Maybe It's You (It's You Series #1)

12 ✽ The Final Attempt

"Oh." Eun-bi glanced down, realising that she had indeed stepped on his foot. It wasn't intentional, really.

But somehow, it felt good and she was pleased with herself.

"I'm sorry," she glanced up at him, not looking one bit apologetic. "Did it hurt?"

"No."

His apathetic response was getting on her nerves. Was he just trying to act cool? If that was the case, he should definitely drop that silly act.

Clearing her throat loudly, she stepped away from him. They continued the rest of the walk until they reached the red bridge over the small river. She stopped midway and turned to face him, observing his stoic face through her long eyelashes. Rays of surreal light from the pale moon in the sky irradiated Yul's cold and elegant features.

Eun-bi smiled. "Well, thank you for accompanying me on this walk. It was enjoyable, but not entirely. Here – I'll give you back your jade charm now."

Rummaging through her pocket, she pulled out the accessory and handed it over to him. Before his fingers could reach for it, she accidentally slipped. They both watched as the jade charm flew out of her hand, sailing through the air and over the railing, before landing into the shallow waters beneath them with a light splash.

Silence ensued, and then all hell broke loose.

She saw how his eyes widened in surprise and for the first time ever, he looked afraid. His demeanour changed in a split second; from a heartless man to a flustered boy.

Before her mind could comprehend that she had made a really bad mistake, Yul was already leaping over the railing. His body vanished from her sight.

She let out a small scream, before regaining her bearings quickly. She looked over the railing, worried that he might have hurt himself. But instead, she found him searching the waters recklessly for the jade charm.

Oh no.

What had Eun-bi done? She had expected him to get angry and curse at her, but not this.

It was all her fault.

"Hey, stop!"

Her words fell on deaf ears. Yul's clothes were soaked from his waist down. His face was lost and ashen as he stood knee-deep in the waters.

"The jade charm..." She heard him murmur dazedly. "It was my mother's gift to me."

Oh no, she was in deep trouble. "Look here, Park Yul!" She waved her hands at him, trying to get his attention. "Look at me!"

When he refused to look at her, she resorted to climbing the railing herself. She heaved her body onto the other side, planting both feet on the edge of the bridge. Her eyes scanned the drop below her, realising that it looked a lot scarier than she had thought.

"You fool!" she exclaimed, waving something in her hand. "Look, the real one is with me!"

It was true. She had his jade charm tucked safely away in her pocket all along. The one that she had thrown out earlier was an old one of hers. Both charms looked similar but if anybody took a closer look, hers wasn't even made of real jade and had a more raggedly appearance. All she wanted to do was to fool Yul for a short minute.

However, she was utterly regretting that decision now.

The moment when realisation hit Yul that his jade charm was safe in her hands, his expression changed. This was when Eun-bi knew that her life was in danger. The way his glacial eyes settled on her, livid and annoyed, with his predatory stance, she knew she was absolutely done for.

Oh boy, she should run. Now.

She started clambering back the way she came from, but her clammy and sweating hands made her lose her grip on the railing. Flailing her hands wildly, she felt herself falling backwards. She swore that she almost saw her deceased great-grandmother waving at her from the afterlife.

Nooo!

She squeezed her eyes shut, expecting the impact to knock the wind out of her, but it never did. Something strong and warm wrapped itself around her, cushioning her fall. When she looked up, she discovered that it was Park Yul himself.

Was it weird if she said that she was about to cry from both happiness and despair?

Before he could unleash his wrath upon her, she returned his item. "I'm sorry! I'm truly sorry! Here." She tucked his jade charm into his pocket. "You can have it back for real this time! I promise–"

His glare silenced her. She shrivelled under his furious gaze, using her hands to cover her eyes. She didn't dare to look at him, knowing that he was capable of murdering her out here where no witnesses stood.

"What are you doing?"

She risked a small peek through the gap between her fingers. "You're going to kill me."

"It's tempting," he replied. "But I won't."

She gulped nervously. That honestly didn't sound reassuring at all. "Liar."

"Speaking about yourself?"

The cold, snide tone of his perturbed her and she dropped her hands. "I'm sorry! I never expected you to jump right into the waters! You outrun me!"

Besides, she wouldn't have done it if she knew the jade charm was from his mother.

When Yul didn't respond to her remark, she took a closer look at his face. "You're scaring me. C-can you try to smile a bit and look happier? Like this?"

She pulled his cheeks but he kept his face away from her. "Stop."

Her expression faltered and she pulled her hands away quickly and held them up high. "Yes, my lord!"

He watched her quietly, befuddled. He didn't seem to be as angry as before. "What are you doing?"

"Surrendering myself to you," she admitted. "I would wave a white flag too if I can."

Arching his brows, he seemed to be in deep thoughts and she wished she knew what he was thinking about. Fearing that she might have indeed hurt his feelings, she didn't press on the subject any more than she should.

"Look, I'm terribly sorry for messing around with you. I admit I've gone too far. Please don't murder me out here." She gripped his sleeves tightly and glanced around their surroundings with wide eyes, shuddering at the eeriness. "Don't make me join the ghost gang here."

"I'm certain they would love your company."

"No, no, no. Please don't! O-or I'll haunt you in your sleep when I become a ghost!"

He stared back at her expressionlessly. For the third time since they met, he dropped her again without any warning. Except that this time, she landed into the waters.

She yelped immediately. "Hey, it's freezing cold!" She stood up clumsily, trembling in her wet clothes. Her eyes searched for Yul, noticing that he was already out of the waters and leaving her behind.

"Park Yul, come back! I'm going to kill you, you fool!"

She yelled at his back until his tall figure vanished into the darkness. No matter how much she cursed at him, one thing was for certain.

She did it. She had finally won that wretched old man's bet.

***

When Eun-bi returned home that night, drenched and shivering, a cold hit her so badly that she was confined to her bed.

Unbeknownst to her, a decree from the royal palace came for her the following morning. The words written down on the expensive parchment in elegant calligraphy spoke nothing but gibberish that would soon seal her fate.

According to the letter, Eun-bi was summoned to the palace to partake in the Selection of the Crown Princess.