Note: Wow. The amount of support that this story has received thus far is unbelievable. I used all of my brainpower trying to keep this story going, so I’m incapable of eloquently expressing my gratitude at the moment, but I am SO grateful. I hope that you all enjoy this update.

“Okay, tell me everything. I’m listening.”

“You’re not. You’re cutting meat.”

“Do you really think that little of me? I can multitask, Yongsun. Hmph, you think you know someone after working with them for three years, then they tell you how they really feel about you.” Momentarily putting down the scissors that were in his right hand, Eric clutched at his chest. “I’m hurt.” Yongsun couldn’t help but laugh at his antics.

“You’re so dramatic.”

Though delayed by a week, the meal that Eric had promised her was finally happening. It wasn’t that she was trying to avoid him—she was actually quite excited to meet up with Eric—, it was more that she had so much to take care of for graduate school that she couldn’t make time for much else. Most of the logistics were now taken care of though, so here they were on a Thursday night, in a nice-enough-but-not-over-the-top barbecue restaurant. As the establishment wasn’t that crowded, their meat sizzling on the grill would be the most noise they’d have to contend with throughout their conversation.

Yongsun kept up some small talk as Eric cooked their meat, but she refused to get into the nitty gritty of what lay ahead for her until she had his undivided attention.

“I know what you’re doing, by the way,” Eric shared as he flipped a few pieces of hanwoo beef.

“Oh yeah? What am I doing?” Yongsun asked, a small smile growing on her face.

His focus still on the grill, he responded, “You’re making small talk until I’m done grilling everything so that you have my undivided attention.” The man was perceptive.

“Look, you claim you can multitask, and maybe you can, but I’m not going to repeat myself a million times because you can’t hear me over the sound of the grill. ‘Huh? What’d you say? Repeat that, Yongsun. One more time. I didn’t hear you.’”

“Your impersonation of me is horrible.”

“That’s the point.”

Lowering the grill’s temperature, Eric exaggeratedly placed the tongs on the table’s side and leaned closer to Yongsun, who was seated across the table from him. “I’m finished cooking your food. You now have my undivided attention, ma’am. Can you start with the story?”

“Gladly!” Although he rolled his eyes, Eric had to smile at Yongsun’s cheeky response.

“Whatever friends you make at SNU are going to have their hands full with you.”

“Me? Making friends? Sounds fake, but okay. Do you want a wrap?” She was already making one for him but needed to steer the conversation elsewhere. Having been busy with getting everything else in order, she hadn’t yet thought about the fact that she’d be alone and friendless at SNU.

“Yes, please. And stop, you’re going to make friends.”

“If you say so,” she responded skeptically. “Here’s your wrap.”

“Thank you. Here’s some more rice wine,” he placed a refilled cup in front of her. “Like I was saying, you’ll make friends. It’s grad school; the class sizes are smaller. You’ll be around the same people every week, doing a bunch of group projects, it’s only natural that you all will grow comfortable with each other. Trust me.”

“I’d never.”

“Yet you let me cook your food. You trust me with your life.”

“I was watching you the entire time!”

“You were watching me the entire time because you were counting down until you could eat this hanwoo beef.” To that she had no response. Yongsun could list on one hand the amount of times she had had hanwoo beef. It was so good, but so expensive. “Ew. Close your mouth, you’re drooling,” Eric mocked.

“Shut up! Leave me alone.”

He made sure to take a sip of his soju before continuing, “You’ll make friends. One recommendation, though, instead of waiting for others to talk to you, try to be proactive.” The face she made in response to that urged him to scale his previous statement back. “One person! Just one. Go up to one person and start a conversation with them. You can do that. Promise me.” Met with silence, he pushed the issue. “Yongsun, promise me. One person.”

“Ugh. Fine.” She reached her right hand across their table to link her pinky with his.

“Good. Tell me the details now. When do classes start?”

“They start on August 26^th, so I have a bit of time.”

“You have a month and a day.”

