Dandelions | Moon Bin

Chapter One -Again

“This is the final boarding call for passenger Lee Ok Jin on flight 372A to Seoul. Please proceed to Gate A21 immediately. The final checks are being completed and the captain will order for the doors of the aircraft to close in approximately five minutes time. I repeat. This is the final boarding call for Lee Ok Jin. Thank you.”

The passenger service personnel’s voice echoes throughout the whole terminal as she made the final boarding announcement. Back in the aircraft, nearly everyone is seated in their own seats. Some were already on board, while the others were busy flipping through the in-flight menu, thinking of what to order for the meal later on. The air stewardesses were preparing for the safety demonstration, which the majority of the passengers would undoubtedly ignore.

A lady appeared at the entrance to the business class cabin, upsetting the tranquil atmosphere as she drew everyone's attention for being the last passenger to be onboarded.

Letting out a deep sigh of relief while catching her breath with droplets of sweat dripping down from the sides of her head, Ok Jin smiles awkwardly at the people who were staring at her judgingly. Her eyes frantically search for her seats before an air stewardess came forward to offer help to her. She smiled at her with gratitude as she was being ushered to her seat.

Ok Jin watched the sea of clouds outside her window as the plane made its way to her homeland, thinking about the uneventful things she experienced during the past week that seemed to have passed by quickly. She had received sudden news that she had to be transferred back to her company’s headquarters due to the lack of manpower after enjoying herself working in Paris for the past three years. Leaving behind all the unhappiness she had experienced in her life, she thought she would be able to focus on herself in a new environment away from all the unhappiness.

But, once again, fate played a prank on her.

Upon landing at Incheon International Airport, Ok Jin exited the aircraft quickly and as soon as she cleared immigration, her cell phone rang, displaying a familiar contact on the screen. A smile spreads across her face when she recognizes the name reflecting on the screen. Even though leaving Paris is a difficult decision for her, she will always put her family first.

“Oh, omma (mum).” Ok Jin answered the call immediately, “I just reached.”
“Jin ah,” replied her mother and she could feel her mom’s happiness over the call, “I was wondering why you haven’t reached yet. It got me and your appa (dad) so worried. What took you so long?”

“Ah omma, I’m sorry. There was some delay in the mid-air just now.” Ok Jin explains, looking at her watch and realizing she was late as usual.

“Is okay.” Her mother assures her. “Remember its…”

“…the same old place.” Ok Jin finished the sentence for her mother since she knew what she was going to say. “I get it. I’ll go there as soon as I’m done with everything.”

“Alright then, stay safe ya!” Her mom told her before hanging up the call.

Ok Jin then dashed to immigration and collected her luggage before hurrying out of the airport and hailing a taxi to her destination. Inside the taxi, she took a glimpse at the paper bag next to her; the presents that she bought for her parents from Paris. A smile immediately radiates on her lips as she thought of how much they would love it.

The taxi ride from the airport to the restaurant takes approximately half an hour, and Ok Jin stares out the window as it passes familiar places where she used to hang out years ago, bringing back bittersweet memories to her.

It was nearly six in the evening when she stepped out of the taxi, and the restaurant was full as usual. With three large luggage and one large paper bag of souvenirs, she struggles to get through the evening crowd and to the restaurant’s entrance. She looked through the wide window panes at the diners in the restaurant and noticed two familiar faces. However, she was perplexed because there were two other individuals sitting opposite her parents at a table that could seat eight people.