It feels strange to be sitting in the corner of this specific café with my best friend, watching as people enter and leave with their orders. I'd been planning for this day for a few years, making that damn trip bucket list, but hard as I've tried to think that doing it would come true, it seems so surreal now that I'm actually here!
As I sip on my coffee, I look around at the décor. My bias's face isn't really seen here, but the one picture hanging on the wall is staring straight into my soul. If I ever get to see him in the flesh, I think I'll just pass out! But that's a dream, one that I don't think will ever come true. My gaze lands on the memorabilia on the shelves across the room.
"Hey Leeza, I'll be right back."
My bestie just waves her hand at me dismissively and continues to scroll through something on her phone. Knowing she heard but won't miss me, I stand up and walk to the bathroom, stopping to look at all the memories on display along the way.
I stare at everything, taking it in slowly. I want to reach my hand out to touch each thing, but don't dare. That would be so disrespectful on my part. I even catch my hand hovering in front of one of the hats. Seeing how close I am to something he had touched makes my hand tremble, and I yank it back. I wrap my arms around my waist instead, squeezing it as a reminder to stay respectful to these things.
I continue on to the restroom, dabbing some cold water on my cheeks and neck to cool down the heat I feel gathering there. When I'm done, I walk back to the table where Leeza is still scrolling through her phone.
Taking another sip of my drink as I sit down, I wait to see if my presence will be acknowledged. Sometimes I wonder why I even bother. Leeza may be my best friend since university, but she's always been somewhat self-absorbed and focused on her own things that she doesn't see who or what's around her. It may be bad to say that of her, but it's a truth that I accepted long ago as it just being a part of her.
Instead, I look out the window. After a while, I pull my pen and journal from my bag and start putting my thoughts down.
"Hey, Nae. Hey!" My consciousness is pierced by Leeza's voice.
"Hmm? What?" I ask, my gaze moving from the page in front of me to see the excitement on my friend's face. "What's going on with you?"
"Do you see the guy over by the corner, sitting alone?" She whispers loudly to me while jerking her head in a direction to my left. I turn to look. Sure enough, there's a guy sitting at the table with a dark knit hat pulled low over his head and a mask covering the lower half of his face so only his eyes are visible. I frown as I turn back to Leeza.
"Yeah? And?"
"And doesn't he look like...you-know-who?"
Looking again, I scrutinize the features I can see. "Yeah, he kind of does. But I doubt he would be here, today, right now, in broad daylight," I say skeptically.
"God, Nae, you make him sound like a vampire that will only come out at night! But why couldn't it be him? It's his father's café after all," she retorts.
"You seriously think The Mr. Park Jimin would be here, in Busan, with enough time to kill just to hang out by himself at his father's café when he, and the rest of the members of the world's biggest K-pop boy band, have a schedule to prepare for their concert in two weeks?" I ask sarcastically. "Besides, even if, and that's a gigantic if, it was him, don't you think he would like to be left alone?"
"Well..." Leeza hedges. "When you put it like that...but it still wouldn't hurt to at least say hello to a fellow human being, right?"
"Leeza, don't..." I plead, standing up as she does, walking in his direction. I remain in my spot, feeling like a bystander watching a train chugging its way towards a wreck. I slowly sit back down, my face heating up in embarrassment on her behalf. Or maybe it's solely mine.
She's not shy, unlike me. She'll talk to total strangers wherever we go. She's my absolute opposite, I'm the yin to her yang. She's a tall blonde with ice blue eyes while I'm short with black hair and dark eyes. She's extroverted and I'm introverted. She can talk to anyone, while I can barely say my name in the presence of a stranger. She loves the nightlife of clubs while I prefer my books and writing. She enjoys her fast-paced job in marketing and sales while I've dreaded having to leave my house to go to my job in accounting.
She's pulled me, kicking and swearing, out of my comfort zone on a regular basis, telling me it was good for my soul. I don't believe her most of the time, and I'm not afraid to tell her off on it either. But it never does any good. She can be a steamroller when she puts her mind to something. You either need to go with it or risk getting squashed.
As I come back to the present, I see her slip a small piece of paper to the guy, then turn around and walk back to our table with a gloating smile. Sitting down, she grabs her phone again, which annoys me.
