Letting Go { Jung Jaehyun Series }

Chapter 1

Jaehyun pulled off his T-shirt revealing his muscular physique. He dove into the deep end of the Olympic-sized pool. His strokes were smooth and confident as he had been a good swimmer for quite some time. Occasionally, he would bob up for air, but mostly he swam with his head submerged in the water. Suddenly, his arm hit the smooth skin of someone's back. He immediately stopped to see that the girl he had hit was clinging desperately to the side of the pool. Her long, black hair was plastered to her tan back. Her wide, green eyes were fringed with long black lashes that were currently clumped together in several sections because they were soaking wet.

Jaehyun was transfixed for a moment by her. He liked her full lips and the coffee-and-cream color of her skin.

"I'm so sorry I hit you by accident," he said as he finally composed himself. "Wait, you speak English, right?" he asked after realizing that he had automatically spoken to her in English.

"Yeah, I speak English," she replied, still clinging to the side of the pool. Her knuckles were white from the strength of her grip on the concrete. Her eyes darted about nervously as she attempted to use her arms to inch her way toward the shallow end of the pool.

"Are you OK?" asked Jaehyun, clearly concerned that he might be the cause of her unmistakable distress.

"Yeah, I just ended up floating into the deep end. I was trying to teach myself to swim, but clearly, it's not working out very well," she stammered.

Jaehyun was used to girls being nervous around him when they recognized who he was, but this girl's nerves seemed to stem solely from her current predicament. In fact, it appeared that she did not recognize him as being famous at all. He had to admit that he was a bit relieved to meet a girl who didn't know who he was.

"So, you are trying to teach yourself to swim?" he asked incredulously. "Don't you think that's something that you usually would do with someone else?"

"Well, I like to do things on my own. I taught myself to fix a leaky faucet. How is this any different?" she responded to his question with a question of her own.

"It's different because with a leaky faucet, if you mess up, you'll just have a wet floor. But with learning to swim, if you mess up, you could die. So, it's a little different," he concluded sagely.

"Regardless," responded the shaken girl. "I like to handle my own stuff."

"OK, then," replied Jaehyun. "I guess that means you don't want any help from me." He moved to pass by her when the girl suddenly grabbed him by the arm.

"Um, actually," she said sheepishly. "Could you just drag me into the shallow end? That's all I need," she continued. "Then you can go about your business."

Jaehyun grinned. "So, you are willing to admit that you bit off more than you can chew this time?"

The girl glared at him. "Look, if you don't want to help me, just say so. There's no need to be a jerk about it."

He eased her tight grip off his arm and took her by the hand. She still held the side of the pool with her other hand. He tried to tug at her, but her grip on the edge of the pool was unyielding.

"If you want me to help you, you have to let go of the side," he instructed, gazing into her gorgeous, but panicked eyes. "Just let go and trust me," he said.

"How can I trust you if I don't even know you?" the girl asked. "How do I know you aren't going to let go of me as soon as I let go of the side?"

Jaehyun touched her wet cheek and turned her head toward him. "Look in my eyes. Do I look like the kind of person who would let you drown?"

She looked at his warm smile and his kind eyes and she decided to take the chance of trusting him. She let go of the edge of the pool and immediately began to flail like a goldfish out of its bowl.

Jaehyun grabbed her firmly around the waist. "Hold still," he whispered into her ear. "The more you fight it, the harder this is going to be." She stilled her movements and began to feel his legs kicking powerfully under her. Her arms wrapped around his neck as he swam her to safety. When they reached the shallow water, she felt reluctant to release her grasp on Jaehyun's muscular shoulders. He didn't seem eager to release her either. So, they stayed for a moment still locked in their embrace.

Suddenly, the girl pulled away and walked through the water to the steps of the pool. As she climbed out, Jaehyun noticed her shapely, tan legs. She grabbed her towel and began to organize her things.

Jaehyun sprung from the water and quickly caught up with her. "So, I don't even get a thank you?" he asked, grinning widely.

"Thank you," mumbled the girl. "I really appreciate the help," she added, never looking up from her gym bag.

"Could I have your name, at least, before you go?" asked Jaehyun.

"Rosa," she replied as she zipped the bag up in one swift motion.

"Rosa," repeated Jaehyun. "Is that like Spanish or something?"

"It's Spanish for 'rose'," she replied quickly, clearly wishing to end the uncomfortable exchange.

"Rose!" exclaimed Jaehyun. "Like Rose and Jack from Titanic! I love that movie! Leonardo DiCaprio is my favorite actor of all time!" he gushed. "Jack! Jack! Come back!" he quoted Rose's line from the iconic shipwreck scene.

Rosa smiled slightly at his terrible imitation of a female voice. Jaehyun smiled back at her and grabbed her phone from the side pocket of the gym bag. He handed it to Rosa and said, "Open your phone so I can put my number in."

"Who said I wanted your number?" asked Rosa, looking annoyed.

"You don't even know who I am, do you?" he questioned.

"Should I know you from somewhere?" she countered.

"I'm in NCT. It's kind of a big deal here in Korea," Jaehyun said, trying not to sound boastful.

"NCT? What's that? Like a band or something?" Rosa asked as she unlocked her phone and handed it to Jaehyun.

"Yeah, it's a band," he answered, laughing softly. "Google it when you leave here," he added as he put his number in her contacts under "Cute Lifesaver." He hoped it would bring a smile to her face when she found it there and that she might even text him.

"Well, thanks again," she said, taking her phone back from him and grabbing her bag to leave.

"My name's Jaehyun, by the way," he said as she walked away. She turned around for a moment to look at him. "Text me sometime and we'll go out to coffee," he said hopefully.

"OK," Rosa replied tucking the phone back in her bag. Jaehyun wasn't at all sure she would text him, but the ball was squarely in her court. She was a mystery that he hoped to unravel. Her walls were high, but he had seen some glimmers of a deeper warmth in her that she was simply hiding for reasons he had yet to discover. He walked into the men's locker room with the image of her smooth, brown skin still burning in his mind.