Author's notes: Okay, I have to admit - I started this new document on a spur of a moment. I'm not even sure if I would persevere to the end with this new idea. Either way, I was reading English Fics on the SoEul couple from the TV show Boys Over Flowers [Korean Version] and thought, perhaps I should try my hands in writing something on the couple. I had my fair share of dabbling in the ship with the Chinese language but I have never tried writing it in English before.
Summary: [AU] Chu Ga Eul has always been a country bumpkin in the eyes of the F4. Especially so, in the case of So Yi Jeong, the renowned Korean Casanova. But what if… Chu Ga Eul wasn't really a country bumpkin, nor was she the ordinary commoner friend of Geum Jan Di that everyone thought her out to be? And this secret side of hers was revealed unintentionally to the Korean Casanova of F4, how would that affect the entire story flow in the Boys over Flowers universe?
Title: Secret of the Autumn
Chapter 35 - Time flies, Jan Di's Trip to Macau, Part 3
Location: Unnamed Cafe, 20th November 2009, Friday, 5.45pm
With the arrival of F3 to help advertise the new abalone porridge that was improved upon by the master of the porridge shop, the item was sold out within two hours. Needless to say, Jan Di managed to attain the goal of getting the two million Korean Won she needs for the purchase of the air ticket with no issues from the master of the porridge shop. And while it wasn't quite the official time to knock off for the girls yet, the appearance of the F3 was enough to make the master of the porridge shop bend his rules for his two employees. And so, Ga Eul and Jan Di were allowed to leave work earlier than expected.
Now seated in an unnamed cafe in the neighboring district, the two girls sat together on one side of the table facing the members of the F4 sans the absent Shinhwa heir. For a while, nobody spoke, and finally, Chu Ga Eul rolls her eyes and stood to make her way to the ordering counter. Her childhood friend is dying to repay the F3 for their assistance earlier, despite not having received the wad of cash from the earlier sales of the new abalone porridge yet.
Why the master of the porridge shop had to pass the envelope containing the wad of cash to So Yi Jeong of F4 was truly baffling, it isn't as though the guy did much to promote the new menu item. All he did was nod when an approaching female patron ask him if the porridge is good, in fact, the Don Juan of F4 did more selling of the porridge if one were to compile a sales tally chart for the earlier event at the porridge shop. So, why did Bom Choon-Sik ends up giving the wad of cash to the Korean Casanova? Ga Eul chalked it up to the man's crush on her boyfriend, after all, the master of the porridge shop always had trouble shifting his focus away from the potter of F4 when the guy is around.
Moments later, Chu Ga Eul returns to the table with a tray of beverages in hand. Placing a cup of iced Cappuccino in front of her childhood friend, Ga Eul set down the hot mug of Cappuccino in front of her own seat before moving on to distribute the remaining three cups of coffee to the members of F3. Having known their respective preference by now, Ga Eul didn't even need to ask and instead went on to order a cup of Espresso, Mocha, and Latte for the Korean Casanova, Su Am heir, and the Don Juan of F4, respectively.
"Thank you, Ga Eul. And I see that you remembered my preference well." So Yi Jeong flashes a charming smile at his girlfriend when the girl placed the cup of hot Espresso in front of him as he commented to the girl, teasingly. If it weren't for Geum Jan Di's presence, he likely would have seized the opportunity to reach out and grasp Ga Eul's hand in his and keep it there for some time. However, due to Geum Jan Di's presence; all the potter did was to meet eyes with the country bumpkin every so often.
"...Yes, well. You did specifically tell me that you prefer your coffee black, didn't you?" Chu Ga Eul flushed red in the cheeks at her boyfriend's teasing remarks and responded in kind, bringing up the brief conversation they had outside the aquatic center of Shinhwa Academy following the end of his competition with Jan Di, months ago.
"Thanks, Ga Eul-yang. And I see that Yi Jeong's preference isn't the only thing you remembered." Song Woo Bin winked at the girlfriend of his Casanova friend playfully as he took a sip of the Latte the girl had ordered for him from the cafe's barista.
"Well… I did have plenty of time to observe how you guys take your coffee during breakfast time while we were in Sapporo for the skiing trip." Chu Ga Eul shrugged in response as she moved on to set down the last cup of coffee beverage in front of the auburn-haired member of F4 - Yoon Ji Hoo.
"Thank you." Yoon Ji Hoo commented simply when the childhood friend of Geum Jan Di set down the cup of Mocha in front of him.
"You're welcome, Ji Hoo-sunbae." Chu Ga Eul answered as she took a step back and made her way back to the barista counter for the return of the tray.
"So…" The Korean Casanova took his time savoring the taste of the cup of hot Espresso in front of him, not in any rush to speak up nor to hand the wad of cash over to Geum Jan Di. He only started to speak when the figure of Chu Ga Eul has returned from the barista counter and resettled in her seat next to the Wonder Woman of Korea. Sparing a moment to meet eyes with his lovely girlfriend, and flashes his dimpled smile at the girl once more - smirking in satisfaction when the country bumpkin starts blushing at him.
Finally, the Korean Casanova slowly shifted his eyes to land upon the figure of Geum Jan Di. Grinning as he reached into the inner pocket of his suit to withdraw the envelope containing the wad of cash from today's sales of the new menu item he had on his person, the Korean Casanova addressed the Wonder Woman of Korea. "Geum Jan Di, are you ready to count the wad of cash you had managed to earn earlier?"
Receiving the envelope from the Korean Casanova, Geum Jan Di was amazed by how thick the envelope was. As she did a quick count of the money in the envelope, she was surprised to find that it was more than the two million Korean Won she had been expecting. "This is really surprising, I wasn't expecting that we would be able to earn this much. But is it okay for me to take the money? I mean, I'm not the only one who earns this wad of cash…this is the result of everyone's effort."
"Just take it, Geum Jan Di. It's not as though either of us needed the money, to begin with. For us, it has been a fun experience. We are in for the experience, not the money itself. So, it's fine for you to take the cash." So Yi Jeong commented as he reassured the Wonder Woman of Korea that it is completely fine for her to keep the entire stack of cash.
"Yep, Yi Jeong's right. We have no need for the money, either way." Song Woo Bin nodded his agreement to his friend's words when Geum Jan Di landed her inquiring gaze upon his person. On the other side of Yi Jeong, Yoon Ji Hoo nodded at the girl in affirmation.
"Alright then, thank you." Geum Jan Di smiles at the F3 before turning inquiring eyes upon the figure of her childhood friend.
Knowing what Jan Di was about to ask, Chu Ga Eul wasted no time to shake her head in response as she echoed the words of her secret beau. "It's fine, you can keep the cash earned this afternoon. I have no need for extra cash at present, either."
Finally accepting the fact that the cash is for her solely to keep, Geum Jan Di finally shifted her focus to the reason behind the F3 timely appearance at the porridge shop this afternoon. "So, what exactly brought the three of you over to the porridge shop this afternoon?" The Wonder Woman of Korea finally thought to ask. It's not a common occurrence for the F3 to turn up at the porridge shop together, and on the same day, same time no less. Although, their appearance did help Geum Jan Di achieve her goal of earning two million in a day so she's not going to complain… still, the girl couldn't help her curiosity on the matter.
"..."
The three members of F4 shared a look among themselves, before turning towards Geum Jan Di with a smile. Inwardly, Yi Jeong was glad that they had anticipated Geum Jan Di voicing such a query and had already discussed how they are going to tackle the issue beforehand. But he thought it best to leave the answering to his auburn-haired friend, and so, Yi Jeong wisely maintain his silence on the matter. Likewise, it was the same for Woo Bin.
"We need you to come with us." Yoon Ji Hoo eventually said, turning his full focus onto the figure of Geum Jan Di.
"Huh?" Geum Jan Di blinked, looking quite confused and her look of puzzlement only serves to amuse the F3 further as they started grinning from ear to ear for no apparent reason.
"Just where do you think you're going, Ga Eul?" So Yi Jeong calls out for the attention of Chu Ga Eul when the girl attempt to part ways with them outside the cafe.
"...I thought the three of you were here for Jan Di?" Chu Ga Eul blinked innocently at the Korean Casanova in response.
"Did we say or imply that you weren't invited for the trip?" So Yi Jeong questioned his girlfriend back in a dry tone of voice.
"Oh… okay. So, where are we going?" Chu Ga Eul then follows the figure of So Yi Jeong to where he had parked his orange lotus, on an auto-pilot mode causing Geum Jan Di to gape wordlessly in response.
"Ga Eul ah, are you going to ride with Yi Jeong-sunbae?" Geum Jan Di's inquiry jolted Chu Ga Eul out from her auto-pilot mode as she halted mid-steps.
"Erm… yes, I believe so?" Ga Eul answered she had traveled far too many times in the vehicle of the Korean Casanova that she didn't consider the possibility of other options being available. Besides, it was the orange lotus Ga Eul had traveled in when they made their way from the porridge shop to this particular cafe…so, she didn't see the need to switch vehicles.
"...Ya! Geum Jan Di, do you have a problem with your best friend riding with me? In case you'd forgotten, I've been ferrying your friend around for several occasions already and nothing untoward had happened to her. So, you can jolly well rest assured that not a single hair on your friend is going to come to harm." So Yi Jeong was quick to react and threw out the first thing that sprang to his mind.
"Right…" Geum Jan Di mutters aloud, as she was rudely reminded of the multiple occasions whereby her friend was being ferried around by the Korean Casanova. No wonder her friend had simply made her way towards the orange lotus without further questions when the Korean Casanova had claimed that Ga Eul has been invited for the outing to wherever the F3 had in mind to bring her.
"Come on, just get in. Ga Eul-yang can handle Yi Jeong with no issues, as Yi Jeong has pointed out - he had ferried Ga Eul-yang around for more times he could count. One more time isn't going to hurt…" Yoon Ji Hoo told Geum Jan Di with a straight face, inwardly the auburn-haired member of F4 was thinking - given the nature of Yi Jeong's present relationship with Chu Ga Eul, it's only natural for Yi Jeong to insist on the right to ferry the girl around.
