Namjoo awoke when the pilot’s voice sounded overhead. Stretching her arms out with a yawn she turned to glance outside the window. They’d just currently landed in Bangkok. It was 7 a.m. the pilot announced before continuing on to say that it was safe to unbuckle their seatbelts. She alighted the plane with the other passengers in single file a few minutes later.

“Thank you, I hope you had a good flight.” The flight assistant bid them farewell by the doorway.

She nodded with a smile before calmly walking down the hall. Namjoo had taken extra caution to pack light and only brought a backpack with a day’s change of clothes and her pajamas. Deciding that she’d just make it more difficult by bringing a luggage she decided she’d buy whatever else she wanted later when she found a place to stay. But first, she needed to start looking for Luhan.

Namjoo had only been in Bangkok once. That time she was on an assignment and that assignment brought her to Luhan. That was right, she and Luhan first met in Bangkok. It suddenly seemed amusing to her.

They’d lied to each other about their identities and later ran into each other at their work department. Oh, the irony of life, she quietly thought to herself as she walked past a crowd waiting for their specific persons.

Browsing the crowd quietly she spotted anxious faces of mothers waiting for their children, school sponsors waiting for their students, and spouses waiting for their other halves. How excited they’d be to reunite. The thought brought her to her Mi Yun who was waiting alone for her to bring Luhan back.

Namjoo quickly felt her blood boil. If he hadn’t been so foolish, her daughter wouldn’t be so broken over him. And she wouldn’t have to travel so far just to look for him. Reminding herself to give him a piece of her mind later she walked out of the airport. As expected a rush of heated wind blasted her face and she felt herself sweat almost at once.

It was almost summer, but even the heat in Thailand was unbearable for Namjoo. She’d definitely buy some seemingly comfortable clothes later. With that thought quietly set in mind she started down the walk unaware of the two persons running out of the airport behind her.

Quick and loud footsteps pounded the sweaty air before she heard a man shout, “Watch out!”

Unable to turn in time she felt a body collide into her forcing her to the ground. A shout belted out of her in reflex as she skinned her arm against the cement.

“I’m sorry! Are you ok?” a voice asked pulling her up without waiting for her to regain herself.

Namjoo felt herself being lugged to her feet before he patted her shoulder and waved as he ran off, “Sorry, I’m really sorry! I’ll pay you back later!”

Her brows crossed into a deep frown as she stared after him, “Jerk.” Then she glanced down at her arm muttering, “Great.”

A few minutes later she found herself sitting in front of 7-eleven trying to put band-aids on her arm, but gave up in frustration when realizing they weren’t covering her wound. Letting out an angry grunt she got up and walked around.

There were deep cracks in the cement making the walks uneven and dangerous. As the heat burned onto her she watched the people by the bus stop scurry up from the crowded bench to prepare themselves for the oncoming bus.

Namjoo saw street stores when she crossed the street. Mats were laid out on the grounds with various goods for prayer or accessories; women sitting on the other side to await customers. Most of them wore yarn hats to protect themselves from the heat while others wore tank tops and fanned themselves.

Children were starting to make their way to school in their school uniforms. Most of them walked with friends; some were alone and others were driven to work. A few cycle riders had single students sitting at the back. Namjoo turned to watch a Tu Tu car drive by with three middle school students seated at the back. Oh the joy of waking up early to head to school, Namjoo thought, she’d never miss that ever again.

Stopping by the corner of the street she spotted a school behind opened gates a block away and turned to see two dogs hiding inside a garage with a fan blowing onto them. Traffic was just horrible. The oncoming cars were all dangerous looking and she didn’t dare to cross the street by herself.

She was finally starting to worry about where to start looking for Luhan. Bangkok was a large city. He could be inside any place or prowling the streets hidden in disguise.

“Great, great, great,” Namjoo mumbled to herself as she searched the streets.

#####

Luhan stopped by the front door and peered down his left then to his right. The streets looked clear. Only few people were walking here and there, so pulling the hood of his thin sweater over his the cap he was wearing he stepped out.

Pressing his lips together he casually started down the walk. As always that old man with thin worn out clothes was seated by the corner of the street. His little coffee cup in front of him told Luhan he was out early in search of money, but this wasn’t the first time Luhan saw him. At first he wasn’t used to seeing so many homeless begging in the streets for money. Walking by without offering anything made him feel heartless, but he eventually got used to it the last four weeks there.

