TRINITY
"Aunt Abby, good to see you here." I rise from my seat to hug her.
She's always been kind to me and treats me like her real daughter, besides the fact that she's my mom's best friend.
"So, are you excited about the trip?" She takes a seat to my left.
I beam at her and tell her honestly, "Kinda. I've never been to Asia, so I expect to have culture shock, but I will do my research."
"You will enjoy your stay there, K. I've been there many times, and if Sebastian didn't suggest that the two of you should go this time, I'm going to go with him for another trip. They have great places to visit, have a rich culture and great history. They have these traditional clothes that I wear. I still have those pictures."
I notice my two best friends are listening to Aunt Abby.
"Thanks for giving me a chance, and I would surely enjoy my stay there."
"Oh, K. You will enjoy it, and you don't have to call or chat with us every day. We can wait until you come back," Lizzy says with a grin.
"Thanks, Lizzy, but I still have a job to do there." My reply just makes her eyes roll.
"Your only job is to accompany Bash to the meeting and be pretty, and it won't take time. It won't even take a day. You will only meet the Korean team, see the site with them, and close the deal. Then the rest of your stay will be for yours and Bash to enjoy," Aunt Abby explains the plan.
Why do I feel that all of them are pushing me to spend some time with Bash?
"Then why do we have to stay there for the whole week?"
"Why not? You have to, at least, see some places there, taste their food, and meet Korean guys. Oh, Bash has a friend there. And he's hot," Saph butts in.
"I'm not going there to meet guys, Saph. I'll be there for a job."
"Oh, yeah. I completely understand because Bash will punch all the guys if they lay a finger on you," Lizzy affirms, grinning.
My face heats. I notice Aunt Abby smile at me.
"He won't do that," I say quietly.
"Oh, K. He will because that kiss tells us something," Lizzy replies.
My mouth hangs open, making them giggle.
"Oh, my God! Did you tell your mom, too?" I ask Lizzy, feeling so embarrassed.
She raises her brow. "And what's wrong with that? I'm happy that my baby brother finally found the courage he should've done that years ago."
I might have turned into a tomato right now, and I think I'm sweating even though this place is cold.
"Just take care of my baby, K," Aunt Abby says.
"He has Mr. Russell to look after him, Aunt Abby."
She laughs, covering her mouth with the table napkin. "That's not what I mean, K. He's capable of protecting himself if that's what you mean, and he's been very responsible since the U.K. What I mean to say is take care of Bash," she emphasizes the take care part.
I nod in agreement. Even if her words still confuse me.
"He cares about you, K. Don't ever doubt that."
***
I place the two suitcases on my bed when I notice Saph is flipping pages of my floral printed diary that I wrote in high school. I haven't seen that diary since I started dating Oli, yet, Saph finds it quickly.
"Saph, where did you get that?"
Saph is lying on her stomach, propping her elbows with her eyes fixed on my diary in her hands.
She doesn't even look at me when I ask her to give it to me. Instead, she continues reading and flipping pages as if she's so hooked up reading a romance novel.
"Saph, ever heard of privacy? It's a diary for a reason. Hand me that thing and help me pack. May I remind you why you're here?"
I called her earlier to help pack my things. My hand is still hanging in the air.
"Saph, put that thing down, and I have a flight to catch tonight!" I yell to catch her attention.
She grins instead of getting annoyed. "That much, huh?" She finally talks and starts to drag herself out of my bed.
"What that much do you mean?" I scowl at her.
She stands up and saunters in my direction. "That you like Bash that much. You sketched him, wrote poems about him, doodled his name- "
"Whoa! I didn't write poems for him, and I'm not a poetic type," I defend myself. I open my two doors closet and start taking my clothes that are worth travel OOTD.
Thanks to my two best friends who have good taste in fashion. I quickly pull my clothes and fold them to fit into my suitcases. I ignore Saph, who's still babbling about how I love Bash.
I'm excited to see South Korea for the first time, and I did my research about the country too. I start listening to BTS and Blackpink even though I don't understand most of their lyrics.
I also feel nervous that I'm spending a week with Bash even though we'll stay in two separate rooms. What if he brings women? Should I just ignore them? How should I react? Do I have to pretend that I don't care?
Of course, you should, Trinity. Otherwise, you would look like a fool.
I want to believe what they told me in the café three days ago, which gives me hope. What if Bash really cares? What if he's only looking for a hookup? Then he will start dating again once he finds the perfect girl.
***
I ignore Bash's offer to play a board game. After excusing myself from him, I get inside the master suite of their private jet. I sleep throughout the fourteen hours flight after our uneventful dinner together.
He told me we would meet his friend as soon as we settled in at the King Hotel in Seoul.