During the car ride to the aquatic center of Shinhwa Academy, So Yi Jeong seized the opportunity to fill his girlfriend in on the prognosis of Geum Jan Di's shoulder aching issue.
"So, why are we heading to the school's aquatic center?" Chu Ga Eul inquires after recognizing the route as one that would bring them back onto the campus grounds of the Shinhwa Academy.
"Well… you wanted us to keep the information of our appearance at the porridge shop was to do with you - remember? So, we kind of discussed what to say if Geum Jan Di questioned us for our reasons for showing up when we did at the porridge shop. Woo Bin then suggested that we ought to hold a retirement ceremonial swim event for Geum Jan Di, which Ji Hoo thought appropriate since it would provide Geum Jan Di with proper closure on the subject of losing her future prospect as a national swimmer due to the doctor's diagnosis of her shoulder pain issue." The Korean Casanova finally clued his clueless girlfriend in on the subject about Geum Jan Di's visit to the doctor, the other day.
"Wait… what do you mean by proper closure on the subject of losing her future prospect as a national swimmer? What exactly did the doctor say about Jan Di's shoulder pain?" Chu Ga Eul promptly zeroes in her gaze on her boyfriend as she demanded.
Inwardly, Ga Eul was wondering how bad was the prognosis given by the doctor. She had tried to pry into the matter but left it alone when her friend didn't seem willing to share many details with her on the subject. All Jan Di told her is that she had finally gone to the doctor, and would be undergoing treatment with immediate effect to manage her shoulder pain issue. The girl had mentioned absolutely nothing to Ga Eul about her inability to swim again, in the future.
"... Judging from your reaction, I take it that Geum Jan Di didn't share much information with you about the doctor's prognosis on her shoulder pain condition." So Yi Jeong surmised as he flicked a quick look over in his girlfriend's direction while keeping the bulk of his focus on the road.
"Yes. She didn't mention anything to me about how bad the prognosis was - just that she had gone to the doctor, and had to start undergoing treatment for her shoulder pain." Chu Ga Eul huffed out in annoyance, inwardly thinking that sometimes it could be a bit of a chore to wriggle information out of her childhood friend who seems adamant about not inconveniencing others with her problems.
"Well… according to Ji Hoo, the prognosis isn't good. Apparently, Geum Jan Di waited too long to visit the doctor and now the muscles in her shoulders are torn too badly to be salvaged. With treatment, she might be able to live a normal life without many issues but swimming is highly frowned upon and not recommended for the recovery of her torn muscles." So Yi Jeong then proceed to summarize the details he had gotten off from his auburn-haired friend for the benefit of his girlfriend's understanding.
"..." Chu Ga Eul was naturally upset to hear the doctor's prognosis of her friend's condition from the lips of her boyfriend. But considering her friend's tendency to avoid troubling others with issues that are of a more personal nature, Ga Eul supposed she could understand why she wasn't given the full account of her friend's visit to the doctor. Jan Di probably thought it pointless to bother Ga Eul with the matter since nothing much could be done to turn the situation around. Still, it didn't change the fact that Ga Eul's upset that she has to hear the information from someone else instead of through the lips of her best friend.
Meanwhile, in the white Lincoln, Geum Jan Di who had recognized the route they are taking also turns towards the auburn-haired member of F4 with the same question her friend had directed to the Korean Casanova. Though, the nature of their inquiry is similar - their response to the answer provided by their traveling companion differs a great deal. While Ga Eul is both shocked and upset by the information she had to learn from her boyfriend's lips, Geum Jan Di could only manage a bittersweet smile in response to the F3 decision to hold a retirement ceremony for her to properly close this page of her life, and move on to the next page.
"Thank you, sunbae." Geum Jan Di found herself responding after hearing the reason behind the reason why they are heading to the school's aquatic center from the auburn-haired member of F4.
"It's Woo Bin's idea, so if you wish to thank someone for arranging this last chance for you to swim a lap in the pool. You ought to direct your words of gratitude towards Woo Bin." Yoon Ji Hoo commented in a matter-of-fact tone of voice to the girl he had grown to adore.
The white Lincoln is the first vehicle to arrive at the parking facility next to the aquatic center building on campus, and Yoon Ji Hoo wasted no time shooing Geum Jan Di off to get changed into her swimsuit. He knows that the girl is still bringing her swimming gear with her to school, despite not visiting the pool for about a week now. One of the main reasons why Jan Di is still bringing her swimming gear with her to school lies in the fact that she has yet to come clean to her family about the prognosis she had received from the visit to the doctor.
The next group to arrive at the aquatic center is the Korean Casanova and Chu Ga Eul, while the Don Juan of F4 ended up being the last member of the group to arrive at the aquatic center. Mostly because he had to make a detour to collect the 'award' to be given to Geum Jan Di following the end of the 'retirement ceremony'. To make the entire ceremony realistic, Woo Bin had gone to the trouble of creating a mock award for Geum Jan Di on his personal computer and later had one of his 'lackey' make a trip to the stationery store to get a certificate holder for the mock certificate he had created on his computer via an online template he had found while looking for a sample of an award certificate to base the mock certificate on.
Geum Jan Di emerged from the changing room dressed up in her full swimming gear, comprising of her swimsuit, swimming cap, and swimming goggles. Moving to stand in front of the F3 and her childhood friend, Geum Jan Di took one look at her friend's redden eyes and knew - her friend had probably heard of the doctor's prognosis about her shoulders from the F3 by now. For a while, she contemplated on the idea of apologizing to her friend for withholding this particular information from her friend's knowledge… but the sound of Song Woo Bin calling for the swimmer to get into position distracted Geum Jan Di from her initial thought.
Moving towards the nearest pedestal of the pool, Geum Jan Di went into standby mode as she ready herself to plunge into the pool once cued.
"Ready, on your mark, go!" Song Woo Bin calls out, declaring a start to Geum Jan Di's last swim in the pool before her official retirement as an aspiring young swimmer.
As Geum Jan Di swam, images from the past started coming to the forefront of her mind. She thought of how she used to pick up rubbish from this very pool because the majority of the students in school wanted to mess with her after she offended the F4. Following this, she recalled the memory of her training especially hard in preparation for the competition against So Yi Jeong of F4 following their return from New Caledonia when both Yoon Ji Hoo and herself were at risk of being expelled by Gu Jun Pyo. Finally, the memory ended with the competition day whereby she was competing against So Yi Jeong when the lights in the area suddenly went dim making it impossible to tell who exactly is the winner of the match.
As Geum Jan Di remembered all the memories she had of this particular place, Chu Ga Eul who has been keeping her eyes on the figure of her childhood friend swimming in the pool started to tear up. Ga Eul has been trying very hard to keep her tears at bay, it was easier when she was back in the passenger seat of the orange lotus. But now as she stared at her friend swimming the last lap in the pool, Ga Eul couldn't help but find herself overwhelmed by emotions. Having known Jan Di since Kindergarten, Ga Eul knows how much her friend loves swimming and how hard Jan Di actually works towards the goal of becoming a professional swimmer. How devastating her friend must have been feeling all this time? Yet, Jan Di didn't mention anything to her or her family at all. That silly girl kept everything in, and put up a strong front for all to see.
So Yi Jeong was looking at the figure of Geum Jan Di swimming her last lap in the pool, just like his friends and his girlfriend with a solemn look. When the first sound of sniffles reached his ears, Yi Jeong had to say he wasn't in the least surprised that the country bumpkin had finally broken down in tears. In fact, he had been quite certain that his girlfriend is going to start crying in his car earlier on after he let it slip to the girl about what the doctor had said during Geum Jan Di's visit to the hospital. Only, Ga Eul didn't cry then though she did seem relatively upset by the news.
And then, when Geum Jan Di appears in front of them dressed up in her swimming gear for the last time - Ga Eul's eyes had finally reddened but even then, she had kept her tears at bay. But it seems like his girlfriend's endurance has reached the breaking point, and had finally broken down in tears. Thankfully, the girl was doing her best to stifle her sniffles and trying to be discreet about her crying - this time around. Yi Jeong wasn't quite sure if he could handle it if his girlfriend were to break down emotionally into full-blown crying, again. Hell, he barely handles it the last time around - and they weren't even a thing then.
So, with an inward sigh… Yi Jeong reached into the inside of his suit to pull out his neatly folded handkerchief from Pierre Cardin and, handed it towards the silently weeping figure of Chu Ga Eul. All the while hoping that he wouldn't come to regret his decision.
"... thank you, Yi Jeong-sunbae." Chu Ga Eul took the offered handkerchief and wondered what she should use it for. Eventually, she decided to use the handkerchief to wipe off the tear tracks on her face before her friend climbed out of the pool.
For her nose, Ga Eul opted to use the paper napkin she found in her pocket instead. After all, the handkerchief offered to her by her secret beau seems a tad too high-end to be utilized for something as crude as blowing one's nose in it. So, Ga Eul chooses to use it to remove the tear tracks from her face instead of using it for her snot - a result of her crying episode.
In a way, the Korean Casanova is also relieved to see that his girlfriend didn't use his Pierre Cardin handkerchief to blow her nose. Because if she did, even if she were to launder the handkerchief before returning it to him - Yi Jeong had no idea if he would even consider using that same handkerchief again. So, really… he's really glad that all his girlfriend did with his Pierre Cardin handkerchief was to use it to wipe at her face.
When Geum Jan Di finished her lap in the pool, Yoon Ji Hoo stepped forth and offer her a hand to help her out of the pool. Geum Jan Di smiles at the auburn-haired member as she extended out her hand for her former prince charming to grasp on. This time around, Yoon Ji Hoo managed to pull Jan Di out of the pool with no issues. At least, Jan Di didn't yelp aloud in pain - this time around. Not that her shoulders aren't affected by her lap in the pool but at least, the pain is still manageable since it was just one single lap.
As Geum Jan Di headed back to the changing room to change out from her swimming gears, Song Woo Bin retrieved the 'award' to be given to Geum Jan Di from the paper bag behind him on the poolside lounging chaise and handed it over to his auburn-haired friend.
