet?” I couldn’t lie, because if I didn’t make it by then, I would lose all my credibility “Actually, this is why I called. Hum, there has been a misunderstanding and my flight has been cancelled. I am hoping to make the next flight, but if that doesn’t happen I won’t be able to make it to work on time…” He didn’t let me finish “Ana, I told you about that. The opening has already been pushed back because of your absence. If you falter your contract, I will have no choice but to assign your position to someone else, you know that. I appreciate you and your hard work, but I need to answer to my superiors and as harsh as it may soun, I can’t guarantee you anything.”

I knew that already, but I still tried to defend my case “But…but it’ll probably be one day. I worked so hard all these years, it’s unfair to take everything away from me like that.” He breathed at the end of the line “I understand you and I know how hard you’ve worked, but policy is policy and you signed the contract. So, as a human being and someone who knows your talent, I will give you two more days to make it, just pray that corporate doesn’t set foot in this week.” I was so happy that I could scream “Thank you very much boss, I will sleep in the airport if necessary.” He chuckled a little “Ana, I really hope you make it, if not there is nothing I can do okay?” I was relieved “Okay, boss.”

Since I got this taken care of, all I needed was a sit in the last flight. I would lose my job if I didn’t make it. Mr. Parker was a nice man, but with corporate breathing down his neck, he had no choice but to follow regulations. I actually understand him, when you’re  in charge of someone else business, you can’t take any decisions lightly. And if I was the one to replace him, I would have to make those decisions also. When I booked my trip, I couldn’t do no more and no less than two weeks, it was too expensive over that and less than that. But after my first flight, I broke my savings to switch to first class and that’s when my troubles started. I knew that it wouldn’t be me if everything went perfectly, but in all the bad scenarios I could preview, I never imagined not making it back on time. Now more than ever I was starting to believe that I am really cursed. As if going through all that with Ben and Byunghee wasn’t enough, now I was on the brink of losing my job. Mom was going to throw a fit if I didn’t make it by at least tomorrow night.

I check my watch, it’s been eight hours already and the last plane was about to board. I went up the supervisor’s desk to inquire about the last flight. She told me that no one had cancelled, and all the sits were full. “What about tomorrow? I need to leave at least tomorrow.” Now anxiety was settling in, I was about to pull my hair out “I am sorry, but we are full for another two weeks…” I couldn’t believe it “Two more weeks? Are you kidding me? I have been waiting all day and now you’re telling me that I can’t leave for another two weeks? Why don’t you just shoot me and be done with it? Somebody please shoot me.” Right now, I sounded just like my mom but I didn’t care, all I knew is that my dreams and plans were about to crash and burn. The lady was trying to calm me down, but I just couldn’t take it anymore and I broke down in tears.

I didn’t care that everyone was looking at me, all I wanted right now was a hug from my mom, for her to tell me that everything was going to be alright, I was a mama’s girl after all…  The woman looked very sorry for me, she sat down next to me and handed me a couple of tissues to wipe my face. After I calmed down, she told me, “Listen, I understand that it must be hard for you, but I wish there’s something else I could do, but you can give me your phone number and I will make sure to call you as soon as there’s a cancellation.” I gave her my number and she handed me a card “This is my personal number, you can contact me anytime to find out if there’s been any changes.” I was surprised that she was acting this way, but I figured that she must value her job very much and didn’t want to lose it, since an unhappy customer also meant trouble.

 I called Seojin to let her know that I was still in Korea, and decide to call my mom while waiting for her to pick me up. I spent twelve hours at the airport, by now I would have probably been six hours away from sleeping in my bed. “Baby, are you in New York already?” I was trying so hard not to cry, “No Omma, I think someone canceled my flight by mistake.”

“What!? What do you mean they cancelled your flight?” She sounded very upset. “Yes, I have no idea how can this happened, but they told me that they are booked for the next two weeks.” She sighed in frustration, “Did you call your boss to let him know about that?” I sighed in defeat “I did, and he gave me two more days to make it, if not I will lose my job.” She shrieked at the end of the line, now she was very upset “What in the world is wrong with that pig? Is he paying you back because I didn’t want to go out with him? You’ve given so much to that company and now they want to let you go, just like that?”  I was surprised, to hear what she just said, for a moment I forgot about my sorrow and started laughing, “Mom, my boss asked you out? When did that happened?” She sounded annoyed when she replied “A couple of months ago. The nerve of the guy… He is your boss for Pete’s sake.” I couldn’t resist the urge to , “You refused Omma? See you really don’t like me do you? Now if you were dating him I would have a job, don’t you think?” She went quiet for a moment, probably thinking about what I just said “Really. Do you think that I should give him a call?” I couldn’t hold it in anymore, so I burst out laughing “I am just teasing you Ma. I would never ask that of you, and anyway his hands are tied. Corporate makes the decisions and I signed the contract knowing that. He gave me two days, and that was very kind of him.” She sounded very disappointed “Chincha? So there’s nothing I can do?”

