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You sat amongst hundreds of super enthusiastic fans and families, who are chanting encouragements in various languages at the grand Excel Centre in Hong Kong, waiting for the annual fencing tournament to begin. The crowd are buzzing, whilst your parents on the other hands are too busy squabbling over the different camera settings for the DSLR. you on the other hand contemplate your options, yes, you were really excited, happy and proud of your younger brother to have been picked out of thousand potential contenders for this tournament, and you were all for cheering him on. Eventhough your dad who was also his coach had already taken up the role of head cheerleader, you just kind of wished that you didn’t have to spend the ENTIRE  week watching fencing matches after matches. There were so many places you had spent the previous week reading about in travel blogs, that you just couldn’t leave Hong Kong without visiting. Like the Tsim Sha Tsui Promenade, to the beautiful enchanting Temple Street night market, and most especially your favourite and what you were looking forward to was Disneyland, because hellooooo Dad, Disneyland isn’t something we can leave for “later”.

Your parents had already told you that there was a very slim chance for any sightseeing, so you had made it a daily mission to get up by 5am just to see the sun rising and watching the city wake up for the day. Hong Kong was a beautiful island and it made you want to burst out into tears, that you would be leaving for Seoul in three days. The last 4 days had simply consisted of you waiting on your brother as you and parents moved to a bigger and supposedly “better” gym everyday only so your brother could practice for his biggest tournament yet. You knew you were being selfish, but it’s not like you came to Hong Kong, whenever you wanted to, and on your return to Seoul, I don’t think you wanted to be telling all your friends that the highlight of your trip was room service making a mix up and bringing you a triple chocolate sundae instead of the sewing kit you had asked for or that the reason for all the lack of instagram updates was most probably because you were filling up Jeonggkookie’s water bottle for the 57th time that day from the dispensing machine that was located three flights of stairs down, and before you ask, no, there’s no elevator at this supposed “better” gym (thanks dad). You’d only return with his water bottle, to see him emptying another two and asking you if you would be a sweetheart and refill these as well. This kid was two years younger than you for goodness sake. Brat.  

As you came back to the current moment, the cheers around you resonated louder, because you notice a middle aged man with a funky bow tie announcing the commence of the tournament. You have to admit, even after 10 years of your younger brother taking up fencing, you didn’t know the first thing about the sport or  how the game worked. Even after your parents had forced you to go to a fencing training lesson when you were 11, your dad stating something about self defence, but really you knew you were to be  your dad’s product marketing placement in his project of getting more girls involved in the sport. Sorry dad, i had to let you down, but it’s really not my thing, and since rejecting fencing at the age of 11 your dad always gave you all these disappointed glances, like you were the worst offspring in existence.  But, seriously like any other Asian kid you would’ve tried to like fencing…..but no, it was just easier owing him your first born child, because knowing your dad, he’s probably never going to let you forget it.

The sound of the klaxon bought you back to the competition, this part always confused you, no, the rules and regulations were already over your head, but you looked around the grand hall and there were about four tournaments commencing. As you looked behind you observed the Japanese family were watching the two compete in the far right, whilst the three Italian girls sitting next to you were cheering for the two guys battling it out in the middle, as you looked at your parents, their gazes were locked in the far left, because your baby brother Jeongkookie was up against a rather tall and rather built looking guy, from what you could see from his ivory coloured uniform and metal wired helmet. Your question was simple really, were fencing tournaments like buffets? Could you pick and choose who you wanted to watch?, how long you wanted to watch them? ofcourse you didn’t ask this aloud, because it would only make the people around you question your IQ. In sheer honestly you’d prefer to just be back at your hotel, in your sweatpants and your hair up in a messy bun, as your watch the new season of Pretty Little Liars, but what could you do?.

It was like your mom had read your mind, because the next thing you knew, she reached an arm over your dad, handing you two empty coke cans andlays chip packets, asking you to dispose them and to bring back more supplies. Any other occasion you would groan and whine, especially as you were sandwiched amongst hundreds of gruelling enthusiasts, but in your current mental state, you jumped at the chance to get away from all the commotion. So grabbing the litter from your mom plus a few Hong Kong dollars, you made your journey over to the exit, apologising and bowing to all the people, as you slid over them, that you were pretty sure could have treated as ual harassment, only if they were paying attention, but they weren’t ,as they were all glued to the game in front of them . As you made your way down stadium stairs, there was a sudden explosive uproar of cheers, as your hand flew to your chest in surprise, as the people rose from their chairs and began applauding. You glared at all the crazy people for frightening you, as your eyes narrowed in the far left corner and you could make out through cluster of snow colored uniforms, that one was slouched and crouching on the floor, whilst the other one was punching his fist in the air in victory.

 You slapped your hand against your forehead and your tongue slipped out, as you realised what had happened. Your baby brother had lost to the taller guy, a quick glance at your parents confirmed this, as you saw your mom rubbing your dad’s back probably  mumbling words of comfort whilst your dad looked in a state of shock. You truthfully, didn’t feel that bad, because yes your brother worked hard for this tournament, but at the end of the day that’s all it really was,  a tournament, a game, a healthy competition, so there really was no reason for him to beat himself up. You were proud of your dongsaeng and will always be, as you will tell this to him later in the evening ,as you treat him to his third hamburger and he downs his fourth glass of coca cola. But at the moment as your brother took his helmet off and looked up at you, standing on the podium stairs, he shrugged his shoulders, letting his mouth drop into a pout , you quickly switched on good Noona mode, and threw him a thumbs up, telling him to smile widely  again. All sibling rivalry aside he was your little boo bear at the end of the day, despite the 21 month difference.

 As you debated whether it was still worth getting the snacks, as the tournament was pretty much over (thank the Lord), you watched the Japanese and Italian players finishing their match too, as they shook hands and patted each other on the shoulder, before parting. Your gaze suddenly landed on the guy, who had won against your brother you had to admit there was some ounce of defence there, as this guy was the reason why your brother was sulking . As he still wore his helmet, you couldn’t make out his appearance, but a quick glance at the scoreboard, you knew he was from the Hong Kong team. He made his way over to the crowd near you and they all were roaring in excitement, chanting as you assumed his name, what were they saying? Joey?, Jason?, Janson?, Jackie?, Jackson??, like as in the music legend?

