PROMPTS

Stranger in my Bed - 4

A few years ago...

"Oh come on! Don't die on me now!" He tried the ignition again and prayed that the car would start.

It didn't.

Hitting the steering wheel, he pleaded with it again "Come on. We need to go to see her. This is my last chance."

He tried the ignition one more time but after sputtering a little, the car still refused to cooperate. Checking his mobile phone, he saw that the device's battery was also dead. "Great job, Jin-woo. Didn't your mechanic warn you that you needed to change your car batteries soon? And your mom kept reminding you to charge your phone. Did you listen to any of them?"

As if things needed to be any more worse, the rain was pouring outside, making it almost impossible for Jin-woo to walk anywhere safely and get help.

Except... a few meters away, he saw a payphone.

He squinted to make sure that he was seeing clearly through the heavy curtain of the raindrops. He took time to check multiple times to make sure it was a payphone because he did not want to head out if it wasn't.

Did the city really still have a payphone at this day and age? he wondered. Maybe they put it there for stubborn people like me.

Making up his mind to at least try, Jin-woo opened the door and ran as quickly as he could to the spot. Instinctively, he shielded himself with his hand even though it did not block a single drop of rain and he was drenched soon enough.

Please wait for me Joon-young. Give me a chance, he pleaded.

Joon-Young.

The one woman for him.

The one who made him feel complete.

The attraction between them was instant. The moment they met on that first day of work, he knew he wanted to be with her. Luckily, she eventually chose to give him a chance and soon enough, they were together.

It was fire.

But when life started to rear its ugly head, things fell apart pretty quickly.

It started with a pregnancy scare. He was willing to marry her and be responsible for their child, but she was confused about all of it. She still had plans and wanted to become a top executive in the corporate world. A child was not part of those goals at this time.

Jin-woo understood because in these situations, it usually demanded more out of the woman and a family did not always compliment a career. But he was in love. He assured Joon-Young that he would never leave her and would make adjustments so that she could fulfill her career path that she mapped out for herself.

Joon-young remained restless.

A few weeks later, they confirmed that it was a false alarm. There would be no baby.

For a time, he thought things would go back to normal but they didn't. She distanced herself from him and soon a month had gone without him seeing her. One day, he received a note saying she wanted to see other people.

Tonight, three months later, she agreed to talk. Settle things. Work things out. He was surprised when he received the messaged but jumped at the opportunity.

His car had other plans.

Picking up the phone receiver, he took out the only coins he had, dropped them in the slot and quickly dialled her number. The rain was still beating down on the city and the noise made it difficult to hear the person on the other end of the phone clearly.

"Joon-Young! It's me."

"Who?!" she said and it pained him that she wouldn't even recognise his voice.

"It's me. Jin-woo. My car won't start. I'm just trying to get help but I'll be there okay? Please. Please wait for me. Please? Give us a chance," he pleaded in between ramblings that it might be battery issues that's why the car was not cooperating.

"What? Where are you?" She sounded a little confused and asked him to repeat what he said. Strangely, she seemed to say, "Wait, who are you again?" but he must have just misheard. It was difficult to hear because of the noise on the street and then the rain and thunder.

He gave his location. "Just please wait for me."

"I will go there!"

"No need --" the line was cut to signal that his time was up.

Jin-woo debated whether he should run back to his car or wait by the payphone. The location he provided Joon-young was at the payphone but she would know his car, which was within his eye sight anyway. He decided to stay by the phone just in case she would find a way to call back.

Has it only been half an hour? It seemed like an eternity when he made that call and had been pleading with the heavens for some luck since. Luck with getting help for his car and luck that he could patch things up with the person he loved the most.

I don't want to lose her. Please, he begged.

A flash of brightness distracted him from his thoughts. Looking up, they were from a car's headlights. The car stopped in front of his broken one but it was an unfamiliar vehicle to him. Frowning, he observed what would happen next.

Was he going to be robbed? Because the way his night was going, he wouldn't be surprised.

The person alighted the car and Jin-woo's frown deepened. Is that ... a pirate?!

Blinking his eyes and shaking his head multiple times, he confirmed it. A pirate in Seoul. What the hell?

Rushing back to his car, he called out, "Hey! Leave my car alone!" Checking the other, he was momentarily relieved to see that the person was alone. But when she turned, he was stunned once again -- in front of him was a very beautiful pirate.

"Jin-woo?" she asked.

"You know me?"

"You called me."

"Huh?" he asked. Even to his own ears, he sounded dumb.

"You called me," the pirate repeated. "You asked for help."

Jin-woo's eyes widened. Was this truly happening? "No, I didn't. I called... Wait a minute. Am I imagining things? A pirate out to help me? Are you my fairy god -"

"Shut it," the woman said, narrowing her eyes at him, warning him wordlessly not to continue what he was going to say. "You must have misdialled. You got my number and sounded like you needed help badly. I have your car battery. Come on, get it from my car before I change my mind."

Because he was still stuck in his place, she held out her hand and said, "I'm Jin Ah."

Jin-woo remain frozen.

Jin Ah rolled her eyes impatiently and started ordering him around. "Pop the hood. Do you have tools? Oh, never mind." Taking charge of the situation, she replaced the battery, placed the old one in his trunk and then in a few minutes, she was shouting over the rainstorm, "Can you try to start the car?"

It worked. When she slammed the hood down and started walking away, Jin-woo finally called out, "Wait. Give me your details. I'll pay you back."

The pirate rolled her eyes. "Nevermind. Goodbye."

"Wait!" Jin-woo jogged to keep up with her.

"It's fine. It's my good deed for the day," the woman said. A thought seemed to occur to her and faced him to ask, "Are you alright? You sounded... desperate."

Jin-woo wasn't able to meet her eyes. "I need to run. Thank you again." The last thing Jin-woo heard was...

"I wish she gives you a chance."