Chapter 17

BJH woke me up at four in the morning so we could prepare to go to the place he's talking about. He told me to wear something thick so I wore a jacket. Paulit-ulit lang din naman ang mga isinusuot kong damit. Hindi karamihan ang nadala kong damit dito sa Jeju since hindi ko naman in-expect na magtatagal din kami ng ilang linggo rito. Naiwan ang gamit ko sa bahay namin ni Chini. Kapag pumupunta kami ng market, I tried buying one or two clothes.

Madilim pa ang kalangitan ng umalis kami ng bahay. Hindi niya binanggit sa akin kung saan kami pupunta. He just told me to come with him and he'll be showing something to me. I'm curious to know about it since there's a lot of things I'm not aware of this island pa. I've only been into place like the market, sa city, at sa ibang lugar na pinupuntahan ni BJH dahil kasa-kasama niya ako all the way.

I yawned, trying to stretch my arms up in the air. Antok na antok pa ako at gusto ko pang matulog since maaga ngang nagising at feeling ko bangag pa ako today.

Jin-Hyeong smirked. "Sorry for waking you up early... I thought this would be a nice day to be there though."

I smiled and shook my head. "No... it's fine. I also want to see what you're talking about. I can sleep anytime naman..."

"Yup... I'm sure you'll love it, Raijine." He smiled. The way the smile grew on his face, I feel like where we are going is something special for him that's why it never washed out of his face. It's always good to see him with a smile on his face. It makes him even more attractive. "I want to tell you something..."

My brow furrowed. "Ano 'yon?"

He shook his head. "I'm going to tell you later... we're still far from our destination so you can sleep for now."

"Ah... okay..."

He then let my head rest on his shoulder. Hindi ako pumalag. I let him do it and it looks like he doesn't really mind. Mas tinamaan ako ang antok nang madantay na ang ulo ko sa balikat niya. He said that this will be a two-hour drive and we're still far from our destination and I'm still wondering where we could be.

"Good morning, mga ka-okray..."

"Raijine?" Jin-Hyeong's voice woke me up. He's giggling when I saw his face and I was wondering what he's laughing at. Inalis ko na rin naman ang pagkahihilig sa kanyang balikat at napalingon ako sa bintana at madilim pa rin sa labas. "Don't worry, we're already there. You've been talking a lot while you're sleeping."

Humabol pa ito ng pagtawa. I know he could understand what I was saying kahit tagalog pa 'yon.

"Ano namang sinabi ko?" Ngiwi ko pa.

"Ka-okray... does that sound relevant to you?" he questioned.

Nanlaki ang mata ko at gusto kong matawa dahil 'yon pa talaga ang nasabi ko. Hindi ko na rin naman siya nasagot nang marating na namin ang bus stop. He grabbed my arm as we stood from our seats and hopped out of the bus. Ang inakala ko pa kanina ay gagamitin namin ang sasakyan ng father niya, but I guess Jin-Hyeong's wanted to be spontaneous today.

"We're still in Jeju, 'di ba?" paninigurado ko pa kay Jin-Hyeong.

He chuckled. "Of course. You'll be more surprised once we get there."

Nanliit naman ang mata ko. I'm so eager to know what he's talking about. At kung ano man iyong ipakikita niya sa akin, but even though I'm so clueless right now... I wanted him to surprise me.

Nang makababa kami ng bus ay naglakad pa kami ng ilang metro hangga't sa makarating kami sa laylayan ng burol. I was so confused about what we were doing here. There are only a few people around, iyong ibang tao ay nagjojogging pa sa paligid namin. But even though I couldn't see much around, the smell of the sea became more vivid into my vision.

"We're going to hike 180 meters," anunsyo ni BJH sa akin. Nagulantang ang pakatao ko sa sinabi niya. As in half-sleepy pa ang kaluluwa ko pero binungaran niya ako ng gano'n. "Are you ready?"

Napalunok naman ako ng laway. "Ready nga ba ako?"

He chuckled. Pinalibot niya ang braso niya sa balikat ko. "Don't you worry about it. It will only take us 45 minutes to reach the top. More or less. But that won't take much of our time. I bet you, this will be worthy for getting up so early."

