Just then, Tae was jostled from behind by a passerby. Tae’s nose bumped into Anna’s cheek. He pulled back abruptly. It was his turn to utter an apology. They both returned to their chocolate bread like it was the most fascinating item on the planet.
They sat in silence for several moments as they finished their breakfast. Tae finally found the courage to glance at Anna. She took his breath away still. She was gazing down into her teacup, and her cheeks had deepened in color due to a rosy blush that had spread across them in the wake of their accident. He smiled to himself. It seemed she was not unaffected by him either. Things were looking up.
As he set his teacup down on his plate, he queried, “Shall we head to the Sears Tower?”
She glanced up at him, questioning, “The Sears Tower?”
“Sorry,” he smiled. “The Willis Tower. I’ve lived here almost all my life. It will always be the Sears Tower to me.”
She smiled at him. “Ready to go?”
He nodded. She grabbed her art supplies and phone. This time Tae didn’t reach for her hand. For some inexplicable reason, she felt sad. She followed him down the sidewalk. He glanced towards her. “It’s several blocks. Do you want to walk, or should we grab a cab?”
“Oh! Walking is fine. I could use the exercise. And it’s such a beautiful day!” Still enjoying the cool breeze, she lifted her face towards the warmth of the sun.
“It is!” Tae exclaimed. Then he stopped to snap a picture of her. He grabbed the camera that was hanging around his neck and held it up. He took the picture while her eyes were closed, her face seeking the sun’s warmth. Beautiful girl!
She didn’t even realize he’d taken her picture. She opened her eyes, and the two of them continued walking in silence. As they approached the tower a few minutes later, Tae probed her, “Is this ringing any bells? Do you remember anything?”
She stopped to gaze up at Chicago’s tallest building. Then she spun around and looked at everything from many different angles. She shook her head. Not a single thing looked familiar.
Tae saw her face fall. “Hey. It’s ok. You’ve got me. I won’t let anything bad happen to you.”
Tears in her eyes, she gazed up at him. He was so sweet. Thank God, Tae had shown up in her life today. This whole scenario had been unfolding for so long that she was beginning to doubt it was a dream. She was starting to wonder if her memories were the dream.
Wait a minute! She hadn’t tried to call her father or her brother. She should do so right now! She looked at Tae.
“I’m going to call my father.”
“You have his number?” Surprise blanketed his features.
Anna opened her phone and dialed her father’s number. It went to his voicemail. But as she listened to it, she didn’t recognize the voice or the name. What on earth was going on?
Tae saw the panic on her face. “What’s wrong?”
She ended the phone call. “It’s not him,” she whispered.
“What? What do you mean, it’s not him?”
“It went to his voicemail. I don’t recognize his voice or name.”
Quickly, she dialed her brother’s number. It too went to voicemail. Once again, she didn’t recognize the voice, but the name was the same. What was going on here? Was this some elaborate joke that her family was playing on her? But then, how could she explain Tae’s presence?
She looked up at him. “You really aren’t part of BTS?”
He shook his head. “Wait a minute! Are you telling me that in your memories of yesterday, I really was a member of some band called BTS? When you lived in Pakistan with your father?”
She nodded. “That’s what I remember. That’s all I remember. I don’t recall any of this.” Her hand flew out as she spun around. She turned back to Tae. “You were my favorite member in the band.”
He smiled at her. “I was your favorite, huh?” He paused a moment, considering her. “How do you like me in this universe?”
“I think,” she responded, “in this universe, you are my knight in shining armor.”