Min Jun

As I sat there next to Juniper in the bar, holding her hand, I couldn’t believe how beautiful she was. She was adorable. I’ve heard of love at first sight, but it never happened to me or anyone I had known. I can’t say that this was love, but this was definitely a strong ‘like’. I enjoyed being with her and seeing her smile. I got up this morning with her on my mind, which is why I sent her the text message. She had been on my mind all day, which made it hard for me to concentrate. I didn’t expect to see her today as I figured she would be busy and we had a long night the day before. I didn’t want to crowd her, I wanted to give her space, but I really didn’t. I wanted to be around her all the time, but I didn’t want to be a stalker.

I was out with the guys from work when I noticed her in the restaurant. She was enjoying herself with her friends from work. They were celebrating and I didn’t want to interrupt anything, therefore I sat back against the wall and just observed. She was having fun and enjoying life. She didn’t seem like the same person I had met at the coffee shop. She seems to be a totally different person. I believe I had seen her at her worst, if not, it was the worst of her that I ever wanted to see. I didn’t want to see her sad at all. I saw the pain in her eyes and her body language. I didn’t want to move too fast, but I definitely wanted to lay claim.

“Will you take me home?” She asked. She had her fill of drinking. She was tired yet happy. Her alcohol tank was full and she knew her limit.

“Yes, I will. Are you ready to go?” I asked.

“Yes. Let me go and talk to the others.” She said. I let go of her hand and we both walked back to where our party was, in full swing. She went over to her friends and I went over to Jin.

“You didn’t tell me she was Black!” Jin stated abruptly. I knew he had been holding on to that bit of news and couldn’t wait until the opportunity to ask questions.

“No I didn’t, does it matter?” I asked looking at him and then the both of us looked back at her.

“No, it doesn’t. Not at all. She’s cute.” He said satisfyingly. He approved of my choice. I knew he would.

“I agree. She’s ready to go home, so I will take her. Do you need me to take you home too?” I asked.

“Yes, if you don’t mind.” He replied.

“I wouldn’t have asked if I did. I think her friends need a ride home as well.” I stated. I looked over and Juni was sitting down leaning on the table. Her friend Se-ra was laughing with Taehyung. They looked as if they were having a good time. I walked over to their table and put my hand on her hand.

“Will you be able to take her home?” Se-ra asked. “I think she needs to go and get some rest.”

“Will you need a ride home?” I asked.

“No, I don’t live far from here, Sun Hee and I live within walking distance. Juniper stays farther than us.” She said.

“I will take her home. I will take care of her.” I responded. Se-ra smiled in approval.

“I knew you were a good guy. Please take care of my bestie.” She said and turned to Juniper. “Juni, Min Jun is going to take you home. He will take care of you.” She said. She was right. I will take care of her. “Min Jun, I leave her with you in your care.” She said.

“Thank you. I have her.” I nudged her a bit and she sat up, eyes still closed. She was drunk and she needed me.

“Please take care of my friend.” Se-ra said again. “Juniper, it’s time for you to go rest. Min Jun is here for you.” Juniper opened her eyes slightly and smiled.

I held her hand and she stood up. Even intoxicated, she looked beautiful. She smiled at me as I put her jacket on her shoulders and she put her arms in the sleeves. She stood with her eyes closed as I buttoned up her coat. I took her hand and led her towards the door.

“We’re leaving now. See you tomorrow.” I said and waved. Everyone was having a good time. Jin quickly got up and left with us.

Outside we walked hand in hand down the street and Jin walked on the other side of Juniper to avoid her bumping into others. She looked around while we were walking, just humming a song. She looked over at Jin and smiled.

“You’re Jin, right? Min Jun’s friend?” She asked.

“Yes.” He answered.

“How long have you known him? Is he a good guy?” She asked being curious. I looked at Jin as he looked at me and smiled.

