March 2023

 

Ryujin’s flight was arriving at 11 am.

I was right on time, waiting for her in a private room of the waiting area of airport, to avoid the attention of more people.

Four years back, Once in these 12 years it happened, when Ryujin came to receive me on airport after 2016 Japan tour, that was the first time my heart went over-the-top seeing her in the waiting room, where we were supposed to wait before moving out immediately due to unexpected crowd at airport that day.

The whole tour I thought I was missing everyone including her, but the way her hug got me warm that day made me realise that it was more of her that I was missing all the while in the entire month.

At that moment, I knew she was the girl I was missing for a long time in my life, which made it worse the every another trip when I was not seeing her then.

I was lost in memories when I heard the announcement of arrival of the flight from Rome & that the passenger will be out soon.

I came out of the room to look for her.

I was on cloud nine, whole while, with the contentment of seeing her after a week finally, even though, we had two successful video-calls after matching our timings in the whole week.

Video-calls are never the same, seeing her face in person was indeed a different bliss always, no matter, how much I'm used to this feeling now after our staying apart for numerous times now..

As soon as she noticed me, her eyes first got wide & she looked away then in the next second, making me wonder now, if I went over-board to disguise myself with a black beanie & yellow sunglasses, paired with my blue denim jacket, of course my mask was on, but it shouldn’t be difficult for Ryujin to recognize me. My eyes were still vaguely visible through the glasses. Wasn’t that enough for her to know?

I looked down at myself before looking at her again when she was near now, approaching in my direction.

My phone started ringing to show caller being ‘Ryujin’

“Am I seeing oppa here in front of me right now?” her happily shaking voice filled my ear, as I held the phone to my ears after sliding receive.

I stifled a laugh watching her walk to me, taking short glances at me in confusion.

It was fun to see her surprised like that. She was looking adorable with that flustered look on her face right now.

“How can you not recognise your boyfriend?”

“Were you cheating on me in Rome?” I took my chance of teasing.

She was so close now, that I recognized Dr Changmin walking just behind her.

“It’s really you!” her eyes lightened up observing me, as she walked closer,

“But?” her smile disappearing as she paused talking for a while, as her steps slowed down, making Dr Changmin catch up with her, “Your fans may recognise you?”

She looked around the area occupied by people as we were still talking through the phone due to the distance, “Don’t you know that?” she whispered in the phone, her voice getting strict & straight now.

“I’m dressed up quite well for that” I looked down at myself before speaking in the phone.

“Let’s get out first” her sudden stern tone was weird & mean, “separately!” she moved past me without even looking at me & Dr Changmin followed her not even realizing I was standing right there.

Even Dr Changmin didn’t recognise me standing there! I bet I was well-prepared.

I pulled off the call & reaching her hand, before she could move further, “Yah! KangRyujin!” I was a bit loud now, taking attention of the few passengers walking behind her.

“Oppa!” I heard her complaining tone, as I turned to her behind me,

She had a frown on her forehead as we faced each other, making Dr Changmin notice me too, who was on his way out walking beside her.

“I was waiting for you” I groaned back,

I was taken aback by her straight-forward emotionless response.

It was a bit disappointing that she was more concerned about my fans than me at that important moment.

What about me? My casual wish of receiving my girlfriend at the airport when we were away for an entire week?

And this was part of my big plan for her after all. Even though, she was unaware of the plan, how can she ignore me like this?

Though, I understand it was entirely for me! I didn’t wanted her to live with all these insecurities because of me.

“But?” she looked around before taking my hand in hers, to drag me, moving ahead to the exit with rapid steps ahead, as Dr Changmin followed us.

I smiled at him & I guess that’s when he finally realised that it was me, because he had this wrinkles on his forehead before, which vanished while smiling back at me with bright eyes.

“Where did you parked the car?” she asked, walking rapidly holding my hand, as I followed her.

“In the private parking" "At the usual place” I informed, so she took a sudden pause, as we were already at the intersection of private corridor & the general one.

“Dr Changmin!” she called him turning to face him, “I’m so sorry”

“I think you should go ahead” her eyes squeezed at the corner watching him, “I’ll call you later after I reach home” she gave him an apologetic smile, as he nodded back, blinking.

I smiled back, when he looked back to me before leaving. “I’m sorry too!” 

“Have a good day” he pursed his lips in a smile, as he turned to move ahead to the exit-gate.

After he was gone ahead, she turned to me, leaving my hand, “Follow me”

I followed her obediently as said, we both turned to move into the other path we knew, which had ‘no-entry’ board which was going to take us to the private parking directly. 

