Cha Eun Sang was giddy like a teenager. She felt lighthearted and full of energy after a long time. She was gaining ground at work, learning valuable lessons from Kim Won himself as well as other veterans at the helm of different departments. Her diligence and hardworking ways had won admiration of many at work. She got her driver’s license and politely turned down Kim Won’s offer of a brand new car. Instead she cashed some of her wages that were piling up in her personal account and bought a second hand, medium sized sedan. For once, even Sunny seemed to be impressed with his mom. He stood wide eyed as she drove the car through the gates of the Kim Mansion, rather shoddy looking next to the high end and gleaming feet of automobiles but still her pride and joy….truly hers. Kim Won congratulated her approvingly and only asked his chauffeur to check out the safety and the general condition of the car. That night the family celebrated the new milestone in her life with special dishes cooked by Madame Park, who came visiting and seemed quietly overjoyed at her daughter’s accomplishments.

Over a glass of wine after dinner, Cha Eun Sang and Kim Won got talking. Sitting on the back verandah, Kim Won casually asked her as to what had prompted her to learn to drive.

Slightly buzzed and relaxed, she blurted out the truth, “Choi Young Do made me!”

Kim Won’s eyes sparkled for a second but he only smiled amusedly, “Oh? Made you, huh?”

Cha Eun Sang nodded and grimaced before shaking her head resignedly, “He is a bully!”

Kim Won chuckled and asked teasingly, “So he bullied you to learn driving. How terrible of him! What else has he bullied you into?”

Cha Eun Sang took a gulp of her wine and confessed, “The business management course…that was his doing too. He chose the course and the subjects…he was absolutely adamant that I had to learn about the business before I acted as your representative.” Kim Won made a mental note and nodded in approval.

Despite her claim that he was her tormentor, he didn’t miss the look of wistfulness that flitted across her face and a sigh that she suppressed.

He gently prodded, “So, did you thank your ‘bully’? Seems to me that he had good intentions…even if his methods leave much to be desired.”

Cha Eun Sang lowered her head and confessed, “He is always so smug about how right he is all the time that I feel like I will be just feeding his ego if I say that it was a good idea. That conceited know-it all!”

Kim Won laughed out loudly, nearly scaring Cha Eun Sang. He hadn’t laughed in a long time.

He looked over at Cha Eun Sang and commented, “Yes, that is a folly indeed…a grave one. It helps drive him to achieve whatever he sets his sight on but one day he will trip over himself. He won’t do well with a fall….not at all.” He cast a quick glance at Cha Eun Sang and looked away in the distance as he recounted, “It is so hard when the mighty bite the dust. Accepting the defeat and the helplessness that follows, can crush a man’s soul forever.”

He stretched his legs and got up, a little less gracefully than he used to. And that fact was not lost on him. Sighing a little, he whispered, “Cha Eun Sang, be kind. Please be gracious and be forgiving…..even if it is hard for you…because it is harder on the fallen. Trust me….I know.”

He smiled and said, “Let’s go for a ride in your car one of these days. We will do something fun, OK?”

Cha Eun Sang smiled back and nodded, knowing fully well that it would be difficult to do something fun with his schedule and general disinclination to do anything outside of work. But ‘fun’ was a good idea and she wanted to do something for the weekend ahead. She finished her wine and made her way to the back of the house. A plan was hatching in her wine filled happy place.

After 10 minutes of digging around the storage room, she found the wicker woven basket. It still had its plastic wrapping intact. She had bought it on a whim on a trip to England, which seemed like a lifetime ago. She gingerly removed the clear cover and opened the latch that secured the lid to the basket. The red gingham lining inside was pristine along with some cutlery and two wine glasses. She wondered if she should raid the cellar for a bottle as she carried the basket outside and dropped it in the mudroom beyond the kitchen. Shaking the dust off her palms, she smiled to herself and started to picture a day in her mind.

Choi Young Do was sitting by his favorite window in his mother’s apartment. It was a leisurely morning that promised an even more listless afternoon. His mother had finally got an accountant to do the books of the café, which had left Choi Young Do without a job to do. He had already tucked in a scrumptious early breakfast with his mother before she had got busy downstairs. Bored, he was browsing old texts when he reread a text that was from Cha Eun Sang. She had been texting more frequently and he had started replying to all those, even if grudgingly. Because if he didn’t, he had noted with alarm, she simply stopped texting and that did not sit well with him. The connection was still too fragile, mired in unspoken expectations on both sides, the claim too uncertain and unclear. It was not the clever games of two lovers but the timid and shy overtures of two people, who were still trying to figure out their respective place in a new relationship.

