It was difficult to remember they were filming as they drove down out of the mountains and along the California coastline.  They were heading toward the desert to film the motel scene.  PD Kang wanted everyone in place and filming as soon as Min Ho and Shin Hye arrived.  They were late by 20 minutes.  He was on the walkie-talkies asking for an explanation.  The sun sets early in the desert and wind gusts were not unusual so they had to be judicial with their use of time.

PD Kang finally got Min Ho on the walkie-talkie.  Min Ho told him he would call PD’s cell because he wasn’t explaining on the walkie-talkie for anyone to hear.  PD Kang was intrigued, what on earth could be that secretive?  PD’s phone rang. 

Min Ho in a quiet, quite hush-hush tone, “PD I am sorry we are late but well – you see – ahhh – Eun Sang had to make a pit stop and we had to rush and we are a little off course because we couldn’t find comfort rooms so easily but we will be there as soon as we retrace part of our steps.  OK?”

PD Kang chuckled and told Min Ho it was understandable but to come as soon as possible.    

Min Ho didn’t want to say Shin Hye’s name out loud and perhaps embarrass her if someone should recognize it.  She had been a bit quite and he was concerned that perhaps she was upset over something said or done.  When he asked her she simply said, “Perhaps you could locate a comfort room? I’m afraid I really need to visit one and soon.”

He grinned but said nothing.  It was a perfect excuse to increase his speed without her getting upset.  Both were reading the signs placed along the roadside designating different destinations and facilities.  Shin Hye spotted the sign with the symbol for rest area and rest rooms.  She nudged Min Ho’s arm while pointing at the sign.  He smiled and nodded.  And they began a five mile out of the way drive through some breathtakingly beautiful hills that wound upward into the mountains.  The reached their destination and as the car ground to a stop, Shin Hye was out the door and moving quickly toward the building.  Min Ho thought, nope she is not like other girls.  Most girls would have been too embarrassed to ask and certainly wouldn’t have thrown discretion to the wind to rush into a bathroom.  How nice that she is so normal.  He leaned his head back against the backrest and settled his sun shades over his eyes until she came back to the car. 

He heard a soft thank you as she slid into the car.  “Min Ho, ssi thank you for assisting me.  I am quite honored to have such a big star as you break the speed limit to rush me to a comfort room.  I owe you one!  Have you spoken to PD Kang?  Is he upset?” 

He looked over at her and not a sign of embarrassment anywhere – she was quite unique.  “Yes, and he says to come straight to the filming site.  I am enjoying this drive – such a feeling of freedom to drive with no one chasing you or caring who or what you are – this is what true freedom feels like!”

She nodded in agreement.  With her hand hanging out her side of the car she wove patterns in the air smiling like a little girl.  He noticed and smiled at how simple she seemed.  But he had a feeling there was nothing simple about her.  Her knowledge of electronics surprised him and he wondered just how smart is this young lady?

Their drive was fun.  They chatted about places they had visited while filming commercials and dramas.  They were surprised at how many of the same places they had been together only hours apart.  Such a small world they agreed.  During the ride there were periods of silence.  Not a silence of awkwardness but a silence of compatibility.  They would occasionally look at each other and smile but not feel the need to talk.  It was a glorious day!

They arrived at the film staging sight.  It was full of the hustle and bustle of activity.  The substitute car for their wreck during the next scene was being prepped and fitted with electronic sound and camera equipment.  It was a tricky business because if the equipment alignment was the slightest millimeter off it would destroy the shoot for that scene.  So a lot of thoughtful measuring and arguing was going on.  Min Ho stood back and listened to the group.  There were 2 electronic techs that came with them from the studio but there were 3 Southern Cal electronic geniuses the production company hired to make sure everything was set-up correctly.  Time was money and they were only in California for a set number of days which was winding down rapidly.