“Please spare me some. Just a few coins will do,” the old man pleaded.

Luhan slightly bit on his lower lip before quickly scurrying by and crossed the abandoned road before a crowd gradually came to life in front of him. There was steam and smoke floating into the air as early vendors opened their food stalls in hopes of good business. A few students had stopped by for breakfast before school and Luhan saw mothers buying snacks for their tiny children who were in kindergarten.

He bought a chicken wing and gnawed on it as he neared the small restaurant he usually stopped by. Luhan seated himself and glanced around cautiously before turning at footsteps.

“Your usual?” the woman who owned the restaurant questioned.

She had a handkerchief tied over her hair and an apron around her waist where she also kept her cash. Luhan didn’t know how old she was, but she looked to be around her late 40’s and still going strong. He favored her simple restaurant over the others in the area because it was homey and she often let him have discounts.

“Yes, thank you.” He smiled.

“Alone again?” she questioned. “My daughter’s going to be graduating from college in a few weeks.”

“Ah…” was all he managed and turned to see a young girl with long hair overlooking a book when she nudged her head to the right.

“She asked me a few times about you,” she smiled, “why don’t you have a chat with her sometime?”

“Actually…” he started, “I’m married.”

The store owner’s face broke out into surprise, “Is that so? I’m sorry, that was rude of me.”

“Don’t worry about it.”

“You’re often alone, I didn’t think you’re married,” the store owner commented, “but where is your wife? I’ve never seen her. How could she let someone so handsome go off on his own?”

Luhan awkwardly laughed, “She’s back in Korea.”

“Ah…long distance,” she nodded before nodding, “I’ll have your pho out soon.”

With a smile he nodded and watched her walk off.

His bowl of pho arrived a few minutes later and he was only halfway done with the meal before he spotted familiar faces lurking outside the restaurant. Luhan nervously turned so that his back was to them and slowly slurped the noodles into his mouth. When he glanced out the corner of his eye he saw them pressing their faces against the window as they searched the inside of the restaurant.

Luhan waited a long time until he made sure they were gone before leaving a tip on the table and quickly got up. He didn’t want to cause the store owner or her customers any trouble. As soon as he slid the door open he found them waiting for him outside.

A crooked smile climbed onto the man who Luhan came to know as Mario’s face. “Where is it?”

Luhan closed the door behind him, “I told you, I don’t have it.”

“Telling lies again?” Mario asked with a heavy set of deep brows. Then with a quick nudge of his head he ordered, “Get him.”

Luhan felt his eyes widen before he grabbed the fake plotted plant underneath the window and tossed it their way. As it flew toward them he dashed down the alleyway passing a bunch of stray cats before finally arriving at the road. The noise of traffic immediately entered his ears and he searched desperately for a crowd to hide into.

“Over there!” he could hear them shouting after him.

Quickly turning to look back, Luhan urged his pace and quickened his steps. The people in front of him were slowly going about their ways and Luhan hesitated about whether he should shove his way forward or not. He hesitated behind them with his chest heaving up and down loudly. Once those footsteps neared he finally chose to shove.

There were curses shot his way, but he didn’t really care. Sweat trickled down his face before he turned down an empty street. A short bus was parked by the side of the street and there was a dog pacing back and forth with his tongue out of his mouth. Up ahead was the harbor and a boat awaiting leave.

Luhan didn’t really have much money left on him to pay for the boat fee, but he that wasn’t the worst of his worries right now. Panting, he continued forward running through the small crowd of passengers that had just left the boat. As he jumped onto the deck the boat was just starting to drift away. If it went any further he’d be swimming in water.  

The footsteps of the men after him were starting to fade into the background as finally leapt forward. Luhan landed on the boat with a loud thump and turned to stare at the other passengers as they twisted around to look at him. Smiling awkwardly he nodded his head at them before turning around to see Mario and his gang standing on the deck shooting him glares and threats he couldn’t hear.

#####

Namjoo was gulping down a water bottle outside of 7-eleven when she felt a tap on her shoulder. Surprised, she started choking on the water before she felt someone tap her on the back.

“Oh I’m sorry,” he apologized. “I didn’t mean to surprise you.”

