Forget-me-not

Seungmin

He was grateful that he was able to calm Cynthia down. Sure, she was quiet, but it was better than having her cry. He hated that he couldn't take away her pain. It was torturous and abominable.

Her eyes were still red and glossy as she took a bite of her burger. The two of them had made it into the diner. The french fries left their fingers tainted with grease and Seungmin wiped his fingers on his napkin again. He didn't mind it much. At least, not when Cynthia was with him. She was always a distraction for him.

She twirled a fry around in a bright red pool of ketchup. There was a nervous silence around the two of them. He hated that it still lingered. Sometimes their conversations were good and full of entertainment and connection. Other times, it was this uncomfortable heavy silence. It felt like they weren't clicking as well as they should have been.

"Did you know that this was where you took me on our third date?"

Cynthia glanced up from the ketchup. "The third date? Why the third?"

"Well, I took you on two dates and by the third, you insisted that it was your turn. You brought me here and insisted that I should order the veggie burger. You insisted that it was the best one that you had ever had because nobody else made it nearly as good."

She frowned and her eyebrows furrowed. "Why a veggie burger?"

"You were a vegetarian."

"I-I was huh?"

"You didn't eat meat."

Cynthia's eyes widened as her eyes went back to the hamburger sitting across the way. There were already a few bites taken out of the burger. The golden bun oozed with grease from the burger. Freshly ripened tomatoes were stacked with a neat pile of fresh lettuce. A slice of cheese had been topped with pickles and a few slices of onion.

He couldn't help, but chuckle at her panic. "Don't worry, you weren't allergic or anything. You just really liked animals. I don't think there's anything wrong with that. I mean, I used to tease you about it. This-" He held up his burger with a hand and waved it around. "This is just too good to give up."

"Did Flora know that?"

"As far as I know, yeah. One day, you got a little upset with her because she attempted to feed you a regular hot dog. At the time, I thought it was hilarious, but...it really hurt your feelings, honestly."

"Now I feel awful. I don't want to waste this. Why was I a vegetarian?"

"You're very big about the environment."

"I am?"

"You are. You're like Earth Day in human form. You were big about not eating animals and recycling. A lot of the stuff you bought, you tried to buy environmentally friendly versions. Like our soap, you always bought the bottles that were made with recycled plastic. You also really, really, really like bees."

Cynthia bit down on the fry and observed Seungmin as he spoke. He was giving her parts of herself that she had yet to learn about. All of this information was entirely new to her. She couldn't believe that this was who she used to be.

He attempted to take a bite of his burger, but he started to laugh. His hand went up to hide his mouth as he chewed. Around them, the only other diners were a family of five. Two parents and their three kids were tucked into a booth further away.

The black and white checkerboard floor was spotless. A long counter sat near the front, adorned with bright red bar stools. A vintage silver cash register, one that you had to manually type prices in, sat along the corner of it. Red booths, the color of fire trucks, speckled the floor. Faint pop music played in the background.

There was only one waitress on duty and only a few cooks in the kitchen. Seungmin was slightly disappointed when they entered. He wanted Cynthia to be able to see the owners again. Unfortunately, it'd have to wait for another day.

"Why are you laughing?"

"I'm sorry, I know-" He swallowed the bite of food, "it's not funny. However, I never thought I'd see the day you ate a hamburger. I've been waiting the entire time we've been dating just to see you eat meat."

"You know, you could have told me that I used to be a vegetarian."

"Yeah, I could have, but I bet money on this." He shifted, pulled out his phone, and opened the camera. "Go ahead and smile."

"What for?"

"Hyunjin bet that you'd remember you were a vegetarian and I wagered against him. It means I get to be a little richer and I'll happily soak in my victory. Say cheese!"

The flash went off and temporarily blinded Cynthia. Her eyes narrowed and she scowled. Seungmin laughed again and sent the picture to Hyunjin. "You look cute when you're angry."

"You should have told me," she muttered staring defeatedly down at her burger.

"You're right, I should have and I'm sorry, but money is money. Besides, how much meat have you consumed when you were with Flora? She should have told you first."

Cynthia stayed quiet before she let out a soft sigh.

"Let's admit the truth here, you can be upset, go ahead. I know what your joy looks like. Your eyes were practically bulging out of your head during the first bite of that burger. Say what you want, but you love that thing. Admit it, it tastes good."

"It's not nice to gloat."

"Admit it."

"No."

"Yes!"

"No!"

"Yes!"

"Cynthia!"

"Seungmin!"

"You know you want to!"

"Take this!" Cynthia picked up a french fry and tossed it at him. It hit Seungmin's chest, bounced off, and landed on the table.

The two stared at it in silence before Seungmin picked it up and threw it into his mouth. "It's not bad, but you definitely could have thrown it a little harder. You'd suck at pitching for a baseball team."

"Hey!"

The two burst into a fit of shared laughter and both of their eyes scrunched up. When they were finished, they were nearly breathless. Cynthia smiled and dipped another fry in ketchup before she consumed it. Seungmin watched her with his own smile.

He was so glad she found her way back to him.