Imperfectly Perfect 3

7 : Rendezvous

"And here we are." Chaeyoung announces as soon as she and Mina steps out of the cab. After not getting enough reaction from the council president, she gives her a knowing look. "Minari."

"Hmm?"

"You knew it all along, didn't you?"

"Umm... I had a speculation but... when I saw the way you look at those flowers earlier when we were at the cab, I confirmed that it is for her."

The soccer ace looks to the ground and exhales deeply. "I see."

The two girls are now in front of a huge mountain cemetery. They traveled by a rented cab for almost an hour to get to the place. All throughout the ride, Chaeyoung was awfully quiet and Mina was simply holding her hand tightly in some kind of emotional support.

The council president continued to speak while not letting go of the other girl's hand. "I only saw that look in your eyes once, Chaeng. And that was the moment you told me about your mom."

Chaeyoung simply smiles in response.

They then slowly walked inside in utter silence. There are a lot of trees lining up the paths and the birds chirping happily are heard audibly. The air is a bit chilly due to the elevation of the place. It could be that it is still relatively early that is why there aren't any other people around.

After about ten minutes, Chaeyoung halted her legs, stopping in front of a white tomb with a cross possessing an intricate design on top of it. She heaves in a deep breath as her hold on Mina's hand tightens.

The soccer ace stayed quiet for a moment. She was just flatly standing in front of the tomb. The council president was kind enough to let her have all the silence she may be desperately needing presently.

As Chaeyoung heaves in again another deep breath, she finally moves her head up to stare at the tomb for a couple of seconds. "Hi Mom. Long time no see."

The soccer ace lets go of Mina's hand and holds the bouquet of flowers she was carrying delicately all this time with both her hands. She then slowly takes some steps towards the marble plating with her mom's engraved name and carefully puts the flowers in front of it. "This is for you. Sorry for never paying you a visit since that day. It was— It's just chaotic back at home with just me and dad there. And— and after all these years... I still can't believe you're gone."

Then, Chaeyoung glances at Mina and smiles. "Come here, Minari."

Mina slowly treads to stand beside the smaller girl.

"I actually brought someone with me. Umm..." The soccer ace darts her eyes shyly to the ground and scratches her nape. She now looks like a sheepish teenager who is about to introduce her girlfriend to her parents for the first time. "Mom. This is her. This is the girl I've been telling you and dad that I had a huge crush on when I was still in high school."

The council president was simply staying silent in a faint smile. She is just observing and paying all her attention to everything that the smaller girl does. She wants to make sure that Chaeyoung gets all the solo time she needs to get these emotions for her mom out of her chest.

"Umm..." The soccer ace continues to speak. "Mom. Remember how you and dad always supported me about her whenever I told you stories about us together? Right now, we... kind of... been in a mutual understanding for a while now. I guess things really did go well like you told me when you were still with us back home."

There was another moment of silence short after. Then, it was followed by faint sobs.

Mina quickly shoots her eyes to the smaller girl to find her already in tears. She immediately reaches out to her and embraces her.

"Mi— Minari." Chaeyoung utters in between sobs. She quickly holds on to the council president like she would fall any moment without the other girl's support. "I miss her so much. I want to see her. I want to— I want to hear her voice once again. I miss my mom. I— I really miss her."

Mina gently caresses the smaller girl's back. "You have to be strong, Chaeng. Your mom is surely proud of you being strong all these years. Wherever she is now, I know that she also misses you so much. I know that even though she is not here physically, she will still always find a way to be with you in your dreams and in your journey throughout your life."

The soccer ace just broke down into louder cries after that with her shoulders even slightly shaking in the sudden outburst of emotions. Mina just patiently supported her with her embrace and kind words.

After that, it took almost another half an hour to fully calm the smaller girl down.

The two of them are now sitting at the green grass in front of the tomb. Chaeyoung's head is comfortably on Mina's shoulder. Their hands intertwined. The soccer ace's eyes were closed while Mina looked at her from time to time to check if she was still okay.

"Back in senior high school..." Chaeyoung starts after gently opening her eyes. "What everyone else didn't know is that it was actually me who was trying to get your attention. It was only my mom and dad who knew about it. They have always supported me. They say that I was the happiest whenever I talk about you and they told me that they love seeing me happy."

Mina faintly chuckles. "So you were vocal to them about your love life?"

"Yeah." The soccer ace grins and nods. "Well, I am an only child. And believe it or not, my family was so close before my mom died. Back then, my dad would even teach me some pick up lines I could use with you! And of course, my mom always finds the right words to say when negative thoughts start to swarm my head like 'what if you won't want to be around someone like me' or 'you won't see me the same way I see you romantically'."

The council president moves to briefly kiss Chaeyoung's temple. "And look where your parents' support got you?"

The smaller girl giggles like a kid. She looks to her mother's tomb and smiles widely, displaying her dimples fully. "Mom." She moves to raise her and Mina's hands that are clasped together up in the air like some kind of soccer trophy. "I now have the girl of my dreams by my side. And you were right all this time... She really is worth it."