Chaper 8

Ji Won took the binoculars from Shin and watched as a bird sped up to catch up with its school. They'd been lying on the grass for about thirty minutes and she'd loved every single minute of it. Shin had been right – there was something about standing on top of the world that made everything look so insignificant. She'd been dumped – so what? Life still went on. The grass still grew, the winds still blew and even the little birds flying above her still went about their business. So why not her? She felt a weird sensation on her leg and when she investigated it, saw an ant crawling on her. She chuckled. Heck, even the ant was doing its thing, not caring about her problems, she thought as she flicked it off her.

"Feeling better?" Shin asked. They hadn't spoken for a while but he could already sense a change in her.

She nodded. "Yes, thank you. This was a good idea." She shut her eyes and breathed in the cool air.

"So what's your story?" He sat up and looked down at her. "I know the whole chef tale is bogus."

"You do?" she replied, still lying down and looking into the exceptionally clear sky. She wouldn't have minded dying if that view was the last thing she got to see.

"Yes. It's pretty obvious you're lying. So what's the deal? Why are you here alone?"

She sighed. "I guess I came to find myself."

"Meaning?"

"Meaning that I came to find myself." After a moment of silence she said, "How old are you?"

"Talk about changing the topic." He laid back down beside her. "Why do you ask?"

"I'm just curious. How old are you?"

"Thirty-one."

She tossed the figure around in her mind. She'd not been too far off although she'd expected him to be a few years younger. "And why are you here alone?"

"I just worked on two projects back to back and apparently, I needed a well deserved break. I'll be starting on a new one the second I return to Seoul." He ran his fingers through some wisps of grass. "In fact, I'd planned this as a working holiday so I should have started by now."

She looked at him from the corner of her eye. "Really?" A working holiday? "What do you do?"

He cleared his throat. "Aren't you a little too curious for someone who refuses to share anything about herself?"

"Okay." She rolled to her side to reach for her packet of chips. "Be like that," she said as she rolled back on her back. "If you don't want to tell me, then I don't have to know." A cool breeze passed, blowing her hair onto her face. "But I must say that it was a good idea coming here – it is exactly what I needed."

"I figured. It's something I've been doing for almost all my life."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. We didn't have a lot of money growing up so when I was hungry, I used to go up to a little hill not too far from our house and just lie and breathe in the fresh air. Lying there, listening to all the sounds of nature, I'd come up with all these little stories about why the wind was blowing the tree in this direction or what the queen ant was thinking as she walked home and in the end, I'd get so involved in my fantasies that I'd forget about my hunger."

"Really?"

"Yeah. But it's funny because one day, I just walked a little further than I normally did and came across some wild berries so I guess that was another reason to go up there when I was hungry." He chuckled, vaguely remembering how happy he'd been to find them. "But now, even though I have some money, I still love hiking up hills to clear my mind. I guess it still gets all my juices flowing."

Ji Won felt a little sad listening to his tale. Then she scrunched her nose. "Hey, are you making stuff up again? Hiking to forget hunger?" she scoffed.

Shin smiled but didn't say anything.



***

"Yah! What are you scared of?" Ji Won yelled from the lagoon. After snorkeling, the group had changed venue and were now swimming with dolphins. Almost everyone but a British couple and Shin were in the water. It was barely a full day since their hike and now that she no longer cared about having a fling, she was having a great time. Even though she sometimes found her mind wandering over to her dashed wedding plans, she'd look around and after drinking in the beauty that was Aruba, she'd quickly shake it out of her mind. "Can't you see those kids in the water?" she said, pointing at another group at their location. "If primary school students can get in, why not you?"

Logically, he realized that dolphins were peaceful, loving animals but what if one of them decided to go nuts and attack everyone? Even if it was only a minute chance, he had no intentions of testing fate. Besides, what's so special about swimming with overgrown fish?

A dolphin swam up to Ji Won and poked her in the cheek. She smiled and stroked its head. "Aren't you ashamed of yourself? This is like the cutest thing. Can't you see its face?" she kissed it then swam under to stroke its belly.

When she swam up, she noticed that Shin was sitting down looking bored. She was very grateful for the role he'd played in helping her get back to her normal self and wanted him to have as much fun as she was. Even if he didn't swim with the dolphins, he could still enjoy the cool water.