"What's that?" Chu Ga Eul eyed the item with unbidden curiosity as she inquires aloud to the F3 in general.
"That, Ga Eul-yang, is the certificate holder with the award certificate to be given to Geum Jan Di shortly in her retirement ceremony." Song Woo Bin responded with a grinning look directed at the figure of Chu Ga Eul.
"Okay, so… you guys aren't just holding a retirement ceremony for Jan Di but actually had a mock certificate prepared for the occasion?" Chu Ga Eul had to say she's impressed, given that this entire retirement ceremony should be something they cooked up in a hurry after she makes it clear to them that she didn't want Jan Di to know that the F3 appearance at the porridge shop had anything to do with her.
"Yes, well…I figured since we are already holding the ceremony - we might as well make it as similar to the real thing as possible." Song Woo Bin declared smugly in response.
When Geum Jan Di emerged out from the changing room again, she went to stand next to her best friend and faced the F3 as she waits for the next set of instructions from the guys. The F3 shared a look of amusement between themselves before Yoon Ji Hoo started to speak. "Now, it's time for the awarding part of the retirement ceremony for the swimmer - Geum Jan Di to commence."
Flipping open the certificate holder, Yoon Ji Hoo began by saying. "This award is presented to Geum Jan Di, in recognition of her following achievements."
Given that this is the first time Yoon Ji Hoo had actually seen the certificate created by his Don Juan friend, he had absolutely no clues about what was being written in the certificate. Hence, it's only natural for him to balk and stare wide-eyed at the so-called achievements listed by his friend on the certificate that he had trouble performing the rest of his part with a straight face. Thus, as natural as he could, he handed the certificate holder back to his Don Juan friend while shooting the guy a look that says - 'you're going to take over the role of presenting Geum Jan Di with the award because there's absolutely no way I could read out the achievements listed with a straight face.'
So, with a nonchalance shrug, Song Woo Bin took the certificate holder back from his auburn-haired friend and went on to continue with the awarding part of the ceremony. While he didn't exactly break down in laughter or start snorting aloud, he was grinning throughout the time he was listing out the achievements he had come up with. One of the most ridiculous achievements listed in the certificate was the mention of Jan Di's weed spirit in the face of challenge, as well as the taming of the F4.
The two girls present on-site couldn't help it, they were giggling as they listened to the list of achievements that came up by the Don Juan of F4. Inwardly, Ga Eul was tempted to ask what has all of the mentioned achievements got to do with Jan Di's capability as a swimmer? But she didn't, as she knows this entire ceremony was to cheer her friend up in a way and provide a channel for her friend to seek proper closure to this particular phase of her life.
At the bottom end of the certificate, a stamp of the F4 used on the red tag was stamped to the certificate indicating that this certificate was presented to Geum Jan Di by the F4 of Korea. Closing the certificate holder, Song Woo Bin handed over the item to Geum Jan Di for keeping.
"Thank you." Geum Jan Di couldn't help but beam cheerfully as she received the certificate holder holding the mock award certificate from the Don Juan of F4, this entire retirement ceremony though provide her with some bittersweet memories she had of the aquatic center on the whole, also provide her with cheers towards the end with the bogus award presentation.
"You're welcome. Now head off to Macau and kick Jun Pyo's ass for us. Give him a good kick in the face for not having the sense to send any words to us all this time." Song Woo Bin told Geum Jan Di jokingly.
"Of course." Geum Jan Di nodded with a smile, of course, she is just taking the guy's request with a pinch of salt.
"Geum Jan Di, sometimes the end of something symbolizes a new beginning. So, don't lose heart and carry on with life as it is. I'm sure you would be able to find a new goal in life, soon enough." So Yi Jeong commented then, as he bestowed an encouraging look at the childhood friend of his beloved country bumpkin.
"I will, thank you for your words of encouragement." Geum Jan Di nodded to the Korean Casanova in response, before shifting her eyes onto the figure of her best friend - Chu Ga Eul, who is standing next to the potter of F4.
"Sorry, Ga Eul. I assumed you'd heard the details from the F3?" Geum Jan Di began with an apology directed at her childhood friend, looking a tad sheepish in the wake of everything, actually.
"Yes, Jan Di. You assumed correctly. I had heard the details from Yi Jeong-sunbae already. And apology accepted, I know why you didn't reveal anything crucial to me. You likely think it's not going to help matters in the long run, so why even bother sharing with me the doctor's prognosis about the torn muscles of your shoulders. But Jan Di, next time don't hide such things from me. Yes, I might not be able to help…but I could at least lend you a listening ear. I'm sure you had a lot of things hidden away in your mind and heart, but it's not good to coop everything in. Sometimes you have to let it out, I'm here if you need a listening ear even if it's just to hear you vent your frustration towards life in general." Chu Ga Eul commented before reaching out to embrace her friend, who seems to be choking back tears in response to her words.
The F3 stood by and watched the girls' tearful embrace of one another. It took a while, but eventually, the girls finally broke apart with Geum Jan Di wiping off her tears with the sleeves of her jacket while Chu Ga Eul dabbed her tears away with the Pierre Cardin handkerchief she had received from the Korean Casanova, earlier.
"Ga Eul ah, would you like to come by my place for dinner tonight?"Geum Jan Di inquires, directing her words towards her childhood friend with a watery smile - the after-effects of her tearful embrace with her friend earlier.
"Sorry, Jan Di. I'll need to take a rain check on that. Your request came in too last minute. I already have plans for tonight." Chu Ga Eul responded apologetically to her best friend while stamping down the urge to glance in the direction of a certain Casanova.
"I see… oh well, I supposed it is a tad too last minute. Maybe, we can speak on the phone tonight instead." Geum Jan Di nodded thoughtfully in response to Ga Eul's answer to her impromptu dinner invitation.
"Well… Ga Eul-yang might not be available to join you for dinner this evening, but I'm available for dinner. Would you like to join me for dinner? We can go somewhere that's milling with commoners for dinner if you prefer." Yoon Ji Hoo stepped in then, as he suggested to the Wonder Woman of Korea making sure to keep the girl's attention on his person so his Casanova friend could lead Chu Ga Eul out from the aquatic center without drawing Geum Jan Di's attention.
[Thanks Ji Hoo for the distraction.] - So Yi Jeong thought as he reached out to tug his girlfriend along as they departed from the aquatic center for the nearest parking facility where he had parked his orange lotus. As strong as the temptation to drag his girlfriend off to some dark corners in the aquatic center for a snog, Yi Jeong thought the snogging session could wait. After all, there's a time and place for everything.
Back in the aquatic center, Geum Jan Di ended the discussion about where to go for dinner with Yoon Ji Hoo of F4, to find the entire place deserted.
"...Where did they vanish off to?" The Wonder Woman of Korea couldn't help but wonder aloud.
"Woo Bin has to join his father elsewhere for a meeting with a client, Yi Jeong is driving your friend home." Yoon Ji Hoo responded in a matter-of-fact tone of voice.
"..."
Location: Myeong-dong, 20th November 2009, Friday evening, 6pm
"So, is there anything you would like to ask about your impending trip to Macau?" Yoon Ji Hoo prompted, breaking the girl out of her thoughts as they made their way to the white Lincoln which would be bringing them to the area of Myeong-dong where they would then alight from the vehicle to look around for a place to take their dinner meal on foot.
"Honestly, I'm kind of at a loss. For starters, what should I pack for the trip? How many clothes I should pack for a getaway trip? I've never traveled overseas on my own before… so, I'm not exactly sure how to pack for a trip. The last two trips I've gone on, it's with Gu Jun Pyo and the F4 as well as Ga Eul. However, unlike Ga Eul - I haven't exactly done my own packing for either of those trips. On the trip to New Caledonia, Gu Jun Pyo arranged everything nicely for me. Even the suitcase and my passport, he's the one that makes arrangements for the items to be delivered to the airport. Before that, I wasn't even aware that I have a passport." Geum Jan Di commented in response to the inquiry coming from her former prince charming.
"To my knowledge, you didn't. Own a passport before the New Caledonia trip, I mean. Jun Pyo was quite stunned when he learns from your parents through a phone conversation that you have no passport, and so, he had to pull some strings using the influence of the Shinhwa Group to get the immigration department to speed through the process of issuing you a passport right after he sends them a copy of your particulars and photo from the school's record." Yoon Ji Hoo responded as he finally clues Geum Jan Di in about how her passport came into existence.
"..." Geum Jan Di was rendered speechless by the words of her former prince charming, as she felt the corners of her lips twitching at the realization of what her boyfriend had done to get her out of the country for a vacation to New Caledonia.
"Do you like Hello Kitty?" Yoon Ji Hoo inquires out of the blue, causing Geum Jan Di to blink at him in a stupefied manner.
"Pardon?" Geum Jan Di thought she had misheard the first time around, but when the auburn-haired member of F4 asks if she likes Hello Kitty for a second time around - she knows it wasn't a hallucination on her part when the guy mentioned the infamous mascot for the Sanrio series from Japan.
"I asked if you liked the character - Hello Kitty." Yoon Ji Hoo repeated his earlier inquiry with utmost patience.
"... I think, most girls are fond of the series - Hello Kitty. Only, I'm not that much of a craze over the character. Why?" Geum Jan Di couldn't help but ask the auburn-haired member in return.
"Ah… I was wondering if you would like to go in for a visit." Yoon Ji Hoo commented, flicking his gaze towards the corner where the Hello Kitty Cafe of Myeong-dong is situated.
"...Nah, it's fine. So, what do you want to eat for dinner?" Geum Jan Di inquires, personally she didn't mind revisiting the restaurant that serves the pig's trotter again but she thought eating that twice in a week might prove a tad too much for the auburn-haired member of F4.
"I'm in the mood for the stir-fried chicken served at the restaurant - Yoogane. You?" Yoon Ji Hoo commented as he came to a stop in front of the Yoogane restaurant in Myeong-dong.
