"Attention all passengers, we will be arriving at Incheon Airport in 5 minutes, so please remain seated and fasten your seatbelts as we start our decent." The voice on the intercom brought relief to you as you sat back in your seat. This summer, you went to many places across the America's, Europe and Australia, Seoul was your last destination before you went home. You're traveling alone because you felt you needed time to yourself to see new places, meet new people, try new things, and just getting out of your comfort zone. When the plane landed, you grabbed your carry-on and exited the plane. You smiled to yourself at the thought of being in another new place. You followed everyone else to baggage claim and waited for your suitcase to arrive. As you saw your luggage, you gently pushed passed people to get to it. You took a deep breath and prepared to lift the big suitcase, that gets heavier with every trip, off the conveyor belt. You wrapped your fingers around the handle and tried pulling it off, but it wouldn't budge. The lack of sleep was causing you to be weaker than usual. You tried keeping up with it, but there were too many people in the way. 'No, it's getting away! I guess I have to wait the second time around.' You thought to yourself. As you waited, you felt a tap on your shoulder. "This is your's, right?" A deep voice said. You turned around to face a tall, elf-eared, boy with your suitcase next to him. "Oh, it is." You said. "I saw you struggling so I got it for you." He said, smiling. "Thank you." You said quietly as you grabbed your suitcase from him. You reluctantly walked away, glancing back at him getting his suitcase off the conveyor. 'He was on my flight?' You asked yourself. 'Why did I walk away? He was cute, I should talk to him.' You shook your head. 'No, I'm here to explore, not find love. Who said anything about love? It's just meeting a new person, I didn't even get his name.' You turned your head back to look for him, but he was gone. 'Well, there went my chance.' You sighed and continued out of the airport. You looked into hotel's ahead of time so you already knew where you wanted to stay, but you didn't make reservations. You called a cab and rode all the way to Seoul. The taxi dropped you off infront of the hotel and you paid, then got out. You made your way into the hotel, looking all around you as you went in. "Annyeonghaseyo, do you have a reservation?" The woman at the desk asked. "Actually no, I didn't think I needed to make one." You said. "I'm sorry, but we're booked unless you have a reservation." Here's where your hotel hunting journey began. You saw a hotel just down the street that you passed and you walked down there. Same situation. You walked back out and looked around. Soon enough, you checked every hotel in the area but every place was booked or you needed to make a reservation. You were getting tired so you slumped down on a bench. It was getting late and you had nowhere to go. 'I knew I should've made a reservation. What am I going to do?' Suddenly, you felt a drop of water on your forehead. 'Just my luck.' You got up and searched for an awning to stand under. Before you knew it, it started pouring rain. You quickly searched through your backpack for your umbrella. 'Ugh, it's in my suitcase!' You were already soaking wet so there was no point in getting it out. Eventually, you found an awning under a coffee shop and stood under it. By now, it was dark and no one was around. "Hey, come inside, it's chilly and you're soaked." A voice said. 'I know that voice.' The tall figure grabbed your suitcase in one hand and your arm in the other and dragged you inside. "Oh, I was right. You are airport girl." "Huh?" You looked at the same face you saw when you first got here. "I helped you with your bag when we got off the plane." He said. 'I know.' "Oh, right." He smiled. "Anyway, since you have your suitcase, you should go change clothes in the back, I'll make you a hot chocolate." He handed you some towels and a plastic bag to put your wet clothes in. You went to the bathroom and changed then walked out. Luckily water from the rain didn't seep through your suitcase so all your stuff was still dry. "Come over here." He said. You walked up to the counter and he handed you a cup. You went to get your wallet out but he stopped you. "It's on the house." "Are you sure?" He nodded as he hung up his apron. "So you work here?" "Yeah. I was just about to close up when I saw you. What are you doing out here by yourself anyway? Do you know how many weird people come out at night?" "Every hotel around here is booked." "So you don't have anywhere to stay?" "No." "Well, you can stay at my place, if you want." He said shyly. "I don't even know your name." You said. He blushed. "Oh, right. I'm Chanyeol." "I'm (y/n)." "Nice to meet you (y/n)." "You too." You sipped on your hot chocolate in the awkward silence. "Can I tell you something?" He asked. You nodded. "I sat a few seats behind you on the plane, and when you walk passed me to use the bathroom, I thought to myself, 'whoa, who is that?' I thought you were really pretty, wait, not were, I mean you are and, yeah." He trailed off as he looked away with a red face. You smiled. 