I look at her, then at the guy, only to see him watching our table and holding the paper between his fingers.
I feel so flustered that this person, who really does look like him, is looking at us. It causes me to look down at the drink I'm holding instead. That's where my gaze stays as the heat reaches my cheeks again.
"What's wrong with you?" Leeza says to me, watching as I twist the cup between my hands in agitation. I shake my head.
"Nothing."
"Seriously, what is wrong with you?"
I look up at her then, the anger rising, making my eyes blaze. "I can't believe you would do that!" I hiss.
"Do what?"
"Do what? Invade another person's space. And what did you give him anyway?"
"Just a number," she stares at me with confusion written all over her face, which makes me even angrier. Of course, she gave him her number! She always does this sort of thing, not really caring about how her actions may affect anyone else.
"You know what? I think I'll just go back to the hotel. I'll catch you later," I murmur tightly as I get up and gather my things. Shoving them in my bag hastily, I rush out the door to her calling my name.
As soon as I reach our hotel, I'm no longer in the mood to go in. I'll see her sooner than I want if I do, so instead I walk across the street to the beach. I need to calm down. To feel the warm sand between my toes and hear the lull of water lapping at the edge of my consciousness. It's a soothing balm to my soul and emotions, which is desperately needed right now.
Reaching the edge of the sand has me taking a deep breath in of the briny air, and I feel the first bit of tension release. Walking to the water, I stop just out of its reach and look toward the horizon, getting lost in my thoughts for several minutes.
Finally, I turn around and sit down with my knees to my chest. I rest my chin on them, my arms wrapped around my legs. I can easily get lost in the rhythmic slap of breaking waves against earth...and that's exactly what I do until my brain is fully calm so I can write.
I pull my pen and journal back out, and before I know what's happened another hour passes, along with a few poems and several pages of prose.
I only stop when I feel my stomach growl. Looking at my phone I see I've missed quite a few calls from Leeza, and twice as many texts that progressively get more anxious and angrier in nature when I don't answer.
Calling Leeza back seems to be the more prudent option, yet I have to pull the phone away from my ear when she answers with a shouted "Where the hell have you been for the past five hours and why didn't you answer me??"
Yeah, she's a mix of pissed off and worried.
"Leeza, calm down." I'm finally able to interject in her tirade. "I'm just across the street at the beach. I've been writing and lost track of time. I'll be back to the hotel in the next seven minutes. I promise."
"Fine! I'll just talk to you then!" I hear her mutter b*tch right before the call disconnects. I chuckle and shake my head at that while dropping everything in my bag. Getting up, I brush the sand off my backside, hardly noticing there aren't many people on the beach at this time of evening. Just a few here and there, most either walking or sitting with someone else, enjoying the fading light of day. But I'm too focused on my tasks and in a hurry to pay any attention to them. And unbelievably, I make it back to the hotel room in record time, even for me. It takes longer to calm Leeza down than it does to eat supper and get ready for bed with my normal thirty-minute journaling session before lights out.
The next morning, I wake to the sun streaming straight into my eyes. Apparently, I forgot to close the curtains last night, which also means Leeza probably went to a club and never came back. Peeking at my phone I see it's barely six a.m. and my body is wide awake. My brain, on the other hand, is cursing my body and the sun out. But I get up anyway to start my first official full day of being a tourist.
Technically, I was born in South Korea, but my parents moved our family to the United States when I was barely two years old. My older brothers had a more challenging time acclimating to the change, but I didn't. We grew up listening to the stories of where we came from, and now I wanted to see those places for myself.
It had taken Leeza and I almost three years to bring the idea of visiting Busan from conception to fruition, and amazingly it actually coincided with the free concert my favorite band would be having. I didn't win a ticket, but Leeza did, and I admit, I was jealous when she told me. I guess I just had rotten luck. But I was here. They were going to be here. And I get to be spending three gloriously free weeks as I saw fit - relaxing and sightseeing. I really couldn't ask for more.