When the coughing finally died down Namjoo turned to recognize the man who’d knocked her down in front of the airport earlier.

“I recognized you from earlier, so I wanted to say hi,” he smiled at her.

Namjoo turned to look at him with a frown.

“I’m Sungjae,” he enthusiastically greeted then quickly pulled out a card from his pocket and handed it to her. “I’m actually a tourist guide.”

She observed him before taking the card and glanced at it.

“Sorry about earlier,” he apologized with an awkward smile asking for forgiveness, “I was pickpocketed. It happens a lot around here.” Then he switched subjects right away, “Anyway, have you been in Bangkok before? If not, want me to show you around? I have no schedule today. And I won’t charge you.”

Namjoo stared at him and glanced around. Well since she had no real destination or no clue where to begin looking for Luhan she thought going sight-seeing wouldn’t hurt.

“All right,” she nodded.

Sungjae brightly smiled leading her down the street. They stopped outside of a temple where he talked about history and the dress code before taking her into a park where many used for exercising and relaxation. When they left the park they bought some packs of cold juice and sat down on a bench to drink them.

“It’s so hot,” he panted and fanned himself with his hand.

“Are you showing me around or trying to kill me?” Namjoo mumbled.

He slightly laughed before sitting up, “I have an idea.”

Namjoo stared after him cautiously as he stepped down onto the deck toward the boat waiting for them at the end. She didn’t like water. There was always this fear of falling in and drowning when she neared it.

“What are you doing?” he turned around to look at her.    

Namjoo turned to glance at the few people passing her before looking back at him, “What’s this?”

“It’s like a taxi. It brings us to the other side of the city,” he explained before walking back toward her. “It’s safe, don’t worry.”

Namjoo shook her head, “I don’t like water.”

“It’s a really good way to get fresh air, trust me,” Sungjae tried.

Namjoo made a face and stared at the boat. The man by the pier was starting to release the boat from the deck. Upon seeing it Sungjae grabbed her arm and dragged her forward.

“This is nice,” Namjoo commented a few minutes later.

The cool air flying into her face felt really nice after the burn from the heat earlier. She suddenly forgot what she came to Bangkok for until Sungjae asked.

“So what are you doing in Bangkok?”

Mi Yun and Luhan drifted back into her mind before she glanced down the aisle. The wooden floorboards of the boat looked dirty and old, but they were still holding strong. The seats in the boat weren’t really comfortable, but Namjoo guessed this was the best she could ask for since she was in a second world country after all. She ran her hand over the end of the seat to feel the roughness of its exterior and glanced up front to where the captain was seated and steering the boat.

“Vacation?” Sungjae guessed.

A restaurant sitting on the edge of the water came into view as they slowly passed by. There was a large white sign with red Thai letters she couldn’t read and a scent of food drifting up her nostrils.

“Vacation?” Namjoo repeated. “I guess it’s kind of a vacation.”

Sungjae laughed and smiled, “You’re confusing.” Then turning away he commented, “This is relaxing.”

A few silent minutes passed by before they finally reached the other pier, but by then Namjoo was already too tired and dazed to get up.

“Lets just ride this back,” she suggested.

“Are you sure?”

“Yea,” she nodded, “I still have to decide what to do next and where I’m going to stay. I came with a blank agenda.”

“But that’s the fun of it,” Sungjae said, “you get to do more that way since everything’s done on impulse.”

“I suppose,” Namjoo blankly answered before the boat slowly started off again.

She expected calm again, but heard a loud thump come from the back of the boat. Out of the corner of her eye she saw everyone turn to stare back and curious she also turned. Her eyes inched a little wider before she felt her jaw drop when she spotted Luhan walk down the empty aisle to look for a seat.

A snort of disbelief escaped her and carefully got up. The boat dangerously swayed bringing her body along with it.

“Luhan?” Namjoo called out.

As if in a dream the fog cleared out when he turned to look at her. Recognition lit his face when their eyes met. For a long while they stared at each other before the woman who went around collecting fees ordered them to find a seat or else stand in the back. Upon the annoyed tone of her warning Namjoo grabbed his arm and pulled him to the back. 

***Sorry for the late late late update and my sudden disappearance. I was on a hiatus, but I'm slowly getting back on track. I'm going to update 3 Ways then Fragments of that Summer before coming back to this story! Please wait for me!