from the sky to the sea

Freedom in Jeju Island. 

2,454 words, romance/fluff

Today is the day she learnt how to fly.

She didn't think it was possible to feel this sort of freedom.

Her arms spread out, she embraced the wind, as it slowly blew all the hurt, all the damage, all the stress away.

The last couple of days had tormented her with sleepless nights, filled with tears and an endless cycle of re-reading all the destructive comments the world had for her.

Being called a liar, being called a fake, being called stupid, being called a two-timer, had taken a toll on her, especially when she knew she was nothing close to the cruel descriptions people had made about her. She believed herself to be a very strong person, but the last couple of days made her realize that she could break into smithereens within seconds. Thus, she let it all out, let her family witness her fragile side who could not take the public's harsh judgement, and leaned on others instead of  burdening all the pain herself.

Her walls completely down, her complete faith and trust in him, Soeun let him lead the way this time because he had given her the gift of wings. He who was no other than her virtual husband, Song Jaerim, who readily protected her from the rain, from the winds, from whatever storm that came her way.

She sat behind him on a black motorbike that he had rented, customized for two, and tightly held onto his waist, her chest pushed against his broad back that she loved so much. She never thought she would ride a motorcycle in her life as she feared the possibility of falling off (and her parents' disapproval of her riding one), but with a little bit of courage and faith, she got on and the sensation was unbelievable. Words could not describe the happiness, peace and freedom she was feeling at the moment.

"Oppa, go faster!" she shouted, the tone of her excitement ringing into Jaerim's ears.

Not only did he want Soeun to feel the leisure of riding, he also needed to take an overdue ride himself. The vroom vroom motor of his motorcyle, Soeun's warmth against his back, the cold yet relaxing winds, the oceanic view, the endless road, it all felt good. Soeun, him and the bike as one felt good.

His career was rising quickly, with offers for commercials, photoshoots, endorsements, interviews, dramas, coming in every day, and he was finally starting to make his way to a stable and steady career. He was very grateful for all the work he was getting but it made him really tired, busy, and did stress him to a certain degree. Coming to Jeju, with Soeun who needed to get away from her life too, was the break he needed.

He had forgiven her for the trivial 2am incident very quickly. She started depending on him more, asking for his advice on what to say, and their text messages to each other had increased. Still, he admitted that he had unanswered questions on his mind. He believed her but it was easier said than done.

"In the future," he started, "I'm going to bring my kids around on a bike tour."

He didn't know why he confessed that to her, why it was so important to let her know what he planned on doing with his kids.

"Like this?" she replied, also wondering why he was telling her this.

"My wife will ride at the back," he said with a grunt.

Soeun smiled but she could sense that his emotions were also in turmoil. This trip was not only for her, but for him too.

She lightly rubbed his back to comfort him, yet it was nothing in comparison to the comfort he had given her the past few weeks. He had proved to be a very good friend to her, even coming to drop flowers off for her mom like he had promised. In one of the darkest times of her career, he stood by her, and not once blame her, betray her or say anything negative. He was a blessing for her.

"We're going to go on for 50 years, right!" It was more of a statement than a question.

"Yup," she agreed with her arm spread out wide.

It was the truth. She liked his company very much. He made her smile. He made her laugh. He made her fly. He was a vacation from everything in life, a vacation she hoped would never end.

Unconsciously, she wrapped her arms tighter around him, as an instinct of securing her in his arms, in her reach, so he wouldn't run away.

She breathed in his scent as the wind wafted it towards her. He wore the Jo Malogne perfume she had given to him in Turkey.

"You know why you're not getting hit by the wind. I'm blocking it from you."

Seconds later, he said, "I'm crying," and Soeun knew there was a double entendre when he said that. It wasn't just the rough winds causing his eyes to tear up, there was much more.

"Don't cry," she reached and patted away the transparent beads from his eyes.

Immediately after that, Jaerim felt Soeun's head resting on his back, a smile etched on his face.

"Thank you," she said.

"For everything."

