Page 57 of You Had Me At Annyeong!
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SEOUL, KOREA
‘Jab, cross, left hook, right hook, knee!’ ‘Again!’
‘Jab, cross, left hook, right hook, knee!’
She has been at it for over an hour now. Sweat dripping, hair dishevelled, punch after punch, raining lusty blows on her sparring partner’s pads as her trainer keeps egging her on. She isn’t new to Muay Thai, but recent events have meant she has more frustrations than ever to release inside the ring. Something that her trainer has noticed and welcomed. He doesn’t care where his pupils are bringing the fire in their belly from so long as they’re bringing it.
She bows a little to her partner as her trainer signals for her to stop. Hands at her waist, she gulps air in copious amounts, trying to catch her breath. Stephanie flings a small bottle of water at her and applauds.
‘Wow! Look at you go, girl! Did you imagine those pads to be Haneul’s face?’
Grinning, Mina leans across the ropes and mock-punches Stephanie.
‘What brings you here,chinguya?’
‘Oh, I was in the neighbourhood …’
‘At this hour of the day? Shouldn’t you be at work? You’re far from Cheongdam! Why didn’t you call?’
‘Only I did.’
‘Oh,massda. It’s in my purse. Obviously. How did you know I was here then?’
‘Are you questioning my stalking skills?’
Mina bursts out laughing.
‘So what came up in this part of town?’
‘Running errands for our film shoot. Came here to visit the film-maker we have hired.’
‘Oh, geurae, geurae! The shoot in Jeju, right? It had totally slipped my mind!’
‘The girls in the office are fighting to be on the crew. It’s crazy to see the effect Rodrigo has on ladies. I mean, to be honest, he really is rather dishy …’
She trails off on noticing that she has lost Mina who has, in the meantime, stepped out of the boxing ring and is grabbing her kitbag.
‘When did you say it was scheduled for? The shoot, I mean. This weekend, right?’ Mina asks without looking up as she rummages through her bag for her purse.
An image of Timira looking hurt and confused inside her cabin flashes inside Mina’s mind for a brief second but she dismisses it and starts to dial a number. The person on the other end answers just as Mina is about to hang up after what feels like a million rings.
‘Hello! Yeobusaeyo!’ the voice on the other end answers.
‘Hi, Timira!’
She doesn’t have a plan and hasn’t really thought of a strategy. Having called Timira on a whim, she is now feeling unsure of how to take the conversation further.
‘This is Mina. I got your number from Haneul.’
Lie. She had demanded it from Stephanie right after the showcase game.
‘I’m really sorry about what happened last week. I was thinking we could perhaps let bygones be bygones and startafresh. I might be in Cheongdam-dong tomorrow around lunchtime. Would you like to get some lunch together?’
Another lie. She has no work in Cheongdam. She is supposed to be in Incheon for meetings.
‘I’d have taken you up on the offer, but I honestly have my hands full. We have a shoot coming up and we’re all going a little nuts here.’
