When the airplane is picking up speed on the runway of the JFK International Airport, Kwon Eunbi reaches for her wife's hand and holds it tight. 

"Kkura-ya, are you nervous?"

Sakura Miyawaki, who has now adopted her new name as Lee Kkura, turns her head from the window and looks at her wife. She smiles faintly. She is leaving the land that she was born and grew up and heading to a place that she was supposed to be originated from. Her feeling is so mixed she doesn't know how to answer.

She doesn't have a lot of good memory but it is not true to say she won't miss her hometown at all, there are still many irreplaceable experiences that she treasured. Being a mixed-race, multi-cultural, HSP introvert, ual minority, and amateur artist, to her, the feeling of non-belonging is permanent. With each of her identity, Sakura never ceased feeling that she is in a marginal position. 

Until she became the center of Kwon Eunbi.

Eunbi is Korean. "Authentic" Korean and a social innovation advocate. She went to NYU to pursue her MBA in "Social Innovation and Impact" after she successfully launched the campaign that made her mentor won the seat of the Mayor of Seoul. It's her dream to live her life as a New Yorker, even though it was only for 2 years. Mayor Park let her leave under one condition: that she must stay in the Future Party and go back to work for him after she got her degree. The Mayor was determined to groom Eunbi to be his successor.

As a matter of fact, Eunbi is stunningly beautiful and charismatic, and her leadership can never be over-estimated. She was so innovative that even as a newcomer, she won the school Asian Association's presidency effortlessly, and led the Association onto the road for positive changes.

As an undergraduate senior, Sakura became Eunbi's little fans from Day One. Eunbi was like a k-movie celebrity to her. The only thing she could never imagine was that the queen, as she secretly called Eunbi, would end up in the same bed with her.

To make the long story short, Eunbi fell for Sakura the first time she took her to China Town for an Asian meal. For some unknown reasons, Eunbi found the girl behind the pair of thick nerdy glasses very attractive. She was so full of contradictions and ambiguities. This made Eunbi very curious.

"Are you Japanese?" Eunbi asked, "but you speak Korean."

"My mother is Korean," Sakura answered plainly.

"I see," Eunbi feels excited. "No wonder you speak Korean so well!"

"I learned adult Korean in college. I minor in East Asian studies." Sakura tucked her hair behind her big ear and lowered her eyes. Her voice was very soft. "My mother is a second-generation Korean American. Sometimes we can only communicate in English when it came to more sophisticated content. So mother tongue may also imply it is a baby language?" 

And she rolled her eyes and peek at Eunbi while chuckled a bit.

Eunbi was struck. 

Sakura then lowered her head and got back to her soup, but has to take off her glasses which was immediately fogged by the hot steam. Sakura looked up and smile faintly at Eunbi in small embarrassment. At that very moment, Eunbi felt like electric shocked. Sakura's eyes without the glasses were stunning. They were huge and round like those of a cat. Pure yet deep, seems to have concealed numerous untold stories. The subdued melancholic in Sakura's eyes made Eunbi's heart wrenched a bit.

"You don't look happy," Eunbi asked.

"I had depression." Sakura was frank. She didn't think she needs to hide anything from Eunbi, she has nothing to lose. "I lost my father when I was 13, it was a big trauma. Then I got bullied when I went to high school. I was seen as a weirdo because I didn't want to conform or gang up, and I always loved the wrong people. That was the last straw. I was under medication until I went to college. If not for my cousin who came from Korea, I won't have survived."

Eunbi nodded. She understood. She has helped a group of depression survivors to innovate a better support mechanism.

"It is alright," She said. She almost wanted to hold Sakura's hand, "everyone has the right to get sick, got attended and gets well."

Sakura was deeply touched. She smiled at Eunbi in a more relaxed manner.

"Thank you for telling me your story – and aren't you curious about mine?"

Sakura couldn't suppress her grin, "yes, sure I do! Are you a movie star?"

"What!" Eunbi was amused. She told Sakura she was a social innovator, meant that she helped people in need through creative projects. Mayor Park was the boss of the Future Institute when she joined and he personally mentored her. She was promoted to be a mid-rank officer after just one year. When Mr. Park decided to run for the mayor's election, they set up the Future Party together, and she helped him won.

"So you are a politician!" Sakura felt amazed. She never talked to such "high ranked" people, or put it in another way, a person who was so close to institutional power.

"Well, maybe," Eunbi shrugged, "I haven't decided yet."

Of course, Eunbi knew well that it was not up to her to "haven't decided yet", she has the obligation to go back and run for elections on behalf of her Party. But meanwhile, she simply could not take her eyes off the mixed-race American girl in front of her. The more she looked at her, the more charming she became. Eunbi was even more impressed when she realized Sakura was actually very knowledgeable and mature.