"I'm fine with anything, really. I'm not exactly picky when it comes down to food." Geum Jan Di admitted and so, the two of them entered the restaurant. Since the pricing of the menu items in Yoogane falls under mid-range, Geum Jan Di wasn't too hesitant to enter the place. One good thing about dining with Yoon Ji Hoo was that the guy doesn't really mind the idea of eating in an environment surrounded by unknown individuals, unlike the rest of the members of F4.
After placing their orders with the restaurant staff, Geum Jan Di hesitated for a while before shrugging and decided to ask the question that has been circulating in her mind for some time now. Originally, she thought of saving the question until her phone conversation with Ga Eul tonight… but she thought, there's no harm asking her former prince charming on the subject. Who knows? Perhaps, the guy would know the answer?
"So, Ji Hoo-sunbae. From my understanding, these days the airplane tickets are mostly booked online and payment is made via online payment methods. But is there any way that I could get the air ticket via cash payment instead?" Geum Jan Di inquires, the reason why she's asking this question is that she doesn't own any cards that could be used for online payment.
"Technically, you can get an air ticket with the use of cash over the counter either at the airport or via the airline ticketing office." Yoon Ji Hoo responded not in the least surprised to hear such a question coming from the girl.
"Really? Phew ~ that's a relief to know." Geum Jan Di heaved a sigh of relief, good - at least, she needn't enlist Ga Eul's help in procuring the air ticket and could do it on her own. She just has to find out the location of the airline ticketing office in Seoul and make a trip down personally to buy the air ticket that will bring her to Macau to see her boyfriend in person.
While Yoon Ji Hoo and Geum Jan Di took their dinner in the restaurant Yoogane in Myeong-dong, Ga Eul had bid farewell to the Korean Casanova temporarily as she starts getting dinner ready for her family and her boyfriend. Of course, she would leave the share for her family sitting in the kitchen of her family home and just packed the portion for her boyfriend and her own consumption in the food containers. For the spicy fish stew, Ga Eul decided to utilize the smaller size stockpot she found in the kitchen's cabinet instead of using the food container for soup.
She intends to keep the small stockpot in the kitchenette of the pottery studio for the foreseeable future. One of the main reasons she thought to leave the stockpot in the kitchenette of her boyfriend's pottery studio mostly stems from the fact that currently there is nothing for her to use if she intends to heat something on the electric stove. And secondly, she knows her family had no use for a stockpot that's only big enough to cook for 2 persons. Thirdly, the stockpot came to them as a set - some family friends gifted her parents with a set of pots in different sizing as a housewarming gift.
While the medium size and large size stockpot have seen better days in their kitchen, having been utilized on multiple occasions. The smaller size stockpot has been sitting in the cabinet gathering dust until Ga Eul fished it out a few days ago while sorting through the kitchen cabinetry of her family home. So, after speaking with her adoptive parent on the subject, she had received permission from Chu Su Won to keep this particular stockpot in the kitchenette space of her boyfriend's place.
A private message between Chu Ga Eul and So Yi Jeong, 20th November 2009, Friday, 6pm
Ga Eul: Yi Jeong-sunbae, can I trouble you to come by and pick me up along with your dinner? ^^; The food carrier bag is a tad heavier than normal today, so I have trouble lugging it over to your place via public trains this evening. ^^;
PS: Let me know if it's convenient for you to come by and pick me up, otherwise I can just call in Shuichi to give me a ride over. He should be free, this evening based on my understanding.
Yi Jeong: No need to trouble your cousin. I'm on my way over. Would be arriving in 30 minutes.
Ga Eul: Thank you ^_^ I'll wait for you out front, so there isn't any risk of you running in with my family members. I know you aren't ready to meet them yet…
Yi Jeong: Ga Eul, thank you for your understanding on the matter. Give me a bit of time before meeting the rest of your family, I'm still dealing with your overprotective brother at present. That reminded me, I ought to ask Woo Bin out for a quick game of tennis tomorrow before the tennis game on Sunday with your brother. Even if I'm going to get trashed on the court by your brother, I'm not going to give without putting up a decent fight.
Ga Eul: No worries, I understand completely. ^_^
Thirty minutes later, the sight of the familiar-looking orange lotus pulls up in front of the Chu family home where Chu Ga Eul stood waiting with the food carrier bag sitting by the side of her foot on the front step of her family home.
"Thank you for coming by to pick me up." Chu Ga Eul begins as she stepped forth with the food carrier bag, which she handed over to her boyfriend to stash in the car boot of the vehicle.
"It's okay, I mean… by picking you up - I'm also picking up my own dinner. So, it's no issue. Oh, and before I forget - here's a bouquet for you." The Korean Casanova commented as he handed a bouquet of the orange roses over to the country bumpkin.
"Thank you." Chu Ga Eul accepted the bouquet with grace, as she wonders if the guy had especially popped by the florist to get her a bouquet upon receiving her request for a ride to his pottery studio.
As So Yi Jeong helped his girlfriend place the food carrier bag in his car boot, he couldn't help but comment with a questioning raise of his eyebrow. "Wow… this is indeed heavier today. What exactly have you gotten hidden away in the food carrier bag, this evening?"
Chu Ga Eul grinned secretively as she commented, "Well… that's for me to know, and you to find out. Come on, let's go. The earlier we got back to your pottery studio, the earlier you would get to see what I have hidden away in the food carrier bag - this evening."
The drive from Ga Eul's neighborhood to where the pottery studio is situated lasts approximately 20 minutes. After ascertaining the duration of the drive, Ga Eul was all the more certain that her boyfriend had indeed popped by the florist before heading over to her neighborhood to pick her up. Why else would he claims that he would arrive in 30 minutes when the distance between the neighborhood where her family home and his pottery studio is simply a 20 minutes drive?
As the potter of F4 approached the automated gate of his pottery studio, he went on to retrieve the auto-gate remote he had stashed in the storage compartment of his orange lotus and unlocked the gate with the mere press of the button on the remote. Following this, So Yi Jeong fished out the keys to the door of the pottery studio from the pocket of his suit and handed it over to his girlfriend seated in the side passenger seat of the orange lotus.
"Here's the keys to the main door of the pottery studio. Go ahead and set things up for our dinner meal, I'll head in after I'm done parking." Yi Jeong commented as he handed the keys over to his girlfriend.
"Ah… in that case, I'll need to retrieve the food carrier bag from your car boot first." Chu Ga Eul accepted the offered keys to the studio without a bat of her eyelid, as she went on to remind her boyfriend to unlock the boot of his vehicle so she could retrieve the food carrier bag to get their dinner table set up in the pottery studio.
"Of course." So Yi Jeong commented as he stopped the car briefly to allow his girlfriend to alight and access the car boot of his orange lotus, before continuing on his way to the back of the pottery studio where he had his garage for his cars built next to where the kiln was.
Location: So Yi Jeong's pottery studio, 20th November 2009, Friday evening, 7pm
When Yi Jeong stepped into the inside of his pottery studio after having parked his orange lotus at the back of the studio, the first thing that greeted him was the aroma of the spicy fish stew emitting from a smaller size stockpot sitting on the table closest to the kitchenette area of his pottery studio.
"You brought the stew over in a stockpot? No wonder, you said it's too heavy to bring the food over via the train. How did you manage to get it over without spilling anything during the transportation process if you don't mind me asking?" So Yi Jeong couldn't help but inquire as he headed over to the kitchenette's sink to give his hands a quick rinse before settling down at the table for his dinner meal.
"Well… I kind of taped the sides of the cover lid to the pot to avoid the contents from spilling over. As for the pot, I'm thinking of just leaving it here after we finished the stew. Because my family has no use for a stockpot this small, given the fact that we usually cook for four - this pot is only food for 1-2 people. I thought I could simply leave it here, it might come in handy the next time if I need to reheat something on your stove." Ga Eul admitted as she relayed to her curious boyfriend about just how exactly did she manage to prevent the contents in the pot from spilling over in the food carrier bag earlier while the food is in transit from her family home to the pottery studio.
"Ah… well, you're welcome to leave it here as long as you can find a proper storage space in my kitchenette for it." So Yi Jeong nodded in response, giving his girlfriend free rein to the use of his kitchenette space. Like what his friend - Woo Bin had said on multiple occasions until Chu Ga Eul comes along, his kitchenette is only installed to make tea. The rest of the time, it's simply there for display purposes.
"Oh, no worry. I'd already found perfect storage space for the pot." Ga Eul beams at the Korean Casanova in response as she handed the guy a bowl of steamed rice she had scooped out from the food container she brought along from home.
"So, how do you find the spicy fish stew? I kind of nicked the recipe from the master, but I swapped the catfish for the snapper. And instead of freshly caught fish, I used the frozen fish purchased from the supermarket." Ga Eul inquires, keeping her gaze on her boyfriend as she awaited the verdict of the picky potter.
"Given that I had never tried the version prepped up by the master of the porridge shop. I have no idea how it would fare against his version of the dish, but I thought your recipe triumphs over the recipe used by the cook employed in the service of my grandfather." So Yi Jeong commented as he took a moment to savor the taste of the spicy fish stew prepped up by his girlfriend for their dinner meal, this evening.
"Really? Thank you, in that case, do eat up! Oh, and I've brought dessert too. Okay, no… I'd brought an apple over for dessert. It's not a fruits platter, but it would suffice as an after-food dessert for the two of us." Ga Eul beams in response, as she finally focused on digging into her own portion of the meal.
Between the two of them, they managed to finish up the freshly cut medium size apple with no issues. With the apple consumed, dinner has officially come to an end. The next thing Ga Eul intends to do was to wash up the utensils used in the sink of the kitchenette, but it seems the owner of the pottery studio has something else in mind. Because Ga Eul felt a tug on her hand halting her mid-act just as she was about to stand and make her way to the kitchenette's sink.
"Yes, Yi Jeong-sunbae?" Ga Eul begins turning her inquiring gaze upon the figure of So Yi Jeong, the owner of the pottery studio, and her boyfriend.
"The dishes can wait for another few minutes, I've been yearning to do this since earlier this afternoon at the porridge shop but can't because we need to avoid drawing Geum Jan Di's attention." The Korean Casanova of F4 commented dryly, as he tug on the hand of his beloved country bumpkin and pull the girl in for an embrace.