I eat a light breakfast by myself then head out to start marking off places I've wanted to see. After the second one and a delicious lunch, I have an urgent need to decompress from all the "people" energy. Who knew Busan would be so busy this early in October? The upcoming concert is definitely growing the tourism population. But I really can't manage all the "extra" anymore.
When I was researching for the best place to stay, I had read there were restaurants and cafes near Gwangalli Beach, the one located right across the street from our hotel. I figure I can get dinner later and check out the night view of Gwangandaegyo Bridge once the sun goes down, so I head back there. I love the night, moon, and stars, almost as much as I love the beach and water. It becomes a whole other world in the dark.
When I arrive, I find a nice little shop specializing in ramyeon prior to scoping out a good spot to sit on the beach. I thoroughly enjoy the food and atmosphere, and I'm happy to still have a couple of hours before darkness descends so I find a nice spot in the sand, pulling my writing things out and getting to work. In the background, the hum of the traffic on the bridge lightly echoes across the water, barely discernible over the quiet rhythm of the water.
Before I know it, darkness has fallen enough so seeing what I'm writing is no longer easy. I put it away then stare at the bridge in the distance, watching as lights flicker on.
Standing up, I walk toward the water, listening to the music playing around me, surrounding me. My soul feels free, and my body starts to sway unconsciously to both the internal and external sound I always hear. Sometimes my ballet training takes over without realizing it, my arms and legs moving on their own. This time is no exception.
The music soon dies down around me, the composition fading away. My body stops moving and I stand there at the water's edge, looking into the distance. The lights of the bridge and traffic are bright yet dull compared to the sight of the three-quarter waxing moon cresting over the horizon below the bridge. Even in this phase it looks huge, and it pulls me closer. I take another slow step closer, my hand reaching out. Then another step. And another.
That's when I feel the hand on my arm pulling me back as I step into the water. Turning my head, I catch a glimpse of a man's face in shadow, longer darker hair framing it, the light from the city behind him creating a silhouette as he towers over me. Well, perhaps not as much as I first thought once the adrenaline of surprise begins to ebb.
"You should be careful of where you are," the man states as I continue to stare. He looks vaguely familiar, but it's too dark to see him clearly. "You were headed into the water. You knew that, right?"
"Of course?" I mumble and step out of his reach and back into the water, dousing my foot with coldness. The shock has me squealing and jumping on one foot awkwardly toward my bag and away from him. Grabbing it up, I turn and bow to him.
"Thank you for your help. I must go now," I state, bowing again as I back away further.
I turn and rush away from the beach. When I make it back to the hotel room, I'm surprised to see Leeza lying on her bed, watching television.
"I thought you would be out at a club tonight," I say as I drop the bag on my bed.
"I was going to, but I have a headache," she whines pitifully as she eyes me up and down. "Where have you been?"
"The beach. Watched the sun set and the moon rise," I say as I walk into the bathroom to start my nightly routine. Though it isn't eight o'clock yet, I'm weary to the bone. It's been a long day and my foot is still cold.
Crawling into bed, I regale Leeza with tales of the sights I'd seen during the day, and with both our eyes drooping by midnight, we turn off the lights on another day in South Korea.
The next few days are spent in much the same way. I get up with the sun, eat breakfast, usually alone, then head out either with Leeza to see places we've talked about or on my own to get to know my heritage. I always end the day by myself at the beach, watching the sun set and the moon rise. Sometimes I write, other times I dance, and sometimes both. Every so often I notice the same man sitting in shadow as I'm leaving for the night, alone in the sand watching the horizon and lights like I do. I smile shyly on occasion as I pass him when I leave, and once I even give a small wave as if we're now acquaintances in passing.
It's day number six in Busan and Leeza is nursing another of her famous clubbing hangovers. I really don't want to deal with her whining so decide to make myself as scarce as possible as early as I can. I love Leeza like the sister I never had, but she irritates me just like one too. And I've dealt with her and her hangovers enough to know which one she'll be having. It's shaping up to be a Category 5 type hangover where no one is safe in her path.
I'm actually happy I don't have any bucket list places I want to go to see, so it's going to be a sand and water kind of day. Hunkering down in the spot I have basically claimed all week is the only thing on my agenda.
