Chapter LXVII – My First Vacation
“Oppa! They’re here!” Sophie yelled out from the hallway.
“Coming!”
Arthur couldn’t help but smile as he closed his suitcase. Having no idea how long they’d stay, he decided to pack lightly. Irene mentioned that they had a washing machine at the beach house so he didn’t have to worry about running out of clean clothes.
Taking a deep breath, Arthur headed downstairs. Ryung and Sophie stood by the door as she was all packed up and ready to go. Unlike him, Sophie packed as much as she could. Arthur wouldn’t be surprised had she told him that her whole closet fit inside her large suitcase. Luckily it had wheels, otherwise, he wouldn’t be surprised if she asked for help carrying it.
“What took you so long?” Sophie eagerly waited all dressed up to match the vibe.
Her lemon-colored sundress with dark spots, large straw hat, and sandals matched her cheerful attitude perfectly.
“Am I not on time?” Arthur smirked before glancing toward Ryung who had taken a day off so he could see them off.
“Arthur,” Ryung approached placing a hand on Arthur’s shoulder. “Be good and take care of your sister.”
“Don’t worry, I will.”
Arthur’s words sounded so reassuring that Ryung was ready to wake up at any moment. He still had a hard time believing how much he had changed and was glad that Sophie finally had someone she could rely on while he wasn’t there.
“They’re waiting for us. . .” Sophie reminded the two.
Arthur nodded and gave Ryung a farewell hug.
“Take care, Grandpa.”
“You too. . .” he said before breaking the hug. Ryung then turned toward Sophie with open arms and a wide smile. “Come here you. . .”
Without saying a word, Sophie rushed into a tight embrace. She refrained from saying it, but she was going to miss him while they were away.
“You take good care of him as well,” Ryung said.
Sophie nodded after breaking away from the hug.
“Alright, let’s go,” Arthur said, grabbing his luggage as well as Sophie’s.
“Oppa, you don’t have to-”
“It’s fine since we need to put it in the trunk anyway.”
“Thanks,” she said giving him a kiss on the cheek before leaving the house.
Stepping out, Arthur saw Sophie rushing forward to the car that waited outside their gate. Max was the first one out of the car giving her a hug before looking for her luggage only to realize it wasn’t with her. Iseul was with him as she left the car to open the trunk. They managed to arrange to take the family car. From what Max told him, it was a brutal negotiation but Iseul managed to coax them.
“Unnie!” Sophie yelled before rushing to her. “I can’t believe we’re going together on a trip.”
Iseul couldn’t help but laugh as Sophie radiated her positivity.
“Let me help you with that,” Max greeted Arthur before taking one of the suitcases.
“You can put them back here,” Iseul called out.
After setting the luggage in, the four waved goodbye one last time before heading toward Irene’s house where everyone agreed to meet.
Almost everyone was already there by the time the four of them arrived. Irene and Amelia managed to borrow their uncle’s car, and Ari’s father agreed to help them by driving to the beach house. Ari and Yeona got there together and would be joined by Sophie on the ride there. Arthur on the other hand would be riding along with the sisters, while Iseul was stuck with the boys. Tjay arrived first as he got dropped off, but everyone assumed he was just impatiently waiting for Nabi and her boyfriend Hyun to arrive.
“So, we’re just waiting on Nabi to arrive?” Arthur sat down next to Irene who much like Sophie came prepared.
“She said that Hyun’s Noona would give them a ride,” she answered.
“Is she joining us then?”
“Nah. She and her husband are headed for Busan.”
“Husband? How old is she?”
“I believe she’s in her late twenties? I was surprised too when I heard that her husband was tagging along,” she chuckled before looking at Arthur’s suitcase. “You sure you brought everything you need?”
“Couple of underwear, one pair of pants, a few shorts, bunch of t-shirts, few pairs of socks,” he began listing things on his hand. “One shirt, slippers, two swimsuits, and of course toothbrush and such. . . Did I miss anything?”
“You think that’s gonna be enough? What if it gets cold?” she sighed.
“He’ll be fine!” Tjay chuckled after overhearing the conversation. “Sounds to me like he brought one too many t-shirts.”
Irene couldn’t help but shake her head in disbelief.
“What about you?” she glanced toward Max. “Did you pack like them too?”
“Me? No way. . .” he said while leaning against the car. “I have no idea how long we’re staying so I packed up quite a bit.”
