🔥 𝔐𝔦𝔫𝔨𝔶𝔲'𝔰 ℑ𝔫𝔱𝔢𝔯𝔳𝔦𝔢𝔴 🔥
"I honestly thought that Gyuri was very charming, she was very cheerful during the meal."
"She's very graceful but I appreciated that she took initiative to help prepare the food and also to start conversations," Minkyu nodded.
"But..." he looked off to the side in deep thought.
"Minah is very unique..." he admitted with a small smile.
"And I was really surprised," he chuckled, "she seems very fragile when you first see her, but I can tell she knows how to take care of herself. It almost felt like I was watching a completely different person when she took over cooking."
🔥 𝔐𝔦𝔫𝔴𝔬𝔬'𝔰 ℑ𝔫𝔱𝔢𝔯𝔳𝔦𝔢𝔴 🔥
"She caught me off guard..." Minwoo looked away, trying to cover his blushing cheeks.
"She was suddenly so close to me..."
"To teach me how to chop the cucumbers properly..."
Minwoo looked conflicted for a moment.
"But Gyuri is also really nice, and we had a great time talking at Inferno...I'm leaning more towards Gyuri at the moment since I feel like we are starting to connect well, but I couldn't help but be curious about Minah."
"When the intercom told us we had one hour to do whatever we wanted, Jinseok immediately asked Minah on a walk..."
"I'm honestly glad he did that since I was a bit conflicted over who should I approach, either Minah or Gyuri."
🔥 𝔍𝔦𝔫𝔰𝔢𝔬𝔨'𝔰 ℑ𝔫𝔱𝔢𝔯𝔳𝔦𝔢𝔴 🔥
"Honestly, she's so much fun to be around. So bright and cute, but shy at times," Jinseok smiled.
"She's just adorable," he chuckled, thinking back on his memories.
"I figured Minwoo and Minkyu would want to spend more time with either Hyeseon or Gyuri so I just went for it," he shrugged and smiled like it was no big deal.
"I'm honestly pretty surprised with myself since I'm not the type to start things usually, and after pairing up with Minyoung, I really figured she'd be the only one I'd be interested in."
"Woah! Minah is surprisingly taking people's attention!" Kyuhyun started clapping in amazement.
"She has great charm," Jinyoung chuckled.
"Oh? Is that so?"
The maknae of the hosts didn't even need to turn to the side to see and feel Hanhae's teasing glance. Jinyoung just laughed it off, not wanting to fall for his comments.
"Yeah, just like the male contestants mentioned, Minah is very interesting and quirky."
"And if you remember, she was also chosen by two guys during the first day, Wonik and Habin," Jinkyung pointed out, "so clearly she has something special that keeps attracting people."
"Including me," Da-hee joked, "she's just really cute!"
"I'm personally really happy though," she smiled, "that cutscene left us on a cliffhanger, but I was really hoping that the person that had approached her would be Jinseok!"
"Yes, me too!" Jinkyung nodded excitedly, "I think they make such a cute pair! I can't wait to see more of them together."
"I wonder if she still thinks of Wonik though. They made a good couple too," Hanhae commented.
"Oh man, I just remembered that he is stuck on the other island," Jinyoung said.
"He definitely is missing her, he is so quiet when she's not around."
"Do you want to go on a walk with me?"
"Eh?" Minah was surprised by the sudden request from the buff man. The intercom had literally just finished its announcement when he came up to her.
"A-ah, yes of course."
Jinseok chuckled lightly when he was greeted by her lovely rose tinted cheeks.
He silently extended his arm towards her to help her stand, making sure that she wouldn't trip on any rocks.
"Gyuri, would you like to go on a walk too?"
As Jinseok led Minah away, they could faintly hear Minwoo talking to Gyuri while Minkyu asked Hyeseon on a walk as well.
"Everyone here is so... bold," Minah mumbled.
"Well this is Single's Inferno, you gotta be assertive or you'll end up-"
"Single?"
"Exactly," Jinseok chuckled when Minah started pouting.
"What if I'm not bold?"
