[Web Res] Meeting with Bae (Without Overlay)

The version without the overlay

Oh, there is a short story for this, though Judy made this one, all credit belongs to her.

Zoozle Meet with Berlian

It's a beautiful sunny Sunday morning, the kind where the light filters through your curtains just right, painting your room in soft, golden hues. Outside, the world seems unusually calm, like it's taking a deep breath alongside you. The air feels lighter, and there's a sense of possibility floating around. You're savoring a slow, unhurried moment, maybe curled up on the couch with a warm cup of coffee or tea in hand. The steam rises in delicate swirls, carrying the comforting aroma that's become part of your weekend ritual. It's one of those rare mornings where everything feels just right – and then your phone buzzes, pulling your attention to the screen.

It's not just any call. It's a video call from Berlian.

Your heart skips a beat, and you can't help but smile at the sight of her name. Berlian always has that effect on you, doesn't she? It's as if her presence, even through the screen, carries this energy that warms you from the inside out. You remember the first time you met her, how her genuine smile and infectious laugh instantly put you at ease. There's something unique about the bond you share – a closeness that feels rare, almost magical. It's not quite friendship, not quite romance, but something beautifully undefined. Berlian gets you in ways that very few people do. She's the one you can share your wildest dreams with, as well as the smallest, most insignificant details of your day, and she listens like every word matters.

The memories of your times together flash through your mind – those late-night conversations that stretched until dawn, the silly inside jokes that make no sense to anyone else, and the way she always seems to call exactly when you need to hear her voice. You've watched each other grow, celebrate victories, and weather storms. Through it all, your connection has only deepened, like roots growing stronger beneath the surface.

Sometimes you catch yourself trying to explain Berlian to others, but the words never quite capture her essence. How do you describe someone who feels like sunshine and shelter at the same time? You've tried telling people about her infectious laugh, the way her eyes crinkle at the corners when she's truly happy, or how she has this habit of tucking her fur behind her ear when she's deep in thought. But these details, while true, feel like trying to describe an ocean by talking about a single wave. There's so much more depth, so many layers to who she is and what she means to you.

Seeing her name light up your phone feels like a gift, especially because you know how busy her life is. Berlian is 30 now, and she's living the dream she's worked so hard for. As an airline pilot, she spends her days quite literally soaring through the clouds, navigating the skies as a first officer. You still remember how her eyes lit up when she told you about getting accepted into flight school, the countless hours she spent studying, and the pure joy in her voice when she earned her wings. It's a job that's thrilling and full of adventure, but also incredibly demanding. Long hours, jet lag, constant travel – it's a life that doesn't leave much room for casual calls or catch-ups. And your own days are busy too, filled with the usual routines and responsibilities that keep you tethered to the ground. That's why moments like these, when she finds the time to call, feel so precious.

You remember the first time she told you about her fascination with flying – you were both lying in the grass at the park, watching planes draw white lines across the summer sky. She pointed up at one and said, "That's where I belong." It wasn't just a dream she was sharing; it was a glimpse into her soul. Now, years later, when you spot contrails crisscrossing the blue expanse above, you sometimes wonder if one of them might be hers, if she's up there piloting a massive aircraft through the stratosphere, carrying hundreds of people safely to their destinations. The thought always makes you smile.

You've started keeping a collection of small things that remind you of her – a postcard from every city she's visited, pressed flowers from that spring picnic years ago, even the paper napkin where she drew out her flight path the first time she explained her route to you. These little treasures live in a vintage tin box on your bookshelf, each one holding a piece of your shared story. Sometimes, on quiet evenings when you're missing her most, you open it and let the memories wash over you like gentle waves.

You've grown to recognize the subtle signs of her different time zones – the particular quality of light in her background, whether she looks energized or tired, the distant sounds that give away whether she's in Manila, Shanghai, or Singapore. Each call is like opening a window into her world, getting glimpses of the extraordinary life she leads while somehow remaining the same grounded, authentic person you've always known.

You've developed a kind of shorthand over the years – inside jokes that emerged from shared experiences across different time zones. Like the "coffee shop incident" in Bangkok, where you both happened to be at the same time (her for work, you on vacation), and ended up having an impromptu reunion that turned into an adventure involving a lost phone, a helpful tuk-tuk driver, and a midnight feast of street food. Or the time you both accidentally wore the exact same shade of yellow on your video call, leading to an ongoing tradition of "twin Tuesday" where you try to match colors across continents.

There's also the language you've developed together, a private dictionary of words and phrases that mean nothing to anyone else but speak volumes to you both. Like how "purple elephants" became your code for those moments when life feels overwhelming, after that time you both saw a child's drawing of one in an airport and turned it into an hour-long conversation about facing fears. Or how "cloud dancing" is your shared term for taking risks, inspired by that day she first showed you video footage from her training flights.

As you swipe to answer, her face fills your screen, and for a moment, the world feels a little brighter. Berlian has that glow about her – an effortless mix of confidence, kindness, and an unmistakable spark that comes from doing something she truly loves. Today, you notice she's wearing the black crop top you gave her for her birthday in September, the one that instantly reminded you of her when you first saw it. You wonder where she is this time. Maybe she's calling from a hotel room in a bustling city halfway across the world, the soft hum of an air conditioner in the background. Or maybe she's just landed, her fur still slightly tousled from her headset, stealing a quiet moment to talk to you before the rush of her day continues. Wherever she is, she's here now, and that's all that matters.