One of the guys did a double-take when he saw Shin Hye.  Min Ho snorted.  Yes, she is beautiful.  Yes, she is a star.  No, she is not interested in you.  He saw the guy approach Shin Hye and stick his hand out to shake her hand.  He heard the Ms. Park?  And the rest was in English and jumbled in technical jargon.  He understood the words electronics and satellite designated positioning and then he didn’t understand anything else.  Shin Hye glanced around and held her hand out.  The young man placed a paper in her hand.  She unfolded it and running her finger along a noticeable line she beckoned for him to follow her.  They walked 20 feet away to another car and she laid the paper on the hood.  He could see her talking with animation and pointing out something on the paper.  The young man did a mock slap to his forehead and laughed.  He was shaking his head yes and talking but his back was to Min Ho.  He could tell Shin Hye was nervous and kept glancing around.  This was turning out to be quite interesting.  Then the young man stuck his hand out and Shin Hye shook it while shaking her head yes.  The guy was grinning.  He looked over at his companions and beckoned the other 2 Americans over.  They came slowly and then the first young man was explaining something to them while pointing at Shin Hye.  She bowed her head.  The other 2 young men were suddenly excited and were shaking her hand and talking in excited tones.  Shin Hye glanced around the film site and Min Ho pretended to close his eyes shut while looking up as if he were enjoying the warmth of the sun on his face.  She had turned back to the young men and they were suddenly looking around as if in on a secret with her.  Each man bowed and then shook her hand.  One of them picked the paper up and walked back toward the substitute car.  Min Ho stopped the last man in the group and asked about the paper in his hand?  The young man acted as if he were in a spy drama and suddenly looked around.  He cleared his throat and said, “Nothing much just a schematic for an electronic match up to a global satellite positioning system.  Just work.”  And he scurried away following his team mates. 

Min Ho was puzzled.  First Shin Hye glances at a wiring set-up and tells an expert how to make it work correctly and now she collaborates with 3 of the smartest electronic geniuses in California and expertly reads a schematic about something few people understand.  What does this mean?  When did she learn this stuff and how did those men know her or precisely know she knew about all that?  Something is definitely not adding up – definitely.

The director yelled for them to take their positions and Min Ho put the puzzle of Shin Hye out of mind for the present.  He would re-visit the issue when he had time.

The PD explained what they were to do and how.  Shin Hye and Min Ho had their scripts out and were browsing through the upcoming scene to find the points PD Kang was adamant about filming correctly and in one take.

Min Ho loved doing his own stunts and Shin Hye was a willing partner in the stunt.  She refused a double and told PD Kang it would not look or feel the same for viewers.  The strange part was in the script he wasn’t supposed to throw his arm across her chest like he did.  It was just instinctive.  The substitute car was rigged to show how roughly the car hit the bank when he avoided the loose rocks.  It was actually a lot rougher on them than one would have suspected.  And the first thought in his mind was protecting her.  He wasn’t sure where this feeling of protectiveness came from – he was a gentleman.  He had been raised to be a gentleman and would do what was necessary to protect women and children – it was in his nature.  But this feeling toward her alone was quite odd.  It was another interesting fact he needed to think about when he was alone. 

He found the next part of their scene both spellbinding and funny.  She acted funny off camera when told how to push the car out of the sand or her attempt to push the car out of the sand.  She could make more faces and not be aware of it than anyone else he knew.  She was quite amusing. 

They had to stop and let her put her hair in a ponytail because of the wind.  The wind gusts were strong and had to do with winds coming off the desert.  It was a lovely strange landscape and not one he would have associated with America.  When the winds first started picking up Shin Hye’s hair was loose and flowing around her shoulders.  She had the most luxurious hair – the kind of hair a man wants to run his fingers through while caressing a woman’s face.  As he realized what he was thinking the wind blew and her hair fanned out from her face and then strands draped across her face as if placed by a stylist.  How does her hair do that?  Is it magical?  Ahhhh, Min Ho, keep your thoughts on the script. 

