Mom and dad drove me to the airport where our organization adviser is waiting for my arrival. Me and mom is already in good terms but not with my dad. I felt so sad. I tried approaching him this morning but he seemed not in the good mood today that's why I kept on holding back my feelings this morning.

We arrived at the airport earlier than usual. While waiting for my adviser to finish her last-minute tasks for my exchange student participation, we had a nice breakfast at a cafeteria near the airport. Dad's been silent for a long time.

This ain't funny.

At last our adviser came bringing with her my plane ticket and some stuff from school. I gave my goodbyes to my parents and mom can't help but tear up. Dad's been emotionless and just looked at me. He doesn't need to pretend, because I can see in his eyes that he will miss me.

But I guess that's what pride can do. Suppresion of feelings.

And so, it's temporary goodbye to my country. Dragging my luggage, I am now on my way to Korea, hoping that I can expand my knowledge in fashion....and also...

to find myself.

Supermassive Blackhole kept on playing in my mind..

I took a deep breath.

 

Lets do this,

 

Korea.

******************************************

It was a pretty long travel from my country to Korea but it was all worth it when I saw how pretty Incheon airport is!

There were a lot of people in the airport; some were foreigners like me while some \were Koreans. There were also lots of cute children running here and there tugging with them their own small luggages. I even saw a kid hugging his penguin-shaped pillow. What a very good scenery.

The airport's been busy when I arrived. The speakers around the airport were busy delivering different announcements. There's even one lady announcer who spoke in korean, English, french, Japanese and other languages as well...I was amazed.

"Now where should I go?" I thought.

I opened my bag to find for the last minute reminders that my adviser gave me and it said that I should look for a Korean who holds a banner that says: 'Fashion Design Exchange Student Program'. So I decided to find my way out and look for the person who will fetch us.

Yes, us.

We are only three from our college, Trish (my classmate) and David (batchmate) the rest are the representatives of our University for programs other than Fashion design. I suddenly realized that aside from searching for the person that will fetch us, I also have to look for Trish and David.
 

I was searching for familiar faces, but I failed so I decided to meet the Korean who'll fetch us.

I passed through the immigration and I'm on my way to get my luggage, I started to get dizzy when I saw lots of luggages in the carousel. I'm looking for my pastel pink luggage, I thought I can find it easily because not all luggages are color pink...but I was wrong. Since there are too many luggages in the carousel and there are many people around, I decided to walk around just to check if my luggage is there. 

Finally, when I went to the other side of the carousel, I saw a pastel pink luggage. 'Got it' i said to myself.

But what surprised me is that, there were two pastel pink-colored luggages in the carousel. One was three meters away from the other.

Oh my God. Which is my luggage?

I guess it's my fault for not listening when mom said that I should put something in my luggage so that I can distinguish it from the others. But I was too confident that my luggage is unique.

 

Regrets indeed come in the end.

 

"Which luggage will I choose?"

I looked for possible signs that the luggage that I am checking at that time is mine., but I cannot see anything familiar.

"I guess it's not mine." I said to myself as I turn to the next.

The other pink luggage has scratches on it and it's wheels don't look like new. Knowing myself as a clumsy girl, I thought that the luggage is mine.

"So maybe it's mine." I thought as I grabbed it without rechecking if that was indeed mine.

I am already rushing and going nuts about what happened to me.

Perhaps everyone is already there and they're all waiting for me.

Some are maybe even bored... Uggghhh.

"Oh I am so sorry..." I thought.

 

Since the airport is really big and I am just a pathetic first-time traveller, I was confused on my way out. I even have to ask one of the crew about the direction to the exit. Good thing he can understand English.

Looking towards the exit, I saw a bunch of people whose facial features are similar to mine and they were talking to a Korean guy who's holding a banner.

Crap.

I am super late. I don't even know how to explain things in such a way that they will understand it, afterall it's my fault for not putting anything in my luggage that will make it more unique from the others.

I started walking towards the exit when a child bumped me.

The kid was so strong that my bag fell off my shoulder. 

"He's just a kid" I muttered.

I turned to continue walking when I felt something on my foot. I think I stepped on something.

It was a passport.

I opened it and I saw a face of a child.

"Is this the child who bumped me?" I said, puzzled. 

My eyes widened and my heart skipped a beat upon the realization. 

"What should I do now?!"

 

Panickly, I picked it up and ran towards the kid.

"Man, the kid is too fast" I thought, as I ran towards the kid.

I don't care if I'll be late but without his passport, that kid cannot go back home!

I've been running so fast in curves and passing through a lot of people  when I suddenly crashed into someone.

Both of us fell.

I was in a panic, a child bumped at me, I am already late, everyrone's waiting for me and now THIS.

Who on earth bumped at me now?!

I thought "Why is this happening to me?!?"

I was rubbing my head, when the person I bumped extended his hand to me. 

With the shape of this hand, I know that the person is a man. 

"Now what?" I sighed as I asked myself.

I got his hand and he helped me get up. I was fixing my clothes when I said,

"Well, sorry. But if you don't mind, I still need to---"

I stopped talking when I saw him. I know I've seen him before.

I frowned because I am trying to remember where did I see this guy. 