“Of course you’d be the one to pack up all that unnecessary crap,” Tjay teased.
“Sorry for not wanting to go unprepared,” he said sarcastically before turning toward Don. “You need any help with all that?”
“No! I got it. . .” Don grunted as he struggled to lift his heavy suitcase into the trunk.
“Just what did you bring with you. . .” Tjay sighed before walking over to help.
“Oh. . . Nothing much. . .” Don averted his gaze flustered.
“Spill it dude,” Max insisted with his arms crossed.
“Fine, fine. . . Irene asked if I had any board games so I wanted to take a few so we have something to do at night,” he chuckled awkwardly.
“Just how much is a few?” Sophie asked as she walked over with Yeona.
Irene subconsciously threw a glance toward Yeona and then back at Arthur before shaking her head and focusing on Don’s heavy suitcase. Arthur hoped that what they talked about wouldn’t cause a mess during the trip, but he had faith in Irene.
“Just a few. . .” Don repeated while refusing to point out the exact number.
“Alright. . . Open it up,” Max insisted.
“Why?” Don looked shocked.
“Why not? We wanna know what we can play once we get there? Maybe there’s something we could play in the car,” Tjay backed him up, a rare occasion where the two work together on something.
“Just show them. . .” Irene was intrigued as well.
Don looked toward Arthur for support but got a cold shoulder instead as Art averted his gaze by looking to his side.
“Fine!” Don yelled out under pressure.
With a grin on his face, Tjay opened up the suitcase. “What the fuck dude. . . Did you even pack any clothes?” he burst into laughter.
“Of course I did! It’s just underneath. . .” Don let out a sigh as his entire suitcase’s top layer was covered by a bunch of board games.
“Well, we certainly won’t be bored,’ Irene chuckled before leaning against Arthur’s shoulder which he casually allowed.
Arthur couldn’t help but sense the occasional glance Yeona gave the two.
Meanwhile, Iseul and Amelia were with Ari talking to her dad. They were coming up with a plan of action so that when Nabi and the rest arrive, they’d be ready to head out immediately. As far as they knew, the trip to the beach house was somewhere around three hours. Iseul recently got her driver’s license so they offered her to take breaks whenever she felt a need for one, but she claimed that as long as she was in the middle and didn’t have to worry about navigation that she could easily pull through. It was her first long-distance drive, but she got used to driving her parents around Seoul insisting on getting better at it.
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Even though she was confident, they still wanted her to know that she shouldn’t push herself. Ari’s dad kept repeating that driving was a mentally strenuous activity and safety came first. Luckily, the ride to the beach house was a fairly straightforward path. Considering they were leaving early in the morning, they planned to arrive in the afternoon.
Even though they were the last to arrive, Nabi and her boyfriend still made it on time. Nabi cheerfully ran out of the car to greet everyone and her boyfriend Hyun slowly followed.
“Sorry if we’re late. . . My mom kept pestering me before we left,” Nabi explained.
“Don’t worry, you’re just on time,” Tjay was the first to say something.
Arthur observed Hyun yawning with one hand covering his mouth and the other clinging to his pocket. His style closely resembled Max’s as he wore a slim white t-shirt and denim shorts that reached a little above the knee. The accessories were eye-catching which included a leather strapped watch and a silver earring on his right ear.
He assumed that there’d be no trouble, so Arthur’s focus wasn’t on Tjay’s and Hyun’s meeting but more so on Hyun’s sister and her husband that slowly left the car to get acquainted with the other drivers. Compared to Hyun, she was surprisingly average looking with black long hair made into a bun, dark eyes that were similar to his, and clothes that seemed slightly oversized for her. Her husband also appeared to be in his mid-thirties at best. It felt strange knowing that so many adults traveled with them.
“Hey,” Hyun approached Arthur and Irene as they were the only ones he didn’t get a chance to talk to.
“Hi,” Irene spoke up first as she still rested on his shoulder while waiting for everyone to get moving.
“Good to see you,” Arthur said, not feeling too chatty early in the morning. However, if they were going to travel and hang out, he knew he had to work on their rapport. “Ready for the ride?”
“Yeah,” he replied awkwardly as the two stared at each other without knowing how to proceed with the conversation.
Arthur kept looking mindlessly while wondering why he was the one having the awkward interaction with Nabi’s boyfriend, thinking that Tjay was the more fitting candidate. Irene glanced back and forth before letting out a chuckle.
