The next morning dawned clear and bright, the sun making its way up through the forest leaves to the sky high above.

Jaejoong glanced at the dashboard clock. 7 am. He yawned. His whole body ached, especially his neck, which had been twisted sideways on the headrest all night long. He’d had a restless, uneven night, tossing and turning on the small, hard seat. It had taken him forever to fall asleep, but sometime after 5 am he’d zonked out.

Jaejoong stretched his arms and looked over at Dara. Or more precisely, Dara’s empty seat. She was gone. Jaejoong’s eyes darted into the backseat and then zeroed in on her door, slightly ajar.

She wouldn’t have done anything stupid, like trying to walk for help by herself, would she? The events of the night before came rushing into his head, flooding his brain. He couldn’t believe he’d done what he did – that they had done what they did.

This isn’t any girl, Jae. It’s Kris’ girlfriend; your brother’s girlfriend. The words rolled through his mind like a never-ending movie trailer. He pictured his friends at school standing around with their jaws open. You did what, Jae?! Jaejoong felt sick at the thought of what happened. And now she’s disappeared. !

She probably wanted nothing to do with him. Jaejoong realized miserably. He got out of the car and shook out his arms and legs. “Dara?” he called. His voice echoed through the early morning air. “Dara?”

He listened carefully and soon heard the sound of branches crackling.

“I’m here. Can’t a person have some privacy when peeing?” Dara muttered as she came trudging through the trees. Jaejoong thought Dara looked even prettier in the morning than she had last night. And she’d looked good then too. Her eyes were puffy and sleepy looking, and her cheeks had a pale pink hue.

“Sorry,” Jaejoong said, flustered. Come to think of it, he had to go to the bathroom too. “I’ll be back,” he called out, making a path through the woods.

When he returned, Dara was crouched down in front of the car. “You can see the deer tracks here,” she said, pointing to the ground.

Jaejoong nodded. “That was pretty cool last night,” he said. He saw her blushed. “The deer, I mean.” Before he could further embarrass the both of them he heard a noise in the distance. Either he was imagining things or there was some kind of vehicle coming toward them from down the highway.

Dara leaped up, “Someone’s coming, Jae.”

Jaejoong followed Dara as she ran out to the road and flagged down a forest green minivan as it came over the crest of the hill. He made sure that Dara was behind him just in case something bad will happen. “Stay behind me, Dara.” He felt his muscles tensed as the car stopped.

The twenty-something driver came to a stop and rolled down his window. “You guys stuck?” A woman wearing a flowered dress sat beside him, and a tiny baby slept peacefully in a car seat in the back. Jaejoong relaxed after seeing the couple.

“Yeah. We’ve got a flat tire and no spare,” Jaejoong told him.

“Can you help us please?” Dara blurted out. “We’re really totally desperate.”

The man turned to the woman, who Jaejoong guessed was his wife. She shook her head slightly. “We’re on our way to a family reunion,” she said apologetically, leaning over her husband. “We’ll be late if we stay.” She grinned. “And this is the first time my parents are going to see our baby. We can’t keep them waiting.”

Her husband eyed the car. “There’s an auto-body shop about 10 miles down the road. We’ll stop and send someone back to help you,” he offered. “Okay?”

“Okay,” Jaejoong said, shoving his hands in his pockets and stepping back from the window. “Thanks.” He waved as the couple pulled away.

“How could you just let them go like that?” Dara exploded, stomping her foot. “Our first chance at salvation and you let our rescuers get away!”

Jaejoong sighed. He could understand her frustration, but she was being a little ridiculous.

“Let’s get back to reality here, Dara. Other than holding them hostage, I didn’t see many alternatives to ‘no.’ Do you understand me?” He couldn’t resist the icy tone of his voice.

Dara dropped down along the roadside. “They’d better send help,” she mumbled, her eyes narrowing into slits.

Jaejoong pretended to get scared. “They’d better.”

Dara glared at him.

Twenty minutes later a tow truck pulled up.

“Anybody here needs a tow?” said the tall black haired guy looking out the window.

“We do,” Dara said, grabbing her tote bag and hopping into the cab of the truck. “How fast can you change a tire, sir?”

**

Jaejoong eyed the box of doughnuts on the counter.

“Here, help yourself,” said Kush, the driver of the tow truck, gesturing toward the carton. “You guys must be starved.”

“Thanks,” Jaejoong said gratefully, picking the biggest one in the box. “I wish we’d had a doughnut last night, don’t you, Dara?”

She scowled as she cradled the phone next to her ear. Dara had waited to call the Kris to let them know they were okay as soon as they arrived at the shop. “The line is busy!” she said in frustration, slamming down the receiver. “Who could they be talking to at this hour?”

“They’re probably trying to find out if we’re okay,” Jaejoong remarked. He knew that his family was probably frantic by now. He hoped that they hadn’t called his mom. His mother would be in tears if that happen.

Jaejoong dialed his own number after four rings: “Hello. You’ve reached Hye Soo and Jaejoong’s residence. Leave your name and number, and