RJ

September 17, Sat, 2016

"And so I have no choice but to take History of China lor."

I snort as I merge into the 405. "Your fault for not signing up for classes earlier lah."

"I didn't know there would be a deadline on these things mah!" Jon's complaints blast loudly through my phone speakers, and I let out another laugh.

I was driving to the airport when Jon decided to call. He has been busy settling into his new dorm, so we have not talked for days. And it seems that the first week of his new school life has already met with problems.

"Idiot," I tease. "Got into Stanford and still don't know to check the school website for basic things like that."

"Whatever lah, at least it fulfills one of my Gen Ed requirements. It'll be an easy pass for sure too."

"You gotta save all the easy classes for your upper years tho—fuck!" I jam on my brakes and punch my horn.

"What happened?"

"This motherfucker cut into my lane last minute lah."

"Drive slower lah. You drive like a fucking maniac sometimes."

"Shut the fuck up lah. When are you getting a car?"

"Oh, right, I'm gonna go to the dealership sometime next week with Adrian."

"Adrian?" I raise my eyebrows. I know Adrian is at UC Berkeley now and is in the same area as Jon, but they're still a good distance away to be visiting a car dealership together.

"Yeah. He's not buying a car, he's just coming with me, um, to give opinions. Eh, by the way, want to do a road trip this winter break? You, me, Chloe, and Adrian, maybe? Hit some of the national parks and just go around California?"

"I'll need to check with Chloe first. She's going to be working and everything, so it might be harder for her to get time off, I don't know."

Just the mention of Chloe makes me smile. She did so well in the hotel job that she managed to get recommended to work at a high-end restaurant in downtown LA. Since she is interested in recipe development, she is also being sponsored to study at the Institute of Culinary Education as a part-time student. Not directly going to college actually worked out so well for her.

"Oh, that's right, she's still working. But dude, have you tried her food? Audrey and I went to the Marriott Hotel before she got transferred out, and ordered all the dishes she's in charge of, and they're so good sia!"

Pride fills my heart before a pang of jealousy takes over. I never got to try Chloe's food at her workplace, because she would use up all her vacation days whenever I returned to Singapore. Then again, I got to spend time with her, which was a lot more valuable.

"Not yet, but she's going to be working near me now, so I can visit her to try any time."

"Wah, but honestly, she's going to be working and going to culinary school? Her life will be so busy sia."

"Her life is always busy lah," I say with a sigh. "I'm used to it lah. Just got to match her pace and be equally busy with all my internships."

"Power couple sia, the two of you." Jon laughs. "Seriously though, kudos to you two for surviving a long-distance relationship. I went to the army and within one month, Huimin already started going out with another guy."

I roll my eyes, even though Jon won't be able to see it. "You two weren't even dating lor." My voice lowers as I add, "And you know how much Chloe and I have been fighting."

Indeed, the past year has been challenging—being separated by a huge time difference is a whole struggle by itself. Sometimes Chloe would get mad at me for ditching our daily calls for a party, and sometimes I would get mad at her for not telling me about her ever-changing work schedules. The fights never lasted long though, and we always made it a point to patch things up before the end of the week. When it comes down to it, it's all about communication and trust—and Jon's occasional mediation.

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"Oh, I know," Jon says, and I can hear the eye roll in his tone. "You two are the reason why I don't ever want to date a girl anymore. So much crying, good grief."

How I wish I could punch him right now. "Shut the fuck up lah. I cannot believe you're saying that when you know a dramatic ass guy like Lobang exists." A thought strikes me and I add, "Wait, so no more dating girls huh. You're exclusively going to date guys now?"

"Oh, um, well." Jon clears his throat. "Actually, I kinda asked Adrian out?"

It is a bad time for the lanes to be merging right now because I almost crash into the car next to me. I take a while to stabilize the vehicle before exclaiming, "No fucking way. I knew something was up. When? And what do you mean kinda? Tell me everything."

"Yeah, it's a... it's a story. Tell you next time lah."

"Oi, you can't just say that and then choose to not elaborate!"

"You're driving to the airport now lah! I'll tell you when you have more time. Need to go now anyway."

