Seoulmates

Dodging

Sunshine was filtering through pastel curtains when Ella woke up. She looked around at the unfamiliar room. At first, she didn't remember where she was. As she looked around, she saw the other bed in the room was occupied. Under the blankets, a face was barely visible. It was Yeonkyung. So she is sleeping in here. I wonder what she was doing?

A clatter from the outside the room interrupted Ella's thoughts. Quickly, Ella kicked off her covers and crept quietly to the closed bedroom door. Who's out there? Did someone break in? Ella reached for the knob and slowly turned it. Opening the door a few centimeters, Ella peeked through the crack. Seeing nothing immediately outside the door, she crept through what appeared to be the family/living room. Again seeing nothing, Ella looked around the corner into the kitchen. A middle-aged couple was making breakfast. As she moved back behind the corner, the middle-aged lady called out, "Hi,"

Realizing that she had been discovered, Ella came out from around the corner and bowed "Hello," Even though Ella knew she looked a bit disheveled, she still greeted the couple with a smile and walked over to the island where the lady was preparing plates and bowls of side dishes. Behind her, the man was tending to two pots that were on the stove. "It's an honor to meet," Ella bowed.

The man turned around and smiled. "She's so cute!" He said to the woman.

"Mom!" Ella heard Yeonkyung call from somewhere else in the apartment. "Do you know where my purple skirt is?" Yeonkyung must be awake now. I haven't seen her yet. Ella thought to herself.

The lady turned from Ella and walked out of the room towards another hallway. The man tending the stove turned around again and motioned her into the kitchen. She looked down at her fuzzy pajamas and over-sized cat T-shirt, blushing a bit she walked into the kitchen. "Please sit down. Breakfast is almost done." He smiled and turned around again, stirring the pot on the stove.

"Ahh, okay," Ella said quietly. "What are we going to eat this morning?" Curiosity was already starting to creep in past the grogginess Ella still felt.

"We'll have rice, some kimchi and beansprouts," Yeonkyung's dad said. "Does that sound alright?"

"Of course! That sounds great," Ella replied enthusiastically. She thought back to about a year ago when she first had tried kimchi. Her and her parents drove all the way south of Portland just to go to a Korean restaurant that Ella had really wanted to try. She asked for kimchi and wasn't particularly fond of it. It wasn't bad, but it definitely wasn't great. Maybe kimchi in Korea would be better, or maybe she would have to shove a bunch of rice and beansprouts into her mouth with it to drown out the flavor of fermented cabbage.

"Yeonkyung-ah," Ella heard the lady call. "I found your skirt."

"Thanks mom!" Yeonkyung called. Ella heard a shuffle moving down the hall and also heard Yeonkyung's mom making her way back to the kitchen. She chatted a bit with her husband about things Ella didn't understand nor care about.

Finally Yeonkyung made her way in to the kitchen wear a purple pleated skirt and a ruffly white blouse. It was really cute. Wow. I wish I could pull of clothes like that. Ella thought to herself. Yeonkyung had a pretty slight build and warm brown hair that matched her eyes. Her makeup looked minimal, but also flawless and mature. Ella was a bit uncomfortable. Especially considering she was still in her PJ's an her hair was still rather disheveled. "Good morning, Eunji-ya," Yeonkyung said with a smile as she walked over to sit next to Ella at the table.

"Good morning," Ella smiled back. It was her first morning in Korea, what better way than to spend it with one of her closest friends and her new family. I can't wait to explore and have meals like this everyday. Ella thought. Everything was just so new!