I remember once being a little boy, having to my daddy to the airport, and I would ask my mother, “Mom, where will Daddy go?”

And she would just ruffle my hair and smile at me, “Daddy’s going to travel the world.”

And as from that day, I swore to myself I would follow my daddy’s footsteps. To travel the world and see different cultures. To enrich my view about the world. To make my father proud.

And eventually, because of my hard work, I managed to reach my dreams. To travel the world and be like my father.

Well, not so much.

My father traveled the world because he was an archaeologist. I travel the world because I’m a travel writer.

Don’t get me wrong. I love my job. The pleasures of sharing my travel stories to other people and getting paid for it. Sharing the role with four amazing co-workers (and a scary but actually pretty warm-hearted boss). And the payment was good enough to pay for the life of my parents and definitely, to pay for my life.

But how I wish I could go on terrific adventures my father used to tell. How I wish I could be the one who secretly lurks at midnight, scavenging for bones or artifacts of the past. How I wish I could relive Daddy’s past adventures…

How I wish to have an adventure of my own.

***

“Aisssshhhhh!” snapped my coworker, Yixing, who happens to be seated right across from me. “A month until deadline and I still couldn’t decide which photos I can use for the PhotoJournalism section!”

Immediately, he threw his photos (which were in his hands) back to the table. Unfortunately for me, he threw too hard, so one of his photos landed on my face.

“Whoa!” I said, yelling. “Seriously, bro, you should get some anger-management lessons or something.”

Yixing took a deep breath before saying, “You’re right. I’m sorry, Lu.”

I nodded. “That’s okay. Stress due to deadline, isn’t it?”

He chuckled. “You know that, Lu. Everyone’s stressed. Well, except you, I see.”

“Are you kidding?” I said, chuckling back. “How can I be stressed on a job I love?”

Another coworker of mine, Jongdae, walked by and chuckled, “Typical Luhan. Always happy, always perky…”

“I am NOT perky!” I said, sticking my tongue out at Jongdae.

“See?” he said, pointing to the sight of me blowing him a raspberry. “Perky.”

I rolled my eyes before turning my attention back to the laptop, trying to think of my last trip to India. Ah, the Taj Mahal, those cute little markets all around New Delhi… A smile started to creep up to my face. I remember when I was a kid, Daddy used to tell me stories about New Delhi…

The editor-in-chief’s office door started to open, and my coworker/best friend, Minseok, came out.

“The boss wants you, Lu. He said he has a very important assignment for you.”

I chuckled. “Bring it!” I said, throwing my hands up in the air.

My four coworkers started to look at me like I was an alien.

“I told you guys—he’s perky,” laughed Jongdae.

Again, I blew a raspberry to him before strolling my way to the editor-in-chief’s office.

***

“Lu Han.”

The voice of my boss gave me the chills. Heck, he was younger than me by a few months, yet he could sit as editor-in-chief. Rumor has it that his father was a board member, and when they were voting for the new editor-in-chief, every board member voted for him—a result of his father’s bribery.

A rumor proven false. Even though his dad was a board member, he earned the rank by himself. He told us when he was in college; he also worked part-time in the magazine. And everyone admitted that our boss had exceptional writing skills.

“Yes, Boss.”

“Drop the formalities,” said my boss, sitting leisurely in his chair. “Don’t you know why you’re here?”

“To be honest, Kris, I don’t.”

He nodded. “I’ve got a special assignment for you.  You see, the Board doesn’t agree with the fact that I’m putting India and Bangladesh as a cover story.”

I gaped in shock. What the hell? Doesn’t the Board know how hard Minseok and I worked for the India-Bangladesh story? Doesn’t the Board know how much money did we spend in order to pay for the trip? It’s hard work, goodness, HARD WORK. And now it’s all for nothing?

“I know how you feel, though.” He said to me. “Don’t get me wrong. I argued with the Board like hell. But, you know how the Board is.”

I nodded, trying to hide the wrath forming on my face.

“They thought that what we did for the past two weeks was too… mainstream. If that sort of story became a cover story, we could lose our customers to other travel magazines. In fact, they wanted something… different.”

“Different as in?”

“Something eye-catching. As in, I don’t know… Paris.”

“Paris?” I said, looking at Kris in an Are-you-insane? glare. “That’s even more mainstream than India-Bangladesh.”

“Ah,” said Kris, “I haven’t finished yet. The Board wanted to know more about Paris’ other side.”

