Side Story 3: Leila’s Story. Fate Like Coincidence (2)

After showering, she drank beer and checked her schedule for tomorrow.

Looking at the packed schedule starting from dawn, she remembered what the man had said at the end.

It seemed she wouldn’t be able to buy him a drink tomorrow.

Given her remaining schedule, she might not see him again until the end of the trip.

Since it was her first visit and she didn’t know when she would come again, she had planned to thoroughly explore all of Jeju Island.

The next day, as soon as she opened her eyes, she quickly got ready and headed to the passenger terminal.

Today, she planned to spend half a day on Udo Island.

She disliked being one-sidedly indebted, so she felt uneasy about not buying him a drink, but she thought that if he wanted chance encounters, what could she do?

With a schedule more demanding than endurance training, she didn’t think she would meet that man again in Jeju.

While thinking about this and that, when she arrived at the passenger terminal, this time she was the first to laugh.

She had spotted him.

Among the countless days like steel hair, he was also going to Udo today.

She went behind him and called out.

“Excuse me.”

The man who turned around first looked surprised, but soon started laughing.

“Wow. I really couldn’t have imagined this today. This is truly unbelievable.”

“I’ll buy you a drink when we get to Udo.”

“Alright. I can’t avoid it anymore. It seems we’re destined to have a drink together.”

While riding the ferry, the man took out a camera from his bag and took photos.

She didn’t know much about machines yet, but it looked high-end at a glance.

“That looks like a nice camera.”

The man nodded and said.

“Would you like me to take a picture of you?”

She became curious if a good camera would make the photo look like a painting.

She wondered if it would turn out prettier than the photos Yun-seo took with an app that made her look like a different person every day.

“Would you take one for me?”

She leaned against the railing and took a photo with the sea and sky as the background.

The man immediately showed her the photo.

“Wow! Amazing.”

“Aren’t you being too impressed with your own appearance?”

“No, it’s not that. I don’t know much, but the overall composition is so beautiful. I may not be good at seeing these things, but you seem to have great skill.”

“Thank you for the compliment. But it’s more about the subject being naturally good than my skill. And the place itself is also picture-perfect.”

They silently looked at the sea and then arrived and disembarked.

“This is my first time on Udo. Should we go to the cafe I saw on a blog? Or would you like to go somewhere you want to go? I don’t mind either way.”

“Didn’t you come here because there was somewhere you wanted to go?”

“After talking with you yesterday, it seems like you know a lot.”

“Then there’s a place I always go to whenever I come. Let’s go there together.”

“Excuse me, how far is it? There’s something I want to try riding, so I think I need to rent it here.”

“Let’s do that. I don’t want to interfere with your travel plans.”

She rented an electric car and had him sit beside her.

“I’ve been here several times, but this is my first time riding this. It’s fun. I should ride it again next time I come.”

She drove the electric car in the direction he indicated, and they arrived at a cafe in front of the beach.

The cafe owner welcomed the man and guided them to the seat with the best view.

“Order something expensive. I’ll pay for everything.”

“An Americano is enough for me.”

After thinking it over, she chose an Udo peanut cream latte.

She didn’t like sweet drinks, but since she had come all this way, she felt she should try it.

She ordered two drinks and a cake.

After placing the order and returning, he was taking photos.

“Excuse me, if it’s okay, could I try taking some photos too? I’d like to learn.”

She learned how to use the camera from him.

Occasionally, when their hands brushed, she felt a strange flutter.

“I’ll take a picture of you.”

The man’s appearance through the viewfinder was impressive.

She briefly admired his handsome face with soft eyes contrasting with a sharp nose bridge and a manly jawline.

After taking quite a few photos, she handed the camera back.

They sat side by side and looked at the photos.

The man explained about composition.

“I thought it was just about taking pictures, but photography is so much fun. I should learn it when I get back to Seoul. There are so many fun things in this world. That’s why I’m so happy.”

“You have a positive personality.”

He smiled mysteriously.

Positive? It was a word she had never heard even once while living in the empire.

She wondered if she had changed enough in a year to hear such words.

She finished her drink and stood up.

“Now we should each enjoy our own schedules. I’m going to drive the electric car around once.”

“Alright. Have a good time.”

As she got into the electric car, the man hurriedly came over and said.

“How about telling me your name the next time we happen to meet by chance? It’s getting a bit awkward to keep saying ‘excuse me’.”

“Alright. The next time we happen to meet by chance. But let’s exclude ‘by chance’ when we return today.”

The man nodded with a broad smile.

That smile felt as refreshing as the sea.

By the time she left Udo, it was already evening.

She was tired, so she had dinner at the hotel and rested in her room.

The next day, she went to Seongsan Ilchulbong and then headed to a museum.

But it was closed.

As she turned around with a face wet with disappointment, she saw a familiar silhouette.

They saw each other and shouted simultaneously in surprise.

“Oh!”

“Oh!”

It was ridiculous by now.

Meeting in front of a closed museum, of all places.

They bought drinks and walked around the area.

“What’s your name?”

“Jo Yun-ah. And yours?”

“Kwon Se-woon. But this is really amazing.”

“It really is. Since it’s so amazing, how about having dinner together? There’s a menu I couldn’t choose because I was alone. What do you think?”

“Sounds good. What is it? Yun-ah.”

“Raw fish. Is that okay? Se-woon.”

“Of course. Shall we go to a place I know well?”

