May 2014

 

Sulli was running like her life depended on it as she rudely butted several people out of her path on the crowded floors made out of marble.

 

But she didn’t care at this particular moment how she looked to passer-bys.

 

All she cared about, all she could think of was him.

 

It had been a chance meeting between the two of them.

 

Sulli had finished her administrative duties for the day at the elementary school she worked for in Jamsil. And even though she was thoroughly exhausted, she had decided to go to Itaewon for the night and treat herself to a well-earned alcoholic beverage.

 

“Komapsumnida,” she murmured in thanks as the bartender handed her a bright green bottle of Soju.

 

She promptly opened the cap with a quick flick of her wrist and began pouring herself a generous helping of the transparent whiskey into a shot glass.

 

“I like a woman who can handle her drink well,” a man in close proximity announced as she gulped down the drink without taking a breath.

 

Sulli ignored the obvious attempt at flirtation and downed a second shot of Soju.

 

“I said I like a woman who can handle her drink well,” the man persisted, moving even closer to her.

 

“Chincha?” Sulli asked in a deliberately bored tone, hoping the drunken idiot got the message.

 

He didn’t.                                                                                         

 

Instead, he plucked himself down on the vacant bar stool beside her and shot a lecherous smile her way.

 

“I especially like a pretty woman who can handle her drink well,” the drunkard continued with obvious approval of Sulli’s youthful looks.

 

“Good for you,” Sulli quipped sardonically.

 

 

She took out her phone and pretended to be engrossed in an IM conversation on kakaotalk, hoping that would deter her unwanted admirer.

 

Sadly, it didn’t.

 

“Why don’t I buy you another round after this?” the man offered in what was supposed to be a winning voice.

 

“No thank you,” Sulli replied in a monotone.

 

“Come on, don’t be like that. I’m your oppa after all.”

 

“Not actually. You’re more like an ahjussi.”

 

“Ouch,” the man complained, looking annoyed. “If I’d known you were going to be such an uptight , I wouldn’t have bothered in the first place.”

 

“You know...” a new voice interjected. “Just because you’re older, doesn’t mean you have the right to treat a young unmarried woman disrespectfully.”

 

Sulli stopped staring scathingly at the drunken idiot and turned her attention to the man coming towards them from the pool table where he’d been standing just seconds ago.

 

He was taller than most of the men she knew and met on a daily basis, at least six feet in height. He was neither pale nor tanned, but a delightful mixture of both with broad shoulders and short brownish-blonde hair that fell in an untidy mop around his forehead. He had small brown eyes, a long nose, a small pert mouth and a chiselled jaw line that made Sulli suddenly want to lay kisses all along it.

 

He moved closer and shot the drunken idiot a friendly, but patronising smile nevertheless.  

 

“The lady doesn’t want to be bothered,” the stranger declared with firmness.

 

“And how do you know what she wants, boy?” The drunken idiot spat with utter contempt.

 

“I think the only boy around here is you...ahjussi.” the stranger threw, a cocky smile painted on his manly face.

 

The drunken idiot uttered a loud roar and charged forward, making Sulli wince and duck her head.

 

But her worry was unfounded as the strange younger man merely dodged the drunken man’s attempts to punch him with a swift step backwards. The drunkard tried yet again and the former shifted his body to the left, causing the latter to fall onto his stomach on the floor in a drunken heap.

 

By this point, the bartender and female proprietor had come around from the bar, bewilderment and disapproval etched onto their faces.

 

“He was harassing this young woman and making a scene.” The young man offered in a thoroughly unapologetic tone.

 

With that, the well-built bartender picked the drunken man off the floor and escorted him out of the bar.

 

“I’m sorry for the trouble,” the young man finally said in earnest as he made to leave.

 

“Stay and have a drink on the house,” the proprietor offered, secretly pleased with the young man’s chivalry for a damsel in distress. “Besides, this young lady might need your services again in the near future.”

 

She threw the young couple a mischievous wink and went back behind the bar to count some of the night’s earnings from the cashier.

 

The young man blushed just a little at the bar owner’s words, but still managed to walk back to the pool table with an air of dignity.

 

Sulli watched him go, feeling something unfamiliar stirring in her chest.

 

Then she threw caution to the wind, grabbing her Soju bottle and shot glass as she approached her saviour.

 

“Thank you,” she told him with abruptness.

 

The man, who’d been in the middle of trying to shoot a striped ball, stopped and shrugged in response.

 

“Why did you do that?”

 

“Because he was being a prick.”

