Taking A Chance On Love || m.t.

一 Accidental Encounter

I walked into the noisy club, squinting as my eyes adjusted to the glaring neon lights and wincing at the blaring music. Quickly spotting a bartender, I made my way to the bar.

"Excuse me, do you know where VIP Room 8 is?" I asked while checking my phone to verify. "I'm supposed to meet some friends here".

Seemingly annoyed, the harried bartender pointed vaguely toward a corridor and said, "It's on the right, can't miss it."

Slightly annoyed myself, I trudged toward the rooms, grumbling internally as I checked my phone to see if the girls had sent any messages. None. Of course. I called Leila so she could tell me where the group was, but she didn't pick up and I didn't hear a ringtone from the corridor of closed doors. Rolling my eyes, I tried to peer at the room numbers, but most of them were either missing or scratched off, leaving me to make a wild guess. I decided to pick a room and if there was someone there, ask them for directions instead since the bartender was no help.

Seeing a door slightly ajar, I knocked and waited until someone told me to come in. Opening the door, my jaw went slack.

"Can I help you?" the man in the room asked.

"Whoa that's Mark! Mark Tuan! From GOT7!" I yelled internally. Except I didn't.

At once, I noticed he sat up and plastered a polite smile on his face.

"Oh you know me? Hi, it's nice to meet you".

Realising I said that out loud, I stood there mortified as I tried to figure out what to do. I didn't want him to think I'm some crazy stalker sasaeng¹ fan, but I'd be lying if I said I wanted to run away from one of my favorite artists. Making a quick decision, I took a deep breath and started over.

"Hi, I'm sorry, I got excited for a moment there. I didn't follow you here, I promise. I just was hoping someone could point me in the direction of VIP Room 8; I'm supposed to be meeting some friends there. I don't want to bother you, I'll get right out of your hair," I said as I backed away towards the door, my eyes trained on the suddenly fascinating carpet.

"4th door on the right."

Startled, I looked up. "What?"

"Room 8 is the 4th door on the right," he said with a smile, one that seemed a bit more genuine this time.

"Oh, thank you," I said, taking a quick last glance at him. "I'll leave you alone now, sorry to intrude," I said before I quickly closed the door and ran to the correct room, my heart beating way faster than normal.

I opened the door to Room 8, only to find it completely empty. Equal parts annoyed and disappointed, I slumped on the surprisingly comfy couch as I took out my phone to call Leila again. Leila and I weren't quite what you'd call friends, but we were friendly acquaintances. She had invited me to a girls night out with some of her friends and convinced me that it was better than staying home all weekend. I didn't like clubs, but I figured I'd do something new for once. Clearly, things didn't go well, and now I was all alone in a part of town I'd never been to, in a bar I'd never heard of, with nary a familiar person in sight.

This is why I plan things, I grumbled to myself. I don't like being in unfamiliar situations with no plan. I could've been comfortably at home, watching a drama and eating whatever I want. Yet I'm here of all places, and I don't even know if I should wait until Leila calls or shows up, or if I should just go home.

Deciding to stay for half an hour in the off chance the girls get here, I got up to open the door a bit wider so that it would be easier for them to see me. As I sat back down, I took in my surroundings. Directly opposite the door and on the left of the door sat 2 long couches taking up most of the wall space. Between the couches was a small table, while a larger table sat in the middle of the room, an arm's length from both couches. On the right side of the door was a large screen TV, a Bluetooth speaker, and a small cabinet with a digital clock sitting on top. The back wall I was sitting against had a regular sized window looking out to the street and the adjacent dog park. The view wasn't spectacular, but it wasn't as bad as I expected a street view to be. Tearing my eyes away from the window, I sent one last message to Leila telling her I was in the room and waiting before tossing my phone back into my purse and sinking into the couch cushions. This lasted all of 30 seconds before the silence became suffocating, so I put in my earbuds and chose a playlist before closing my eyes, letting the music wash over me.