“Ladies and gentleman, we have arrived at Tokyo International Airport….”

   The announcement woke me up from my deep sleep. I had fallen asleep when it was 30 minutes after departure while listening to Taeyeon’s Rain on my red Beats headphone. I brushed my eyes and looked around me, in search for my aunt who was sitting in the back seat from mine. She, too, had just woken up.

   “So you’re up? Welcome back to reality” I startled a bit as the guy next to me cheered.

   I looked at the handsome cute-guy and almost forgotten that I made friends with him before I went on a deep sleep, my sort of 30-minute-friend. What was his name again?

   “Nakamoto Yuta?” I remembered as I searched the name in my brain, and he smiled and nodded.

   “You got it right, Kim Sumin!” He gave me a high-five.

FLASHBACK

   I could not believe for the uptenth time that I was actually going to Japan and we’re going to land in Tokyo in less than 3 hours. Truth be told, I never went abroad and I was quite excited about the whole trip.

   Going abroad. Japan. Sushi

   Those are my favourite trinity during the whole trip. If you asked me, or somebody who knows me well (referring to my girls) , I really like eating sushi. I really do!

   My fingers were quite trembling after I put the safety belt on while my hands started to sweat. For starters, who wouldn’t be? It was my first time on a plane. My hand was sweating and my hands gripped the tip of the sit hard. Maybe the guy sitting next to me might think of me … as weird.

   “First time?” a soft voice spoken out next to me. My head turned 90 degrees to see him, and I smiled awkwardly.

   “Yep. First time of plane and couldn’t get more excited” I said, rather awkwardly as the word excited doesn’t fit at all at the context. The guy however, chuckled.

   “It happens. It happened to me too when I was a child. My mother had to hold my hand until the plane was already stable in air. During departure, it was terrifying for a first timer” he said while chewing his mint gum. The smell of the gum was too strong that the kid in front of us could not stop sniffing and asked her mother if there were mint candies she’s been hiding from him.

   “Well, it’s good that somebody you know was there to hold your hands. Now I’m all alone…” I said rather darkly, as if no hope. I gulped and could not stop from being nervous.

“I’m not a baby. I can do this” I tried to convince myself over and over again.

   “You know, I can hold your hands if you’re scared” he said out of the blue. I was super confused. Should I be grateful or freaking out? Because he’s just a stranger no matter how good-looking he was. I was not taught to trust strangers this much.

   “Maybe... no thank YOU---” before I could finish my words the plane departed. I panicked. My sweats were all over me. I felt something….like a hand sneaking into mine. It was the guy’s. Weirdly, I felt calm and assured that someone was there, to comfort me.

   “You could thank me later. My name’s Nakamoto Yuta by the way” he explained. I looked at him, in awe. This Japanese-korean looking guy looks so cool and nice. He looks rather angelic in my eye. Is he...my guardian angel?????!!!!!!!!!

   “I’m Sumin, Lee Sumin” I replied , while bitting my lips from smiling on my weird thoughts. Somebody needs some senses put into her.

   And just like that, our hands intertwined up until the plane stabilised in air. Then we decided to be friends and talked about the things that we might like.

    And it ended up we both have something huge in common, which was…we are both

   sushi lovers.