It's Not Him, It's You

Chapter 1: The New Neighbors

My family lives in a very pristine house in a small village in Pavilion, Massachusetts. A house that has a roof, a wall, and a lawn to spend some time with the family. Though I am the only child of my parents and they are both busy with their work, I barely see them daily. Thank goodness, since they love me so much; they still make time for me.

It was the first day of fall when a new family moved-in in a house just right in front of ours. I just got home from school and I was reading the classic novel ‘Emma’ by Jane Austen at the small deck of our window where I can fit my small body perfectly.

I was 16.

I can still remember that very moment when he got out of their car, looking tired and bored at the same time. As he roams his eyes around the neighborhood, he caught me looking at him through the window. I froze as my heart skipped a beat. It’s getting dark outside and he is wearing black-rimmed round spectacles, so I can’t see his face’s features.

He tilted his head as if trying to study me. It was only when I heard another vehicle pulled off in front of our lawn that our eye-contact broke. I came to reality and I realized my parents are home. I quickly drag the curtains close and got off from the window’s deck. I placed the book on the couch and went outside to the porch to greet my parents.

I took a swift to peek at our new neighbors but no one’s left outside. They all went inside their house, I guess.

It was only a few weeks later when I understood that he attends the same high school as I do. I am a very studios person. So, everything that is happening outside of the circle of concern is none of my concern. Besides, it was exam week. I need to focus on studying. Okay, I know what you’re thinking; I am not your typical protagonist because I do sound very boring.

It was Christmas break and my mom asks me to buy ingredients in the grocery store for our dinner tonight. You know that feeling of being alone. I have no sister nor a brother, so the best companion that I had was my books. Where ever I go, you will see me read and read and read.

I am so engrossed reading a classic book ‘The Alchemist’ when I bumped into a soft surface. I looked up from my book to my front. There was a tree. A large oak tree and a hand. I quickly turned on my side and found that boy from the other day.

“I think reading will be the death of you,” he said, emotionless. He removed his hand from the tree and stuff it inside his jacket.

“I doubt that,” I retorted, as sour as I can manage.

“Are you alone?” he suddenly asks.

I quickly stood straight, fully alert now. I pointed the sharp edge of my new book at him. “You better not planning anything on me,” I hiss as I glare at him.

He smirked, “Nope. I was just wondering if you have a boyfriend,”

What a question out of the blue. What does he have in mind? What should I tell him? I do have or I don’t have?

“I-I have! Will you leave me alone now?” I distant myself from him, just for precautionary measure.

This time, he smiled at me. Is there something worth smiling on on what I just said?

“It's such a happiness when good people get together,” he suddenly uttered. My forehead creased. What is he talking about—Emma. He was talking about a line from the book Emma I was reading before. Why does he know that I read that book?

It must be it. That moment he tilted his head. He must be figuring out the title of my book.

“Silly things do cease to be silly if they are done by sensible people in an impudent way,” I grinned in the most sarcastic way I can pull off hoping it will irritate him.

Out of the blue, he grabs my book, “Hey! Give it back to me!” I demanded.

“I am not a sensible person, then. If you want to get this back, visit my place,” he said as he was walking away from me with my book. My jaw dropped by his sudden audacity!

It was Christmas day when dad offered to give some tuna casserole to the neighbor across. Well, the idea was originally okay but the idea that I, myself, have to give the tuna casserole to our neighbor was not a good idea.

“Give this to them or you will be grounded for the whole Christmas break,” dad threatened me.

“That is so unfair!” I complained. “It is my right to deny anything that offers me discomfort!”

“Well, I guess you made your final answer—”

“Fine, fine! I’ll do it!” I spoke. Half-heartedly, with the tuna casserole in my hands, I went to the front porch of our new neighbors. I look back to our house only to find my parents grinning at me through the window. I turn around again to the front door and close my eyes for a moment.

“Please, don’t let that jerk who stole my book will greet me behind this door,” I whispered. Then, I pressed the doorbell.

“Are you here for the book?”

My shoulders jerk up as I heard that voice just behind me. I was about to turn around when their front door opened.

