Seoul, 31 December 2008

I shift my body on the bed for the nth time. It's 7:05 a.m, and I didn't get a good sleep last night. Not because of the flu or the sore leg that I'm having. I actually feel a lot better about that. The heat patch I put on my leg last night has done wonders. Ji-Yong told me he was coming over; that's why I couldn't sleep. I'm not ready to face him yet. What should I say to him when he comes here? Is he going to yell at me for the way I treated him on my birthday? Eottokhaji? I hope he won't be here until later. But he won't be able to come up here anyway, he doesn't have the swipe key. Did he say that last night just to threaten me? I grunt with frustration. 

I'm still lying on my bed when a I hear the doorbell. Huh, it must be one of my neighbours who needs help with something. I lazily get up and peek through the peephole. To my horror, Kwon Ji-Yong is standing in front of my door. What kind of fool-- How the hell did he get up here? Omo... OMO! I can't let him in and see me like this, I haven't washed my face or brushed my teeth! God, why are you doing this to me? Don't you love me anymore, God?

The doorbell rings again. "Noona, I know you're up. I can hear you standing behind the door," I hear Ji-Yong's muffled voice. I run to my desk and grab a pair of sunglasses before I open the door. "Morning, sleepyhead," Ji-Yong smiles brightly and enters my apartment. "Take off the sunglasses, noona. I've seen your face without makeup," he chuckles as he puts down the big carton bag he's carrying. Oh, damn it, he's right. He saw my bare face the day after his birthday. I take off my sunglasses and close the door.

"How did you get up here?" I ask him. "I have my ways," he replies haughtily and sits on the couch. Ugh! Who told him he could sit down on my couch?! He flashes his signature smile at me and pats the area next to him, "come here and sit down." 'Come here and sit down'? This is my apartment! I can sit wherever and whenever I want! And why is he so calm? If he wants to yell at me, he should just do it now!

He sighs after not hearing my response. I walk slowly closer to him and position myself at the other end of the couch, far from where he's sitting. I clear my throat, "so, what do you want to talk about?" "Can't even offer me something to drink first? Do you hate me that much, noona?" I roll my eyes and walk into the kitchen; he follows me. If he wants something to drink, just sit down and I'll get it from him! Aigoo, Kwon Ji-Yong! Why are you like this?

"Oh? You've never used this?" he points his finger at the box of the coffee maker he gave me on my birthday. Truthfully, I really wanted to use it, but I felt like I didn't deserve to do so. I never opened the box because I figured he would want it back. "Uh... I... I thought you would want to get it back, because... You know, since we... Uh..." I stammer out. Very good, Son Ga-In! 3-year-olds can talk better than you! The voice in my head yells. He sighs heavily. "Do you want some coffee?" I ask and he nods. He walks back to the living room and I start making coffee.

"Just make one cup, noona," he utters from behind me. I furrow my eyebrows, "eh? You don't want coffee?" "I want coffee, that's why I told you to make one cup. I'll drink the coffee, and you..." he waves a small carton box in front of me, "will drink this." I take a closer look at the box; it's an herbal tea for sore throat. So he still cares about me, huh? I take the box from his hand and make myself a cup of herbal tea.

"So, Ji-Yong ah, what do you want to talk about?" I ask as we sit on the couch sipping our drinks. He's silent for a few minutes before he sighs again, "you broke your promise, Ga-In noona..." My heart starts pounding after what he just said. "Ji-Yong ah, I'm sorry..." I bend my head down. "Pay up, then," he says sternly. Eh? Pay up? Did we agree on a penalty fee or something? I have no knowledge of that... What does he mean by-- "You breached our agreement, so I'm here to collect your debt," he utters, interrupting my thoughts. Agreement? What agreement? "Y-Yeh? Ji-Yong ah, I don't understand..."

"24 hours. That's what you need to give me as the repayment. Spend the next 24 hours with me," he says after a short silence. I still don't understand what he's talking about. Is it because I hurt his feelings that night? But he was the one who cut all contacts with me. Hey, I've been hurting, too, you know. But I never expect any sort of refund from him. Tch... Kwon Ji-Yong, you rascal! "So? Can you give me that?" he raises his eyebrow at me, "if you can't, I'm going to sue you." Come again? Sue me? Is he crazy or what? This is so ridiculous, I thought he was going to talk about something else, and now he's doing this?