I've already been here several hours writing and watching the waves. I'm stuck on a scene I've been writing...and figure perhaps a change in my own scenery will help give a new perspective to the story's scenery. Granted, I'm still looking at the same bridge and the same horizon as I walk along the edge of the water, lost deeper in thought with each step taken.
Of course, I'm not watching where I'm going with my gaze out to sea. So, when I bump into a man standing at the edge of the water, it's with enough force and surprise! We both lose our balance and land in the water. Granted, he's able to catch his fall gracefully, landing on one knee with water only up to his elbow. I, on the other hand, land on my *ss, waist deep in cold sea water! My long skirt floats around my legs, baring them.
As I struggle to get up, I see in my peripheral vision how the man easily stands up like a god coming out of the sea. And here I am, sitting and flailing like a fish out of water. Right away a hand is held out in front of my face, capturing my attention.
I stare at it momentarily before grasping it. It's so warm compared to my cold, wet one. But I don't have time to focus on that before he pulls me up in one strong move. Looking at our clasped hands, I hastily let go as I murmur a soft thank you as my gaze travels up his torso to his face. It doesn't register right away that I know this man. But as soon as my brain catches up, my eyes go wide in shock and I stumble backwards just as a small wave sweeps my feet out from under me. I go down hard, and this time all of me goes under. Oh god, the embarrassment!
I'm floundering away, sea water going up my nose and into my open mouth, my skirt hiked up to my bare thighs this time and my hair wrapping around my face like seaweed. I feel hands grab my own and pull again, and in an instant I'm against his rock hard, warm body, spitting out nasty tasting water as I cough into his chest.
"Are you alright?" I hear him say into my ear. Shuddering slightly from his voice so close and his arms wrapped tightly around me, which I presume is to keep me from falling back in the water, he continues, "Are you cold? I'm sure you are. Let's get you out of the water."
He takes a couple steps backward to solid ground, pulling me with him. Leaning back, he holds me at arm's length, an opportunity which I use to push the wet hair from my face to look up at him.
"I'm so sorry," I start to say as I gaze up at his face where I see worry, as well as a possible smile twitching at the corners of his mouth. "I didn't mean to bump into you like that..."
My voice falters as he pulls a few clinging strands of hair from my face that I missed. My heart stutters as a small smile graces his perfectly sculpted face.
"That wasn't the introduction I had expected," he replies. His smile grows wider as he sees the flush hit my cheeks. God, I want to die or run away...perhaps both. Why can't the earth just open up and swallow me whole right this minute?
"Um, I should go." I bow quickly as I try to sidestep around him. But he still has his hand on my arm, stopping me before I can move away.
"Do you live around here?"
"Um, no. I live in America."
I watch as his smile falters briefly before he recovers and queries, "Then are you staying somewhere nearby?" I see hope flash in his eyes when I look around to see where we are and nod my head back in the direction I had come from.
"I'm staying there, with a friend."
"I'll walk you there. I would hate for you to lose your footing and fall in again," he says mischievously, a twinkle in his eyes.
I freeze at his words, my brain function non-existent at the moment. I can only watch as he starts walking away in the direction of my hotel, yet I'm still rooted in the same spot watching his fine *ss in the dark jeans he's wearing. I think my brain just short-circuited!
He stops, turning around when he's about twenty feet away, noticing I'm not moving. He comes back and all I can comprehend is that he places his fingertips under my chin, lightly touching me. Then he lifts up...closing my mouth...and chuckles!
Grabbing my hand, he pulls me with him this time. I have no other option but to move.
It's only after walking a good distance that I finally come back to my senses, realizing my skirt is still stuck to my legs, and not in a good way. It's still hiked up on my thighs, revealing most of my slender, bare legs. I try to pull the dripping material away from my skin with my free hand, yet I'm starting to lag behind trying to wrangle my skirt back into a proper position. He feels me tugging so he stops to look back at me.
My face is burning as I'm still trying to get my skirt adjusted down my legs one-handed, but the fabric is like glue, too wet and clingy. I really don't want to let go of his hand, but I know I need both to do the job right. I tug mine lightly to get it free, but he just holds on tighter. This is going to get awkward, isn't it?
I clear my throat as I dig up the courage...