They ended up having dinner together.

And when they parted, Se-woon said.

“Tell me your age the next time we meet.”

“Alright. Now I’m looking forward to it too.”

And the next day, like a lie, they met by chance at a ranch.

After taking photos, they sat at a cafe next to the ranch, eating milk ice cream and answering the previous question.

“I’m twenty-nine years old. What about you, Se-woon?”

“I’m thirty-two. Shall we tell each other our jobs next time?”

“Sounds good. Then enjoy the rest of your time.”

They parted, and the next day they met while exploring the market.

“I passed the diplomat exam. I came on this trip before starting my training. It’s my first time in Jeju.”

“I’m a photographer. I take advertising photos, pictorials, and this time I came for essay photos.”

After eating grilled mackerel together and parting, Se-woon said.

“How about we each ask one question we’re curious about next time?”

“Sounds good.”

Se-woon handed her an envelope.

“What’s this?”

“It’s called Omegi rice cake. It’s famous, so eat it when you get back to your room.”

“Thank you.”

Once again, they exchanged greetings and parted.

Se-woon was a neat man without any excess.

He didn’t demand too much.

As usual, they met by chance, conversed as usual, had a meal, and parted.

But today, strangely, she felt a sense of regret.

She shook off the unfamiliar thought that suddenly came to her and headed to her next destination.

The next day, she woke up at dawn and headed to Mount Halla, excited about the prospect of reaching the summit.

Her determination was good, but it became unbearably difficult after a short distance.

It felt like she was heading to the afterlife rather than the summit.

Feeling like she needed to rest, she entered a shelter and found him.

By now, it was too tiring even to laugh.

Se-woon gestured to her with an expression that suggested this was to be expected.

“Yun-ah! Over here.”

With a tired face, she went over to Se-woon and sat down.

He handed her water and a chocolate bar.

“How are you here at this time, Se-woon?”

“I’m curious about that too. It’s truly amazing that our schedules can overlap this much.”

When they had rested enough, Se-woon asked.

“Do you have a boyfriend? I mean a lover, not just a male friend.”

“No, I don’t. What about you?”

“I don’t have one either. What shall we do the next time we meet?”

By now, she couldn’t guarantee they wouldn’t meet again, so she couldn’t say just anything.

“Let’s have a drink together in the evening next time we meet.”

“Sounds good. I’ll move ahead first. Rest a bit more before coming.”

“Okay. Be careful.”

Her heart fluttered as she watched Se-woon walking away.

This trip had become more interesting thanks to the strange man who had suddenly entered her life.

The truth was, tomorrow was her last day.

She thought she probably wouldn’t see Se-woon again.

She felt regret about not asking for his contact information on her last day, but people weren’t what she needed to focus on right now.

If she got his contact information, she would surely agonize over whether to contact him or not.

Though she felt regretful, she couldn’t waste time like that.

On the last day, after finishing her planned schedule, she moved to a bar where she could drink alone.

“Unbelievable!”

She met Se-woon again.

They drank together and talked.

“If we happen to meet by chance again, shall we date then?”

“Sounds good.”

She must have been drunk by then.

That’s the only reason why she would have given such an answer.

By the time the bar was closing, they returned to the accommodation, both too drunk to tell who was more or less intoxicated.

And in the elevator, without knowing who initiated it, they embraced and shared their lips.

He lifted her up, and she wrapped her legs around his waist, pressing close.

In that position, they headed to Se-woon’s room.

As soon as they entered, they frantically undressed each other, bumping into walls here and there while sharing rough kisses.

It felt like she would suffocate in the air filled with passion.

And then her body fell onto the bed.

His eyes, shining with excitement, looked sensual.

Her whole body trembled at the male gaze.

It was a blissful night of becoming one.

When she opened her eyes at dawn, she gathered her clothes and returned to her room.

“I can’t believe I had a one-night stand.”

The man named Kwon Se-woon was too attractive to her.

But that was it.

That was right.

First, she wanted to focus on the job she had worked so hard to get.

Meeting him at a travel destination had made her more excited and fluttery.

She packed her bags and headed to the airport.

* * *

Two years later.

She boarded a plane to France after receiving her assignment.

Whenever she got on a plane, she thought of the man named Kwon Se-woon.

It was the hottest memory she had made there.

She still thought of that man and felt regretful because of it.

After starting work at the embassy, time flew by in a busy blur.

Weekends were so exhausting that she couldn’t do anything except catch up on sleep.

Now she had finally adjusted a bit and went out on a weekend for the first time.

It was when she was sitting by the Seine, drinking beer.

Sensing someone sitting down beside her, she turned to look.

She was so surprised that she couldn’t say anything.

She could only stare at that person with shocked eyes.

And the other person also stared at her without saying anything.

After a long silence, the man opened his mouth.

“Yun-ah?”

“Se-woon?”

“Do you know how much I looked for you back then?”

She couldn’t say anything.

“Do you remember what we promised to do if we met by chance again?”

Instead of answering, she nodded.

Se-woon’s face came closer, and she felt his hot breath.

Did Yun-ah who went to the empire feel this kind of fate with Emperor Charte?

There had been times when she thought the woman who switched bodies with her was foolish.

But now she felt like she could perfectly understand her heart.

‘Thank you. Yun-ah, another me, who is also Leila, I won’t forget that you gave me this life. I am perfectly happy here. I hope you are too.’

Side Story <END>