Did you guys catch the reference for this in Chapter 12? ;)

Admittedly, the next few weeks were awkward, weird, and a bit emotional for me. I’m not sure if was because I was adjusting to a longer 2 year stay in Korea…or if Anthony’s little message had me so startled that I just couldn’t get myself together

Being the awesome person that she is, my roommate figured out something was wrong, and pestered the living hell out of me about it, but I elected to keep the information to myself. I didn’t want to talk about Ji Hoo; I didn’t even want to think of his name. I avoided staying at the Park house after tutoring because I didn’t want to meet him (or Anthony) and I started even distancing myself from Ji Yung. I just couldn’t go over it in my head enough to accept it….regardless of my inability to accept it, I know someone like Ji Hoo would have never been able to do it. He was just always so angry around me, and I had convinced myself that it wasn’t just because he liked me.

One Saturday morning, Chanelle came in cheerfully.

“Hey! We should go out tonight!”

I took a break from reading my magazine to speak with her.

“Ehhhh…I just don’t kn—“ Chanelle interrupted me before I could finish.

“Oh come on, Kara. It will be fun! I’ll even reserve us a VIP booth so we don’t have to fight for a table. PLLLEEEEAAAAASSEEEEEE!!”

I jokingly rolled my eyes at her and shook my head her. “Okay. I guess since you’ve asked so nicely…”  Chanelle squealed and said something about a new pair of shoes she was dying to wear. All I could do was laugh at her enthusiasm.

Later that evening, we found ourselves in Gangnam. All dressed up, just us two. We were escorted by service to our VIP booth and ordered a bottle of Japanese Sake (Chanelle’s favorite). 

“Let’s go dance!” Chanelle yelled over the music.

Before I could protest, Chanelle grabbed my arm and dragged me onto the dance floor. Surprisingly enough, I ended up enjoying myself. Eventually, a few came up to us and introduced themselves to us, but we really couldn’t hear their names over the music. Chanelle suggested we go back to our booth, and we did. Everything was going so well. Was being the operative word. We were talking about soccer, I think, and then all of a sudden, we heard an “AHEM” and someone slammed their beer on the table.

Words cannot accurately convey the amount of shock I experienced when I looked up and saw Anthony and Ji Hoo standing at our table.  Chanelle and I just stared at them—unpleasantly and then all of a sudden Ji Hoo leaned in, focused on me and said:

“Yeobo! I have been waiting for you on the other side of the club…didn’t you get my text?”

He picked up my phone as if he owned it and then tossed it back at me.

“I suppose not.” He said coyly.

Anthony also had some sort of story to insinuate that he and Chanelle were in a relationship, and before we knew it, our company had left, and dumb and dumber were the only things standing in front of us.

“I am going to kill both of you. Right now. In front of everyone.” Chanelle stared back at Ji Hoo and Anthony intensely.

I was getting pissed again; all the while trying to forget what Anthony had told me a few weeks back.  

“Ladies….it looks as if you’re starving for some company. Allow us to entertain you!” Anthony said enthusiastically.  They simultaneously sat beside us on the circular bench around the table, cornering us in.  

Chanelle was the first to speak: “Are you both sincerely crazy? Jugulle?” Both of them smiled, seemingly proud of themselves and of what they’d accomplished.

Anthony picked up the bottle of sake we’d be sharing with “the runaways” (as we ever so graciously deemed them). “Seems you’re running low. Excuse me…you there….we need another bottle of sake, and 2 more shot glasses please.” The server bowed and walked away.

All I could do was sit in silence. Yes, I was pissed at him, but all I could picture in my mind was that napkin Anthony passed to me that day of the birthday party. My curiosity started to get the better of me so I attempted to get a glance of Ji Hoo out of the corner of my eye. He was wearing black skinny jeans, and some kind of shirt with a jacket over it. He looked…almost relaxed…and then it donned on me that this was the first time I’d see him when he was not wearing a suit.  As I was looking him up and down, though, Ji Hoo turned (probably to make conversation with me) and he saw me glancing at him. I quickly glanced back at Anthony to find him noticing me as well. . I was caught.

Anthony smiled and raised his eyebrow playfully towards me. I could feel myself turning red, but thankfully our server came back with a fresh bottle of sake and I was ready to drown my embarrassment in it.

Shot, after shot, after shot, after shot. I poured the sake down my mouth like it was water. I caught Ji Hoo looking at me curiously a few times, but I just ignored him. “If I can just drink enough to the point where I’m not going to remember this, I’ll be okay with it.”  I thought.

