It was even more awkward than the first time. Neither of them attempted to talk. Daehyun focused on the GPS and she finally spoke when he took a particularly narrow turn. “Where are we going?” He knew she was trying when she added a joke. “It looks like we’re about to be killed, that turn was so sharp.”

            “You’ll see.” He had purposely turned off the GPS navigation system so she couldn’t hear their destination.

            Jinli leaned back against her seat and watched him drive instead. He was concentrated and she saw that his eyebrows were furrowed and his mouth had a strained appearance. He was either really nervous or he was concentrating really hard. She decided it was less stressful to look out the window.

            He pulled up at a parking lot and she prayed they weren’t going to another public place. She didn’t want to be seen with him in public right now. But of course if Daehyun wanted to spend time, then he would make sure people saw them spending the time together. She clenched her jaw and he looked at her.

            “Don’t get out.”

            This surprised her and she waited for him. She stared ahead and then he was back in the car, with bags in his hands. She didn’t’ dare check and Daehyun laughed a little, the first time he had done so in a long while, the second time he’s laughed because of her.

            “You can look, you know. I won’t put an explosive in there to blow your eyes out.” She gave him a deadpan look. Leave it to him to mar what could have been a step forward in their relationship with a dry comment.

            She peered into the bags and was surprised to find food. “We’re not going to a restaurant?”

            He didn’t bat an eyelash as he continued to drive. The sky was darker now and Jinli looked out, trying to figure out where it was that he was taking them. Busan was strange to her and he wasn’t offering any details.

            After what seemed like eternity, he stopped the car and she could hear waves. He must have taken them to the ocean side. “Wait here,” he instructed again and she stared at him incredulously. He took the bags with him. This time he was gone for a long while. She began to play with her phone, turning the screen on and off, debating whether to call him.

            There was a knock on her window and she let out a tiny scream. Daehyun was right there, smiling a bit. He opened the door for her and she saw wildflowers in his hands. “Here, for you.” Jinli didn’t dare take them, thinking that this was all an illusion. The Daehyun she knows was not like this.

            He huffed a little, a twinge of the old impatience coming back, and he tucked a daisy in her hair. “Let’s go.”
            He took her hand voluntarily and she followed. This was how she imagined their lives to be. She wanted him to lead her, to take her places but instead, he had always let her go by herself. She wanted to feel like he cared, and now, he seemed to be caring. But she took every action with a grain of salt, and it was with a hint of cynicism that she tallied up how many brownie points he had planned on earning to ask her for a favor.  

            “How has work been?”

            She shrugged, unsure how much should share, how much he actually cared to know. “It’s been. I’m just working on a new apartment and the people have some eclectic tastes. You?”

            “There is a deal I’m pushing and tomorrow we’re negotiating. Your father had a hand in it.” Jinli braced herself. Here came the help he needed from her. “Do you think this is good?”

            “What?” she snapped, only half meaning to sound nicer. “I don’t even know what the deal is, how can I offer you an opinion?” He worked faster than she thought. But it must be this efficiency that allowed him to climb up the ranks so quickly despite his father’s strict skills only promotions.

            Daehyun managed to look amused at her outburst. “I was talking about this spot. For our picnic.”

            She blushed a little and looked around. She had been so absorbed by him and her thoughts that she hadn’t been paying attention to where they were. He had taken her to a grassy space, overlooking the ocean and when she looked closer, she realized they were near the edge of a canyon, the only thing below, the rush of water.

            “Given the risk factor of death by drowning, I guess this is okay.” She was still on the defensive after being consumed by her assumptions.

            He gave her a look and shook his bangs from his eyes. “You can relax, Jinli.” He rarely called her name. “I won’t be pushing you off any time soon. Maybe if you threatened to cheat on me, I would,” he joked and she scowled, not appreciating his slightly stingy reminder that he was still upset over Taewoon.

            “Well, you better not rest easy considering how big of a jerk you’ve been.” The words rolled off without her thinking and processing them and the moment they were in the air, she clapped her hands over . “Sorry, my filter was off.”

            He had squatted to place the blankets and the food he had bought on the grass but when she spoke, he had stopped. She looked at him nervously and Daehyun almost looked apologetic.

            “I have been a jerk, I know. I’m sorry. I used to live alone so I just vented all my anger out on the dartboard. But I guess, I started using you as a human target.” It was more than work but just because she didn’t want to further ruin the moment any more than she had, Jinli didn’t say anything.

            “Yeah. My dad did it too. I should be used to it.”

            He reached for her hand, stopping halfway, and letting his fingers graze her skin. “But I shouldn’t be doing it.”

            Jinli sat down where he indicated and watched him move, making the sandwiches faster than she could. “Used to the bachelor life?”

            He cracked a grin. “I normally dismiss the maids.”

            “You know, we don’t need them either.”

            “Nah, their presence makes my mom happy. She thinks that with them there, we would-“ he stopped talking, knowing that he was about to bring up their unhappy circumstance again.

            “Ah, spies! That’s okay. I understand.”

            The conversation this time was strained, because she was on the lookout. Last time the turnabout had been too quick, and this time, she knew that if she let her guard down, she would be hurt again. But it wasn’t long before Daehyun made her laugh.

            He had a funny personality and could tell a joke as smoothly as any comedian. It was a shame he made her so unhappy. When there was a hint of day, and Jinli had to stifle a yawn, Daehyun stood.

            “Date over, gotta clean up now.”

            Her heart thumped. He had used date as if it had been something he wanted, something voluntary and she bent to help him pick the wrappers up. When they straightened, their foreheads bumped and she let out an ‘ow.’

            Daehyun placed his hands on her shoulders and leaned in, kissing her softly where the imaginary bruise would be. “Let’s go home.”

sorry for not updating in so long~