Yi Jeong finds that he quite enjoyed the feel of having Chu Ga Eul in his arms, so he didn't speak and simply soak up the moment. With his girlfriend secured in his arms, Yi Jeong took a moment to breathe in the refreshing citrus scent emitting off the hair of his girlfriend and instantly felt at ease. Slowly, he begin to plant kisses on the girl beginning from the hair before inching towards the exposed neck of his girlfriend. Sucking a tad hard on the exposed skin of his girlfriend's neck, he managed to draw a gasp from the girl. Seizing the opportunity when Ga Eul gasped at the feel of his lips on the side of her neck, Yi Jeong planted his lips on the girl's mouth and initiate their first kiss.
When they finally broke apart for air, Chu Ga Eul was flushing crimson while So Yi Jeong was grinning in satisfaction.
Neither mentioned anything about that passionate kiss shared between them after breaking apart, but no words were necessary between them. Yi Jeong figures that his girlfriend is likely flushing from the adrenaline rush brought on by that kissing episode between them and needed to distract herself with something else before losing all sense of coherency, and so, he didn't stop the girl when Ga Eul made a beeline for the kitchenette's sink. Deciding to give his girlfriend some time to calm down from their earlier moment of intimacy, Yi Jeong left the studio workspace to head to the back where the kiln is located. If memory serves him right, some ceramics need to be extracted from the kiln about now.
When Yi Jeong returns to his studio workspace after spending twenty minutes checking out the condition of the items to be extracted from the kiln, Chu Ga Eul was finally done with the dish-washing and is now working on drying the dishes. Without a word, Yi Jeong ventured forth to pick up another drying towel from the storage cabinet where he had kept his cleaning supplies and join his girlfriend in the task of drying the dishes.
They worked in comfortable silence, Yi Jeong's glad that his girlfriend is comfortable with his presence since he didn't exactly seek permission before instigating that kissing act between them earlier. For Ga Eul, she's simply glad that her boyfriend didn't bring up the kiss from before for discussion. Because honestly, just the thought of that kissing act from before would render her weak in the knees. She has never ever been kissed before, even while she was dating Gong Soo Pyo - they had never ventured further than simple hands-holding.
And while that wasn't exactly how Ga Eul had envisioned losing her first kiss, she had to admit it wasn't all that bad either. But it also highlights to her that her boyfriend is truly skilled in that department, inwardly - Ga Eul wonders if her boyfriend was naturally a good kisser, or did he practice his kissing skills with his past flings? After all, her boyfriend is the renowned Korean Casanova of F4. So, the guy probably had plenty of experiences in such areas…
Setting the last dish to the side, Ga Eul went on to store the dishes used back in their respective storage place. And once the stockpot was tucked away in one of the bottom cabinets of the kitchenette where Ga Eul had found storage space for it, she stood and turn towards the figure of her boyfriend.
"Alright, all done here. Shall we go on our evening stroll in the neighborhood then? While at it, we might as well pick up your breakfast for tomorrow." Chu Ga Eul begins, as she flashed a cheerful smile at her boyfriend.
"Sure, after you, my lady." So Yi Jeong responded with a shrug, going on a stroll after dinner seems to be yet another routine on days whereby he's meeting up with Ga Eul for dinner. Because of his girlfriend's penchant for exploring every little shop and alley in his neighborhood, Yi Jeong has gotten to find a lot of hidden gems tucked away in the unsuspecting little alleys in the vicinity of his pottery studio.
For instance, there's actually a tiny little eatery tucked away two streets down from his pottery studio that sells skewers, which he hasn't known of its existence until his girlfriend insists on them exploring that little alley while on their routine evening stroll a few days ago. While the eatery doesn't seem befitting for someone of his status to dine-in, he wouldn't be opposed to the idea of getting takeout from that eatery on nights whereby Woo Bin decided to grace his doorsteps to break into his liquor collection. After all, Ga Eul had told him repeatedly that one shouldn't be drinking on an empty stomach. And the skewers do seem like an appropriate choice for a snack to go along with the alcohol.
"Penny for your thoughts?" So Yi Jeong inquires when he recognized the faraway look in his girlfriend's eyes, midway through their evening stroll this evening.
"Hmm… I'm just thinking about Jan Di's impending visit to Macau. I'm sure Ji Hoo-sunbae would provide her with a checklist on the things to pack for the trip. But I still find myself growing concerned…" Chu Ga Eul eventually sighed, she had tried to not dwell too much on the things revolving around her childhood friend when she's supposed to be enjoying some private time with her boyfriend. Yet, somehow it seems she has trouble not dwelling on the subject of her friend's impending visit to Macau, alone.
"Concern about…?" Yi Jeong prompted knowing full well that his girlfriend likely had some valid reasons for being concerned about Geum Jan Di's trip.
"A couple of things. First of all, language… Jan Di is pants at speaking English, and she has no knowledge of Chinese either. Yet, she's heading to Macau on her own, not with a tour group. With no translator around, I wonder if she could find her way to Jun Pyo-sunbae without running into problems. That's my concern number 1. Two - she has never visited another country overseas alone before. Up until New Caledonia, I doubt she even owns a passport, to be honest. Anyway, during the trip to New Caledonia and later to Sapporo, everything was being handled by Jun Pyo-sunbae and you guys. So, Jan Di needn't fret about getting a place to stay while overseas… hence I'm uneasy because I'm not sure if Jan Di had the insight to book a hotel room for her stay while in Macau or not. I'm not going to bank everything on Jun Pyo-sunbae, because I highly doubt he would be able to do much if his witch of a mother is really keeping him under scrutiny. Three - I wonder if she had even factor in the need for extra cash on her person if not for souvenirs, then to feed herself while in Macau. Again, it's unrealistic to simply turn up in Macau and expect Jun Pyo-sunbae would be able to arrange something on the spot at the sight of Jan Di." Chu Ga Eul sighed as she started citing out the number of things she could think of at the top of her head, and sharing them with her boyfriend without a moment of hesitation.
"Ah… well, if you're this concern - perhaps you could remind her about it when she calls you up tonight? Knowing her, she would most definitely be calling you up for a chat tonight. Even with Ji Hoo's input, Geum Jan Di likely would prefer to get a second opinion from you." So Yi Jeong made a humming sound under his breath as he considered the concerns brought up by his girlfriend, perhaps it might be wise to discuss the subject of allowing Geum Jan Di to venture off to Macau on her own with Ji Hoo and Woo Bin.
Just like what Ga Eul had mentioned earlier, Geum Jan Di likely had no previous experience of traveling overseas without the F4 taking charge of all the logistics arrangements concerning the trip. Perhaps, one of them ought to follow Geum Jan Di on this trip to Macau… that way, assistance could be provided at a time when the girl requires it. So Yi Jeong thought, making a mental note to discuss with his friends the subject over a Skype conversation since it isn't likely they would have time to call for another F4 meeting in person.
Although, Song Woo Bin had told Geum Jan Di to stop dallying and head off to Macau to kick Jun Pyo ass for them… he had said it in jest. So, when he was forcibly dragged out of bed by his two agitated-looking friends on the morning of the following day - he was quite bewildered.
Location: Song Family Mansion, Woo Bin's Bedroom. 21st November 2009, Saturday morning, 9am
"Yi Jeong? Ji Hoo? What are the two of you doing here this early in the morning?" Song Woo Bin couldn't help but inquire while stamping down the urge to groan when he realized it's only 9am in morning.
"Get your arse up and get your family private jet ready. We are going to Macau, without delay." So Yi Jeong huffed at his friend in annoyance.
"Wait… Macau? Now? Why?" Song Woo Bin blinked stupidly at his annoyed-looking Casanova friend.
"Because of your words of encouragement to Geum Jan Di yesterday, urging her to leave for Macau without delay. She actually decided to heed your words of advice and had set off early this morning at freaking 6am. And according to Ga Eul's account, Geum Jan Di had simply packed enough for a weekend getaway trip without making arrangements to secure a hotel room for her trip; and simply made her way to the airport to get a ticket with the cash on her person at the airline counter. Everything that Ga Eul had mentioned being concerned ended up coming into fruition and guess who's to blame for Geum Jan Di's rash act?" So Yi Jeong deadpans at his friend, sounding exasperated and annoyed at the same time.
Because of this unforeseen turn of events, he's forced to reschedule his plans for today with his girlfriend, and depending on the situation in Macau, he might have to change his plans for the following day as well. Now he could only hope that his inability to turn up at the tennis game tomorrow at the Shinhwa Country Club isn't going to affect his image in the eyes of his girlfriend's overprotective brother, not that he had a stellar image, to begin with.
[Flashback to earlier on in the day…]
So Yi Jeong woke to the sound of persistent ringing coming from his mobile phone, and to say he's feeling annoyed is an understatement. However, before he could make his displeasure known to the caller disturbing his peaceful sleep this morning - the frantic sound of his girlfriend brought his immediate reaction to a halt.
"Thank god, you'd answered the phone. I apologized in advance if my call has disrupted your sleeping patterns and I know it's incredibly early for you to wake, Yi Jeong-sunbae. But this is something that can't be delayed until later this morning. I've just received a text message from Jan Di that she's on the way to the airport. It seems she has decided to take Woo Bin-sunbae's advice to heart and left without delay for the trip to Macau. I asked her if she has gotten everything she needs for the trip to Macau ready, and she told me that she would exchange the Korean Won for the Chinese currency at the airport directly. That's fine, except for the mild rate conversion difference… it doesn't really matter for the currency portion. She then told me she would purchase the air ticket directly at the airport with cash, that's also a given. What isn't fine is that she told me she hasn't secured a place for her to stay because hotel rooms in Macau aren't cheap, so she's going to rely on the goodwill of Jun Pyo-sunbae. But seriously, how could Jun Pyo-sunbae make such arrangements for her when he wasn't even aware that she's heading over to Macau, to begin with? Sure, the Shinhwa Group has a hotel in Macau… but is Kang Hee Soo going to be okay with the idea of letting Jan Di lodged in their family hotel for free? I don't think so…and I'm not even sure if Jan Di had done proper research on the place she's visiting to be able to find her way around. Her phone has a limited data plan within Seoul, and I'm not even sure if she has her international roaming service activated. So, I'm on the verge of tearing out my hair at present." Chu Ga Eul gushes out in a rush over the phone, without knowing for certain if her boyfriend was wakeful enough to comprehend the lengthy explanation on her part about her reason to call him up, this early in the day.
