Written by Young Bean Kim
Illustrated by Seungho Shin
June 4th, 2009
Dear Diary
I met him. Yes, him. Technically, I bumped into him in a café. It was the first time I met him since…
2007, I believe. I spotted him first, and I tried subtlely, yet frantically to get his attention, and he finally looked
up from his book and his cup of black coffee. He didn’t realize that it was me at first, but the look of confusion soon left his face, and we said hello. He remembered me from the time we were both in college, though
several years apart between us. Catching up on what each other had been doing since then, remembering the
old times with our friends and teachers. We weren’t that acquainted, but did know about each other’s presence
because we both went to the library often. We drowned in nostalgia.
I told him that the real world was much different than what I expected. He told me that it took him
two years to adjust to it. I told him that I missed college, and that it had changed a lot after his year graduated.
He told me things I didn’t know about our school, stories of the time before I went to college. I told him that
I was going to work abroad somewhere far away. He told me that he envied me, because he was stuck in the
same town where our college stands. I didn’t tell him that I missed him. I didn’t tell him that he was the reason
I went to the library nearly every day. I didn’t tell him that I liked the way he looked when he was absorbed in
his book while sipping his coffee. I didn’t tell him that I had trouble focusing on my book because I couldn’t
help but take a peek at him. He didn’t tell me anything else, either.
We said goodbye, and went on our own way; a young kitten hopping on a plane to her new home, and
a lion walking back into the jungle to keep on hunting.
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