Before she knew it, it had been a week ever since she stepped past the gate of the military base. She had developed, some sort of, routine in her daily life living in the base. Every morning she woke up at the crack of dawn, ran for more than 20 laps in the chilling cold, endured exercises and undergo rigorous training for hours before she could have some time to herself.

And even then, it wasn't as if she had loads to do. She didn't have any friends, and it did make her feel lonely at times; but she told herself it was okay.

She hadn't visit her brother, and mentally told herself over and over again to make some time. She could not let him know the situation she was in; and would rather spare him the truth.

Other than that, her life was settling into a calm steady flow. If you could call disguising as a guy and joining the military as calm, then yes.

Was this what they call "before the storm"?

She was on her guard at all times, not even letting the slightest hint that she was a woman slipped out. Even so, she had a feeling as if someone was watching her at all times, as if someone discovered...

Nonsense, she told herself.

Suddenly, a sharp pair of eyes appeared in her mind; and she immediately knew who they belonged to.

Ever since the night of the incident, Choi Seunghyun seemed to be paying extra attention to her. Everytime they met, he smirked at her amusingly as if he was playing an old joke in his mind. As if it wasn't enough, his eagle-like eyes seemed to be directed at her everytime he talked to their group. Her heart raced everytime she catched a glimpse of his face or everytime he snickered at her.

She never knew her life would turn to this in just a matter of a week.

Sighing, she continued on her way to the bathroom with clothes and towel on her arms. Maybe a bath could soothe her aching muscles and tired mind.

She opened the door and peeked in. No one, she thought, perfect. Today must be her lucky day.

She carefully closed the door and dropped her clothes. Then she dipped into the heavenly warm water that awaited her in the large bath tub.

She closed her eyelids and enjoyed the heavenly sensations of the water on her skin. For the moment, she allowed herself to drift away from her surroundings and environment; away to her own personal dreamland.

But, as they say, good things don't last long. And soon enough trouble found her when her ears picked up the sound of footsteps. She tried to tell herself it was her imagination; but she knew she sounded vain as the footsteps got nearer nearer.

What did I do to deserve this? She sighed sorrowfully.

The door of the bathroom opened; and a gruff manly voice called out.

"What's up?" She heard the sound of clothes rustling, and tried her best to devise a plan to get out from the sticky situation.

"Oh...um...um how's it going?" She put on her best I'm-not-a-woman voice, and immersed herself even deeper into the tub hoping her body would be hidden.

"It's tiring in here huh?" 

"Yeah well,...it could be worse I guess."

The man chuckled.

"Yeah. For all I know I could be married or something."

"Hey! I mean, marriages are not that bad. I mean, you get to live with the person you love forever right?" Her woman instincts took over before she could stop herself.

It was a moment before the man laughed, as if what she said was some great joke.

She heard him stepping into the water, and she turned to see who it was.

The blond head was unmistakable; it was only her worst nightmare: Kwon Jiyong.

Ever since the first training, she had developed a sort of dislike towards the man. He made fun of her for not finishing the training in time; and stood there smirking as if it was funny to see her crawling in the mud or climbing ladders.

No, she did not like him at all. And now he just had to show up of all people.

She frowned, trying to concoct a plan where she could escape while concealing her identity.

"Oh you're Park aren't you? I should have known." He snickered, and she made a face.

"What? I sounded naive to you? Well I'm sorry cause I was speaking what I think."

"If you could use half of that energy during the trainings then maybe the commander wouldn't assign me to watch over you."

"Well contrary to what you think having someone watching me and getting in my face all the time ain't a piece of cherry pie either."

He laughed, the sound rich and echoing in the walls.

"You're funny Park."

"Is that a compliment?"

He chuckled, then relaxed and closed his eyes against the edge of the tub.

"Where are you from?" He asked, eyes still closed.

"Se..Seoul."

"That near huh? I'm from Gangnam. Lived with my family there for all my life."

"Why did you join the military?" She asked, her worries seemingly forgotten as she looked at him with her round eyes.

He opened his eyes and glanced at her before he said.

"Well you see, I loved this woman. We married, but it was only a year when she died giving birth to our child. The child died too." There was grief in his voice as he spoke, and somehow she also felt sad. It must have been tough. It was one of the reasons why she treasured her brother and her life; because some people have it much worse.

"It's okay. Life goes on." Unconsciously, her hand reached out and touched his forearm lightly to comfort him. "They will always be remembered in your heart."

Somehow, Jiyong felt better than he usually did when his deceased wife and child were mentioned. There was something soothingly comforting about the way Park looked at him and touched him; and even though it sounded strange he felt a little bit buzzed with the other's hand on his arm.

"Anyway, I joined 2 years after loosing them. I don't usually talk to people about this, much less a stranger." He looked at the other male, who smiled and casted his gaze in the other direction.

"Probably because the water has magic in them or something."

Jiyong laughed at the man's simple and comical naivety.

"What about you? Why did you join? There must be a reason or else you wouldn't stand crawling through the mud like a pig."

She scrunched her nose at him, making him laughed again. Strange, he had never laugh like this in years.

"I joined...because of someone very dear to me." Was all she said.

"Ahhhhh." Jiyong nodded understandingly, somehow feeling a little bit....disappointed? What? He straightened himself.

They talked and talked, about their lives and their personal interests to their favorite food and favorite hobby; and soon enough time flew by. Jiyong stood up ready to leave much to Bom's relief. But in truth she forgot about her worries when she chatted with the other male.

"I guess I'll see you later Park."

"Yup."

"You better be ready to get dirty and roll down the hills again!" He called over his shoulders.

"Too bad you have to stand there and watch it!" She retorted, making him laugh as he walked out the door.

She wasn't really sure what just happened; but she was pretty sure she had a new friend.

And maybe, just maybe, that'd make her life feel a bit better.

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