Chapter 101 - All About Timing

"Did you hear Dae Won's new song? A new singer released it last month," Na Ra asked, when a sad song started playing on the radio. They were already arriving at the Ji Hyeon Foundation.

"Yes, it is very good," the doctor simply lied, not wanting to be charged for being a reckless friend who was not interested in Dae Won's projects. It was hard enough when Hyung himself from time to time subtly reminded him of that fact. Dr. Kim was relieved when he saw the clinic building, and he was able to say goodbye to her at last.

When he was left by Na Ra in the clinic parking lot, the first thing Kim Jun Hyeon did was to look for his car. There it was, parked in the worst possible way, crossing the spot. Was she a bad driver, or was she consumed by jealousy and pettiness?

Normally Jun Hyeon would have gone to his apartment after arriving, and without a doubt, this was his initial plan. But now, a sense of urgency overwhelmed him. 

As soon as he saw Na Ra's car coming up the ramp to leave the underground parking lot, he went into action. He called the parking attendant, and asked,

"How long ago did my friend leave my car here? It can't be that long, right?"

"Actually, less than ten minutes ago, Director Kim," was the helpful reply. "And then Miss Nam asked for directions to the nearest bus stop."

He wanted to shout, asking why the employee didn't give her money for a taxi, but that was ridiculous and unfair. After also inquiring where this damn bus stop was, Dr. Kim found himself running over there, like a madman, trying to find her before she left.

To his dismay, the doctor spotted the rear of the bus, leaving the bus stop. 

Looking at his cell phone, he realized that he had no battery left, as he had forgotten to charge during the flight.

"What the hell!"

It would be very difficult to get her to accept his gifts on another occasion. What justifications would Jun Hyeon have in the future to tease her with all those expensive bags? The joke would lose context and timing.

Returning to the parking lot, the surgeon ordered a taxi, much to the surprise of the parking attendant. It didn't make any sense at all, right?

A little while ago Jun Hyeon had been overcome by a ridiculous urge to see her and explain that Na Ra had been his first love, but that meant nothing but the past. But now that he had oxygenated his brain with a little running, the doctor realized how pathetic it would have been if he had met Ye Rim at the bus stop.

When the taxi arrived, he gave the singer's address, and threw his luggage hastily and carelessly in the trunk.

In a whim of destiny, his taxi aligned with the bus where the singer was, at a red light. Dr. Kim saw her through the vehicle window, deep in thought. Ye Rim was looking at nothing, and he really wanted his cell phone to be charged enough to take a picture of her there, like that.

"Aish! What an airhead! Carelessly not paying attention to her surroundings. That's how people get mugged on the street!"

The bus entered a bus-only lane and the doctor lost sight of the vehicle. His taxi continued on its way to the neighborhood where Ye Rim lived. It was better to have something smart to say about it, by the way. Undoubtedly, that smartass girl would provoke him for coming for her so quickly.

When the taxi finally stopped in front of the building, he saw Ye Rim standing in the outward atrium. She looked at the mail in her hands with a shocked and uncertain expression, while the postman talked to a lady and delivered her the other mailing.

Intrigued, he got out of the taxi, immediately realizing that something was not right with the singer.

Feeling watched, Ye Rim looked up and was surprised by his arrival. And he soon noticed she wasn't in her best mood. In fact, her eyes were red and watery. Then Kim Jun Hyeon strode across the space that separated them and hugged her tightly.

It was good to hug her. Her coppery hair smelled and felt good, and her body was just as he imagined it: absolutely perfect to have in his arms. He saw the shocked look of the postman and the ajuhmma staring at them, but he didn't care, because his friend needed a hug at that moment.

In fact, it was as if everything he had wanted since the plane landed. Discover if his dream at the hotel in Zurich had anything to do with the real Ye Rim. And all sensory sensations were the same. This was absurd and crazy, but he didn't bother to rationalize too much at the time.

"W-why ... are you hugging me ?!" she asked in astonishment, her face pressed into his chest.