BJH paid two thousand won each for the fee. Nahihiya ako kapag siya mismo ang nagbabayad para sa akin. I can pay for my fee naman, but he insisted every time. Saka dagdag pa niya na siya ang nagdala sa akin dito so he has the right to pay for it. Hinayaan ko na lang siya sa gusto niyang mangyari.

Still, he hasn't mentioned anything about this place, but to what I'm feeling, isa ito sa mga dinadayong lugar ng mga turista o siguro kahit ng mga local. He just grabbed me and then we proceed walking following the pathway leading to the top.

It's quiet and freezing. All we could hear is the wind rustling. I also kept looking at my phone. Lagpas ala y sais na at hindi pa rin sumisikat ang kwarto. The Winter season here is much different than in the Philippines. This would be my first time seeing the sunrise on the island. Or maybe we have other things to do and seeing the sunrise isn't the point of going here.

"Nanen gdli ilchul 1 shigan jone igteul durss gi tamuna namu gibepnida," ani BJH. ) I'm so glad they kept this place open an hour before sunrise.)

Napataas ang kilay ko. "Ano ulit 'yon? Hindi ko na-gets, e."

He scoffed, shaking his head. "Never mind. Don't think about it."

I squinted my eyes. "Hindi. May binanggit kang one, e."

Iling na lang din ang isinagot nito sa akin at hindi na nag-abala pang sundan 'yon. What made me smile all throughout our hike ay hindi niya binitawan ang kamay ko. It feels like everything feels better and there's nothing we should care about. Dahil hindi pa gano'n kaliwanag ay gamit lang namin ay ang flashlight sa phone ni BJH. The ascending pathway is safe and it may seem steep ay hindi pa rin siya nakalulula.

We frequently stop at the designated rest stops. Mabuti na lang din ay may nagtitinda ng mga tubig kaya pampapawi ng uhaw. Obviously, BJH paid for it for us and then we just spend a little time on the benches with a view of the sea. Hindi pa man gano'n kaliwanag dahil hindi pa naman sumisilay ang araw ay tanaw naman namin ang city lights na nagbibigay liwanag sa paligid.

"Can you still go up?" he asked.

Determinado naman akong tumango sa kanya. "Of course!"

"Then let's go. We can't miss the sunrise."

Nang sabihin niya nga iyon, nakuha ko na ang punto niya kung bakit nandito kaming dalawa ngayon. Even though that I have no idea where we are right now, it does make me feel good, free, and special. Ewan ko, ako lang din ata nag-iisip no'n.

When we continued our hike, ako na ngayon ang nakakapit sa braso ni BJH dahil pagod na pagod na ang mga binti ko. Tinatagan ko ang sarili ko. I don't wanna give this up. Malapit na rin naman namin marating ang dulo so I won't lose the chance of seeing what's on the top of this hill and what's so special about it.

Only a few minutes before the sunrise, BJH announced that we finally reached the top. Isang malalim na hininga ang binitawan ko. We've travelled 180 meters from the base of the hill to the top just to watch the sunrise from an amazing view of this place.

As we're watching the sunrise, I couldn't help myself but mesmerize. Like how my perseverance to see what's on the top of this hill was really worth it. The sea started glistening as the sun reflected its sun lights. It was warm and calm. The freezing came a little lighter as the show slowly showing up.

There were people who came and join us at the platform where we could watch the sunrise from a better view—but everything looks better as I turn around. It's so magical. Para bang nasa isang fairy tale ako.

"So... what this place is, Jin-Hyeong?"

"This is Seongsan Ilchulbong. It means Sunrise Peaks. This is actually the best place if you want to watch the sunrise and luckily for us, we just got in time."

"We just did..." Ngiti ang tumambay sa mukha ko at isang malalim na pagbitaw ng hininga. I don't know why, but it felt good. Lalo na nang ipikit ko ang mata ko at huminga ng malalim. Tanging naaamoy ko lamang ay ang karagatan at ang pabangong gamit ni BJH.

Naramdaman ko naman ang pagtapik ng kamay ni BJH sa balikat ko. He pulled me in closer to him.

"Let's do it together," anito.

Tumango ako at sabay naming ginawa 'yon. We both closed our eyes, breathe in at the same time, and let it go slowly.

"Does it feel good?" he asked. I nodded and smiled. "It should be. You know what, I just might have to say this. Particularly, people will spend their time here on new year's to see the first sunrise of the year. They say the people who have the first glimpse of the first year's sunrise will have good luck for the rest of the year."

