March 24, 2027

10:20 AM

“This place is…”

“Extremely crowded?”

“Took the words right out of my mouth,” Chaeyoung said, making both of them chuckle.

True to her word, Mina cut her ex some slack and completely changed her attitude towards the younger. She approached their conversation with a more playful demeanor and she gradually grew more comfortable around her. It honestly scared her at first, how easily Chaeyoung managed to break down her walls, then again, those walls she had built up for her might have been made up of drywall. It didn’t take them very long to finish their coffees, so Mina suggested that they leave which left the younger confused. She explained that Mouriya Lin might be the type of restaurant that handles customers via reservation and that it was best to find out sooner rather than later. Her ex nodded and the pair left with Chaeyoung paying the bill.

The pair had just passed Higashimon Street, a narrow street that had bars on every corner. There weren’t a lot of people since most of the shops were closed. Plus, it was still day time and only alcoholics drink at this hour. Now they were in Ikuta Road, an even narrower street that was literally littered with restaurants, convenience stores and apartment buildings. Needless to say, the contrast between this street and the one they just passed was damn near ludicrous, but it was the street that the restaurant was situated in, so they had to it up. They walked at a significantly slower pace than everyone and attempted to avoid collision. However, this idea of theirs would come to backfire in just a few seconds as they found themselves getting bumped by nearly every person who passed behind them. Having zero tolerance for strangers and their contempt towards other people, Chaeyoung decided to walk a quicker pace instead. She was finally able to achieve her intended goal and avoid contact with her fellow man… that is until she felt a pair of hands cling to her arm. “Slow down a bit,” the taller woman begged. “You’re leaving me behind.”

“That’s not how I remember it.” The thought popped in the back of her head as she slowed her steps a bit. “Not the time to be an immature , Chaeng,” she thought again. With that, the pair walked an even pace, both of them ignoring the blush that crept up on their cheeks and the fact that they haven’t held each other like this in a very long time.

They eventually made it to their intended destination, though they didn’t know that at first, because the first thing they saw when the GPS informed them that they have arrived was a 7-Eleven. No one told them that the restaurant was on the second floor. “Huh,” the younger said.

“What?”

“It doesn’t look remotely fancy. It certainly doesn’t help that they’re on top of a convenience store,” she remarked, earning her a playful hit from the woman holding on to her. “Ow.”

“Jackass.” They turned to face their sides and looked into each other’s eyes. Mina was simply delighted seeing her ex’s adorable dimple in all its glory. They had forgotten how much they missed looking at each other the way they did, with such love, such tenderness. Suddenly, her logical side came back to life and Mina quickly detached herself from the younger. She cleared and awkwardly rubbed her arm, Chaeyoung did the same. Their eyes wandered their surroundings as they searched for a path that would lead them to the restaurant. As she looked to her right, Chaeyoung saw a flight of stairs though its appearance was akin to that of a subway station’s. She tapped her companion’s shoulder and pointed towards its direction, her eyes silently asking the older if her guess was right. Mina nodded in agreement and they soon found their way to the restaurant. As they both expected the moment they got there, the restaurant was still closed. However, they saw a woman standing behind podium by the entrance. She wore a rather classy three-piece suit, reading glasses and her hair was tied in a neat bun, they deduced her to be the restaurant’s hostess and approached her.

“Do you have a reservation?” the woman asked without even looking up.

“Um, we don’t have one,” the older answered honestly. “I didn’t know we needed one.”

“I’m sorry, miss, but this establishment is strictly reservations only and, might I add, also has a dress—” The woman paused and adjusted her glasses as she surveyed the younger with squinted eyes. She stopped to focus on the younger’s face which made her feel a little self-conscious, at least until the hostess spoke once more. “You’re that young director, right? From Korea, if I’m not mistaken?”

“Uh…” She was speechless for a few seconds. She rarely ever gets recognized in Korea for her directorial status, it was usually Nayeon who gets the attention which is highly expected when you’re onscreen talent, so being recognized in a foreign country of all places was surprising for her. “Yeah,” she said as she held out her hand, “Son Chaeyoung. It’s nice to meet you.”