You shrugged giving up on figuring out the champions name, the scoreboard, wasn’t of any help too, only showing the scores and the two countries’ flags. You internally congratulated the winner and made your way down to the exit, that ran along the bottom of the podium. You has decided you would wait for your parents out in the lobby, and get yourself an iced coffee and an m&m doughnut. Smiling widely at the prospect of your sugary treat as well as the fact that you now have an extra two days in Hong Kong, that can simply be used for sightseeing, as your brother, wouldn’t be going to the finals. But as you reached the bottom, a few inches away from the double doors, you noticed that the same guy, who was just hyping the crowd a few seconds ago was currently standing infront of you, kinda of……frozen. He wasn’t moving and his arms were limp against his side. Due to helmet being made of metal wiring, you couldn’t really make out where his gaze was residing, the next thing you know like on cue, he pulled off his helmet revealing a sprawl of mocha hair and matching eyes, this….guy….was….smiling……pretty…..widely…..at…..you?? your cheeks suddenly flamed, as you established this. hmmmm…….he’s pretty cute……i like!

He suddenly bought an arm up in the air, and waved at you . At this point you realised the only people behind you were six security guards in vinyl jackets, so this cute guy, was for a fact waving at you. You ‘tried’ to maintain your cool, biting you inner cheek from full exposing a 24 volt grin.  You casually waved back and in an instance like your waving at him, was a trigger because the next thing you know, he was coming towards you, oh my gosh, no no no, cute Chinese fencing guy + less than 5 metre radius + yourself, Jeon KyungMi with a shiny t-zone, due to not getting a chance of retouching with your M.A.C skinplus, this just equalled to a big NONONO! And you could hear the sirens going off in your head, please don’t let super cute…..and very built from the looks of it fencer guy be coming towards you. But your thoughts slipped out too soon, because ofcourse the universe didn’t like to comply with your pleas, the next thing you knew, Mr i’m-a-gold-medalist-fencer-but-i-can-easily-double-as-an-abercrombie-model was leaning against the metal railing and you had exactly 3.5 seconds to push your oval glasses up the bridge of your nose and tuck that now oh god frizzy curl behind your hair, thank you humidity .

You gulped down as much clean air, your body could take in at the current circumstance , but cute Chinese guy  leaned the railing, so you could hear him amongst the boisterous excitement  of the crowd, who’s attention had apparently swung to another pair battling it out in the far right (so the tournament hadn’t finished….riiiiight!). The cutie in front of you however smiled warmly and introduce himself in English and you kind of wished a hole would open up and swallow you whole, because even though you watched your fair share of American movies and TV shows and read more English books then Korean ones, you took pride in the fact that you had no problem in understanding or reading the language, but when it came to actually speaking it, yeaaaaaah that was another story and you really wished you didn’t have to.

It wasn’t like your English was all that bad, you were more actually very proud at the fact that you learnt the language, even though you didn’t go to an English speaking school,  no it was ok……it was definitely better then Jeonggkookie’s, who had even spent an entire year training in an elite fencing programme in California, and definitely miles better than half the kids in your school back home. But from watching all the American movies and TV shows came a sense of paranoia, and you knew you possessed a pretty dense Korean accent when you spoke in English, your accent however wasn’t as thick as the one you had when you moved from Busan, the Satoori dialect even affecting your Korean, and the first few weeks, the people of Seoul couldn’t understand what you were saying. But, all the mingling amongst the foreign exchange students in Hongdae really paid off, because your English vocabulary and mannerism had improved, making you understand puns and play on words.

But that still didn’t mean your English was on the same level of a Californian girl’s, you wished……but it wasn’t. And now this guy in front of you, who you had secretly hoped would have a rather heavy Chinese laced accent, so you both could exchange conversation in your awkward accents, or you could proceed with  the Cantonese conversational sentences that Luna the Chinese intern at double shot coffee shop had taught you.

But no this guy was speaking to you in perfectly fluent English, no fair. You learnt his name was Jackson Wang (not Jason Huang, you were so SURE that you heard the people chanting Jason Huang, or was that only you and your may need to make an appointment with Dr. Kang to check your hearing when you get back to Korea).

 So when you concluded that no hole was going to open up anytime soon, you smiled back and introduced yourself;

“nice to meet you, my name is Jeon Kyungmi” trying to keep your accent at bay.  He smiled, and let your name roll on her tongue a few times, he liked your name, a lot. But apparently your accent did its job of slipping through as his next question took you by surprise.

당신은한국인?  Oh, are you Korean?

Your eyes dilated, wait wait, hold up no no this was not happening, this super cute Chinese guy, was not allowed to be able to speak perfectly fluent English, Mandarin or Cantonese, his native tongue probably, but this guy comes out and talks to you in PITCH FREAKIN PERFECT….SPOT ON……TIP TOP….KOREAN, mother freakin eff say what?? No no no he was not allowed, this was just not done., he had to give you something, only 25 seconds ago where you thought the only thing you had left was your own native language whoop he comes in and swoops that away too. Like dude hello. DON’T BE SELFISH! But did you say that to Mr. Abercrombie guy, nooooo you just stated the obvious.

당신이한국말을할수있습니까?  You can speak Korean?

He chuckled and nodded because in true honesty, he’ll tell you later, but your whole process of mapping out your thoughts, could be seen clearly on your face, which he found truly adorable.

He’ll nod shyly, and you’ll compliment his Korean, because it was truthfully some of the best you had heard from a non-Korean. This may or may not have been a good move, because the next thing you know, a door of unspoken confidence had open within him and he jumps over the railing, so he’s on the same side as you, and you realise that from a far, he looks pretty much your height (5ft7,170cm), until he’s standing right next to you. He looked much closer to six foot…..and smelt good too, musky and spicy, what was that Armani?? Oh my gosh pull yourself together, stop being creepy, you weirdo…...definitely Ralph Lauren shut up, Kyungmi-ah!