“Yes, he’s a good guy. But sometimes he can be a bit too nice.” Jin answered. He was actually telling the truth. I can be too nice sometimes, it’s a curse. It’s a habit that I have tried to break because I’ve been taken for granted due to being so nice.

“What do you mean?” She asked. She may be intoxicated, but she was alert and talkative.

“He’s kind of a pushover. People in the past have taken advantage of his niceness and he ends up getting hurt.” He said. I gave Jin a stern look, meant for him to stop talking. She turned and looked at me.

“You got your heart broken?” She said as she stopped walking. She looked concerned.

“Yes, I did. I gave my heart to someone and they broke it.” I said. She looked as if she was going to cry. I didn’t want her to be sad, that was not the plan. I didn’t have a plan actually but this definitely wasn’t it.

“You got your heart broken like me?” She said. I didn’t tell Jin the entire story about how I met Juniper or what happened to her, but she was really in her feelings at the moment and there was no stopping her.

“Not quite like you, but similar. So I understand what you went through.” I responded. She stood there looking at me for a minute. Her eyes glistened a bit as if she was going to cry. She was thinking about her heartbreak, I could tell. She caught herself as she jolted back to reality. Then she took a very serious tone.

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“I won’t break your heart. I promise.” She said staring directly into my eyes. She didn’t blink and I could tell she was serious. Sadly, she was far too gone to probably remember tonight, but it was nice to see her open up and be so honest about her feelings. I looked at Jin and he was frozen and shocked with his mouth open.

“I believe you. I know you wouldn’t.” I answered honestly. I really hoped she would remember, but I know it would be a long shot for her to do so.

“I’ll make you happy, all the time! “ She yelled as she ran and danced down the street. We had to run after her as she was about to run out in traffic. I got to her just before she stepped off the curb and spun her around. There we stood, face to face; me holding her around her waist and she smiling and holding my jacket. She looked at me and gave me the biggest grin, which made me smile back at her.

“So cute.” She softly said and then she passed out. Her eyes closed and she collapsed in my arms. I figured she would go down, I just didn’t expect her to go so soon. Jin helped me put her on my back so I could carry her and we were on our way.

We finally made it to my car and Jin helped me place Juniper in the front seat and I buckled her in. Jin sat in the back as I jumped in and started the car. She looked so peaceful; her lips were full and her hair fell gently over her face.

“Min Jun, so are you taking her to her house or to yours?” He asked. That would be great for me to take her to my place, especially since she’s asleep, but I don’t think it would be appropriate if she woke up at my place. To be honest, I really wasn’t sure.

“I don’t know. I know where she lives, but I don’t know what floor she lives on.” I said looking at him through the rearview mirror.

“Well, that answers the question, she’s going home with you.” He said matter of factly. I had to agree. I didn’t know what floor she lived on and it would be inappropriate for me to go through her things. I started the car and we were on our way.

“She mentioned that she was heartbroken. What did she mean?” He asked.

“When I met her, she was in a really bad mental space. She was on the phone arguing with her ex-boyfriend.” I answered.

“Ah, he broke her heart. How?” He asked.

“She caught him with her step sister.” I answered. I didn’t want to be so honest, but I knew if I wasn’t with Jin, he would continue to ask questions.

“Oh wow. So sad. She is a beautiful girl. What kind of idiot would do that?” He said.

“I was thinking the same thing. They had been together for a while and she came home to surprise him and she caught them together.”

“Isn’t that how it always happens? A beautiful woman tries to surprise her boyfriend, and she gets the surprise. So sad. I feel sorry for her.”

“I know. When I met her she was crying and she was trying to order her coffee but she wasn’t paying attention and she paid for mine instead of her own.”

“Wow, what luck. She must have been really distraught.”

“She was. But she was smiling when I left her at the coffee shop.” I said remembering her face that day. She was just looking for an honest face and someone who could relate to her. Little did she know, I could relate to her so well.

“What does she do for work? I overheard them talking about how they landed a big contract back at the bar.”