It was a secret path we took sometimes during crowd, which Ryujin was aware of.

“I don’t know if I should be happy to see you here like the first moment I saw you or should be worried like now?” she slowed her steps more like strolling now, as the noise of the wheels of her luggage bag was clearly audible, as she dragged it behind her.

Not a single human was around the wide pathway we were walking through, it being a restricted area.

“Of course you should be happy” I responded immediately like the most obvious answer. That was my whole motive of coming here today.

“Do I need to tell you that?” I was curious why she was behaving so conscious unlike the past days.

“Hmm!” she hummed finding my eyes as she turned to face me.

“I don’t know how to deal with your celebrity life when situations like this come up suddenly”

“Many what ifs start forming when we meet at public places like this” she was watching me holding up her emotions, which wasn't really hard to not notice, after knowing her every face now.

“You need to tell me every-time” she confessed, looking into my eyes holding them with hers, till she got every word out, sincerely.

It was admiring that she is being honest like this to me about it. I appreciate that way more, than her thinking about it alone.

“I’m more concerned unlike before nowadays” “I feel more conscious now that we are not just friends & sometimes I feel like I am fooling your fans” I was just listening to her patiently now, just to get it all out from her first, before I could comfort her.

She was indeed struggling all this while, pulling appropriate places for us to go eat together, not coming to receive me when I was back from trips, and sometimes telling herself to be calm, when we were caught by some fans on some dates & wishing that there won’t be a dating news out the next day.

I knew it wasn’t about my opinion but she needed to share it with me, which I was grateful for.

“You are not fooling anyone Ryujin” I reached her hand to take in mine.

“And can you please stop over-thinking for a while now” I snapped at her which made her blink in surprise by my sudden frustation.

“We have some work to do together” I linked my fingers with her.

She was changing all the track of my surprise by having long talks at wrong time & wrong place.

“So now" "You follow me!” I moved ahead pulling her outside, till we reached the parking space.

I opened the car door gesturing her to sit inside as she watched me with shock till I pushed her by shoulder to the seat, making her sit forcibly, as I had other plans for the whole day to wait & listen to her nagging today.

“Can you please focus on me today?” I cleared a bit of air for her, as she was observing me for sometime.

“Just me & you” “Huh?” I warned her, as I got inside fixing my seat-belt, as I saw her smiling to herself, as I smiled myself then.

I clicked the keys inside as she fixed her belt, nodding in response, before we took off.

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“Why are we here?” she looked around as I took the turn to reach the donut café at the corner of the road ahead.

It was the donut café near Ryujin’s medical college which was located inside a small alley.

We visited it often when I visited Ryujin during her weekends in medical school, as it was a secluded place five years back.

“To have our favourite!” I replied, keeping watch on the street, as I sneaked the car into the small alley to get to the café.

“I swear the donuts here should be sold worldwide” she was already blooming with the excitement of tasting them, “How can they be still the same delicious ones, when we are eating them for almost 6 years now?”

She was drooling over just the smell now her lips, managing to compliment alongside.

“Oh I see!” she took a glance at me, before observing the car properly, “That’s why you brought manager oppa’s car?” 

“OMG! KangRyujin, you’re so smart!” I looked at her in amaze, to which she had to roll her eyes, as I giggled at her reaction.

“I’ll get our set” she said, opening the door of her side.

“I’ll get them” “I’ve placed the order beforehand” I interrupted, opening door of my side, “We just need to pick them” I added, stepping out first.

“Ohh!” “I should be doing more business trips for you to treat me like this” Ryujin sang giggling softly,

“I can do this even if you don’t go on trips” I looked at her for a glance, when she was lovingly watching me from her seat, turning her body to face my side.

“I’ll be back quick” I informed, before closing the door, as she nodded back.

I reached the reception to take our order as the café was quiet due to afternoon & manager-nim was ready with the box of donuts & coffee as she reached the reception as soon as she saw me.

“This is complimentary from me!” she took out a small paper bag from the desk to place up on the reception.

“Oh!” “Thank you so much” I smiled, as she smiled back, when I took both the bags & coffee tray in my hands, and then looked out to find Ryujin in the car. Ryujin waved her as manager-nim waved back.

“Enjoy!” she shouted, as I was almost near the door & I raised my hand with the small bag & coffee, mouthing 'Thank You' to her in response, before stepping out.

Ryujin clapped her hand before she opened the door for me, taking the box from my hand.