"In your case, I don't think you have to worry about anything," Jinseok mumbled, not being able to look at her as he led her back to the resting rooms.
Eh!? What was that?!
Was that flirting?! What did he mean by that?!
Minah tried to hide her bewildered thoughts with a calm expression, but her wide doe eyes easily gave her away.
"Yah! Jinseok!" Jinkyung started hitting the pillow on her lap, "you are being incredibly bold right now!" she yelled at the screen as if the contestants could hear her.
"They haven't even been walking for five minutes!" Da-hee giggled.
"My man is not playing around," Jinyoung chuckled.
"That was so smooth though," Kyuhyun fanned himself with his notes, "I'm so shocked!"
"I think everyone is just as flustered as Minah right now," Hanhae laughed, "who would have thought Jinseok had that kind of game in him!"
"Would you like a cookie or a croissant?" Minah pulled out her treasured food from her bag and offered it to her guest.
The two had quickly settled in the women's room with Minah sitting on her bed and Jinseok getting comfortable on the mattress across from her.
"Just make sure not to drop any crumbs, I don't know whose bed that is," she whispered before she sneakily handed the male the food.
"Why are you acting weird?" Jinseok chuckled.
"Well, I don't want the camera's to catch us with these! They'll probably take them away!"
"Oh I'm sure the staff already knows."
"Oh no! Quick! Let's eat it all before they come!"
Jinseok just went along with the female and started enjoying the croissant while watching Minah shove a whole cookie into her mouth.
"I-t's sho gwood ishn't iff?" Minah's cheeks were puffed up with food but that clearly didn't stop her from talking.
"Really good," Jinseok chuckled. The two continued enjoying the snacks and chatting without any sign of awkwardness between them. It had started with them trying to guess the ingredients in the cookie she had just eaten, and then it evolved into an argument over what desert is the best.
"I think cakes are better than pie!"
"Well yeah, but pie's can be versatile," Jinseok raised his eyebrows, "they can be dessert or a meal."
"But cheesecakes are so great!" Minah protested.
"Are they even a cake?" Jinseok smirked when Minah's face instantly contorted into one of disgust.
"Of course it's cake!"
"But think about it, the cheesecake is baked inside a crust!" Jinseok smiled, knowing he had just won the argument.
Minah suddenly squeaked in despair, feeling as if her world was crumbling down.
"Don't do this to me! Not while I'm stuck on an island without any cheesecake," she whined, falling back on her mattress and squirming around in sadness.
"I'm sorry," Jinseok chuckled, not really feeling apologetic at all, "I'm guessing cheesecake is your favorite dessert?"
"Yeah, cheesecake and ice cream," Minah mumbled, "what about yours?"
"My favorite dessert?"
"Yeah!" Minah suddenly sat up, looking super curious and excited once again.
Jinseok couldn't help but laugh. He found her very energetic compared to how she was when they first met. She tended to mumble and stutter a lot before but she seemed more relaxed now and it was evident by how much she was chatting.
"As of now, I really enjoy chocolate cake," Jinseok said, "I really love having a slice together with some coffee."
"Oh, pairing dessert with coffee really is the best," Minah nodded.
"Sometimes when I have a hard day at work, I like to get a slice of cake and a cup of hot coffee while watching a movie," she confessed, "it really helps me forget about the stress."
"I totally understand what you mean. It's good to indulge in things you love, especially after a rough day," Jinseok nodded, "are there other things you enjoy doing? Like hobbies?"
"Hobbies?" Minah mumbled, looking at the ceiling pensively.
"Mmm... painting?" she finally said, "I love painting but I don't really have a lot of time for it so I'm unsure if it counts as a hobby," she chuckled.
"What about you? And don't tell me it's working out," Minah giggled when Jinseok opened his mouth just to immediately close it.
He looked at her with a bewildered face.
"I mean, it's not like it's a secret that you work out," she giggled even harder when Jinseok broke into a smile, looking a bit defeated by her guess.
"Well since I can't count that as a hobby, I guess I'll stick with baking," he nodded, "but especially cake decorating, I really enjoy that."