 

“He was being a prick. Men are very...prickly,” Sulli agreed wholeheartedly.

 

This made the young stranger laugh heartily in turn.

 

“I’m Lay,” he introduced, holding out his hand towards Sulli.

 

After a second of hesitation, Sulli reached out and grasped his bigger hand in her dainty one and shook it rapidly.

 

“Sulli,” she answered, a small smile creeping on her face.

 

For his part, Lay looked over Sulli’s feature with an uncritical eye.

 

She was shorter than him, but slender with a petite waist and pale skin that was almost translucent in its perfection.

 

Her hair was raven black and short, but cut in a decidedly feminine way, curling upwards just a little at the ends. And her bangs cut across her forehead in a diagonal pathway that served to make her more mysterious than she most likely was.

 

Her eyes were brown like his, but a shade lighter, high cheekbones, a petite nose he could picture himself pressing affectionate kisses on and a disastrously sensual mouth he could most definitely see himself kissing more than a hundred times if he were lucky.

 

“Wanna play with me?” he offered spontaneously.

 

“That depends: are we talking about pool or something else?” Sulli deadpanned.

 

Lay looked at her with a startled look, getting ready to apologise for the way his innocent suggestion had sounded. But his smile widened all the more when he saw the mischievous twinkle in her eye while she walked over and grabbed a pool stick resting against the nearest painted dark green.

 

He knew more than ever that he definitely wanted her to play with him in any form the night took.

 

For Sulli’s part, once she finally noticed just how good looking Lay really was, she had to make a mighty effort not to stare unabashedly at him the entire time.

 

And yet, her foolish heart prompted her more than once to take in every bit of him. She secretly delighted in the moments when Lay would plaster the tip of his stick with the cubic blue powder indicative of such a purpose and catch her eye, his mouth quirking to the side, showcasing the adorable dimple on his right cheek.

 

They ended up playing a few rounds of friendly pool. Sulli managed to win one game while Lay beat her by three games. And after he’d won that trivial trophy, he started losing on purpose just to see the look of utter delight that crept over her youthful face when she discovered she’d won.

“So what do you do?” Lay inquired when they finished and he had bought the two of them another bottle of Soju.

 

“I’m an administrator at a public school – very scintillating stuff,” Sulli remarked in a dry tone, which made the handsome stranger laugh appreciatively. “You?”

 

“Uh, nothing at the moment,” Lay confessed with a wry smile.

 

“That’s too bad. I guess rescuing damsels in distress doesn’t pay very well,” Sulli teased in an effort to cheer him up.

 

“True, but that’s not the reason. I’m actually doing my military service this year.”

 

“Oh wow!”

 

“Yeah, it starts really soon. Tomorrow actually.”

 

Sulli’s breath caught in and her eyes burned with the incapacity of unshed tears.

 

Was it sadness that she felt?

 

She’d only met this man an hour ago – how could there possibly be any connection?

 

And yet, she’d talked with him that entire time and not looked at her watch once, wondering when would be the best time to get a cab home.

 

For Lay’s part, he wished he could’ve undone those words when he saw what looked like regret flicker across the beautiful woman’s face sitting across from him.

 

He felt regret too, even though he’d just met her.

 

He would’ve come to any woman’s defence if she were being hassled by a drunken idiot – that was how his parents had raised him.

 

He wouldn’t have done that for Sulli alone, not even because she was just that beautiful.  

 

But somehow, he wished he could do a lot more for the intriguing woman in front of him than just be a gentleman when it counts.

 

“Again, wow,” Sulli finally said after a long and awkward pause. “How do you feel? Are you nervous?” she inquired in a decidedly good natured tone to cover up her innate disappointment.

 

“Nah,” Lay replied a little too quickly.

 

He faltered while sipping on his shot of Soju when Sulli quirked a disbelieving eyebrow at him.

 

Then they both started laughing.

 

“Terrified,” Lay amended with an easy grin. “But I gotta do it, so it’s better to get it over with.”

 

“It’s weird, I wouldn’t have pegged you as doing your military service.” Sulli murmured with a pensive frown, resting her chin on her upturned fist.

 

“Why is that?” Lay inquired, unconsciously leaning further across the table.

 

“Well...you don’t look very...Korean,” Sulli admitted, a faint blush creeping over her cheeks.

 

“You have me there. I’m half Chinese from my mom’s side. I’ve lived in Korea for most of my life and have dual citizenship. So I guess I’m still eligible to serve...half of my countries at any rate.” Lay explained, pursing his hands together as he spoke.

