Closer than Ever

Chapter 37 - Emergency

Taehyung and the other guys are kicking it into high gear now, preparing for the live-streamed Permission to Dance concert, their first since Sowoozoo. I resign myself to a month of plenty of alone time, and try to think of ways to entertain myself.

I haven't spent much time in the mountains lately, or even outdoors, to be honest. Tae and I can't really just go walking around town, and I would rather be with him when he's available. But these weeks seem like a perfect opportunity to address my nature deficit. I decide that daily hikes in the lovely fall weather are in order.

The first day, Taehyung is up at 7:30 for an 8 am rehearsal, although "up" might be a slight exaggeration. His eyes are barely open and he's just sitting at the dining room table, slumped over a plate of toast. He doesn't look safe to drive himself, so I steal his phone, unlock it with his thumb, and text the manager to please send a car for him. I give him kisses and a quick hug, then head out to explore Namsan Dule-gil, which is not too far from home. The air quality isn't great, so I pop on an N95 mask as I walk to the bus stop.

I decide to do the loop trail, which is partially paved and relatively flat, but over five miles long. It's sort of crowded, but very pleasant, and I am enjoying just walking around and nodding to strangers. By about mile three, I'm getting tired. 'Sheesh, I am so out of shape!' I scold myself. 'I'm with a man who is basically an endurance athlete, and I am puffing after walking three miles...' I silently vow to use the fitness center at work a few days a week, from now on.

I make it around the mountain, enjoying the pretty little traditional buildings set amidst the forest all along the way. After my hike, I decide to take the cable car up to the tower and have some lunch. I get an N Burger for carryout, and sit outside on a stair to eat it. After this hasty lunch, I take a peace sign selfie with the tower, and send it to Tae, laughing at myself. He responds about 15 minutes later with a kissy face selfie, and I'm happy to see that he looks cheerful and his eyes are fully open now.

The city view is amazing, but I really want to take my shoes off and massage my tired feet. 'Tae would just go ahead and do that,' I think, and smile fondly. 'I love him and his aversion to shoes!' I wonder how rehearsal is going. 'My poor love looked so sleepy this morning. We weren't even up too late last night. I wonder if he slept OK? I didn't notice if he was struggling, because I just conked out right away.' I sigh, and vow to pay more attention tonight. 'Sweetie man. He always plays it so cool, but I think he gets really nervous before performances. I guess that never goes away...'

I watch a harried mom trying to corral three small kids as I finish my soda, then I take the cable car ride back down to the city. As I stare at the buildings slipping past the bus window, it occurs to me that I have time to make a more elaborate dinner than usual, so I start looking up recipes on my phone. I settle on dak galbi and mak-guksu, and make a quick shopping list. 'Should I go home and shower first, or hit Emart on the way?' I wonder. 'Might as well go on the way. Then I can just take a bath and a nap without worrying about having shopping to do. I don't think I'm too sweaty...'

I text Taehyung

Babe, what time would you like to have dinner tonight?

Let me ask, just a minute...

OK

They're saying we should be done around 7 or 7:30, so 8:00 for dinner? What are you making? 😋

How about dak galbi and mak-guksu?

Yuuuummm! We'll be in Gangwon-do tonight, hm?

Oh, are those Gangwon-do dishes? I just randomly picked from recipe sites! 😄