He’ll tell you that he had picked up Korean, as he had spent the last four summers in Seoul, for K-Hood. Your eyes would widen in surprise because there was an unspoken rule in South Korea, if you weren’t in Jeju islands for the summer, you were probably at K-Hood. All the parents, young children and elderly of the society opted for the islands, where they could relax and rid themselves of any stresses, whilst the kids stayed back in the city. K-hood was a 7 day convention that situated itself in a different city every year. Last year it was Seoul, the year before it was Daegu, the year before it was Gwanjju. The convention is held to celebrate the Korean underground culture, and that wasn’t solemnly hip hop music, but street dance, independent movies, literature and poetry, drama, as well as artwork and graphics. Workshops and Master classes were held by the  experts during the day to help others perfect skills of rapping, dancing, art and writing. One of your favourite’s was the literature workshop you attended last summer that was held by none other than the infamous Stanford graduate himself Tablo, he was awesome, teaching you all new techniques and areas of writing that you had never even considered before. He taught you to be less of a perfectionist and more of an admirer of your own work, cut yourself bull, and know how dope you really are.

But the real entertainment began in the evening, which you only got to experience last year, as you had only turned 18 the previous September. The night life was strictly for only a.k.a when the big dogs came out to play. As the morning and daytime gave the vibe of school, the night gave an equal vibe of freedom, liberty and a bucket load of rebellion. As some of the biggest and elite names of the underground would perform their art, usually on explicit levels, striking everyone into states of awe and wonderment. There would be whirlwind of live art shows, rap and dance battles to the point that it would be hard to stay on track, over the years it had gathered a lot of international attention from foreign students who took an interest in the Korean underground scene. There was always more than one glorious moment, one would gather at K-Hood, a memory that they’ll never forget.

Your memory was crystal to you, it was like it was yesterday. It was of rookie rappers Kim Namjoon and Min Yoongi from BTS, totally slaying a ‘senior rapper’ who had brutally hazed the two at a previous underground event, pointing fingers at their uality and calling them out for plagiarism, which was never the case in the first place. The hush, oh dear lord the hush that befall the audience when Yoongi also known as Suga threw salt on B-Free’s opened wounds  with his explicit lyrics, that left the senior artist in a state of disbelief and the uproars to emphasis the shame on the older rapper, got everyone buzzing. Because by the end of the night, everyone was chanting the duo’s names, and you had even gotten a wink from Yoongi (and noooo, you soooo didn’t have the urge to tweet about it five seconds later, before it kind of hit you that it may make you look like a needy desperate fangirl like….so …what if oppaaa winked at you *shrugs*….not you, but that did not stop you from screaming into your pillow that night)

You loved the vibe and ambience of K-Hood unlike other k-hiphop concerts that were held during the year in flashy and ostentatious concert and tent halls, with thousands of screaming and adoring fans; the atmosphere was quite the opposite at the summer convention. It more relaxed and chilled, due to it being during the warmer season, everything was outdoor, you’d could see all the attendees sprawled out on the grass, enjoying the music as they down another beer or tequila shot or take another mouthful of the overly addicting spicy ttbeokki. However, K-Hood only limited itself to 250 people, thus the chilled atmosphere, so it was important to get your tickets as early on, you’d hear some even getting tickets a few weeks before Christmas. Let’s just say to attend K-Hood, regardless of how unorthodox it may sound, it was better that you knew people of the crowd.

So that’s what the two of you fell into place talking about, it’s like you forgot he was totally pageant material, but when it came to reminiscing over K-Hood, you could babble about it all day, because truthfully  it was your favourite event of the year, after Seollal (Korean new years).

You’d both start walking towards the exit as the tournament you had now realised, finally, had come to a close and he told you that the other two finalists had been picked for the final, pointing to the Japanese guy from before and a German guy, who had won the current match against Russia. You listened attentively and then told him in exasperation that you really did not knows the firsts when it came to fencing, as your own brother was competing in the game, you pointed out your sibling to him, who was currently being smothered in kisses by your mother. He chuckled and then looked at your sheepishly, as he recognised his opponent, he apologised and you waved a hand to show that it didn’t matter. As you were going to stir the conversation in the direction of his extensive training, he took you by surprise…..and apologised.

You stared back, and asked what for, he told for the fact he just stood watching you moments, oh yeah that, what was that about anyway? He told you he really wasn’t like that

“i’m actually a pretty chilled guy, you know calm and collective”

“riiiiiiiiight” you’ll say with a playful eye roll

He’ll tell you that the only reason he had stopped to look at you was because he recognised you straightaway, that and the fact you were pretty breathtaking, but he didn’t say the second one because he had to keep his cool, where did it evaporate to anyway?, keep it together dude

You told him, he must have made a mistake, because you were seeing this beautiful stranger him for the first time in your whole life. His cheeks suddenly painted itself crimson . All confidence facade aside, he confessed that he had seen you on three occasions before, you recoiled back and you swore your eyebrows shot up into your fedora.

 “WOW three. Occasions.” you blew out a long sigh, whilst enunciating each word, did i look pretty?

You spoke in a exaggerating manner, but he sensed the teasing in your tone, because he grinned, and as you folded your arms and leaned against the metal railing, he did the same and leaned back, against the cold metal poles. You asked him to tell you those three occasion,  (in chronological order, of course). You seriously weren’t freaked out in the slightest, instead you were intrigued, he had seen you three times and still remembered you…..yaay  

He told you the first time he saw you, was at Hong Kong international airport, he’d come to pick up his friend Jaebum, (who we later found out was Jungkook’s best friend’s second cousin’s brother-in-law’s nephew’s Sunday school teacher……..it happens) who was coming from Seoul too,. As he waited by arrivals, he saw the passengers of flight SK-577 making their way out. He had seen you and Jeongguk, walking out, he remembered feeling his breath being caught in his throat, as he watched you  dressed simply in a white v-neck,  black leggings, wedge sneakers and a flannel shirt tied around your waist and a red bandana bow perfectly tied in your brunette locks, that pooled around your shoulder. He remembered feeling lured in as he watched you lost in your music, you had a pair of oilslick frends headphones on, and kept fiddling with your iPod touch. He asked you what you were listening to.

