Alstroemeria: devotion; friendship

Chapter 7

A sudden nauseous feeling forced me awake. My eyes shot open and I lifted my head off Jo’s shoulder. He shifted uncomfortably, probably missing the weight. My stomach roiled around and I felt like puking. Sighing, I closed my eyes and tried to relax as best as I could. Beads of cold sweat formed on my brow, but I ignored them.

The source of my discomfort? Apparently, the plane was flying through a pocket of turbulent air. It kept shaking jerkily from side to side and up and down, tossing my poor stomach around until I felt like I couldn’t take it anymore. Gritting my teeth, I struggled to keep my urge to puke down and gripped my blanket for comfort.

“Stay still and take deep breaths,” Jo’s soothing voice floated into my ears. “Just relax.”

My eyes flickered open. Jo’s eyes were calm as they stared into mine, and I felt myself relax under his concerned gaze. I closed my eyes and focused on the roiling of the plane rather than that of my stomach. Jo continued to soothe me as the plane tossed and turned.

After a few more intense minutes, the plane finally steadied, as did my stomach. Relieved, I gratefully opened my eyes and smiled weakly at the boy beside me. He released his tension on seeing me recover, and he leant back again.

“You look funny when you’re all green. It’s like you’re an alien,” he commented, a smile tweaking his lips again.

I rolled my eyes and glanced at my watch. Groaning, I shrunk down in my seat. Seven more hours to go. Would this trip ever end?

Jo sighed as well. His hoodie had slid back just a little bit, and what I could see of his black hair was ruffled. He stretched a little, but unfortunately his long legs couldn’t unbend fully in the constricted area. Huffing, he gave up and curled up in his seat, facing me. I don’t know how all of his lengthy frame fit into that small area, but he’d somehow managed to get his knees up there as he tucked himself into a ball.

“You’re so flexible,” I pointed out.

He grinned wolfishly at me and tried to wink. It came out as an exaggerated blink instead. I giggled at him again and he seemed a bit put out at himself.

“Why don’t you try doing this?”

I smiled and obliged. It worked, but I was a stick figure like Dara so it didn’t count. We faced each other, and I was struck again by how familiar his smile seemed to me. Yet I still couldn’t place him. I must have met him ages ago. Maybe he was someone from the neighbourhood I grew up in? I remembered that there was this one family who’d moved away somewhere.

“Jo, I’m so sorry for falling asleep on your shoulder. I didn’t exactly mean to…” I trailed off.

Jo shook his head and waved off my apology. His eyes were just starting to slide closed again when I was struck by another question.

“What does ‘uljimalayo’ mean?” I asked, thinking back to that day on my favourite bridge.

He sat bolt upright and stared at me. I noticed he bit his lip as he reached down and tweaked his toe out of a crevice. It looked to have been lodged there painfully.

“I’m sorry, could you repeat the question?”

I obliged, and he gave me a queer look before replying, “It means, don’t cry.”

My mouth formed an “O” as I nodded. I glanced down at my wiggling toes again, feeling much more comfortable in my new position. Airplane chairs are extremely uncomfortable, and I now had a crick in the neck after sleeping.

“Where did you hear that?” he continued in curiosity.

I shifted uncomfortably. “A friend told me.”

“Then why didn’t you ask them about it?”

“Well, he told me to find out the meaning on my own,” I admitted guiltily.

Jo raised his eyebrows.

I stuck my tongue out at him in rebellion and closed my eyes resolutely. Pretty soon, I fell asleep.

*****

Dara twisted around in her seat for the millionth time, sending yet another futile glance through the curtained doorway. She desperately wanted to check if her younger sister was alright. What if she was sitting next to some erted guy, or even a hijacker who would take her as hostage? Leaving to South Korea had been such a bad idea (what was she thinking?!).

Jiyong laid a comforting hand on her shoulder. “She’ll be fine,” he said.

His melodious but strong voice soothed Dara’s nerves. She smiled gratefully at him. But she couldn’t help biting her lip as she recalled the rough turbulence of a few minutes earlier.

“What if she got airsick?”

“Stop worrying about her, she’ll be perfectly alright. Besides, she can always come up front and talk to you if she needs anything.” Jiyong smiled.

Dara grinned back, feeling the gnawing feeling in her stomach fade away. Jiyong turned to face her and winked slowly, making Dara’s cheeks turn red almost instantly. She hurriedly covered her face and turned away, flustered. The boy sat back, feeling a sense of satisfaction as he observed how easily he could affect the girl.

“Dara,” Jiyong murmured, casting his eyes down because he suddenly felt shy. “You do know that I have feelings for you, right?”

Her head jerked up and she stared at him with eyes lit with surprise. “Jinjja?” she whispered.

Hearing the awe that filled her voice, he glanced up and looked her straight in the eye as he confessed. “I like you a lot, Dara.”

Dara nearly fainted. She felt her heart throb violently; speeding up until it was beating hard against her ribcage, insisting on breaking free. Vaguely, she registered a rushing wind sounding in her ears before she found herself with her arms wrapped tightly and securely around Jiyong’s neck. His body fit perfectly into hers and she reveled in the feeling of closeness that she was astonished to find within her towards this stranger she’d only known for a short while.

“I like you too. More than I would have ever expected,” she told him, clutching him closer to her.

Her eyes shut and she let herself rejoice. Similarly, he was doing the same, thanking every speck of courage within him for daring to confess; the lucky spirits guiding him for letting her return his feelings.

They were a couple now.

a/n: The chapter name is for devotion because of the daragon love. Friendship is for Jo and Rin. Please support me by commenting!