Cha Eun Sang pushed her luggage trolley through the gates of the arrival area of Incheon Airport. She had just traveled thousands of miles for 14 hours but she did not feel exhausted at all.

I’m home! Eun Sang thought excitedly. Even the spring morning smells different here, she thought happily to herself.

It has been nearly seven years since that winter that she left South Korea the year after graduating from Jaeguk High School. In those seven years, she had broken up with her first boyfriend, Kim Tan, had moved to Boston with her mother to live with her sister who had opened up a Korean restaurant, earned a degree in Broadcast Journalism from Boston College, and through much practice, learned fluent English without a trace of any accent.

She came back to South Korea after landing a job at a major cable news network as an anchor. But aside from the job, Eun Sang was most excited about seeing her friends again. And she spotted them easily among the crowd of waiting people at the arrival section.

Not seeing them would be impossible considering there were three of them and they were holding up an over-sized sign bearing the words “Welcome home news anchor Cha Eun Sang!!!” in vibrant purple.

“Eun Sang-ah!!! Welcome home!” Lee Bo Na squealed loudly as she ran towards Eun Sang and gave her a big hug. Bo Na has remained as pretty and bubbly as ever through the years.

“Yah, Lee Bo Na, don’t hog her to yourself!” Yoon Chang Young chided. She and Chan Young had seen each other constantly since they both lived in Boston for years.

Chan Young had gotten in to Harvard University and he even worked part time with Eun Sang at her sister’s Korean restaurant. Bo Na had visited them frequently, too, and to Eun Sang’s surprise, the girl she had once vehemently hated became her close friend.

“Chan Young-ah! I missed you!” Eun Sang said as she pulled away from Bo Na and gave her best friend a warm hug. Chan Young came back immediately to Korea after earning his master’s degree (which he earned just three terms after earning his undergrad diploma!) and now works for a major game company as a game designer.

“Yah, our Eun Sang-ie is so used to western greetings now,” Lee Hyo Shin said teasingly. Eun Sang had not seen her Hyo Shin sunbae since the day he had given her his collection of reviewers for the college entrance exams and left her with a cryptic message. Later on she found out he had joined the military in order to avoid his parents’ controlling hands.

“Sunbae! How are you!” Eun Sang shouted as she gave the tall man an equally warm hug. “You know what they say, ‘when in Rome, do as the Romans’ do,” Eun Sang added after pulling away from the hug.

A girl with short hair and big sunglasses standing behind Hyo Shin laughed. “Ya, Cha Eun Sang, you’re not in Rome, you know!” The girl snapped before taking off her sunglasses. Eun Sang’s eyes grew big as she recognized the girl standing before her.

“Yoo Rachel?” Eun Sang asked.

“Uh, Bo Na told me you were arriving today and Rachel and I were going to meet with some wedding coordinators today so we decided to come and welcome you back,” Hyo Shin said as he wrapped an arm around Rachel’s waist.

It took a few seconds for Eun Sang to process the information. “You’re getting married? To Rachel? Wow! Bo Na told me you were engaged but she didn’t tell me to whom,” Eun Sang said, her jaw evidently dropping in her surprise.

Everyone in school knew that Eun Sang and Rachel’s relationship went off on a bad start and the events that followed complicated things further. But Eun Sang had moved on from her relationship with Kim Tan, and obviously, Rachel had, too.

“Sorry if I’m crashing this wonderful reunion,” Rachel said stiffly. She still hasn’t changed, Eun Sang thought, suppressing the urge to laugh out loud.

“Yah, what’s with the cold greeting? It’s very nice to see you!” Eun Sang said before she pounced on the girl and gave her a hug. “And congratulations! Don’t forget to invite me to your wedding!”