Blind date 소개팅

I think I had never been this nervous in my life. After the painful breakup with my last girlfriend, I had no hope to even look at other people. I had been counting the days and months I had spent without her, and eventually Eric hyung had given me an encouraging kick and decided to set me up on a blind date.

As usual, I was dubious. I did not even know that hyung had other friends besides me – I am not being mean, he just isn’t the type to get friends easily, you know – or that he even wanted to help me. But somehow he managed to get me convinced and now here I am.

I nervously called the waitress, and she scurried to my table, widely smiling. “How can I help you?” She asked and I gulped nervously as I ordered two drinks, both for me. Don’t judge, I am super nervous! “I’ll be right back.” She announced and walked off.

Great, I thought, glancing at my watch for the thousandth time, when I heard the restaurant door opening. I shifted my gaze at it and felt how my heartbeat rose from normal to unbelievable. A girl stood by the doorway, looking around timidly, her hands cautiously on the thighs. It must be her, I pondered, as I slightly rose on my chair and glimpsed at those long legs and the beautiful face. But as I was reaching my hand and telling her I had been waiting, she started smiling to someone else and ran past me like I was air – which I was.

I had waited for 10 minutes already when the door opened again. I did not look at it, as I had been almost humiliated the last time. So I just sipped my drink and nonchalantly glanced at my watch again. She was stylishly late. I somehow knew that Eric hyung had told her to be late, so I would be much more nervous when she’d arrive. Honestly, I was.

The figure by the door looked around, just like the woman had done, and I played with the glass I had sipped empty several minutes ago. I had decided to leave in 5 minutes if the girl would not appear in front of me now.

“Excuse me?” I heard a masculine, kinda low voice, as I lifted my head up and saw a man staring at me. “Are you Park Chung Jae?”

My eyes widened.

What the hell was this!?

My date was a dude!?

I ogled at the man in shock. He must’ve realised by now that he hadn’t been what I had been looking for as the look on his face turned from hopeful to scared. He gulped, the Adam’s apple moving, as I stood up and started collecting my stuff.

“Is this a hidden camera!?” I suddenly yelled. “Because if you’re messing with me, I don’t find this funny at all!” I started to put my coat on backwards, while I was looking around and trying to see any extraordinary cameras somewhere.

“I thought…Eric hyung said…” the guy began, almost fighting for tears. “…that I am a boy.”

I was aghast, as I shook my head fiercely and twirled the scarf around my neck so tightly that I almost choked to it. I wanted to get the hell out and reveal this hidden camera thing before I would be totally humiliated one more time. But when the guy sniffed and slumped down to the seat, I stopped fussing. I took a look at him and noticed that he was genuinely as shocked as I was.

“Eric hyung told me that you would be thrilled to see me.” The guy spoke. “But now I can see that he only lied to me so I would come here and be embarrassed.” He mumbled, pouting and almost crying.

“Yeah…well…never trust Eric hyung.” I muttered while slipping the mittens on. “I don’t.” I added and leaned down to take my bag.

Now the guy broke down and dropped his head between the arms he had folded onto the table. People forgot what they were doing and turned to look at me, some frowning angrily and some pitying the guy I had just met. I gestured with my arms that I was not the reason the guy was crying and tried to make the guy stop by clearing my throat. His shoulders were wiggling and I kept blushing when people called me a stupid boyfriend.

I don’t know what happened inside me when I shouted so loudly that everyone heard it, “ARE YOU COMING OR NOT!?”

When Andy stopped crying, I thought this date could not be any worse. We weren’t really talking and seriously, I did not know how to act with guys in these situations. I mean should we do like manly stuff, or should I be romantic? Damn Eric hyung, I thought as I glimpsed at the date. He was still pouting. God, he was seriously cute, I had to admit that, and there was something in him that made me kinda want to hang out. But he was still a guy.

“So…” I began, after the silence of half an hour. “How do you know Eric hyung?”  I asked.

“We are childhood friends.” He replied, semi-smile on his face. “We studied in America together.”

Oh, wow, I pondered. He seemed really smart, which I usually did not like in girls, but I guess in a guy it seemed different. I noticed we had stopped due to my weird ogling, so I cleared my throat and smiled awkwardly and we continued walking.

“How do you know him?” Andy questioned.

“We both rap in a band.” I explained, somehow getting really embarrassed by the answer.