"Oh really?! I definitely need to try your baking then!" Minah smiled widely at the idea of enjoying some delicious cake.
"Well you'll just have to wait for when we get out of the show," Jinseok boldly winked at the female before he stood up.
Minah gave him a perplexed look, not being able to recover quick enough before he gave her a cheeky wave and told her that he'd step out so she could rest up a bit before the voting.
Not long after, Hyeseon came in and made herself at home on the mattress next to Minah's. It looked like she had gone for an actual walk since she seemed a bit tired.
"It's so hot outside, I couldn't stand it any longer," Hyeseon sighed, happy to be back in a cool space.
"Oh yeah, this place is seriously insane," Minah nodded.
"You know, we haven't really had a chance to talk at all since we met," Hyeseon decided to move and take a seat next to Minah.
"I was hoping we could chat, you seem like a really nice person!"
"Oh thank you!" Minah couldn't help but feel her chest warm up, "you seem like a sweet person too!"
"Hopefully we can become good friends!"
"Oh yes please!"
The girls smiled at each other cutely, happy to have met someone nice and open.
"You know, I still can't believe you managed to sneak in all those condiments to Inferno," Hyeseon giggled at the memory.
"I just had to," Minah blushed, "we only had carrots and canned chicken during our first day! That's not even a meal! And there was no rule in the contract that said I wasn't able to bring food from Paradise back!" she pouted.
"Did your partner from Paradise say anything?"
"Oh Wonik? I don't think he noticed, not that I was hiding it from him. I placed the order while he was getting ready in the morning," Minah explained.
"Wonik was it?" Hyeseon asked, "what kind of person is he?"
"Oh, he is a really thoughtful guy," Minah smiled, feeling a tad shy while thinking back about her previous date.
"Honestly, I was slightly worried since we both seemed kind of reserved and quiet, but our time in Paradise was really nice and relaxing!" Minah smiled, "I'm really grateful for him, I think he really tried hard to get me comfortable."
"Wuah, he sounds like a really nice person!" Hyeseon smiled, "it's so crazy to think that there's a whole other island with more contestants!"
"I know right?" Minah nodded fervently.
"So how do you feel now that you're here? Are you open to getting to know more people? Or do you miss Wonik?"
This caught Minah off guard.
Did she miss Wonik?
"You know... I wasn't really expecting to match with anyone to begin with, especially not so soon, so I was really grateful when I was able to go with Wonik to Paradise. I don't even think it was enough time to really get to know each other so I'm a bit sad that we got separated," Minah expressed.
"I wish he was here, since I think things could have gone in a good direction between us, but now that I'm here, I'm not sure how things will turn out."
"That's understandable, I feel the same way with my date," Hyeseon nodded, "and what about Jinseok? It looks like you two were getting along really well!"
"Oh Jinseok?" Minah blushed at the thought of the male, "I mean, he seems like a really fun and cheerful guy, it surprised me a lot. I do find him very interesting if I'm honest."
"Oh! What about your date?" she asked Hyeseon, wanting to know if her new friend had a good time as well.
Hyeseon smiled widely, "I honestly had fun, I've never really dated like this so I wasn't sure what to expect honestly. But I enjoyed my time with Gwanhee in Paradise!"
"Although I'm not really sure what's going to happen now that we got separated," she mumbled, "and I'm not sure I connected well with any of the participants here."
"I imagine we're going to keep getting mixed between islands or we'll eventually combine," Minah tried to reassure her.
"Plus it's still very early, I'm sure you'll match with someone, be it Gwanhee or not," she smiled.
"Like you?" Hyeseon looked at Minah teasingly, "it looks like you'll probably go to Paradise with Jinseok!"
"Oh I'm sure he just finds me silly with all the food stuff," Minah looked away shyly, "there's no way he'll find me attractive after what he's seen me do."
Hyeseon raised her eyebrows, "what do you mean? What did you do?"
"Ahh... about that," Minah chuckled awkwardly, "so the condiments were not the only thing I snuck out of the hotel..."
"Oh isn't that cute?" Jinkyung and Da-hee started gushing at the two pretty contestants getting to know each other.