She waved at the British couple who were laughing and watching their friends swim. "Hello? Hello?!" she yelled in an attempt to catch their attention.

Almost everyone looked at her but after gesturing enough times, the couple figured out that she was talking to them. "Excuse me?" the wife said.

She smiled and pointed at Shin. "Push!"

Shin stood up and walked towards the edge of the lagoon. "What are you doing?"

She ignored him and kept yelling at the couple to push him in till they understood what she meant and did just that.



***

"Wow, you really look quite gorgeous," Shin commented as they walked towards the elevators.

"And so do you."

He'd suggested that they visit an upscale club a friend of his had recommended so she'd slipped into a black spaghetti-strapped slip dress that hugged her in all the right places and didn't in the wrong. She'd dubbed it her 'Eff-Me Dress' when she'd seen it in the store, purchasing it solely to drive Joon Young crazy. But since he'd readily passed up on the opportunity, she didn't see a reason to let it go to waste. She'd left her hair to fall freely on her back and had expertly applied her make up to emphasize her eyes and softly highlight her lips. She felt and looked good and was planning on having the time of her life. It was her last day in Aruba and she was going to end her vacation with a bang.

Shin, for his part, also looked pretty great as well. He was wearing black slacks, a baby blue shirt and a black sports jacket. He'd pulled his hair in a ponytail, emphasizing his cheekbones and even she had to admit that he cleaned up pretty well.

"We're probably going to be the best looking couple there," she joked as they waited for the elevators to arrive.

"I'm quite sure we will," he replied, trying his best not to look at her ass. How come she hadn't looked that good a few days ago?



***

"I want to do that," Ji Won said, watching a few Salsa dancers teach some of the guests some steps.

He shook his head. "No, let's leave the experts to that."

"How can we come to a Salsa bar and not dance? It makes no sense."

They'd just left the restaurant section having spent almost two hours eating and were now at a table nursing some drinks. It had been a pleasant evening and even though they still hadn't shared much about their personal lives, there hadn't been an awkward moment.

"That guy has a cute butt, doesn't he?" she asked, looking at the lead dancer's ass. It was round and pert and she wondered what would happen if she threw a quarter at it.

Shin didn't bother looking. "I wouldn't know."

She rolled her eyes. "You mean to say that just because you're a guy, you can't tell when another guy's butt is cute?"

He raised his brow. "Where are you going with this?"

She laughed. "Don't mind me," she said as she watched the dancer's cheeks move with every step he made.

Shin observed her as she smiled, noticing the slight dimple that appeared whenever she made half smiles. Was it wrong that he now kind of liked her? Would it be wrong to want to keep in touch with her after their vacation ended? "So what are we doing tomorrow?"

Ji Won darted her eyes to him then quickly looked back at the dance floor. "Whatever the group is doing, I suppose." She still hadn't told him that it was her last night.

"We've already been hang gliding, snorkeling, even sailing. Maybe we should do our own thing tomorrow."

"Okay. Hey," she said, standing up. She grabbed his hand and tugged it. "Let's go and dance."



***

"Left, left, right right," Ji Won murmured, trying to remember the steps.

"Actually, I think it's: Left, left, left, right right." He did the steps to the beat.

The dance lessons had ended and now, everyone was just trying to dance to the music. They were holding hands and doing their best to move like the dancers they'd watched only a few minutes earlier.

"This sucks," Ji Won said, resting her legs. "How come I can't remember anything? You saw me doing it with the teacher, didn't you? I was getting it, wasn't I?"

Shin nodded. He was far too amused at how frustrated she was getting. "Forget about the steps. How about we just do whatever?"

"Yeah," she said, dropping his hand. It wasn't like she had any other choices, anyway. Then she put both of her palms on his chest and beat it repeatedly. "Feel the rhythm! Feel the rhythm!" she chanted.

Shin grabbed her hands to stop them then looked at her incredulously. "What the hell are you doing?"

She pushed her head back and laughed boisterously. "Don't mind me. It's from a movie. Pase doble!" she yelled before stomping her foot. Then she laughed some more. "Okay, okay, let me be a bit more serious here." She stepped back and swayed her hips. "What do you think? Does it look authentic?" She put one arm up and rotated her hand in a salsa stance.

He nodded. "Looks good enough to me." Her pose only served to emphasize her curves more.