"I'm sorry, but everything is going to be okay," he replied, rubbing her back in a consoling way. Then she started to push his chest, looking up at him in a confused and irritated way,

"Oppa, what are you doing?!"

"What do you mean, 'what am I doing'?!" he let her walk away, suddenly fl.u.s.tered by Ye Rim's strange reaction. "What else could I be doing? You were crying when you got your mail!"

"Do you hug everyone who receives their credit card bill and condo bills?!" she waved her mail in the air, mad at him. 

"...!" For a moment Kim Jun Hyeon wished to die in embarrassment.

"And what are you doing here? Didn't you hitch a ride with Miss Hae?" she insisted.

The postman and ajuhmma followed the scene with interest now, ready to interfere if necessary. This the doctor understood only at a glance.

Although still confused by the faux-pas he had made, he countered,

"Of course not, I explicitly said I wouldn't accept her ride, that I would come with you! But you abandoned me at the airport, and with all those bags!" Jun Hyeon whispered so only Ye Rim could hear, maybe a little too loudly; but he wanted it to sound natural and not rehearsed. He didn't want to think that he was having a huge job lying about it, and he didn't want to think about why he was doing it.

"Aishh! This is ridiculous! Did you think I had brought your precious car here ?! I didn't do it! And ... "

Well, he had already done this pathetic scene for some reason, so before Ye Rim's neighbor thought it was romantic, he hugged her again.

This time she was with open arms and the hug was even better, it was good to smash her b.o.o.b.s against his chest with the excuse of being a good friend! They were the real deal, not padded bras! And they were firm and perfect-sized, she was wrong about wishing them bigger!

"Aigoo! I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" Ju Hyeon barely contained his laughter, but his gaze went to the hand where Ye Rim held his mail. Although there were some business letters, the first letter had a blue envelope and was written in feminine calligraphy. However, he was unable to read before Ye Rim pushed him again.

The taxi driver started honking, and the doctor had to resolve this, ending with his luggage in front of Ye Rim's building.

She observed with a deadpanned face,

"The Doctor is not thinking that he is going up with his bags to my apartment, is he? My neighbors won't understand that."

"If I can't get in, take my things. I wait here. Then let's go out to eat, I'm hungry! What kind of friend are you leaving me at the airport?!"

"I'm not going to carry your heavy bags up the stairs! I already said that my building doesn't have an elevator."

"So obvious, aishh!"Jun Hyeon went over to the woman who was watching them, imagining she was the janitor or superintendent, since he had stayed with the building's correspondence. After greeting and introducing himself, he said,

"Do you mind saving my things for a moment, while my friend at least takes me out to eat? I will return soon to search, after finding a place to stay. She said I could come from Australia, and I figured I could stay at her house, but apparently, there is a law that…"

"Don't bother Mrs. Cha. Let's go up, don't make it look like we have something, Oppa!" Ye Rim interfered.

"She calls me an Oppa because we are friends," he winked at the lady, stunned by the scene. He went to get his luggage, but gave the duffel bag for Ye Rim to carry, "Here, friend, help me a little."

"Uhnf!" The singer snorted, as he imagined, but followed behind him.

She opened the apartment door, and he saw a perfectly pleasant, feminine and cozy atmosphere. In reality, much better than he imagined from the facade of the building. Ye Rim let him in and put his bags in the middle of the room.

"I wasn't kidding, let's go down or the neighborhood will start talking," she asked.

"Why! Oh! So society also thinks that a man and a woman like us can't just be good friends? What a surprise! I'm shocked!" Ye Rim's request naturally made way for him to be sarcastic, but she just stared at him with narrowed eyes of disapproval.

"What a low blow! And… what drugs have Dr. been taking?!"

Jun Hyeon didn't need to measure his pulse to know that hormones were running free through his blood, which is why he was so euphoric. But he changed the subject, making the most serious expression he could manage,

"Don't change the subject or disguise, what letter is it that made you cry? You have to tell me!"