 

“I’m sure you’re always eligible to serve your country in China too.” Sulli remarked with a sly grin.

 

Lay laughed heartily at this and sank back in his seat in a restful manner.

 

He liked this girl.

 

He liked her more than he probably should, given the circumstances.

 

But Lay had always been what people called a free spirit.

 

He often adhered to normal conventions and strict discipline.  

 

But every now and then, he went completely off-book and did whatever the hell he liked in the moment regardless of how disastrous the outcome might be.

 

And right now, he definitely wanted to throw caution to the wind.

 

He had two years of strict discipline to look forward to starting tomorrow.

 

“Well, I can give China two years after I’m done with Korea,” he teased.

 

He noticed the flicker of disappointment in Sulli’s eyes once again and it pained him more than he could properly express. But he’d had years of practice when it came to disguising his inner turmoil with layer upon layer of good natured jocular bravado.

 

Sulli knew she was hiding her feelings badly and cursed herself inwardly for not having a better poker face.  

 

She’d always been like that, giving way to her emotions freely at any given time, whether she was happy or sad.

 

Here was a handsome, charming and respectable man she wanted to get to know more.

 

He was also someone who seemed to look past everything he saw on the surface of her skin with radiating reticence that had a calming effect on her.

 

And he was leaving tomorrow morning.

 

It already felt like a bad romance in the making before any romance had even been agreed on between the two of them.

 

“I hope this isn’t just a line you’re using on me,” Sulli finally said, fixing Lay with a beady eye.

 

“Meaning?” Lay asked, matching her tone.

 

They both instinctively leant forward on their elbows resting atop the rickety wooden both where they sat, staring intently at each other.

 

“Meaning that most men like to tell women they’re dying to sleep with that they’re leaving in the morning to serve their country.” Sulli elaborated, trying very not to let a smirk betray her attempts at mockery.

 

“And you think I’m that kind of man?” Lay questioned, trying his best to beat her at her own game.

 

“Maybe,” Sulli replied in a noncommittal tone, enjoying herself thoroughly.

 

“So you think...I’m dying to sleep with you?” Lay probed in a soft murmur.

 

Sulli gulped down breath trapped in while her eyes unwittingly travelled down to Lay’s thin lips humming their own seductive siren’s tale beneath the surface.

 

He had her there, and the smart- knew it too.

 

“Maybe,” she repeated, playing for time.

 

Without warning, Lay silently dug around in his jeans pocket and retrieved a thin slip of folded paper. Then he handed it to Sulli without a single word uttered.

 

Sulli took it from him in bewilderment and opened it, reading over the contents slowly.

 

It was a letter from his commanding officer, giving Lay the particulars of his scheduled arrival along with details about what barracks and regiment he’d be placed in for the duration of his military service.

 

So that ruled out her facetious reasons behind his intentions for her.

 

“It looks legit,” she conceded after a moment’s silence.

 

“It is,” Lay agreed. “So do you still think I’m dying to sleep with you?” he questioned, a sly smirk appearing on his face.

 

Sulli smiled back at him and took another sip of her Soju.

 

“Yes,” she answered with seductive defiance, downing the rest of her drink and setting the shot glass down on the table with a thump.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Thump.

 

That was the sound their bodies made as they crashed unceremoniously against the side of the door and stumbled into the darkened room together.

 

Lay had hoisted Sulli up just a little so that she was standing on her tiptoes, pressing her lithe body ceaselessly into him as their mouths fused like hot metal converging into one.

 

The taller of the two managed to kick the door to the room of the love motel down the road from the bar they’d been at shut with the back of his heel as his hands crept every which way over the skin on Sulli’s back peeking out from her paper thin blouse as his nose collided sharply with hers time and time in the heat of the moment.

 

Then she was slipping just a little out of reach, stepping back to shrug out of her denim jacket.

 

Her chest strained with effort when she realised that Lay was far from finished with touching her as he moved back into her personal bubble with quick steps of assurance. His lips landed on her neck with wild ferocity that brought out the keenest of whimpers from her parted lips as her fingers tangled through the strands of his unruly hair.

 

The feeling of pleasure coursing through her bones was far too intense to bear. So she brought his lips back up to hers by cupping his face in her dainty hands. And when that was taken care of, her fingers wandered downwards to force his leather jacket off of his shoulders with the wily impatience of tender seconds that ticked by.

 

During all of this, they got closer and closer to the queen-sized bed propped against the wall in an intoxicated trance, their flimsy clothing being shed right along with reason and dignity to assuage the growing lust that satiated their minds and bodies thrumming away in unison.

