Chapter 2

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Taehyung walked Sun-Hee to the end of the bank of mailboxes and headed around a corner where there was a desk with a sign that said "Concierge Services" above it. He held out his hand as if to say 'Here it is!'

Sun-Hee raised one eyebrow and gave him a skeptical look. "That deserves a pastry? You could have said 'You get your packages around that corner'."

He chuckled, "I've seen you try to find things on your own, it isn't pretty." He helped her find all the pink slips in her mail and give them to the worker in the black suit behind the counter.

While they were waiting to have the packages fetched, Sun-Hee started sorting the mail on the counter. Taehyung leaned his elbow on the counter and held his head up with his fist. Looking at Sun-Hee's face he asked "How is it even possible to move in to an apartment today and have all this mail?!?"

Sun-Hee smiled and continued sorting, "I guess that would seem strange. It is my father's apartment for when he came to Korea for work. Honestly, most of this mail is his. He recently retired and was going to sell the apartment but when I decided to study abroad and come here for my senior year of college, he kept the apartment so I could use it."

Taehyng listened to her talk and studied her while she was paying attention to her mail and not looking at him. She was lovely. She was one of the most beautiful girls he had ever seen. She honestly could be an idol. She had dark hair with brown highlights, just like him. Her sooty thick eyelashes were mesmerizing around her expressive chocolate brown eyes. Her bottom lip was slightly larger than her top lip, which was alluring to him. She reminded him of a slightly Asian Lily Collins. 

At that moment she glanced over at him. When she saw how intently he was looking at her, she quickly  looked at him more pointedly "What!? Please don't tell me I have something on my face! I would be mortified!"

Deep chuckle again, "No, you don't have anything on your face. Your face is ... perfect."

At that moment the concierge worker came back with a cart and started putting packages on the counter. Then he pulled out a mail tote, "Here is the rest of the mail that we couldn't fit in the mailbox." 

"The rest of the mail..." Sun-Hee looked down at the mail she had started sorting. With a defeated look she picked it all up and tossed it in the tote with the rest, messing up any sorting she had done.

Taehyung caught Sun-Hee's overwhelmed look and jumped in, "Thank you so much for your help, and for holding her mail for so long." Then picking up the large pile of packages and looking at her with a raised eyebrow, "Let's get these to your room, hmmm?"

She led the way up two flights of stairs and down the hall. "I'm sure you had more important things to do than spend all this time helping me get my mail. Sorry to be such a bother." Then she smiled at him (which honestly was all the reward he wanted) and said, "I'm so grateful though, I really couldn't have done it without you."

He smiled back, "Do you even know where we are going? I feel like we've passed this bench before."

"I know the way to my apartment, thank you very much. Less snark, more walking from you! I'm actually very good with directions." She felt like Taehyung didn't believe her the way he raised his eyebrow at her again.

After a few more loops and a bit of circling back, they made their way to B302. Sun-Hee opened the door with her key and Taehyung walked through and set the packages on the kitchen counter, then dropped his messenger bag on the floor. He hopped up to sit on the counter beside the packages. "I'm sure you owe me a whole dinner by now. We must have walked a couple kilometers to get to an apartment that was 100 meters away." 

The apartment was very similar to his, very modern and clean. But her apartment was much smaller. She only had one bedroom whereas his apartment had four, plus he had bigger living areas. Apart from a couch and table there really weren't many furnishings.

Taehyung looked around at all the boxes stacked on the floor and the few pieces of furniture and gave Sun-Hee a serious look. He quietly said, "Sun-Hee, is this the way you live? I'm so disappointed in your decor."

Catching on right away to the joke, Sun-Hee came back with, "Oh, no! Don't be disappointed! It's a new type of urban style. It gives a whimsical 'I can move in or out at any moment' vibe. It is honestly all the rage in Europe right now. I'm glad to help you decorate your house the same if you like!" 

They giggled a bit, then she added, "Actually, my only goal today is to make the bed so I have a place to sleep and get some food. I'm exhausted and hungry after my night of traveling"

"I can help."

"Absolutely not, Taehyung! I already owe you an entire meal. If you keep up with all this helping I'm going to owe you my first born child as well! You've helped enough, you had something else to do today. You have to go do that or I may die of guilt! Besides, my father would be horrified to know I'd let a man, that I don't even know, into my apartment on the very first day I was here!" Sun-Hee was shuffling him towards the door. But Taehyung stopped and stood his ground looking at her with his pools of melted chocolate eyes. She sighed and listened.

"First of all, I'm sorry to say it, but it is your father's fault that I'm here at all. Because he left his mail for so long. So he can't blame you for that. Also, making a bed is so much easier with two people because you can have a person on either side. And lastly, if you want to know where to go get food, you need to ask a local and I have lived in Seoul for several years and know all the good places to eat." He gave his boxy smile and a look that said 'I win.'

Honestly, she was pretty sure he could read the phone book to her, between the voice and the eyes she would be completely entertained. Sun-Hee dropped her shoulders and pretended to be defeated, "Fiiiiiiine!" with an exaggerated whine, "I guess I'll have to let you help me more, then.... Poor me! What's a girl to do when a knight in shining armor comes to the rescue." Then straightening up and marching off, "Let's go Lancelot, the bedroom is this way." They moved out of the kitchen through the dining room and living room to the bedroom.