Gathering all my memories these past weeks I finally remembered who he is.

And I cannot believe it.

Wearing a Jeremy Scott scarf and a white coat adorned with a lady gaga brooch. His eyes,extremely small, very chinky and very expressive. His complexion is smooth like porcelein. His cheekbones are very prominent...very manly.

He's the boy in my dreams. It's lollipop boy!

But it's really impossible how can---

My face froze when I realized that....

 

The child. The airport. The people. The announcer. The passport, but it's supposed to be a plane ticket, as far as I can remember. It's almost the same as my......my....

 

it's almost the same as my dream two nights ago.

My jaw dropped.

I still can't believe it. Is it just a coincidence?

I am now convincing myself.

Well, I really can't tell if it's really what happened in my dream....unless he will say the exact words that he said in that dream.

Of course that won't happen. How can someone---

"Gwaenchana?" He asked me.

 

OH MY LORD.

 

Can I just die, literally???? Those were the exact words he told me in my dream! 

 

"Maybe it's just coincidence.. it's just a coincidence... let's give it a try." I thought.

I remembered saying..

 

" Sorry I cannot speak Korean, do you understand English?" in my dream so let's just use that. Anyway, I can feel that he can't understand English well.

 

" Sorry I cannot speak Korean, do you understand English?" I said to him.

I took a deep breath while waiting for his reply.

 

" Oh sorry didn't know you're not Korean... I said, Are you okay?"

 

 

OH MY GOD.

 

EXACTLY THE SAME.

 

My mind was barely functioning when I felt that someone's tugging my hand. I looked down and saw the kid that bumped me.

"Woah! I thought I won't see you again! Have you seen my passport? I think it fell off my pocket when I bumped into you." the kid asked me.

I am really speechless to what was happening at that time.

I just nodded and gave him the passport. He was so relieved and very happy when he said, 'Thank you! Thank you very much! and sorry if I bumped you a while ago. I was rushing."

Rushing was the only word that registered in my mind.

 

I am still surprised and I felt beads of sweat on my neck. I am perspiring despite the cool temperature inside the airport.

 

"Are you okay?" lollipop boy asked me again.

"Y-yes." I told him without looking his eyes.

"But it seems that you're not" he told me.

He went to my side and looked at my neck. 

"Aigoo, why are you perspiring a lot?" he asked "You know what? Let's go to the clinic, maybe they have something to----"

He stopped talking when a man suddenly dragged him away.

My eyes aren't blinking when I saw him staring at me while he was being dragged.

His eyes looked worried.

More so, concerned.

I shook my head to wake myself up from my surprised thoughts.

I remembered what the kid told me.

RUSHING.

 

Oh crappppp.

 

Now they'll gonna kill me for sure!!!

I dragged my luggage and ran towards the exit.

While running, I heard a lot of girls who are screaming.

I turned to check who are those girls.

But those weren't just girls.

 

They're a mob of girls.

 

Again, it took a few seconds for me to go back to reality

"That mob was in my dream as well!!!" I realized

 

Crap. Am I going crazy?

 

Finally, after 123445457685332 years, I was able to go out and meet the Korean who'll fetch us.

I saw my schoolmate's faces and all of them looked pissed. Even our Korean guide looked pissed as well.

" I am sorry, something came up inside. I cannot explain it well but---"

"You don't need to explain...perhaps you were stucked in that mob of crazy girls, aren't you?" our Korean guide asked me

I was about to give him an answer when  he said, "Ohh, that scene is just normal here. Tsk Tsk, those girls..going crazy over those flower boys..."

"I am so sorry"

"It's okay, we can see the mob from here...and it was crazy..must be a traumatic experience for you huh?" the guide said.

I just gave him a faint smile.

"Not traumatic.....surprising" I thought to myself.

Our guide named James Park, guided us to the bus and assisted us to the hotel.

There was no dull moment in the bus because James kept on throwing some jokes which is pretty good because at least I can forget what happened at the airport. Our guide is also accomodating and from time to time he gave us some information about Korea. 

We reached the hotel and James gave us our room keys.

My room number was 923.

"Lucky nine." I said to myself.

But am I really lucky? Because of what happened a while ago, it seems like I am not lucky at all.

This day has been so long and many things happened.

I don't wanna remember them because that will drive me crazy.

 

Crazy day. Indeed.

 

I took a shower before I go to bed hoping to release all the stress that I felt today.

And I am also hoping that all those unbelievable things will be washed away.

Before going to bed, I decided to unpack my things.

I grabbed my luggage and opened it.

 

My eyes widened with what I saw.

 

Joyrich, Alexander Wang, Jeremy Scott, Armani, Cassette Playa, Jill Stuart, YSL.

 

Good lord, where did all these expensive clothes come from?

These weren't even mine!!!!

 

Oh God, here we go again.

 

Panickly, I explored the luggage hoping to see any identification card. 

I saw something inserted in between the folded clothes.

I picked it and I observed that it was a card.

An Identification card.

I read the name of the cardholder which was written in Korean but there was a Romaji written in the parenthesis beside the name.

 

The name of the owner is.....

 

 

 

김기범 (KIM KIBUM)

 

 

$%^#^&^#@$#%#%!!!!!!!!!!