Tomoko yawned beside me as she blearily ran the morning's cash out numbers. The printer whirred to life and I prepared to grab the papers as they were spit out. Trying to be as efficient as possible. Her yawn was contagious and I tried not to be a copycat, resisting my urge. 

I lost my battle as I observed the breakfast buffet across the way. It was doing good business, lots of people here on New Year's Eve. All of the lawyers were milling about. I'd come to recognize a lot of them and even many by name. They had about a week left in their stay here, and many of us would be glad to see them gone. But, who would replace them? That was the issue. Surely there must be groups booked for January. Maybe even a wedding. 

I made a mental note to ask the sales department about it later on my break. It was best to be in the know anyway, as the front desk manager. I could inform my staff as well. We'd be prepared. It was a winning situation all around. 

As I thought about this, movement caught my eye. I turned, and coming down the staircase was Matsuda-san and his family. He was shaking his head, a sourness there. Distaste written all over him. We learned why with little time to dwell. 

"Going to one of those places," he spat loudly. It was almost as if he wanted everyone to hear. His wife was behind him on the stairs, holding the younger son's hand. He seemed under the weather, moving slowly. Matsuda-san stopped on the stairs. The grand staircase framed them perfectly, the center of attention. I wasn't the only one watching. "Going to one of those places! Our son is a man! He could have waited until the hotel! Instead, you chose to humiliate yourselves by going into one of those places!" He got close to her, but no less quiet. Next to me, Tomoko winced as he got in his wife's face. He exploded.

"Every one of those businesses has a rainbow flag! You know what it means! Or are you too ignorant?! You want us to be associated with them?! It's bad enough that this hotel decided to be associated with them and didn't tell us, but now you?! You want to further humiliate me?! The last thing I need is this from you. What's more, you exposed our sons to it!"

His wife stood still, stoic as a tree. Staring forward, her face like steel, emotionless. It was as if she'd taken similar many times, a pro now. I was frozen in my spot. In front of all these people, he was doing this? He wasn't the one who'd been humiliated. He was humiliating her in front of everyone by treating her this way. 

And what was this about going to "one of those places"? A place, with a rainbow flag? Not every one of the businesses in this neighborhood had one. In fact, only two did. My heart started to race. Those two businesses. One of them was Ayane's record shop, and the other one was...

He got closer to her, their faces almost touching. She stared down at the ground, her face almost screwing up, but she held herself. 

"You ruined our New Year's Eve breakfast as a family. You can eat by yourself. I won't be seen with you right now. Think about that how you've ruined it." He jerked at her and only now did she flinch. As if he were about to hit her. Tomoko beside me flinched, too. Her hand went over her chest, her mouth parted slightly, deep concern there. 

With that, Matsuda-san continued angrily down the stairs. Without stopping at the restaurant, he went straight forward. Marching out of the doors, waving away our valet flippantly. On the stairs, Mrs. Matsuda recovered quickly. She took her son's hand again and elegantly walked down the rest of the stairs as if she were the Queen of England. She was dripping with dignity. Her older son followed behind her, similarly stone faced. 

"Oh, I want to ask if she's okay," Tomoko said, gathering herself as if to do so. In a rare moment, I let myself go, touching her shoulder to stop her. This was maybe a difference in culture, and I didn't mean Japanese and Korean. It was a difference in class. The way Mrs. Matsuda had carried herself. This wasn't a time to interfere. She'd lose her face, embarrassing her twice in front of everybody, if Tomoko went over there to try to comfort her. 

"No, she's okay," I tried to assure her. "Don't worry about her." 

As we watched, Tomoko was still troubled, it was obvious. But, Mrs. Matsuda and her sons carried on. She accepted menus from the hostess, giving a slight bow. As I watched how she carried herself, a new respect grew in me. Before, I'd only seen her as irresponsible and careless, leaving her sons alone in the hotel so she could shop. 

As she went into the bustling restaurant with all the grace in the world, I wanted her to go shop a million times. If she had to deal with that monster every day, she deserved all that and more. 