“probably BIGBANG or BTS”

You told him, that your parents had only been a couple of meters behind you,. Your brother and you had made it  a mission to slip pass them the moment you cross immigration, purely for the reason of survival. Jackson looked at you in confusion. You told him, you’ll explain more in detail. That in all honesty when your parents begin a fiery battle on which of the two will get the family to the hotel the quickest, is your cue to GO GO GO!. Plus making their “even” number of offspring vote for which parent should be team leader, always became too political for your need, you always told them to have an another child, with three they’ll actually get a proper voting (plus one parent can shed all the hate on the third one, for picking the other parent instead of them, leaving you and Jeonggkookie in total peace)

Jackson was howling with laughter telling you that your parents and his should definitely do dinner, because his older brother and him were usually put into similar situations, with both parents fighting for the pants, and that now because his older brother was studying in Australia, he was always the one put under the knife. You’ll blow your cheeks out and pat him the shoulder, to show that you both were on the same boat. Cute Chinese fencer guy wasn’t all looks, but was funny too. You were intrigued to know the other two events, were had seen you.

As the two of you reached the lobby of the Excel Centre, spectators were pouring out from your hall, some going to watch other matches  in the adjacent halls, some making their way to the cafe at the end of the lobby, but most the people were heading for the car park, calling it a day. You couldn’t see your parents or brother amongst the crowd, so you assumed they were still inside. But instead Jackson took you by your elbow, nudging his head to the door on the far right. As he reached the large oak door, you could make out a garden beyond, he pushed it open and you let the fresh air soak you as it calmed your claustrophobic nerves. You were correct on it being a garden, as you spot large beautiful cherry blossom trees adorning each corner and vibrantly colored flowers, that were fashioned along the long path , for it was the beginning of spring in Hong Kong, you didn’t have to look at the flowers to know this, your Grandma had taught you that each season bought a new type of crisp into the air, so the power of smell was always your friend. When wanting to know the current or upcoming weather . As the two of you started walking alongside the cyrene rectangle pool. The fresh crisp air must have done it for you, because the two of you fell into a comfortable rhythm, as he was quick on teasing you that Hong Kong’s spring wouldn’t be up ‘Madame’s’ standard, you shoved him an equally joking manner, as he bowed down to you.

You told tell him to continue with his creepy stalker story, which only made him groan and shove his face into the palms of his hands, and you chuckle at his embarrassment. After a while he sighs and walks backwards, whilst facing you and as the cool air nips at your skin so you hug your grey cardigan tighter around your pink and navy floral romper,. But you continue watching him amusement, as he contemplates where to begin from.

He begins telling you that the second time, was a few days he saw you at a local bubble tea place, he thought he was seeing things, but it was really you, he even imitated your pout, as you read over the menu. You slapped his arm and told him he should have come up and spoken to you, which made him scoff.

“you weren’t in the right mind to choose which bubbletea you wanted, would you be in the right mind to get a piece of this”  he said this whilst point at himself, aaah so he was cocky too? You just rolled your eyes at him , and gave him a “whateves” because you were for certain that you had unlocked Jackson Wang’s full potential.

You told him that day, alongside your parents ofcourse, you were stuck yet again in another gym, filled with sweaty prepubescent boys, who were preparing for the tournament alongside Jeonggkookie, you sat in a corner with your mini fan and your Zico coconut water, and observed the Hong Kong skyline from the 24 floor building.  You knew odd bits about this area of Hong Kong, your friend Minki, who visited Hong Kong last year told you about a famous local bubbletea place, that was just around the corner from the gym, and currently sitting in 103 degrees, with lukewarm coconut water didn’t make you think too before heading over to the place (plus if another Taiwanese guy came up to hit on you, you were sure to go crazy and throw a fit, was it your fault you were the only XX chromosome under 40 with s, in the gym).

So the moment your younger brother’s water bottle was drained, you took the opportunity and sprinted out and it didn’t take you long to find the bubble tea place, it was a small place, that gave a welcoming and homely vibe, the owners settling for a Parisian theme. All the drinks looked so good, you were spoilt for choice, as you looked over the big wooden board hanging over the counter, there were various flavours of milk and fruit teas, ranging from papaya, pomergrante, coconut, passion fruit, blueberry, to matcha, white peach and kumquat red. You parents wanted you to choose at career path at 18, but you couldn’t even decide on the flavour of your bubbletea,

which…..one….should….you….get

wait a minute hold up.

As your telling Jackson this, the bubbletea memory unfolds and you remember it much clearly, Jackson is looking at you with more enjoyment than ever. so she does remember  He’ll ask you  what’s the matter oh so innocently, you  narrowed your eyes at him and told him slowly,that day, when you had got to the front of the  counter and had finally decided upon papaya pearl tea, you searched for your wallet, only for your eyebrows to knit together in confusion and you bought your bag forward and opened it more widely for an extensive search, letting a number of lipglosses, your sunglasses, gum, a usb, tissues, half a packet of oreos, and the entire country of Russia fall out, but no wallet. The realisation hit you like a bucket of ice cold water thrown on oneself on a winter’s day, that you had forgotten your wallet in your hotel room. As you were internally coming up with ways of getting the worker to cancel your order in a way that look like you were a total cheapskate, but to your dismay  you could already see the guy, pouring almond milk into a blender that already consisted of sliced papaya. Oh heavens save me you thought, should you just sprint off right now? It didn’t sound like such a terrible idea, people do it in k-dramas all the time.

What you didn’t notice, was the girl taking your order hadn’t even asked for any money yet, she had handed your cup with your name on it to the same guy behind her making your drink, as she gave him short sharp instructions in Cantonese and sweetly told you wait at the end of the bar. You looked at her in beyond puzzlement as she smiled as she handed you a receipt, wait!, had spirits been possessing your body or something, because there is no way you could have paid for that drink, sober and fully aware. You took the receipt and there at the bottom, it stated that HK$30.95 had been paid. You didn’t even have change to put in the donation box in front of you, how did you pay $30.95 for a drink?. Was this some crazy happy hour, you didn’t know about (great marketing) Did this place by any chance give foreigners their first drink, free?? Woah great tourism techniques you had thought.

