18. Rai Heon Project ‘Dating and Getting Married’ – Mission #2. Dating
……What is going on?
I only wanted to go on a date for the sake of breaking up.
I only wanted to date him appropriately and bring this relationship to a good end.
Thud-thud-thud-thud-thud-thud-
The loud noise pounded not only against Dana’s ears but against her head as well.
Why on earth am I riding in a helicopter from this early in the morning?
Dana sat in the helicopter with a dazed expression, gazing at the blue sky.
Just a few minutes ago, she had definitely been riding in a Porche.
I still can’t believe the Porche or the Maybach, and now it’s a helicopter?
How did things end up like this?
Suddenly, she remembered the conversation they had in the car earlier.
‘Ms. Lee Dana, do you happen to have your passport?’
‘What? A passport? W-was I required to bring one?’
Flustered by the Boss’s question, she rummaged through her bag, but when she thought about it, who brings a passport on a date?
‘I don’t have my passport.’
‘Then, Plan B.’
Plan B?
She had heard his low voice, but she didn’t understand what he meant, so she simply assumed she hadn’t heard it.
But when she came to her senses, wasn’t she already riding in a helicopter?
“Shall we get off now?”
“Ah. Yes!”
Dana quickly stood up.
Following the safety officer’s instructions, she climbed down in a daze and looked around.
The sunlight sparkling across the sea was reflected in her eyes.
W-what? We’re in the middle of the sea?
Why is he telling me to get off here?
‘Gasp, no way.’
Did the Boss realize that my confession was fake?
Is that why he’s going to push me into the sea?
‘I decided to break off my engagement because of you, and your confession was fake? I can’t stand this! Take that!’
How would the Boss know that?
Then.
‘You want to cancel my marriage proposal and dump me by pacifying me with a relationship? I won’t let you get away with this. Heave-ho!’
Tremble, tremble, tremble.
“Are you all right?”
“No!”
“Don’t worry. You’ll get used to it soon.”
Who gets used to falling into the sea?
“You’ll experience it often.”
“What? What does that mean……!”
Huh? Wait a second.
Why am I riding a yacht this time?
Thud-thud-thud-thud-thud-
The helicopter took off in front of her, creating a tremendous gust of wind with its deafening noise.
All that remained were the superyacht, me, and the Boss.
And the endless open sea.
“Where on earth are we?”
“Jeju Island.”
“What? But just a little while ago, we were in Seoul…….”
She felt dizzy.
She couldn’t get a grip on reality.
“Let’s go sit down. I have champagne my younger brother gave me.”
“Ah, yes…….”
When she turned her head toward where he was heading, she saw well-dressed waiters standing in a line at a luxurious bar.
I don’t want to go there…….
“Ms. Lee Dana?”
“Ah, yes. Boss. I’m coming!”
She quickly ran over and pulled out the chair for Ihun.
Ihun looked at her in surprise.
Ah, this isn’t right.
“Today, I’ll do it. Give me a chance.”
“Ah, yes.”
Dana sat in the chair he pulled out for her.
“How do you like it here? Do you like it?”
“Ah……. Yes.”
Clear skies, a vast sea.
A luxury car, a helicopter, and a yacht.
This was an incredible date.
If I really liked the Boss, how happy and thrilled would I be?
I’m even starting to feel a little that way now.
But I had a conscience too.
It was simply too overwhelming for me to handle right now.
As she answered reluctantly, a waiter approached, explained something, and poured her champagne.
Dana didn’t understand a single word he was saying, and with her chest feeling increasingly constricted, she downed the champagne in one shot.
“You did the same thing with the iced Americano before. I suppose you like drinking things in one go.”
“What?”
Oh, dear.
I drank it all before the Boss’s glass was even fully filled.
“I-I was thirsty. I’m sorry for drinking first.”
“No, it’s fine. I wasn’t planning to drink anyway. I wanted to drive you home myself when we leave.”
Really? Are we actually going home?
I’m not going to regain consciousness and find myself on a plane, then lose my mind and find myself in a submarine, am I?
I wanted to be touched by how considerate he was, but this wasn’t the time for that.
They say that even if a tiger carries you away, you’ll survive as long as you keep your wits about you.
It’s no different just because it’s a lion.
The plan had gone awry, but she could simply chalk it up to this being their first date.
All she had to do was reaffirm her determination to break up once again.
And change the date course a little.
“For lunch, I reserved a suite at Hyena Hotel.”
“Ah. Yes. ……What? A suite? Why there? No, you said we were going home…… You, isn’t this a little too soon?”
“……I wanted to show you the scenery. The view of Hallasan from there is truly beautiful.”