“No Omma. I will call the supervisor tomorrow to know if there’s been any cancellations, who knows, I may get lucky tomorrow. I will call you to let you know of any news. Don’t worry about me okay. Love you mom.” She sounded defeated “Love you too baby. Well look at it this way, maybe something better will come along. Because if this isn’t for bad reason it’s for a good one. An opportunity will come, I am certain of it.”  I chuckled lightly, my mom and her optimism, “Thanks Omma, I’ll make sure not to let it escape.”  I was feeling a little better after talking to her, tomorrow was another day. I was still waiting for Seojin who wasn’t showing up, I was getting impatient so I called her “Unni, really what’s the hold up?”

“Sorry Ana, but I can’t leave right now. I didn’t plan for this, so I am still stuck a my rehearsal. If you want, you can take a cab and meet me at Seungho’s company in Incheon.” Really, did she just ask me that? “Unni, I know you’re in love and all, but don’t you think that you are exaggerating? I am broke and I don’t think that because you’re dating a rich man would made you think that everyone around you is rich right?” I could hear her chuckle in the phone, “You are right about one thing, I am indeed in love. But the rest I have no idea what you’re talking about. It was oppa’s idea anyway. Seungho said you can come, he will take charge of the fee.” I felt a little embarrassed, I really shouldn’t be using him like that, but I had no money left since I spent it all in buying souvenirs, but the last thing I wanted was for Byunghee to take the occasion to insult me more. Nevertheless, I had no choice, I will have to take it head on, whatever happened, happened, and there was no going back.

Once I arrived and gave my name at the front desk, everything was taken care of. How convenient, I thought, that they were in the office closer to the airport. This office was smaller than the one in Gangnam, since the latter was the headquarters, but sometimes when they are receiving foreign investors or when they hired foreign production companies, they settled there make the commute easier since it was a lot closer to the airport. The receptionist guided me to a waiting area, it was a very luxurious room, and one could feel all the class and thought put in the decoration. As I was waiting, for some reason I kept thinking that Mir will pop out any minute, all smiles and making stupid comments, but that didn’t happened, instead his older brother, the one I dreaded to see came waltzing in. ‘Urgh! He was worse than a bug. Why did he keep popping up wherever I was? It was as if I was a magnet for him, like he couldn’t stay away from me.’ I turned away from him pretending to admire a painting, but awaiting his offensive comment, but when he opened his mouth he just said “I heard that your flight got cancelled, do you know what happened?” for a second I stopped and turned to look at him, just to make sure that he was actually talking to me. I was so astonished that I stuttered when I answered “Th-the flight itself wasn’t cancelled, someone cancelled my reservation.” He walked closer to me and instinctively I took two steps backward.

“Do you think that it was the airline’s fault?” I tried to act nonchalantly so he didn’t see the anxiety that he was causing me, and I stepped away from him admiring another painting “Probably, if not it would mean that someone did it on purpose.”  He walked toward me again and stood next to me, “I am sorry about that. I can’t imagine how disappointed you must have been, since you wanted to leave so badly. Would that affect your contract with the company you’re working with right now?” I looked at him again, this time not hiding the shocked expression on my face. ‘What is wrong with him, why was he asking so many questions? And why was he being so civilized with me? I hope he didn’t catch something from gosh knows who. By the way that was the second time he talked about my contract, why did he cared anyway.’

This time I turned to face him “Are you feeling okay, Jung Byunghee-ssi? Why the sudden interest in my life?” He wasn’t answering so I continued, “How do you know about my contract anyway?” he raised his shoulders, “Nothing, I just wanted to have a conversation while keeping you company.” I looked at him with a raised eyebrow “Do you actually expect me to believe that? You keeping me company and having small talk? Aren’t you supposed to be running an enterprise?” He smiled at my question, a genuine smile “Look, I know we didn’t start on the right foot. But for the sake of both our families, can’t we make peace?

‘Wait! What? What the hell is going on? Am I dreaming or something?’ I pinched myself just to make sure. ‘Nope I am not. I am wide awake and I am really talking to Byunghee right now.’  I couldn’t believe it so I asked, “Is it opposite day today or am I being punked?” Something smelled fishy here. “Are there cameras here or something? Are you looking for a new way to humiliate me? If so, don’t worry I will probably be leaving tomorrow and if not, I promise you that you will not be seeing my face anymore.”  He looked a little hurt that I didn’t believe him but he shook his head and said “Okay, I deserved that. But I am totally serious…” I didn’t let him finished “Save it Byunghee-ssi, you don’t have to force yourself at this extent. I will not be staying for long here. But thank you for the effort; I’ll keep that in mind.” He shook his head without saying anything and left the room. ‘Huh! Something’s weird. It’s very uncommon for him to not have a comeback. Was he actually serious about what he said just now? He looked sincere and sounded truthful, but I would rather stay on my toes.’ I didn’t know what to believe anymore, he was confusing me more and more, so I decided to put that thought away and went looking for Seojin.