"Is that why you brought me here? Pero it's not the first sunrise of the year, e."

He shrugged off. "It doesn't matter. For me, every sunrise means a new beginning and prosperous luck for everyone. I brought you here because you're such a good person and been there with me the whole time... well, not the past few years, but these past few weeks, and I really appreciate that. I'm hoping this would be a better year for me... to my dying career, and lastly to my family."

Hinaplos ko naman siya sa balikat niya upang pagaanin ang pakiramdam niya. "I know they'll be having a great year because you're their luck and I'm sure they are so proud and happy that you're thriving again. It'll be a better year, I promise."

"How do you know that?" He rose his brow.

I shrugged off. "Feeling ko lang... so... how long are we going to stay here?"

Napangisi naman 'to. "Do you wanna leave now? We just got here."

"Hindi naman... nagtatanong lang ako."

He chuckled. "Oh, just tell me you want to sleep again."

Bahagya ko siyang hinampas sa balikat niya. "Hoy! Wala naman akong sinabing gano'n."

"And you're hitting me now. That's harassment."

I scoffed. "Ay, bahala ka nga. Uuwi na ako."

"You don't know how."

"Then I'll just... find my way."

"No, you're not," aniya. "And you're not leaving me here alone." Hinawakan niya ako sa kamay at hindi na pinakawalan pa. "You're not gonna leave me here alone..." he said and I felt like there's something bitter in his tone somewhere there. "People always left me when I've got nothing to offer. It's good to know that there are still people who chose to believe in me even though I've got nothing."

"You aren't nothing, Jin-Hyeong," aniko. "You're more than something... people just don't see that."

He let out a deep sighed and then he just stared straight into the sun while I'm staring right at his face glowed by the sun. From all the people I've met, he's so humble, kind, and someone who really cares. Maybe that's what he got in trouble with Dong-Yoon because he still cares for Mi-Sun even though they've got nothing now.

"Do you want to go to the Aqua Planet after this?" he asked and turned to see my face.

I scrunched my face. "Para lang ba 'yong Ocean Park sa Manila?"

He shrugged off. "I don't know. I haven't been there, but this place is amazing. You might love it."

"Ikaw bahala..."

"Cool. We'll be there after lunch."

While we're taking pictures and all. A group of teenagers come in BJH's direction and asked for a picture with him. Nagulat pa kaming dalawa kasi hindi namin inaasahan na may makakikilala sa kanya rito. They were locals and so they knew him. Nagpresenta naman akong kumuha ng litrato nila and they were so giddy about meeting him.

Dahil napansin ng ilang tao sa paligid ang maliit na commotion ay lumapit sila sa amin at tinanong kung sino si BJH. Iyong iba naman ay sinabi na isa siyang Korean Superstar. The tourists were excited to have a photo with him. Wala naman kasing disguise o kung anong ibang suot si BJH. He's just wearing a jacket and a cap at wala ng iba pa.

We were about to stay for an hour longer, but then BJH noticed something.

"I think we're being watched," he whispered.

"Huh? Paano?" I asked him. I was about to look around when he grabbed me by my arm and told me not to move my head. "Anong gagawin natin?"

"We're going to walk away slowly..." aniya. "Just don't let go of me."

Tumango na lamang ako at sumunod sa kanya. We're just walking away na para bang wala kaming ginagawa hangga't sa nagsabi na lamang si Jin-Hyeong na tumakbo kaming dalawa. Nataranta ako sa sinabi niya kaya nawala sa utak ko kung saan kami tatakbo. Mabuti na lamang ay nakahawak ako sa kanya ay nasundan ko rin siya kaagad. And then at that moment, I just found out that we were being followed and watched by a paparazzi and he's catching after us.

"Jin-Hyeong? Ano nang gagawin natin?"

Seryoso lamang ang mukha nito at nag-iisip nang kung anong gagawin namin. Then I thought that luck may not be on our side right now. But hopefully, we could outrun this paparazzi or people will start finding out that Jin-Hyeong's in Jeju and Chini's lies to her clients would be called out. I for now know, this turned to be a big problem.

***

Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoy this chapter! Let me know your thoughts! I would appreciate it so much!

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