Love in All the Right Places (Chick Lit bundle) (14 page)

Chapter Nineteen

AS GIO waited by the boarding gate the next afternoon, he finally began to understand what Toni was saying. What if it weren’t enough, apologizing in person? He had to accept that maybe he had screwed things up so irrevocably that there was no turning back. Deep down, he was ready for it: ready for the pain, ready for rejection. But he also had to show Min Hee that he was ready to risk it all.

In hindsight, he had to be grateful that hour-long delays gave him a chance to reflect on the consequences of his actions and how they mattered in the big picture. (Also a chance to memorize, like a student cramming for exams). It was a Zen moment. But at that particular moment, he just couldn’t wait to end his misery.

Finally, at around five o’ clock, they began boarding. Gio was one of the first to board and soon watched as the rest of the anxious passengers filled the plane. He could tell the tourists who came from places like Boracay or Cebu now on their way home. In fact, the couple that had sat to his left seemed like they had vacationed at the beach. They seemed to be in their mid-thirties, both wearing identical
shirts and sporting very light redness on their face and arms. He gave them a polite nod before sitting down.

Gio only concentrated on the paper in his hands. Toni was right; he
probably should have gone with something else. But there was no time to think about what could go wrong. He was already headed down this path. He had to see it through.

Halfway through the flight, the older woman beside him engaged in some small talk. The
old Gio wasn’t meant for small talk. He probably would have answered a few questions then gone back to his reading. But the new one didn’t seem to mind. He looked up from the speech he was memorizing when the woman addressed him.

“First time to Korea? Business or pleasure?”

Gio hesitated. “Not sure actually. But definitely my first time.”

The woman looked puzzled. “Why, where are you off to?”

The truth was that he only had a general idea. “Cheonggyecheon Stream. I’m about to apologize to a girl,” he confessed.

“Huh. I see! Good luck.” She laughed softly. “But I always thought lovers did all their major drama by the Han River. Go big or go home.”

Gio grinned awkwardly. This was already big enough for him.

“Where did you spend your Philippine vacation?” he asked in return.

“Boracay,” she replied, turning to her boyfriend to include him in the conversation. “It’s our second time. The first time we went to Palawan.”

Gio smiled. “I hope you enjoyed your stay. I actually work in Boracay.” That set them talking a bit, and they exchanged some observations about the island. They had liked some things, hated others, but both promised that when they returned, they would visit his museum.

“Someone warned us we wouldn’t get any snacks on this flight so we brought our own. Want one?” the woman asked, holding out a box to him. When he peered inside, his grin just got wider.

There was one calamansi muffin inside.

He was a historian. He believed in facts, not signs. But this particular chain of events had him shaking his head in amusement. “Thank you,” he said gratefully. “But…”

“No, go ahead, you can take it,” she insisted. “We’ve been eating since the flight started.”

Gio reached for the box. “Thank you,” he said again. And he meant it.

The couple also gave him tips on how to get to Cheonggyecheon Stream. Even if he had tried to do some research online, it was still good to get a second opinion. According to them, the airport express train was closed by the time they would arrive, so his options were limited to the night bus and a taxi. The bus could only drop him off at certain points of the city, but the Seoul Station stop was the closest to the stream and he could then take the subway to the point where he needed to go. An airport taxi was much more expensive, but at least he could head there straight.

In the end, Gio decided to go with the cab. It wasn’t as if he was all that familiar with Seoul’s streets and subway stops, and he couldn’t risk getting lost just minutes before the subway ceased operating for the day. The cab driver looked friendly enough. Gio was grateful that though the cabbie expected Gio to name a hotel, he didn’t question the choice of destination.

Gio didn’t have much time to look out the window during the trip from Incheon to downtown Seoul. The highways were well lit but close to empty; he could see a large and dark body of water just beyond the road. Even if he had something pretty to look at, he would have still chosen to stumble over the words that he was going to say to Min Hee. “
Jung mal me ahn hae yo
,” he said slowly.
I’m sorry I was a dick.
Nicer, of course, but that was what he meant.