“Oh, hi! How may I help you?” a pretty woman opened the front door. “Scion, son, did you come with her?” she asks the jerk behind me. Son?

This is his mother?

“No, she was here before I arrived,” he answered casually.

I guess it is my turn to talk now. I do look like an i***t right now. “Hi! I’m Nikola. I live there just across and my parents want to give you this tuna casserole. They are wasn’t able to welcome you formally since they have been so busy, so we were wondering if the tuna casserole will do the gesture?”

“Oh my! How sweet of you!” she exclaims as she gets the tuna casserole from me. “Thank you so much, dear. Give my regards to your parents, will you? Merry Christmas, dear. Your parents won’t mind if I invite you inside for a bit, right?”

Yikes. This is unexpected.

“Get inside. It’s freezing here,” the jerk, Scion, spoke behind me. I have almost forgotten he was there.

“Sure. They wouldn’t mind,” I smiled at his mother and went inside.

When we got inside, there were two young boys playing video games at the living room. They were so absorbed playing that they didn’t even notice us.

“Boys, we have a visitor. Greet her,” their mother told the two boys as she went to their kitchen. Just about time, their game was over, they have no other excuse to ignore their mother's command.

They turn around to face me, place their hands on their chest, and made a slight 90-degree bow.

“Welcome to our house, Nuna,” they both said in unison. I was confused with the last word. It sounds familiar and it was on the tip of my tongue but I just can’t remember where I last heard it.

“It means older sister,” Scion spoke who must have noticed my confusion.

“What language do you speak?”

“Of course, English and a little bit Korean,”

“But your mother doesn’t look like Korean,” I thought. Then, it dawned to me, “Ah, it must be your father is a Korean,” I said to myself.

“Good guess,” he sarcastically said.

One of the two boys approaches me. “Nuna, where do you live?” he asks.

“Oh, just across,” I answered as I smiled at him.

“That means that you will visit us often?”

“Uh, it depends?” I sheepishly smiled.

“Oh,” he said as his mouth turned to an ‘O’ shape.

“Why do you want me to visit often here?” I ask, guilty of making the kid a bit sad of my response.

“Because you look pretty, Nuna,” he answered, quite frankly. I snickered and mess up his hair.

“Wubin-a! Come on! Let’s play, again!” the other boy yelled from the couch. Only then the other boy left and went back playing.

“Follow me,” Scion said beside me. He started walking past me.

“Where?”

“Upstairs,”

“And why should I do that?”

I heard him snickered, “The book,” two words and he went upstairs leaving me blank.

Should I follow him or not? Well, if he’s going to do something unwanted, I can freely yell. I am sure his mother and his two younger brothers will hear me scream right away.

So, yeah, I followed him upstairs. There were four doors I can see in the hallway. But I can’t decide which one is his room. I just silently walked the hallways and when I reached the last door, its doorknob clicked and went wide open.

I stood by the door. “Where is my book?”

“I’m not going to do anything hilarious to you. Trust me,” he said, opening the door more exaggeratedly to welcome me.

“Most people who say ‘trust me’ means the opposite. Just stealing my book from me the other day gave me the thought that you shouldn’t be trusted,” I stated, chin held up.

“It’s easy to understand that someone in the world awaits you, whether it’s in the middle of the desert or some great city. And when two such people encounter each other, and their eyes meet, the past and the future become unimportant. There are only that moment and the incredible certainty that everything under the sun has been written by one hand only. It is the hand that evokes love, and creates a twin soul for every person in the world,” he said those lines just looking into my eyes which made me feel butterflies in my stomach.

I am sure it was a line from the book The Alchemist.

Without any word, I get inside and sat down to the nearest chair I could ever find. Thankfully, he left the door ajar. What a gentleman.

He extended the book to me. It was good as new. Like you would think he never read the book even once.

“I just finished reading it yesterday. It was a great book,”

“Good for you, while the owner of the book has only read half of the pages. Thanks to someone who loves to steal other people’s book in the street, I wasn’t able to finish a great book quickly,”

He chuckled like I just said a fascinating joke, “It’s your payment to me for saving your life,”

“What?” I retorted, ridiculed of his audacity.

