Just Another Love Story

Story 3

"Merry Christmas! Sorry for not replying your email. Still wanna buy me that cup of coffee?"

"Of course! Just tell me when and where."

"Tomorrow? Starbucks Insadong, 1 PM?"

"I'll be there. Wait, how am I supposed to recognize you?"

"Look for the blue pen I still owe you. See you tomorrow."

Minjeong sent the email and turned her phone off. She threw the device onto the mattress and buried her face in her pillow. She let out a muffled scream. She was glad that no one was home for the holidays or they would definitely declare her crazy.

She couldn't sleep that night. She kept waking up every few hours after dreaming of Karina's various reactions. There was a slap, the coffee being splashed on her face, a cold icy glare before Karina stomped out of the shop and there was even a loud scolding where Karina called her a psycho lesbian. She ended up sweating bullets until morning came.

She thought she wouldn't know what to do while she waited but time seemed to fly when you didn't want it to. Before she knew it, it was time to go.

For a second, Minjeong considered not going. But the thought of having Karina wait for her alone in that coffee shop felt more painful than all her weird dreams put together.

She took a deep breath, changed her clothes while telling herself to calm down and checked herself in the mirror at least fifty times before she grabbed the shopping bag she had prepared for Karina. It had her Christmas present in it.

She patted her jacket pocket for the pens and left the room.

----

Minjeong placed her mug back on the table. Her hand was trembling.

She fixed the blue pen lying on the table for the hundredth time in the last ten minutes.

Her eyes never stopped glancing at the door.

She was about to change her mind – standing up to leave – when she saw Karina walking through the glass doors. She held her breath and immediately sat back down.

Minjeong kept her head down and covered her face with her hand.

Karina looked around the quiet coffee shop. She was glad to see that there weren't too many people there. It would be easier to find this Kim E that way, she reasoned.

She observed the people, looking for a male college student her age. She frowned when she noticed that all the young males there were not alone. Her eyes then searched for the blue pen.

Karina stopped when she saw a blue pen lying on a corner table near the back of the shop. The person sitting at that table was clearly a girl who was covering her face with her hand.

"Um... excuse me?" Karina approached the table.

Minjeong couldn't stop cursing inside. She put down her hand slowly. It was still trembling. She met Karina's surprised eyes.

"Minjeong?"

"H-hi, K-Karina." Minjeong stood up awkwardly.

Karina looked at the table to make sure that she wasn't imagining the blue pen. She then looked at the nervous Minjeong again. "Kim Minjeong? Kim W?"

Minjeong wished that the ground would open and swallow her whole. She looked down. "Y-yes." She bowed 90 degrees. "I'm sorry," she mumbled while grabbing the shopping bag. She rushed past Karina, keeping her head down.

"What does the 'W' stand for?"

Minjeong stopped in her tracks with her hand on the door handle.

Everyone in the shop could hear Karina's voice. They turned their heads but the young woman didn't even care. She was still staring at Minjeong's back. She was surprised but she was, more than anything, curious.