"Could I, um, have my hand please? I kind of need it." I gesture to my skirt with my free one. I see his eyes roam down my body slowly, and I figure my face is the reddest it's ever going to get. I feel combustible from the heat at this point.
The corners of his mouth once again twitch up as his eyes stop on my bare thighs. Is this heat still from embarrassment? I can't really tell anymore. If it wouldn't bring more attention to me, I would fan myself, because his look is absolutely swoon-worthy.
He doesn't say anything but after a moment he lets go. Before I can dwell on how cold mine feels without his surrounding it, I readjust my skirt so it covers my legs, though the fabric is still clinging.
We resume walking towards my hotel in silence, and within minutes we've arrived. He follows me in as I go straight to the elevators, wondering if he'll be noticed by anyone. It's not like he doesn't have an unrecognizable face, and with the city getting ready for the concert, it's plastered everywhere!
The elevator arrives and thankfully we're the only ones to get on. I hit the button for my floor and it's the only sound in the silent car. I'm still uncomfortable in my wet clothes, but at least my skirt and shirt aren't clinging to my body like a second skin anymore. As the elevator doors whoosh open, I peek my head out and look both ways to make sure the hallway is empty before stepping off. Going in the direction of my room, I hear the elevator doors close again. I turn my head to see that he's still behind me. I stop in front of my room and search through my bag for the key card. I'm very thankful that my bag is waterproof, so my journal, phone, and essentials stayed dry when I fell in both times. That's been a hard lesson learned in the past!
Pulling the card from my wallet, I turn to him and quietly say, "Do you mind staying out here while I change? I'm not sure if my friend is in there or not. I'll leave the door propped open in case you need a quick exit from the hallway if someone comes...that way you won't get recognized."
"I'll stay right here," is all he says, nodding his head in acknowledgement.
Opening the door, I walk in.
"Leeza, you here?" I call out as I set the safety bolt so the door won't close. No response. She must have gone to the clubs again. I grab some dry clothes and quickly enter the bathroom to change. I look at myself in the mirror and am horrified to see how I look. My hair is a rat's nest and sticking out in angles I didn't know were humanly possible.
My first meeting with my bias and I look like this?? Lifting up the collar of my shirt I take a quick sniff. Damn - fishy, salty sea water smell...I have to take a shower now! I turn around and am n*ked in a minute with the shower spitting out hot water and steam.
Stepping in and going through the motions of getting clean from my hair to the tips of my toes only takes minutes as I don't want him to be staying in the hallway too long. And my mind wanders to him, imagining what it would be like if he were...
I shake my head, trying to force those images out before I get lost in them. My body is already responding to those thoughts so it's time to be done.
I dry off, getting dressed in another long, flowy skirt and shirt, the one that always comforts me when my mind is going haywire. It takes me a bit longer than normal to run the brush and comb through my tangled hair though. I realize I must have swallowed some water when I went under the second time as my mouth has a faint fishy taste, so I utilize my toothbrush. I wonder if he's still standing in the hallway waiting, and of course the nerves hit. I hang my wet things over the shower door and open the bathroom.
Walking back out, I stop suddenly when I see the door is shut. I open it and look out. My heart falls when I find the hallway empty. I must have taken longer than I thought, and he decided to leave. He must think I'm the rudest person in the world!
I close the door slowly, leaning my forehead dejectedly against it. That was probably my only chance in the world to talk to him, and I blew it. I feel the tears start to slide down my cheeks, and I wipe them away. He's a K-pop Idol for goodness sake! Who am I kidding, besides myself? I didn't have a chance.
I push away from the door and wipe my cheeks again as I turn around. And promptly freeze in place when I see him standing a few feet away from me.
"You're...you're still here!" I stutter in surprise. "I thought you left!"
"I took your offer to come in if someone might recognize me. A group came from the elevator and headed in this direction," he says in a way of explanation.
"Yes! Yes, of course."
He crosses the few steps to me and stops, noticing my wet cheeks and the tears still hanging from my lashes. The expression on his face softens as he reaches up and wipes them from my face.
"Are you crying because of me?" he asks softly.
I can only nod as my brain glitched when his thumbs brushed my face.
