Donghae's Point of View

     She was different. Very different from the girls I know. Im Yoona showcased pure innocence, genuine incorruptibility that made her very special. Even now, while I was driving her home, she hardly said a word. She wasn’t like those cheap flirts who got guys on their knees in no time. She was controlled, ethical, and had her set of principles. Although she was somewhat edgy for some reason I didn’t know why, it was still better than being a common flirt.

From the mirror that hung above me, I saw her leaning unto the window, wordlessly watching the surroundings while she folded her arms embracing herself. “Are you cold?” I asked carefully, making sure I wouldn’t offend her in any way this time. “I could lend you my jacket.”

She smiled faintly; a dull sparkle in her eyes disappeared immediately as soon as it appeared. “No, thank you. You’ve done much already.”

I laughed slightly. “Don’t worry about it,” I said, taking off my jacket. “It’ll give me some peace if I knew my guest isn’t freezing in the Antarctic wind back there.”

She started to reach for it, and then hesitated. “It’s okay, really. It’s not that cold.”

“You’re a bad liar you know that?” I laughed, making it sound like a joke so she wouldn’t be offended. Again. “I can see from here that your lips are already starting to turn blue.”

“It does not!” she exclaimed; and for the first time, I saw her genuine smile. “You’re the big fat liar!” she said.

I echoed her laugh but persisted. “Just take it,” I said, holding the jacket to her with an outstretched arm. I paused, and then added, “Please. It’ll give me peace.”

“But if I take it, you’ll be the one who’ll go cold.”

“Don’t worry. I’m hot as it is. The cold won’t matter to me as it would to you. So please,” I said, offering her the thick red piece of clothing

She hesitated still, but slowly but surely, she reached out, took the jacket and finally wore it. I heard her sigh with satisfaction, and I smiled. Looking at her from the overhead mirror, I saw that my red jacket complemented her pink dress nicely. “That feels better, doesn’t it?”

She nodded, and smiled, “Yes, it does. Thank you.” She paused, and then asked, “Since when did you become so gallant?”

I laughed, surprised by her question. “Well, Miss Yoona, ever since you had that violent outburst with me, I decided to be more careful with you. Besides,” I winked, “you’ll never know when a bomb will explode.”

“Gosh, was I that bad?” she asked, her voice troubled.

“That, and more.” I said, laughing but deep in me, I was somewhat troubled by that incident.

“Then I’m so sorry,” she pleaded. “I don’t know what happened to me; it wasn’t like me to lose it like that. I don’t know, I guess I was just upset.”

“No, no, no, it’s okay, really.” I started, “I guess I should’ve known better than to pick on you when you’re in such a bad mood.

“That, I cannot argue with.” she said.

I pondered, replaying the time when all I saw in her was nothing but resentment towards me. “You still haven’t answered my question though.” I said quietly.

“Which one?”

“Why do you hate so much?”

She looked down, uncertain. “It’s okay,” I said, careful about her unstable mood again. “You don’t have to answer that question if you don’t feel like it.”

She nodded quietly and pursed her lips.

I sighed, feeling the imbalance of emotions in the atmosphere. “I just wanted to know where I went wrong. So I wouldn’t be able to do it again. Who knows how many others I would offend the way I offended you? I really –”

“No,” she interrupted, “it’s not about you; it’s about me. You just caught me on a bad timing, that’s all”

“So your anger doesn’t have to do anything with me?”

“Well partially, ‘cause you provoked me. But no, it wasn’t caused by you.” she said slowly. I was not sure whether or not she was telling the truth or just evading the question. But instead of arguing with her I just nodded and said, “That’s good. I think I would be able to sleep better tonight.”

She sulked, her voice guilty, “Was I really that bad?”

“Let’s see, if you could’ve killed me with your pretty pink bag, I’d say you could have.”

“Now you’ve got me feel guilty. I’m really, really, really sorry.” she pouted. “Great, now I’ve made to your list of girls who could’ve killed you with a pretty pink bag. Perfect.”

“Are you always this melodramatic?” I asked, laughing.

“No, it all started when you came into my life.”

“Am I supposed to be flattered or guilty?”

“A little of both. But mostly the guilty part.” she said.

I laughed. Yoona wasn’t a bad person after all. She just needed a keeper to keep track of her emotions. “To tell you the truth,” I said, “I kinda liked the way you bashed me out there.”

“Okay, you lost me.” she said, confused.

“I mean it’s not every day a cute girl with a pink bag could potentially kill you. It’s kinda scary and exciting at the same time.” I laughed, teasing her.

“Great, now I feel really guilty.” she moped.

“Kidding aside, what I mean to say is that, it’s not every day you see a girl who’s not hesitant to show their true personality, how they really feel. You’ve been honest on how you felt and never hesitated to say what you feel."

“Oh joy. Now I’m impulsive and barbaric. Thanks for the compliment. I’m very flattered.” she said sarcastically.

“Melodramatic and sarcastic!” I said, laughing. “No, I mean you’re not a plastic person. You’re direct; you’re true to your emotions.”

“Oh,” she said. She was about to say something else before a bolt of lightning arced in the sky followed by a deafening boom of thunder which shook even the very insides of the car. Yoona screamed, her hands instinctively covered her ears.

“Drat, looks like there’s a storm coming. And when there’s a storm, expect a lot of rain.” I said.

As if on cue, small drops of rain began to fall from the heavens which became pounding downpour in no time. Coincidentally, Yoona’s house was only a few blocks ahead, as she said. “Looks like I wouldn’t be entering my house dry after all.” Yoona said, her voice distant. Another arc of lightning flashed and she immediately plugged her ears, bracing for the impact.

“Relax, lightning rarely hits.” I said. “As for the rain, you can borrow my jacket for the night. It has a hood in it. Use it.”

“But how are you gonna get home? You’ll get wet!” she said, concerned.

“What do I look like to you, fire? A little rain won’t get the best of me, Lee Donghae!”

“B-but, you may catch a cold or a fever!”

I rolled my eyes. “I never had a fever since last, last winter Yoona. Just use it. You need it more than I do.”

“You sure?” she asked, uncertainty clear in her eyes.

“Positive.” I pulled over her driveway then unlocked the car. “Remember, hood up, and don’t forget to run as fast as you can to avoid getting very wet.” I winked at her. “It was a pleasure meeting you Miss Yoona. Admit it, you’re happy now that you accepted my offer of a ride home now, right? Who else would lend you a jacket in this gale?”

She rolled her eyes, “Yeah, yeah. Thanks a lot Lee Donghae. Thanks for the ride home, thanks for lending me your jacket; I promise to take good care of it. Blah, blah, blah…” she said in a mocking voice.

I laughed, “Well then, goodnight Miss Yoona. You’re not such a bad person after all.”

“Gee, thanks.” she said sarcastically then opened the door and murmured, “I wish I can say the same to you.” then she closed the door and ran towards the house. I saw her wink and wave her hand at me, mouthing the word “thanks”. I smiled. She was finally smiling at me. Pinch me, I must be dreaming.

     Driving back towards Jessica’s house, the rain got stronger. Even with my window wipers at maximum speed, it was impossible to see more than a few meters. I drove at a safe speed, for it wasn’t wise to speed up in this type of weather. But unfortunately, some people didn’t share the same sentiments with me. It happened too fast. All I remember was seeing two pairs of bright headlights accompanied with a loud honk of a truck before being thrown away with incredible force and felt the world around me black out.