The crop top reminds you of another gift she gave you – a small compass she found in an antique shop in Hanoi during one of her layovers. "So you can always find your way back to me," she'd said with that characteristic mix of playfulness and sincerity that makes her so special. It sits on your bedside table now, its needle steadfastly pointing north, a daily reminder of your connection that spans continents.

The compass isn't the only token of your connection. There's the small collection of airline wings she's given you over the years, charting her progress from trainee to first officer. Each pin tells a story of late-night study sessions, practical exams, and triumphant phone calls. You've arranged them in a shadow box on your wall, alongside photos of you both from the rare, precious times you've managed to be in the same place at the same time. Your favorite is the one taken at sunset on that beach in Bali, where you both look slightly windswept and completely, unabashedly happy.

Her laughter spills through the screen like sunlight, and her voice carries that familiar warmth that always puts you at ease. In an instant, the distance between you feels smaller, as if all the miles and time zones don't really matter. You talk about everything and nothing – the funny thing that happened to you this week, the places she's flown to, and the little, unspoken thoughts that seem to bubble up when she's around. She tells you about the passenger who made her day with a kind gesture, and you share the progress on that personal project you've been working on, the one she's been encouraging you to pursue for months.

There was that time last year when you were going through a particularly rough patch at work. Berlian was somewhere over the Pacific when you sent her a message about feeling lost. Despite the time difference and her hectic schedule, she made time for a call during her brief stopover. She listened, really listened, as you poured out your fears and frustrations. Then she shared a story about her own moments of doubt during flight training, how she pushed through, and how sometimes the turbulence in life, like in the air, is just a path to clearer skies. Her words became your mantra in the weeks that followed.

Sometimes, during these calls, you catch yourself studying her face, noting the tiny changes that time brings – the way her smile lines have deepened slightly, how her eyes seem to hold even more wisdom than before. You've both grown so much since you first met, yet somehow, when you're together like this, it feels like no time has passed at all.

You wish you could see her in person more often. You miss the simple things – sitting across from her at your favorite coffee shop, sharing a quiet afternoon with no agenda, or walking side by side, lost in conversation. You miss how she absently stirs her coffee exactly seven times before taking the first sip, the way she tilts her head slightly when she's really listening, and how she always remembers to ask about the little things you mentioned weeks ago. But even in these fleeting video calls, Berlian has this way of making you feel like she's right there with you. She's so present, so genuinely invested in every word you say, that you almost forget she's thousands of miles away.

What makes your connection with Berlian so special isn't just the grand moments or the long conversations – it's the way she remembers to send you pictures of interesting clouds she sees from the cockpit, knowing your fascination with weather patterns. It's how she keeps a small collection of local snacks from every city she visits, waiting to share them with you when your paths finally cross. It's the way she starts humming that old song you both love whenever there's a lull in conversation, the same song that was playing in that café where you first met. These small gestures, these tiny threads of thoughtfulness and care, weave together to create something rare and beautiful – a friendship that defies distance, time zones, and the conventional boundaries of relationships.

The sunlight in your room has shifted by the time you notice how long you've been talking. That's another thing about conversations with Berlian – time seems to flow differently, bending and stretching like the shadows across your floor. You've shared laughs, dreams, and those comfortable silences that only true connection allows. She's told you about the sunrise she saw from 35,000 feet up, and you've described the new cafe that opened in your neighborhood, the one you know she'd love.

As the call winds down, you feel a twinge of longing, but it's accompanied by something softer: gratitude. Even if life keeps you both busy and apart, the bond you share feels unshakable. It's grown and evolved, weathered distance and time, and emerged stronger for it all. It's as if no matter how much time passes or how far apart you are, Berlian will always be someone you can count on – a person who knows your heart and carries a piece of it with her, wherever she goes.

After you hang up, the morning light seems a little warmer, the coffee tastes a little sweeter, and the day ahead feels full of possibility. That's the magic of Berlian – even from across the world, she has a way of making everything in your life feel more vibrant, more meaningful, more alive.

In the quietness after the call ends, you find yourself touched by how some friendships seem to transcend ordinary boundaries. Your connection with Berlian is like a constellation – even when you can't see all the stars at once, you know the pattern they make, know it's always there, spanning the same sky that stretches over both your worlds. As you go about your day, you carry the warmth of her presence with you, like a secret smile, a private joy. And somewhere up there, among the clouds that you can see from your window, you know Berlian is probably thinking of you too, your friendship a invisible thread connecting earth and sky, heart to heart, across all the beautiful miles between.

You've learned that love – whether it's friendship, romance, or something wonderfully undefined – doesn't always need clear categories or constant presence. Sometimes it's enough to know that someone out there gets you completely, holds space for all your complexities, and manages to make you feel less alone in this vast world. With Berlian, you've found that rare kind of connection that feels both anchor and wings – grounding you while encouraging you to soar.

And isn't that the most beautiful part of it all? That in a world so big and often impersonal, you've found someone who makes every corner of it feel like it could be home, simply because she's there to share it with you, one video call, one message, one shared moment at a time.

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