You asked the girl meekly that had you infact ‘actually’ paid this, letting your Busan dialect filter into your English, your hometown dialect always made you seem more innocent then you were, you always used in the most needed occasions, like when you hadn’t done your homework or were for school, it usually always worked on people (ofocurse your brother took the Oscar when it came to aegyo performances, but you weren’t complaining).

She laughed and said it was actually pretty sweet, but just before she was going to ask you for the payment, her co worker came to her, informing her that a guy had paid for “the pouty confused girl, in the blue fedora, glasses and pink floral dress, who looks like she’s about to burst into tears”. You just gawked at the worker but applauded the guy mentally for his very accurate description. You turned your head immediately to view the place, asking the girl to point out the guy, the only thing you could offer him in gratitude was spearmint gum or a NARS lipgloss. She asked her co-worker, who was immediately tried to locate him. But concluded that he may have left, the two whispered to you giggling that he was super sweet and was he a boyfriend?, you told them you were Korean and you didn’t even know anyone in this foreign land. They told you stop joking, because come on now, which guy pays for a stranger girl in this day and age, but just turned to giggling messes, when they came to the conclusion that ooooh he may be a secret admirer .

You just laughed along with them, but inside you were really intrigued, the co worker handed you, your drink and you recognised straightaway that the medium plastic cup that you had asked for , was now replaced with a larger cup, and you burst out laughing as you saw “the pouty confused girl, in the blue fedora, glasses and pink floral dress, who looks like she’s about to burst into tears” written across it, oh boy, you liked this guy’s humour, but why did he just disappear?, he must be one of those good Samaritans who perform good deeds undercover and leave before they can be given any credit, bravo!

As you took your first sip of the sweet milky goodness and waved goodbye and thanks towards the girls, the co worker called out to you and said that if it was of any use, “the guy wore khaki shorts, a pale blue Ralph Lauren shirt and he wore  a silver and black……..”

“crucifix  chain “

Jackson smiled satisfied as he finished your sentence and leaned against one of the vine covered walls, he folded his arms, and laughed loudly at your astonished expression. “Shut up that was so not you”, you fired back, he just howled louder “WHAAAT, did i say it was me?, i’m just….a good Samaritan who does good deeds and leaves before he can get credited for them”, you scrowled as he quoted you exactly, you were still amazed, things like this only happened in movies, not in reality, so you really questioned the guy’s cheesiness levels, but you admitted, that to actually have Jackson do something so swooning, created butterflies in your stomach. Not like you were going to admit this to him.

Though, you smiled back at him and said a “well played, thank you Mr. Wang, i enjoyed my bubblea tea very much”. You walked passed him, pressing you lips together and it was matter of seconds before his breath was in your ear “your very much welcome milady, but you do know you owe me right?”,his low grouchy tone plus his new nickname for you, created knots  in your stomach, and you immediately pull away, because you swore you could feel his fingertips brushing against your waist. Walking ahead and you said the next most legible thing you could think of.

“so…urm, so your Catholic?…….or do you just wear the cross for fashion purposes?” you said whilst narrowing your eyes at him

“Woah, let me never get on the wrong side of you Milady, and nope i don’t wear the cross for fashion purposes, i’m a Catholic boy, and you?”

You’ll pulled out your own rose gold cross from under your romper, the same one your dad gave to you on your 15th birthday, and stated a simple “SNAP”

“so we should go church on Sunday together”he said matter of factly, folding his arms

You looked at him, and tried to not make it obvious from you expression that your heart melted at the opportunity„ you had a thing for Church going boys.

“yeah maybe….sounds good”

“so it’s a date”, he said with a wink, as he bought a fist infront, for you to bump

You rolled your eyes at him, as you shook your head “oh boy i bet you consider this a date” you said, whilst failing your arms out to point to your surroundings,

“wait…..what?, you don’t?” he’ll ask confused, but you only laughed at this and a cheeky grin quickly replaced his features.

You  spot a bench in the far corner, that looked over a small rocky fish pond. As you made your way over, stepping over the concrete stepping stones, you took your phone and were puzzled on why none of your family members had called you yet, it had been a good 30minutes and how long does it take for biological parents to realise that their first born is missing. Not like, you would want to go back, because you were too busy enjoying the company or your “Mr. Admirer”, but still hey a little “hey, just wanted to make sure you were still breathing” wasn’t much to ask for. You figured your parents were probably smothering your baby brother, and rejuvenating his self-esteem over dim-sum.

You took a seat on the black lacquered bench and shortly after you felt him settling himself next to you, his ivory clad leg brushing against your bare one, but you both didn’t do anything to move from your current position. You were comfortable.

“so Mr. Prowler” you began

“i prefer being called the heartbroken admirer”

“the heartbroken what….” you spluttered, as you covered your mouth to stop the laughs

“don’t have to make me sound so….. creepy” he mumbled as he resumed his full blown pout, you let out a series of pity awwws, letting your own mouth drop to its pout, as you bought a hand to rub under his chin. He looked up to smile at you, only to stop and stare at your current expression. Was it him, or did your beauty just magnify by a tenfold in the last 10 seconds, he thought that was definitely possible, you were no less than a goddess, so why not?

As you started kicking around stones in the dirt below, not caring for the state of your white converses, the two of you spent a few moments in silent, watching the sky turning to a series of peaches, pinks and blood red oranges, as the afternoon sunset would be taking place. He  started drumming his fingers along his leg, as he bumped your shoulders together, making you automatically smile. You were just about to ask him for the last occasion in which he saw you in when he suddenly starts humming a familiar tune.

You had to admit you weren’t the most musically inclined, or a one to remember musical tunes, except if they were of the addicting kind, but this particular tune was gripping and slightly nostalgic. You asked him what the song was,to which he was humming to. Which made him smirk, mid tune, why did he keep doing that? Did he not think he didn’t have the ability to give heart attacks with that smirk? Seriously, how selfish.

He turned the question around on you instead and asked if you recognised the familiar tune. You were puzzled for a moment, were you suppose to know? letting your thoughts filter, he only leaned his elbows on his thighs to observe you closely. You mumbled that you weren’t sure, and he nodded, he told you it Not in love by Olin & the Moon, you nooded and told hom you’ll look it up and suddenly out of the blue he asked you.

