Last Flight Home

004: Shanghai

Eunri emerged half an hour later and veered left on the pavement once she stepped out of the building, not noticing that Alex was parked across the street. He immediately sprung to his feet and followed along, keeping a safe distance behind so he wouldn't look like a stalker (even though he was one).

She walked to the quayside and stood there along the edge of the pavement, staring out at the open sea. There was a melancholy reflecting in her large, hazel eyes that seemed amplified by the vast expanse of water sitting before her.

About a hundred metres away, hiding behind a lamp post, Alex stood there watching her as her long strands of hair blew with the wind.

"Are you just going to stand here watching her?" Daehyun said, an annoyed edge in his voice. "This is such a waste of time. Every minute I spend here is money lost—don't you know that?"

"Shut up."

Alex's heart ached as he watched Eunri standing there. She was so beautiful. How could he ever have let her go so easily? He must have been out of his mind when he thought that he could have gotten over her. There was absolutely no way that he could have done that. She was already engraved in his heart. This was one mission he couldn't fail.

Just then, a strong gust of wind started blowing. A kid who had been riding his bicycle down the sidewalk started wobbling unstably as his bike rolled past Alex and towards Eunri's direction. As he continued cycling, the wind picked up. The boy let out a loud horrified exclamation as his bike started toppling to one side, looking as though it were about to crash right into Eunri.

Alex's eyes widened as he watched the entire scenario unfold. He broke out into a run towards her, but there was no way he could reach in time. In a split second, the boy's bike had collided with Eunri, knocking her off her centre of gravity. She was falling in the direction of the sea.

"Eunri!" Alex shouted.

She landed in the water with a huge splash, while the kid was lying on the ground nursing a bruised back.

Alex leaned over the edge of the boardwalk and peered into the water, which was still rippling from Eunri's fall. She was nowhere to be seen.

"Eunri!"

Before Daehyun could protest, Alex dived straight into the water.

"Are you crazy? I can't swim!" Daehyun yelled.

Alex felt a sudden panic grip his heart, presumably coming from Daehyun, but he couldn't care less about the latter's fear now. He steeled his heart and tried to shove Daehyun's terror aside. All he knew was that Eunri couldn't swim. If he didn't get her out of the water, she would die. When she was young, Eunri had fallen into a swimming pool before and nearly drowned. From then on she had developed an intense phobia for swimming, so she never learned how.

He could see her struggling underwater, trying desperately to reach the surface.

Alex quickly swum over and grabbed hold of her, pulling her above water. He lifted her up to the shore and lay her carefully on the pavement, her head still cradled in his arms.

"Eunri! Eunri!" he called. Her eyes were semi-open, but she didn't look like she was fully conscious.

"Is she alright?" Daehyun asked as he looked on at the semi-unconscious Eunri through Alex's eyes. "She looks like she's swallowed too much seawater. You'll have to give her CPR," he said.

"What?? What's CPR?" Alex said in a panic. He was trying to shake Eunri awake, but she wasn't responding.

"Lie her flat on the ground. You'll have to blow air into her lungs through her mouth. Pinch her nose while you're doing that,". Daehyun recited.

It wasn't until Alex had followed his instructions exactly and leaned in towards Eunri that Daehyun realised what he had just made himself do.

"Wait, wait, wait!"

It was too late. Alex had already bent over and put his mouth over Eunri's, blowing as much air as he could down her windpipe.

"Daehyun? What's next?" Alex when he didn't hear anything after that.

There was an awkward pause.

"Umm, p-p-put both your hands over her chest and do this pumping action in counts of three," Daehyun stammered.

Alex quickly did as instructed. At the third pump, a mouthful of water came spilling out from Eunri's mouth and she coughed, coming back to life. He heaved a sigh of relief and supported her shoulders, letting her rest against his chest.

"Are you alright? How are you feeling?"

"You..." Eunri looked at him and said slowly, still slightly disoriented. "You're the one from—" She looked back towards the Bank of China building.

"You fell into the water. You could have drowned!" Alex exclaimed. The relief at knowing that she was okay washed over him. He took a deep breath, letting his nerves settle.

"Did you jump into the water to save me?" she asked, looking at his soaked clothes and wet hair.

Alex nodded.

"Thank you..."

"It's alright. I'm so glad you're fine. Which hotel are you staying at? I'll send you back before you catch a cold." Alex helped her to her feet and threw his coat around her shoulders, then he walked her slowly away from the quay.

#

After sending Eunri back to her hotel and settling her in, Alex had no choice but to leave although he would much rather stay and look after her. It would be awkward for a stranger to be wanting to stay by her side. He would have to come back and check on her tomorrow to make sure she was alright.

Early the next morning, he went and bought her favourite breakfast—a hazelnut latte and ham and cheese croissant—and headed to her hotel in a cheery mood.

"Can you stop skipping and walk normally?" Daehyun complained.

Alex was in such a good mood that he was skipping along the pavement, looking quite odd while dressed in one of Daehyun's long-sleeved formal shirts and blazers. "Please remember that you are now Lee Daehyun, not the bumbling Alex Yang. When you're back in your own body you can skip however you like."

Alex ignored him and continued hopping. He was in too good a mood to care about Daehyun's whining.

When he reached Eunri's hotel room, the door was wide open. He peered in curiously, only to find the chamber maid changing the sheets in the room.

"Excuse me, where is the guest who's staying in this room?" Alex walked in and asked. He looked around the room—it was completely empty save for an empty coffee cup left on the table and used sheets tossed onto the carpeted floor.

"Oh, the young lady? She checked out an hour ago," the hotel staff replied.

"What!"

Alex dropped the paper bag he had been carrying onto the floor. The croissant he had bought tumbled sadly out of it and onto the beige rug.

"Are you Mr Lee Daehyun?"

Alex blinked, then nodded. "How do you know my name?"

"The lady left this for you. She said to give it to you in case you came back." The chamber maid reached into her pocket and fished out a message scribbled onto a sheet out of the hotel's notepad.

Alex grabbed it immediately and read what it said:

Hi Mr Lee,

Thank you for rescuing me yesterday, I am eternally grateful. I'm sorry I had to rush off like that without saying a proper goodbye and thank you, but I have a plane to St. Petersburg to catch this morning. Once again, thank you very, very much for saving my life. Perhaps we'll see each other again soon. Have a lovely time in Shanghai.

Yours sincerely,
Park Eunri

Daehyun made a stifled cry when he saw what the note said.

"No, no, no, no! We are not going to St. Petersburg!"

#