Tch. I’m the only trash here.
“The room service there is delicious too. Let’s have lunch there.”
“Ah…… Yes.”
She answered reluctantly, but Hyena Hotel?
That place is incredibly expensive.
And on top of that, a suite.
It wasn’t enough that she had gotten off a helicopter onto a yacht, and now they were going to a hotel suite too.
Was he deliberately trying to make someone feel intimidated?
Of course, she wasn’t someone who would be intimidated.
But they were going to break up, and she couldn’t let him recklessly spend this much of someone else’s money.
I don’t want to be called the person who took advantage of SaJa Group’s eldest son and ran off.
And that wasn’t all.
Humans were creatures of adaptation.
If I got used to things like this and then broke up with him later, I’d only become spoiled.
One day, exhausted from work,
while eating cup noodles and gimbap at a convenience store, I might suddenly think,
President Rai must be looking at the scenery from a hotel suite and ordering room service around this time, and he must be flying around in helicopters with the money we earned working.
And I could become a bitter, twisted person because of it.
Most importantly.
If it’s Hyena Hotel, isn’t it one of our company’s affiliates?
The president of SaJa Group visits an affiliated hotel suite with a woman?
How long has it even been since we defended ourselves against the rumors of the broken engagement?
Just imagining all the overtime she would have to work again was the most terrifying thing she had experienced today.
“Boss…….”
“Yes, Ms. Lee Dana.”
“A car, please…….”
“A car? Is tea better than champagne? What kind of tea would you like?”
“Tea…… No, a helicopter. Call a helicopter!”
***
After many twists and turns, the two were standing at the place where they had first met.
“Was it not to your liking? We still had a fishing trip on the yacht and a movie on a projector, just the two of us.”
You can do all sorts of things on a yacht.
I’m just so glad there wasn’t a scuba-diving course.
“It wasn’t bad. How could it be? I-I just get a little seasick.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t think of that.”
Please don’t apologize.
You’re so kind, Boss, that everything I do makes me feel guilty, okay?
“It’s n-not that bad. But, um, this is our first date, after all.”
“Yes, so I prepared it with a little more effort.”
“I-I see. No wonder, it was really nice…….”
That’s not what I meant.
“But, um. We still have, well, how should I put it? A difference in status, I suppose. Haha. It’s funny to use an expression like that in the twenty-first century, but that’s the reality, isn’t it? The Boss is the Boss, after all, and I’m just an employee, so since we’re suddenly dating, I was thinking it might be better to have a date where we get to know each other better first.”
“A date where we get to know each other better?”
“Um, the helicopter and the yacht are probably familiar to you, Boss, but I was so busy trying to adjust that I couldn’t even focus on the date, and, well. When you think of a date, shouldn’t it be an activity where you can feel a sense of familiarity above all else…….”
“An activity where you can feel a sense of familiarity?”
“Ah, yes, Boss.”
The briefing began.
“The purpose of dating is to become closer while feeling excited. It’s a process of getting to know each other, you could say. It’s nice to have something glamorous and beautiful on the outside, but what’s really important is the bodies and hearts of the two of us, isn’t it? Lovers should share their hearts, hold hands, feel each other’s warmth, and naturally, huh? To do that, I think it would be better to start with an ordinary date.”
“…….”
“Just look at the suite. How are we supposed to get closer to each other in that vast, empty space? Back in the old days, you know, everyone used to live together in a single room. How pleasant it was, all bustling together. When family members each have their own room, they’re always busy shutting their doors and going inside, you know? It’s the same between lovers. Familiar and down-to-earth. I think it would be better to start that way. That way, we can become even closer, so to speak. In a nutshell, let’s build a solid foundation! That’s what I mean, Boss.”
Ihun gave a faint laugh.
What did I say this time……?
And why did the Boss listen to something like this so seriously?
Anyway, since he laughed, my presentation didn’t completely fail, right?
“You really do have everything planned out, Ms. Lee Dana. Then what shall we do first? Shall we decide together?”
“Uh, no. I’ll take you. Follow me.”
She walked ahead, bowing respectfully, then suddenly stopped.
Then she slowly looked down at her own hand.
At some point, Ihun had taken her hand.
“An activity where you can feel a sense of familiarity.”
He smiled.
Her heart sank with a thud.
“This counts, right?”
“Ah…… Yes.”
His hand is warm.
Just like his face.
“But we already held hands earlier. Don’t you remember? You were scared in the helicopter, so I held your hand.”
He said something or other, but perhaps because of the sudden physical contact.
Thump-thump, thump.
The sound of her heartbeat grew louder in her ears.