“Like I said,” she stared at him, daring him to challenge her again, “I have a bit of time.”

“Okay, okay. Easy there, tiger. You have a bit of time. When are you leaving Suwon for Seoul? Where are you living?”

“I found this apartment complex not far from campus called University Village. They had mixed reviews when I looked them up online, but so did the other options, and this one was one of the more affordable and presentable looking places. Fully furnished! The lease starts on August 1^st, which is next Thursday. I’m planning on moving in then. It works out well because my current lease ends on July 31^st. My landlord offered to give me until that Saturday, but I told him I didn’t need that much extra time. If anything, I’ll store my things there for a day or two.”

“That’s aggressive. How are you getting there? Have you started packing yet?” Eric was slightly worried for her. This was a lot for one person to manage on their own. She took a moment to finish another wrap before responding.

“I was thinking of taking the train. If I take my most important items first, I could set up my room and then take the train back and forth until I get everything to Seoul.”

“There’s no way you’re serious.” Eric’s voice was very matter-of-fact, devoid of any emotion, signaling his unhappiness with her response. Yongsun decided to stay quiet for a moment and give him some time to gather his thoughts and emotions. She knew he would never blow up at her, Eric wasn’t like that. Not with her, at least. Still, she’d prefer if they didn’t ruin a lovely dinner by getting into a disagreement over something, in her opinion, so miniscule. She waited. After downing another wrap and taking a few sips of soju, he released a heavy sigh and spoke up. “I get that you’ve always had to do things for yourself, but there are people that would be glad to make things easier for you if you gave them a chance. You’re not taking a train back and forth from SKKU* to Seoul. That’s ridiculous. I’ll drive you.”

“The train ride isn’t long at all. I could get everything to my room in one day, maybe two.”

“So you’d rather pay for however many train rides than take one car ride with a friend for free?” He usually tried to understand Yongsun’s perspective on things, but this was too much.

“You have work.”

“I can take off for a day, Yongsun.”

“I don’t want to be an inconvenience.”

“How would you be an inconvenience when it’s something that I offered? Although, I am still slightly irritated that you didn’t think to at least ask.” He wouldn’t stop until she agreed to his offer. She knew this. He knew that she knew this. And she knew that he knew that she knew this. Yongsun dropped her head in defeat. Eric had won. “Yes!”

“No one has ever been this excited about signing up to help someone move. You’re an odd man.”

“I’m one-of-a-kind. You’ll never find someone like me ever again.”

“Thank goodness,” Yongsun shot back.

“Please. You’ll miss me. Not to worry, though. I’ll be in Seoul to celebrate my birthday. Save the date.”

“Sorry, I’m busy that day,” she immediately responded, her face as serious as ever. Eric had to laugh at this. “You’re getting old. This will be your 30^th birthday, right?”

“I’m turning 26, thank you very much.”

“Same thing.”

“You’re such a smartass! I’m going to order more meat, so hurry up and tell me the rest of the details since you don’t think I can grill and listen at the same time. So far, I’ve gathered that we’re leaving next Thursday, I’m helping you unpack, then we’re eating dinner. What else? Did you figure out financial aid stuff? What about classes?”

The fuzziness from their earlier disagreement was now gone and long forgotten. Instead, Yongsun animatedly rattled off information about everything else. She was taking four classes. Three were required, but she got to choose the fourth—Creativity and Education. She would also be afforded some financial freedom! The department offered her a full scholarship; it covered tuition and fees. They also had a position open as a lecture student. She’d have to work ten hours each week, but compared to the amount of jobs she held throughout her undergraduate years, this was lightwork. The position came with a monthly scholarship. With the scholarship from the College of Education in effect, the money from this job would be deposited directly into her bank account.

It took time to arrive at this point, but Yongsun was finally excited about graduate school. In only seven days’ time, she’d be leaving the city she called home for the past five years to start a new chapter in her life. Although a bit terrified, she was looking forward to exploring the unknown.

*SKKU: Sungkyunkwan University