 

When they were finally laid bare before one another, Lay stopped his frantic ministrations momentarily and took to staring at Sulli.

 

She was a breathtaking sight, her lips bruised with his hurried kisses, hair mussed up in tufts of ecstasy, her skin glowing like porcelain from the sliver of moon that peeked through the closed curtains.

 

For her part, she watched with wonder at the way that Lay’s Adam’s apple seemed to bob with nervous anticipation in his throat, admiring the way the contours of his faint six-pack glowed and strained as he struggled to lie on top of her without crushing her.

 

But she wanted him to crush her, overpower her with the sweet intensity radiating off his skin in tune to his erratic heartbeat.

 

And she made her meaning plain when she hooked her arms around his neck and back, pulling him excruciatingly close to her waiting lips, her bare leg painting a line of unadulterated marvel over his thin ankle.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

It was early the next morning, fast approaching 6am when they both found themselves wide awake.

 

By this time, the sun was rising fast in the sky, jumping and dipping precariously over the clefts of massive skyscrapers still painted black in the shade, Banpo Bridge was already teeming with masses of honking cars and snorting motorcycles.

 

Sulli was due at work in 2 hours, but she was especially reluctant to get out of bed today.

 

Especially with the way that Lay trailed his long fingers all along the subtle curve her body made from the edge of her shoulder down to the ticklish part of her waist while lying behind her.

 

The duvet was only covering the bottom half of her exquisite body.

 

“So you’re absolutely sure you’re not ticklish on this part of your body?” Lay inquired in a husky tone that sent ripples of pleasure down Sulli’s spine apart from the work his fingers were currently doing.

 

“Positive,” Sulli replied untruthfully, biting back a sodden moan of ecstasy.

 

If nothing else, her poker face had improved a great deal since the events of last night.

 

Lay liked touching Sulli like this, without any inhibitions or thoughts of Time making its whimsical interjections at every turn, even though all of that was true and more.

 

“I had fun last night,” Lay declared after a few more seconds of restful silence.

 

That remark brought an instant smile to Sulli’s face as she turned around in the muscular arms holding her in place.

 

Seeing Lay like this was a breath of fresh air.

 

He looked adorable with his hair tousled into depreciating disarray, his brown eyes burning tiny laser beams right through her with their sluggish intensity and that half smile that brought out his dimples and electrified her senses like 100 watts of power.

 

“I had fun too, all three times, actually,” Sulli confessed with a smile radiating from her eyes and lips simultaneously in reference to their activities from the night before.

 

Lay’s eyes darkened over with an unfathomable stirring in his chest as he closed the distance between them and enveloped her lips in a smouldering kiss.

 

It was all Sulli could to hold on tightly, wrapping her small hands around his neck as each kiss sent heat rushing over her skin with volcanic potency.

 

And then he just had to go and ruin the moment by saying the one thing she’d hoped he’d miraculously changed his mind about somehow.

 

“I still have to go catch my train from Seoul Station to Yeongcheon in two hours.” Lay announced with deep regret.

 

Sulli sighed deeply and turned away from Lay, even though she felt childish for acting like this.

 

It was only because she liked him so much already. She’d made an instant connection with him after they spent the night together.

 

And now it was all for nought because he was leaving.

 

“Hey...” Lay trailed off slowly.

 

He mumbled inaudibly and got out from under the covers. He climbed out of the bed and walked around it so that he was facing Sulli again. Then he knelt down on the carpeted floor by the edge of the bed and took her hand.

 

“I didn’t expect this to happen, least of all after one night with a stranger. But the truth is that...I like you, Choi Jinri. I like you a lot.” Lay confessed with the utmost sincerity.

 

Something akin to happiness swirled in Sulli’s chest when she heard that.

 

“I know what I’m about to say is totally insane, but just hear me out.” He continued, tiny beads of sweat appearing on his forehead.

 

Why did he feel so nervous all of a sudden?

 

Sulli was just a girl.

 

And yet, she really wasn’t.

 

She was so much more than that.

 

She was beautiful, smart, funny – anyone would be lucky to be seen with her.

 

But he didn’t just want anyone to be seen with her.

 

Sulli obliged him and sat up in the bed, covering her exposed chest area with the rest of the comforter.

 

“I know I’m going to the army and I’ll be away for two years, but-”

 

“Zhang Yixing, are you asking me to wait for you?” Sulli interjected, a tiny bubble of laughter forming on her lips.