"It's really nice to see that there's friendships forming between the contestants too, not just rivalry," Hanhae nodded, "these two seem to not see each other as rivals unlike how Hajeong and Sieun were."
"I wonder who they'll end up choosing," Jinyoung commented.
"I feel like Hyeseon had a better connection with Gwanhee than the guys here so I'm not sure who she'll choose," Kyuhyun said.
"I agree."
"For Minah though, I really hope she votes for Jinseok," Jinyoung looked at his notes, "I find them really charming together. I appreciate that they've spent some time together already and not even once have they talked about typical things like their ideal types."
"I really enjoy them together too, but I think she also had a good connection with Wonik, and it looks like she hasn't forgotten about him," Jinkyung said.
"Yeah, I feel glad that she didn't just forget about Wonik," Da-hee nodded.
It didn't take long before voting time was upon them. The contestants were once again told to grab their blank tickets and write the name of the person they wanted to go to Paradise with.
One by one, they were called out to go turn in their ticket to the mailbox. Once that was finished, they were all instructed to gather outside where the matched couples were going to be announced.
This meant that whoever paired up would immediately be sent to Paradise without a moment to lose.
This was both exciting and terrifying for Minah.
She didn't really think much when she was writing down a name on the ticket since it was a person that she already felt pretty comfortable with, so if they ended up matching, she would probably have a great time in Paradise.
But she was worried that she had started to connect a little bit too well with this person, so if she didn't get chosen, she'd feel hurt. At least they didn't have to personally hand the tickets to the person they chose since it would have stung even more if you had to watch them give theirs to another contestant.
Oh, the dilemma of dating shows, Minah mentally verated herself for joining the show once again.
The man joining Ms. Kim Gyuri to Paradise is Mr. Park Minkyu.
Both Minah and Hyeseon smiled at the third female contestant, feeling happy for her successful match. Especially since she had missed her chance last night.
Plus Minkyu was a great guy, and Minah was really happy that he'd managed to connect with a girl here.
Please hold hands and leave for Paradise.
Gyuri smiled gracefully towards her partner before they linked hands and started walking off. Minah couldn't help but make eye contact with Hyeseon as they both giggled over the new couple.
But then, from the corner of their eye, they noticed a sullen looking Minwoo.
This was an instant give away.
He must have voted for Gyuri just to watch her walk away with someone else, thought Minah.
I wonder if that's gonna be me too.
That would really suck.
The man joining Ms. Seo Minah to Paradise is Mr. Lee Jinseok.
"Oh!" Minah, having been lost in her own thoughts, was shocked at the sudden announcement.
Please hold hands and leave for Paradise.
Minah lifted her eyes just to find a smiling Jinseok making his way over to her. Looking at someone as big as him approaching her would normally make her feel very intimidated and even afraid, but this man was looking at her with such a cute smile that brought nothing but warmth into her face.
"Shall we?" He offered her his arm just like he's done before.
"Ah thank you," Minah bit her lip lightly as she wrapped her small hand around his bicep.
Today's Paradise-bound couple matching is now over.
"Oh no," Minah couldn't help but look back towards Hyeseon, feeling sad for her new friend being left behind.
'Go have fun,' Hyeseon mouthed back with a bright smile, reassuring Minah that she was fine and not really bothered with the outcome.
"Careful, you shouldn't try to walk down a hill while looking back."
Minah's attention was taken by Jinseok, who started slowing down when he noticed her eyes trained somewhere behind them.
"O-oh, I'm sorry, I just wanted to say bye to Hyeseon," she smiled slightly, "I really liked her, she's super sweet."
"But you are right, knowing how clumsy I am with these heels, I shouldn't be pushing it," Minah laughed lightly.
"An injury is definitely the last thing you'd want here," Jinseok chuckled, "but at least we are escaping Inferno for a night. I'm really excited for the food."
"Oh yes! Me too!" Minah perked up in an instant.
"Are you going to try to order more food to sneak back into Inferno?"
"..."
"Maybe..."
"Then I'll take some too..."
Minah and Jinseok burst out giggling at the sheer silliness of their conversation.
