Why did she ask me to come here if she had no time for me? You were not totally happy with your best friend. You knew that the girl was busy with her work and studies but she should at least make some concession for her best friend. She's definitely lost touch with the human side of things, you thought.

 

As always, all you wanted to do was to take a long walk and do some shopping in Seoul. You had always wanted to walk the streets and taste the street food, do some window shopping and meet some new people. Maybe today is my day, you thought. And you made the decision: it's time for shopping!

 

It was a warm day in Seoul and you were away a delicious cone of icecream. You've never felt this liberated anywhere else; not even in your own country. There was something about Korea that had set you free, that had made you even more wild. Nobody knew you here, nobody questioned you; that was an added advantage.

 

As you dreamingly turned at the corner of the street, a pair of invisible hands came for your beautiful clutch and ran away with it. In desperation, you decided to chase the person, as there was nothing else you could do. 

 

You ran and followed him to a lonely street where he was already waiting for you. The street was right behind the mainstream life, the outskirts and you knew you were in trouble. You could see the hinds of numerous shops you had seen on the other side but they didn't see you anymore.

 

"Give me my purse", you told him bravely.

 

"You want it?" He asked in broken English. "What will I get in return?" , came his accented reply.

 

"You ert! Give me back my purse!" You made a run for the clutch. 

 

It was sudden: the guy caught hold of you and pinned you against the wall. Fear pulsed through your entire body. Was this the end? It kept asking your mind. 

 

A door opened to you right and somebody came out. The strength of the new entrant was visible in your enemy's eyes. Fear swam in his watery eyes. 

 

"Jaebalyo. Forgive me. Please!" He screamed as the other person made a grab at his collar and gave him a few punches. The thief dropped your clutch and you took it and fell to the floor. You've had enough for the day. 

 

The other guy had taken care of the nuisance and came back to you. You couldn't look at him face as tears strolled down your cheeks. You had never felt this vulnerable in your life.

 

"Are you okay? You don't seem as if you're from around here. Come in. This is a restaurant my sister owns." He gently picked you up and assisted you inside the restaurant. It was empty as it wasn't time yet for dinner. The tables were all set and apparently the whole place was reserved. Must be some fancy restaurant, you thought.

 

"Take this." He came back with a glass of water. "Do you want coffee?" 

 

You slowly raised your face to see the man who was so kind to you.

 

IT CAN'T BE!

 

It was Choi Siwon.

 

"Siwon oppa. . " You gasped. 

 

"Nan ara?" He asked with his characteristic derpy-amused face. 

 

"Yes. I like you." You answered shyly before realizing that you just confessed to your bias. 

 

"Ha, ha. I like your frankness. So are you accepting the coffee offer?" 

 

"Yeah. I'd like a coffee."

 

"Where are you from? Why are you out here alone?"

 

"I am from India. I came to visit a friend who's working and studying here. She was supposed to take me out but she was too busy for it. So I thought. . "

 

"So you thought you'd go out by yourself? So foolish of you! A girl as pretty as you!  You can't be safe anywhere in the world. Men would go crazy over you. Do you realize that?" 

 

You felt too shy to answer anything. He gently turned your face upwards, his hand holding your chin. He gave you a beautiful smile. "Where do you live? I'll take you there." 

 

You gave him the address and he drove you over to your friend's place in his new Maserati.

 

Your friend wasn't home yet. You were quite unsure what to do. 

 

"What? Aren't you going to invite me in?" He asked.

 

"Sure, oppa. Come in, please." 

 

You both got in and you heard the door close behind you and a hand crawling in over your waist. Your breathing stopped. What was he doing? 

 

You looked down at his hands and you saw that he was tying a tiny little chain around your waist. 

 

"I found this belly chain while I was looking for the car's key. It's from my favourite jewelry shop. I bought it because it was pretty but by the time I made up my mind to gift it to somebody, that somebody was no longer in my life. Looking at  you, I think it was destiny." You blushed. And he gave you a wide grin and turned you around. 

 

"What? Isn't it destiny? This chain fits you perfectly. This chain is destined to be yours." 

 

And here you thought . .  Aish! You thought he was talking about the both of you.  Disappointment and embarrassment washed over your face. 

 

"Ha, ha ha! I can so read your mind!" 

 

You went to the kitchen and started making some juice for you both. As you were slicing the lemons, the naughty hands came again. "This is not how you should slice them. I'll show you the technique." 

 

His technique was magical. No idea about the lemon but he was all over you, magically. You felt the tiny light bulbs lighting all over your body and then bursting into little fire crackers because of the excessive electricity. 

 

"Ahem. . " you cleared your throat.

 

"Ah, the lemonade is ready!" 

 

As you were serving the lemonade, a ring at the door startled you. 

 

"It must be my bestie." 

 

You reached for the door but a pair of strong hands pushed you closer to the door and a warm, strong body was against yours. You could hear laboured breaths; both of yours. He dipped his head down to your neck and softly muttered something. He was inhaling your fragrance and then he gently bit your soft neck. And then a little play with the tongue and you were totally defenseless. You could just melt in his hold right then and there. He held your hands and then slowly, slipped a piece of paper into your hand. "Dinner, tomorrow at 7." He whispered it like a chant into your ears and you felt dizzy. 

 

He then pushed you away and opened the door. 

 

"Oppa!" Your friend ran into his arms. What was happening? You couldn't make sense of anything. 

 

"You two met? Aiiiish! You really spoiled my surprise. How's she? This is the girl I chose for you. Now you got no other choice but to date her, okay? You promised me that you'd marry the girl of my choice." 

 

"I said that for a reason. I know you know what's best for me. And I think you have not let me down." He said it so slowly that you could just break into a thousand shards of glass and come back to become a whole. 

 

"What do you mean?" You asked, perplexed to the core.

 

"See,  you said you wanted a boyfriend. He told me he wanted a girlfriend. And apparently you both suit each other perfectly. So I thought I'll fix you up. How did you guys meet?" 

 

"It was destiny." Siwon voiced those words ily, like never before. And then he laughed. 

 

Your friend hugged both of you and whispered in your ears: "Congratulations, Mrs. Choi Siwon. I have kept my promise." 

 

It was, indeed, destiny.