⊱✿ ✿⊰

The day was filled with many activities, from eating warm and fresh Jeju seafood with ramen, followed by a vain attempt to hunt for that seafood themselves. Soeun who loved the sky, faced her fears of diving into the cold waters of Jeju, while Jaerim who loved the water, faced his fears of going high into the sky on the Viking.

They met on Earth, their middle ground, the place where Soeun could land with her wings, and where Jaerim could leave his fins.

They were a couple that compromised. On the plane ride, Jaerim protected her, and on the Disco Pangpang, it was Jaerim's turn to protect her, although the latter had been an awkward failure. Jaerim found himself falling on Soeun, sitting on her lap, hovering over her in an odd stance, and Soeun found herself screaming, asking God to spare her small frame from being squished, and desperately trying to hold onto the bars and any piece of Jaerim's flesh that she could grab.

When the ride ended and Jaerim's head fell on her's, breathing heavily into her hair,  Soeun felt a deep sensation in her stomach she could not put her finger on. She just knew it made her even weaker than she already felt.

She barely managed to walk out of the ride and resorted to piggy-backing on Jaerim's back. Jaerim didn't realize how playful Soeun could be until she began holding strands of her caramel locks under his nose, stating: "Oppa, I gave you a moustache."

She continued with her antics, giving him pigtails next, and soon they had arrived at their Jeju guesthouse.

The next couple of hours were full of shopping, preparing dinner and celebrating Jaerim's belated 31st birthday.

"You're getting old oppa," Soeun joked.

"I need to get married soon," he said, making Soeun feel uneasy. It was the same uneasy feeling that she had felt when he had spoken to KARA's Gyuri. These small things bothered her.

Little did she know, that there was a subtle message behind his words. It was meant for her.

He stared at her, watching her reaction, her creased eyebrows, as she shook her head and quickly changed the subject.  They ate the variety of different foods, each with its own unique taste, followed by Soeun's impromptu birthday cake for Jaerim.

"Ahhhh," Soeun opened while pointing the spoon of chocolate in front of him, telling him to open his mouth.

He did as he was told and copied her, feeding her next.

Soeun ate the mouthful happily but was taken aback when Jaerim suddenly leaned forward, and brushed his thumb across her lips. 

"You had a bit of chocolate there."

He looked so calm staring at her after pulling such a brave move, but Soeun was anything but calm.

Her heartbeat was erratic and she was blushing. Since her red face was not getting any lighter, Soeun took it as the opportunity to run upstairs and get Jaerim's birthday present. 

He lit up when she came down, holding the gift in her hands, asking her what it was, when he obviously knew what it was.

Soeun gave a long explanation as to why her gift for him were shoes. In the Korean culture, there was a proverb that one shouldn't buy shoes for a significant other as it implied that the receiver would run away. Soeun explained that she tried her best to avoid buying shoes, by initially planning on him a bag for his bike. However, she found out from his manager and stylists that he had purchased a new motorcycle and that one already had a bag too. In the end, Soeun gave up and went with the riding shoes, expensive ones at that.

"I want to be first girl to ride with you on your new motorcycle."

The ride today had changed her views on motorcycles in general. She could see motorcycle rides becoming an addiction for her in the future.

He took her hands in his, leaning forward, unable to hide his gratitude.

Soeun took them back, and shyly said: "Don't run away."

"Ah, Gomawo."

"Don't run away," she said more affirmatively. "Otherwise, I'll find you. I'll burn your bike."

For a second, his eyes opened wide and Soeun realized Jaerim actually believed she would burn his bike.

"I'm kidding. Use them well."

Soeun didn't know how long it had been since he had celebrated his birthday with someone special, other than his family and staff. He would keep this day, this memory, forever in his heart.

⊱✿ ✿⊰

They karaoked like wild animals, screamed, shouted and sang to their heart's content. It was another medium of letting all their emotions out, unburden and unwind themselves. After their voices were hoarse, they made their way in their pink and blue pajamas to the bathroom to wash up and then to the bedroom.

The atmosphere was awkward. Walking up to the bed was awkward, but it was for the show. That was their mentality.

Minutes later, when Jaerim was braiding Soeun's hair, speaking in Saeguk dialect with her, Soeun felt herself drowning in his gentle touch and words.