'So we were on the same flight.' "A friend of mine just got married, and I was coming back from his wedding. What about you? Where are you coming from?" "All over" You told him the story about you wanting to experience new things. "Wah, sounds like you've done it all already." You both chuckled. "So, about you. Do you want to stay at my place? You don't have to, I don't want you to feel pressured or anything." "Is it really okay?" "Sure is." "Well, I guess I don't really have a choice." "Cool, well it's actually passed closing time and the rain let up, we should get out of here while we still can." He closed up the shop and put your suitcase in his car then drove to his apartment. The car ride, even the elevator ride, was silent. "This is our stop." He said. You followed him out of the elevator and to his door. He unlocked it and went inside, turning the lights on as you trailed behind. The apartment was built for one person, or maybe a couple. The front door opened into an open space with the kitchen to your right, the livingroom straight ahead and there was one step leading to an area where his bed was, a long, transparent book shelf dividing it from the livingroom. Overall, his apartment was very clean and neat. The bookshelf wasn't even really a bookshelf, it had cubby holes which contained books, pictures, and other decoratives. "Since I live alone, I only have one bed so you can sleep there. I'll sleep on the couch." He said. "Oh, no, I couldn't. You're already letting me stay here. I don't want to be more of a burden." You said. "You're no burden. Besides, I fall asleep on the couch all the time and the bathroom is right over there. "Thanks." He smiled and got clothes out of his drawers then went to the bathroom, which was on the same level as his bed, and changed. "Can I take a shower?" You asked. "Oh, yeah, go ahead." You nodded and went to the bathroom, closing the door behind you. Even his bathroom was neat. Everything had a place from his colognes to his toothpaste and toothbrush. You did what you had to do and exited the bathroom. When you opened the door, the smell of instant noodles filled your nostrils. "Are you hungry?" Chanyeol asked. "A little." "I made noodles, put your stuff down and join me." You did what he said and sat at the table across from him. "Here." He handed you a bowl with steaming noodles. "Kamsamnida." "No need to be formal with me. We're friends." You looked up at him, suprised. "We are?" He nodded and flashed you a goofy grin. "So, how long are you going to be in Seoul?" He asked. You shrugged. "I don't know. A week or two." "Oh, well I don't have work tomorrow, I can show you around if you want." He said. "I'd like that." After dinner, you both went to sleep. He went to the couch and you awkwardly laid in his bed. 'Oh no, what if I drool on his pillow?!' You thought. You ended up falling asleep with your head hanging off the bed. When you woke up, your head was on the pillow and you slowly felt around for any wetness. You sighed in relief when the pillow was all dry. You sat up to stretch and winced when you felt a pain in your neck. "You shouldn't sleep like that." Chanyeol said, grabbing clothes out of his drawer. "I came in here to see if you were awake and your head was off the bed. You can really hurt your neck like that so I moved your head back on the pillow." He was about to walk in the bathroom but stopped and turned around. "Do you want to use the bathroom first?" "No, I'm okay. Go ahead." When he went in the bathroom, you went to your suitcase and grabbed clothes. Once Chanyeol was done, you went in and changed into light jean shorts and a loose crop top. You threw your hair into a ponytail and walked out. "(Y/n), let's go get breakfast somewhere." You nodded, grabbed your purse and left with Chanyeol. You quickly put on your sunglasses when the light outside blinded you. You both got into the car and drove to a restaurant where you had traditional Korean breakfast. Chanyeol insisted that he paid and you gave in. He took you around to many places like Gyeongbok Palace, the Han River, Namsan Tower and other little villages and places. You also tried the street food. The sun was starting to set and you and Chanyeol were sitting in a restaurant having dinner. "I never would've seen as much as I did today if I was by myself. Thanks for taking me around." You said. "No problem." "It looks like I'll be leaving early." "How early?" "A few days I suppose." "But I thought you were staying for a week or two." "I was but I've seen more in one day than I thought I would in one week." "Well, can't you stay for a little longer?" "Why?" "Because I like hanging out with you." He said sheepishly. You smiled. "I like hanging out with you too." He blushed. "So will you stay?" You nodded. "Yes! I mean, that's cool. Now, let's get going." When you got back to the apartment, you took your showers and got ready for bed. "I can find a hotel-" "Say no more. It's okay if you stay here until you leave. Really." "If you say so." Over the next week, you and Chanyeol hung out, went to movies, had picnics and got to know each other a lot better. You family kept calling you wondering when you coming back and it made you decide that it was time to go home. "So you're really leaving?" Chanyeol asked. "Yeah. My flight leaves at 3." "Well, I want to take you somewhere before you leave." You both got in the car and drove for a while. "What are we doing back here?" You asked. "Love locks." "Love locks?" "Well, in our case, friendship locks." You both got out and he told you to pick out a lock and you picked light blue one. He bought the lock and wrote on it. He wouldn't show you until he put it with the rest. It had both of your name with a plus in between and a heart around it. "You keep the key." Chanyeol put the key in your hand then drove you to the airport. "I had a lot of fun here thanks to you." You said. "I'm going to miss you." He said, pulling you into a hug. "I'll miss you too. Stay in touch okay?" "Of course. Who knows, maybe I'll come visit you and you can show me around there." "I wouldn't mind." He kissed you on the cheek and let go of you. "Call me when you get home." He said. "What if you're sleeping." "I won't. Have a safe flight." "Thanks." It almost pained you to get on the plane and leave Chanyeol but sure enough, when you got home, you called him and he answered. You two maintained a close relationship over the phone and Skype. The next summer, he came to visit you and stayed at your house for a while. Your family and friends loved him. Maybe now, you can start a relationship that's more than friends.
