Remember Me, Darling

Seoul

Yoon Seri was visiting her mother's new apartment in Gangnam the first time it happened. She did not know it at that time, but it was the first city wherein she was going to bump into one Ri Jeong Hyeok. The first in the series of serendipitous meetings that paved the way into a blooming romance. Of course, neither of them knew what to do with the awkward atmosphere they find themselves in whenever they meet, but fate had a weird way of making things happen. And it all started at a grocery store.

She was snacking on some dried peaches as she roamed the aisles of the store next to the apartment complex, having been told to run down to get some ingredients for her mother's famous bibimbap, but she knew that it was just an excuse for her to get out of the house. Her mother's boyfriend suddenly decided to drop in at the worst possible time, and being the loving mother that she is, she chose the man over her daughter.

Seri would rather not think about what was happening up there at that moment.

And that was the reason why she was taking her time going through each aisle and selecting items her mother might need in her house. The cart already contained all the ingredients they needed for the dish, but no one really goes to a grocery store without buying more than what one actually needs. Plus, she thought that some wine might be helpful for her to get through the flirting and the suggestive comments she will be sitting through at dinner.

She headed straight towards the wine section and started looking for the particular brand a friend suggested she should try on occasion. Too caught up in her search, she failed to notice the obstacle in her way until her cart had already bumped into someone who was crouching down and picking something up from the bottom shelf. The cart rattled noisily before she heard a quiet curse and a dull thud.

"Oh, my God. I am so sorry," she gasped out as she walked over to the man on an almost lying position on the floor. His hands were cradling a bottle of wine against his chest, thankfully saved from disaster, before he sat up with a wince. "Are you okay? I'm sorry. I didn't mean to crash into you. I was looking at the shelves, and I -."

"It's fine. Can happen to anyone," he interrupted her, laughing in embarrassment. She offered her hand to help him up which he takes immediately and smoothly got up on his feet. "Thanks."

As he dusted off his clothes, she allowed herself to take a good look at him and felt her eyes widen at what she saw, and what she saw was a conviction that there is a god up there listening to her highly inappropriate prayers. He might possibly be the most handsome man she has ever seen, and that realization came from the girl who have watched too many dramas in her life that she can have a degree on it.

His hair was falling over his eyes and his cheeks showed off deep dimples when he smiled. His clothes suggested that he had a good fashion sense as well, with the collars of his dress shirt peeking out of his maroon sweater and dark jeans covering mile long legs. He was smiling at her, a half-smile that she swore only actors can pull off in movies because no normal man can possibly smile like that and not look like a pervert, but he pulled it off. Her knees suddenly felt like jelly. And then she realized that he was smiling because she was staring at him for far too long.

"Uh, I'm sorry again. I'll get out of your way," she stuttered as she felt her cheeks flame up in embarrassment. Her clammy hands gripped the handlebar of the shopping cart, and she almost bumped into him again if not for his quick reflexes. She gave him a forced smile before walking away and cringing at herself. If there really was a god listening to her, he would have equipped her with a witty sentence or two, maybe even toss in the grace of a modern woman in there somewhere, if he was going to shove a good looking man at her face.

Deciding that that might have been a sign to stop shopping and that her mother will stop what she was doing (or rather who she was doing) when she slams the door hard enough when she got home, she pushed the cart over to the cashier to have her things checked out. She underestimated the speed of the cashier lady and found herself rummaging her purse for her credit card while the latter waited impatiently. The woman was chewing a piece of gum as she judged her over her thick glasses, and Seri felt her stomach turn at the thought of accidentally leaving her wallet at home.

"Aha!" she exclaimed as she triumphantly pulled it out of her purse, gaining some odd looks from the other customers. She heard a chuckle beside her and looked over to see the guy from the wine aisle standing there, watching her with amusement. He looked so at ease, like he was modeling for the store with a basket on one hand and the other tucked inside his pocket.

Forcing her eyes away, she signed the receipt the cashier handed over while the model began to unload the few items from his basket before pulling out his wallet. She felt his arm brush against hers and fought the urge to complain to the store manager about doing something with the air conditioning. With heat creeping up to her cheeks, she watched the lady suddenly take her time in bagging her things.

Oh, for the love of -

"You know what," she interrupted breathily, wanting nothing more than to step out of the store as soon as possible. She threw her items into the bags without a care in the world and gathered them both in her arms. "This will be fine. Thank you for your service."

Seri caught the wide smile of amusement model man was trying - and failing - to fight off before she turned around and headed out the door. The cool air outside felt refreshing against her flushed skin, and she felt relieved that her embarrassment was finally over. That was until a gallon of milk suddenly fell out of one of the bags and onto the pavement.

"Don't worry, I got it."

Seri lifted her eyes up to the heavens. "God, give me a break."

"What?"

"What?" she repeated as she turned around to meet the eyes of model man with the gorgeous dimpled smile that the store should really hire to boost up sales. He held up the milk in question and she struggled to push out a strand of hair that found its way into her mouth because of the wind. "Oh, right, thank you."

"Maybe I can help you put your groceries in your car," he offered as he watched (more like laughed at to be completely honest) her trying to push the hair out with her tongue since both her hands were occupied. Finally, he took pity on her and brushed the strand back behind her ear. "There you go."

He subtly wiped his hand on the back of his jeans, and she desperately wished for lightning to strike her where she stood and end her misery. "Thanks," she muttered before clearing her throat. "Um, I don't have a car. I mean, I do. I just didn't bring it with me because I live - well, my mom lives in that complex over there."

"Oh."

An awkward silence filled the air between them after his short response, and her mind raced to find an appropriate joke to somehow ease the tension. He was about to say something when she cut in with an exaggerated smile that had the potential to scare all the men within a ten mile radius. And that was when she realized that this was what her mother meant when she berated her for having zero flirting skills and accused her of sabotaging her dreams of having grandchildren.

"You know what, just toss the milk in. I can manage on my own."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive."

The gallon fell out again in the elevator on her way up to the apartment. But on the bright side, model man was not around to see the disaster that happened when she tried to pick it up whilst balancing two other bags in her arms. As she sat there on the elevator floor, she recalled all of the events that transpired that evening and wondered if he was some kind of warlock that casted a spell on her and made her a bumbling idiot as revenge for her crashing into him. After all, handsome men tend to have some sort of weird hidden personality or else humanity has reached a level of perfection that has no place in real life and might trigger the end of the world as we know it.

Well, it was not as if she was going to see him again anyway.