Two years seemed liked a blink of an eye especially for Song Mino whose popularity had risen up and whose status in the entertainment circle had climbed to the ranks. He was still trying to carve a name of his own in the modeling world in New York when he and Park Sandara first met.  Although he was under a known modeling agency at that time, theirs was a pool of talent where competition was very evident among them.  A few years back, he had been scouted by an agent at a fashion boutique while he was buying some clothes. The agent easily noticed him for his height and fashionably good looking appearance. He was asked to try out on the audition and luckily he got hired even when he didn’t have any modeling experience. He appeared for some ads on magazines and later on he landed a contract in one of the modeling agencies in New York.  At that time he wasn’t even serious about modeling, he was there for the fun. Later on, he got used to posing for the camera and appearing on the runway and he enjoyed it. He never knew it would be the career that he’d be taking on.

When he first met her in New York, he didn’t know she was a big star back in Korea. It wasn’t surprising though since he didn’t keep up with Korean entertainment news simply because he didn’t want to hear about his father’s business. Theirs was a simple and rather an ordinary meeting.

 He was sitting quietly inside a café one afternoon, killing time drinking his latte when he heard someone talking in their native Korean language. Although he was used to hearing his fellowmen talking in Korean in the U.S, he was still thrilled to hear them talking in public. And he was more thrilled to hear her cursed in Korean as she was busy talking to someone on the phone. When she was done on the phone that was the time she stood up to take her order from the counter. His eyes followed her as she took her coffee and noticed that she was casually yet stylishly dressed.

When Dara was about to go back to her seat, a middle aged couple had already occupied the seats. “Great” she muttered with sarcasm but still managed to force a smile. So she took the remaining empty seat a few meters from Mino and silently drank her coffee while watching the passersby on the streets behind the café’s glass wall. And that gave him the advantage to secretly stare at her and marvel how she looked beautiful and cute at the same time. So he took his pencil out and journal and started sketching with her as a model. After twenty minutes had passed and showing no signs of a possible company (since she had not been checking the time or her phone), he concluded that she was there alone and not waiting for anyone. So he took the initiative to approach her and ask if he could sit next to her. Such was a bold approach for a guy like Song Mino. But he was a people person and when he liked someone, he was the type to be upfront about it. It’s not that he liked to play around, it’s just that he liked to have some fun once in a while. Sure he did date other girls back at Uni but it’s not like he was that serious.

“Do you mind?” he asked pointing at the seat next to her. She was startled but after a few seconds she replied. “Ah…Yeah. Sure” she replied with a bit of hesitation while he took the seat.

“I heard you talking on the phone and knew you were a Korean” he started to make a conversation. “I mean, I wasn’t eavesdropping or anything, I didn’t even hear the entire conversation” he said trying to defend his action”

“Oh!” she exclaimed. She didn’t know what to say in return.

“Where in Korea are you from?” he asked her.

She was taken aback from his question. Not that she was expecting him to know or recognize her but he doesn’t know him and striking up a conversation with a stranger wasn’t her thing. But in the end, she decided to answer his question knowing that this guy probably doesn’t know her as a celebrity in Korea or have no idea who she really is. If he knew , he’d probably be asking the usual questions casual fans or people abroad usually asked of her like “You’re Sandara Park, right?” and when she would confirm it, they’ll ask for photo op or her signature. But Song Mino didn’t do anything similar to those although she knew that he’s hitting on her and had been looking at her earlier. So she decided to play along.

“Busan” she answered then asked “Where are you from?”

“Gangnam”  he replied.

“Must be rich huh?” she was waiting for a confirmation rather than a denial.

“Not as rich as you are” he answered jokingly.

“What makes you think I am?” she retorted.

“For a casual outfit, what you’re wearing costs, say, twenty thousand bucks. If that’s not rich, I don’t know what it is” Judging from her Brent Black cap, Channel scarf, Givenchy sweatshirt and jeans, and Yeezy sneakers it’s easy to notice that she’s loaded.

“What if I bought it at the thrift shop?”

“No, you didn’t” he retorted back.

“And why is that?”

“That looks brand new. It’s not even out yet. “

She was astounded that he knew about it and he can’t help but ask “Are you some kind of a fashion guru or something?” She realized that he was from Gangnam so probably he’s a rich kid who probably loves fashion.

“No, I’m not. But my work is somewhat related to that though.” He said as a matter-of-factly.

“Oh!” she exclaimed”

They were silent for a few minutes, not talking about anything but just them staring and watching at the people passing by. After a few more minutes, they started talking and immersed in a conversation just about anything for more than an hour. And it was clear that Song Mino was smitten with Sandara Park that when it was time to say goodbye, he didn’t hesitate to ask her if she can see him again.

“I..don’t think that’s a good idea” she said truthfully.

He was quite disappointed but that didn’t stop him. “Maybe we can hang out sometime?”

“I don’t think so”

“Okay. Then maybe I can have your number or email or Facebook. I’m sure you have one.” He said sounding confident.

“I do but I wouldn’t give it to you” she answered back. “Do you do this to every girl you meet?”

“Well, you’re definitely not the first but I’m sure you wouldn’t mind that, would you?”

Sandara Park laughed at Song Minho’s honesty. She thought of him as a boy who easily gets away with girls and who easily makes them like him. “He sure has skills” she thought.

“I usually don’t. But now I do” she decided to play along while she grabbed her Marc Jacobs bag and walked her way outside the café with him tagging along.

“Then can I walk you back to your house or apartment? Where are you staying by the way?”  He asked while she was standing near the street waiting for a cab.

“Look. I’m sure you’ve met a lot of girls out there and I’m sure they’ll give you their numbers. Why don’t you just go out with them? It’s easy. Problem solved.” She was starting to get irate. She didn’t want to be mean but she didn’t really have time for dating or any interest as of the moment. She simply wanted to get away, away from everything.

“They’re not you”

“Nice try” she said sarcastically and then faked a smile.

She saw a cab approaching and she frantically hailed it. When it stopped, she asked the cab driver to give her a minute or two so she can finish her conversation w/ him.

“Then if I see you again in the future, will you go out with me by then?” he was still hopeful.

“No” she said answered right away. “But you can always try”

She came close to him and gave him a sweet kiss on his check.

“Thank you and goodnight!” she told him before she took off.

Song Minho stood there disappointed at himself while he was staring at the cab as it receded into the distance.

And that’s when he realized that in that almost two-hour conversation that they had, he forgot to ask her name.

“Sh*t” he can only sigh with disappointment.

What are the odds of meeting the same stranger twice within one’s lifetime?

In Song Minho’s case, it was extremely close to zero.

But lady luck had been by his side.