"What if I don't want to?" I ask snobbishly. "Well, you're going to hear from my lawyer, then. Be prepared," he answers, his face looks so serious. I laugh slightly at the amusing scene in front of me. He scoffs, "oh, this is funny to you? I'm not kidding, noona. You know I can sue you for causing me emotional distress, right?" I try to hold my laugh. I'm not that stupid, Kwon Ji-Yong, I know you're only joking. He puts his cup down on the table and stands up, "since you don't want to pay up, I guess I'll go now. Prepare yourself, ok? The media is going to have a heyday when the news gets out. Imagine that." The expression on his face still doesn't change. Omo... is he really being serious here? He's going to call up the media on me? What the heck, Kwon Ji-Yong?

"A-Arasseo, arasseo! I'll give you 24 hours! Ish... You're so annoying!" I blurt out as I run after him to the door. He turns around and a smile appears on his face. He walks back, fumbles his hand inside the big carton bag, and pulls out a piece of paper and a pen. "Sign this," he hands me the paper and pen. There are messy handwritings on the paper.

24-HOUR CONTRACT

This binding contract is an agreement between Mr Kwon Ji-Yong and Miss Son Ga-In.

The reason this contract exists is because Miss Son Ga-In is in debt to Mr Kwon Ji-Yong. Miss Son Ga-In is responsible for hurting Mr Kwon Ji-Yong and having caused him a lot of disadvantages. These disadvantages include: deteriorating health due to excessive consumption of alcohol and cigarettes, absentmindedness that earned Mr Kwon Ji-Yong daily scoldings from his boss, and countless hours of sleep deprivation.

Therefore, as a reimbursement for the disadvantages mentioned above, Miss Son Ga-In will spend 24 hours with Mr Kwon Ji-Yong.

Terms & conditions: (1) Miss Son Ga-In will agree to anything that Mr Kwon Ji-Yong asks for or says during the 24-hour period, (2) Miss Son Ga-In is not allowed to ask too many questions, and the term 'too many' will be judged by Mr Kwon Ji-Yong, (3) Miss Son Ga-In must be in a happy mood during the 24-hour period.

In return, Mr Kwon Ji-Yong will: (1) Respect Miss Son Ga-In by promising to behave and not to do any inappropriate things to her, and (2) Leave Miss Son Ga-In alone after the 24-hour period if no mutual agreement is reached.

This contract is legally binding in the eyes of South Korean Government Law. If one of the parties involved in this contract breaks any of the terms and conditions stated, the case will be sent to court.

Signed,

(Mr Kwon Ji-Yong)                    (Miss Son Ga-In)

I chuckle after I read the ridiculous contract, but I sign it anyway. This is the least I can do, right? After all, I already hurt the guy. It's a good thing that I don't have anything planned for tonight, even though it's New Year's Eve... Oh. My. God. It's New Year's Eve! Does this mean I'm going to spend my New Year's Eve with Kwon Ji-Yong? My heart starts beating faster again.

"Thank you very much," Ji-Yong says and takes the paper from my hand. "It's 8 o'clock now, so I have until 8 a.m. tomorrow. It starts now, noona. Go take a shower," he points at the direction of my bathroom. I willingly get up and follow his instruction.

After a 40-minute shower, I walk out of my bathroom feeling refreshed and relaxed. An enticing smell welcomes me as I enter the kitchen. There are 2 plates of egg and bacon sandwiches and 2 glasses of apple juice, all courtesy of Kwon Ji-Yong. I've been eating out for the past few weeks because I haven't had the chance to go grocery-shopping, so there is no way he found all those ingredients in my kitchen. "Let's have breakfast," he says cheerfully. I remember the 3rd condition in the contract: I have to be in a happy mood. I smile widely at him and sit at the dining table. We talk while eating breakfast; he fills me in on what's been happening to him, and I do the same. He doesn't discuss the incident on my birthday, which makes me feel relieved yet confused at the same time.