They began the dialogue centered on Eun Sang’s love of horror movies.  She was good at this acting – very good.  He had read some comments on different blog sites and one of the Netizen blog pages and saw the criticism of everything from her body shape, her too large eyes, her kissing, her clothing, her hair to how she didn’t look right for the part of Eun Sang.  Then a list of who would look better – which actress would have better chemistry – which he would prefer – and the list went on.  If he could talk face-to-face with any of those people he would first tell them - are you out of your ever loving crap infested mind?  What in hell is wrong with her body shape?  You cannot be a man – no way under the sun because I don’t know one man who wouldn’t chose her body over all the other skinny assed stick-thin legged fake looking actresses and models available today.  For real people, get a grip and stop with the stupid remarks like her eyes only have one expression – a doe caught in the headlights – really? And you have hit or seen how many does caught in your headlights and scrutinized them well enough to remember how similar they were to Shin Hye’s? Right?  Bull crap.  No way and let me tell you one thing among men they would choose her beautiful dewy caramel colored eyes, doe like or not, over eyes that were too knowing, too experienced and too jaded – but then that is a man’s opinion and not someone sitting somewhere coming up with anything that sounds like a put down toward Shin Hye.  And kissing – ahhhemm well I think you have no idea what you are talking about – Her hair is to die for and you know it because words spewed on the pages putting her down sound too much like jealousy.  The parts that really just pissed him off royally were the ones stating how Shin Hye wasn’t right for the part – how she couldn’t convey the emotion – how such and such actress would look better with him and have better chemistry with him.  Do these people ever think?  Do they think because they like a particular actress it means that actress would do better simply because they like them?  How dumb can someone be?  Ok I admire many of your selections but people that does not mean I will have natural chemistry with them.  I have to work hard sometimes to make you believe what you see is real chemistry even if there isn’t the slightest spark between us.  It is awkward and hard to pretend in those situations.  But Shin Hye doesn’t have to do anything except walk into the room and I am sorry my body reacts.  I don’t want it to but it just does so I believe that is chemistry.  Now don’t get me wrong, I am a fan of Yoon Eun-hye and she is a gorgeous woman.  But why do her fan girls and fan boys want to force us to act together?  Shin Hye and Eun-hye do not look alike.  Basic similarities do not make them look alike.  They don’t look or act alike.  And because you like her chemistry with other actors does not mean she will have it with me.  She is also older than I am so why do you keep pushing for me to like and act with older women?  This is your fantasy not mine.  These are your choices for me not my choices for me.  If I had to chose an actress that causes my emotions to connect it would be Shin Hye and not one of the many lists of current actresses you have listed so – stop.  I think it makes you sound rather immaturely childish and arrogant.  Ahhhhhh this is a foolish conversation for me to have with myself because things never change.  They see something in their favorite actress and automatically assume I see it or that it is true because they think so.  How much more can you expect for me to give up?

And he thought all that in a matter of seconds while listening to her say, “Hello, Sydney.”

They had to complete the desert scene quickly because the sun was setting.  PD Kang was pushing them to finish and Min Ho was thinking the shots of us walking on the desert road with a setting sun are spectacular.  Min Ho thought, what a nice photo to frame and hang among my collection of nature photos.

PD Kang was trying to get him to turn around when he took his shirt off but he refused.  It didn’t seem to fit with the way these two 18 years-olds would act.  Shin Hye was hilarious in her depiction of Eun Sang’s wish that she had looked at Kim Tan when he changed his shirt.  It was the perfect look of a teenage girl who is curious but afraid. 

They were practicing their scene where Eun Sang is sitting on the couch and falling asleep and Min Ho catches her.  Shin Hye is so serious about finding just the right facial expression.  Min Ho thought, I could watch her talk for hours.  While we are practicing I am getting to know more about Shin Hye the woman.  She is expressive and forthright.  We are talking about many things and she loves to joke.  I find it endearing that she isn’t offended like some of the actresses for Heirs when I pull a practical joke.  She is more apt to pull one back on me.

Shin Hye is sitting and talking while forcing herself to stay awake as the character Eun Sang.  She is supposed to fall asleep and start to fall toward the end of the couch.  It should be a natural fall and I am supposed to move quickly to put my hand under her shoulders to keep her from falling and maybe getting hurt.  I have done this in several dramas and Kim Eun-sook thought it cute to use again as sort of a Min Ho trademark.  I didn’t object.  But the most curious thing, as Shin Hye is falling over and I rush to put my arm under her, I lean down very close to her.  Our lips are very close and Shin Hye’s eyes are closed.  I made a sound, a slight groan as I looked at her lush lips and serene face.  My male instincts had kicked in I suppose.  What else could it be?  But she opened her eyes at that moment.  I was so close and another millimeter and we would be kissing.  But I didn’t move, I couldn’t move because I was looking into those large gorgeous caramel eyes that seemed to pull my soul out of me every time I looked into them.  I swallowed hard and started to pull away when I realized I didn’t want space between us.  I was beginning to think of her and me as us.  I could feel an US and I liked the feeling.  I was starting to feel comfortable with US.