She had sent a text at the beginning of the week, “If you find yourself at loose ends on a bright and clear day, let me know. I have a plan.”

Choi Young Do listened to the indistinct chatter that drifted from downstairs and sighed. He closed his eyes and could hear the ticking of the wall clock. Something about that clock irritated him, as if it was taunting him for spending a glorious late summer day indoors. Choi Young Do sent a text, “Tell me about your plan.”

Cha Eun Sang was watching Sunny ride his bicycle up and down the garden path with all the intensity of a professional cyclist. He seemed frustrated by the fact that his superlative cycling skills were limited by the length of the concrete pathway. Kim Won had an exhausting week and had retired to rest after breakfast, though she was sure that he was still glued to the laptop on his bed. Her mother-in-law had gone out to visit an acquaintance and do some shopping. Sunny had an invitation to a birthday party in the evening so Cha Eun Sang had decided to let him run off his steam before an afternoon nap. But the text from Choi Young Do changed all that. She didn’t divulge anything of the plan and instead asked where he was and told him to stay put, assuring him that she was coming to meet him there. She had a smile on her face as she waved Sunny inside and declared that they were going to a park. Sunny jumped up with a whoop and scrambled up the stairs to change even before his mother could tell him to.

Cha Eun Sang called the housekeeper and gave her some instructions and the keys to her car. She took a quick shower and changed into a pair of comfortable denim leggings and a long white crepe tunic. It was translucent so she wore a spaghetti strap, lace yoked camisole inside. She wore her hair in a high ponytail and tied a slim blue and white printed scarf over the rubber band that secured it. Instead of her usual designer handbag, she pulled out a printed canvas backpack that she used to carry in college. She considered her reflection in the mirror for a moment as she rubbed her lips together after applying lip balm. Impulsively, she took out a tube of lip gloss and applied a coat. She was about to throw it back in the drawer when she changed her mind and put it in her purse instead.

Choi Young Do hung around downstairs, trying to dodge the people scurrying and going about their jobs. He sat down in his mother’s office for a while, pretending to tap away at her primitive computer and when he got booted out by his mother, he loitered in the bakery, much to the consternation of the staff. The fact was, he was excited like a child. He grabbed a handful of cherries from one of the prep trays when nobody was looking and hightailed it out of there. He went out the back and ate the cherries one at a time, using the pits to target shoot the dumpster that belonged to the neighboring business. He noticed the grey economy model turn into the alley where he stood and sighed. He didn’t want to confront a stranger as to why the back was not a public parking lot even though his Porsche stood right there in its glorious beauty. He halfheartedly approached the car, only to stop in his tracks as he spied the woman behind the wheel.

Cha Eun Sang smiled sweetly, amused at his shock and confusion. She hadn’t seen him for 2 weeks and she realized that she was really glad to set her eyes on the man who stood before him. He was dressed in a pair of light colored khakis and a blue polo. His hair was not brushed back in his usual style, instead covered the high forehead, making him look a lot younger. Choi Young Do walked over to the driver’s side and addressed no one in particular, “What kind of contraption is this?”

Cha Eun Sang narrowed her eyes and answered, “This is a car” and pointed to his Porsche and said emphatically, “That is a toy.”

Choi Young Do asked incredulously, “Did you steal it? Or did you find it abandoned on the wayside? I mean, where would you even find this…junk?” Sunny let out a chuckle from the backseat in response.

Cha Eun Sang sneered, grabbed her backpack from the passenger seat and opened the door to get out. She crossed her arms in defiance and tilted her head back to answer him, “It is my car. I paid for it. And I will have you know that it is a fine car indeed.”

Choi Young Do scoffed and moved her aside to sit in the driver’s seat sideways, turning to face Sunny. He held out his palm with the remaining couple of cherry and addressed the child, “Tell me honestly buddy, how many people and animals did she kill, maim or injure as she drove here? Are you unharmed? Did she throw you about in the car as she turned and swerved?”

Sunny chuckled and protested as he made short work of the cherries, “Nobody! Oemma can drive! We are going to the park.”

Choi Young Do looked over at Cha Eun Sang and sought confirmation, “Really?”

Cha Eun Sang nodded and winked, which threw Choi Young Do for a loop, “We have come to get you. I was thinking….”she paused dramatically and then continued, “It is a perfect day for picnic!” Sunny squealed in a high pitch tone from the back seat.

