Jennie
An hour and a half later and I'm spent. I don't even try to hide my annoyance anymore. I tell Joy, in the nicest way possible, that if I have to look at one more dress, I'm going to puke on the whole lot of them. She tells me, in not such a nice way, that I need to suck it up and not put things off until the last minute, to which I argue that I still have a whole week to get this done.
Note to self: Never indicate that you're not ecstatic to dress up for Joy's big day. The repercussions could be painful, even more so than trying on twenty-hundred dresses with sore feet.
I settle on a slim, light-blue dress with a hefty price-tag. I never realized there were so many rules when it came to buying a dress for a wedding. I couldn't choose anything white, black, red, short, or loud. It's a good thing Joy came with me, because I found a little red number I was just itching to try on.
We head to a little restaurant not far away for a quick bite to eat. Joy orders a Sangria, but I discover I still haven't made a full recovery. Just the smell of alcohol makes me green.
Joy begins filling me in on every detail of the wedding. I mostly just listen, not knowing a whole lot about weddings. Truthfully, I'm just thankful she's no longer keen on discussing Jisoo and her newest boy toy. She informs me with much enthusiasm that Mino has chosen an acceptable band and they were, fortunately, willing to play on such short notice.
We're nearly done with our food when a passer-by does a double-take of our table. I barely pay attention as he does an awkward one-eighty, nearly stumbling into our waitress in the process.
"Jennie? Is that you?"
When I see who it is I nearly spew my soda.
"Hanbin?"
"God, I can't believe it's really you! Long-time no see!"
Hanbin was my "sort-of-more-than-friends" friend back in college. We'd dated casually for a little while and became close. However, his family lived in Australia, and he'd had his heart set on moving back home once he graduated.
He was the first person I ever had real feelings for. It's been almost two years since I saw him last, yet now he's here... but why?
"Yeah," I agree, feeling suddenly shy. "What are you doing in Seoul?"
"I'm looking for a place here, actually." He grins, obviously pleased to be telling me this.
"But what about your family?"
"I need a change," he says determinedly. "I found a good job here and decided to take a chance for once. I'll still be able to visit them. With the pay raise I'll be getting, I should definitely be able to afford it."
I'm surprised, but not displeased. "Hanbin, that... that's great! Congratulations on the new job!"
He smiles. "Thank you."
"Oh, this is Joy, by the way," I introduce her. "Joy, Hanbin. He's a friend from college."
Joy smiles kindly. "It's nice to meet you, Hanbin."
"You know, we should get together soon, Jennie. I don't know many people here. It'd be nice seeing a friendly face."
"Um, sure. That would be nice..."
"Here. What's your number?" He pulls his cell phone from his pocket, and I rattle my number off to him. He then calls me, quickly hanging up before I have time to register where my phone is located. "There. Now you have my number, too. I'll call you later, okay? It was nice meeting you, Joy."
As soon as he's out of sight, Joy leans towards me. "Oh, my gosh, who is he? He's hot!" she exclaims in a hushed voice.
"He's just a friend," I mumble. My face feels hot.
"Uh huh. Just a friend my ass."
"Joy, I'm serious."
"So am I. If he's not something more he very well should be. You're going to call him, right?"
"I don't know..."
She groans. "Please don't do this to me, Jennie. If you'd seriously prefer to watch reruns than to get you some of that--" She gestures wildly with her hands. I feel that little twang of hurt again, that small feeling of disappointment that maybe I'm not as awesome as I always thought I was. I nearly snort. Yeah, right.
Yet Lisa comes to mind, and my unease increases tenfold. I'm not supposed to be thinking about him, but it's nearly impossible. Against my better judgment, I check my phone with a small inkling of hope.
A missed call from Hanbin. Nothing from Lisa.
With a sigh I return the phone to my purse. Joy is still staring at me expectantly.
"Well?" she prompts.
"Sure, Joy. I suppose it won't hurt to call him."