“Yes. She works for an advertisement agency and she works in the design department. She’s an artist. But she wants to become a game developer.”

“Really? She’s smart and beautiful.” He responded.

“Watch it. She’s mine.” I said staking my claim. I blurted it out and let it be known.

“Ah, it finally comes out. I knew you liked her. Have you told her yet?”

“No, I haven’t. I just met her and I don’t want to scare her away.”

“I understand. But she sounds like she likes you too.” He said. He was right, she said she promised she wouldn’t break my heart.

“I know. But I don’t want to tell her when she’s drunk. I will wait until the right time.” I said. Juniper moved, which made both Jin and I jump. She turned her head the opposite way, towards the window. I’ll tell her when she is fully awake, I thought.

Finally we made it to Jin's place, which meant I wasn’t’ far from home either. Jin grabbed his bag and closed the door.

“So are you taking her to your place?” He asked as he got out of the car.

“Yeah, I have to. I don’t know what floor she lives on. I’ll have her sleep in my bed and I’ll sleep on the couch.”

“Good idea. Thanks for the ride home. See you tomorrow.” He said walking away. He waved when he got to the door of his building.

We traveled in silence as Juniper was still asleep by the time we arrived at my building. I pulled the car into the parking lot and shut it off. I looked at Juniper, sleeping like a baby. I didn’t want to wake her because she was sleeping so well, but we couldn’t stay in the car for the entire night. However, I could just stay there looking at her; watching her sleep. I grabbed my bag and went around to the passenger side door. I gently opened the door and unbuckled her seatbelt. She moved a bit and opened her eyes. She looked at me and smiled.

“Hi.” She said. Our faces were so close. I could kiss her if I wanted to, but I want her to be sober when I do.

“Hi.” I responded.

“Are we home?” She asked. I loved that she said, ‘we’. She made me blush.

“Yes, we are.” She smiled and slowly motioned to get out of the car. I backed up a bit and held the door and her hand to help her up. She stood up, her eyes were still a bit closed.

She walked over to me and put her head on my chest. I held her as I reached for her bag and closed the door. We started walking towards the elevator, her eyes still closed as she followed my lead. She trusted me and I was determined to take care of her and that trust. I pushed the call button for the elevator and waited patiently. She stood beside me, her head still on my chest, as I held her tightly. Her breathing was slow and steady. She was ready to fall back to sleep. The elevator came and we walked in. It was very late, so we were all alone walking throughout the parking lot and the building. In the elevator, I leaned against the back wall and she leaned gently on my chest and wrapped her arms around my waist for balance. I tightened my hold on her and she snuggled into my chest. Even though I could smell the alcohol, she still had that familiar scent from the day we went to dinner and it captivated me. I smiled; this had to be a dream I thought. If it was, I was determined not to wake up.

Finally we arrived at the 11th floor and the doors opened. We walked down the hallway slowly and wavering a bit on her part. She dragged her bag as we walked. Finally we got to my apartment, number 1137. I put in my keycode and opened the door. She woke a bit; I would say she became subconscious. With her eyes still closed, she removed her shoes and her coat and dropped it on the floor. I quickly removed my shoes and coat and grabbed her hand. I led her to my room at the end of the hallway. I turned on the light and led her to the bed. I positioned her to sit down on the bed. With her eyes still closed, she sat down. I picked her legs up and turned her so she could place them on the bed. She moved to the pillows and pulled her legs up close to her. I placed the cover over her and she was out. I stood there for a moment, just looking at her. She was in my house. Just thinking about it made my heart flutter. I really liked that feeling. I smiled looking at her, thinking how ironic it was that she was in my house. I went to the closet and grabbed a pillow and blanket for me to use on the couch. I grabbed a pair of pajamas and a shirt to wear after my shower. I turned on a soft desk light nearest the bed. I leaned down and softly touched her hair. She was beautiful, funny and honest. I couldn’t wait to learn more about her. I was excited to make her mine.