9 - Vacation, Not

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by KimHieun

by KimHieun

3RD PERSON

a 2-day getaway. what could possibly go wrong?

"chaewon, it would be fun! trust me!" changmin pulled onto his wife's hand as she roamed around the house looking for her phone. changmin wanted to bring chaewon along for a getaway trip with his colleages but she seemed to hesitate for a bit. "will it really be okay?" chaewon frowned as she thought about it. "yes, of course- wait, what are you looking for?" changmin had his hands on his waist as he watched the girl wander around the house in her apron. "my phone," she hollered back. changmin sighed before chuckling to himself as he took the rose-gold phone hidden under the kitchen towel. "it's here!" he tossed it to her lightly. chaewon mumbled a small 'thanks' before she went back to pack the groceries.

it was the morning of d-day. chaewon had woken up early to double-check their things. shoving the man on the bed lightly, she reminded with a soft voice, "changmin, it's your turn to make breakfast." the lad stirred from his deep sleep, almost feeling lost. the tall male trudged into the kitchen, grabbing cereal boxes, milk cartons and bowls. still half-asleep, changmin poured milk into the bowl. "ji changmin, you're as crazy as chanhee! the cereal goes first!" chaewon screeched, waking the man completely. "it doesn't matter, chaewon! just eat and we have to quickly get ready," he pushed her bowl towards her as he consumed his own cereal.

"changmin, is this okay?" chaewon asked for the nth time. she repeatedly changed her outfit, concerned on how she would appear to his workmates. "chaewon, you look fine. now hurry up, we have to go!" changmin stood up, grabbing her arm lightly to pull her out of the room in which the girl resisted with all her might. "changmin! it's important to me, i'm the boss' wife and what if they ridicule you because of me-" her words made changmin frown.

changmin gripped onto her forearm lightly as he took steps closer to her. his eyes stared right into her wide ones which reflected fear and anxiety. "chaewon," he called out to her. "you're pretty as you are right now. i'm already proud that you are my wife. just be yourself - they will love you. okay?" chaewon hesitantly nodded at his words. her heart was warmed at his comforting words. taking it as a sign that she had calmed down, changmin gently pulled her along to the car.

upon arriving at the location, they spotted changmin's colleagues already gathered in the holiday home. it was a modern cottage with two storeys and seemingly sufficient for the employees who were joining them.

"changmin! you're here!" the cheers of the colleagues filled the space as changmin pulled up outside the cottage. the males had greeted changmin, acknowledging chaewon as well and the ladies were very welcoming. chaewon did not expect to be having so much fun with all the disturbing thoughts from yesterday night's sleep. she had made good friends with almost everyone - she was very likeable. changmin smiled to himself as he watched his wife mingle around comfortably.

during those two days, they had experienced all sorts of fun from water sports, to tug-of-war, to team volleyball. cha eunwoo being himself would hang around ji chaewon. he was out-going and friendly but he was probably too friendly to someone's wife. changmin traced his co-worker's movements as eunwoo played around with other colleagues, including chaewon. he knew that his friend had always been the extrovert type. however, seeing eunwoo with his wife made his blood boil.

it was the last night and they were having a campfire night. the fire burned the wooden logs in the middle of the circles of people. everyone was either munching on snacks, chit-chatting or singing along to the strumming of the guitar. changmin and chaewon snuggled up against one another, huddling up near the small fire as the cold night breeze blew. the two shared the marshmallows with one another, laughing when their smores burned and melted too much from the fire.

chaewon's smile dropped when changmin had to leave with lee eunha, the arrogant receptionist from his academy. cha eunwoo replaced him as he slid next to her, taking the bag of marshmallows from her. "you seem worried. what's wrong?" eunwoo's question made the others stop and look over chaewon with concern looks on their faces. "ah is it because changmin went off with eunha?" eunwoo pointed to their direction and chaewon nodded, feeling embarrassed.

"you don't have to worry, chaewon. they're on duty to return the cottage keys and report any damages to the organiser," another female colleague sat next to her.

"changmin loves you too much."
"it's just for work purposes."
"he'll be back soon, we will make sure of it."

chaewon felt thankful of all the reassurance given by changmin's colleagues. it really felt that she had made some new friends. chaewon smiled brightly at them all as they returned to enjoying the campfire night.

that night when everyone retreated back into their rooms. chaewon kept her silence as she laid in bed. changmin was not back yet - it made her worried and fearful that he might have left her there. when changmin entered the room assigned to them, he came face-to-face with chaewon's back as she laid still. he sighed to himself, contemplating if he could embrace her or not. jealousy was punctured in his heart at that point of time as he recalled how eunwoo had taken his seat next to her when he had to leave. making up his mind, changmin slipped into bed, facing away from her as he tried to rest his eyes. the getaway went smoothly with no arguments or fight - but that last night, both changmin and chaewon went to bed with a heated tension and a heavy heart.