 

Did men still ask that of women in this day and age?

 

“It wouldn’t be right of me to ask you that. With that said, would you consider giving this – us, a try?” Lay inquired in a serious voice.

 

“I don’t know. I like you a lot, Lay, and last night was amazing. But long distance relationships don’t exactly have a high success rate.” Sulli responded, a lump forming in .

 

Lay sighed and bowed his head, having expected some of what Sulli had said beforehand.

 

It was Sulli’s turn to comfort him in turn as her index finger reached forward and tipped his long chip upwards to face her again. Then she cupped his cheeks in her hand and tried her best to smile despite the heavy feeling settling in her heart at that precise moment.

 

“I guess it’s just bad timing,” she confessed with sudden longing.

 

Lay nodded and pressed one of her hands to his lips and kissed the knuckles tenderly.

 

“I guess so. But...if you change your mind, I’ll be at the departure hall for the KTX trains in two hours. I leave at 08:15. Just think about it, ok?”

 

He pressed a soft kiss on her lips and moved away from her, leaving Sulli’s thoughts in complete disarray.

 

They got dressed in silence and Lay was the first to leave out of the two after taking a shower, having paid the fee for their stay at the motel the night before.

 

Then Sulli went back to her own apartment and got ready for work, her head in a daze.

 

It was somewhere between brushing her teeth and taking the bus to work that she suddenly had a change of heart.

 

She annoyed more than a few elderly passengers on the blue bus standing close to the card readers when she abruptly asked the driver to let her off a few minutes after they left Yeoksam where she lived.

 

And then she was rushing to the nearest subway station and boarding a train en route to Seoul Station. 

 

Every minute seemed to press down on her while she glanced reflexively at her watch.

 

She got to the famous bus and train station at 08:00 and she all but sprinted across the large ground floor towards the escalators leading up to the second floor where the KTX Train Departure halls were located.

 

The wind was already pretty strong for so early in the morning and Sulli shuddered to think what her boss would say about her being late for work.

 

But she put that to the side and folded up the lapels of her trench coat to protect her neck and face while scanning the crowd for any signs of a tall and handsome man with brownish blonde hair.

 

She finally caught sight of him, standing apart from what looked like a group of over-enthusiastic Chinese tourists, taking pictures of their surroundings of one another with super expensive-looking digital cameras.

 

She repressed a chuckle at the fact that he was still wearing his clothes from the night before.

 

Then again, he’d probably packed away his other clothes since he was beginning his active service today.

 

He seemed lost in thought and a little sad from her vantage point.

 

Just maybe she could do something about the latter.

 

“Lay!” she called out while jogging towards him.

 

He didn’t turn her way and she grew more frustrated.

 

“Zhang Yixing!” she called out on pure whim a second later.

 

To her delight, that got his attention and he turned around with a quizzical expression on his handsome face.

 

But it changed a moment when he saw who was calling him by his birth name, a wide smile forming on his face.

 

Before he could offer any kind of greeting or ask why she decided to come, Sulli had lessened the distance between them and flung her arms around him.

 

“I feel the same way,” she whispered against his lanky chest.

 

His hands found their way around her face as he lifted it upwards to look at him.

 

“You’re sure?” he asked in a soft voice.

 

It was almost like the entire train station had vanished in the blink of an eye and all he could see was her.

 

It was both terrifying and exhilarating all at once.

 

Sulli nodded in affirmation, a slow smile building on her oval-shaped face.

 

Even though this was really sudden and she had no idea of telling whether it was a good idea, she still felt positively unburdened.

 

Was this the right thing to do, or had she finally lost her mind?

 

“You’re willing to date a soldier who’s going to leave you 20 minutes from now?” Lay questioned, a hint of genuine sadness still evident in his tone.

 

Sulli placed her hands over Lay’s holding her cheeks and pulled them down till they were resting on her shoulders while she gazed steadily back at him.

 

“I’m willing to date a soldier who promises to come back to me,” she whispered with frank tenacity.

 

Then she beamed brightly and Lay instantly knew that he felt better than ok in the moment.

 

Contact details like phone numbers, email and postal addresses were changed less than a minute before Lay sprinted through the rapidly closing train doors with his bag slung over his shoulder.

 

But the only part that Sulli and Lay remembered about that sombre parting was when Lay lingered at the closed doors with his nose pressed up against the window, curving both hands into the shape of a heart over his chest before saying goodbye.

 

And so it became a love story that began in stereotypical circumstances only to continue to an enigmatic future.