“The big oak tree? Remember? If I wasn’t there at the right time, by now, I can see a big circle on your forehead, which is not a good sight to see,”

“Excuse me? You’re unbelievable,”

“Well, I guess that’s me,”

I rolled my eyes and roamed my eyes around his room. Everything was organized and clean. Well, just by looking at him, you can already conclude that he's not a messy type of person. He looks clean and classy.

“Have you found something interested?” he asks sarcastically.

“As a matter of fact, yes. You don’t seem like the bookish type. You don’t have any books displayed or any mini library,” I raised an eyebrow.

“In that case, they were all in the library,” he simply answered.

“You have a library here in your house?”

“Yes. The study room as we call it. But I don’t usually spend time reading inside that room. I go to the town’s library and spend so much time reading in there,”

“That justifies it, then,” I said as I nodded slowly. Maybe I should try reading at the library sometimes. If I stay at home every single day, I might get sick of the house.

“Why do you love reading classic novels so much?” he wondered, as he tilted his head to examine me.

“Just because,”

“What a good reason,”

“And why do I have to ask for your validation?”

“Because I was asking nicely,”

“And I have every right to refuse to answer,”

“Was it personal?”

We stared at each other for a moment. As I look at him much longer, I noticed something is missing.

“You’re not wearing glasses today,” I said, out of the blue.

His forehead creased, “How did you know I wear glasses?”

“I was staring at you the first day you moved in—” I quickly placed my hand on my mouth to stop myself embarrassing myself to him any longer. But I know it’s too late. I covered my face with my book to hide.

That was so embarrassing.

I was so unfocused for a moment that I haven’t noticed he was already able to drag the swivel chair I was sitting closer to him. Slowly, I place the book away from my face. And I swear, his beautiful face took my breath away for a moment.

“Do you want me to wear glasses, then?”

I wasn’t able to say a word for a moment. It took me a while to pull off the courage to look away. I swallowed the lump on my throat and faced him again. “Why are you asking me? It depends on you,” I responded.

“Sure,” he smirked.

“You know what? I should be going,” I quickly got up and was about to leave his room when he got a grip on my wrist.

He stood up from being seated on his bed and dominated me. “Will you be mad at me if I…kiss you right now?” he whispered to me while looking straight into my eyes.

My eyes went wide, “You promised you’re not going to do anything hilarious to me,” I said in a low voice, not breaking the eye contact between us.

“It depends if you would let me kiss you,”

I took a deep breath. “So, this is what you’ve been planning. You are going to lure me here in your room to make a move on me using my enthusiasm about books and literature?”

He bit his lower lip. He must have felt insulted and defeated at the same time. He raised his head like he was finding the words to say on his ceiling while looking like suppressing a big laugh. He lowered his head but now with a serious face. “I guess I will be having a hard time convincing you to be my girlfriend,” he said.

He wants me to be his girlfriend?

“Well, asking for a kiss inside this room was a very foolish first-move to take. Don’t you agree?” It seems like the heat between us seized down, so I crossed my arms and raised a brow.

“Does it mean you want me to court you, then?” he reached for my waist and encircled his arms on it, capturing me closer to him.

He slowly lowered his head to me, only a slight movement, and our lips will meet. I kept my head down while my eyes glared up at him. “Do you know Taekwondo? It’s Korean martial art, you know?” I said threateningly.

“I don’t bother to practice such a thing,”

“Poor you, but I do,” I said with gritted teeth. “The moment I finish counting 1 to 5, you better remove your arms around me or I will give you an unforgivable curse with my high kick. You choose,” thank goodness, I did not stutter. To be honest with you, I don’t do Taekwondo or any kind of martial art. But I know some moves.

He chuckled and slowly released me. “Friends?” he offered his right hand.

I examined his expression for a while. This is why I don’t like socializing. When a person started to get to know you, they will slowly take advantage of you.

“Come on. For real, I want to befriend with you,”

I took his right hand. “Sure. No problem,” I said and quickly let go of his hands. “Merry Christmas, by the way,” I said and walked out of his room.

As I reached the stairs, I quickly learned on the wall to support myself to breathe. I nearly gave up on him right there. Too bad for him, I am not the easy girl he was looking for.