“This is our customer treat” I laughed, raising the small bag to show her, as I sat on my seat, as she chuckled, watching the small bag in my other hand, taking one coffee tumbler from the tray.

I opened the bag to find that there were packets of our favourite gummy bears inside, from which I took one to show Ryujin, and she started laughing as soon as she saw it, as I smiled looking down in embarassment.

I had a fight one day when the manager was out of these gummy bears, when we visited them. And the manager remembered it till now.

“She still remembers it” Ryujin said controlling her laugh, “Why were you craving for those so much that day?” “I still don’t understand why you fought with her for them?” “You rarely fight over food” she continued to laugh, as I pulled wrapper to open one packet.

“I know” “I just snapped at her in impulse as I was seriously craving for them so much that day" I confessed, remembering the moment again, much vividly now.

"But it just became fun when I started arguing going senseless at a point" "So I continued" "just to irritate her then” I pulled out one to put in my mouth, hearing Ryujin soft giggles filling my ears.

We both looked inside the café to find the window where we had our inscriptions doodled all over on the window-grill, when we met here just before Ryujin’s exam-curfew in her final year.

To release her stress we started doodling on that white window grill with the red marker Ryujin always carried with her & filled the entire window-grill in the time we were sitting there.

“We came here a lot back in time” “It wasn’t even that crowded place during those days” Ryujin’s voice was soft & deep, expressing her nostalgic feeling.

“Hmm” “It was second time I realised strong that I’m falling for you” “It was here!” I took one of the donuts, as Ryujin extended the box to me.

She was looking at me in surprise, “huh?” “Come again?” she blinked her eyes at me, puzzled.

“With you that day I felt like I was relieving my own stress feeling light & calm & happy, after a quite awful day myself” I took a glance at the window, as I bit on the donut in my hand.

She glanced at the window before looking back at me, “When was the first time?” her eyes sparkled watching me, making me chuckle, “At the airport when you came to receive me for first & last time” I looked at her, tilting my head back to rest it on the seat.

“I think that was my first too” she turned to sit straight, excited now, biting on her donut.

“Really?” this sudden confession was fascinating, as I had no idea what she felt on her side, because I was definitely more focused on my feelings then, and we never talked about when & at what place, we started liking each other differently.

“When I hugged you that day I wasn’t just happy to see you but I knew, I wasn’t just missing you as a friend for the first time” she affirmed.

I was surprised how we both felt the same feeling at the same time, to know it now.

“But I was more focused on ignoring such kind of thoughts in those days” she looked at me biting her, as she squinted her eyes cutely, with the hint of regret in her eyes.

“It’s really fascinating to know it from you for the first time” I smiled, as she smiled back.

We both took another donut from the box before I reached the wheel to set off to our next spot.

“Are we going somewhere else?” she looked at me in question.

“Why is oppa suddenly being a mysterious guy today?” she watched me suspiciously, as I laughed at her words.

“Is this a looking back on memories" "how you fell in love with me?”

I gasped on my breath before taking a glance at her as she watched me with awe.

How can she just say it out so easily? I’m really convinced sometimes that she’s a mind-reader.

“Can you shut up for a while?” I snapped at her before looking at the road again.

“I think I’m right” she smiled observing me as I could hardly control myself from smiling now.

“Don’t use your brain so much” I was talking to her, keeping my eyes on road, “Aren’t you tired from the conference & travelling?” I took a glance at her as I saw her smiling coy.

I just hope she doesn’t get the catch of main event and anyway that was a farther league for her right now, to guess till that extent, out of blue.

“Why are you so cute?” she turned to me, reaching my cheek to pull it lightly.

“I’m not cute!” I snapped at her looking back at road again, “Okay” she looked out of window.

“Why are you not so cute?” she turned back to pull my cheeks again, making me laugh out loud this time.

“Where are we going next?” she asked again, enthusiastic with the whole plan.

“On a long drive?” I answered with a smirk, getting a furrowing-eyebrow-look from her first which turned into a long smile stuck to her face.

“What?” I’m speechless why does she guess so fast?

“You know?” I asked in shock. And she smiled again, as I ran my fingers through my hair stunned by her suggestive smile, as she laughed back making me more nervous.

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We were at the same cultural heritage again, where I had taken Ryujin's shot in my phone that day.

We visited here impulsively one day, just because, Ryujin was angry with me after a fight we had, after meeting her on some weekend.

There was no reason as such but we both were being cranky that day & started debating on some random topic like politics or economy, something like that, which turned in