I starred at the couple in front of the Starbucks counter. He had his hand in her left back pocket and she had hers on his back. They smiled as if they were very much in love and they probably were.

Then I thought back to my past relationship and how it ended up just like broken shards of glass. There was no love. I loved him, but he loved her. It’s funny how life throws jokes at you when you least expect them. It doesn’t matter. I got over it. Right? I think about more than I can forget and sometimes I wish it weren’t so. Memories filled with pain rushed through my veins, I couldn’t breathe. I closed my eyes and stared at the glass ceiling. I’m about to board in 30 min, how can I possibly think about that jerk right now. Ugh…sometimes I really hate myself.

“Passengers going on the 11:30 flight to Seoul may now board the plane.” I checked my bags one last time before I got up from my seat. From the corner of my eye, I gave one last look to shanghai and turned my head to the departing gate.

As I shuffled my way down the aisle to my seat, I found my seat already occupied by a young man in his early twenties. I double-checked my ticket to see if I have possibly misread my seat number.

“ 11A, nope I have the right number.”

“ Um excuse me sir, you’re sitting in my seat.” The young man didn’t budge, is he asleep?

I slowly nudged him on the shoulder and he opened his eyes.

“ Yes?”…His voice was crystal clear and it was my first time seeing an Asian guy with ocean blue eyes. Contacts maybe?

“ Hey, yea Umm..You’re sort of in my seat.” I quickly showed my ticket and pointed to the seat number “see?”

“Oh, my apologies, I sit at 11B sorry. Let me move over.”

“No problem.” I smiled.

This is not awkward at all….it’s my first time riding coach and I didn’t expect the seats to be this tight.

Well Dao Mingxin, you have one hell of a cute guy sitting next to you, but your mood just won’t lighten up at all. Why so tense? Why don’t you loosen up a bit for once and forget everything? Why….?

I tried looking out the window to shake off my “pms” mood……but it just wasn’t helping. No matter how hard I tried to think about something happy, the bitter reality would hit me like a ball made out of steel and all the happy images would fade away.

And that’s when I thought of my first Harry Potter book, the one my aunt Chen gave me when I was 7. I carry it with me whenever I leave home, hoping that it would keep me safe because aunt Chen was my guardian angel. She’s the reason I am here today and this book symbolizes her power and presence.

I looked at the worn out cover with tears in my eyes. I’ve read this book at least 1,000 times. I’ve memorized all the right lines because I wanted to use them one day when I do something big, something that will make my aunt proud.

“ Harry Potter fan?”

I turned to the cute guy next to me, is it common for strangers to make conversation?

“oh me?”…..wow Dao Mingxin…..who else would he be talking to.

“ haha, um well you are the only one holding a Harry Potter book.” He laughed.

“Right…..yea, my aunt was a big fan of J.K Rowling, so she buys me all the books.”

“I see, my ex-girlfriend was a big fan of Harry Potter. She’s the type that is against all types of evil.

“ oh really, I umm….I’m more of a Draco Malfoy fan…”

“ Draco Malfoy? The Antagonist?!”....he had a shocked look on his face and I can tell this conversation isn’t going very well.

“ Well yea, I mean I wouldn’t call him the “antagonist”. That’s kinda harsh. If you think about it, he’s a victim too. He’s under manipulation by not only the dark lord but his parents as well. He really isn’t a bad guy. By the 6^th book, you’ll be able to tell that he’s actually a really nice kid that has an inferior complex towards Harry which is completely understandable considering the fact that he’s the Slytherin prince and all…….”

I stopped….I can tell by the look of his eyes that he probably thinks I’m mental right now.

He looked at me like I had 10 heads and laughed at the top of his lungs. I was rather offended.

“ What’s so funny?” I asked with a glare.

“ Nothing, it’s just that you’re really cute. Completely different from the person I thought you would be like, that is by judging your outer appearance.” He winked and with that he gave himself away. So he’s a flirt huh….totally my type….unfortunately. Too bad I no longer go for his type anymore. A Shame really….

“Oh, well I just tend to have a lot to say when it comes to Harry Potter.” I mumbled.

“ I can see that.” He smiled at me which made him ten times more handsome than before.

“ By the way my name is Junpyo, Goo Junpyo. And you?”

“Goo Junpyo?, My name is Tambi, Park Tambi.” I gave him my fake name and watched him nod his head. That’s right Xinxin, today is the beginning of your new life. A secret life that will only help you get closer to the truth. Yet, this web of lies you are about to entangle yourself in will only push the real truth deeper and perhaps one day you’ll forget who you really are and why you’re really here, but then again I don’t even know why I’m here right now. How would I know why I came in the future?

I avoided Junpyo’s eyes, because somehow I felt guilty talking to him as someone that never really existed. Duplicity covered by pure hatred was never any good. I closed my eyes pretending to sleep and no matter how hard I tried to avoid dreaded thoughts, I couldn’t prevent them from ading my mind. No, Dao Mingxin, you’re not going to cry yourself to sleep again. Not on the plane. Not infront of other people. Forget everything, because today you stand as a new person. Someone without an ugly past, someone who has better days to come, and a time that belongs to me will surely come for me.