"... Okay, alright. First things first, Ga Eul. Calm down and take a deep breath. I see your point, I really do and I can understand your anxiousness on the subject. I'll see what I can do on my side. Short of going after Geum Jan Di, it seems nothing much could be done on our part. Anyway, I'll need some time to reschedule my planned itinerary for today. And we'll probably have to cancel our dinner date, this evening. Anyway, don't worry your pretty head over the matter - I'll handle things on my end, and update you accordingly. Thanks for bringing the matter up to my attention." Yi Jeong responded to his frantic girlfriend over the phone, and push aside his own annoyance on the matter to calm his girlfriend down first.
After ending the call, the first thing Yi Jeong did was to get up and ready himself for the long day ahead. It is a tad earlier than he'd liked, but given the situation - a lie-in isn't exactly likely when time is the essence. A quick shower to refresh his mind later, Yi Jeong got himself dressed and headed out to locate his auburn-haired friend hoping that his friend isn't still in bed. It's hard to tell with Ji Hoo, after all, that guy could sleep for 15 hours a day on occasions. Thankfully, it seems his friend was already up and about when he arrived in his orange lotus at the driveway that leads up to his friend's family home.
"Good morning, Yi Jeong. I assumed you're here about Geum Jan Di's Macau trip?" Yoon Ji Hoo started upon meeting his friend out front at the front porch of his family home.
"Yes, I presumed you'd gotten an update from the bodyguard you sic on Geum Jan Di without her knowledge?" Yi Jeong questioned his auburn-haired friend in return.
"Indeed. Anyway, I reckon we needed Woo Bin and his family's private jet." Yoon Ji Hoo responded, letting his Casanova friend in on his intention to pay the mafia heir a visit.
"...Fair enough. Shall we meet up at his family home, then?" Yi Jeong asks as he made his way back to his orange lotus.
Yoon Ji Hoo simply nodded as he made his way to his own white lotus, he has no time to call in his chauffeur and thus decided to drive on his own, this morning.
[End of Flashback]
After having heard the recount of what Geum Jan Di had done earlier this morning, Song Woo Bin didn't need his friends to remind him to know that they had no time to lose if they wish to catch up with the Wonder Woman of Korea before anything untoward happens to the girl in a foreign city. Messing up his hair as he made his way to his En-suite bathroom to get ready for the day ahead, Song Woo Bin wasted no time in calling up the flight crew of his family's private jet to instruct them about getting the plane ready for a trip to Macau, without delay.
Next, the Don Juan of F4 went on to leave a message with his father's secretary informing the guy that he would be out of town for a quick getaway trip to Macau. Finally, he went on to call up his contacts in the city of Macau and put them on a lookout for Geum Jan Di. That's the only way they could locate Geum Jan Di in a foreign city with the girl not activating the international roaming services of her mobile.
"Alright, I'm done. Let's get a move on, I've instructed the flight crew to be on standby for our arrival." Song Woo Bin told his two friends who are obviously agitated for various reasons, Ji Hoo likely is concerned for the well-being of Geum Jan Di while Yi Jeong, is likely anxious because he wanted to set the mind of Chu Ga Eul at ease at the earliest possible moment.
Neither of the F3 bothers to pack any baggage for their impromptu trip to Macau, they figured they could just get a new wardrobe for themselves while they are in the city upon arrival. Given that they are all heirs to their respective family businesses, getting a new wardrobe on the go doesn't seem too far-fetched.
While the F3 scrambled to get themselves to the airport and hopped onto the private jet owned by the Song family for the trip to Macau, Geum Jan Di who had flown on the budget airline - Air Jeju, had just touched down in the airport of the city of Macau, in China.
Location: Incheon International Airport, 21st November 2009, Saturday morning, 10am
Upon arrival at the Incheon International Airport, the members of F3 congregate in a cafe for a late breakfast before they boarded the private jet owned by the Song family. Yoon Ji Hoo being the only one who knows the flight details of Geum Jan Di, having sicced his own bodyguard on the girl behind the girl's knowledge proceed to meet up with his bodyguard who had been waiting for his arrival at the airport shortly after their arrival. Woo Bin, meanwhile went on to check on the status of the flight preparation with the flight crew of his family's private jet while leaving Yi Jeong to find them a meeting spot where they could take their breakfast while at it.
"So, when did Geum Jan Di set off for Macau?" Yi Jeong inquires shortly after spotting the arrival of his auburn-haired friend in the cafe he had picked out for their late breakfast this morning.
"She purchased an air ticket bound for Macau at 7am on Air Jeju, a low-cost carrier with cash about 30 minutes before the plane took off. Since she had no baggage that requires check-in, the staff at the counter allowed her to board the flight after verifying her travel documents. The flight took off at 7.10am, after Geum Jan Di had successfully boarded. The flight is anticipated to last 3 hours 45 minutes in total, so… she's likely to land in Macau International Airport around 10.55am." Yoon Ji Hoo then shares the information he had gotten off from his bodyguard who has been keeping an eye on Geum Jan Di's movement until the girl went through the passport control at the departure gate, with his fellow friends.
"...okay, so we are likely to arrive in Macau about three hours behind her. Thank goodness, I had instructed my contacts in the city to be on the lookout for her. Otherwise, I highly doubt we would be able to locate her in Macau without encountering hiccups along the way. Especially if Ga Eul-yang's speculation about Geum Jan Di not being on the international roaming service of her mobile provider being accurate." Song Woo Bin pinched the bridge of his nose in weariness, he's suffering from the after-effects of being sleep-deprived and he knows it. But honestly, how was he to know that Geum Jan Di would take his jesting advice to heart and literally hopped on the next available flight out to Macau without a proper plan in place?
"Let's just hope your men could get a hold on Geum Jan Di's whereabouts the moment she disembarked from the plane." So Yi Jeong mutters aloud as he busied himself with the task of composing a text message to his worried girlfriend on his mobile, to update the girl about their plan to catch up to Geum Jan Di.
A private message between So Yi Jeong and Chu Ga Eul, 21st November 2009, Saturday morning, 10.30am
Yi Jeong: Just a quick update to you about our plan to catch up to Geum Jan Di in Macau. We are now taking breakfast at the airport (Incheon) while waiting for the private jet owned by Woo Bin's family to be readied for our boarding. We would be setting off for Macau in another 30minutes, I presumed. Our estimated time of arrival to Macau would be around 2.45pm, whereas Geum Jan Di is expected to land in Macau around 10.55am.
Woo Bin has his men and contacts in Macau on the lookout for Geum Jan Di as I'm typing this message to you, so… hopefully, we would be able to know where she is upon landing in the airport of Macau. Do try not to stress yourself out, I'll drop you another update upon arriving in Macau. Take care, and apologize to the Miyazawa heir on my behalf for not being able to show up for the tennis game tomorrow.
Ga Eul: Don't worry about Kazuki, I'll handle his questions by telling him that I was the one to send you running after Jan Di. I'm sure he would understand and let the matter drop, although I'm quite certain he would make arrangements to invite you to the next tennis game meet-up upon your return. Either way, I'm glad you still remember to take the time to sit down for a breakfast meal. ^_^ I might be anxious about Jan Di's situation, but I also care a great deal about your general well-being. I'll wait patiently for your next update. Have a safe trip to Macau!
Location: Macau International Airport, 21st November 2009, Saturday morning, 11.30am
Following the example of her fellow passengers on the same flight, Geum Jan Di somehow managed to clear the customs at the Macau International Airport with no issues. And since she didn't have any checked baggage with her, she didn't join the rest of the passengers in waiting by the luggage belt assigned for their flight number and instead muddled her way through the signage at the airport trying to find her way out of the building.
Geum Jan Di's suitcase is the standard 10-inch suitcase purchased for her use by her boyfriend before their vacation to New Caledonia, and she had read online to know that it fits the description of a hand-carry suitcase that isn't chargeable when flying on a low-cost carrier. Aside from the 10-inch suitcase, Geum Jan Di also had with her a small backpack where she had placed all her important documentation required for the trip. For instance, her passport, the address for the Shinhwa Hotel in Macau where she would be heading to locate her boyfriend, her wallet full of the cash she had exchanged at the airport for her spending while in Macau.
As Ga Eul has anticipated, Geum Jan Di hasn't actually done her homework for her trip to Macau. So, even though she had the address of the Shinhwa Hotel in Macau, she hasn't even researched how she's going to get to the hotel from the airport before she departs from Seoul. Next, the girl also hasn't factored in the cost of transportation for getting around the city of Macau. Third, she lacked the insight of getting a tourist sim card for her phone since she isn't on the international roaming subscription plan of her mobile provider. Finally, she didn't research the average cost of a meal in Macau would cost her before boarding the flight to the city.
Luckily for Geum Jan Di, her best friend - Chu Ga Eul had considered all of the above-mentioned scenarios and thus had promptly sent the F3 after her. In fact, the first thing Chu Ga Eul did upon coming across the text message Jan Di had sent out to her phone early this morning at 6am, was to dial up the number of a certain Korean Casanova of F4 seeking assistance.
Honestly, Ga Eul would have loved to follow the F3 on their impromptu trip to Macau as well. Only, she knows she needs to remain behind in Seoul to help the master of the porridge shop out since there's no time to call in extra help to take over their part-time jobs at such short notice. The last time when they went on the trip to New Caledonia, the master had foreseen the possibility of them not being able to come in for a week and once having ascertained of the fact that Ga Eul had been dragged off on an impromptu trip - the man had promptly got in some temporary staff to assist him in the day-to-day operation of his porridge shop.
