Vows and Bullets
Chapter 32: Kissing

Chapter 32: Kissing

[Music Recommendation: "Cool for the Summer" by Demi Lovato]

"Ughmm... Wait—"

This guy... he’s kissing me too passionately again!

Trying to break free, I placed my hands on his chest and pushed him away.

"I said stop," I whispered to him.

He halted for a moment, but his face was still close to mine, barely an inch apart.

"I—I don’t think lovers kiss this way all the time. Where did you even get that information?"

"I asked an expert in dating, Agent Hades," he replied in a whisper as well, raising his eyebrows. "And I also did lots of research, so I’m pretty sure this is the way."

"Really? B-But... I can’t possibly let my friend see us kiss like this. She’ll think you’re some pervert, which I think you really are but—be a little gentler, please!"

His brows knitted, probably deliberating if he would agree with my request or not. But time was ticking, and I could already hear Yoon-Ah’s footsteps nearby.

"Gentle, huh?"

Then, he lightly pecked on my lips and started kissing me slowly.

"Like that?"

"Uhmm..."

A soft moan came out from my lips as his gently pressed on mine. I know I was the one who requested it, but now it feels like it’s a little too sweet?

Slow kisses... I didn’t know they could be dangerous.

Ba-dump!

My face started to feel hot. And for some reason, my heart was thumping louder than usual.

Ba-dump! Ba-dump!

’Wait. That’s not just mine, right? I could feel two heartbeats. One from my chest and another... on my palm.’

I slowly opened my eyes, which turned shut as soon as he began kissing me. My hands were on Eun-Woo’s chest. In that case, was that his heart? And his face... isn’t it too red? Such a great actor. How could he do that?

’Ugh. This is really embarrassing. Yoon-Ah is probably seeing us kiss right now. What’s taking her so long? She should be squealing by now so we can stop this act.’

A few more seconds passed, but there was still nothing. Until...

Click! Click! Click!

...

...

...

"Oops! I forgot to turn off the shutter sounds."

We acted surprised from "accidentally" getting caught kissing—though we deliberately had ourselves caught. Our lips parted, and we moved a meter away from each other in haste.

"Yoon-Ah’ya! Did you just take pictures of us k-kissing? Delete those right now!" I reprimanded her. I could feel my cheeks still flushed pink from embarrassment.

"Don’t worry. I won’t leak it to the public! I’m just going to use it as a reference for my art. You two look like paintings when you kiss. Or like lovers in dramas!"

"No! Delete them right now!"

I stood up and tried to take the phone away from her.

"Oh, come on, please? Besides, it’s you and your fiancé’s fault! You go kissing each other as soon as I got out, huh? Can’t even wait to come home or when you’re alone somewhere else," she blamed us back, clicking her tongue. "Tsk. Tsk. Tsk."

I shut my mouth, unable to refute. What was I supposed to say when it was us who decided to be "accidentally" caught.

We returned to our seats, and I drank some water, hoping it would help calm my still-raising pulse.

"Tell me honestly," Yoon-Ah pressed on. "You two just recently started kissing each other, right?"

!!!

At these words, Eun-Woo and I briefly glanced at each other, surprised at how she figured that out. We tried our best to kiss perfectly like what couples do, but how in the world did she come to that conclusion? Was our acting not enough?

"Huh? What do you mean?" I asked her, curious why.

"Well..." she paused and looked at the picture on her phone, "you still kiss like you’re hungry for each other’s lips. Couples usually do that in the early stages of their kissing life."

What? Hungry for each other’s lips? All we did was kiss slowly... how did that manage to appear like that to her?

"I got you, right?" Yoon-Ah waggled her eyebrows and smirked, so confident she was correct.

"Ahh... and alas, we’re caught," Eun-Woo admitted, smiling awkwardly. "I have always been careful when it comes to being intimate with her since I respect her. What you said is true. Indeed, we only recently started kissing. You are very observant."

Huh? He’s admitting it? But why?

"Of course! I always study human anatomy for my art and observe couples that I see on a daily basis, doing PDA-stuff, so it’s easy to tell."

"Ha-ha. I see. That’s very commendable of you. If you don’t mind me asking, how do couples usually kiss? We are each other’s firsts, so we’re not very knowledgeable when it comes to—"

"Oh my goodness! For real?! I would believe if it’s only Ye-Ji’ya since I know she never had a boyfriend, but... you, too? Woah!"

"Ahhh, yes."

"In that case, this great me shall teach you both."

And so, she showed us "our" kissing picture and told us a lot of stuff she observed about couples. I can’t believe she literally observed them shamelessly and even watched other people kissing in broad daylight! It took her a whole hour to explain everything. She didn’t stop until she said everything she wanted to say.

While Yoon-Ah explained everything to us, I finally realized why Eun-Woo suddenly admitted the fact that we had recently started kissing. It was so he could get reliable information from Yoon-Ah! Since she noticed our inexperience, it only meant that she had valuable insights and therefore, a good source of information! Wow... how cunning. And he thought all of that in mere seconds!

"And that’s it! But then again, you two are your own couple, so feel free to do things as you please."

"No, what you shared will be really helpful," Eun-Woo replied. "As you know, my father got too excited and told the whole world about our marriage, so our private life is now gone. Since the public’s eyes will most likely follow us from now on, I should be careful when expressing my love, or else others might misinterpret it. And I don’t want any harm or malicious comments to reach Ye-Ji’s ears."

"You’re right. In that case, I’m happy to be of help." Turning to me, she scowled, "Aishhh, Ye-Ji’ya, why didn’t you tell me sooner, huh? I could have given you advice."

"Hey, don’t get cocky with me. You never had a boyfriend, too," I teased her. "How would I know that you’re familiar with that stuff?"

"Look at this ungrateful friend. Aishhh."

We squabbled a bit more after that and then went out to have some decent bonding time. Eun-Woo droved us to wherever we wanted to go—from tourist destinations to amusement parks, the mall to buy some art supplies for her and replace her old drawing tablet, coffee shop, another restaurant, and whatever we passed along the way. It had been a long time since I last spent a whole day with her, so we went all out. I really missed her. Too bad, time always goes so fast whenever you’re enjoying yourself. Soon enough, it was evening, and we had to go home.

After dropping Yoon-Ah back home and saying our goodbyes to each other, Eun-Woo and I drove to Seoul, where a luxurious hotel room had been arranged for our stay. Our schedule was so tight this upcoming week that every slot was filled to the minute. To lessen travel time, we decided to stay there for the rest of the month. And, of course, I had to share the suite with him. Good thing it was a presidential suite and had many bedrooms inside. That way, when we’re alone, we can sleep in separate rooms.

"Ahhh... finally, I can rest," I sighed as I let my body sink into the softness of the bed.

"Did you really think that the day is over?" Agent Helios reprimanded me in a stern tone. He’s finally back to his usual rude self as well. "Get up. We still have something to do."

My face immediately grimaced at his words. I really hate it when my rest gets interrupted.

"And what would that be? We don’t have any other appointment for today."

"We still need to practice kissing realistically. We got good intel from your friend, so it’s time to put it into practice."

...

My mind processed a bit before I could respond.

"... Practice what?!"