“Oh my,” the hostess exclaimed as she stepped away from her podium to shake her hand. “It’s really nice to meet you. My daughter is a big fan.” Her explanation somehow managed to leave the director even more surprised.

“Really? That’s… peculiar.”

“She’s freshman film major. She’s quite fond of your work and the fact that you’re a woman, you know how kids are these days.” The woman looked behind her for a brief moment before turning her attention to the young director once more. “You two, wait here. I’ll go talk to the manager.” She entered the restaurant, leaving the pair to merely look at her from behind the glass doors. Mina turned her attention to her ex as she seemed to be scanning the place with a puzzled look on her face.

“You know, normally, customers get flattered when they get treated like that,” Mina teased.

“What? Oh,” Chaeyoung said, catching the joke. “No, it’s just… there are only counter seats. I thought this was a fine dining restaurant.” The restaurant had table counters and two rows of seats facing opposite another which was quite common in Japan, and Korea for that matter, so the comment left the older confused as to what exactly she meant.

“This is a fine dining restaurant, Chaeyoung,” the older argued.

“No, I mean like proper fine dining. Tablecloths and wine, that type of . That’s what the pictures showed on Google.” Chaeyoung elaborated.

“Oh!” the older exclaimed, finally understanding her ex’s confusion. “You must be talking about Royal Mouriya.”

“Well, how many Mouriya restaurants are there?” the younger asked, slightly frustrated.

“Six.”

“You’re ing with me, right?” she asked as she looked Mina in the eyes to find out if she was being toyed with.

“No.” She sensed the truth in her ex’s words, so she merely nodded.

“So… should we go to that Royal one instead?”

“What? No. That nice lady is going out on a limb for us, we can’t just up and leave.”

“But it’s your birthday and—”

“Exactly, it’s my birthday and I say we’re eating here.” As much as she wanted to insist that they go to the place she had in mind, the younger knew better than to continue arguing. She could only sigh when she saw the hostess approaching the hostess approaching them. “For what it’s worth, this place does have wine and a whole lot of other alcoholic drinks.”

“Okay,” the younger said, giving her ex a small smile.

“Great news! The manager is very excited to meet you as well, Ms. Son, and has asked me to invite you in already,” the hostess said.

“I thought this place opened at eleven?” She felt an elbow lightly shove her by the arm after she spoke. “I mean, thank you.” The hostess smiled and held the door open for the pair. Mina was about to walk in first but was shoved to the side by the younger who quickly made her way to her seat afterwards. Chaeyoung looked back and saw her ex glaring at her and she, in turn, gave her a smirk. Mina enjoyed the fact that the younger felt comfortable enough to kid around her again, she was afraid that she might have thrown her off earlier. With her mind at ease, she gave the hostess a small bow and took a seat next her ex where they were handed some menus.

10:30 AM

“Almost 13,000 Yen… for a six-ounce steak?” Chaeyoung said, utterly baffled by the price.

“It’s Kobe beef, Chaeng. It’s literally one of the most expensive types of meat in the world.” Mina noted.

“Still…” Her cheap side scanned the less costly items on the menu and she was disappointed to see that they weren’t that far off. “Fine. Rib eye for me and fillet mignon for the birthday girl.” She wanted to kick herself for having the audacity to spend that much money on food but kept telling herself it was for the woman she loved. God, you’re pathetic.

“Okay, the chef will be over in a bit,” the waitress said as she disappeared into the backroom. Chaeyoung leaned back on her seat and shot a glance at the woman beside her. She was shocked to find her doing the same. The pair quickly looked away from each other and giggled. They found it funny how they still acted like a couple of shy little dorks even as they neared their thirties. Mina was the first to speak as the laughter died down.

“So, what’s superstardom like, cub?” The use of the nickname caught her off guard. The beating of her heart suddenly picked up its pace and she wasn’t able to reply immediately. Luckily, the waitress came back to pour them a glass of wine. She waited to the waitress to finish and she took a sip before answering the question.

“It has its moments,” Chaeyoung said flatly.

“Care to elaborate?” She saw the position her ex was in. Her elbow on the countertop and her chin leaned on her cheek, squishing it in a way that Chaeyoung found adorable.

