“Oh no. We have the very good fortune that he is here in Los Angeles for a few weeks for a consultation. Can you believe it?” Her mom could barely contain her excitement.
Julia tried to smile, she really did. She could feel the skin around her mouth stretch, so maybe she was succeeding.
“Julia, I talked to my friend, you know Elder Chung at church? He knows this young doctor and spoke highly of him. He says that he is very nice and smart. Well-respected in his field.” Great, her dad was in on it too. “And tall.”
“Why would I go on a date with someone who’s from Korea?” Julia asked.
“We’re all from Korea,” her mom said.
“That’s not what I meant. I could never be in a long-distance relationship with someone who isn’t even in the same country as me.”
“Well, he’s considering taking a position at Cedars-Sinaihospital. So he could be just a short drive away. A doctor!” Her mom could barely contain her excitement.
“What do you think, Tae?” Tae and Julia both jerked their heads up as her grandmother turned the question to Tae. “You know Julia best.”
“Um, I think maybe I know myself best,” Julia interjected.
“Why would Tae have an opinion on this? We don’t need to bother him with Julia’s love life,” her mom added.
“I’m asking Tae what he thinks. I’m curious. Should Julia go out with this famous doctor from Korea?” her grandmother asked again.
Tae set his chopsticks down and placed his elbows on the table, his intertwined hands at his mouth in thought.
Please save me, Tae, Julia begged silently.
“It wouldn’t hurt to meet him,” he said. “I mean, since you still have a third setup date to experience.”
That traitor.
Julia let out a frustrated growl. “Fine. But this is the last one. After this, I’m done. I’m free. Unless...” Julia directed her attention to her grandmother. “Unless there’s something that would make me feel guilty enough to decide otherwise. Any such thing, Halmoni? Anything at all?”
But her grandmother simply looked down and continued to stuff her face with heaping spoonfuls of food, content as could be.
“Julia, we feel very good about this one,” Julia’s dad said.
“Oh, but there’s one thing. He doesn’t speak English,” her mom added.
“I’m sorry, but how is this not going to end up a disaster?” Julia dropped her chopsticks. “I don’t speak Korean very well. How are we going to even communicate?”
“Well, I thought maybe I could go with you?” Julia’s mom suggested as if it were completely normal to have your mom chaperone and facilitate discussion on a first date.
“Absolutely not. I have some sense of self-respect and pride. I’m not taking my mother on a date. No way. I’ll just use Papago, or I just won’t say a word.”
“Tae will go.”
All eyes turned, yet again, to Julia’s grandmother.
“Halmoni, you can’t just throw Tae’s name out there like he’s on call for this family. He has his own life. He doesn’t need to babysit mine.” How could Julia even focus on anyone else if Tae was there too?
“Tae, will you go? Will you go with Julia on this date to interpret and make sure she has a good time?” her grandmother asked him directly.
Tae’s throat moved as he swallowed what she was certain his lifelong regret of ever having met Julia’s family.
Julia looked at Tae, her eyes wide and wild, head shaking furiously.You can do it, Tae, she encouraged.Just sayno. Just sayno.
“Tae, you don’t have to...” she said.
The corner of his mouth lifted slightly.