In front of me, Seo-Yoon took a long drink from her Starbucks frappucino. She sighed and grinned, so satisfied with it. "Vanilla bean ice cream, that's what this is," she said. She gestured it to me. "Do you know how long it's been since I've had this? If my mom saw me with it! I thought, 'I'd better drink it now before I get to Korea!' Right?! Because my mom would freak out. She'd say 'how fat you're getting, I can't believe you'd drink that'. Well, my mom can go away with that. While I'm in Japan, I can do anything I want. Just like you, right?" 

I looked at her with this. I realized I'd been off in my own world for a minute. "Huh, what do you mean?"

She wiggled her feet in her airport waiting area seat, the ends of her feet coming out of her black heels. She really was so different. "Like you!" She giggled. "I can be myself! You're being yourself, too!" She punched my shoulder and I automatically acted like it hurt, just like always. She giggled even more. "I'm so proud of you, really. You're inspiring me." She gazed at her drink, staring at the Starbucks logo. "I think I will drink this in Korea. What would my mom say? It won't be as if I'm coming out to her, right? Anything won't be as big as that."

My arm wrapped around her. She'd have to go soon, disappearing into the security line. When would I see her again? The more time went by, the more I didn't want to see her go. 

"You're inspiring me, too," I said sincerely. 

"How am I inspiring?" Her eyebrows wiggled, fishing for another compliment. She was always like this. It made me chuckle.

"With your coffee, of course," I joked. I didn't tell her the real reason. About how she'd unknowingly did the same as me, coming over here to find me, but instead revealing herself, then meeting my friends. Being so bold and brave. She'd taken to them so easily, like it was destiny. She'd even met Kazuya before. That still blew me away. How she'd found French Cup on her own without me. She'd have found it by herself, without my influence. She was incredible, and she didn't even know it. 

"My coffee?!" She snickered. "Hey, you want a sip?" Her eyebrows wiggled again. She always knew that made me giggle, her move just like Groucho Marx. "Live a little?" She gave it to me and I did take a sip. As I did, I noticed a couple of guys peering in our direction. Seeing me, they looked away like something over in the other direction was very interesting. I gave the coffee back to her.

"Hey, there's some guys looking at you over there," I said, pointing secretly like a spy.

"Gross," she sighed, sticking out her tongue and then using it to get ahold of her straw and sipping again. 

I had to laugh more. Would she have acted impressed just a couple of days ago? Now she could say that grossed her out freely. She turned to me, defiance in her face. Her hand want on her hip. "How do you know they weren't looking at you?"

"Gross," I copied her, grinning. She really was making me feel great. 

"What, gross? Were they not cute?" She gazed around, trying to find them. 

"No, they were. Just, I kind of like someone. Well, more than like..." My ears were definitely turning red.

She jumped in her seat as if something beside her exploded. "Excuse me?!" She laughed, and I did, too. "You tell me this when I have to leave in five minutes?!"

"Well..." I scratched my head, unable to stop smiling. 

Her cold hand from her frappucino clamped onto my arm like a vise. She wiggled it, just like when we were kids and I'd take something delicious from her lunch without asking. "Who is it?! Is it one of the people we met yesterday?! I demand to know! I won't get on the plane if I don't! Oh my god, tell me!" 

She'd said oh my god in English. It made me snicker anew. "Well..." I repeated, my voice going squeaky to annoy her, wasting her time when I knew she had so little. 

"Oh, come on!" She let out a frustrated noise and shook her frappucino up to mix the whipped cream and milkshake part of it. "I know it can't have been Miyuki-san. So, it had to have been one of the two guys! Was it the redhead or the blonde?" 

I pursed my lips, my eyes going toward the ceiling. For sure I was blushing. The blonde. What a sexy way to describe him. She gasped hugely and pointed at me, leaning back in her seat in the enormity. My hand went over my mouth as I stared at her, unable to hide my smile. 

"It was the blonde! His name is Kazuya-san, right?! He was practically all over you yesterday at the restaurant! He kept looking at me like he was jealous! I was wondering about that! Oh my god, Gyeong-Wan! Does he like you, too?!" She was practically shrieking in her excitement.