After that, meals between the two became more and more regular. There were many times when Eunbi almost lost control and hold Sakura's hand when they were strolling down the street of New York. And she enjoyed it when the girl held her arm while they were crossing the road, or got jammed in the Holloween crowd. 

Eunbi was overjoyed when Sakura invited her to join the Lunar New Year supper at her house in Queens. Only by then she learned that Mrs. Miyawaki (whom they all call her Auntie Kaeun) also rent out rooms for foreign students. She immediately decided to rent the largest back room on the second floor that was still vacant.

"This used to be my cousin's room," Sakura the light and the heater. It was freezing. "Let me show you her picture. Her baby girl is 1 year old now."

Sakura scrolled her smartphone and handed it to Eunbi.

"Lee Chaeyeon!" Eunbi suddenly exclaimed when she saw the pictures. "Isn't this Lee Chaeyeon?"

Sakura opened her eyes wide, "what? You know Chaeyeon?"

"She's my best friend." Eunbi looked at Sakura, and couldn't utter a word for a long while. "No wonder she was so concerned ab...We were classmates. We grew up together..."

"Concern about what?" Sakura was puzzled.

Eunbi could not hear Sakura's question. Something started to grow viral inside her head. That's serendipity! It is a sign from heaven, isn't it? She grabbed Sakura's hand as she was handing back the phone.

Sakura was in shock.

"Kura...I..." Eunbi is surprised by her own stuttering. She is holding Sakura with both of her hands. Sakura froze but didn't flinch. 

"I..." Eunbi breathed in deeply, "I...want to...tell you something..."

Sakura could feel Eunbi's vibes. Her heart was racing fast like hell and her hands trembled so hard that she dropped her phone on the carpeted floor.

"I'm sorry..." Sakura said and tried to squat down and pick up her phone, but Eunbi quickly grabbed her other arm.

"Just let it be," Eunbi gripped both of Sakura's hands and spat out her words slowly and firmly, "it has been two months...Kura, I...you were in my dreams nearly every night, I think...I like...no, I've fallen...I love you – and I think you feel the same...am I right?"

Sakura felt that she couldn't breathe, she nodded vigorously and turned scarlet within a few seconds. She tried hard but failed to suppress her grin. She has never dared to think that it was not her one-sided love. 

Eunbi smiled at the cutest thing she has ever seen in her whole life and pulled her into her embrace, "I really really like you, I don't know why. I should have told you earlier..."

Sakura, being slightly taller, lower her face and stifled Eunbi with her lips.

Eunbi was very surprised as she has never expected the shy girl could be so bold, and Sakura was such a good kisser. Eunbi felt a nectar bomb just exploded inside her body.

"Where did you learned that from?" Eunbi pulled herself away from the kiss and gasped for air.

Sakura chuckled and lowered her eyes, "why are you so surprised? We just didn't talk about that. I have been dreaming to kiss you for a long time."

"Oh yes! Oh yes! Please do! Let's talk about it!" Eunbi laughed at herself and yearned for another kiss.

That evening, the two held hands when Sakura walked Eunbi to the subway station.

"But it's more convenient for you to stay in SOHO, you can just walk to school," Sakura said.

"If I move here I can go to school with you everyday and we can see each other all the time." Eunbi chuckled, "and I really want to follow Chaeyeon's footsteps."

"For what?"

"To protect you and pamper you."

Sakura laughs, "Come on, I am an adult now."

3 days later, Eunbi moved in. It was a Friday when everyone, including Sakura's mom, was out. With the help of Sakura, Eunbi just took around an hour or two to unpack and decorate her room. After everything was settled, the two sat on the edge of Eunbi's bed, holding hands, figuring out what to do next. Apparently, they were thinking about the same thing, but both decided they wanted to wait a bit. 

"Eunbi, are you single?" Sakura became bolder after they became somewhat official.

Eunbi chuckles, "why are you asking only now? Is it a bit late?"

Sakura leaned backward and lied down on the bed, and Eunbi followed. Sakura rolled to her side and Eunbi mirrored her. 

"You are my queen, how dare I asked you?"

"What!" Eunbi pinched Sakura's nose, "we fought so many years for democracy, how come I became a queen now?"

Sakura blinked and didn't answer.

"Okay, I'm sorry. I was just joking," Eunbi kissed Sakura's forehead, "maybe queen bee? I am so busy all the time."

Sakura's face lited up and exclaimed, "Eunbee!"

Eunbi rolled her eyes, "okay...at least it is better than 'queen'."

Sakura kissed Eunbi