I can remember the first time I met him as if it was yesterday. I remember seeing his face and hearing his voice. I'd never seen anyone like him before. In the depths of my heart, I could tell - I could feel - that he was special.

It was 8:00pm on a Friday. My friend and fellow trainee, Eun Seo, had arranged a small gathering with a few trainees from other companies. It was the one day in months that I had time off - even if just for a couple of hours. Eun Seo kept in contact with many trainees in the area, and was friends with most of them. I didn't know any of these people, since I spent nearly every waking hour of my time studying for school and working on my dance and vocals at the SM trainee practice room. There was no time for socialising.

I was almost feeling a little reluctant as Eun Seo tugged on my hand and led me into the little restaurant. It was quiet inside, with only a couple of old ahjussi sitting in one corner. There was a long table at the back of the restaurant marked as "reserved," and Eun Seo led me over to it.

The YG trainees arrived first. There were a lot of them, mostly guys, and I could tell they were quite full of themselves. I started to fidget with my hands, awkwardly. I don't really hold up well in social situations, and I was planning on letting Eun Seo do most of the talking.

We all sat down, and they immediately started talking about how positive they were that they were going to debut soon. A few of my fellow SM trainees came in at that point, and then an argument started up between them all on who had been training the longest, and who deserved to debut first, and which company was better.

Two other guys joined our table shortly after, and sat across from me and Eun Seo. We all welcomed them, before Mr. YG continued his debate. Apparently they were Pledis trainees.

It was at that moment that I felt my mind go blank, and my heart beat a little faster.

Eun Seo had told me a couple of trainees from Pledis would show up. I heard they were making some news as part of one of Pledis' little projects, and they were set to debut soon. I was surprised to see one of the boys wasn't Korean - he looked and sounded very American, and was young too. He introduced himself as Hansol, and politely bowed his head. He had messy, curly hair, parted in the middle, and a big grin.

The other boy was obviously very shy and quiet, but introduced himself straight after as Jisoo. He hid behind his fringe a little, his calm eyes peering out at his surroundings. The two trainees sat down on the other side of the table, next to the YG guys, and soon became attentive and joined in with the conversation.

I couldn't help but notice that Jisoo looked a little nervous. He shot a quick glance at me, smiled, and shyly looked away again.

It was at that point that something in me cracked. Not in a bad way - but like something had gently taken hold of my heart, and then proceeded to persistently tug it across the table. A sudden realisation came over me.

He was actually the most beautiful person I'd ever laid my eyes on. Ever.

Unable to help myself, I found myself staring at him. Amy what are you doing? He's just another trainee. I mentally brought myself back to reality as my mind started drifting away. Still, I couldn't focus on any of the conversation going on, all I could do was fight the urge to stare at him, and try to remain casual. Why is my heart racing this fast? You don't even know him.

Our ramen was served, and it smelled delicious. Suddenly, even trying to casually hold my chopsticks became difficult. I usually gulp down my food. My favorite part of the day is when food hits my stomach, but now I was monitoring every mouthful I took, as if a million cameras were suddenly on me.

I secretly glance up at him. His head was bent over his bowl, and he was speedily eating his ramen. Out of nowhere, I suppress a giggle. His face reminds me of a kitten!

He suddenly looked up. My eyes widened, and I quickly faced my bowl again.

Amy. You've got to snap out of this.

I was the last one to finish my food, which was a first, although I tried to eat it as fast as I could. YG guy leaned back and patted his stomach, and we all felt pretty contented after filling ourselves.

Eun Seo strikes up some conversation. "So, guys," she says. "Where do you all come from?"

Oh, man. Question time. Now I'd be required to speak, and in a not-high-pitched-voice, somehow. The war I was having - trying to keep my gaze away from the figure opposite me - was still ongoing, and it was starting to frustrate me.

The YG guys spoke up first. They were all Korean, obviously. They hailed from Busan, Seoul, and Incheon. We all took it in turns around the table, stating where we came from, and saying a little bit about our hometowns. Hansol's turn came after the YG trainees, and everyone curiously turned to him. He was obviously not Asian, and this naturally sparked off curiosity in everybody.

