Irony of Revenge

Chapter 17

"Okay. A little bit to the left. Good."

The photographer's voice was followed by the continuous sounds of camera flashes. Although Mark's strong, powerful gaze was not at his direction, Jinyoung found himself trapped in it and it hard to shift his eyes from Mark.

It was the very first time for Jinyoung to witness how a model's photoshoot went and to be present in a studio, watching Mark's different poses. He had to once again acknowledge that Mark could show off his charm so effortlessly.

"Okay! Enough now, I guess," the photographer declared, checking some of the photos on his camera. Mark went to him and judged his own photos, talking with him all the while, about the strong and weak points of each photo.

"You did great, Mark. Most of them are perfect. Look at this one. Your eyes were so intense and seductive. Rest assured, girls will be gone on you again."

They discussed the photos a little longer and then Mark prepared to change into something comfortable. He looked at Jinyoung across the room and mouthed 'Just a moment', before disappearing into the changing room.

A few minutes later, he emerged again from the room, in just a hoodie and pants. He greeted all the staff before finally walking over to Jinyoung.

"Are you bored?" Mark asked Jinyoung, as they interlaced their hands and started walking out of the studio room.

"It's not a question you should ask. You were amazing, you know that? I feel like the photoshoot ended too soon. I was really enjoying the sight."

"Thank God, you're not complaining about it taking too long."

"Where're we going now? No more schedule, right? Your place or mine?"

They walked out of the building, Mark's manager following them behind.

"Neither of them. I've some plans for us today."

Both of their cars had been parked just outside the building and Mark turned to the manager to say, "Hyung, can you drive Jinyoung's car back to the golf club? Jinyoung and I will use my car."

"Alright. But a reminder, don't go to the public places. Be careful."

Jinyoung gave the manager the car key and then Mark led him to his Audi.

"Where're we going though?" Jinyoung asked, once they were seated inside the car.

"You'll know. And you'll be surprised," Mark said, with a grin. He turned on the ignition and soon they were leaving the studio building behind.

"I wonder what it's. Not a restaurant? Not a movie theatre?"

"Nope. Somewhere quite new to us. I mean, somewhere we don't usually go."

"You aren't going to tell me then? Okay, if you want to surprise me, then I'll prepare myself to be surprised."

They passed a lot of streets and districts but Mark showed no sign of stopping anywhere yet. It felt like having an endless drive. Little by little, the sight of the metropolitan areas had disappeared and the highway road and fields came into sight.

Mark pressed a button and the convertible top of the Audi was folded back. The wind rushed to them and tousled their hair.

"To what town are you taking me to?" Jinyoung shouted, above the wind. But he was already enjoying this feeling of being exposed and yet there being no one else on the road to watch them.

Mark laughed. "I wish I could but we're only having a drive around this area. Doesn't it feel good? Don't you want to stretch out your hand?"

"Like in movies?" Jinyoung extended his hand out of the window, a little awkwardly at first, before relaxing again.

"So are you surprised?" Mark asked, with a hint of amusement in his voice.

"Very. How did you get this idea?"

"I don't know how. It just popped up in my mind a few days ago. Look at those green fields. It's a great landscape, isn't it? And most importantly, there's no one here."

Mark continued driving only a little longer and then pulled up on the left side of the road. They got out of the car and then sat down near the car, facing the fields.

"Melancholic," Jinyoung said, "I never thought I'd be on a date with someone at a place like this. And I never knew how much I needed this."

Jinyoung laid his head on Mark's shoulder and intertwined their fingers. He could feel his own steadily fast heartbeats, which were not too wild or too indifferent. He looked back on what a long way they had come: how they had met, their meet-ups and the beginning of their relationship. It felt like all of these had happened long ago but they were still distinct memories.

"I'm glad that you like here. But we can do nothing, other than just sitting here like this and talking. It won't be long till the sun sets. We're going to witness the sunset together for the first time," Mark said, his breath fanning Jinyoung's hair.

They remained like that there for a long time. Mark asked Jinyoung about his father and showed his desire to meet him some day. They talked about their future plans, which might sound a little far ahead but came out with much certainty. They watched the sun set together and only when it got dark, they prepared to leave.

But just as they got up to their feet, their phones vibrated almost at the same time. To their surprise, they had just received the messages from Hyebin and Jieun. And the content of those messages were also similar.

Both of them were suggesting that they met at Jieun's place tomorrow evening - that was if Mark and Jinyoung were free - and went out somewhere for Hyebin and Jieun to celebrate Mark's and Jinyoung's relationship to somehow show that they fully supported it.