💜❤💜❤💜❤💜

10:00 pm

Banpo Hangang Park

Valentine’s Day.

Also known worldwide as “Happy Hearts’ Day” where couples celebrate the day together with giving precious gifts like Teddy Bears and other cute stuffs, the most priciest flower bouquet in the market that consists of a dozen Tulips, Red Roses, or Carnations.

Pricey couple meals in fine dining restaurants, discounted short time prices at Motels for those who wants to spend the night with a sweet action, or hotel Valentine packages complete with dinner for two, a concert performance by a lesser known singer or pianist, heart shape rose petals on the bed with a bottle of cheap champagne on a bucket and chocolate Bon-bons on the side.

There are those couples and there are those singles.

Singles like me.

A person who is part of the population who doesn’t give a about that ‘Special Day’ like what they call because I just don’t care.

In this country I call home, South Korea, Valentine’s Day is a day for girls who spends weeks mastering the art of making Chocolates so they have something special to give to the man they adore, like, or well… they want to get the attention. Yeah… here in Korea, its not the girls who gets to receive Chocolates on Valentine’s Day.

Its the guys, boys, man, male population of South Korea who gets to enjoy this time of the year receiving those sweet, bitter, milky chocolatey brown dessert shaped like hearts coming from those girls who vie for their attention or simply doing social obligations.

Not to worry, because by next month on the same day… girls will also celebrate and (hopefully) receives the chocolates they have been waiting for from the person whom they gave the chocolates they made a month ago. Its called the White Day, the day for those male population to reciprocate the efforts of the female population and give them gifts, pamper them and make them happy.

And what do the single population will celebrate when they don’t receive anything on those days?

Celebrate Black Day a month later on the same date. Yup. Business people really . They made a holiday to rub it on the faces of those single people who didn’t receive any chocolates on Valentine’s and White Day. They called it Black Day, where bitter, single people wear black and eat everything black… including eating Jjajjangmyun noodles. Pathetic.

I took another sip of my beer, savoring the bitter sweet taste of Hite in my tongue before biting into the gooey and well, cold but delicious slice of Pizza I ordered a while ago and had it delivered where I am sitting right now.

In the steps overlooking the Han River, just by Banpo Hangang Park. One of those popular couple go-to spots where they cuddle and look into the river talking about how deep their love is for each other and how cute their couple shirts are. Uggh. I hate couple shirts. It makes me puke.

“Hey buddy… want some Pizza? Here you go…” ahhh… its better to live with dogs than humans.

They don’t talk, they just bark or most of the time they just don’t care. They give you love when they feel like you need one, they feel excited when they see you enter the door after a morning jog, they eat and they sleep, they have a heart.

Dogs are the best companion ever. They can feel your emotions and consoles you when you are sad, happy when you are happy, and they have the loyalty that humans doesn’t have. That guys doesn’t have.

Its already past 10:00 in the evening but the place is still packed with couples having a date or just individuals hanging around. I still feel like hanging out here than go home in my apartment and watch another movie in Netflix… I really have to stop binge watching Marvel and DC movies… sometimes it gets into me that I don’t even know now what’s real or not.

Sitting here since 6:30 in the evening after coming out of work, a total of 5 guys already tried to hit on me. Trying to lure me into a good conversation and a possible deal of giving my digits to them. I rejected all of them saying I am waiting for someone or I’m a zombie waiting for apocalypse. I don’t wanna talk about non-sense stuffs! Like how many hours they spend inside the gym working out their abs, or how much they love Versace on the Floor by Bruno Mars. I just don’t care, period.

Its not that I’m bitter about this day. Its just annoying.

Plus the fact that this day holds a very painful past I still can’t forget.

Brrrr~~~… its getting colder!

“Hey buddy… are you still okay there inside? Want Mommy to warm you up?” hahaha… forgive me baby, Mommy just wanted to spend this day with you. I slid the zipper of my yellow down jacket to free some space and held the body of my baby wrapped in her cute overalls raising her out and hugging her to give out warmth.

This is my baby, her name is Gongju and she is a cutie pie, white and brown Chihuahua that I love so much. She and I have been together for 5 years and our relationship is going smoothly. She and I shared quiet times together inside my apartment just sleeping and sometimes like now, hanging out in this open space.

She’s the only one I have.

“Aigoo~~~ look at you! Let’s fix that bonnet, okay? Want another dog biscuit? Here you go…” I hope you live for a long time baby… don’t leave Mommy.

“Arf! Arf!”

“I know Gongju… its my fourth can now. Don’t worry its the last one… Mommy is still awake and kicking.”

“Arf! Arf! Arf!”

“I know! They all look stupid! Why don’t they be like us? We are two independent women who doesn’t need a man in our life!”

“I agree to that…” who’s that?

I turned around, searching for the owner of the voice who spoke aloud. And when my eyes caught sight of that person, my jaws dropping in utter shock realizing who it was. What the… pineapple .

Of all people… why??!

Wind, please take me away!? … what to do…

She was wearing a thick black Nike long padding over her dark blue jacket, the hood covering her head that is adorned by a baseball cap. She sat a meter away from me and gave me that irresistible smile I always see in the morning when I enter that Office building where our companies are situated.

This is weird… why in all places and all days… why!?

“Hi. I know you…” WHAT !? SHE KNOWS ME!? HOW DID SHE KNEW ME?! DON’T TELL ME SHE KNOWS MY NAME AND MY ADDRESS AND HOW MANY ICED COFFEE I DOWN IN A WHOLE DAY SLOUCHING IN MY WORKING DESK HOLDING MY T-SQUARE AND MY RAZOR POINT PEN!?

“Wha-what d-do you me-mean?”

“I know you from the building, you work for the Kim & Associates Architecture Firm. I always see you in the morning at exactly 7:30 AM from Mondays to Fridays… so yeah… hahaha… I sound like a stalker…” that last part baffles me… she whispered it so low scolding herself.

Gongju, please dig a hole now for Mommy.

I cleared my throat trying to find the proper words to say in front of this person when I remembered what I was doing earlier. Should I offer her some of my cold Pizzas?

“Ummm… My name is Engr. Amber J. Liu… you are…” I am your one and only future.

Oh damn. What did I say!? No, no, no! STOP!

“I… my name is…” okay… English name or Korean name?? Chinese name??

“Architect Jung Soojung.”

My mouth closed and stared at her blankly, thinking of how to throw myself in the dark waters of Han River realizing and finding out that the cool and cute, friendly, funny Engineer from the Engineering firm at the 10th floor that I have been crushing on since I started working in that ty Architectural firm for the past 3 years…

Knows my name.

Someone please slap me now.