Choi Young Do recoiled and put a finger in his ear and complained, “Aisshh! I think I just went deaf in this ear.”

Unaffected, Sunny bounced up and down in the backseat, “Please! Please! Please! Let’s go! Now! Now! Can we please go?”

Cha Eun Sang opened the back passenger seat door and motioned for him to step out, “Only after we pay our respects to Madame Yoo. Let’s go inside.”

Choi Young Do was oddly touched by the way she insisted on seeing his mother. He got out of the car and closed the door, still giving the car a once over with skeptical eyes. Cha Eun Sang noticed that and insisted, “It is a perfectly serviceable and safe car. It was Yoon Chang-young’s car. There it was, just gathering dust because Director Yoon uses an office pool car. So, I bought it.”

Choi Young Do looked aghast, “You actually paid good money for this?”

Cha Eun Sang exhaled and grabbed Sunny close to her. She quickly covered his ears with her palms and hissed out, “Shut up! You spoilt brat!”

She stomped off through the door to find Madame Yoo. She didn’t see the quiet smile that broke upon Choi Young Do’s face as he lightly patted the roof of the car and murmured, “That’s my woman! Fierce and proud. This will do just fine.”

Sunny spied Madame Yoo first as she was coming in through the door that connected the back area to the café and wriggled out of her mom’s grasp as he forgot all formalities and ran to her, declaring breathlessly, “We are going for a picnic…in a park! A real picnic…outside…in a park.”

Madame Yoo looked at Sunny fondly, her heart overwhelmed with love for his childish happiness. She pretended to be awed and said breathlessly, “That is a fantastic idea! What a great plan for such a nice day! I am so happy for you. Now, you can’t have a picnic without treats, can you? Let’s see what I can contribute to your picnic basket.”

She looked up to see Cha Eun Sang and Choi Young Do standing side by side, looking on indulgently at Sunny. She in turn, looked at them and felt a surge of bittersweet happiness for the couple standing before her. They made such a handsome couple. Cha Eun Sang looked content like never before, her smile and face radiating a sheen of hopefulness and confidence that she hadn’t seen before. And her son’s razor sharp features were softened by the feelings for the woman beside him and the child before him. Madame Yoo thought to herself, “Finally, he is growing his wings.”

Choi Young Do looked at her a little shamefacedly and asked, “Oemma, is it Ok if I go…to the picnic?”

The question was so out of character for his that both women looked a little baffled as they stared at Choi Young Do, causing him to defend his question, “I mean, I was supposed to spend the day with Omma and….well…” he looked at his mother and explained painfully, “you are busy…and I don’t even have the invoices to keep me busy…and I was getting bored.” He simply shrugged his shoulder but didn’t realize how his cheeks were coloring under the scrutinizing gaze of two women he held dear to him. He cast a quick glance at Cha Eun Sang, who seemed like she could be knocked down with a feather, actually frozen in an unspoken “Oh!”

His mother on the other hand looked genuinely amused, as she mockingly answered, “Yes, you may go. Just wash your hands properly because I can see cherry stains in your palms. Drink lots of water and don’t exhaust yourself running about. And don’t cause any trouble to this nice young lady here.” She pursed her lips to keep herself from laughing out and adding to the embarrassment her son was already feeling. But her eyes were alight with it as she turned towards the café, guiding Sunny by the hand.

Choi Young Do snapped defensively at Cha Eun Sang, “What are you staring at?”

To his utter humiliation, she shook her head and started laughing softly, “I don’t know…it was the sweetest thing or should I say…the weirdest….thing that I have ever heard you say.” She laughed a little harder. Choi Young Do hissed at her warningly, which made her only chortle more. He lightly shoved her aside and started climbing the stairs to the upstairs bathroom, two at a time. Finding a chink in the armor, Cha Eun Sang chased him up the stairs, still teasing him.

“Awww! Poor little boy! Such a cutie and mom’s obedient son. I think it is admirable that you have such consideration for her opinion…or should I say permission? I wish Sunny would be so considerate towards me when he grows up. Don’t get me wrong…I think it was really sweet.”