We spend the rest of the morning lazing around in the living room and watching TV. I miss this. I've been waiting to spend another time with him. In the contract, he wrote that he will leave me alone after the 24-hour period if no mutual agreement is reached. I don't know what that means, but I think I should just spend these 24 hours with him happilly. If he wants to terminate our friendship after that, at least I will have good last memories with him.

The afternoon comes so quickly. It's 1 p.m. now, and I start to feel hungry again. "Noona, let's go out for lunch," he pokes my shoulder. "Uh... But don't you think it's risky? A lot of people are outside today, they will recognize us," I tell him softly. He seems to be having a very good mood so I don't want to ruin it. Grinning, he pats my forehead softly, "leave all the worrying to me. Go get changed and we'll go out." 

The drive in Ji-Yong's car is filled with the both of us talking and laughing. He makes jokes, and as usual, I laugh at all of them. Soon, we reach Samsung-dong in Gangnam and head towards the direction of COEX Mall. Oh dear, he's not going to take me to the mall, is he? "Don't worry, we're not going to COEX, noona," he says, as if he could read my mind. He then parks his car on the side of the road. Since it's very cold outside, we both cover up with scarfs and beanies, making it hard to identify us even from close range. Ji-Yong then holds my wrist and drags me into a small Vietnamese restaurant.

"I love it here. They make great pho. Pho is my favourite dish, noona," Ji-Yong says as I look at the menu. We're sitting at the back of the restaurant, far from other tables. I'm not familiar with the food, so Ji-Yong orders everything for me. I don't know if he thinks I'm so hungry or if he's so hungry, but I almost got shocked when our orders arrive. There is, like, a ton of food laid down on our table. How are we supposed to finish all these? I taste a bit of everything he ordered, and all of them taste oh-so-exquisite. And, to my surprise, Ji-Yong can finish all of them with no hassle. Where does all that food go to? If he ate like that everyday, he wouldn't be that skinny. I offer to pay for half, but Ji-Yong doesn't let me. So, with a full stomach, we both walk out of the restaurant and go on a little drive around the city before we head back to my apartment.

It's 3:45 p.m and we're sitting around in the living room. I'm reading a magazine while Ji-Yong is busy looking inside his backpack. "Noona," he calls out, and I look at him. "We're leaving again soon." "E-Eh? Leave where?" I ask in bewilderment. "Just follow me. Now, all you have to do is bring some spare clothes with you and a super thick coat. Ppalli, noona," he tells me. "Yah, where are you taking me and why do I need extra clothes? Are you--" "Remember condition number 2?" he cuts in and raises an eyebrow. I sigh and drag my feet to my closet and pack up my stuff.

There are so many questions in my head as we drive out of my apartment building. However, since I'm not allowed to ask questions, I keep my mouth shut. Soon enough, we drive into the Seoul Station complex and Ji-Yong parks his car. Where are we going that requires us to take train? Is he taking me somewhere far? Omo, is he going to murder me and dump my body in a remote area? I shake my head at the crazy thought. Don't think too far, Son Ga-In! Do you really think someone like Ji-Yong is capable of murder? Aish~

"Two tickets, please," Ji-Yong says to the lady in the ticket booth. I try to peek at the tickets but he jerks his hand away from me. Ugh, why is he being so secretive? "Let's go, noona, the train is here," he grips my wrist and run, forcing me to also run with him. We get to our seats and Ji-Yong just smiles at me, not saying any word.

It's been almost 2 hours, and judging by the way Ji-Yong positions himself in his seat, it doesn't look like we're getting off the train soon. I yawn, feeling a little sleepy, probably because I ate too much. Ji-Yong gently pulls my head to his shoulder, "it's still far. Sleep for now, I'll wake you up when we get there." His whisper sends chills down my spine. I lean my head on his shoulder comfortably. In my head, I think about what's been happening today. I don't know what he's getting at by doing all this, but I guess I should enjoy it. This might be the last time I get to spend time with him in this manner.