“Oh wow!!” He gasped. “I rap too!!!”

Ok…there was a thing we both did. Great. I chuckled and led him to the park, which looked amazing at this hour of the day. It was dark, but the park was always lit up perfectly and it was really beautiful. I reckoned Andy would’ve loved it. And he did.

“What do you like?” I interrogated, knowing what a cliché that was.

“I like everything!” Andy said, looking around the park, smiling widely. “Except reptiles.” He added.

I let him wonder the glory when I commented, “Damn. Then the place I planned we’d go is out of limits.” He started laughing, and I noticed myself thinking that this was going pretty well. We had both forgotten how disastrous it had been when we had met.

“If you endure me hugging you the whole time and crying and possibly ting my pants, we can consider it.” He told me and looked at me over his shoulder and cackled.

I felt weird. I was flustered in front of this man. I was usually shy in front of girls and after couple of drinks I usually took the lead. But something in this man made me react like a teenage girl. I blushed and let out an embarrassing giggle.

“I don’t see anything bad in that.” I crooned and did something that surprised us both.

I his cheek.

Though it became awkward after that, I decided to take him to an arcade. He had told me how much he loved to bowl, and so I took him to one. I actually thought of having a small competition with him and the loser would buy drinks. We were putting on our shoes when he commenced talking.

“When were you born?” He asked.

“1980. In August.” I responded. “And you?”

He tied the shoelaces and then lifted his head at me and smiled, “1981, in January.”

Oh…we were close to each other. I would’ve wanted him to call me hyung. Somehow I would’ve wanted it so much. I felt disappointed all of a sudden.

“Ah, Chung Jae…have you ever played against someone good?” He questioned ominously.

“I am the best. And please, call me Junjin.” I answered and grabbed a ball from the line, and looked at him all heroically, before I threw the ball.

When I got a strike, I leered at Andy and boasted, moving out of the way to let him go do his move. After five spares, I was not smiling anymore.

“Oh come on! It was a fair match!!” He sang.

“Tsk.”

“Jinnie~~” My cheeks turned red again, as that exited the mouth. “Jinnie~~I am very sorry…but I am also very thirsty.” He said.

I fished out my wallet and walked off to the bar, in which I bought two biggest beers and brought them over to our table. He was staring at me, and I could not believe we had been out for hours. At first I had thought that it would be awkward and I would not feel like I was on a date…but now…

“I really am having fun, Junjin-sshi.” Andy said, cheeks flushing pink.

“Well…that’s great.” I nodded. “Because I haven’t had this much fun in months.”

We stared at one another for several minutes, before Andy bowed his shy head down and sipped the beer in silence. It suddenly hit me that this night would end any time. Suddenly I became really upset.

“Junjin…” I gazed at Andy. “I…I…”

“Yes?”

“I…I should go.” He exhaled his words out and I knew that was not what he had wanted to say. We stood up and I lifted my hand to shake hands with him. He leered at me. “I…I really…I…oh god…I…Junjin…I—“

I grabbed his collar and tugged him at me, as our lips met. He was eyes-wide and I had closed mine, as my hand slipped behind his neck and the other one rose onto the other side. When his palms landed onto my chest, I knew he had relaxed. I nibbled both of the lips couple of times and then retreated, realising what I had done on the first date with a dude.

He was flabbergasted, infatuated and possibly still processing what had happened, as he lifted his hand and waved.

“See…you Jin.” He said dumbfounded.

“Umm…Andy?”

He turned around like a ghost, cheeks dark red.

“I didn’t get your phone number.” I spoke.

“Oh.” He replied and scurried to me as he gave me a small piece of paper with numbers on it. “Here.”

I chuckled and grabbed his hand as I proceeded to the door, dragging him behind me. He did not ask, because I knew he knew what I was doing. Of course I had to him home. And the whole walk to the same direction as where I was living, my hand did not leave his. And after that night…I never left his side.

Andy looked up at me and I smiled, almost like grinned, as I looked around the room and said, “That night…I met my soulmate. Andy…I am so happy that I found you…and that you said yes to my proposal…because let’s face it…that was the best night of my whole life. I love you.”  

I leaned down and pecked his soft lips, when the tears streamed down his cheeks. Some people would not love to see their better halves crying, but happy tears of my brand new husband are a very different thing.

The End