Then she had the cleverest idea. Go on vacation.

Jeju-do! It is South Korea’s pride.

                Right. It is the perfect time to forget.

                She went to her favorite resort, Sunflower Resort and checked in.

                Although she was alone in this vacation, she wanted to truly be free. To be a princess in her own way. She wants to temporarily forget the truth she knows. Weird as it seems, she was thankful that she didn’t experience too much pain even her cancer was already in stage 4. It was like a silent killer.

                Since she is in Jeju, swimming is a must. She wore her pink bikini and went to Sunflower Resort’s pride, their beautiful swimming pool.

                Summer is already here but luckily, only a few people have checked in yet.

                She wore her shades and laid down in the deck chair.

                Right. Just right. I deserve this. I want to live my life to the fullest. I have to do everything I wasn’t able to do. It can also help writing my next book.

                She was already sleeping when she felt that someone sat to the deck chair beside her. She ignored it though and then a man spoke.

“A beautiful lady vacationing of her own?”

                Who is this man talking to?

“Excuse me, Miss. May I buy you a drink?”

                Is he talking to me?

“Miss. Pink Bikini?”

                I’m wearing pink bikini!

                Joo Hyun sat and stared at the man beside him. She removed her shades and..

“Jung Yong Hwa-shii?”

                The man also removed his shades.

“Seo Joo Hyun?!”

                Both spoke at the same time.

“WHY ARE YOU HERE?”

He smiled, “Well, this is ours. You?”

“Can’t I have a vacation?”

“Oh. Alone?”, he’s still smiling and called the waiter. “Can you please give us two mango shakes?”

“Yes. Alone. Why? Is it wrong?”, she defensively answered.

“I’m alone too.”, Since we’re both alone, how about we tour the island together.”

                Is this guy asking me to go with him?

--silence—

“Are you still thinking about what I said about your book?”, he said.

“Well, yeah. Of course.”, she said.

“If I’ve offended you, I’m sorry. Don’t take it against me. I’m an actor and I do movies based on books. I’m just giving an advice..”

“Thank You Yong Hwa-shii..”, she looked at him and smiled. “At first I was mad but I get it. It feels like you’re the first person who said an honest opinion about my book. I owe you.”

“Owe me for what?”

“What you said made me want to prove you wrong.. Now I have motivation.”

                He smiled. This girl is cool.

“So, do want to parasail?”

“Parasail?”, she asked.

“Yeah. Since you’re alone, let’s have fun together!”

                Well, I’ve got nothing to lose. It sounds fun.

“Okay. Sure.”

                Yong Hwa was surprised by Joo Hyun answering “yes” so easily. They grabbed their stuff and Yong Hwa told the receptionist that they would like to parasail.

                Their safety gears were already put on when..

“I’m scared.”, Joo Hyun said.

“Are you sure you want to do this?”, he asked.

“Yeah. I cannot do this in the future…”

“Why not? You can still come here next summer.”

                Yeah right. Next summer, I might not be around anymore.

“Come on. It’ll be fun. I promise.”, he said.

                The two of them parasailed together. It was the perfect time for Joo Hyun to reflect on how she handled her life. The beautiful view from above showed her how vast the ocean is, how wonderful the earth is. She felt so free. She looked at Yong Hwa who was having a blast while they’re parasailing.

                How come I’m starting to appreciate life now that it’s nearing its end? Just why?

                She opened her arms as she feels the wind..

“Yong Hwa-ah!!!”

He looks at her, “Why?”

“What’s our next activity?”

                Parasailing was worth it. Joo Hyun had fun and enjoyed it very much. Doing so made her temporarily forget about her illness. She wanted more. This is how life is supposed to be. We should live for every split second of it.

                Before moving on to their next adventure, they decided to have some lunch at a nearby eatery.

                They were enjoying their meal when Yong Hwa started a conversation.

“So, what brings you here in Jeju? Don’t you have work?”

Although she was hesitant in answering, she still did and said, “Hmm. Just to get out from reality.. and have fun.” She looked at him and smiled.

“Oh. Is that so? Is your boss giving you a hard time?”

“Not really. She’s nice to me. She always gives me a chance.”

“Have you always dreamed of becoming a writer?”, he curiously asked.

Joo Hyun sipped her tea and answered, “To be honest, no.”, she smiled, “I never really knew what I wanted to be. I just want to be out of my parents’ shadows.”