By this time they had reached the living room and Choi Young Do had enough. He turned suddenly and closed in on her in such a way that within a few seconds, she was pinned against the wall by his body. Choi Young kept his red hued palms off her white tunic but used his entire body to crowd her in. He placed his forearms flat against the wall on both sides of her, blocking off any potential room for escape. He leaned into her and quickly shut her up with his mouth. It happened so quickly that she could only express her indignation through some incomprehensible words that were readily lost in his mouth. The silence in the room was only broken by ticking of big wall clock but there was a small storm that encompassed the two bodies seemingly stuck against the whitewashed wall. Both of them were breathing hard and fast. Cha Eun Sang felt lightheaded under the guerrilla assault on her senses. One moment she was laughing and the very next she was breathless under his kiss. She could feel the heat off his body that passed through the fabric, she could feel his hot breath cooling the minute beads of sweat that broke upon her face and she could feel his thigh trying to wedge itself in a brutal show of strength between her legs. She let the backpack slide off her arm to the floor.

Cha Eun Sang wrapped her arms around his waist instinctively, not to encourage the intimacy but to stop him from crushing her. She knew the hard muscled leg trying make itself at home in the cove of her lower body was only a proxy. She pushed his hips away from hers and waited for him to take the hint but didn’t break away from his kiss. She had a feeling from that night at the hotel that Choi Young Do would never force himself on her even if he wanted to. Choi Young Do removed his mouth from hers and watched his handiwork with the erse pleasure of an artist who had just violated the perfect beauty of his muse because he had failed to capture her essence on canvas. He was still breathing hard as looked upon the kiss ravaged lips of the girl who had haunted his lonely nights more now than ever. Her eyes were glazed and her face was flushed. She looked entirely attainable right then.

He rubbed his red tinted thumb across her lips and murmured, “Don’t you dare laugh at me! Not when you leave me only with promises that you can’t keep. It is not funny…..not in the least.” His tormented eyes, burning with futile passion bore into her.

She inhaled deeply, feeling a stirring in the pit of her stomach or perhaps lower and her heart thudded at the hint of pleasure that his touch promised. Unconsciously, she crossed her legs at the ankle and leaned forward to rest her forehead on his shoulder, whispering in the earnest, “You scare me.”

And just like that the tension flowed out of his body. This is what he didn’t want to hear from her. He had vowed that she would never feel anything akin to fear in his presence ever again. He cursed himself for losing his control again. He wanted to hold her in his arms and let her feel all that he had to give her. He wanted to let her know how deep his feelings ran. But he didn’t want her to feel threatened. He didn’t want to ride roughshod over her feelings.

Choi Young Do kept his palms thoughtfully away from her but turned his head to drop an affectionate kiss on the side of her downturned head and confessed honestly, “To be honest, sometimes I scare myself.”

Cha Eun Sang heard the tone of resignation in his voice and looked up to see the distant look in his eyes. She had a mad impulse to reach out and initiate the embrace again. One moment he was all hers....focused on her….body heart and soul, so much so that she was drowning and the next moment he was lost behind a curtain that he imposed on himself, distancing himself from all human attachments. But that moment came and went quickly.

Choi Young Do wiggled his fingers before her eyes and said, “Let me wash up and we will go. And do whatever PG rated activities you have in mind instead of spending some quality one-on-one time.” He started towards the bathroom.

Cha Eun Sang was taken aback for a moment, “Oh! But I thought you wanted to see Sunny.” She followed him with a strange trepidation and sadness in her heart.

Choi Young Do left the door open as he started scrubbing his fingers with soap as he assured her, “Make no mistake, I love spending time with him. He is awesome company and the cure to any bad day. What I don’t like is that his mom is a prude…no fun at all.” He made a face to express his disgust. Cha Eun Sang said nothing but absorbed what he said. She didn’t know where was this relationship headed but suddenly, she wasn’t sure where Sunny fit into it. And it took away a little from the gladness that her heart was feeling. Was it a misstep or an ominous sign?

To keep her eyes averted from Choi Young Do’s scrutiny, she reached into her backpack and took the tube of lip gloss out and applied a coat. Choi Young Do noted that she had come prepared, which meant that she probably expected a kiss….or two. He finished drying his hands and felt encouraged.

Suitably armed with a pretty box of baked goods, the trio set off. Cha Eun Sang half expected Choi Young Do to demand that he should drive and was pleasantly surprised when he willingly folded himself into the passenger seat next her, though not without some exaggerated and loud complaints about the size of the ‘clown car’ as he put it. Sunny giggled at his antics but Cha Eun Sang kept quiet and watched him with barely concealed impatience. As he put on the seat belt, seemingly with much difficulty, he declared in a grave voice, “Now, like somebody had said to me once, just don’t get me killed. I have a full schedule next week.”

Cha Eun Sang narrowed her eyes at him and goaded beyond words, lightly punched his left upper arm. Choi