I feel a nudge on my shoulder. "Noona, wake up. We're almost there," Ji-Yong's voice awakes me. I look at my watch and it's almost 10 p.m. Omo, I passed out for 4 hours?! I look at Ji-Yong, and his eyes are telling me that he must've fallen asleep, too. He must be tired; he came to my apartment at 7 in the morning, how much sleep did he get last night? The train comes to a stop and we both get up. Ji-Yong helps me with my bag and leads me out of the train. I notice quite a lot of people are getting off as well. As soon as my foot touches the ground, I look at the sign: Pohang Station. What the hell?! We're at Pohang now? I'll be damned...

Before I can think of anything else, Ji-Yong hauls me to the lobby of the station. "Ji-Yong ah, I need to use the toilet," I point at the ladies' room sign. "Ok, noona. You see that blue sign?" he points at a car rental booth, "I'll wait for you there. Also, take this." He runs off after he slips a small piece of paper into my hand. I take a look and read what's written on it: 'Ga-In noona, thanks for agreeing with the contract. I wrote this because I don't have the courage to say it to your face. There's one favour I need to ask from you: can you please open your heart for me? You can give me the answer after our contract ends. Please just think about it and don't let it ruin the mood we have now, ok? ^^'.

"You're done? Let's go," Ji-Yong holds my hand and leads me outside after I reach the car rental booth. We get inside the car and he starts driving. After about 30 minutes, we arrive at a hotel and Ji-Yong goes to the concierge while I sit down in the lobby. I pull up my scarf higher; I can't let anyone see me here. What will people say if they spot me together with Big Bang's leader in a freakin' hotel? Oh good God, I don't even want to think about it.

"I only reserved one room. It has twin beds, so don't worry. I will abide by my terms and conditions," he chuckles as he opens the hotel room door. "We don't have much time, noona. So, you can freshen up but don't take too long," he says. I go to the bathroom and freshen myself up before we go out again.

Ji-Yong parks the car when we arrive at Pohang Northern Beach. "Let's go, noona," he grins at me and takes his backpack from the backseat. The place is really crowded. Ji-Yong leads me towards the sands and lays down the beach towel he has in his backpack. Due to the shape and the size of the beach towel, I have to sit in between his legs with my back facing him so we both will fit on it. I feel a little uncomfortable, because my heart beats like crazy, but Ji-Yong just smiles warmly so I try my best not to look awkward. I look at the crowd around us, they all seem like they're having a great time with their loved ones. And since everyone is so immersed in the lovely ambience, no one will be able to identify who we are.

I'm having a great time, too. I'm here with Ji-Yong, and they way he's been treating me today makes me feel happy and safe. I think about what he wrote on the note he gave me earlier. Should I open my heart for him? Does he really like me? I mean, he's been trying to prove that he's not just playing around with me, hasn't he? Even though we haven't had the chance to talk about the incident that happened on my birthday, and even though it's only been half a day, I can see that he's trying to earn my trust and help me get rid of my insecurities. 

"Are you cold?" he asks softly. I can feel his breath on my nape, making me feel all ticklish. I shake my head, but he wraps his arms around me, anyway. Oh God, please don't let him hear my heartbeats! I thank the dimmed surroundings, because I'm sure that my face is blushing crimson now. And I'm also thankful that we're sitting in this position, so Ji-Yong won't be able to see my face. 

Suddenly, people start cheering and clapping their hands, "10, 9, 8, 7, 6..." Omo, it's midnight already? I didn't realize that time has passed by so quickly and-- "Happy new year, Ga-In noona," Ji-Yong whispers gently, his lips are almost touching my ear. I look up at the sky and see millions of fireworks being displayed. Despite the fact that it's almost 0 degree Celcius, I feel warmth inside of me. The beautiful fireworks show keeps on going, and I feel tears of joy rolling down my cheeks. And then I realize it; it's true what people say: it's not what you're doing, it's who you're doing it with...

As the fireworks continue, Ji-Yong's embrace around my body tightens. His hands are on my tummy, and I put my hands on top of them, "Ji-Yong ah, gomawo..."