As they neared the city, the driver turned to him in his heavily accented English. “Where in Cheonggyecheon?”

Gio remembered belatedly that it was an 8.4 km-long stream in the middle of the city. A quick call to Da Kyong told him where exactly he needed to go. He passed his phone to the cab driver, presumably for some directions. When the driver passed the phone back, all Da Kyong said was, “Hurry.”

It was near midnight when Gio arrived, but Cheonggyecheon Stream was still crowded with crew and spectators. The stream cut through the city. Cement walls rose on either side. Gio shivered as he stepped down from the cab, instantly regretting why he didn’t bring a thicker jacket with him. He definitely wasn’t in Boracay anymore.

He stepped closer to where the spectators stood. They weren’t plenty, maybe about twenty or so people on either side. From the streets above he peered down to survey the scene below. They were probably in between takes. Someone was still adjusting the lights. An assistant director milled about with a megaphone. Makeup artists did last-minute touch-ups.

He quickly scanned the crowd to spot Min Hee. His heart gave a small jolt when he saw her. She was dressed in a bright blue coat, almost the same color as the dress she had worn when they first met. She was seated by a concert piano, as if her character was about to give a public performance, talking to the director on one side of the stream.

“Min Hee!” he tried to call out to her. The people standing beside him gave him strange looks. But they were the only ones who turned to look; Min Hee didn’t seem to hear him.

Gio stepped back from the rail and tried calling Da Kyong. He hadn’t seen her around, and unfortunately this time, she wasn’t answering either. He slowly walked around, trying to see how he could make his way down. Finally, he spotted the access stairs that led down to Min Hee and the piano, but they seemed to be guarded by security and crew with IDs around their neck. And they meant business.

But he didn’t come this far just to give up. Gio squared his shoulders and walked directly up to the crew. “Somebody said there was an emergency. Where’s your boss? Let me through, I need to talk to him.”

The guys shook their heads but Gio had a role to play. He tried to look important and angry. “Are you telling me I can’t see him?” He started pointing to the stream. “Don’t you know who I am?” Boy, he was laying it on thick. But if a few English phrases could get him through, then he was going to take it.

The guys exchanged confused looks but finally one of them shrugged and let him through. Gio tried not to breathe a sigh of relief and merely nodded, as if he had been expecting this. Soft piano music had begun to play and when he hurried down to Min Hee, he saw that she had her back to him, intent on the piano keys before her.

“Min Hee?” Gio called out loudly, eager to get her attention, nearly tripping down the stairs.

“Cut!” an angry voice interrupted.

Chapter Twenty

ALL EYES turned towards Gio. In his haste, he hadn’t noticed that they had already started filming. The piano music still played on, even Min Hee, who was still seated at the piano, had dropped her hands and looked at him with growing surprise. But she made no move to stand.

He froze.

Loud shouts in Korean were heard over the megaphone. Soon the security guys he had bypassed earlier started to descend the stairs after him. Gio swallowed. It was now or never.

“
J-Jung mal
uh,
me ahn
, uh
hae yo
!” he yelled to Min Hee in desperation.

The crowd began to buzz in confusion. One of the security guards grabbed his arm. He tried to shake it free, but the man’s grip was strong. The guy with the megaphone sounded like he was asking him questions, but when Gio fumbled with the Korean phrase for ‘I don’t understand’, the crowd tittered with polite laughter.

“
Bo go shi pao,
” he said finally, ignoring his rising embarrassment.  He tried again in English, in case she didn’t get it. “I-I miss you.”

Finally, Min Hee said a few words to the man with the megaphone, who in turn shouted something. The security guy let go of Gio’s arm. He didn’t look back. He wet his lips and continued down the steps. “Min Hee, ah…”

But every word of his hastily memorized (and poorly pronounced) Korean left him. He stared down at the scene below, but he didn’t really register the puzzled cast and crew, the sparkling lights on the stream. All he could see was Min Hee in a bright blue coat and a white scarf, standing up very slowly.