-------------------------------

It’s been a week since I missed my flight back home. I kept calling the airline and calling the lady who promised to help me, but it was the same answer every time. No cancelations were made and they were booked for the next two months. I still could not understand why I there wasn’t even one cancellation, if I didn’t know any better, I’d thought that someone was trying to keep me from going home. I called my boss to explain my situation, but he told me that he’d already replaced me with someone else.

I was devastated; I didn’t know how things got this way. I came here for a two-week vacation, but now I was stuck for who knows how long. This job meant a lot to me, and without it, I couldn’t really help my mom. When I talked to her, she sounded a little bit upset. She called the airline offices in the U.S but they also told her that there wasn’t anything they could do, it had to be taken care of from Korea. Funny thing, I thought, I came here to relax and enjoy, but I am more stressed than ever, I lost my job and I am broke, for Pete’s sake what the hell did I do wrong?

I was still in a depressed mood when Seojin came home all excited. “Ana, I have a surprise for you.” I was reflecting on all the things that had happened since I took the plane for S.K, really since the first day things went bad, and now it looked like there was no way out of here. I mumbled something and didn’t even bother to look at her, but she started shaking me to get my attention. “Ana, don’t you want to hear what I have to say?” I felt too tired to even answer her but I tried anyway, “Unni, if it’s about your boyfriend again, I don’t want to know. I have heard enough in a week to last me a lifetime…” She slapped my arm “Aish! Jealous much? It’s not only about my Seungho oppa, it’s about you too. Come on get dressed, we are going to Gangnam.” Now she had gotten my attention, I raised my head and looked at her with confusion. “I don’t want to have anything to do with the brothers, so don’t count on me for anything.”

She was a little astonished by my answer, but she replied “So you say huh. I guessed than you better find another place to live, because if you don’t come with me, I will take you by the hair and kick you out.” I looked at her with big eyes, “You’re being dramatic again, and you wouldn’t dare.”  She looked at me with a daredevil stare, “Try me.” For a second she reminded me of my mom and I couldn’t stop from asking, “Are you sure we weren’t switch at birth?” She burst out laughing and I did the same, and then she added, “Yah! Pabo-yah. You are my dongseng, okay.”

When we arrived, Seungho was in a conference call meeting, so we had to wait. I was really apprehending meeting the brothers once again, especially Byunghee. I told him that he wouldn’t be seeing my face again but now I was here. However, I was really hoping that he wasn’t around. We sat down in front of Seungho’s office waiting for him to call us in. Compared to the other times we’ve encountered, this atmosphere showed me another side of the BLAQ brothers. Instead of the amicable environments that we’ve met before, this was all business like, and seeing the worker in professional attires and the distant ringing of the office phones, reminded me that I was stuck here and didn’t have a job. I was about to dash out when Seungho’s secretary called us in.

He was as chic as usual; he greeted us with a warm smile, shook my hand and kissed his girlfriend on the lips. It was the first time I’ve seen them intimate around people, I looked at them and a warm feeling came over me. It wouldn’t take a genius to see that those two were head over heels for each other and I was happy for them. I was about to drift away in my thought when he started talking, “So what do you think of the proposition that I made you?” I looked at him confused since I had no idea what he was referring to, I was about to tell him when Seojin answered, “I didn’t tell her. I wanted you to give her the surprise oppa.” I looked at them alternatively, ‘What the hell were they planning again. I really hope that it doesn’t have anything to do with Byunghee.’ He signaled me to sit down and went behind his desk, now he was in professional mode. He pulled a folder out of his top drawer and handed it to me, I picked it up still skeptical, maybe it was my ticket out of Korea, my heart started to beat faster. In a couple of seconds, many emotions ran through me, but I started to doubt; ‘Even if I went back, I didn’t have a job, I will be depending on my mom again and… Wait was I doubting?’

I lift my eyes to meet Seungho’s and he gave me an encouraging smile to open it. What’s with all the drama? Entertainment people, I thought, they loved their dramas, didn’t they? When I finally had the courage to open the folder and stated reading it, I realized that it was a contract with my name and information in it. I looked back at him; mixed emotions running through me, I couldn’t believe it, he was offering me a job. When I thought that there weren’t any way out for me, he just gave me an opportunity. For a surprise, that was a surprise. Little did I know… it was only the tip of the iceberg.