“do you like scallops?”

 Anyone listening in would think, the two of you were super random, going off into different tangents was apparently your thing. But when he said this, it made your eyes widen and your stomach knot together in disgust. You asked him how?, and you suddenly, started spilling about  the  previous nights events.

Yesterday, the Hong Kong fencing committee had held a dinner for all the contenders and their families at the Island Shangri-La hotel, the reception was beautiful all black tie, and golden chandeliers, you even got to wear the one shoulder pearl coloured lace number, you had saved up a ridiculous amount of money for, just for this one night. Everything was so grand and fancy from the decor to the music, and you had been starving all day due to, you guessed it, being stuck in yet another gym with your drama queen dongsaeng. So when the three course meal came around, you had never been more grateful, you basically wolfed down everything from the starter ofcanapé crostini to the mushroom pate, when it came to the main course, you were delighted to see it was sesame scallops with rice noodles. It was a get go from there, as you tucked in right away, whilst taking sneaky snips of your mom’s chardonnay, to which she would slap your hand away everytime.

Your plate was gleaming in no time, as you finished off with gulping down your glass of water, and wiping your mouth with your napkin. The prospect of dessert was exciting too, as you had seen a few waiters taking around an assortment of chocolate desserts, you were more than ready. As a waiter took away your plate, you quickly took those moments to check your instagram and other social media platforms, anything so you didn’t have to make awkward conversation with the petite French guy sitting in front of you, who was looking at you like you were some sort of galbi. But as you scrolled through your phone, you could feel something whirling in your stomach, you dismissed it as indigestion, till your palms started feeling clammy, a constant hammering against your skull gave you an awakening. You fumbled for your water glass, only to feel bile rising in your throat.

Oh no, not good, not good at all, no no no, please no.

You didn’t bother fumbling for your phone as you quickly made hand gestures at your parents, that you were going to get them some fresh air, and pretty much sprinted out the dinner hall. It may not feel understandable to anyone who was going through the same circumstances, they would’ve accepted that they must have eaten something dodgy and were about to throw up, but no, not you, if there was anything you feared more than bad grades or not getting k-hood tickets, was the prospect of throwing up or vomit for that matter. You really didn’t want to think about it, and you suddenly started comforting your mind by distracting it with absolutely  anything to let the bile in your throat descend. You started taking shaky steps along the hotel’s lobby, rubbing your forearm, silently chanting prayers. You even remember bumping into someone in a tux and just mumbled an apology, as you didn’t even look up at the person. you made four trips up and down the deluxe hotel’s lobby, before a soft melodic tune started playing overhead, it was a new song to you, but it was comforting. You decided to take a seat on one of the red velvet sofas adjacent to the reception, whilst still listening to the acoustic number. Burying your face in your hands, your tried to contemplate which cursed course was providing you with this banging headache and the need to puke your guts out. Which you were not going to, of course not.

A receptionist dressed in a gold canary coloured waist coat and navy blue mid skirt, asked you if you were ok, you smiled meekly at her, and told her you’ll be fine, and a she smiled back and started heading north, you tried to fight the urge of pulling her back and yelling for a bucket you could throw up in. But you didn’t instead, you just leaned back against the sofa, and let your eyes close for a few minutes, as you distracted yourself with a bigger problem, like the six 2000w essays that were still untouched and piled high on your study table back in Seoul.  You groaned lowly and covered your eyes with a hands as another wave of nausea took over.

 Just then you remembered you could sense footsteps near you, as a chiming voice spoke in accented English.

“Your drink Ma’am”

Your eyes flew open and you looked at the waiter in a uniform to the that matched the receptionist, he wore oval glasses and his hair fell to the side, you looked at the drink and the packet of biscuits he placed on the table in front of you.

“what’s this?”

He replied in a rather monotone voice that it was ginger ale and dry crackers, you told him that you hadn’t ordered anything, that there must have been a mistake. Internally you thought this was great, your mind was being distracted, and you could feel low bubbles of nausea swimming away. Way ago……Elijah Ling, you remember reading from the waiter’s badge. He spoke in the same monotone voice again addressing you, that someone had asked…..him…..to…..

“OH….. MY….. GOD, JACKSON WHAT THE FRICK, IT WAS YOU WASN’T IT!!!” Jackson’s eyes widen as he ought his hands up in a don’t sue me notion, he’ll fell to his knees crying with laughter, he’d been listening to your intricately detailed story for the last 5 minutes, whilst trying to suppress an incoming laugh. He was waiting for this. Oh how adorable you were!.

It all made sense now you remembered the crimson coloured napkin that accompanied the drink and snack  was addressed to……….pouty bubbletea girl (p.s. there’s a beautiful flower arrangement of oriental lilies behind you, i don’t think they’ll be too missed if you decided to water them with your own vomit :D)

You rolled your eyes at him aisshhhh seriously this guy was something else. He wiggled his eyebrow whilst pointing at himself saying ”good Samaritan right here” you just pushed him playfully as he tapped your knee playfully. You were about to explain to him, the difference between good Samaritans and creepy weirdos when you felt a light buzzing of your phone, indicating a text message. You’d placed it on vibrate for the tournament as you pull your phone out and let the screen flash before a wave of sadness took over,  because you knew it must be your time to leave. But your eyebrows shot up in confusion when you saw the message from Jeongguk

 (noona, we couldn’t find you, so we’ve left for dinner, see you back at the hotel, arrasso?)

You jumped up in surprise what the heck did you family just disown you, your question was how much did they look around the Centre this place was massive, they couldn’t have just got up looked around a few corners and assumed you weren’t there, and then left!…..just like that, this is not the family you had signed up for. All this time, Jackson had resumed to drumming his fingers on his knee, he looked up at you in amusement and ask you if everything was “tip top”, you turned around to him and said that you had a great time, but you really had to get going. Eventhough internally you were crying in helplessness, how on earth were you suppose to make your way back to your hotel, you weren’t even sure, if you remembered the name of the hotel how the frick were you suppose to locate yourself in this foreign city.

