Angel of Hope

Wings at Dawn

"You're sure I can't do anything?" Hoseok asked for the hundredth time. "I don't even know what type of hotel they're putting you in, but I'm sure I can get a better one. Didn't you enjoy the one we stayed in for Christmas?"

"I did, but I told you that I need to let my employer take care of this trip," Nicole replied patiently as she swept the room, triple checking that she had not forgotten anything. "It's not just a vacation this time."

"I knowwwww." Hobi could not help whining even as he accepted her answer, his emotions forever on his sleeve. She did not mind too much; it came from a place of love and care. Her boyfriend wanted nothing but the best for her.

Ever since Lollapalooza, he had stayed true to his word of keeping her closer. Nicole had become quite the international traveler, hopping on a plane every few weeks. Every visit was magical, and every return home was more difficult than the last. That was especially true at Christmas, when he had confided in her his plans to enlist in the military soon. She knew it was coming, but it had been easy to avoid thinking about before then. It was on the long plane ride home that she had first planted the seed for this trip, and now it was finally time to surprise him right back.

She zipped her suitcase one final time before she gave her boyfriend one more loving goodbye, and promised to text him from the airport if there were any delays.

The closing of the door echoed eerily behind her off of empty apartment walls.

~~~

Airplane WiFi was great. Nicole slept for some of her long trip, of course, but much of it was spent either confirming or arranging all of the details that would need to be in place when she landed. She had been working hard for months on this surprise, and all of it was coming together nicely. Of course she was nervous, but it would all be worth it.

She felt better when the key code to the apartment worked, and even more so when it looked like all of her boxes had been correctly delivered. As soon as her suitcase was safely deposited in the bedroom, she texted Hoseok to confirm that she had arrived, and give him the address where he could come to see her.

When he replied that he was on the way her nerves lit up again, wondering if she had done the right thing. Doing all of this on her own had been one part necessity, because he could not help her with her job; one part hoping he would be happy to be surprised; but also, one part fearful that if she had asked permission, he would have said no. She wanted this desperately, enough to risk everything, but she would still be broken hearted if he was upset.

Hobi's expression when he arrived was all over the place. It was obvious that he was elated to see her, but his sunny smile kept flickering and fading as he looked around the entryway and spotted the boxes inside. "Nicole," he finally said hesitantly. "This is definitely not a hotel, and it doesn't really look like a short term rental either. You wanna tell me what's going on?"

She took him by the hand into the small living room, realizing as she settled with him onto the couch that it was her first time sitting on it, and it was with her love. Something about that felt nice. "I really am here for work," she said, "but it's not just a short trip. I'm going to be working as a nurse on one of the military bases here, for at least a couple of years."

Hoseok did not have a poker face. His utter shock was obvious in his wide eyes and dropped jaw. But Nicole could not immediately tell if that surprise was born of joy or dismay. She found the words falling out of her mouth faster than she could reel them in, desperately needing to explain herself. "I just know that you won't be able to come to me while you're enlisted, and that sometimes you won't get to plan your vacation time ahead so it will be hard for me to come see you too, so I wanted to be closer. And if I have my own job and my own place then it's not any burden to you! Also, I know that some soldiers break up with their girlfriends since they won't be together, and I want you to know that's okay too. Moving here is something that I wanted for a really long time, and you gave me the courage and a reason to do it quickly instead of doubting myself. So I'm not here to pressure you or because I have any expectations. I just really wanted to be here, for myself as much as for you."