Page 72 of You Had Me At Annyeong!
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Oh, shoot! Did I leave the smokes behind at the shoot location?
Timira is rummaging through her bag, a tote—made from the same organic material as the one she had carried to Bali, but this one sans any mention of men or the lack of—trying to hunt for cigarettes. She had woken up a little while ago. It was dark out and she knew she would’ve missed most of the shoot. She silently chides herself for the embarrassment she has caused and slaps her forehead.
Everybody must be thinking I’m such a moron. Usske upar that Rod ka bachcha only had to come save me. Should’ve listened to Bhaskar and learnt how to swim. Tch, what a fool I am. And, where on earth was Haneul? His mood swings are going to give me whiplash, ma kasam! Kitna I stared at him, bugger didn’t look at me even once. Did not even bother to askif I’m all right? And here I was, naively believing his heart eyes and thinking mil gaya mujhe mere sapno ka shehzada. What an ass I’ve made of myself! Chee!
Realizing she isn’t in any hurry, Timira takes a leisurely soak in the bath. It’s well past 7 p.m. by the time she steps out of the room to make her way to the set. She tries to reach Hanee but the latter’s number is switched off.
Oh, the shoot must still be on. Perhaps I can catch the last bits with the floodlights!
She quickens her pace, feeling a little guilty about her hour-long bath, and tries to make up for lost time. It is then that she feels like a smoke and ferrets around inside her bag.
Why can’t I find them? Oh, dang! They must’ve drowned in the pool when I nearly drowned. No, wait. Cigarettes don’t drown. They must have floated. They didn’t need Rod to save them.
All the while, her hand has been busy inspecting every corner of her bag for an extra pack of smokes she is sure she has carried.
‘Chajassda!’ She says it out loud, triumphantly.
Wow, did I just speak to myself in Korean? Damn, this country must really be doing quite a number on me!
She has only had a couple of puffs when she feels the bile rise inside her chest. What feels like a raging fire burns inside her and a wave of nausea falls and rises violently deep inside her chest cavity. It is lactose intolerance, she will discover later, but for now, it feels as though a fire has been lit inside her torso and her innards and heart are on fire. Frantically searching through her bag, smoke precariously dangling from one corner of her mouth, she pulls out a strip of medicines. In the darkness, she is unable to see well. But the medicines look familiar and she is in a hurry to pop one before the fire reaches her head. She quickly stubs out the cigarette and pops a tablet inside her mouth,swallowing it with a swig from the bottle of water that hangs from her bag, along with a bottle of sanitizer, like a charm.
She is still a considerable distance away from the location when the fire starts getting replaced by anxiety. A chill goes down her spine and the cold makes her shiver a little. Almost immediately, she feels a little light-headed.
I’m sure it’s because I’ve had one hell of a day. It’s bound to have taken a toll, right? Or is it because I had the medicine on an empty stomach? No wonder Ma always insists I eat before. Uff, Ma really is always right, argh! Whatever, it’s okay. I’ll be back on my feet after I’ve slept well tonight. Will Haneul be on set? Mina, too?
Lost in thought, she barely manages two more steps when her vision starts to get a little blurry. As she stands around in the middle of the road rubbing her eyes in the hope that it’ll somehow magically restore clarity, a little biker on a children’s bike pedals towards her. The biker, panicking on spotting a human twice his size in his path and refusing to move, doesn’t manage to either press the brakes or steer clear of her and rams his mini-bike into Timira. She has been caught off-guard and grasps the situation only when she’s knocked over and losing her balance for the second time today.
Oh, no! I hope Rod doesn’t have to save me again! Mummaaaaa!
A pair of hands reaches her soon enough. Before she can hit the ground. She shuts her eyes tight and clasps her arms together against her chest as though she were praying.
Still feeling light-headed and groggy, now even more than before, she opens her eyes ever so slowly. Partly because they feel heavy and she feels sleepy. But mostly because she’s scared to see who has saved her this time. At first, only a silhouette is seen. A tall, dark silhouette.
Wow. Very noir. How artistic. It’ll make a great shot for the ‘gram!
But as it speaks, the voice sounds familiar. And warm. And it makes her feel warm. And safe. The silhouette also becomes clearer.
OH MY GOD! IT’S HIM! But why is it so dark? Why can’t I see him clearly? Why isn’t he smiling? I want to see his teeth! I’m so sleepy. His arms are so comfortable! I should sleep …
‘Timira! Timira! Are you all right? Where does it hurt? Timira, wake up! Don’t sleep! Stay awake. Tell me, where does it hurt?’
Here, Haneul, here.She means her heart and wants to point at it. But she neither does that nor does she say it. When she does speak, it sounds as though she’s in a stupor.
‘Why are you here? How did you know to find me here?’
‘I’ve been stalking you.’
Timira smiles as though she relishes the thought of being stalked by Haneul, and continues to speak groggily. ‘Why didn’t you find me sooner? Where were you? Why did you leave me by myself?’
Haneul is checking every exposed part of Timira’s body for injuries and murmurs absent-mindedly.
Timira, dissatisfied with his response, whines and demands an answer. ‘TELL ME NOOOOO!’
‘Tell you what? Timira, are you sure you aren’t hurt? How does your head feel?’
‘My head, my head … it’s fine. I just feel sleepy, very sleepy.’ She traces her temples as she speaks and suddenly winces in pain. ‘Ow!’