I went to take another shot, but I felt someone’s hand grab mine and push it down and away from my mouth. “Don’t you think you’ve had enough?”

I sloppily leaned towards him and stopped inches away from his face.

“This coming from the that’s downed half a bottle of Crown in the last hour?”

He leaned away from me, making some sort of snide remark about my breath.

I positioned myself away from him once more, leaning towards the other side of the table.

Anthony and Chanelle were having some kind of conversation about something that was really boring. I wrinkled my nose up in protest and leaned back in the booth.

“This is why we needed those other guys here….” I said, almost pouting.

Chanelle glanced over at me “I’m fine, actually. Anthony makes for pretty good company…” she said flirtatiously.

“Aigoooooooo….you two deserve each other!”  I replied.

I peered over at Ji Ho once more, to find him sipping on another glass of Crown.

“Do you even know how to make conversation?” I asked sarcastically.

Ji Hoo stopped, set his drink down turned his entire body to face me. It kind of creeped me out. “I make conversation with relatively interesting people who actually have pertinent matters to discuss.”

“Excuse me?”

“Futhermore, I’m actually at a disadvantage by sitting in the same booth with you; you’re not even close to the kind of woman I’m used to having near me…in all actuality, I’m doing you more favors than you can imagine right now…”

Ji Hoo continued to speak, and my anger increased with each word

“…so perhaps I would feel more inclined to converse with you if you, had a more obliging face or wore more…..fashionable clothes….I mean, honestly how could you come to a club in Gangnam dressed like that?”

A twinge of embarrassment flooded my thoughts for a moment. I looked down at my skirt and shoes and felt like an idiot for about 1 second and then I just became exceedingly angry.

I called our server over to the table.

“Excuse me, what is your most expensive Japanese Sake?”  The server replied; I instructed her to bring it to our table. Anthony and Chanelle both looked at me in shock.

“Are you okay? Are you sure you want to do that, sweetie?” Chanelle asked sympathetically?

“I’m fine. I can splurge on a bottle of alcohol even if I can’t buy a $700 pair of shoes.”

Ji Hoo quickly looked up at me and then turned his head down towards the floor.

The server set the bottle down, and I asked her to pour a glass rather than a shot of it for me. Anthony and Chanelle both watched uncomfortably as I grabbed the glass and held it up in the air.

“Cheers!”

Everyone raised their glasses with me and we took a sip of our drinks. I turned towards Ji Hoo, positioning myself a bit closer to him; he quickly noticed.

“Would you like some sake, Ji Hoo?”

Anthony and Chanelle both looked at me in disbelief.

Ji Hoo raised an eyebrow inquisitively before replying “Well, I do feel a bit bad that this is probably a week’s salary for you, but since you’ve ordered it, I suppose we shouldn’t let it go to waste.”

I smiled, poured a glass for him, and then after some consideration of his last comment, I threw the sake in his face. 

“OMO!” Chanelle said loudly, startled at my actions.

Anthony look of shock quickly turned to a huge smile and then he proceeded to force himself not to laugh.

“YA!” Ji Hoo yelled, pointing his finger at me.

I’m not sure if it was because I was drunk, or embarrassed, but I decided that I should probably remove myself from his presence, so I crawled under the table, explaining to everyone that I needed to use the restroom.

As I walked away, I heard Ji Hoo mumbling something about his expensive shirt that I was “definitely” going to pay for. I stumbled to the bathroom, and ran some water in the sink so I could splash my face. I stopped, leaning forward on the counter to look at myself and to do some thinking.

“What is it about this bastard that pisses me off so much?”

I composed myself and started to make my way back to the VIP booth, but because of my inebriated state, I ended up actually going to the back of the club where the karaoke rooms were. Call it fate. Coincidence, but I wondered down a short hallway and found myself opening a door to one of the rooms, and as I opened the door, I noticed a familiar face.

“Ya! If you’re here to throw something at me, you can just turn around and leave.”  Ji Hoo yelled.

I scoffed, but then I realized that most everytime we’d met, I’d thrown something at him. Shoes. A wok. A piece of cake. And now, a glass of sake. VERY EXPENSIVE SAKE.

“Not your best moment, Kara…” my thoughts were silenced by more of Ji Hoo’s sarcasm.

“Well, now I know why you’re single; apparently when you see wealthy, eligible men, you throw at them.”

“Mianheyo.” I said under my breath.

“Mwuh?” 

“I SAID I’M SORRY DAMMIT.”

