Jimin

Ten years ago, I was on my first bachelor trip to Switzerland. I had saved myself some money and I wanted to spend it all. If my father heard about how I was going to make use of the money after managing to make my friends agree to take the trip with me, he would have been more disappointed in me for my money management skills than happy for me. I was contrarily and considerably proud of myself.

Unlike my other friends, I didn't have financial responsibility toward my home and I wasn't to be blamed for it. I had certain ways about life that I'd known quite early on. My parents weren't accepting of it. It only ended with me seven hundred miles away from home after I finished school and went to live in a hostel when I got into university.

Two years on the job and I already had saved enough. I didn't have to think about my future home, a family car, or even spending a lot on my wedding. It was clear to me that I never wanted to get married, and with that motivation, I started living my life the way I wanted. Traveling the world was one of the things that was always on my bucket list. 

Last year, I visited Bangladesh after watching Chris Hemsworth's movie. It was an eye-opener to see a different culture and try local food. 

The airports, in general, pumped my serotonin.

I was thinking of the first step I took in the journey of my world tour and my smile wasn't fading until I saw him — a boy with a cute face and a smoking body.

He was looking too innocent and a bit scared.

I stared at him coming in my direction, his eyes round as they looked around, searching for something. My heart was thumping in my neck when he got too close, but then he turned to one of my friends.

I could hear his indistinct soft voice and see his white and blue striped, long-sleeved t-shirt. The moment of realization that I needed to talk to him anyhow had my feet moving and I pushed my friend away. He gulped as his face lifted at me. "Could you please help me with the directions to the lounge? I can't find it."

"Traveling for the first time?" I asked, extending my hand so he naturally put his documents in it. I didn't know why I did that, and I also didn't know why he gave me his boarding pass. It was such a naive action and had protective instincts in me kicking. 

"Yes," his hands when free, grabbed onto the straps of his backpack. My eyes lifted again from the boarding pass after reading his name and flight details. The colorful headphones were around his neck and his bangs of raven hair had fallen on his forehead. "I am going home."

"Do you live in Busan?" I asked.

He nodded at my Satoori, suddenly picking up. "Do you, too?" He smiled a little.

"Yeah," I nodded, now taking a walk so my friends couldn't hear us. He walked with me. "I have some time until my flight arrives. Let me join you there."

"Oh," he touched his ear, scratching it and turning it red. He was that perfect person who smelled divine, looked as fresh as any newborn, and spoke too politely. I could tell he was into boys, too. His nervousness around me and how he avoided eye contact made it sure. 

"I am Park Jimin," I spoke, not wanting to make the silence too long and awkward. 

"Jeon Jungkook."

"What do you do, Jungkook?" I inquired when we were passing by the phone cases store. I watched how his eyes were engaged in the superheroes section. He didn't say anything. I then came to the fruition that his backpack was red with a big Ironman on it.

"I am in my third year of economics," he answered and hesitated, but then asked me the same question. "And you?" 

"I finished engineering two years ago... Been doing a job for two years now."

"Are you also going to Busan?" He asked me, now his frame a little towards me. 

We kept walking and I smiled. It had been seven months since I visited my parents. No. I wasn't going to Busan. "I am going to Switzerland."

He seemed to be a little awestruck when I said that, but he didn't comment anything.

I ushered him towards the lounge and he sighed in relief when he read the board. "Why are airports like a maze? I don't seem to figure them out."

"Don't be too hard on yourself. It's your first time." I said cockily. 

He looked perplexed for a moment. Then his lips edged up into a grin. Total chaos erupted in my mind. All I wanted was to kiss his lips.

Not thinking that it was a good idea, I felt a flake of anxiety in my chest for some reason.

We found a table and grabbed food. His plate was filled with a muffin, some pasta, a bagel, and a side of Ramen. I laughed, looking at that combination. He was eating without shying. "Do you want some cold drinks?" I asked, my eyes as if didn't want to leave the sight of his face. 

"Yes, thank you," he grumbled through his stuffed mouth. 

I got up from the table. My eyes were now wary of how people were staring at us, staring at him. It made me a little uncomfortable, but avoiding them, I managed to secure two cans of Coke from the fridge before I returned to him.

"Thank you," he said again and I nodded.

I went back to eating slowly  — as I was already full — and mostly staring at him. "I feel that you are really cool for starting traveling at a such young age." He apprised suddenly, his cheeks gaining colors. 

He thought I was cool. My heart raced at the compliment. "How did you guess my age?" I chuckled. 

"I am nineteen and you are two years senior, so you must be twenty-one."

"I am," I chuckled. "But thank you for saying that. Most people think I am just wasting my life."

His hands took a pause and he quizzically looked at me. "Why?"

"They think that I have no ambition because I don't wanna get married in the future. They all expect a man to be a family guy, don't they?" Now that I had spoken, I regretted it. I shouldn't have said something like that.

"I don't know why everyone has to follow the norms. We should be able to do what we love. I don't know about them. But you are cool in my dictionary, Hyung." My lips had a soft smile playing at them. "I also wanna be like you when I am done with college."

"Do you aspire to be a traveler, too?" I asked him. 

"Not really, but anything would be better than working in the family business." He laughed, but there were so many things hidden behind his smile. "And I also don't want my freedom taken away from me. I am afraid of a long time commitment and I think with the happy big family I have, I will be excused from the tradition. I don't think I am made for marriage either. I want to be able to play football and watch football anytime I like."

I was now looking at him with pure adoration. We were compatible in terms of our ideologies. If I let him go without creating a way of communicating again, I would be damned. At that moment, it was only for a second, but I pictured that if he was to be my partner, he would be an ideal one. 

Even though I was against marriage, I didn't undermine the importance of having a companion to share your achievements and tribulations with. I could be with someone and still be loyal to them without having a social convention and a legal obligation to dictate it to me.

Never had I ever met anyone who didn't think that marriages were a sham. So far, I just hadn't found someone whom I thought could fit those shoes. I started thinking of ways to ask him for his e-mail or anything. It was a long shot. I didn't know him well, but I was willing to find out more.

When my eyes scanned the crowd — catching a few of them still looking towards our table, and then my gaze moved to the window — I caught a reflection of what was so interesting about us that was making everyone glued to our table. It was just how beautiful we two looked together. "Do you think it's okay if I want to be in touch with you?" I boldly asked him, stress getting to me. I badly wanted it to work. "You are cool, too, Jeon Jungkook." 

He nodded with a slight smile, wiping his hand with the tissue to grab his phone.  

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You guys didn't disappoint. Vote goal finished in less than 24 hrs. Thank you, lovelies. As promised, here was the next chapter.