He grinned and looked at her intently. “Haha. It’s funny that we think alike.”

“Hmm? What makes you say that?”

“Well”, he leaned back to his chair, “My dad had always wanted me to take over our resort. He totally disagreed with me being in a band. But, I love music.”

                Joo Hyun listened carefully to his words. She had always felt that Yong Hwa was like any other celebrity. Lovely in front of the camera, arrogant and cold from behind. But the Yong Hwa she listens to is different. First impressions don’t really last forever.          

                After they finished their meal, they went back to the beach.

“Kyaa~~! The weather is so nice!”, she said as she ran to beach looking like a child.

“Yah! Let’s go”, as he points to a small kiosk.

                Joo Hyun followed him.

“What’s our next agenda?”

“Snorkeling.”

“SNORKELING!”, she exclaimed as her eyes were glittering. “I’ve never tried that before!”

Yong Hwa looked at her and grinned. “Looks like you haven’t tried anything.

                Joo Hyun didn’t answer.

                He’s right. I haven’t tried to do anything other than writing. I love writing but it took most of the years of my life.

                The rode a boat and it took them in the middle of the ocean. Instructions were given to them on how to use the snorkeling grill. Joo Hyun was paying attention while Yong Hwa wasn’t at all. He was just looking at Joo Hyun.

                She then noticed that he was looking at her.

“Why?”

He gave a small laugh and said, “You’re focusing too much. Your nostrils are even flaring.”

“It’s like that when I focus.”, she said as she crossed her arms.

They jumped onto the water and looked below the ocean. Joo Hyun was amazed seeing a lot of coral reefs. She even saw a clown fish, Nemo. Although it wasn’t as close as scuba diving, she felt fulfilled just seeing how beautiful that’s beneath the ocean. They marine creatures look so free.

After their snorkeling activity, the two decided to go back to the resort.

“You had fun?”, he asked as he stretched his arms.

“Of course I had fun! I realized I had missed a lot of things. I wanna try surfing, scuba diving, bungee jumping or even smoking!”

                Yong Hwa’s eyes widened and he stopped walking. He looked at Joo Hyun with his eyes not even blinking while Joo Hyun continued walking. She didn’t even notice that Yong Hwa was already left behing because she’s too focused on imaging the things she would like to do.

“You’re not serious, are you?”, he shouted.

Joo Hyun turned around and said, “About what?”

“Smoking!”

She smiled and walked towards him, “What if I say I am serious.”

He pinched her chubby cheeks, “It’s bad for your health! Just do racing.”

                They laughed together.

                They arrived at the resorts’ lobby.

“Joo Hyun-ah. I had fun! Thanks for today!”, he placed his hand at her shoulder.

                Joo Hyun-ah? Banmal?

“No, Thank You Yong Hwa-shii. Thanks to you I did two awesome activities today. I’m very thankful.”, she smiled.

                She waved goodbye and walked towards the elevator when

“Joo Hyun-ah!”

                She looked back and saw Yong Hwa walking towards her.

“Yes?”

“Do you want to hang out again tomorrow?”

                Joo Hyun didn’t hesitate to answer.

“Sure.”, she smiled and waved again goodbye.

                He’s asking me out, again.

                I’m glad she said yes.

Joo Hyun laid down in her bed.

                “He’s cute.”, she didn’t notice that she said it out loud. She covered her lips. “Oops.”

                For the past 3 days of Joo Hyun’s vacation, she was always with Yong Hwa. They toured the whole island. They even spent a day food tripping. Both of them enjoyed each other’s company.

                It was already late so they returned to the resort.

“Joo Hyun-ah, I really had fun during my stay here.”

“You’re leaving?”, Joo Hyun asked who sounded very disappointed.

“Yeah. Work.”, He scratched his head and felt sorry.

She smiled and said, “Aw. Work is work. Anyways, I’m really thankful.”

“Thank You as well.”, he smiled. “Uh. Can I have your mobile number?”

“My number?”

“Well, yeah. So we can hang out when we’re in Seoul. You told me you wanted to try clubbing. I’m planning to bring you to my favorite club.”

“Oh Yeah! Sure. My number is 9**-***-**1.”

“Thanks”, he smiled and said, “See you soon.” Without a warning, he hugged her.

Joo Hyun froze but eventually hugged back. Yong Hwa made her vacation really meaningful and fun. She saw a different side of him.