Chapter Twenty-Four

The Unexpected

Luhan was, undoubtedly, an amazing tour guide and an even better friend. 

The first few days that they were in Beijing, which happened to be Luhan's hometown, he took Sungmi to every well-known attraction in the area and told her detailed historical reports on all the places that they visited. No doubt Luhan was extremely familiar with all the topics that he discussed, which only made each visit ten times more interesting.

Tian'anmen Square was their first stop, which was beyond exciting for a first-time tourist like Sungmi. Luhan had picked her up early in the morning from the hotel that she was staying in to attend the national flag raising ceremony conducted by uniformed troops. For her, that had been quite a new experience. 

"Tian'anmen Square is the largest city square in the world," Luhan explained, "and people usually come here for public celebrations or gatherings. It was initially called Chengtianmen, which means to bear the edict and divine power of heaven itself, which the emperor, who used this gate, was believed to. When they finally changed the name, which happened in the eighth year of Emperor Shunzhi's administration, the gate was renovated and renamed Tian'anmen, which means 'the Gate of Heavenly Peace'. All the important events that happened here: the enthronement of an emperor, imperial weddings, the famous 'Imperial Edict issued by the Golden Phoenix', the worship of Heaven and Earth, and etc., have involved passing through this gate." 

Sungmi felt like she had learned an entire history of the square in under a minute with Luhan's thorough overview. Throughout the next several days, the two of them visited the National Museum of China, the Mausoleum of Mao Zedong, and the famous Forbidden City. 

"Here," Luhan began as they walked across the palace courtyard, "is the Forbidden City, which I'm sure you've heard of countless times. It is situated at the very heart of Beijing and was home to 24 emperors of both the Ming and the Qing Dynasties. The construction of the grand palace started in the fourth year of the Emperor Yongle of the Ming Dynasty, and went from about 1406 to 1420. Back then, the emperor was said to be the Son of Heaven with all of heaven's supreme power bestowed upon him, which is why the emperor's residence on earth was built as a replica of the Purple Palace where God was thought to live up in heaven."

Sungmi nodded in understanding, gazing up in awe at the magnificent structure before her that was designed in vibrant red and orange under the hot, blazing afternoon sun. The sheer size and prodigiousness of the buildings embodied thousands of years of tradition and ancient culture behind its walls, and as she and Luhan traveled across the halls and inner palaces of the Forbidden City, Sungmi was able to appreciate the overwhelming amount of insight they offered her. 

On another day, the two of them visited the Summer Palace, said to be the best preserved imperial garden in the world, and Sungmi had to admit this place was her favorite. The arched bridges, pretty promenades, and decorated corridors led the awestruck visitors through ever-changing views of beautiful scenery and lavish gardens. She and Luhan spent almost a full day there, as Sungmi was captivated by every sight that she saw and wandered aimlessly around to enjoy the different buildings and courtyards, taking in each vantage view with the utmost pleasure. 

Even though Sungmi's feet felt like crumbling by the end of each day of touring, it was all worth it. Not only had she been able to learn so much history and gain tons of insight on her adventure, she had also found an interest outside of boredom, eating, and Kai. Before this trip, Sungmi didn't realize how flat and static her life had been, with the exception of her former friend, who was no longer there. Her life had been pointless and undriven by any goal, and though she had only been taking the requisite classes at her university, now she knew what she wanted to major in and study. 

History. Sungmi definitely wouldn't mind being a historian. 

All the places that she visited were just so awe-inspiring and exhilarating, even to the point where she could stay under the flaming 12 o'clock sun and not mind as long as her surroundings were encaptivating. Luhan's background reports were always so interesting to hear, and they intrigued her curiosity about every miniscule detail of the history of China and the reason behind a specific design or architecture. 

Sungmi had finally found a purpose for her life, and for the first time, she was glad that her decision wasn't an outcome of somebody else's choices or based off of one single person alone. Namely, someone by the name of 'Kai'. 

That wasn't to say she didn't miss him, of course. Sungmi, no doubt, still longed for him deeply with all of her heart and wistfully dreamed of their never-coming reconciliation. In fact, she even prayed that in another lifetime, she would be able to meet him and fall in love in the exact same way, except that she would correct her fatal mistake and tell him early on that she was a woman. It was just too bad that in this lifetime, that wasn't the case, which was why she had to move on no matter how hard it was to do so. She had to live her own life, achieve her own goals, and do something on her own for once. 

And that definitely meant starting out on a clean slate, studying history and the social sciences, and building up her low self-esteem. Thankfully, Luhan was there to help her with that, including her frequently absent, but still supportive, brother. 

