“Seatbelts fastened, rear-view and side mirrors in position, gas is full, car is locked and… we’re good to go,” Jihyun repeated to herself out loud, shifting the automatic gear to ‘D’ before gently driving out of the parking lot. Her heart became lighter as the distance between herself and the place she used to call home grew, and she was rather glad to say goodbye to the place once and for all.

She had been the proud owner of a permanent driver’s license for two years, yet it was her first time driving again after opting for subways and buses since last year. She had adapted herself to using public transportation for different reasons, not just because it was economical and helped her to get her daily ten-thousand steps walking quota, but mainly because having a car would be a huge burden to her current monthly income. She hadn’t expected that an opportunity to sit behind the wheel again would come so soon, but she was in desperate need of a cheaper form transportation than a moving truck, that could help her carry the heavy stacks of moving boxes neatly arranged in the backseat and trunk of the car (thank god for her favourite cousin, Sunmi who was generous enough to let her borrow one of her cars).

As the car started to pick up its pace, Jihyun’s hand reached over to turn on the radio all the while holding onto the steering wheel steadily with her other hand. Once she found one of her favourite tunes, –Busker Busker’s, Cherry Blossom Ending– she went back to focusing all her attention to driving. Her eyes shifted slightly every few seconds, checking all the mirrors for any signs of danger as her cousin’s words to take care of her precious ‘baby’ kept repeating over and over inside her head. She had assured Sunmi that the twenty minutes drive would be disaster-free and that she’d arrive at her new destination safe and sound, alas, she didn’t have any supernatural powers to predict the immediate future. As Jihyun slowly turned right to drive out of a small road, a black car came zooming from the left side without warning, making her jump in her seat. Everything happened so fast in the next minute and by the time she could register what was happening, the car had stopped moving and its front bumper was already kissing the side of someone else’s car door. And she gasped.

Flustered and terrified, Jihyun sat frozen in her seat and watched as the driver of the black BMW stepped out to inspect the damage on his car. He ran his hands through his hair and rushed to her car, knocking wildly on the window and demanding to talk to her. She grimaced, taking in a huge breath before rolling down the window, “Out of the car now!” The man barked.

She knew that showing a submissive side would only further confirm her responsibility for the collision, but Jihyun never had gotten herself involved in a car accident with an angry driver before to know how to properly react to the incident. Delaying the decision to fight or flight in the situation, she hurried out to examine the level of damage the impact had caused, and saw a huge white spot on the right front door of the BMW and the bumper of her cousin’s car. She instantly felt slightly relieved to see that she’d only scratched off the paint and hadn’t made any dents on both cars, “Look at what you have done!” The man snapped again, now crouching next to his car and running his fingers over the huge white mark.

She couldn’t make out his features as half of his face was covered by a pair of sunglasses, yet she could feel the sharp deadly glares the guy was currently firing in her direction, sending instant shivers down her spine. She closed her eyes and adjusted her breathing before she could get an emotional breakdown with an added problem thrown into the bucket of dilemma she had to go through today. Her brain did a quick analysis of the current situation and finally concluded that the accident wasn’t her fault in any way, so she chose to fight back and defend herself, “Me?” Jihyun scoffed, placing one hand on her waist, “You’re the one who appeared out of nowhere!” she shot back at him, index finger pointing right to his face.

“Excuse me?” The man stood up, mirroring her posture and she was finally able to get a full view of her opponent. He was tall (she only reached up to his shoulders) and adequately well-built, dressed in black formal office attire from head to toe (his white shirt missing only a necktie with the first few buttons undone, slightly showing off his y collarbone). Just by standing there, he exuded an aura that instantly pulled her in and rendered her speechless. Oh great, she just got into an accident with a hot guy and he’s extremely pissed off with her. She found herself trying to hide her faint intimidation (and infatuation) from his tall stature and considerable build as she waited for him to speak, “I know your type, you must be on the phone while you’re driving,” he spoke in a calm but menacing tone.

“Excuse me, I know the rules! You’re the one who’s speeding in a neighbourhood area! I was going slow, but you appeared out of nowhere and ended up in front of me!” Jihyun wasn’t planning to admit defeat and let herself be wrongfully accused as she pointed out his fault. She was thankful that he still had those overly dark sunglasses covering his eyes, lessening the impact of his pointed gaze.

“Let’s settle this at the police station then,” he suggested.

An hour of heated arguments, finger pointings and sharp deadly glares later, the police had concluded in their reports that Jihyun was at fault, after judging the situation in accordance with the traffic laws. Her jaw dropped when the guy took the liberty of reciting the address of the exact location the accident had occurred, even pointing out the few CCTVs available in the area to prove himself guilty. Jihyun was more in awe at his ability to list out these details as if he had rehearsed the information beforehand, she was too focused with the accident to notice her surroundings yet he was able to multitask by scannning the area and memorizing the details while it all happened. As claimed by the police and proven in the CCTVs, she should’ve stopped at the intersection and made sure the road was safe before turning right since the BMW was travelling straight, and had the first priority to pass through.

She tried to argue that the BMW owner also disobeyed a traffic law by going more than the suggested speed limit in a neighbourhood area, but she was dismissed and ended up suffering the negative consequences of being penalized with a sum of money, equivalent to how much she could spend on a month’s worth of food if she were to eat only two meals per day. From the corner of her eyes, she saw the guy (whom Jihyun decided to temporarily call as Man In Black, because she could only remember that his surname was Kang) smirked victoriously after the police’s announcement, “Now that we know whose fault it is, you have to pay for my repairs,” he was more relaxed now as they both sat on a bench outside the police station to discuss damages on their cars.

Before Jihyun could retaliate, he took off the sunglasses which was beginning to seem like it was permanently fixed to his face, and stared right into her eyes. She caught her breath, finally given the privilege to witness his enchanting set of orbs mysteriously hidden behind the dark sunglasses. Her gaze and heart wavered for a split second at his powerful and captivating stare, which completed and intensified his overall handsomeness. She cursed under her breath, disliking the guy even more because he was making it hard for her to concentrate on being angry. Why do bad guys have to be so damn attractive? she thought.

Under normal circumstances, Jihyun’s appropriate reaction would be to melt under his alluring gaze, but after a few seconds of regaining her composure, she scoffed loudly at how he had proven that you really cannot judge the book by its cover. If she was to be honest, he was indeed insanely attractive yet his attitude towards her for the past hour did