"Fine. FaceTime me tonight. Wait, no, not tonight, I'll be with Chloe. FaceTime me whenever Chloe is at work and I don't have class. Chloe comes first."

"Great, now I have two schedules to think about when I want to talk to you."

"Same for me too, now that you're dating Adrian!"

"We're just—" He cut himself off with a sigh. "Yeah lah, yeah lah. Okay, call you back."

It takes another ten minutes to get to the airport, and then another fifteen to find a spot in the parking lot. My feet are practically floating as I trot towards the terminal Chloe is supposed to arrive at. Traffic was bad, but I made sure to leave early so I could arrive on time. At least, I hope I am on time.

Just as I am whipping out my phone to check the flight status, I hear a voice that causes my heart to flutter like a butterfly.

"RJ!"

I spin around so quickly that a wave of dizziness hits me. Before I can recover, a body crashes onto mine. I stagger a little but I manage to hold onto her. It's Chloe.

Finally, Chloe is here.

She wraps her legs around me, koala-on-tree-style, and buries her head into my neck. We spin around a few times, and I get so light-headed I start to giggle. She laughs too, her warm, minty breath tickling my neck—did this girl brush her teeth on the plane?

"I miss you so much, Chloe," I whisper as I plant kisses in her hair.

Her laughter slowly turns into a sob. I can feel my blouse getting damp. This girl cried almost every week while calling me, and now, even when we are together, she's crying again.

"Silly girl, why are you crying lah?" I whisper in between my kisses.

"Shut up, okay?" she mumbles. "I've been waiting for this day for too long. Let me soak this in."

I cannot help but chuckle again. We embrace like this for a long moment before my arm eventually buckles and I have to put her down. As Chloe wipes her face, I take her luggage.

"Come on. Let's get you settled down first, yeah?"

We leave the airport hand-in-hand and make our way back toward the parking lot.

"How was the flight?" I ask as we weave through pedestrians across a hectic crosswalk.

"Way too long. I don't know how you do this every year."

I give her hand a squeeze. "You'll get used to it." We reach the elevator and I press the button. "How's everything back home? Did your mom cry when you left?"

"So much. Both of us did. But it's okay lah, I don't feel too bad leaving her since she's seeing someone now. I haven't met him yet, but I think she's very happy with him. She smiles like an idiot every weekend after their dates."

"That's good. Your mother deserves the best."

Chloe nods. "Emma cried too. I'll miss her a lot sia. She promised to visit me this winter break. Maybe we can even travel together somewhere?"

"Sure." The elevator arrives and we enter. "Oh, actually, Jon and Adrian want to do something then too. Maybe I should ask Lobang and the rest of them if they wanna come along. Then the whole gang will be here."

The other three of my friends, Logan, Audrey, and Huimin, are studying at the National University of Singapore together with Emma. It's the best local university, so honestly, I'm shocked that Logan actually managed to get in.

"That'll be fun," Chloe agrees.

We reach my car and I help Chloe put her luggage into the trunk. Settling into the car, I put on my shades and start the engine. I notice Chloe staring at me with mouth agape.

I frown. "What's up?"

"I- I don't know." Chloe averts her head. "It's just... You're, like, so much cooler now."

Raising my eyebrows, I tease, "I've always been cool. Didn't you have a crush on me because I was so cool?"

Chloe rolls her eyes, but I see the smile on her lips. "Stop bringing that up lah," she grumbles.

I take her hand and kiss it. "I'm the lucky one to have an angel with me in the City of Angels."

Her smile widens and her face flushes. "Let's go lah." She entwines her fingers in mine. "Can't wait to see all the places you've been telling me about."

"There's so many places I want to show you, and so many more I want to discover with you."

We smile at each other for a while, and I savor the fact that she is right here, right in front of me. We've been through so much—so ridiculously much—and now finally, this girl I'm madly in love with is here with me. Chloe from my class and Cherry from the bar is now my girlfriend and the soon-to-be best chef in the world. And I cannot stop smiling at the fact.

I pull away from the curb. Exit the airport.

And enter a new chapter in our lives.