Chapter 2 Mia

I fell in love with the beautiful island of jeju from the very first day my family moved there when I was barely even a teenager.

The place is surrounded by such awesome scenery that enjoying something as breathtaking as a sunset over the ocean, was what we did from the comfort of our own backyard. It was simply a wonderful place to live and I was one of the lucky people who had the pleasure of calling it home.

But what got me to really fall for it wasn't just it's natural beauty, it was the heart warming people that made everything even more special.

I know this to be the most important thing because, I am that black kid whose family moved from one country to the next for most of my childhood and so I can easily testify to how difficult it can be for anyone to be the immigrant in any part of the world.

People always tend to look at you differently if you are the new one in any society. Infact they will constantly remind you in one way or another, athat you don't belong there. That you are an outsider and that's what you will always be.

Maybe its just human nature that makes us notice trivial differences that separate us from each other, instead of focusing on bigger things like the character one posseses that makes them who they really are.

But the people in Jeju were different. They were welcoming and non segregative and it was such a welcome blessing to someone like me who had to navigate through the pressure of adjusting to different places all the time. Maybe Jeju was different because it's a tourist town, and everyone got used to seeing people from all over the world to care about all the differences between them.

Unfortunately for me though, I only got to live there for a few years until a car accident took both my parents. I had no choice but to leave the place that become home to me and went to Chicago where I stayed with my aunt until I graduated from college.

I found my way back to the island again after graduation, because it never stopped being a part of me and it's also where I fell in love with a man who was just as beautiful as the town I met him in.

I will always remember the first day I saw him. It was raining a lot that day and I was sitting alone in one of the pretty little coffee shops that overlook the ocean with my head buried in a book,and a steaming mug of a delicious espresso on my table.

He came in from the rain outside wearing an ocean blue coat and some black designer sunglasses that made him look like one of those celebrities that rock sunglasses even in gloomy weather.

I didn't pay much attention to him at first, because my face was still buried inside that book and it's only until I heard his deep muscline voice order something from the counter, that I looked up to see just how gorgeous he really was.

I went back to reading my book and sipping at my coffee but still had my eyes discreetly watching his every move like a professional stalker. I watched as he removed his sunglasses, got his order and turned around to scan for an empty seat.

All concentration for that book was lost now as he stood there looking very unsure of what to do next since most of the seats were taken and he didn't look like the type who easily shared seats with strangers. I was a stranger to him too, but I still hoped he would look my way and consider sitting with me.

As he kept looking around, his gaze somehow found it's way to where I was sitting. Our eyes met and I held his stare for a few seconds before looking away. He started walking towards me and now I had to laterally reprimand myself for being so damn nervous.

"Excuse me," he started politely.

"This seat isn't taken." I said in a shaky voice and gestured to a seat next to mine "if that's what you wanted to ask" I added in a murmur.

"Thanks" he replied, looking faintly uncomfortable but sat down on that chair anyway.

We drank our coffees in silence and all the while, I kept thinking of how I could bring up some sort of conversation to make the silence between us feel less awkward. Though It turned out that, bringing up interesting topics with handsome strangers wasn't exactly my area of expertise. But I tried anyway.

"Is this your first time here?" I forced myself to sound as casual as possible. He glanced up at me with a little scowl on his face like he was unsure if I was addressing him or not.

"What do you mean?" He asked looking genuinely curious.

"I mean the island, is this your first time coming here?" I rephrased nervously.

"No I have been here a few times before, though it's been a while since the last time I came" he smiled and that brought out his dimples making him look even more attractive "and what about you?" He asked me through his smile.

"Well I kinda live here" I said and that caught his attention. He put his mug down and looked at me.

"Really? Am sorry I just assumed you are a tourist or something"

"Don't worry, I get that a lot" I smiled reassuringly "so I assume you are here to get some time out from your hectic life in the big city of Seoul?"

"Oh it's actually Busan, but am kind of here for business rather than pleasure" he simply said and went back to drinking his coffee.

We didn't speak again after that and I gave up on trying to make more conversation. I went back to reading my book in silence until I finished drinking my coffee and got up to leave. But that guy spoke again and stopped me in my tracks.

"Uhmm.. My name is Jeon by the way. Kim Jeon" he looked up at me as my eyes widened in surprise "I just thought we should at least know each other's names."

"Am Mia" I said softly and he smiled again.

"Well Mia do you mind if I walked you home?" He asked so casually and before I could stop myself to really think about it. I nodded my head in agreement.