"Different Directions "

Chapter 9

Shana stood at the main gate of her apartment complex. He had called earlier informing her to be ready to be picked up and her mind kept telling her she needed to see him. This was driving her crazy. She still thought of him as Geo's best friend. Well at least that what she thought she was thinking. She was not sure what she felt towards him. She liked hanging out with him. She missed him sometimes but it was all because of what had happened in the past few months. Jin was like a pillar of strength to her during the time she was trying to get over Geo. 
Her face lit up as she saw him drive closer to her. He returned her smile the same way. 

 She did not realize she was on her tiptoes just seeing him. Soon as she realized it she told herself to "calm down". Clearing her throat she got in trying to smile casually.
"Hey". She tried to sound as casual as possible." Ready for an adventure?". He asked grinning. She turned to him with both her eyebrows raised.  He laughed seeing her expression.  He was snacking on some chips and he offered her the bag. 
They drove for a few minutes when he turned into one of the complexes. It looked pretty from the outside. He parked and told her to wait a few minutes. He took a call, she assumed he was talking to the owner of the apartment. He signaled her to join him. They both walked in and he spoke to the receptionist. Then they got on to the lift and pressed 5. They both were quiet while they went up. She sneaked a glance at him and he looked like he had a smirk on his face. She tilted her head trying to see if she saw correct but just then the lift door opened and he stepped out. He waited for her and soon as she got off she felt him walking right next to her. His hands brushed on hers a few times. She did not know if it was on purpose or not. She pretended she did not notice it. They stood in front of the door waiting for it to be opened. After about two minutes a lady in her late forties opened the door with a wide smile. She smiled brightly as she saw Jin and opened her arms to give him a hug. He hugged and then turned to Shana to introduce the two. " This is my friend's mother. He is out of the country so she will show us around". She shook Shana's hand and then turned towards Jin and Shana " you two make a lovely couple". Shana opened her mouth to explain that they were not a couple but Jin grabbed her hand and squeezed it. She protested and tried to tell the lady she was mistaken but the lady and Jin were already walking into the living room. The living room was bright from the large windows opening out to a beautiful view of the city.. she loved the view. They took a look at the first room. It was nice, cozy and spacious. The second room was the master bedroom also looked pretty and airy and bright. She liked everything about it but just something was not making her excited about the place. She did not know what it was. Jin must have read her mind. He came over and whispered, " doesn't feel like home?" He asked. She was startled that he knew how she felt. She nodded and he winked at her letting her know he understood. The lady and he spoke for a few minutes and they left. They checked out 2 more apartments but they both did not excite her. She felt bad that he was taking all this trouble for her. It was almost dinner time and she was hungry. "Let me buy you dinner" she suggested."sure, let just check out one more. The owner is a good friend of mine but she moved overseas last week because of a project she is working on. She will be back in about 2 weeks but she has her mum's place she can stay at in case you like it".
They walked in and the receptionist made a call to someone and a few minutes later a key was handed over to Jin. They took the lift again and the door opened on the eighth floor. Jin was quiet. "He must be hungry" she thought to herself. He opened the door and after a couple of seconds found the light switch. Shana walked in behind him. It was all white and shades of grey and pink. Shana walked around with a smile. Her heart telling her this is it. She felt homely while walking around.  The first room was medium size. The friend had used it as her office room. The bedroom was a perfect size. The kitchen was small but perfect for one or two people. Jin had walked into the balcony. Seeing him standing there looking at the view she joined him. Both stood in silence enjoying the night view. She closed her eyes to think if she liked the place and her heart said yes.  She felt a connection with the place for some reason. It felt homely and warm. The view was great. When she opened her eyes Jin had moved closer to her and was watching her. "What do you think?" He asked looking at her. "I like this place. I felt something soon as I walked in. What's the rent though? She asked remembering she has to be able to afford it. " I will give you her contact number, talk to her. I am sure it would be something you can afford". He said with a warm smile. Shana looked at him and she felt his warmth. She saw him looking at her with his beautiful smiling eyes except for this time she saw another emotion in them. Like he was showing her he cared for her. She felt nervous and her cheeks felt warm. They were both quiet again. Jin ran his hand through his hair and took a deep breath. She felt him hesitating. He shifted from one leg to the other. She realized her heart was beating faster than she thought. She also realized she wanted to be closer to him. They were standing a few inches away from each other and she felt that was too far. He looked at her again and this time she saw his face and she knew what he was feeling. He wanted to be closer to her as well. He moved closer to her while trying not to make it obvious. She wasn't sure if it was a cool breeze that blew past them but a shiver ran up her spine. Suddenly she felt his breath on her ears and when she tilted her head to see him, he was standing behind her with his arms gently placed on her shoulders. She closed her eyes for a few seconds and tried to remain calm. She leaned behind relaxing into his chest. His hands slowly dropping onto her waist. He wrapped his arms around her and hugged her tight but still being gentle. They both heard their own heartbeat loud in their heads. she felt a calmness being in his arms. Jin gently kissed the back of her head." you are heading the right direction." He whispered.   

As they drove back Shana and Jin both had smiles on their faces. She smiled because she knew this new place she was going to make the perfect home and new adventures lay ahead and He smiles because he was happy that she was happy!