"They're too cute!" Hanhae cheered.
"Nice!" Jinyoung celebrated when he saw his top ship going to Paradise together.
"I really can't wait to see how they act now that they can be even more open with each other."
"I wonder if they'll have meaningful talks or if they'll just get distracted with food and dessert," Jinkyung joked, "either way, they feel like such a wholesome couple."
"Do you think they'll match better than their previous Paradise dates?" Da-hee questioned.
"Oh, that's a hard one," Kyuhyun leaned back, "I thought Jinseok and Minyoung had a great time in Paradise, same with Minah and Wonik. But this new pairing just seems to connect better in my opinion."
"Minyoung doesn't seem settled with Jinseok yet either, she keeps telling the girls that their connection felt more like the one between a brother and a sister," Hanhae added.
A few hours back, on the other Inferno, the contestants were resting in their respective rooms. They all had spent a bit of time chatting and getting to know each other before the girls decided to retreat to their room to rest up before the voting.
The guys had decided to do the same thing and rest up in their room while talking about the previous events.
"So you guys both went to Paradise," Habin looked at the guys, "how was it?"
"Oh it was pretty fun," Gwanhee smiled, "there was a lot of food to enjoy while we talked."
"What about you?" Habin turned to Wonik, who looked to the ground thoughtfully.
"I had a really nice time with Minah. She's different when she opens up," Wonik started fiddling with the bedding unconsciously, while thinking back on his date.
"Oh really?" Gwanhee looked at him with raised eyebrows.
"She's very shy when you first meet her but she's very playful once she gets comfortable, she has a very cute personality," Wonik smiled.
"You sound like you really like her," Gwanhee said.
"I think I might."
"Really?" Habin interjected, "isn't it too early to say?"
"Mmm, she just..."
"I guess she just gives me good feelings," Wonik shrugged lightly, not wanting to think about it too deeply and accidentally reveal too much to the guys.
"Wonik isn't budging at all," Hanhae looked at the screen with surprise.
"Do you think there's a chance for him and Minah to end up together?" Jinkyung asked.
"Well I mean, she is currently on her way to a date in Paradise with a different person," Kyuhyun pointed out.
"Yeah, but that isn't the determining factor of the ending couples," Da-hee protested, "I think there's still a chance. As long as they meet again, then I think it could still happen."
"Do you like her better with Wonik?" Jinyoung asked.
"Well, the way I see it, Wonik and Minah feel like a pairing that makes sense while Jinseok and Minah seem more like an unexpected couple," Da-hee looked unsure by the end of her explanation.
"Oh, I think I get what you mean," Jinyoung nodded.
"Woah! This one is so different from the previous place I stayed at," Minah looked around with wonder.
"Oh really? This looks like the one I went to," Jinseok didn't even wait for Minah's permission before he grabbed her luggage and took it directly to the master bedroom.
"Oh thank you!"
"No problem."
"So what do you recommend we do?" Minah smiled, excited to enjoy the place.
"Well we know for a fact that we'll order the entire menu, so why don't I place the order now and then we can go enjoy the pool while we wait for dinner to arrive?" Jinseok
"Sounds perfect!" Minah smiled as she watched Jinseok take the phone and place the order. She didn't really have to worry about what he'd ask for since she figured she could trust a fellow foodie to order all the good stuff.
While Jinseok handled the order, Minah went off to get ready.
For this date, she had brought a few outfits including a cream colored crochet bikini. Despite feeling comfortable in her own skin, she still felt a tad too shy to just walk around in a bikini while sharing a suit with a man she met only a few hours ago, so she brought the matching cover pieces to her swim suit which consisted of a long sleeve crop top and a wrap. All together, the outfit looked super cute and comfortable which was perfect for Minah.
The makeup was kept pretty simple since it wasn't going to last with the water anyway, and she decided not to wear any jewelry to prevent losing them at the pool. The last thing Minah did was take a few minutes to fix her hair since her bun had gotten pretty messy during the trip.
Once she was done, she walked to the living room, only to find Jinseok sitting on the couch shirtless.