"Yes, I thought you left, and I didn't get a chance to say thank you for walking me back." My eyes drop at that little white lie, biting my lip before I recant and give the real reason. I mean, it's not exactly wrong though...
"Is that the only reason?" he asks with an eyebrow raised in question. He knows I'm not telling the whole truth. Damn.
Sighing quietly, I drop my head a bit, my drying hair falling forward to cover my cheeks as I slightly shake my head.
"No..." I murmur. He hooks his fingers under my chin and raises it up so he can look in my eyes. I slowly explain. "I also wanted to spend a bit of time with you, to get to know you. I thought I had missed the opportunity and was sad about it and angry with myself for messing up. But I understand if you would prefer to leave."
"I'm still here, aren't I?" His plump lips stretch into a wide smile as my eyes get large at his response.
"Ye...yes...?"
My brain is still trying to catch up with the fact that he is here, in my hotel room, alone, with me. I've given him all the opportunities to leave and never look back, and he hasn't taken them. Makes me wonder what the catch is, but I don't have time to ponder on it when all the thoughts leave my head again with his thumbs brushing my cheeks.
We stare into each other's eyes for a moment, and I really wish he would kiss me. My gaze darts to his mouth and I see him quickly lick his lips and that's all I can focus on now...
But the spell is broken by a phone buzzing in the background. My gaze sweeps back up to his to see he was staring at my own mouth, but a frown is starting to form between his eyebrows.
"Do you think we should get that?" I whisper.
"No."
"Okay."
Before long, the buzzing stops and we both let out a silent sigh of relief. Short-lived relief as the buzzing starts again.
He drops his hands and takes a step back. Running his hands through his hair, he takes a second one back as silence takes over. Then the buzzing starts again. I furtively look around the room to see where I dropped my bag. Spying it on the table next to the television, I step over to it and pull my phone out to see three missed calls from Leeza with a couple messages.
Clicking open my voice mail, I listen to the most recent in the list.
"NaeYeong, where the hell are you? Why aren't you picking up again?? Damn it, you better be at the hotel when I get there..." I have to pull the phone away from my ear at the sound of Leeza's voice. I look up at Jimin to see him watching me carefully.
"I should call her back quickly. If I don't, she's going to barge in here and it won't be pleasant. I don't think either of us want that." He just nods his head slowly.
I click on her number and press the call button. It barely connects long enough to ring once, then Leeza's voice screeches from the speaker.
"Damn it, NaeNae! Where the hell have you been? I've tried calling and you didn't pick up. Don't you know how worried I was when you didn't answer?" Her voice and words grate on my nerves.
"Seriously? I just got out of the shower and had my phone on vibrate in my bag. You called three times in two minutes! How was I supposed to answer in that amount of time if you don't give me a chance?" I retort, my gaze seeking his. I see his brow arch at my tone, a slight smile at it. Apparently, he likes sassy?
"I don't know! You didn't answer!"
"I just told you why I didn't answer. And why are you calling anyway?"
"Because!"
"Oh my god, that's not a reason, Leeze, and you know it. Now what's the real reason?" She knows I'm serious now.
"Fine! No real reason. It's just that one of the bellboys at the hotel texted me...they swear they saw a guy that looks just like Jimin at our hotel. So, I'm headed back there to see if I can get more info or even see him! I thought you might have seen him or want to help me find him..."
"Are you serious? You gave your number to another stranger??" I look at Jimin in a panic. I see his eyes get big when he hears what she said. I try to stay calm and continue, "Did it ever occur to you that the person who texted you saying that might just want you to come back to see him? It might be his way to lure you here. And explain to me why Jimin would be at our hotel?"
At this point, I start moving around the room gathering items and throwing them on the bed next to where he's standing. He just watches me as I move, puzzlement on his face.
"And to answer your question about if I would want to look with you? No."
"Why?" I can hear the childish whine in her voice with just that one word.
"Why?" I repeat incredulously. Stopping and looking my guest in the eyes, I continue, "Because, as much as I would love to meet him, get to know him, or even just see him in passing, I don't want to go on a wild goose chase. He may be an Idol, in the public spotlight, but as I've told you many times before, he's still a human being and deserves his privacy. And honestly, why would he be here?"