“I’ll go see if everyone’s ready to head out,” Irene said before bailing on them.
Now that they were left alone, Arthur glanced toward the groups which were all lost in their conversations.
“So. . .” Hyun spoke up as he stood next to Arthur. “Can I ask you something?”
“Sure,” but he felt as if he already knew what question followed.
“Are the rumors true about you dating Irene?”
“What do you think?” he smirked at Hyun, wondering what he thought of him.
“Honestly, I didn’t believe it at first, but you two do look like a couple.”
“Hard to believe, eh?”
Surprisingly, Arthur found Hyun extremely hard to read. He couldn’t tell if he had any intentions behind the question nor could he tell if he was being underestimated.
“No, no. . . Nothing like that,” he chuckled. “You’re a good-looking guy and even if you weren’t, under the right circumstances anything can happen.”
“I guess, but that’s not the case,” he stated, causing further confusion. “We’re not together.”
“Really?” he looked a bit surprised. “I guess you’re just really close friends then.”
“Yup. Simple as that.” Arthur kept smiling before getting back up on his feet. He looked around and it seemed as if everyone was ready to go. “Enjoy the ride,” Arthur said tapping him on the shoulder.
“You too. . .”
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The long-awaited trip finally started as everyone got in their cars and set off. Arthur was surprised that Irene insisted on sitting in the back, especially after overhearing Tjay and Max arguing about it. It took a while, but they came up with a solution which was to switch places during the short break at the halfway point. Irene on the other hand liked the extra space since there were three of them in the car and it allowed her to mess around with Arthur if she so chose.
The ride was comfy and the girls took care of the entertainment. With the radio on, Arthur got the pleasure of listening to their singing most of the ride there. It was a completely different feeling than being on a bus, almost comparable to riding a carriage.
“I can’t wait to get there,” Irene said glancing out the window as they finally left the city. “I miss the sand.”
“You girls go every year?”
“Yeah,” Amelia said while changing gears. “I believe the last time we went to the beach house was two years ago?”
“Yup, the year we moved to London. Last year we went to Barcelona,” Irene said taking off her shoes.
“I heard that in the UK you drive on the left side. Do you find it weird driving on the right again?” Arthur asked.
Irene turned her back toward the locked door behind Arthur and leaned against it while lifting her legs up and stretching them out.
“Nah, I’m used to that, but it’s still weird switching the driver seats since our car in the UK has a right-side steering wheel.”
“Can’t wait to get my driver’s license next year,” Irene mentioned while tilting her head to the side, looking toward Arthur.
With a mischievous grin she slowly put her hand behind Arthur’s right ear and gently brushed her finger down his neck. The feeling took Arthur by surprise, but his reaction was rather tame. In fact, Arthur welcomed the feeling by leaning into it. Irene’s grin turned into a smile as she took the opportunity to run her fingers playfully through his hair behind the ear and gently play with it using her fingernails.
“You look rather comfortable back there,” Arthur commented after noticing her shoes were off. “Why take the shoes off?”
“You don’t look so uncomfortable yourself,” she chuckled before stretching her feet out once more and twirling her toes. “Are my feet not to your liking?”
Arthur couldn’t help but smile while Amelia thought the two should just get a room.
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The long car ride finally came to an end after nearly four hours of driving. The sun reached its peak and everyone was excited to see the place. Arthur couldn’t hide the joy he felt seeing everyone smiling and laughing as they left their cars.
He wondered if he’d be able to guess which house it was, but it turned out to be the only one around. Secluded and surrounded by trees from all sides, it felt surreal after living in the city for so long. Even the air was different, similar to when they went to the temple. Last time he had only a few days away from the city, but now they were going to spend weeks out there if not longer.
The first thing that caught Arthur’s attention was the front porch decorated with plant life that someone cared for while Irene’s family was away.
“We can park in here,” Amelia told Iseul as she opened the door to the garage which was large enough for both cars.
Arthur kept looking at the impressive exterior which appeared recently renovated. The upper floor windows overlooked the front of the house making Arthur wonder if any rooms had a beachside view since Irene mentioned that the back was connected to it.
After getting all the luggage, everyone said goodbye to Ari’s dad who insisted he needed to go back. Hyun’s sister and her husband were also eager to continue their journey to Busan and didn’t stay for the house tour.