But Jackson stayed quiet for the time, as you conducted a meeting with your brain cells, as you hurriedly started pacing towards the exit, you could feel a darkness creeping over the city, and you wanted to see if the reception could help you get back , they must have some sort of direction to your hotel. Oh my dear lord what was it called again? Someone, anyone please kill me now.

As you were lost in thought, Jackson simply stated the obvious saying that you looked “perfectly troubled”, whilst following you around. You told him that you may or may not have been abandoned by your own family for food. What you noticed straight away was that he didn’t seem surprised, it was quite the opposite as he bit his lip and shook his head you….in almost a mocking manner.

“are you making fun of me , Jackson Wang, i’m serious, my family have left me…..and i don’t know my way back to my hotel….hey how much does a cab cost, or a ticket for the subway?….oh my,what time do the trains stop running?”

He looked at you with his lazy smile, you wanted to hit him, because it was not the time to look so dashingly handsome, when you were practically homeless

“do you have the money?” he asked

“excuse me?”

“you know, do you have the money for a cab or the train?”

You ignored his teasing tone, and felt around pockets of your grey cardigan smiling as you pulled out a number of Hong Kong dollars„ the same money you had taken from your mom for snacks. Feeling satisfied ,that you were in possession of at least something that gave you a sense of security, that and your phone. Eventhough you weren’t fully aware of how much you actually had. Currency conversion not your thing.

Jackson’s chuckle bought you back, drowning your own smile as he blew your bubble, by announcing that the amount of money won’t even take you to the theatre down the road, how were you going to get back to your hotel?. You pouted and shoved the money back into your pocket (that’s precious cash that can be spent on M&Ms later, you were not going to waste it). So basically you were back to square one, back to internally panicking again. Falling helpless you mumble whilst looking at the ground that you didn’t know how to get back to your hotel.

He fought the urge of brushing his fingers against your cheeks, you were seriously the most adorable thing he had ever laid eyes on, turning his head to his side though, he’ll simply say

“i’ll just wait then

“what??”

“go on say it?”

“say what?”

“say……that you need my help”

You rolled your eyes at him, not this again, because God he was cocky, and because you both ran on the same fuel, you knew both of you were stubborn, and wanted your way. You personally preferred, that he would turn into a good Samaritan at that moment and give you the money for a taxi. But instead you were helpless so with a loud sigh indicating irritation, you softly whispered, not expecting him to hear.

“Jackson, canyougetme…backtomyhotel?”

“sorry what?”

“can you help me back to my hotel?” you mumbled again

Cupping a hand around his ear, he leaned in theatrically and said

“what, what is that nooiise?”

You frowned and shoved him

“JACKSON WANG PLEASE, PLEASE IN THE NAME OF JESUS CHRIST, PLEASE CAN YOU HELP ME GET BACK TO MY HOTEL!”

He clapped in satisfaction, bringing his hands up to cup your cheeks “if it’s for Jesus, i can do everything, but WOW what diva you are”. You mouth fell open, he only chuckled and directed your shoulders in the opposite direction, he resumed his Mr. Chivalry and said “this way milady”. You looked up at him and he grinned when you poked his cheek, since when did you two start touching each other?

 “don’t get all smug with me Mr. Wang”. But he just oh-so-casually slipped an arm around your shoulder and said how could he be smug when you were the queen full-of-yourself, what, you push him, but the two of you would fall into your teasing states again. You had to admit, his arm around your shoulder, felt really nice, and you had to suppress the urge to wrap your own arm around his waist. but you weren’t going to because hello you were the decedent of Coco Chanel, and you knew how to play hard to get. But it just seemed to all fall part with this guy. He was different…..he was special.

As the two of you reached the front of the Excel Centre he told you to wait there, because his car was quite far away, and that he’ll be back in two ticks. Before you could nod, you  felt a pair of lips against your forehead, it only lasted a few seconds, but the blood was quick to rush to your cheeks.  He pulled way instantly and turn away heading for the parking, even though you couldn’t see his face, you could see that the tips of his ears were burning crimson the same shade as your current cheeks, did he just really……? you had the sudden urge to scream in your pillow, but you looked down and got your phone out to distract yourself, as a smile fell into place.

This guy was seriously weird, dorky, awkward, cocky, hilarious……but mostly super adorable. You slapped your forehead and told yourself to snap out of it you weren’t in a Nicholas Sparks movie. There was a Starbucks like near the centre, there were tables and chairs placed outside for anyone who wanted to enjoy their coffee alongside the fresh air , you took a seat, whilst waiting for the arrival of Mr. Smug Samaritan himself. As you were just about to connect to the Starbucks wifi, a tooting of an incoming car grabbed your attention, you looked up and made a double take, as Jackson rolled down the window of a sleek black Audi R8,you crossed your legs and folded your arms letting out a whistle.

“nice ride, Mr. Wang”

He chuckled whilst getting out the convertible to come to your side to get the door open.

“for the amount of money i had to pay for this baby, i expect it be no less”

You stood up, clutching your phone as you fake pout at him “so this wasn’t a present from daddy”

“do you even know my Father, Kyungmi-ah” it was one thing when he addressed you as milady, but you kind of loved the way he said your own name

You groaned loudly, and asked him

“did your dad make you pay for driving lessons, college and extra pointless classes that he thought would be beneficial for you in the future”

“Pottery.freakin pottery classes, he told me it would enhance my creative ability. i tell my old man over and over again, that i’m going to be making a living by prancing swords around, not fashioning clay pots”

You both agreed that your dads would be besties in no time, as your about to get into his car,his hand instantly wrapped itself around your wrist, stopping you from going any further. As you looked up at his, you hadn’t realised how close you both were standing, he his lips nervously, as he was finding it difficult to maintain eyecontact.

 “urhh for before…i’m sorry, i didn’t know what…i ….was…sorry” he blushed furiously, and for a guy who was just all confident and cocky a few moments ago seeing him all flustered made you smile. Accepting the call of your instincts, you quickly cupped his cheek with one hand a placed a chaste kiss on his other. He let out long sigh of relief, as his eyes widened, like he couldn’t believe you just made a move on him, he exclaimed something in Cantonese that you couldn’t make it out, but you could tell it was something of disbelief. His hands fell to your waist, and as he tucked a strand of hair back into place, your hand still residing against his cheek, he was about to lean in, when you heard a rather out of breath

“venti caramel iced macchiato for……….. pouty…..bubbletea girl……who…..doesn’t…..need to….THROW UP ANYMORE!!!….what??”