"Well...the bellboy said he came in with a woman. Guess it looked like she had fallen in a pool or something because she was drenched!" Leeza laughed at that. "Can you imagine how horrible she must have looked? And he was with her??" I stop in my tracks, anger flitting at the edges of my brain.
"Really? How petty are you, Leeza? What if something serious had happened to her and he was being an angel and making sure she made it to wherever she was staying safely? And if that were the case, do you honestly think he would stick around to be seen and possibly mobbed by fans who don't understand the word 'private'? Remind me again...why are we friends? You've become someone I don't recognize anymore. I'm going to hang up now. If I were you, I'd think long and hard about all this. Good-bye."
Throwing my phone on the bed next to everything I've gathered, I started picking things up one by one and handing them to him.
In minutes, he's dressed in a long, black over coat, a black bucket hat, black scarf, and black face mask. Satisfied with how he looks, I turn around and slip on my shoes. Throwing my hair up in a messy bun, I put on my other black bucket hat, an oversized coat, a face mask, and put my phone in my bag. Grabbing his hand, I pull him to the door. Looking through the peephole to see if anyone's in the hallway but seeing no one, I slowly open the door to stick my head out. I look back at him.
"Coast is clear. Let's get you out of here the back way. Hopefully, with no one seeing you."
Turning around I step out with him following closely behind. Moving away from the elevators, we make it to the stairwell without getting noticed. Slipping through the door, I look both up then down, listening for the sound of footsteps. Hearing none, we quickly make our way down the four flights to the main floor.
Stopping there to catch our breath, we look at each other. I can see my apprehension mirrored in his eyes as he grabs my hand in his and leans forward to rest his forehead against mine. I close my eyes and squeeze his hand lightly, only to feel his squeezing mine in response.
Stepping back, we separate so I can look out the narrow window in the door.
Seeing several people in the lobby beyond, including Leeza standing there talking animatedly to a guy in a hotel uniform, I shake my head. Leaning away from the small window, I pull him to the side so he won't be seen easily if someone looks this way.
"There're too many people out there. You'll be recognized. And Leeza is there too. She knows me too well and she'll recognize me right away!" I whisper yell, worry in my voice. I put my hands on top of my head and start to pace in the narrow space.
"Let's go down one more flight to the basement. We can go out the loading docks," he whispers calmly to me. I stop when what he says penetrates my panic. I see where he's looking, noticing the floor sign telling us the loading docks are one more floor down. My eyes light up at it.
"Yes! Perfect!"
He takes the lead as if he's done this a million times before. In a matter of minutes, we reach the loading dock door and make our way through to the safety behind the hotel. Quickly we walk away side by side until we get several blocks away before moving to the street side. Looking both ways, we are far enough away to cross over to the beach to get swallowed by the darkness without being noticed.
We walk in silence halfway down the beach, looking back occasionally to make sure there's no one there. Seeing it's still clear, we stop and remove our hats and masks. It's still too warm out, even at night next to the sea, to have that much on. Opening the coats, we continue to walk in comfortable silence.
"Thank you," I hear him say into the dark.
"You're welcome," is my simple response.
"Why?" he asks with puzzlement.
I glance at his profile in confusion. "Why what?"
"Why did you help me?" He stops, turning to me. I see him searching my face in the dim light. I shrug.
"Because I believe you have a right to privacy. Just like I told Leeza on the phone," I reply, the confusion still coloring my voice. "I'd like to think anyone else would do the same. After all, if it weren't for me, you wouldn't have been in that position in the first place." I turn away and continue walking down the beach, feeling shame at the truth of my words.
I hear him hurrying to catch up to me, his steps in the sand sounding loud in the quiet darkness. His hand touches mine, wrapping around to pull me to a stop. Turning me toward him, his free hand slides into my hair as his lips cover mine in a soft kiss. Pulling back, I see him looking at me in the faint light from the nearly full moon above us and the buildings of Busan behind us. My eyes must have gone wide again because I see the smile creasing his face at my reaction.