I nodded rapidly, for sure my face was like a tomato and my ears were like twin volcanoes. 

Her squeal must have made the entire airport look at us with alarm. I didn't care one bit if anyone was staring. I was too happy. She put her frappucino between her legs and squeezed tight, both of her hands grabbing mine. 

"Are you going to tell him?! Have you told each other yet?!" Her smile was unrivaled, dwarfing mine. The feeling in my chest. Her being this overjoyed with me at this. What was this feeling? 

"Um, I don't know when I'll tell him. Actually, he knew about you. I wanted to make it right. I had to break up with you first, but now you and I have and we're okay. So, now I'm free to... to..." Wow, what was I saying? That was completely right. I really was free to...

"I'm so glad to have been of service," she said, sounding proud of herself.

Proud. Pride... The feeling in my chest swelled. Pride. That was this feeling. How strange. The word, associated with our community so much. Had I ever felt it myself before? It was a good feeling. 

"Y- yeah, well, I don't know how I'm going to tell him. I know he likes me, too. I have to think about it." My hand left hers to scratch my head again, my nervous habit.

"Well, talk to me about it, okay? Text me. We'll figure it out. Oh, it's going to be so romantic. You'll see. No pressure, though! He already likes you! I'll text you about it after I get off the plane! Oh my god, I'm so excited!" She did look like she could start jumping up and down at any moment, just like a child. It made me giggle again. Just too happy. "Aww, look at you. Giggling about it. You're so happy! I have never, never seen you happy like this!"

That quieted me a little. It was true. When had I been happy like this before? Oh, but there'd been moments. Holding a box of chocolates that he'd given me. Seeing his fake faint when I'd taken his baba au rhums out of the oven. Dancing with him in the grocery store. I wanted there to be thousands of moments like that. And now, talking with Seo-Yoon, I'd just realized I could without limit. And that made me... That just made me overflow. 

"Oh shoot, I have to go," she sighed, seeing her watch. "Well..." She stood up, her frappucino precariously in her hand by the edges of the lid. She wrapped her arms around me as I stood up, too. 

"I'll see you to security," I said, hugging her much too tight. I felt her hug me equally as tightly, one of her forearms missing due to holding her forbidden drink. It was a hug so familiar, because she was often holding a Starbucks drink. This familiarity hit my heart, suddenly making me not want her to go with all of myself. Wanting to tell her to cancel her flight. But, she had to go see our families. I knew she wouldn't tell my secret, but she'd be telling them I was okay. That my job was going well, and that I'd acclimated. This I trusted, because she was just like me, and was my best friend in the world. 

We parted and I took hold of her rolling suitcase and carry on. She sighed again, just as sad as I was. "I'll come back soon," she assured as we walked. "I promise." She gave me a grin, and I had to smile with her. My dear friend. She sighed again, though. "That chicken was too good. Of course I have to come back and have some more." 

I laughed with her and we were at security way too fast. I handed her carry on to her and she slung it over her arm. But, ah. She poked me in the stomach. "By the way," she said, maybe too serious. She stared at my middle, but was giggling soon. It caused me to smile, too, but... "Did you gain weight? I feel something here." She poked my stomach again. Was she joking? My eyes went wide.

"Wait, what?" I asked, my hands going over my midsection, staring at it with disbelief. 

"Yeah, you're definitely fuller in the face, too. Bye, bye!" She called to me, going away suddenly.

"Wait! What are you talking about?!" I called after her, startled.

"Bye, Gyeong-Wan!" She laughed uproariously, that familiar grin going away into the distance as she joined the security line.

"Um, bye!" 

As I watched her go and slowly disappear behind people, my hands raced over my stomach, unable to feel it much under my thick coat. She had to be joking. My lips pressed together, thinking of all the delicious sweets that I'd had in the past month. 

But, as I turned away, I was calmed. Thinking about his face, his joy, upon serving every one of those sweets to me. This new freedom, to ask him finally... Wanting him to be...my boyfriend. 

These words. Oh, these words. They made any negative thought melt away. Any bad feeling or worry, all of it melted away as I walked through the airport, walking on clouds.