The two you spun around, to come face to face  with a starbucks worker, looking absolutley frazzled and confused, as she held the iced coffee in one hand, and perched her glasses back up her nose with the other. Your mouth fell open in shock, and you didn’t have to look to know who, because his chuckle could be felt against your ear.

“i think that’s you milady”

Pulling out of his grasp, you flicked his forehead as you made your way over to the girl in the green apron bowing and apologising for the your idiot, as she hands you the drink she also hands over a folded paper bag, and quickly scurries back into the coffeeshop. You unravel the tanned colored paper bag, to reveal an almond crosissant, which looked as if it was fresh out of the oven, due to its warmth being felt through the bag. You looked back at him and shook you’re head in incredulity, almond croissants were your favourite

“you….you Mr. Wang are seriously…..too much”

“anything for you milady”, he said as he opened the door to his car again, you took a sip of the caramel goodness, as you head over to his car, but before you get in, he quickly takes a cheeky sip of his own, you push him away stating a stern “yah! My drink”

 “aaah why! so you’re just going to let your servant suffer and die of dehydration” you rolled your eyes in mock annoyance and sighed, whilst muttering a “drama queen”, as you push your green straw to his lips. He took a few sips, keeping his eyes gaze fixed on you, you felt a shiver vibrating against your back, but you didn’t look away and but kept your eyes locked, as he takes a final sip, he breaks to your trance, by winking and pulling away.

Whilst driving onto the highway, you establish that he “magically” knows the hotel your staying at (the Kowloon hotel). As evening settles over the city, and orange street lamps decorate themselves all over, illuminating a beautiful glow. You settle in looking out the window at the beautiful city that you had yet to wonder in. Eventhough as you look over at the boy driving, you feel as if you’ve seen most of it already. Opening up the Starbucks bag again you teared off a piece of the croissant, and popped it into your mouth, marvelling at its taste. You then teared another piece off and told Jackson to open wide, he complied, eyes still focused on the road, just before you pull your fingers away, he gives them a quick peck, and you slap him jokingly.

He drummed his fingers along the CD player, as you scrolled through his iPod.

In a soft whisper, he confessed

“i met Jeongguk yesterday at the dinner”

“i know”

“your family….didn’t leave you to go to dinner”

“i know”

“i planned this all out with your brother this morning, so i could spend time with you”

You pressed your lips together as you said a final “i know”. He looked over and gulped, but when he saw that you were perfectly ok with this, he grinned. You told him that it kind of hit you whilst you were waiting for him to fetch his car. You knew your brother better than anyone, and your parents, they wouldn’t just leave without you.

(you later found out that Jeongguk had told your parents that you’d found a mall nearby, and that you texted him that you’ll make your own way back to the hotel)

Brat.

It may also have something to do with the way Jackson had helped your brother up, fist bumping and hugging him after the ending of the tournament, as the two whispered amongst each other. If you’re wondering, no, no you didn’t miss the way the two glanced at you for a few milliseconds before pulling away.

“you don’t think i’m creepy do….you?”

“Oh Mr. Wang nothing about you surprises me anymore, the fact you remember me from the airport, should unsettle me…..but it doesn’t” you grin at him, as he pouts

“to make up for your creepiness however, i declare” you fold your arms and bring your thumb and forefinger up to rub against your chin. “you show me around around Hong Kong the day after your match, no questions asked”

Wow, you really didn’t know where all the confidence had flooded in from, but he had that particular aura, in which you felt calm and reassured. He chuckled and ruffled your hair.

“so it’s a date?”

He took your hand, and interlaced your fingers with his, bringing them up to his lips to leave a chaste peck, before resting them on his thigh.

“it’s a date” you confirmed

He grinned widely and stated

“by the way you can call me babe”

you giggled, looking at the dork next to you “oh really”

“you know babe, jagiya, yeobo, whatever you prefer milady”

He gives your interlocked hands a squeeze

“oh really, then babe keep an eye on the road please i want to get back in one piece”

You both didn’t point out, that he took a left from the sign that indicated that your hotel was coming up on the near right, instead taking the two of you to a completely different place, resulting him taking a longer way back to your hotel, and getting stuck in the 7pm traffic. Not like it was a problem, he told you about all the places in Hong Kong that he’ll take you to visit, places that are never mentioned in travel guides, but always leave a lasting memory.

“so your place or mine”

“JACKSON!!!”

“what?” he laughed loudly, you shake your head at his childishness, you knew you were being ridiculous, but as you watched his side profile, you mused, could he be……the one?  

“Milady if you keep staring at me like that…..i’m sorry i’ll have to pull over”

You roll your eyes and tell him that he shouldn’t flatter himself, the rest of the journey consisted  of endless teasing and a slight gloom that was because of you knowing, that you would be getting off soon. As he pulls up outside your hotel, the two of you exchange numbers and he tells you that he’ll be here for 8 tomorrow morning, so you can watch him in the final. As you turn to walk into your hotel, he spins you around one last time, and even though it’s just another soft peck on your temple, with a squeeze at your waist. he leans in to whisper that this was will be your last forehead kiss, as next time he may feel the need to kiss somewhere…..spontaneous. He winked at you one last time, as you pull away and the two of you waved each other goodnight. As you push through the gold carousel doors into the hotel lobby. It makes you wonder if this is what your grandma talks about every year, during her wedding anniversary speech, at the time it always made you cringe, but now…..it made sense.

She said:

 One day, that one and only person will open the door to your heart and walk right in,

without permission,

regardless of circumstances and situations,they’ll be there

and you’ll just know,

that they’re here to stay

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I was so sure Delilah was going to be my longest story…..but nope! :)

CUT!

Guys on AFF you can also check out my kpop scenario blog which is the-bigbook-ofdreams 

~~~Rizz