Minutes later, when Soeun was tickling Jaerim all over his body, Jaerim felt a thrilling electrifying sensation between them.

"We can't do this," Jaerim said. "There's electricity between us."

Electricity, sparks, fireworks, whatever one wanted to call it.

He was getting physically frustrated by her mere tickling. What would happen if she did more?

Soeun then continued with giving Jaerim a facial before going to bed. He resisted the idea at first, remembering what had happened the last time she did a facial for him, but Soeun insisted.

"Lie here," she said, patting her lap. "I don't give just about anybody this treatment."

Jaerim obeyed, taking one of the cucumbers from the facial and slapping one onto Soeun's forehead. He was purposely trying to frustrate her, but Soeun wasn't going to fall for it. She playfully did his facial, putting cucumbers on, taking them off, rotating them, moving them, and gently teasing him with fake kisses. She kissed him with her fingers, another time with her face very near his, but he didn't believe any of it. Even when she proved to him that she was flexible enough to do it, Jaerim still didn't buy it. 

When his face was entirely covered with his lips puckered, Soeun took the opportunity to surprise him. Quickly, she dived in, and kissed his forehead. Jaerim couldn't believe it, frantically removing the cucumbers from his eyes to see if he wasn't dreaming. Soeun playfully trying to kiss him was expected for the show, but a careful and not really easy girl like Soeun actually doing it, was unexpected. If Jaerim had any doubts about anything, they were all gone. They were replaced by a very warm feeling starting from his forehead and flowing through the rest of his body.

"Let's go to sleep," Soeun said.

They decided to sleep horizontal in order to rest their legs on the wall and burn fat in the process. As Soeun was tying her hair, Jaerim rolled into her with the blanket, taking her by surprise. She was pressed between the headboard and him, his face inches away from hers. He was so close she could feel his heartbeat, the rythm of his breathing, his hot breath on her face. Jaerim's toes were playing with hers and it made her own toes curl, as his leg was pressed between hers.

Soeun's heart was going pit-a-pat, beating loudly and she was sure Jaerim could hear it, accompanied by the sound of the breeze coming from the window. They stayed like that for a while, neither moving, but eventually Jaerim spread out his arm for Soeun, to use as a pillow, and lay facing the ceiling.

"You really don't have to feel bad for me, you know."

Soeun who was curled up beside him, looked up at him.

"You've been through a lot, much more than me. I contemplated leaving the program, for your sake...but you proved yourself to be strong."

Soeun felt her emotions welling up inside.

"I'm more than grateful that you're still doing this with me."

He looked down at her, smiling.

"I meant it when I said you're like my vacation, my breath of fresh air."

"Soeunnie, we don't know what the future holds, but let's continue treating each other well, okay? Let's make each other laugh and smile. Let's depend and lean on each other. You and me, we're like needle and string. We need to stick together."

Soeun hoped Jaerim woudn't see her tears, because they were plummeting down her cheeks as he spoke. Jaerim felt the wetness against his thin shirt, but he didn't voice it. Instead, he pulled her closer. With Soeun pressed against him, and his arm holding her close, it didn't take long for Jaerim to feel comfortable and fall asleep. Soeun could feel him breathing on her head, slow and steady. She was still wide awake so she sat up and for minutes, she just stared at Jaerim. She later placed her hand on his forehead, pushing back his brown bangs.

"You babo," she whispered. "You make it so hard not to love you."

She then leaned down and pressed her lips to his forehead, softly kissing him, and stayed there as the latter slept soundly, unaware that Soeun had given him yet another kiss.

It was around 1am when Soeun finally tucked herself back into bed with Jaerim, cuddling up next to him, enjoying the warmth emanating from his body. She felt warm and cozy. It was comfortable, like everything else about him. Soeun also didn't know what the future had in store for both of them, but she knew that with him, she felt at ease. She felt at home. He felt like home. And that's where her heart wanted to be.

⊱✿ ✿⊰

A/N: Here's another one, summarizing the Jeju events with a little bit of my imagination. The next one I plan to write will come out in May, but it won't be based on an episode so please look forward to it. 

Thank you for reading, all the comments, the subscriptions :)

Gif Credit