Arthur knew that some of the luggage the girls carried was heavy and that they needed help carrying them up the Cedar steps. He was surprised to see the boys already helping out as Max carried Sophie’s suitcase. Turning towards Irene and Amelia, Arthur offered his help but Amelia insisted that she be the one to carry her own stuff. On the other hand, Irene had no issues accepting a helping hand from the man she liked.
Eager to go in and see the place that they often described the last few days, Arthur followed closely behind Amelia who simply opened the door, already knowing that it was unlocked.
Walking through the door led straight into the stunningly extravagant and large living room fitted with two large leather couches surrounding a knee-high square table with a porcelain wolf statue, a large TV that they had no intention of using, a massive kitchen separated by a bar and barstools, a bathroom that had a shower in it, and a set of stairs that led to the bedrooms.
Parallel to the front door, the backside wall was made completely out of darkened glass that had a magnificent view of the beach and the vast sea. The door along the glass wall led to the backside deck fitted with beach chairs, a small coffee table, and more impressively a large open deck Jacuzzi that everyone wanted to jump into the first night.
“This place is amazing!” Sophie gazed in awe as Irene wrapped her hand around her.
“I’m taking the left couch!” Tjay yelled before sliding his suitcase across the wooden floor.
“Don, you want the couch or the mattress?” Max turned to him after setting down the luggage.
“Girls, you should see your rooms,” Irene teased. “Amelia and I will take the bedrooms, and you girls can pick among the guest rooms. Have you decided on your roommate?”
“Yeona and I will share one,” Ari said, leaving Iseul and Sophie with the other.
“They can pick first and we’ll take whatever’s left, okay Hyun?” Nabi said.
“Fine by me,” he seemed disinterested in the sleeping arrangement after being enthralled by the interior, especially the large array of alcoholic drinks along the kitchen shelf.
Arthur’s attention was stolen away by footsteps coming from the stairs, but considering Amelia knew the door was unlocked, he assumed there was no reason to be wary.
“Ah, you’ve arrived,” said a middle-aged Korean woman dressed in comfortable clothes while holding a garbage bag. “I just finished cleaning up the last room.”
“I told Mom that there was no need to trouble you, but thank you for the help,” Amelia approached.
“Nonsense, I was so glad to hear that you’d be visiting,” she had a bright smile and appeared as if she knew the girls for a long time. “I’ll be going now, but if you need anything just give me a call.”
“Thank you,” Irene said smilingly after letting go of Sophie.
“I left the keys on the bar and you have a spare key in the bedroom. Try not to lose them,” she chuckled before walking toward the front door. Without exchanging words with the rest, she waved them goodbye. “Have fun kids.”
Everyone was too focused on looking around that they didn’t pay much attention to it, but Arthur walked up to Irene curious as to who that was.
“Irene, was she a housekeeper?”
Max and Tjay rushed outside as soon as they could with Don following right behind them. Amelia meanwhile took the lead and led the others upstairs to see the guest rooms.
“Nah, she’s our Mom’s friend who took care of us when our parents couldn’t stay. We used to spend our whole summer here but they had work so our Mom asked Balam to look after us.”
“Was it rude that we didn’t introduce ourselves?”
“Nah, don’t worry about it. She probably wanted to get out of here before everyone arrived.”
“I’m surprised she didn’t want to stay and talk to the two of you.”
“Oh, that’s cuz we’ll be visiting her later anyway when we go shopping for groceries. You can come with if you want.”
“I’ll think about it,” he smiled while looking out the window toward the beach.
“So, you gonna share the mattress with someone or the couch?”
“I’ll see what the rest choose. . .”
“Instead of suffering here, you know there’s a large bedroom upstairs that I don’t mind sharing with you,” she said averting her gaze before letting out a sigh. “Never mind, you probably don’t feel comfortable since everyone’s here and the situation with Yeona.”
Arthur chuckled before placing his hand on her head which took her by surprise. “If you look like that then how could I say no?”
“Really?” she mumbled glancing toward him.
“You’re getting too good at coaxing me.”
“Am not!” she giggled.
“Sure. . .” Arthur laughed along. “Shall I move our stuff upstairs then?”
He didn’t even consider rejecting her offer.
“Thanks. . .” she turned to him and kissed him on the cheek. “I’ll go get changed in the bathroom upstairs. I can’t wait to go swimming.”
Arthur smiled as Irene’s flirting became a lot less subtle ever since the confession.
“Swimming huh?” he mumbled, once again looking toward the beach. “Sounds like fun.”
Chapter End.
Thank you for reading.