“It’s not meant to be romantic. It’s not a real date.”
“Uh-huh, we’ll see,” Rachel said. “Well, he clearly has some dating experience. And he seems like a decent guy. Good on you for asking for his help,” Rachel said.
“That sounds like heaven,” Sonia sighed. “Tae really is a saint.”
The waiter came by to clear the plates and placed the signed bill in front of Sonia.
“What the heck, Sonia? You did not pull the fake bathroom visit to pay for the bill, did you?”
“I will be very strapped for cash once my home remodeling starts,” Sonia said and shrugged. “I just wanted one last chance to treat you girls to something.”
“Thank you, sweetie,” Rachel said.
“You didn’t have to, but thank you,” Julia said.
“Practice dates couldn’t hurt,” Sonia said as the three of them got up and grabbed their bags. “But I don’t think you should write him off. Tae’s smoking hot and is a genuinely good guy. Why saynoto that?”
“Again, he’s too young. We have nothing in common. And, well, if I’ve proven anything, it’s that I suck at all of this. So if he actually is that great of a guy, I’m definitely not the one who should be dating him. We’ll just do some practice rounds, and hopefully he’ll get me into good enough shape so that some other guy will end up stuck with me. Then I’ll compensate him generously for his time and efforts so when all is said and done, we’ll be square.” Julia forced a smile at her friends as she walked in front of them toward the exit... which just happened to be the unfortunate spot to very clearly hear their responses.
“Yeah, sure, okay. I mean, what could ever go wrong?” Rachel asked.
“Said no romance novel or K-drama ever,” Sonia added.
Sometimes Julia hated her friends.
6
What about Min?
Tae
We have to talk. Call me Tae. Please.
The message was from his ex-girlfriend, Kari. Though, it could have just as easily been from his landlord. Or his boss. Tae had been avoiding everyone from his life in Chicago because they wanted answers, and he didn’t have them. He’d been back home for two months, which apparently was the expiration date for goodwill from people who demanded your time, your money, your attention. Should he just make it official and cut the ties and start fresh here? But that would leave him single, jobless, and living with his parents. What a life to be proud of.
Tae pulled the too-heavy blanket up over his head. It was late, and he should be out of bed instead of hiding under a stifling blanket fort. But he had no energy and no desire to get up. It was just one of those days where all he wanted to do was stay in bed. He had to be careful of those days.
His phone buzzed, this time an incoming FaceTime call.
Kari.
He and Kari hadn’t even been serious. They both knew it wasn’t working. Maybe it had never really worked at all between them. She couldn’t understand why Tae had to always put family first. Okay, that sounded harsh. Kari wasn’t a monster. She just felt Tae went overboard on what he was willing to sacrifice for his parents. She wasn’t the only one who believed this. But Tae had always been loyal to a fault. And this was what he had to do.
Breaking up with her before leaving to come home had been the right thing to do. But Kari had been having a hard time accepting it. She wanted to talk. She needed closure. Tae couldn’t avoid her forever. If she needed a conversation, she deserved at least that.
Just not right now.
This was the problem with casual relationships. The risk that someone ended up wanting more, something more serious. Tae had never been in that headspace or heart space with Kari.
And she was a reminder that he couldn’t keep all the other things in his life in limbo for much longer.
He threw the blanket off, tapped the green button, closed his eyes for one second, and waited for their faces to both appear on the screen.
“Are you still in bed? It’s, what, almost noon out there?”
And there it was. The sound of judgment of all his life’s choices.
“Um, good morning to you too?” Tae answered.