Luhan, however, had other plans. 

"So, Sungmi, I have this one friend..." he started. They were walking along the Wangfujing Shopping Street, one of the most famous shopping streets in all of China, which was a beehive of pedestrian activity even during the hot day. Large upscale shopping malls were located at the end of the long street, which was every shopper's paradise, filled with shops selling paintings and traditional Chinese arts and crafts, trendy boutiques and upscale chain stores as well as exquisite restaurants. 

"Yes?" Sungmi asked. 

Luhan scratched the back of his neck, but he hid a secret smile. "I told him about you and set you guys up on a blind date, for...tonight." 

"Tonight?!"

Sungmi wasn't mad, just shocked. Luhan should've told her about this before dumping it on her the day of the event. She wasn't even sure she was capable of going on a blind date with some stranger, since her emotional pain was still an open wound that needed to heal. Why was Luhan doing this? 

Sungmi shook her head at him. "Luhan, you know I'm not ready..." 

His resolve didn't budge. "Calm on, Sungmi, it's not like I'm asking you to be his girlfriend. You're in a different country, in a different surrounding, breathing different air, so why not meet some different people?"

And this was exactly why she never won any arguments when Luhan opened his mouth. 

Sungmi tried another tactic. "Why don't you go on a date with me?" This question wasn't even uncomfortable for her to phrase, since she and Luhan were definitely great buddies already. If he agreed to it, then she would be able to get out of a possibly awkward dinner arrangement. 

However, Luhan saw right through her. "Nope," he said with a shake of the head. "I'm going to visit my grandma tonight, and I probably won't be coming back until tomorrow afternoon or something. I can assure you my friend Kris is completely trustworthy and friendly, and he knows how to speak Korean, too. He'll even take you back to the hotel if you ask him, and he's really excited to meet you."

Sungmi really wanted to flip him a bird sign at the moment for putting her in such an unexpected situation, but when Luhan flashed her a bright smile with his eyes folded into crescents, she couldn't find herself to say no. 

Sungmi let out a sigh and looked down at her feet as her steps began to falter behind the other male. "Luhan, why are you doing this to me?" 

Unbeknownst to her, Luhan was holding back a cheesy grin. He pressed his lips inward to keep from laughing. "Because I'm sure you're tired of me already, and even as much as I love you, Sungmi, I'm tired of seeing you, too. Like I said, Kris is extremely nice, so don't even worry about him." 

"Alright, I guess..."

That was all Luhan needed. He grabbed her arm and took her into one of the side shops. "Now we have to get you all done up for this date and make him faint, okay?" He gave her a coy wink. 

Sungmi nodded hesitantly. She thought Luhan was talking about Kris.

But he wasn't. 

"Yo yo yo, what's up Kreaseee?" Luhan said into his phone in English as he stood outside the make-up store. 

"Luhan, how many times have I told you that your attempts at English are absolutely laughable?" Kris responded with a chuckle. 

"Yo, I don't know man," Luhan replied, then switched to Mandarin. "I'm not a man of many heritages like you."

"Okay, okay, whatever. So what is this call for?" 

"Remember the plan I told you about? The date is tonight, so don't forget." 

The other male let out an exasperated sigh. "Yes, you've reminded me every single day for the past week. I know. And you know what I think? You need to get yourself a girlfriend." 

Luhan huffed indignantly. "Hey, being a Cupid isn't a bad thing. I'm living the good life as a bachelor, so there is no need for a girlfriend...yet." 

"Whatever you say. But I'm telling you, if this entire plan backfires because you decided to into somebody else's love life, don't stop me from telling you 'I told you so'." 

Luhan could only smile. Knowing Kai's hot-headed nature, the only fire that anybody would be seeing would be coming out of that idiot's nose and ears. "Don't worry, that won't be happening," he said. "You remember what restaurant it was, right?" 

He had given Kris an address card of the place where they would be dining, after sneaking the restaurant name from Sungmin during one of their conversations. Sungmin hadn't thought too much about it when Luhan had asked him for a dining recommendation, preferably one where Kim Jongin and his guests would be attending on a very specific day at a very specific time (something that the entire company supposedly knew). Apparently, for some reason, Kai hadn't made a complete reservation of the place, which would've been the norm, and had chosen to just hold the meeting in the VIP room. 

And that was where his friend, Kris, came in. With his rich and extravagant ways, Kris had complete access to the VIP room, which put all the pieces of Luhan's plan together perfectly. 

Kris chuckled through the phone