The spring sun illuminated Clara's small room in Madrid, a space cluttered with books, notes, and a half-finished cup of coffee. For months now, her routine had acquired a new habit: before diving into the tasks for her master's degree, she would open the language exchange app on her phone. It was her little escape, a world where she could daydream about the language and culture that fascinated her so much.
Clara quickly skimmed through the notifications on her phone. Most were emails about assignments, clothing offers she couldn’t afford, and at the top, a message from the app. It was from someone named Min-Jae.
"Who are you?" she murmured, frowning as she opened the conversation.
The message said, in shaky Spanish:
"Hi. I’m Min-Jae. Can you help me with Spanish? I can help with Korean :)"
Clara smiled. It wasn’t the first time someone had written to her, but something about this message, maybe the innocent way he had greeted her or his evident effort to use proper Spanish, caught her attention.
"Hello, Min-Jae! Of course, I can help you. I’m learning Korean, so we can practice together. :)"
She sent the message and left her phone on the table, not thinking much of it. However, just a few seconds later, the phone vibrated with an immediate reply.
"Thanks. Your Korean is good?"
You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.
Clara let out a laugh.
"Well… that depends on who you ask."
She quickly wrote back:
"Not very good. I can read, but speaking is hard. I need a lot of practice."
The conversation flowed surprisingly naturally, mixing Spanish and Korean, correcting each other. Clara found out that Min-Jae was 27, lived in Seoul, and was studying Marketing, just like her. He also confessed that he had never spoken to anyone from Spain.
"Is it true that people in Spain have dinner really late? In Korea, we eat at 6 or 7."
Clara laughed.
"It’s true! Here, sometimes we have dinner at 10. Although I’m sure you wouldn’t understand our naps..."
Min-Jae took a few seconds to reply, but when he did, his message surprised her:
"I want to try a nap. It seems fun. And I want to try Spanish food. Have you tried Korean food?"
Clara hesitated before replying. She had tried cooking bibimbap once, but it had been a disaster. She decided to be honest.
"I tried, but it didn’t go well. What do you recommend?"
Min-Jae sent her a list of names she could barely pronounce: tteokbokki, kimchi jjigae, samgyeopsal.
"I cook well. When you come to Korea, I’ll cook for you."
That last message made her stop. "When you come to Korea." It was a casual comment, a phrase with no commitment, but in that instant, Clara felt a little tingle. Why was a stranger on the other side of the world making her smile like that?
She closed the app to focus on her studies, but Min-Jae's words kept swirling in her mind.
That night, Clara found herself watching videos of Seoul on YouTube: the vibrant colors of its markets, the cherry blossoms, the towering skyscrapers mixed with traditional temples. An inner voice tempted her to imagine what it would be like to be there, to meet in person someone who, just hours ago, had been only a message on her phone.
However, she shook off the thought. "Don’t be ridiculous," she told herself. But as she turned off the lights and closed her eyes, she couldn’t help but wait with some impatience for Min-Jae’s next message...