"I'm from New York," he said, smoothly. Everyone gaped at him.

"No way! You speak Korean so well..."

"Jinja? That's so cool..."

I was surprised, and happy, too. A fellow American! We should have a chat in English after this. It had been a long time since I'd been able to use the language of my home country.

"My family and I moved to Korea when I was 5. My mom can't speak Korean very well, so I always speak English with her," he explained. His voice was patient, but I could tell he'd had to explain his background many times. He turned to Jisoo, and Jisoo fiddled with his hands, nervously.

"I'm from LA," he said, in his slow, gentle voice.

... LA? As in, Los Angeles?

"You're both American?" Eun Seo asked. "How did you become trainees?"

"We were street-casted," they both said, simultaneously.

"Los Angeles?" I echoed.

Jisoo turned to you, and nodded his head. "Yeah..."

"Me too," I said, in disbelief.

"Really?" He says. His voice is soft, but he sounds so surprised.

"Yeah!" His smile is leaving my thoughts blank. I was also aware I now held the attention of the table, and my cheeks started warming up.

"Where in LA?" He asks, smiling. "I'm from downtown."

"Oh, I'm from nowhere near there," I laugh, awkwardly. My cheeks were burning now.

"How did you join SM?" Hansol asked.

"I auditioned through the casting system," I answered.

"How long have you been training for?" Jisoo asked, softly.

"For about four years, now," I replied, and a few people along the table exhaled in admiration.

"Wow, you must be nearing your finale soon," Hansol grinned.

"Ah, I wouldn't be so sure about that," I laughed, awkwardly. "My fellow trainees here are set to debut first."

"Oh, I'm sure you'll debut soon," Jisoo smiled, then shyly looked away.

"Hey," Hansol suddenly switched into English. "We're all American here. You can call us Vernon and Joshua." Jisoo nodded in agreement.

"Awesome," I grinned. "It's great to meet you, Vernon and Joshua." My voice faltered a bit on Joshua's name.

Eun Seo had gone back to speaking in Korean with the other trainees, and I felt a little bad as I remembered Eun Seo wasn't great at English. Ah, well. She dragged me along here, I'm going to make the best of it.

"Um, what's your name?" Joshua asked, quietly.

I mentally kicked myself for not introducing myself already. "I'm Amy. Amy Cho."

"Amy, it's good to meet you too," Vernon extended his hand over the table, and I reached over and shook it. "Haven't had a proper American handshake in a while," he commented, and we all laughed. There was an awkward pause as Joshua and I looked at each other, before laughing awkwardly and shaking hands ourselves.

Whoa. His hands are too soft.

The handshake ended too soon, and I hoped it was casual enough and I wasn't holding on to his fingers for too long.

I decided I should probably try and get back in Eun Seo's favor again, so I pretended to pay attention to whatever she was saying about how she's getting friendly with our sunbaes. I kept sneaking secretive glances back at Joshua, who was nodding and paying attention to her words. I may never see him again. I need to memorize as much I can.

Vernon's phone suddenly lets out a funky, hip-hop ringtone, and he hurriedly silences it. After checking the screen, he sighs and rolls his eyes.

"I'm very sorry, everyone, but we need to go back to the practice room."

They're leaving so soon...

Before I knew it, Joshua and Vernon had excused themselves, bowing their heads at each trainee in succession, and assuring them we'd get together again soon.

As soon as they left, the conversation picked up where it had left off, but my mind was lost. Was I actually sad that they had gone?

My thoughts wander away from the chat about trainee life, and my eyes rest on the space where Joshua had sat.

Oh? What's this? I quickly noticed that Joshua had left his jacket behind. It had been a good ten minutes since they'd left, so he probably doesn't realize he's left it behind.

Faking interest in the conversation, I slowly and casually lean forward and slip my hand under the table. My fingers find the sleeve of the jacket, and I quietly pull it towards me.

I jumped as the YG guy banged his fist on the table, and everyone burst out laughing at whatever he'd said. I used the distraction to secretly push the jacket into my handbag. I leaned back and smiled, pretending my heart wasn't hammering in my chest.

To be continued...