Wait… I’ll stay?

‘But- but. I need to go back into work on Monday. And I have nowhere to stay and…’ My panic was slowly building. I closed my eyes, took a deep breath and when I opened them again you were just there, looking at me. Waiting for me to make up my mind. ‘If you find me a cheap place to stay, I will stay until Sunday, but then I really have to go.’

‘Deal!’ I wondered if it was the sun that made you look that much brighter. Whatever it was, I liked it. ‘I know the perfect place.’ 

And that was it, we were on our way. I fumbled with the seat belt, for the first time since we had met I was nervous. It wasn’t so much you who was making me nervous, it was me. I didn’t know where I wanted this to go, but I was certain that I couldn’t handle more regrets. You leaned over and took the seat belt from my hands. Briefly I closed my eyes, you smelled of fresh air.

Something was different with her today. She reminded me of the first time I had seen her. I had been sitting on the bench for a while when I spotted her in the distance. She had looked lost and haunted, constantly looking behind her as if there had been something that was chasing her. And I recalled seeing the same haunted aura around her when I found her today. I don’t know how I had managed it, in an airport as big as this to find a single person. I must’ve been following a red string of fate.

The thought pleased me and I smiled. She was fumbling with the seat belt and I leaned forward to help her out. Her eyes were closed when the belt clicked in its lock. She took a deep breath and when her eyes opened again, she seemed calmer. I wanted to pat her head, but after kissing her hand earlier I wasn’t quite sure about her feelings so I moved away.

I turned up the sound of the radio to hide any awkward silences, whilst I found my way back to the motorway and away from the city.

‘Oh, I know this one! It’s AKMU.’ I was surprised.

‘You know them?’

‘Yeah,’ she suddenly looked a bit shy. ‘I found out when I was doing some… research.’

‘Research?’ I tried to sound stern, but I couldn’t fully hide my smile, as I was very happy that she had been curious enough to do some research.

‘See, my friend was telling me about her zumba classes, and Oppa Gangnam Style and… one thing led to another and, well, I found you again.’ She smiled brightly, clearly fond of the memory. I raised my eyebrow. ‘One of a kind,’ she tried to explain her random rambling. ‘It was part of the most popular Korean pop songs. Oh my God, the yellow hair!’ She giggled, and I really liked the bright sound.

‘Not a fan?’

‘Not really.’ She shook her head, her eyes still sparkling with delight. The song changed again. ‘Oh I really like this one, Zico’s I am you, you are me. One of my favorites.’ She hadn’t mastered the language, but she was humming along with the melody. Suddenly her interest in the Korean music scene seemed less funny. It hadn’t happened to me before, but if I didn’t know any better I’d think I was jealous. But I wasn’t, was I?

‘Did any of our songs make it to your list of favorites?’ I managed to sound mildly curious, rather than like a petty jealous teenager.

‘Fantastic Baby. Haru Haru. Doom Dada. Eyes, Nose, Lips.’ She listed without needing much time to think and my mood slowly started getting more sour.

‘You must’ve had a good time at the concert then.’

‘Oh definitely,’ she agreed. ‘Though, I wished you had sang Who You. Or That XX. That would’ve made it perfect.’

‘Would it?’ I couldn’t stop grinning.

‘Wake up.’ My eyes fluttered open and your face was directly in front of me. I felt a blush creep up on my cheeks. Did I snore? Worse, did I dribble?

‘Where are we?’ I asked, trying to distract you whilst I nonchalantly straightened my hair, and wiped my mouth. You gave me a knowing smile, and backed away to give me some space to gather myself and get out of the car.

‘You asked for a cheap stay, so that’s what I got you.’ A picturesque house with an amazing garden stood in front of us. The busy Seoul streets nowhere to be seen. ‘It’s the house of a friend, but he’s not here for the next two weeks or so. He said he’ll let you stay for free.’

‘That’s… nice. But weird.’

‘Don’t worry, it’s his house, but our group of friends all take turns to stay here when we can. So it’s almost as much mine as his.’

‘Still weird,’ I laughed and you joined in.

‘Come, I’ll show you around.’

The house was comfortable, with light airy rooms and a kitchen filled with fresh food and drinks - housekeeper, you explained. But the garden was much nicer. It backed out on the hills and I could see a small path going upwards. The trees looked both enthralling and a bit intimidating. Suddenly the thought of staying in this strange house scared me and I quickly turned around.

You had been walking behind me and caught my shoulders to prevent me from running into you.

‘What’s wrong?’ You asked concerned.

‘I… I mean you… Look, I don’t know how else to say it so I’m just going to ask. Will you stay here with me?’

‘I am.’

‘Good. Oh, but your job, are you sure that’s okay?’ You couldn’t fully hide your grimace when you thought about work, but when you smiled it showed only sincerity.

‘It will be fine, don’t worry. I’m not just going to drop you in the middle of nowhere and leave you to it. I want to spend some time together.’ Your hands were still on my shoulders and my chest felt hot. And I hugged you. You hesitated only a second before your arms embraced me and I sighed. This was perfect.