I lift a trembling hand to my face, my fingertips lightly touching my lips. Oh my god, Jimin just kissed me! I must have died and gone to heaven...or else this is just a dream. I see his white teeth peeking from between his lips as his smile gets bigger and a dimple flashes.
If this is a dream, I should just go for it! I move my trembling fingers from my lips and touch his, rubbing lightly across the bottom one. It's so soft to my touch. I'm definitely dreaming!
Emboldened by that thought, I run my fingers across his cheek to his hair, the silky texture causing tingles to rush up my arm. Moving my fingers from his hair, I run the tips over his straight brow then move them back and trace my index finger lightly from his forehead down to the tip of his straight nose, then over his top lip to his bottom. There, my finger comes to a rest. Looking in his eyes, I watch as I slide my finger down his chin, which he tips up so I have access to his neck. Continuing down, my finger grazes over his Adam's apple and I feel it bob when he swallows. I don't linger as I allow my finger to brush over the collar of his black t-shirt, only to stop below it. I can feel his heartbeat beneath my finger, so I press my hand there for a moment. After all, this is just a dream, right?
He looks back down at me as I feel his hand in my hair curl a bit tighter, but not enough to cause pain. Then he pulls my head towards him as his lips connect with mine again. But there's nothing remotely soft about the kiss this time. It's raw passion and heat, my hand fisting in his shirt as my toes curl from the taste of him when his tongue invades.
This man has become all passion and could seriously cause my heart harm, but I don't want it to end.
His lips meld tighter to mine, our tongues dueling. His hand lets go of mine to snake around my waist. When he pulls me tightly to him, I feel his hard body and I'm ready to faint from the desire surging through mine.
We jump apart when a loud ringing starts from his pants pocket. Grabbing his phone, he looks to see who it is then answers with an apologetic smile my way. I can't tear my gaze from his swollen lips as they move while speaking to the caller. I'm so lost in the view that I'm not paying attention to his words. My fingers touch my own swollen lips unconsciously, and I see the satisfied grin spread across his face when he notices what I'm doing.
Ending the call, he steps into my personal space as he puts his phone back in his pocket. He reaches up and places his hand over mine and pulls it away. Leaning in, he presses his lips softly against mine once more before moving back to look in my eyes.
"I have to go," he starts, and I see regret in his eyes. Is that because he has to leave or because he kissed me? "But I wish I could stay and spend more time with you."
"I wish you could as well," I reply as I drop my head slightly and continue. "I'm sorry you almost got caught tonight. It won't happen again. I promise."
My only thought when I say it is that I won't be seeing him again, especially not after everything he went through because of me. I try to put on a brave face when I look back up at him, but inside I'm dying.
"Thank you, NaeYeong," he says, looking at me closely.
"How...?" I start in surprise when he says my name.
"I heard your friend say it over the phone in the hotel. She's not exactly...quiet, is she?"
I chuckle at that while shaking my head emphatically. "No, not at all."
"I really have to go now," he says, the smile falling from his face as he hears his phone's notification tone ping. "Please be safe going back to your hotel. I wish I could walk you there."
"Thank you, I appreciate that, but I understand you need to go."
He grips my hand again, giving it a quick squeeze before bringing it to his lips and feathering a light kiss on the back of it. Then he walks away toward the lights of Busan as I watch. I feel sad as the hope that he would look back fades the further he goes without doing it.
With the thoughts of what happened this evening rattling through my brain, I turn toward the water and move closer to look up at the moon and stars. I need help to get the pain and sadness out, and the internal music starts. Dropping the extra clothing, I let the music take over my body, getting lost in the feelings coming out in dance, my skirt and shirt fluttering lightly around me like gossamer wings.
Soon, the peace of dance has taken hold and I start to feel better. I think I'm finally up to going back to the hotel room. When I get there, I'm not surprised when I get verbally accosted by Leeza. And I'm definitely not in the mood to cater to her gossip mongering about Jimin. I beg off claiming a headache, going to bed with my back facing her, feigning sleep so she'll leave me in peace.
I sigh when I hear her leave the room. Giving it a few extra minutes, I finally roll over onto my back, staring at the dark ceiling and allowing thoughts back in from earlier. It still feels like a dream, a wonderful dream.