I sloppily walked my way over to a couch on the other side of the room from where he was sitting…nearly tripping over the karaoke stage.

“I acknowledge your apology, but next time we meet, I’ll just remember to bring extra clothes and a recorder so I can acknowledge the assault to police. “

I scowled at him before mumbling something about trying to keep my temper in check. Afterwards we sat in silence for a short while.

To break the awkwardness I suggested karaoke.

“Do you know any English songs?” I asked.

He laughed again. “I was in the US for half of my undergraduate degree….what do you think?”

“Do you want to sing with me?” I quietly propositioned.

“I can think of a thousand other things I’d like to do at this moment.”

“If you do, I swear I won’t throw anything else at you. I swear.” He looked up at me in disbelief.

“Yeah, right. Besides, I don’t sing, okay?”

“PLEASSEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!”

Ji Hoo looked up at me a bit more warmly.  “Are you actually begging me?” he asked.

“HA. YOU WISH.” I replied sarcastically.

I then ran over to the TV, started “Whenever You Call” by Brian McKnight and Mariah Carey and then grabbed Ji Hoo’s arm, pulling him up and onto the stage. He just stood there indifferently, ignorning the words for a bit.

“If you don’t sing, I will bother you until you do…”

We sang the song together. His voice was actually pretty good. I was impressed, well…as much as a drunk girl that hated him could be impressed.

The song started to end and we faced each other at the last note. Our eyes made contact and all at once I felt myself glued to him. My breathing slowed down and I felt myself start to blush. Damn alcohol.

Ji Hoo turned away from me quickly, dropping the microphone on the floor.  He quickly grabbed his jacket and then said something about going home. He asked me if I could tell Anthony and Chanelle that he was going to leave first.   I nodded, thanked him for obliging me with the song, and then he closed the door. I sat down immediately after he left thinking about what just happened, and then I noticed his cell phone on the couch.

“It must have fallen out of his jacket…” I immediately got up, and ran out the door for him. Just as soon as I rounded the first corner, though, I saw the flash of a person; it was Ji Hoo. I dropped his cellphone out of shock.

“Oh no!”

I knelt down immediately to pick it up and as I came back up, I realized how small the hallway was. Ji Hoo was standing directly across from me; we both had little room to move. I could feel his breath lightly glazing my cheeks; our eyes locked again.

I felt myself getting nervous, but Ji Hoo just focused in on me…seemingly unaffected by nerves or the alcohol he’d consumed earlier.  I stretched my hand out towards him, holding his cell phone.

“I, uh…I came out to um—“

He laughed at me again. “Have you never been with a man?” I stared at him blankly for a moment uncertain of what he was asking me.

“I don’t see how that is your business?”

“You seem so nervous right now, it’s just so stupid…” his voice trailed off and at that moment, I instantly regretted thinking or feeling sorry about throwing the sake on him earlier….or anything else for that matter.

“I mean, men use these kinds of things to encourage affection from women, but you…you just stand there staring at me like a cold fish, and it’s quite a turn off, really. I mean, considering your inability to dress well, mediocre looks, and lack of taste, you could at least navigate the mechanics of relationships well to make up for it.”

I looked down at the floor, embarrassed at his remarks.

“It’s true, then? I’m assuming your silence is a yes.” He leaned in closer and turned his head in towards mine as if he was going to kiss me. “You really have no experience with men, do you?”

I looked back up at him, fully aware that our eyes would meet again, and then I grabbed his tie and pulled him in closer. Ji Hoo’s eyes widened with surprise. I leaned in closer to his cheek and stretched my neck up to whisper in his ear:

“I’ve got more experience than you might be comfortable with assuming, Ji Hoo; just because I don’t waste it on an arrogant prick like you doesn’t mean I don’t have it.”

I lowered my head again, still holding his tie. Ji Hoo didn’t struggle; he didn’t say a word. Instead, he let our eyes meet again.  My heart started beating quickly. I could still feel his breath bouncing off of my skin.  Ji Hoo switched his feet a little bit and then extended one of his hands and positioned it up against the wall beside my head. His face was blank and intense. It was not warm, just…very intense. He leaned in closer; I was certain he was about to kiss me when his phone rang.

He looked away from me and answered his phone. After speaking for a few moments, he hung up. I couldn’t do anything but stay up against the wall I’d been leaning on.

Ji Hoo looked like he was going to come back in close again, but then he turned away from me.

“I’ll leave first.” He glanced over his shoulder to catch one quick look at me, and then hurriedly walked away...