In Search of Our Destiny - Chapter 232
Despite being almost bloodless, Ji-Won’s lips had a delicate curve at the corners, making them appear especially attractive. Just like a hook, the alluring sight tugged at the young woman’s heartstrings until she found herself in a daze.
Then, followed another dilemma.
Should she allow her hand to touch the man’s thin lips, or move sideways across his smooth cheeks instead?
After battling an upsurge of unknown emotions, Su-Jin ultimately chose to retreat. She leaned back into her seat and breathed out slowly. At the same time, the adventurous hand became well-behaved, falling limply in her lap. She rubbed her fingertips together, trying to rid herself of any lingering sensations.
‘Why do I feel like I’m acting just like a Male Lead in a drama? Watching the Female Lead sleeping on my shoulder and thinking of doing this and that with that person’s mouth?’ Aaah, when did I become such a beast?!’ She wailed silently.
Meanwhile, the car was advancing on the road, getting closer and closer to the hanok village.
To both Su-Jin and Ji-Won’s luck, the two men sitting in front were clearly professionals.
During the entire time when the two young people acted like a pair stuck in the pre-dating stage, nothing seemed to phase them.
They didn’t make the smallest sound, nor did they glance in the rearview mirror. Instead, the two men tried to reduce their sense of existence as much as possible. If it wasn’t for the car moving, perhaps no one would even be able to tell they were there at all.
When the car finally stopped near the village entrance, the rain had fully stopped. The air was cool and filled with a fresh scent of wet grass.
As soon as the driver pulled up the car next to the gate, Ji-Won opened his eyes. Noticing he was leaning on Su-Jin’s shoulder, his eyes widened, looking like two big gems. A faint blush rose on his cheeks and he quickly moved away.
“Ahem…”
Ji-Won cleared his throat a couple of times, all in an attempt to mask the awkwardness he was feeling.
“For a moment there, I must have fallen asleep. I apologize, Miss Park. I hope it didn’t… make you uncomfortable.”
“No, not at all.” Su-Jin hurried to say. She offered him a bashful, albeit very tiny smile. “I am just very glad you were able to pull through.”
As she finished her words, Su-Jin kept wracking the man’s face with her eyes. Now that her emotions were slightly calmer, the apprehension she felt for his condition returned twofold.
In truth, Ji-Won still looked quite rattled. Even though he managed to avoid a strong reaction, and even fell asleep for a bit, he was still very pale. Now that he was awake, his breathing seemed uneven.
However, to Su-Jin’s relief, his complexion was definitely much better than what she had expected.
Soon afterwards, Su-Jin and Ji-Won thanked the driver and his colleague and got out of the car.
“Mister Kang.” The driver got out as well and gave Ji-Won a small bow. “Someone will contact you after the car has been checked. It may take a day or two before we have the results, though. During this time, would you like to apply for a temporary replacement car?”
Ji-Won thought for a moment, then shook his head slowly.
“Let’s see what the issue is first, then we’ll see. I don’t want to make any decisions until I know exactly what’s wrong with the car.”
“Of course, we understand that. It was just mandatory for us to ask, sir. We’ll make sure to contact you as soon as possible. Have a good day, sir. You too, miss.”
After bowing to both Ji-Won and Su-Jin, the man got behind the wheel and drove off.
Then Ji-Won turned to look at Su-Jin.
“Shall we go, Miss Park? The subway station is that way.” he pointed in a certain direction.
Without waiting for Su-Jin to reply, Ji-Won began walking towards the station.
But he barely took several steps, when someone unexpectedly grabbed his arm, pulling him to a sudden stop.
“Director Kang!” Su-Jin called out urgently.
Her chest was heaving as she panted from the effort of running to catch up with him.
When she saw him lowering his head and staring down into her eyes, Su-Jin froze. She gulped and hastened to release his arm like it was a hot potato.
On the other hand, Ji-Won merely raised an eyebrow to express his befuddlement.
“Miss Park, what is it?” Ji-Won inquired quietly.
“Uhm, how about we stay here for a while longer?” Su-Jin finally said after a while.
“Stay here, in the village?” Ji-Won’s eyes widened even further in surprise.
“Yes.” Su-Jin nodded, lowering her eyes to stare at her fingers. “We were planning on being here for the entire day anyway. There was also that place you saw last time… That inn with a restaurant. We could take this opportunity and try their services before making them an offer.”
Su-Jin waited, but seeing how Ji-Won still kept silent, she began to worry. She quickly looked up at the man, frantically trying to explain herself.
“I mean, at least until you feel better. There are also some other things I think we can talk about.”
Here, Su-Jin gave Ji-Won a meaningful look.
The latter instantly understood what she meant by that gaze. After all, earlier they had been interrupted in the middle of a conversation.
Remembering the topic at that time, Ji-Won ultimately nodded. The hand he had in his trouser pocket instinctively clutched the handkerchief. He let his fingers vigorously crumple the thin fabric, as if by doing that he was able to protect himself from the negative emotions that threatened to engulf him.
It wasn’t the most professional grounding technique, but apparently it worked miracles for Ji-Won. As soon as he felt the object tightly secured in his hand, he immediately relaxed.
With the help of Su-Jin’s presence as well, Ji-Won was finally able to almost completely pull away from his anxiety and dark thoughts. Just like it happened earlier in the car.
As a consequence to all these considerations, Ji-Won accepted the young woman’s proposition with a smile.
“Are you hungry, Miss Park? I, for one, am starving.”
“What a coincidence. I happen to be famished myself.”
Su-Jin returned the smile and gestured with her head towards the village.
“Lead the way, Director Kang.”