Seriously, the Board must be full of walnut-brained Stegosauruses. There is only one side to Paris. The Eiffel Tower, the Champs-Elysees, the Arc du Triomphe… Where the hell is Paris’ other side?

I explained this to Kris and he said, “You need to search for the answer yourself, Lu. As your boss, I assign you to search for Paris’ other side.”

“Me?” I said, squeaking the words out. “Why me, and why not Minseok? His articles are better than mine!”

“Minseok’s busy. His parents are ill, therefore, he must stay here to care for them. And besides, this is a chance for you to step out of Minseok’s shadow.”

I stood there, thinking about it. I actually hated the fact that I had to start over and search for a new story. But then again… a trip to Paris? All my years of traveling the world, I have never set foot on Paris. Never.

A small voice inside me yelled out, “Take the opportunity, Lu. You’ll never know what you see in Paris.”

Yet my mind screamed out, “Do you really want to go through all that hard work, Lu?”

So I stood there, leaving my heart and my mind to argue about my decision. In the end, my heart won, and I immediately said,

“I’ll take it, Kris.”

He smiled. “Wonderful.”

I nodded.

“What are you waiting for?” he smiled. “You still have visas to take care of, not to mention flight itineraries and hotel reservations. Go, go!”

I immediately ran off from the office and back to my desk.

***

“So? What did he say?” asked Zitao, one of my coworkers, as he, Jongdae, Yixing, Minseok and I had lunch at Starbucks. (The boss was, um, busy with boss stuff.)

“He said the Board literally threw all of our hard work to the trash and asked us if we can write about Paris,” I said, shrugging.

“PARIS?” yelled Zitao. “OMFG THAT IS SO COOL!”

“Now, now, this is not the time to fanboy, Tao,” said Yixing, his eyes never leaving the self-help book Minseok had gave him a few days ago. The Stress Management Handbook: Strategies for Health and Inner Peace, the title read. I couldn’t help but stifle a laugh.

“I wish I could come with you,” pouted Minseok. Being my best friend/coworker/partner/only person I can actually rely on, I know how it feels to have a part of you far away from you—a continent apart.

 “Don’t worry bro, I’ll send lots and lots of pictures for you when I get there,” I said, nodding vigorously at him.

Minseok smiled back.

“You’re going to Paris? That’s cool,” said Jongdae. “My brother’s also there—he’s on summer break, though, not on an assignment like you. If you could make time, can you please find him and tell him that Jongdae said hi?” He immediately took a piece of paper and jotted down some stuff before giving it to me.

While reading, I said, “Thanks, bro. I’ll make sure I pop in & give him your greetings.”

Zitao looked at the clock. “Uh, guys, almost 2 o’clock. Boss will be mad if he finds out we’re ditching work.”

All five of us immediately paid and ran away.

***

And for the past two weeks, I was busy (the boss too). I was settling visas, packing, preparing itineraries and reservations, learning the French language day and night until my coworkers tell me to stop. And then, came the day where I had to leave for Paris.

I had told my parents about it, and my parents were ecstatic.

“So, is my boy ready for Paris?” said my father on the phone that day.

“Definitely, Daddy. Another destination completed,” I said.

My father chuckled. “I told you, Son, dreams do come true. I remember you, a little boy, wishing to travel the world. Now here you are, preparing to take another step on the journey to travel the world.”

I laughed.

“Alright, Dad. Say hi to Mom for me. I’m afraid my taxi’s here. Love you, Dad!”

“Love you, Lu. Have a safe trip. Don’t mess around!”

I hung up and grabbed my suitcase. Then, I walked out of my apartment, ran downstairs into the busy streets, where my cab awaits.

“To the airport,” I said as I entered the cab.

“Yes, Sir,” said the driver.

As we drove to the airport, I unfolded out the paper Jongdae had given me two weeks ago. On that paper was the name of Jongdae’s brother and the address of his hotel. Jongdae had also written down his brother’s phone number.

I read it over and over again. Then, I folded the paper, slid it back into my pocket, and smiled.

I’m going to Paris. One of Europe’s most famous cities. And even better, I won’t be alone. I’ll be with someone—my coworker’s brother to be exact.

Someone named Kim Jongin.

***

A/N: First chapter update~! Alright, please comment down below, should you have anything to say. And please critic me if my grammar/my plot has some flaws in it.

Thank youuuu~!