Sun-Hee grabbed a box in the living room and handed it to Taehyung to carry. Then she grabbed another she carried herself. After taking various blankets and pillows (all in soft whites, creams, and light greys) from the box, they work together to make the bed. 

Except Taehyung felt the need to 'test' the bed with each added piece which made the process take much longer than it needed to. And by 'test the bed', he meant jump on the bed arms and legs out like a starfish. He varied it, sometimes on his back, sometimes on his stomach, but always flailed around. Every time he did it, the bed had to be fixed back up before the next piece was added. Sun-Hee had a good attitude and laughed and rolled her eyes each time, pretending to be completely exasperated.

"You are an actual child in a man's body! I'm absolutely convinced! I have only known you for an hour and I can already tell you are more boy than man! I only added one pillow that time! How can you possibly need to test the bed because of one stupid pillow?"

 Taehyung lay sprawled out on the bed, yet again. "It seemed like a really crucial pillow. It had a key role in the cohesiveness of the ensemble. I could tell the whole atmosphere changed with the addition of that pillow. Plus it is soft and fuzzy!" He rubbed his face on the soft pillow.

"Goodness sakes alive, I've been in Korea for 10 hours and I already have a man in my bed, what would my friends and family say?" Sun-Hee threw up her hands in exasperation.

Taehyung rolled to his side and propped his head on his fist and crossed his legs in a well orchestrated pose. His face went instantly into a sexy mature look. "Well at least you are admitting that I'm a man now." Sun-Hee was completely taken off guard by his switch from child to man. He looked like a model spread across her bed. The fact that he could get into that pose so quickly made her suspect this man really was a model. Red Alerts were going of in the back of her head, she would not fall for the wrong man again. This one was suspiciously good looking but his personality made her feel like she didn't have to be too on guard. 

"Alright, alright. Bed? Check. Food next."

"What are you hungry for? Do you want to eat out in the city or get take out and eat here?"

"Oh, Tae! You know what I want? I'm absolutely starved for good Korean food. My mother makes the best Korean food on the planet. But since I moved out to college three years ago, I've only gotten to eat her cooking a couple of times, when I went home to visit. Where I went to school near Palo Alto, California there were amazing Mexican restaurants but I was really disappointed with all the Korean choices. I couldn't even get good Korean Fried Chicken."

Taehyung pretended to be really sad about that and twisted his fists under his eyes and turned his lips down into a pout.

"Stop that!" She smacked his arm lightly with her fingertips. "I'm not complaining. Well, I'm not trying to complain. I'm just saying I would kill for some good Korean food and there can't be a better place in the world to get it than in Seoul. So lead me in the right direction, Tae Tae!"

Tae smiled at the endearment. He really liked this girl. She was funny and interesting and she seemed really down to earth, which was NOT a common trait among the people living in this apartment complex. Then inspiration struck! "I know exactly where you are having dinner tonight! It is the best Korean food in Seoul! You will love it! And it is very close by! I'll stop by at 7pm and take you there myself!"

"Okay, but I'm paying because I certainly owe you for all your help. Although, if I deducted for every time you messed up my bed, you would owe me!" She waggled her finger at him in warning, like she was scolding a child.

Sun-Hee felt a buzz in her back pocket and took out her phone. Her father was texting to check on her.

Dad: Hey Sweety, thanks for checking in after your flight. Glad you got in safely. How did you find the apartment?

SH: Hey Dad, the apartment is great. I just made my bed and am about to go get food. There was a LOT of mail here but I haven't had time to go through it all yet. I'll let you know if there is anything important.

Dad: Ok, thanks for taking care of that. Take care of yourself, and check in and let me and mom know how you are doing. You know how proud we are of you. Glad you have a few weeks to get settled before classes start. I'll let you go eat. Love you!

SH: I know you like to stay up late but it has to be like 2am there! Go to bed! Love you too!

Sun-Hee put her phone down on the table next to her without locking her screen and Tae scooped it up and started playing with it. When she reached for it, he held it high above his head so she couldn't reach it, then he ran.

"HEY!  HEEEEY! Give that here! Boundaries! Sheesh, you don't go on someones phone!" She yelled as she chased him around the apartment. Tae ran into the bathroom and locked the door.

Sun-Hee pounded on the bathroom door, out of breath, "Open up, man child. You are showing your childish ways again." Catching her breath for a second, she listened for what he was doing. "HEY BUDDY, OPEN UP, OR I SWEAR, SO HELP ME GOD, I WILL..." The door opened and Tae walked out nonchalantly and handed her the phone as if it was no big deal. He patted her head and continued walking to the kitchen. Sun-Hee followed.

"Tae Tae are you thirsty because you are welcome to have whatever you want from the fridge."

With a grateful smile he opened the fridge only to find it completely empty. "WAH! That was mean, you got my hopes up!"

"It serves you right, what did you do to my phone?!"

Tae didn't answer but picked up his messenger bag and threw it over his head so the strap went across his body, "Take a nap. I will be here at seven to collect you for dinner. Dress casual, it is not at all a fancy place and you don't want to feel awkward."

She looked right at him. "I never feel awkward." 

He raised his eyebrows, remembering an earlier comment she made, "Unless you have something on your face, then you are mortified." He said the last word falsetto like he was mimicking her.

"Whatever. As much as I would like a nap, I need to get groceries first."

Tae told her where to go to get the groceries then with another pat on her head he left with one quick comment over his shoulder. "Be ready at seven!"



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