This time though, he had no such premonition. As such, when he received the text message from Geum Jan Di requesting a few days of leave on his mobile - he made sure to call Ga Eul up and ensure that the girl is not going to bail out on him without notice or on short notice. Ever since the F3 advertising of his new menu item the day before, his business at the porridge shop has been booming. Last night, because he had allowed his two part-timers to leave earlier… he was completely swamped and ended up having to take in customers with reservations only. He expected things to be equally hectic for today, and with only one part-timer around… the master of the porridge shop had taken the extra measure to ensure that his remaining part-timer wouldn't be pulling a disappearing act on him anytime soon.
Since Geum Jan Di wasn't on the international roaming plan, it wasn't so much of a surprise that when she fished her phone out from her backpack - the screen of her mobile phone reflected the term 'out of service zone' and 'no reception'. Therefore, the phone is basically good for nothing except time-telling.
Spending a moment standing in the public area of the arrival hall at the airport of Macau, Geum Jan Di took a deep breath and braced herself for the challenges to come.
[Alright, first things first… find a map of the city.] - Geum Jan Di thought as she starts looking around for an idea of where to approach for a copy of the city's map. Eventually, she managed to find her way to the information counter of the airport to retrieve a copy of the city's map in Korean with no issues.
Within the airport, it's still manageable since the signage is written in multiple languages for the benefit of foreign arrivals. The problem for Jan Di actually comes in after she left the airport in search of transportation that would bring her to the Shinhwa Hotel in Macau. She had only just stepped out from the airport building when her attention was drawn by a taxi driver calling her forward.
"100 dollars to the city area of Macau, very cheap. Okay for you?" The taxi driver asks, putting his not exactly superb English skills to use when addressing Jan Di.
English isn't something used very frequently by the commoners in Macau, as they mostly rely on their native tongue - Cantonese for day-to-day communication. Anyway, the poor English command of the taxi driver isn't the issue here since Jan Di is equally bad at her English language ability. The problem stems from the fact that Jan Di didn't have a lot of cash to spare on her person, and thus had to resort to the use of her calculator to do a conversion of the currency from the Chinese currency to US dollars and based on the conversion to decide if it's within her budget.
"Erm… wait, please!" Geum Jan Di signaled to the taxi driver as she took out her calculation to convert the 100 dollars to US dollars. Bearing in mind that each US dollar is equivalent to about 1000 Korean won, the 100 dollars in Chinese currency converts to about $17.70 in US dollars. That alone was enough to make Geum Jan Di blanch and gasp in horror.
"Sorry!" Geum Jan Di then promptly turns to the taxi driver and turned down the offer of taking a taxi to the city area of Macau with that single word of apology. Regardless, she still makes sure to thank the taxi driver for his offer.
"Seriously, $17.70 for a taxi ride is just atrocious! Now what? Taxi's obviously out, it's too expensive." Geum Jan Di mutters aloud as she finds herself lugging her suitcase behind her as she traveled along outside of the airport building trying to find an affordable transport that would bring her to the city area of Macau.
The Macau International Airport is connected by public bus routes, light rail, taxis, private cars, and regional coach services. Since the taxi rides are out, private cars aren't possible since Jan Di didn't inform her boyfriend about her visit to Macau ahead of time. It simply just isn't possible for there to be a private car waiting for her arrival at the airport. Light rail might be a good choice if Jan Di had done sufficient homework on the transportation system in Macau before her arrival, but as it is - she can't use the light rail without proper knowledge of the train network in the city. Regional coach services are out for obvious reasons since she's looking to visit the city area of Macau, not to visit another part of China.
[The buses it will be then… now, which bus will bring me to the closest drop off point for the Shinhwa Hotel in Macau?] - Geum Jan Di thought, if she's in Seoul… by now, she would be asking around for help about which buses to take. But since she only have the map in hand to rely on… she had to figure out which bus route to use on her own.
"If you're looking to get to the Shinhwa Hotel, there's a shuttle bus you can take for free at the pick-up point ahead. It actually is a shuttle bus for access to the Casino Hotel - Grand Emperor, but from there - you can easily get to the Shinhwa Hotel on foot. It's a 20 minutes walk if I'm not mistaken."
"Really?! Thank you very much!" Geum Jan Di beams at the immaculately dressed man in gratitude as she started heading towards the direction of the mentioned shuttle bus pick-up point. It didn't occur to her that the man who had provided her with the instructions spoke Korean until she was already halfway across to the shuttle bus pick-up point.
Geum Jan Di arrived at the mentioned pick-up point to find the bus about to close its door, and in a hurry, she calls out for the bus to wait as she picked up her pace to reach the bus so she could hop onto it without the need to wait for the next bus. Meanwhile, following Geum Jan Di's decision to hop onto the blue shuttle bus bound for the Grand Emperor Casino Hotel; the man who had provided her with the directions to the shuttle bus sighed as he thought inwardly.
[Young Master Woo Bin, I'd done my part already. Let's just hope the men stationed at the Grand Emperor Hotel would be able to sic someone on the girl without letting in on the fact that we're tailing and shadowing her around as she finds her way to the Shinhwa Hotel] - the man thought inwardly to himself.
Yes, the man is one of the contact person Woo Bin has in Macau. It isn't common knowledge but his mother is actually the heiress to the biggest nightlife establishment operator in Hong Kong and Macau. Not only that, his maternal grandmother has ties to the Hong Kong triads and that's one of the main reasons why nobody in his mother's family had batted an eyelid when she decides to marry the Mafia lord of Seoul, South Korea. Anyway, it was due to his mother's family background that Woo Bin has strong connections in Hong Kong and Macau.
The man who had kindly pointed out the direction for Geum Jan Di to seek out the Shinhwa Hotel in Macau was actually at the airport waiting to receive the arrival of the F3, under the instructions of Woo Bin's maternal family.
The bus ride from the airport to the entrance of the Grand Emperor Hotel took about an hour when the bus came to a stop at the entrance of the Casino Hotel. Geum Jan Di filed out of the hotel alongside the other travelers on the same bus. At first glance of the posh exterior of the building, Geum Jan Di felt her jaw slackening but she was quick to regather her wits as she knows her destination isn't the Casino hotel but the Shinhwa Hotel which is accessible from her present location via foot. So, shaking herself out of the stupor, Geum Jan Di lugged the suitcase behind her as she left in the opposite direction heading away from the Grand Emperor Hotel instead of into the building like the rest of her fellow passengers who took the same bus from the airport.
It didn't take her too long to find the building of the Shinhwa Hotel, the building is too imposing for her to miss out.
"Good lords, all these belong to Gu Jun Pyo? No wonder people are always gushing in excitement when the topic of Shinhwa Group came up for discussion. Seeing it up close now only proves to shows how freaking rich the Shinhwa Group is." Geum Jan Di couldn't help but mutter aloud as she tries to find her way to the building entrance. "Seriously, how does one enter this place? I've been walking for 15 minutes since finding the building. It's indeed as the guy mentioned, 20 minutes away from the Grand Emperor Hotel… but he didn't mention how freaking long it would take for me to find the entrance to the building."
Muttering as she walks along the pavement trying to locate the entrance of the freaking majestic looking Shinhwa Hotel, Geum Jan Di completely missed out on the fact that her boyfriend - the guy who she was here in Macau to see is within the black sedan car that had just passed her by on the driveway.
Likewise, Gu Jun Pyo who was seated in the back passenger seat of the black limo sedan with a long face hasn't noticed the presence of his girlfriend walking on the pavement next to the driveway that leads up to the official entrance of the Shinhwa Hotel of Macau.
It was by chance that Geum Jan Di managed to catch sight of her boyfriend alighting from the limo sedan ahead of her when the entrance of the Shinhwa Hotel in Macau finally came into view. However, as Gu Jun Pyo has his back to the direction where Geum Jan Di was - he didn't notice his girlfriend approaching, and by the time Geum Jan Di started yelling for his attention - he was already too far ahead to hear anything. Especially, since there's a wedding lunch reception going on in one of the ballrooms on the ground floor of the hotel and thus the sound from the banquet hall had overlapped the frantic calls of his name coming from his girlfriend.
Moreover, the Shinhwa heir had the bulk of his attention focused on the words relayed to him by his secretary team. There are just too many business deals going on at the same time that it's not realistic to rely on just one secretary, no wonder both his parents had a team of secretaries at their beck and call. Right now, he had Jeong Sang-Rok, a secretary his mother sic upon him as the head secretary in charge and then a group of newly recruited secretaries at his service. Funnily enough, neither members on his team of secretaries are of the opposite gender… perhaps, his witch of a mother feared that his focus would be side-tracked by having a female secretary on his team.
Behind the oblivious Gu Jun Pyo, Geum Jan Di yells for the Shinhwa heir attention as she followed him towards the guarded VIP section of the hotel. Needless to say, Geum Jan Di ended up being halted by two stern-looking security staff dressed in black suits addressing her in the native tongue of Cantonese.
"I'm sorry, miss. From here onward is the VIP restricted area, unless you're able to show us proof of your identification. We are unable to let you proceed further." One of the men politely told Geum Jan Di.
Although, Geum Jan Di tried to inform them that she's here to look for Gu Jun Pyo in her not quite eloquent English skills. The guards aren't listening to her, and they are simply doing their duties by stopping unauthorized personnel from accessing the VIP restricted area of the hotel. Failing to enter the VIP restricted area, Geum Jan Di tried to barge her way in only to be thrown out of the hotel by the security guards alerted to the situation.
Left without a choice, Geum Jan Di sighed as she lugged her baggage with her as she made her way back to the passenger pick-up/drop-off point outside the Grand Emperor Casino Hotel as she sat outside thinking about her next course of action.
[Darn… maybe Ga Eul's right, I ought to have planned this trip to Macau better.] Geum Jan Di thought dejectedly as she sat outside the building of Grand Emperor Hotel, staring blankly at her feet.