"Good." She put one hand on his shoulder and whined her waist to the beat of the song. Shin moved in step and they spent the next few hours drinking, dancing and laughing at each other's dance moves.



***

"Oh my God I had such a good time!" Ji Won exclaimed as they walked to her room. She held up the bottle of wine they'd won as the 'Most Improved Couple' and smiled at him. "Feel like a glass?"


Even though it was pretty late as they'd stayed at the bar till closing, he really wasn't ready to leave her yet. "Just a little glass."

She nodded and opened her hotel room door.

Ten minutes later, they were sitting in her room having their second glasses of wine.

Ji Won put her half empty glass on the nightstand and ran her hand through her hair. "Aruba is great. I have to come back again sometime. I feel there's still a lot of stuff left for me to see."

He laughed at how alive and content she looked. "You've certainly changed. You look nothing like you did the first time I saw you having breakfast alone."

She shook her head as she pulled her hair into a ponytail. "Yes, it was awful but let's not talk about it, aye?"

He chuckled. "I wont," he said as he sipped some wine. She really looked damn cute when she wasn't trying to.

Ten minutes later, the bottle was empty and it was time for him to leave. Ji Won walked him to the door and when he reached over for the door handle, she stretched her arm out to give him a half-hug. "Thanks for today. I had such a great time." She was feeling refreshed and ready to return to her life.

"Me too," he said, returning the hug and holding her lightly as she gave him a light kiss on the cheek.

When they were done, with the imprint of the minor skin contact still on his mind, he reached down and dropped a kiss on her cheek. "Good night."


She smiled and after about five seconds of staring into his eyes, reached up and gave him another kiss on the cheek. "Sweet dreams."

Then their eyes met and after reading what the other was thinking, so did their lips.

Before either even knew what was happening, Ji Won's arms were around his neck with Shin fingers in her hair and the other hand lightly running down her spine as they kissed with increasing urgency. Kissing him was nice but strange. He didn't appear to have Joon Young's fetish for her lower lip so it had been so long since she'd really kissed anyone without feeling little bites. He kissed her deeper and she returned in kind, pressing her lips against his as her tongue rolled over his.

As they moved further into the room, her hands traveled to his body and relieved him of his coat. Then her fingers went to work on his buttons, opening his shirt so that she could run her fingers over his bare chest. He liked the feel of her soft fingers on his skin so he took his hands off her for a brief moment to rid himself completely of his shirt. Then almost as quickly, his hands were back on her, exploring the small of her back through the sheer fabric.

They walked and kissed hard, barely stopping to breathe and as his tongue swirled in her mouth, they collapsed on the bed with his body on hers.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" he asked, breaking away for a second.

Without bothering to respond, Ji Won reached up and kissed him again. Who had time to talk? She was enjoying herself far too much. She reached behind him, her nails digging into his flesh till she found the waist of his pants. They kissed again for a few more minutes, their bodies pressed firmly together till he broke from her lips and let his tongue and lips travel down her face to her chin then from her chin to her neck. Her neck was one of her sensitive spots so she let out a soft moan as he teased it. Pleased with her response, he tasted and kissed her skin, journeying from her neck and inching down her shoulder, pushing down her dress strap in the process.



***



Shin had been fast asleep till he was awoken by strange voices.

"Sir. Sir."

He opened his eyes to see two cleaning ladies looking down at him. They were looking at him strangely and when he looked down and saw that the white sheet on him was barely doing its job, he quickly figured out why. He reached down, strategically placed the sheet on himself then turned back to them. "May I help you?"

"It's time for us to clean," the younger one said impatiently.

Granted, they hadn't put out a 'Do Not Disturb' sign but couldn't these women clearly see that they weren't supposed to be disturbed? He smiled as the events of the previous night slowly came to him but when his eyes swept the room, not only was it clear that Ji Won wasn't lying next to him, the open suitcase he'd seen the previous night was no longer by the desk chair nor was her denim jacket still hanging in closet. After taking a careful look around the room, he saw nothing that looked like it wasn't owned by the hotel.

"Where's she? Where's Alex?" he asked the maids stupidly. He felt his anger rise as the situation became clear.

"Sir, this room has already been checked out and because it's already past noon, we have to clean it for the next guest. If you're not paying for an extra night, you need to leave now."