Her Tempestuous Villain

They spent the rest of the afternoon idly strolling through the festival. Sunye was enjoying the colors and the festivities around her while SD only watched her peaceful demeanor. She was at ease as she chewed on the berries they had bought from one of the stalls.

A few of the mascots came up to them and displayed magic tricks for their entertainment while the echoes of children laughing resonated throughout the park. Sunye giggled when one of the mime mascots targeted SD and was making fun of him by imitating his movements.

"What the-" SD cursed in irritation but the mime only provoked him more. Sunye giggled when SD lunged at him but the mime expertly dodged his attack and silently laughed at him.

"This is why I hate mimes," he said, feeling irritated when the mime ran away.

"I thought he was quite good," Sunye giggled. "Completely aced your sloppy walk."

"I walk like a supermodel!" SD said, feeling affronted. "I'm sure I could get a movie offer or two."

"I'd love to see them flop at the box office," Sunye shot back.

"At least you'll see them."

Sunye shook her head and sighed. The sun was almost about to set and the festival would last till late at night. There was a light and fire show which would take place at night but there were hours left for that and they had already seen most of the activities.

"So...it's your time to choose," she spoke up. "Where do you wanna go?"

Please don't say anything perverted, she thought inwardly. But SD was thinking hard about what to do.

"There is a place we can visit," he slowly said.

"Let's go then."

They strode through the crowd which had gathered up and headed straight for SD's car. He revved up the engine and they drove away. Sunye was wondering where they were going but she did not ask out loud. He might be openly flirtatious with her but she knew that he would never take her somewhere dangerous unless he knew he could keep her safe.

The silence was getting a little awkward for her though. They had been hanging out all day and yet, it felt as if she barely knew him. He knew almost everything about her but she knew nothing about this man. Yet, she was going with him to all sorts of places without a thought.

"That day…" she began. "Eight years ago. Why did you choose me?"

SD threw her a quizzical look so Sunye elaborated, "You could have hacked into Yang's computer and gotten that information. I know you're an expert hacker. But you chose to steal from me. Why?"

"I heard Yang had hired the girl who escaped the coup," he said. "And my interest peaked. I wanted to know what sort of person you were so I chose to tail you instead of taking the easy way out."

"Initially, I was planning to simply hack your phone at the bar," he went on. "But when I saw that guy harassing you, I thought that after saving you from him, stealing the data directly from you would be a better idea."

Sunye narrowed her eyes. She was sure that he stepped in to save her from the predator and was merely making an excuse. The data stealing part was just an added bonus.

"SD," she said. "I hope you haven't forgotten our bet."

"Ahh yes!" he recalled. "The bet where I was supposed to tell you my surname if you won the case."

Sunye braced herself, hopeful that he was going to reveal something about himself at last.

"What is it?" she asked, unable to contain her excitement.

"I'll tell you when we reach the place I want to take you to," he winked. Sunye felt a little giddy. She was excited that she was finally going to learn something personal about him. But was it enough?

SD sighed when she felt her fidget in her seat, bursting to ask questions. It was obvious that she was trying to mask her curiosity behind her icy attitude so he decided to break that barrier instead.

"My favorite color is green," he began. "I love to eat ramen and chicken with soju. I wear suits most of the time but I prefer t-shirts made of pure cotton."

He lazily glanced at her. "What else do you wanna know?" he asked warily.

Sunye thought for a moment before asking, "Music?"

"Jazz and rock," he replied. "I can show you my dance moves."

"I do recall you can dance well," Sunye said. SD peered at her.

"How do you know about my dance moves?" he asked.

"The cruise," she shrugged. "It was you, right? The one who danced with me? You were wearing the mask and contact lenses. At first, I thought it was Jonghyun but then I realized that it wasn't him. And only you knew what he was wearing that night so it was easy for you to don a similar suit and dance with me."

"I'll give you points for that," SD said, feeling impressed. "Yep. It was me. Might I say, it was a wonderful night for me. I danced with the girl I like and also caught the Finance Minister's lies. It was fun."

Sunye froze upon hearing his words. "W-what?" she asked. "What did you just say?"

"I danced with the girl I like and caught the Minister's lies," he shrugged.

"L-like?" she stammered. "You like me?"

"Question is not whether I like you," he said in a smug tone. "Question is, do you like me?"

He did not look at her but kept his focus on the road while Sunye only gaped at him, her face turning as red as a tomato. How the hell was he able to say this out loud in such a casual way? Like? What was there to like about her? And if he liked her, why was he always teasing her?

"What else do you want to know?" he asked. "My foot size? It's 9."

Sunye drew a sharp breath. He was changing the topic on purpose and there was no use in trying to probe him to reveal more about what he felt for her. Was he sincere? Or was he bluffing as always? He would never tell.

But she was not going to give up that easily. I'll make him reveal it, she decided. By tonight.

Clearing her throat, she asked him, "Favorite book?"

SD chuckled and answered all her burning questions. The lid was taken off her mouth and she was barraging him with her questions, determined to know everything he liked. She was so engrossed in her interrogation, that she did not realize that the car had stopped. Still, she did not give up asking.

"You traveled to the beaches of Country Z?" she gaped in shock. "But no one is allowed there! The country is closed for the public and is completely off limits! They kill all trespassers."

"Well, their King is a personal friend of mine," SD replied as he opened the car door for her. "He requested for my help after his brother was trying to kill him for the throne. I accepted his invitation and went there. Lived with his people for a year. I was sixteen then."

"Sixteen?" she frowned, walking alongside him. She was not aware of where they were but was on her own line of thought. "You didn't have school?"

"I never went to school," he stated. "For me, the world was my school. Traditional degree and learning was not for me. It limits knowledge. The only reason I force Orea to go to school is because her parents made me promise that she'd complete her education at all costs. Useless if you ask me, coz she passes her exams with flying colors without studying."

"She's a genius?" Sunye wondered.

"No, she hacks into the school's computer system before every exam," SD replied. "According to her, the school should automatically pass her for that feat alone."

Sunye was about to drill him more but suddenly, she tripped and almost fell forward.

"AH!" she yelped but SD caught her on time.

"Careful!" he cautioned. "The ground is rocky here."

Sunye held onto him to steady herself. Looking around, she realized that they were on top of a cliff. SD had driven all the way there, leading her near the edge.

"Is it gonna get cold here?" she asked, feeling a little hesitant.

"Oh that's right!" he realized. "Wait here. You have your meds in your purse, right?"

She nodded. He ran back towards the car and took out her purse. Then, he opened the trunk of the car and took out a couple of blankets.

"Then don't worry," he assured her. "I had extra blankets in the trunk. If it gets cold, pop in a pill and put on the blanket."

"Thanks," Sunye muttered as she took her purse and the blanket. She glanced around, wondering why he brought her there. SD smirked and stood at almost the edge of the cliff, alarming her.

"Careful!" she exclaimed but he was grinning at her. He held out his hand.

"Come here, Sunye," he said in a soft tone. "You wanted to know more about me, right? Then why don't you see the world from the way I see it? Maybe it'll open your eyes."

Sunye gulped and slowly stepped towards him. Inadvertently, her hand reached out to touch his warm palm and he firmly gripped her. She did not take his eyes off him, too scared to look down but also curious to know more.

"See it for yourself, Han Sunye!" he declared. "The world beneath us."