First Love

Chapter 23

Jae browsed through the internet with full concentration.

101 Relationship Tips Straight From Dating Experts.

Hmm, looks interesting, thought Jae. They would know a lot about dating. She read through the article curiously.

We've got 101 relationship tips you can start implementing right now, the article said.

Yes, I'm interested, Jae nodded thoughtfully.

1. Listen – really allow yourself to listen.

I can do that, Jae agreed.

2. Take a Few Days Apart –Missing each other is a great way to reconnect.

No problem there either. They don't get to see each other daily and she misses him like crazy when they were apart for a long time.

3. Find a Support Team – Have a handful of great friends or family members you can call so your significant other doesn't have to hear every small grievance going on your life.

Jae pondered. She's not much of a complainer so there's no trouble there either.

4. Put Away Your Phones – give your undivided attention when your partner is speaking.

Jae agreed wholeheartedly with that. She saw some of the customers who came to the restaurant. They came as a couple but spent all the time there looking at their phone screen. Jae even wondered, were they texting each other when they were using the phones then?

Jae scrolled through down to tips number 101 and smiled satisfyingly. She bookmarked the page for future reference and went browsing again. Most tips and advice were nearly similar. There was one on avoiding conflicts. Jae thought again. It would be best if she didn't say anything about Chin-Hwa oppa when Yoongi is around, decided Jae resolutely. It's not that Yoongi went berserk or anything but she didn't want to make it unpleasant for him.

"What are you reading?" Jae yelped in surprise as her phone fell to the floor. It was near to quitting time and the staff was cleaning up the restaurant. Chan-Ri saw that Jae was engrossed, looking at her phone after her job was done.

"Eonnie!" Jae protested as Chan-Ri picked up Jae's phone.

"Relationship for Dummies?" asked Chan-Ri, raising her left brow as she looked at what was on the screen. "You are not seriously getting relationship tips from the internet, right?"

Jae snatched her phone back and kept it in her pocket. "I'm just browsing. Nothing serious," she went wiping the table that she already wiped before, being embarrassed at being caught red handed by Chan-Ri.

"Hold it," commanded Chan-Ri. "Sit," Chan-Ri put Jae to a chair nearby and took another one for herself. "I know you won't ask for any help, but now I'm asking you, do you need any? In anything? Especially on relationship? I know your guy is not an average Joe and I'm not a love guru either but I'm here if you need any help regarding that."

"I'm fine," defended Jae.

"When was the last time you dated anyone?" asked Chan-Ri, point blank. She knew Jae barely had enough time for herself when she worked around the clock. The question was replied with silence. That was answer enough.

"High school?" probed Chan-Ri.

Silence.

"I'm not even going to ask you about middle school. Is this your first relationship?" inquired Chan-Ri. Jae nodded slowly. Growing up, she didn't have a lot of friends. Most of her time was spent on piano practice since she was 3 after her dad saw her playing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star on the piano by ear. She couldn't relate much to kids her age and was always left out when there was a play date. She couldn't understand how a person, the same age as hers, didn't know anything about the wonderful song by Mozart or commented that the brilliant piece by Stravinsky as boring.