Chapter 5: A chat away

“WAKE UP! WAKE UP! WAKE—”

I grunted with the sound of my alarm. Imagine a rooster yelling you to wake up in a human high-pitched voice—that’s how annoying it was. I barely able to sleep last night which is not actually last night, it’s more like a few hours ago.

Normally, I’m supposed to have bad headaches and deep eye bags but instead, I suddenly felt my lips curving into a goofy smile. I buried my face into my fluffy pillow and finally shriek my heart out. Oh gosh! My heart is still beating in pure constant jumpy track.

I heard my phone vibrate. My heart jumped again and my face looks as stupid as the Grinch giddy face. I don’t even know if the Grinch feels giddy at all. It was Kai, of course.

He deliberately changed his name in my phone as "Chad" for no reason. I really don't know why but I kept it like this. 

The time difference is crazy. We’ve been hanging around in this long distance relationship for a month now. I didn’t really know that he lives half-a-world away from here. We’re basically together all the time roaming around the city capital, hunting awesome places for his photography then I took away my judgment from before like he might be a mad-photographer-taking--pictures.

We took loads of pictures together too and they’re hanging everywhere here in my room. We found the Mausoleum where the Vietnamese kept Ho Chi Minh’s, their hero, body—totally awesome and patriotic. Though they didn’t permit us to take pictures of his preserved body—that would be really creepy anyway.

We also met a few couples who danced to our little escapade. It was really unbelievable that with that too cheesy-too good to be true manner, there’s beautiful couples appreciating it.

The first couples we met are from South Africa and Argentina touring around Asia. There are also Asian couples like Chinese, Koreans, Japanese and even Filipinos. couples were also glad to have joined us.

I don’t know but that day, I feel so special for the first time. I feel like the people around me doesn’t care if I have a colony of pimple scars on my cheeks and my hair tangled everywhere—they just really adored that little dancing confession.

“Come on bro...” the man from Argentina high-fived with Kai. “That was amazing! You just met her?”

Kai nod in enthusiasm. His girlfriend on the other hand is telling me some good advice with my acne scars.

“That is love, man. That was what I’ve felt when I met her.” He looked at her eyes and she on his. There is this extreme intensity on their faces like they want to wildly passionately kiss each other. I was so lost in thought with the couple in front of us so Kai wrapped his hands on my waist and slowly, so slowly, back hugging me. I felt him kiss my head lightly.

A few more hours later, I told Kai that I needed to get back to my University before the last train leaves.

He doesn’t want me to go, of course. So he asked me if I could stay at his hotel for a week.

My face flushed. My knees felt weak yet I didn’t exactly know if there was enough blood to sustain my face.

He grinned. “In a different room, miss.”

Gosh! That wide perfect grin makes my face go redder.

However, my best problem that time was how do I get clothes if I were to stay here for a week so before the end of our first meeting, he insisted to come back home with me to get few things. He kinda wants to explore more, he said.

My room was so blank that day but students are everywhere wondering who he might be—new face, new man and probably, in their thinking, my rebound that I can take advantage of.

He didn’t really bother about that instead he closed the door and jump right into the couch.

“Sulli, do you mind if I turn on the TV?” he shouted mildly since I was in my bedroom. I don’t want people to think that we’re doing “something” not to mention some of my neighbours were my former teachers so I’m moving really fast. As soon as I finish packing, we’re going.

“Sulli...” Kai suddenly knocked that made me jump.

“Hm?” I responded.

He’s grinning. Oh crap! This can’t be good. In the back of my mind, I’m actually doing the face-palm I’m-so-nervous thing. Geezz! And my hormones are running wild.

“Maybe you might want to stay here for tonight and take a rest?” he asked. “We’re both tired, don’t you think?”

I looked at him. Still nervous, I nod and tried to even my voice. “Up to you.”

“Well, that sounded awkward.” He chuckles.

I easily grabbed a pillow and threw at him. “Hey! That’s mean!” I said with my comfortable irritated voice.

He started laughing.

I was about the turn to him and tell him whatever comes out of my mouth but I felt his heavy warm body wrapped me from the back. He put his head on my shoulder and lightly kissed me on the cheek.

“Hey I won’t do anything stupid, so chill.” He said huskily.

“I’m not scared.” I replied softly. “I’m just concerned how people will react to this. You see, people’s thoughts can be misleading.”

He lifted his head and turned me to him. He grabbed my face with his warm, slightly rough palm. “That doesn’t matter. I won’t do anything to you unless you ask for it.”