While Geum Jan Di fretted over what to do next outside the hotel building of Grand Emperor, the heiress of the JK Group was very eager to explore the city of Macau despite having been instructed to wait for her parents' arrival from the UK. Apparently, her parents are meeting up with some representatives from the Shinhwa Group to talk business and wanted her to be around for the event. Only, Jae-Kyung isn't all that interested in the idea of sitting through a business meeting and thus decided to venture out for some sight-seeing purposes instead. So, without a word, she snuck off when her bodyguard - Chen is on the phone with her parents, who are on the way to Macau, and rushes off to board the shuttle bus that would bring her to the Red Market - one of the infamous shopping district of the city, where one is expected to find cheap bargains.
In a rush to board the bus that's leaving, the heiress of the JK Group didn't even notice that she had dropped a copy of her sightseeing guide. Geum Jan Di who has been sitting outside the building of Grand Emperor Hotel heard the sound of something dropping in front of her and glanced over in reflex. A quick look informed her that the owner of the copy of the sightseeing guide is already nowhere in sight, likely already on board the bus. So, Geum Jan Di used her black heeled shoes to drag the copy of the sight-seeing guide over to her so she could flip through it for an idea about what to do next.
Just like the heiress of the JK Group, Geum Jan Di was attracted to the idea of exploring the Red Market. Only, unlike the heiress of the JK Group who simply wanted to enjoy a feel of the commoner's lifestyle - Geum Jan Di knows that's the only place she's likely to find souvenirs for her trip home. Even though she has only just arrived in the city - she's already thinking about the souvenirs she intends to get for her family and friends back home in Seoul.
Following the directions given in the sightseeing guide, Geum Jan Di hopped onto the next shuttle bus and alight at the designated stop - twenty minutes away. Thanking the bus driver for the help in notifying her upon arriving at the destination, Geum Jan Di disembarked from the bus with her suitcase in tow.
While Geum Jan Di was motivating herself up for an exploration trip around the red market - a place swarming with tourists and locals looking for a great bargain. The F3 was on their way over to Macau, onboard the private jet owned by the Song family.
Location: Private Jet of the Song family, 21st November 2009, Saturday afternoon, 1pm
The atmosphere in the plane was filled with stifled tension, Yoon Ji Hoo gazed out of the window of the plane in deep thoughts. So Yi Jeong was hoping that they would be able to locate Geum Jan Di without issues upon landing in Macau. Because the sooner, he could placate his worried girlfriend waiting for an update of Geum Jan Di's situation back home in Seoul, the better. Song Woo Bin, on the other hand, was looking through some last-minute assignment his father thought it necessary to dump in his laps because he intended to visit Macau.
"Do you think Geum Jan Di would be able to meet up with Jun Pyo smoothly?" So Yi Jeong started, directing his query to his auburn-haired friend seated in front of him on the same aisle.
"Honestly, I have no clues. I was already planning to accompany her on her trip to Macau, but then she had to pull this stunt and throw my entire plans into disarray. I could only hope that she didn't land herself into hot soup without either of us around to bail her out." Yoon Ji Hoo commented in response, admitting that his plans had gone pear-shaped after Geum Jan Di decided to hop onto the next plane out that's bound for Macau, without informing him in advance. If it weren't for the bodyguard he had sic on the girl previously, Ji Hoo highly doubts he would learn of the girl's decision to visit Macau without a proper plan in mind this timely.
He supposed this is likely how Chu Ga Eul had felt upon waking up to a simple text message from Geum Jan Di claiming that she's on the way to Macau to see Jun Pyo. No wonder, Chu Ga Eul had dialed up Yi Jeong in a panic.
"Woo Bin, you're sure that your men are keeping an eye on Geum Jan Di?" Yoon Ji Hoo started voicing his query across the aisle to the Don Juan of F4, who seems to be looking over some documents his father had handed to him before their flight.
"Yes. I told them not to approach Geum Jan Di without orders, but to intervene when absolutely necessary. Macau might be relatively safe for seasoned travelers, but for naive travelers like Geum Jan Di - it could be a living nightmare. Cons and thieves are lurking literally at every corner of the streets waiting to strike at unguarded and unsuspecting naive tourists who are traveling alone." Song Woo Bin sighed aloud in response, glaring at the offending document his father had someone dropped into his lap moments before the jet took off for Macau.
To be exact, it wasn't quite his men that he has kept an eye on Geum Jan Di. Because if one were to get down to the specifics, it's actually his cousin - Victor's lackeys that's keeping an eye on the Wonder Woman of Korea in Macau on his behalf. His maternal family - the Ma, are well-known for their connections to the lawful and the unlawful sides in both Hong Kong and Macau.
His maternal grandparents, Stanley Ma owns the largest nightlife establishment chain in LKF, Hong Kong, and several moderate size casinos in Macau. His maternal grandmother, Josephine Ma, on the other hand, commanded the largest secret society triad based in Macau and Hong Kong she had inherited from her estranged father in the wake of his death. Of course, these days all his maternal grandmother had done was to conduct some unlicensed money-lending on the sly and had done away with the majority of the law-breaking deals since she wasn't that interested in the prospect of running a shady business.
The money earned by his grandfather was more than enough to sustain his grandmother's spending habits, and therefore the majority of the command of the triad now befalls on the shoulder of his cousin - Victor Ma, since Kelvin, his other cousin is more interested in pretending to be a random bartender in the nightclubs and bars owned by the Ma family in Hong Kong. But Woo Bin isn't going to clue his friends in on his family relations and connections to the two special administrative cities of China, under one governing body but different ruling systems. Hence, the mafia heir of the Ii-Shin Group didn't contradict the words of his auburn-haired friend about him having his men keeping tabs on the movements of Geum Jan Di.
"By the way, Ji Hoo… don't you need to fix your hair or something? No offenses, but it looks as though you'd just tumbled out of bed, to be honest. " Song Woo Bin commented casually at his auburn-haired friend.
"...It's fine. I'll just let it stay in this manner, for now, it's not as though I'm preparing for a performance on-stage. And if my premonition proves me right, it's bound to get messy on its own when we managed to locate Geum Jan Di in Macau." Yoon Ji Hoo shrugged in response, only using his hand to flatten out the part of his hair that's sticking up in an unruly manner.
"..."
Back in the lobby of the Grand Emperor Hotel, Chen - the bodyguard of the heiress for the JK Group ended the phone conversation with her employers - the parents of her young mistress, Jae-Kyung, to find the young lady missing.
"Damn it… where did she sneak off to?!" Chen cursed aloud as she stamped her foot in annoyance.
"If my sense of hearing didn't fail me… I believed she's heading to the red market." A young man dressed up in a floral-printed shirt spoke up then.
"I beg your pardon?" Chen repeated, directing her stern gaze upon the unknown young man dressed in a flora-printed shirt.
"You're referring to the young lady with the bob-cut hairstyle, right? If it's her, I heard her muttering something about taking the opportunity to explore the red market and then rushes out to hop onto the shuttle bus outside, moments earlier." The young man with a floral-printed shirt responded calmly under the stern gaze of Chen, the bodyguard.
"I see. Thank you for your information." Chen responded as she wasted no time in chasing after the heiress of the JK Group, who had the audacity of shaking her off to head out for sightseeing on her own. How many times must she emphasize to that young lady that wandering about with an escort isn't advisable for someone of her status!?
"Young Master Victor, you really shouldn't poke your nose into other people's business." His bodyguard reminded in a pointed tone of voice.
"Whatever… that girl seated outside, is she still there?" The young man in a floral-printed shirt, going by the name of Victor then inquires.
"Erm… no, she just hopped onto the bus bound for the red market as well." His bodyguard responded.
"Is anyone shadowing her?" Victor raised an eyebrow in question, as he asks his bodyguard in return.
"Yes, I had one of our men follow her from behind." His bodyguard nodded in response.
"Excellent. I'll head inside for a game or two, let me know when Woo Bin's flight has landed." The young man dressed up in a floral-printed shirt commanded as he stood to head for the direction of the casino facility of the hotel.
"..."
~TBC~
Chapter's notes:
Okay, chapter 35 is finally delivered! ^_^; I somehow managed to make it… *wipe sweat from brows*
First things first, SoEul fans - what do you think of the moments between them in this chapter? :D Enjoyable, yes or no? Let me know ^_^
Secondly, again - in this chapter, I added my own twists to the original scenes. In the drama, it jumps from the 'retirement ceremony' at the pool to Jan Di's arrival in Macau straightaway. In my version, I had Geum Jan Di asking Ji Hoo some questions about procuring the ticket with cash, etc. My understanding is that Jan Di's family is likely too poor to avoid family trips overseas, so until New Caledonia… Jan Di likely has never traveled anywhere outside of Seoul before. This means she is incredibly naive when it comes down to traveling, all the more when it comes down to solo trips overseas.
In the drama, the upcoming scene towards the end of the episode - she nearly got conned because she is looking for a cheap room for her stay in Macau. Seriously, who the hell looks for boarding/lodging only after arriving in a foreign city. Even backpackers would have to book a bunk bed at a hostel for lodging before landing in the country they are visiting. So, I thought she's relying on the Shinhwa heir to arrange for her a place to stay while she's in the city. Only when it didn't come into fruition as she had anticipated it to be, that she start looking for alternative lodging and with her budget - it's only natural that she would be looking into cheaper options. Anyway, I'm not changing this part of the drama even though I had yet to cover the details. ^^;
In this chapter of mine, I ended the original drama scene at the moment whereby she's just setting off for the red market. And I introduced another OC into the story, this time - it's Woo Bin's cousin, on his maternal side of the family and hence the surname - Ma, instead of Song. Pardon the pun on the floral-printed shirt, ^^; the Taiwanese drama always features triad members dressed in such attire so, I might have incidentally 'borrowed' the dressing style for Woo Bin's cousin in this chapter.
Overall, I hope you enjoy this chapter ^_^ I'm not telling you when the next update would be, cause I don't want to accidentally jinx anything. ^^; For now, that's all… see you in the next update!
PS: Not much background is given for Woo Bin's family, so it's a free game for me to create characters ^^; Oh, and a slight change in the beginning of the chapter. In the drama, it was Ga Eul that inquires of the F3 reasons for coming to the porridge shop, but in my version of the event - the F3 presence was engineered by Ga Eul, so I made Jan Di spoke that line instead ^^