I slowed down cursing my stupid dog for running so damn fast. “What kind of stupid advice is ‘Get more exercise’ to combat my asthma?” I wheezed as my dog ran back to me, circling my feet. I smiled down at the puppy, “Come here you stupid mutt.” I said as I crouched down, scratching the excited puppy behind the ears. I put my hands on my knees and pushed myself back up. “Right, let’s go.” I said as I took off at a slow jog.

I jogged for another ten minutes before a large dog appeared out of nowhere, bowling me over. I let out a yelp as I fell to the ground. My puppy running back and yelping at me. I winced as I brushed the dirt off my hands. “Hey! I’m so sorry! Are you ok?” I turned around at the sound of a warm, male voice. My jaw almost dropped when a handsome guy ran up to me, his fringe sticking to his head from sweat.

He crouched down beside me and extended his hand to me. “I’m so sorry.” He repeated. I took his hand and he pulled me to my feet then helped me brush the dirt off my clothes. “Sorry, I’m still training my dog, he never comes when I call him.” He said guiltily, “Are you hurt?” he asked, looking me over for injuries. I shook my head, “No, I’m fine.” I replied, giving him a smile which he returned. He looked behind me and chuckled. “Looks like our dogs have made friends.”

I turned around and smiled, our dogs were playing happily together, chasing each other over the grass. “Can I buy you a drink to apologise?” he said pointing to a drinks stall. “You don’t have to do that.” I said quickly. He shook his head, “I’m getting one for myself anyway, come on. I’ll feel guilty if you don’t let me buy you something.” I smiled and agreed to let him buy me a bottle of water. We continued walking, our dogs running around, chasing each other as we chatted.

I learned that his name is Mingyu, he’s a year younger than me. He loves being fit which makes me feel a little guilty for being so unfit. We’ve both been bringing our dogs to this park recently, but we’ve never crossed paths until today. We ended up agreeing to meet every day with our dogs and to go jogging together. I was quite hesitant at first, knowing just how unfit I am, especially compared to him, but his charming smile won me over and I agreed.

We started meeting the very next day. I had considered bringing my inhaler along with me, but that would mean having to bring a bag with me, plus it’s not really attractive carrying an asthma inhaler around. I decided to leave it at home as I put the leash on my puppy and headed out the door. “Come on, time to go!” I said cheerfully as we headed out to the park. Mingyu and I had agreed to meet by the drinks stand we had went to before.

I got there a little earlier than we had planned, giving myself a chance to calm down my breathing before he got there. I let my puppy off her leash, letting her run around by herself. I heard Mingyu call my name as he ran towards me, his dog bounding towards me. I was ready for him this time, catching him as he bounded into my arms. I chuckled as he my face while Mingyu tried to pull him off of me. “He really likes you.” He remarked as his dog ran off with mine. “Feelings mutual.” I said as my gaze slipped to him. He turned around and caught my gaze, I turned away, embarrassed at being caught.

“Should we get going?” he said as he pointed down the path we had agreed to run the day before. I nodded, mentally preparing myself for the run. We started off slowly, I was managing to keep up without much difficulty. When we started to pick up the pace, I could feel the familiar tightening in my chest. I felt myself falling behind Mingyu, worried about my breathing. He slowed up to keep pace with me. “You alright?” he asked, sweat barely beading on his forehead.

“Yeah.” I lied, not trusting myself to say more than that. We made one lap around the park before I had to stop. I flopped down on the grass my puppy immediately my face. I pushed her off as Mingyu appeared by my side with two bottles of water. He handed one to me as I sat up, greedily drinking half of bottle in one go. “Sorry. I totally slowed you down.” I said, feeling guilty. He shook his head, “Don’t worry about it.” He said giving me a toothy grin.

We continued this routine for two weeks. Each day I could run a little further, a little faster. Thanks to our schedules, we had set out next run for a little earlier in the morning. I woke up, shivering as my feet hit the cold floor. I quickly got ready, heading out to the park. I was a little worried about the cold, knowing that my asthma was often worse in the cold. I made it to our normal meeting point, my chest already feeling a little uncomfortable. I considered calling Mingyu to cancel, my hand reaching for my phone which was attached to my arm band when Mingyu jogged up to me.

“Morning.” He said cheerfully, giving me his toothy grin. “Morning!” I said happily, dropping my hand from my phone. “Ready to go?” I asked, he nodded and we set off. We had only been running for around five minutes when I felt my chest tighten. I slowed down, my hand coming up to my chest. Mingyu turned around when he noticed I wasn’t by his side. “Hey, you ok?” he called as he jogged back to my side. I tried to reply, instead all that came out was a shuddering breath.

I fell to my knees as I tried to pull air into my lungs. Mingyu dropped to his knees beside me. “Oh my god.” He said as he panicked beside me. “What should I do? Should I call an ambulance?” he asked frantically as he pulled his phone from his pocket. I reached out, covering his phone with my hand as I shook my head. “No… no…” I managed to get out in between coughs. “What should I do?” he asked as he held onto me. “I’m…ok.” I wheezed.

Mingyu sat with me as I tried to get my breathing under control. He rubbed my back and said soothing words, his phone still in his hand. When I finally got my breath back and my coughing stopped, I looked up at him and gave him a weak smile. “Sorry.” I mumbled, my voice raspy. “What happened?” he asked, his eyes still full of worry.

“Asthma.” I mumbled. He frowned at me, “Why didn’t you tell me? Doesn’t the cold make it worse?” he asked, his hand still rubbing my back. I cleared my throat, “Yeah, it’s always a little worse in the cold. I thought I'd be ok. I’m sorry for worrying you.” He frowned. “You should have told me, I would have suggested skipping today… wait wouldn’t running make your asthma flare up?” he asked.

I gave him a guilty smile, “Yeah, but I’ve enjoyed running with you every day.” I admitted quietly, my voice still a little hoarse from my attack. He rolled his eyes at me, “If you wanted to spend time with me that much we could have just went to a restaurant or something.” He said with a grin. I looked up at him in shock. “That is, if you want to.” He added. I nodded, “I’d love to.”

I stood up with Mingyu's help, he held my hand as we started to walk. “Let’s just take it slow today, ok?” he suggested. I nodded as we walked through the park. Looks like running may not be the best thing for my asthma, but it seems to be the best thing for my love life.