“It can be fun. Getting recognized is kinda fun, so is getting interviewed and signing autographs, but it can also be really annoying and draining.”

“Directing a film that must be really tiring for you.” Mina caught the look on her ex’s face. As she expected, it was one of surprise and not offense.

“What?”

“Oh, come on, Chaeng. We haven’t been broken up that long. You and I both know that you hate all the cheesy love stories Korea produces. Plus, you’re a director, not an actress, I could tell you were in agony. I don’t know how many times you rehearsed your interview answers in front of the mirror, but you could’ve used a couple more rehearsals.” The younger could only sigh, her ex-girlfriend knew her too well. Mina screamed internally, feeling like she might have said too much. She didn’t want Chaeyoung to get the wrong idea about watching her interviews. Luckily for her, the younger focused on the bit where she criticized her film.

“Yeah, well, after being rejected left and right I realized that the industry cared more about me kissing and than talent or originality. So, I figured I should just do that and establish myself first as someone they can work with, then maybe someday I’ll get to do the things I wanna do,” Chaeyoung explained before lifting her glass and taking a sip. Mina hummed and nodded in approval, then took a sip of her own. “I didn’t actually any though, just to be clear,” she added, nearly making her ex spit out wine.

“I knew that, !” The older shouted before they broke into laughter. Chaeyoung felt butterflies as she finally got to see her ex’s gummy smile in full view again. She always thought that Mina looked her prettiest this way. Just then, the chef came out with a tray of ingredients as well as utensils. They were a bit surprised by the variety of sides that came with the steak, mushrooms, eggplants and spring onions. They watched in awe as the chef made quick work of their orders with such skill and finesse, they could feel their mouths watering with every second that passed. Just as the chef plated the rib eye, a question popped in the younger’s head.

“You seem so amazed by all this. Don’t you and your doctor friends often go to places like this?”

“I’m not a doctor, Chaeyoung,” Mina corrected, leaving the younger speechless. “I never finished med school.”

“But… weren’t you like, halfway through your second year?” Chaeyoung asked.

“Yep, and I didn’t go through with the third. I went back here and became a physical therapist.”

“Why?” She already had an idea what the reason was but she asked anyway.

“Just… personal issues,” the older deadpanned.

“I’m sorry.” Chaeyoung hated the idea that she was the reason Mina dropped out.

“Don’t flatter yourself. Our breakup was just a part of it.” It was a lie and an obvious one at that, but it was also her way of telling her to drop the conversation. She sensed that the younger was about to speak again but was cut off by their orders being served. She let out a sigh and grabbed her wooden chopsticks, “Let’s just eat,” she told the younger. Chaeyoung grabbed her chopsticks as well and they both picked up a slice of their steaks. It was then when they noticed the manager standing beside the chef with a digital camera in hand.

“What’s happening?” The younger asked.

“Don’t mind me, I’m just here to capture the moment.”

“What moment?” Mina asked.

“Just eat,” the manager said. The pair looked at each other and shrugged before raising their chopsticks slightly.

“Itadakimasu,” they said as they proceeded to eat the steak. They both chewed their food at an even pace, both looking very unimpressed… and then the flavor hit. They ended up quickly looking at each other with eyes wide open, “OH MY GOD!” they exclaimed. The words slightly muffled by the food in their mouths. An audible click could be heard amidst the pair’s amazement but at that moment, they couldn’t care less about having a photo of them taken. The were too engrossed in their meals.

“Try mine,” Chaeyoung told Mina.

“Try mine as well.” For the next few minutes, the only sound that came out of the two were a slew of satisfied moans and groans as they couldn’t get over how good the steaks tasted.

“ the price, I want more. Do you?”

“Yeah!” Mina replied excitedly, bouncing on her seat with a huge grin on her face. She suddenly snapped out of it and tried to regain her composure, Chaeyoung found it cute. “I mean, are you sure?”

“Of course. It’s your birthday and this steak is ing insane.” The older laughed at the younger’s delight.

“Okay,” Mina said with a smile.

“Can I get another fillet mignon?” It was here where Mina knew—

“Can I try the sirloin this time?” —that this day was going to be an unforgettable one.

~

The year's about to end and so is this fic. Just few more to go.