Sleep. Wake up. Eat. School. Eat. Work.

That was the schedule that Kim Chung Ae lived by every single day. Wake up, eat breakfast made by her older sister, go to school, eat a snack, and then head off to the ramen restaurant where she worked at afterschool until the night. Then she would go home and repeat the process once more; no changes, no exceptions.

But as Chung Ae walked the Seoul streets in order to get home, her mind couldn’t help but wonder off at what the ajumma at the ramen shop said to her earlier in the evening.

*Flashback*

“Chung Ae-ssi, I need to talk to you before you start your shift!” The Ajumma called to Chung Ae.

Cocking her head to the side, Chung Ae quickly tied her apron around her waist and went into the Ajumma’s office, closing the door behind her. “Ajumma, what do you need?”

“Actually dear, what I want to talk about isn’t me, it’s you.” The ajumma replied.

Chung Ae suddenly turned into a bundle of nerves when she heard the word “you”. Was the ajumma gonna tell her she was a bad worker? Or worse, fire her?

“A-ah, really?” Chung Ae asked nervously. “I-I’m…..I’m not being fired right?”

The ajumma let out a hearty laugh, and Chung Ae wasn’t sure it that was a good thing or bad thing. But after the ajumma’s laugh fest, she gave Chung Ae a warm smile and said, “Fire you? That’s funny. I would never fire you Chung Ae-ssi! You’re one of my best workers!”

Chung Ae then let out a relief sigh internally. Thank God! I thought I was a goner!”

“Anyways,” The ajumma spoke, snapping Chung Ae out of her thoughts. “I wanted to talk about your love life.”

“BWO?!” Chung Ae exclaimed. “My love life?!”

This conversation was taking a turn for the weird. First Chung Ae thought she was gonna get fired, but now she was being called in to talk about her love life? Was Chung Ae that pitiful in life that her boss had to in and help her with romance? Chung Ae sighed inwardly while hanging her head down.

“Yes Chung Ae-ssi, your love life.” The ajumma confirmed while Chung Ae stayed silent. “Chung Ae-ssi, you’re seventeen. You’re young, you’re beautiful, but you barely take care of yourself. You go to school in the morning and as soon as you get off you come here to work to help your older sister with the bills. You work hard, but now it seems like your life revolves around school and work. Honestly, a girl your age should be out and having fun! Not to mention falling in love!”

Chung Ae stood there stunned as she tried to let the ajumma’s words sink in. Everything was true, including the bit about how Chung Ae’s life was nothing but school and work. But it’s not like she couldn’t give up school. It was her foundation for her future. And she certainly couldn’t give up work and leave all the financial burdens to her unnie, There’s was just no way fun, let alone falling in love could fit in the situation.

“Ajumma,” Chung Ae murmured, “I’m thankful you look out for me but fun and romance just isn’t in my dictionary. I can’t neglect school, and I can’t let unnie work and pay for everything. Romance is just going to have to wait.”
The Ajumma sighed dejectedly. This girl just doesn’t know how to live life.

Despite this, the Ajumma still managed to give Chung Ae a warm smile. “I understand Chung Ae. But promise me you’ll take a break once in a while, arraso?”

“Ne Ajumma!” Chung Ae exclaimed while pumping her fist into the air. “I’ll do my best!”

*End Flashback*
Remembering the whole ideal, Chung Ae shook her head and laughed dryly as she continued to walk home.

Love? Chung Ae cringed when at the word. Sure, she’s had a few crushes here and there but nothing major. She’s been too busy doing other things than to go out on weekends or snag a boyfriend. She hasn’t even thought about the type of guy that she wanted to date.

Hm. Chung Ae thought. My ideal guy? Um, well, I don’t really care about looks but I want a nice guy. Definitely no douche bags. Oh, my ideal guy definitely has to know how to cook because I am one lazy girl and I refuse to cook every night. Singing would be nice too. I’d love it if my future guy would sing me to sleep every night.

Chung Ae then smiled inwardly to herself as she approached her apartment building. She ascended a flight of stairs since her unit was on the second floor while saying to herself, “Now I have an ideal guy in mind. But I don’t really have the time to date, so I guess I just have to wait for that one special guy to show up whenever.”

As she reached her and her sister’s unit, she pulled out her set of keys and unlocked the door. But just before she closed it, Chung Ae took one last glance at the dark sky that was dotted with a few stars and blew out a puff of air.

I know my guy is out there somewhere. Chung Ae thought to herself as she went inside her apartment and shut the door.