“I-I was wrong,” he continued in English. With each step, his voice grew stronger. “When that reporter asked me what we were to each other, I wasn’t sure how I was supposed to answer. I know how to answer him now. You are special, Min Hee. Very much. I wish I had the guts to say that before. I should have protected you, not hurt you. It doesn’t matter if you’re a fancy actress or a starving artist. Who you are right now is enough. Who you are right now means a world of difference to me.”

The crowd stirred and leaned closer, but it was the man with the megaphone who responded. As Gio spoke, the man talked over the next sentences. It took Gio a second to realize that the man was translating everything he was saying for the crowd’s benefit. Cellphone cameras started flashing. Gio tried to ignore the amplified live dubbing going on and kept on walking towards Min Hee. This was between him and her.

“You happened to me out of the blue that I got scared. I’m not anymore. But I know I screwed things up with you badly. So if you turn me away now, then I’ll try to live with it. I’ll walk away and never bother you again. But if there’s even the faintest hope that you can forgive me, then I won’t give up. I won’t give you up.”

He had now reached the foot of the stairs. Min Hee’s expression was still unreadable. “You came all this way to say that?”

“You weren’t taking my calls.”

Finally she held her hand out. “Apology gift?” she demanded.

Solemnly, he handed her the box with the last calamansi muffin.

She shook her head. Then a cheeky smile slowly spread on her face. “Not what I had in mind, Mr. Museum.”

Gio crossed the last two steps to get to her. Then very tentatively, he leaned down and placed a soft kiss on the corner of her mouth. His lips were so cold while hers were so warm. But she was the one who was trembling.

The crowd cheered.

“Still not what I had in mind,” Min Hee murmured.

Emboldened by her response, Gio’s arms slowly encircled her, stealing some of her warmth for himself. Min Hee laughed, before she wrapped the end of her scarf around his neck. She felt light in his arms. He kissed her again, this time full on the lips, once, twice, thrice, not caring that they had an audience. She smelled of a faraway beach with a five-colored sea. She smelled of nights by the sand. She smelled of sunshine and vanilla and every day yet to come.

Six months later

museumguy

What’s that supposed to be?

MINHee

That’s an emoticon of a dog crying!
If you can’t tell that, you need to get your eyes checked.

museumguy

No, not really.
That is NOT a dog.

museumguy

Low season. Raining now. Gray everywhere.
Wish I could take a break.
Harold can probably take care of things for me.

MINHee

So why don’t you come visit?

MINHee

If you’re curator now, can’t you make
your own rules?

museumguy

True. But I spent nearly all my money on a certain trip,
remember? Well, that and the motorcycle.

MINHee

Hmmm. Never pegged you to get a red bike.

museumguy

Who said I got a red bike?

museumguy

Did Toni tell you?

museumguy

Min Hee?

MINHee

Look out the window.

The End

GLOSSARY

Adobong pusit
– Squid cooked in its own ink, usually with water, vinegar, and pepper

Banca/bangka
– Outrigger boat

Barong
– Shirt made from pineapple fibers and often worn to formal events

Binakoe – Native Aklanon dish of chicken cooked inside a bamboo

Calamansi
– Philippine lime

Kuya
– Older brother

Lola
– Grandmother

Manong
– Another term for older brother, more commonly used in the provinces

Nanay/Nay
– Mother

Nipa
- A kind of palm common in the Philippines, with leaves often used for thatching small huts

Pan de sal
- Breakfast bread rolls

Pasalubong
- Often a souvenir, but may refer to anything brought back from a trip to give to someone; may sometimes refer to small trinkets or food brought home to the family after the end of a work day

Paraw
- Boat

Piña
– Pineapple; also used to refer to the fabric made from the plant’s leaves

Salamat
– (saeamat in Aklanon) Thank you

Tricycle
– Three-wheeled mode of transportation, often a motorcycle with a sidecar attached