He grinned wider followed by a wink then he let go. He went out of the room and the next thing I know is he’s in the kitchen and he’s making a fairly mouth-watering smell.

This apartment is small but it rather looks like a cheap condominium with a very fine kitchen—my favorite of the room. We have a breakfast bar with high wooden stool. I sat there looking at him while cooking. He looks at me every after a minute or two then he smirks.

“Why do I have this handsome man on my kitchen?” I thought to myself.

“Eat up!” He exclaimed while serving me a bowl of fluffy scrambled egg with mushroom, brocolli and potato, a couple of toast, and a glass of milk.

I couldn’t help but to smile wider and chuckle. “Really? A breakfast?” I joked. “And what do you call this one, egg salad?”

So suddenly, he pouted while his eyes glaring at me.

I laugh. “Oh come on! I was just kidding. Come here, let’s eat.”

“Excuse me but that’s the only thing I found on your fridge.” He rolled his eyes. “You might as well go to the market for restocking.”

I almost choke with that. “Are you really mad, Kai?” I chuckled. “I was just kidding”

After a minute of not talking, he finally sat and ate with me.

I offended him? Really? How could I be so stupid?

So I lean to him and plant a kiss on his cheeks.

***

That night was the most awkward thing that happened in my life. I didn’t know what to do. He refused to sleep in Jiyoung’s old room and he doesn’t want to sleep in the couch either so I had to argue with him that I couldn’t sleep on the same bed with a guy. But a few hours later, I found myself cuddling next to him in my bed.

We’re doing nothing; we’re just talking things while waiting to get sleepy. Though, my mind is widely awake. This is my first time and for bloody sake, I just met him.

I found out that they migrated to London after his parents settled for a job. His father is half-Spanish, half-British and his mom is half-Spanish, half-Filipina. He said they were cabin crews for Qatar Airways for a long time, and then finally decided to stay in one place and build a family. Apparently, the trip today was their last trip before working on this big travelling agency in London purely office works instead of going around. The flight was half-day delayed so they were able to roam at least a bit in the city but instead of finding other good places, his parents admired the sketches and decided to have one.

Following their leads, he’s currently enrolled in a Special Aviation Academy and the reason he was here is basically to have a long distance flight experience considered as “study tour” just to be ready for his own flying classes and all. Dancing is just an extracurricular for his life. He and his crew arrived in Vietnam a week before his parents to complete his dancing seminars but he said he might quit dancing after the end of this year.

He’s got a younger brother and an older sister back home, too and his real name is Kai Jong In Castiello.

Ohh.. y!

“That’s suppose to be Castillo, you know? My surname. I didn’t know how my gradpa changed it. But he said that his great-great grandfather worked in a huge castle in France for a very long time enough for him to adapt the Castillo into Castiello.”

I was just listening to him that night. I also found out that the reason he decided to get left behind by his parents is not only to find me but to cast off the pain his ex-girlfriend left him.

For some reason I felt a pang of jealousy and pain in my heart but I tried to keep it out of my mind. It’s not like he’s so into me.

But our little dancing escapade at the city was so amazing. I frown. But he didn’t seem to notice that. He continued talking.

“We were 3 years together. She was a dancer too. She’s beautiful with her pixie blonde hair and her lips are like thin paper sheets. We met on a dancing competition. We were happy but she cheated on me. I found out she’s actually sleeping with my crew buddy then we broke up for like 5 months ago now.”

I didn’t intend it but I couldn’t stop it too. I cleared my throat so loud as if telling him to stop. And he did.

Instead, he dab his lips on my forehead. It wasn’t a kiss. It was too light to be a kiss but somehow, it made me calm.

***

That one week made a huge difference in my life. Everything now seems so light—no problems, no complications, no bad days, and no Jiyoung-Kris-England Scholarship issues. The only thing we keep working at is the time zone. London is like 7 hours behind from here but we have never missed a day without Skype. We keep going rounds, sometimes he’s night-or-dawn shift and I’m morning-or-afternoon and sometimes, the other way around. It’s working. We’re happy. I wake up, he sleeps. It’s not really affecting our schools; in fact, we’re more alive than usual.

But how long is this gonna be? Doesn’t really matter.

I picked up my phone and typed,

*To be continued

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Hi guys! Everything so going to soooo crazy.

Can Sulli and Kai survive their long distance relationship? Find out on the next chapters.

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See you until the end. <3

-Kai Mai