“I’m sorry!” his voice rings in my ear. He steps away from me, and I held onto his arm for balance. When I look up, I see the same face as the guy I saw at the bus stop earlier. “Oh! It’s you!” he exclaims, showing me his dimples. “I’m sorry, but I’m really late. I’ve got a wedding to go to and I can’t find the stupid entrance,” he exclaims, exasperated. “I’ll see you around and I’m sorry again for bumping into you!” He shouts, leaving the scene. He heads towards the wrong direction and I found myself feeling sorry for him.

Sighing, I took a deep breath and shouted, “Hey!” He turns around, confused. I walk to him and pointed to other direction. “It’s this way.” He grins, flashing his dimples again.

“Thanks,” he says, “I’ve got a lovely sense of direction.” I chuckle at his remark. Then, he stops and looks at me differently. “Hey, are we going to the same wedding?” He looks at me up and down and examines the identical color of my dress and the color of his tie. He looks at me, waiting for an answer. However, I didn’t know what to say and I began panicking in the inside. I couldn’t just tell him that I’m running away from my sister and best friend’s wedding! After a long moment of silence, he laughs awkwardly. “Damn, so many weird things are happening to me lately. Sorry, I must’ve asked such a stupid question. You look like… you’re going somewhere else” he laughs. “Anyway, I’ll see you around…again.” He leaves me behind to go to the church’s entrance. I felt uneasy inside me as I watched his retreating figure, as if I was no longer protected.

Just when he pulls on the door handle, I decide to speak up. “Wait!” He looks up again to see me. He raises his eyebrow, waiting for me to explain. “I’m going to the same wedding,” I say. The smile appears again on his face and he laughs.

“Yeah, I thought so,” he grins. I stare at him, feeling uncomfortable. He notices the awkward atmosphere and tries to shrug it off. “Don’t worry, I’m not judging you. There must be a reason why you’re running away right?” I bit my bottom lip, not knowing how to respond.

“I uhh…” I begin to stammer. All of a sudden, I felt a strong grasp around my arm. I look up to see his smiling face.

“Come on! We’re both late!” he chirps. He drags me along, pulling me inside the church.

 He lets go, and I walk in with him following my heels. Inside were already a bunch of people. Partners were already lined up for the procession. I spot my mom nearby and she sees me too. I cough, feeling uneasy for the upcoming scolding. The guy from earlier looks at me, and I forgot he was even there.

“I’m fine,” I tell him and he goes back to searching the crowd. My mom is walking closer now and I look at the guy beside me. He was walking away from me, towards his friends, making me feel all the more scared. With him not around, my mom will give me a more intense beating.

“Lee Jieun!” my calls me by the full name, increasing my anxiety. She grabs my arm as soon as she gets near me. She leans into my ear and hisses, “You’re lucky we need to start now. Go follow the line-up!” I nod obediently and go where she tells me to. I shifted uncomfortably in the line as I noticed I was the only one without a partner. I look at my mom urgently and she just nods her head, making me confused. Then, I feel someone pat me from behind and I instantly turn. It was the guy from earlier. He holds out his arm for me and I decide to link my arm with his.

“I’m lucky that you decided to come,” he whispers in my ear. I quickly look at him, unsure of what he was implying. He was looking ahead with a smile on his face. I was just about to demand him to explain when he nudges his elbow. “We’re up,” he says, not bothering to look at me. With a smile still on his face, he gestures me forward and I move my eyes away from him and to the altar. 

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