Crushing College

15🎇

For the rest of the summer, Tae and I treated Los Angeles like our playground, sightseeing and visiting our favorite spots. The weeks leading up to my second year at Greendale College felt like a vacation of sorts to commemorate what was clearly the honeymoon phase of our relationship. We spent a lot of time together, getting closer, and making memories, while he continued to look for a job. When the good news came that he was offered a position at Fox News, we celebrated by going golfing.

Truthfully, I hate golf but if Tae asked me, I would golf every day, every week, and every year as long as I could spend time with him. I wanted to learn his hobbies so I put in the effort to get closer to him and not only tried golf, but boxing and taking a painting class too.

He also exhibited this love language of trying new things that interested me. We went to a Dodgers game together and not only went to the batting cages one time, but he made an effort to spend time with my family by coming to both of my brothers' birthday parties too.

If this were a movie, this is where the montage of how we ended our summer would be played. Besides all the places we went, I relished the times where we talked for hours without getting bored, we felt comfortable touching each other without it leading to the next level, and we would get these delirious giggles directed at nothing in particular. When we would get together to watch a K-drama in the family room of his house or the living room in my house, there would be some make out sessions and heavy petting under the shared blanket, but we hadn't had a moment like the hotel room in Seoul. 

Then the dreaded day came in mid-August. Tae helped me move back into my old dorm room and even though we were sad this meant there would be a shift in our relationship, we took consolation in the fact that he would visit me almost every weekend. After I unpacked my stuff and he placed a few souvenirs from Korea around my room, including a cloth South Korean flag and some posters of my favorite K-pop groups pinned to my wall, he said he had a gift for me.

"It's our 100th day anniversary of dating, Jennie," he said, giving me his boxy smile.

"Oh, yeah! They celebrate that in Korea." With wide eyes, I played dumb even though I had a plan to give him his gift later.

Out of a plastic bag he must have placed inside one of my moving boxes, Tae pulled out a teddy bear and held it up for me to see. The fuzzy stuffed animal was wearing a knit red sweater with the words "You are Loved" sewn on it. 

"Wow! That's so thoughtful of you. Thank you so much, oppa!" I exclaimed, taking the bear and holding it to my chest. With outstretched arms, I peered at the words on the sweater and felt an ache in my heart. This is what I wanted my whole life, but would Tae say the words out loud that matched the sentiment?

He took the bear and placed it on my pillow. "Think of me every night you see him, okay?"

"Of course. I'll call him Tae-tae and it'll remind me of you," I said, flashing him a bright smile.

As we stood by my closet, he gave me a big hug, as if he was saying good-bye but I didn't want him to leave. When he rested his head on mine, the urge to make my feelings known were strong. It was such a sweet sentiment and I tightened my arms around his shoulders. 

Seconds later, he released me, clasped my cheeks with both hands, and pulled my face towards his own, closing his beautiful brown eyes. I copied and our lips touched, the kiss so light and slow. Him pulling back and the pop of our lips parting made me open my eyes to meet him smiling at me.

"I love you, Jennie," Tae said, brushing a strand of hair behind my ear.

I gulped, my heart pounding against my ribcage. "I love you too." I grinned at him, giddy from the words I had longed to hear. "I really do."