Nineteen-year-old Rose Porter-Abe had everything a teen could want, except for a life of her own.
The daughter of a fashion designer and an actor, Rose finds herself lost in the long shadow cast by her parents' achievements and expectations, and una...
Rose's intention had been to stay in the palace grounds for as long as possible just to absorb the atmosphere and to imagine what she might do during the photo shoot. Try as she might to immerse herself in the role of a princess torn between the present and the past, it was impossible with so many tourists milling around trying to get the perfect shot of the banquet hall. Knowing that they'd be alone and left in peace during the night time fashion shoot, Rose resigned herself to the fact that she'd have to improvise on the day and made her way out of the palace.
No one would expect her home for hours and now that she found herself alone, Rose saw no harm in taking the time to wander through Seoul. A girl travelling alone in a city ought to have been far warier than she was about aimlessly strolling through an unfamiliar place, but the sun was still up, and Rose figured that if she walked with some confidence then people would assume she was either a local or someone well versed with the layout of the expansive city. She soon found the streets to be a confusing labyrinth which favoured cars and buses over pedestrians. Seoul had an impressive public transportation network, so this shouldn't have come as a surprise to her, but Rose preferred to travel on foot so that she had more control of the direction she headed in.
Soon realising that the journey would take hours if she continued as she was, Rose boarded the first bus she saw, deciding it might be best to simply trundle through the city and leave the vehicle when other people did. If she followed people her own age, she'd probably find something interesting to look at. Seoul seemed the sort of place that always had something going on or somewhere to be, and as long as she was busy then she'd have little time to ponder on the meaning of Si-woo's words or the kiss he bestowed upon her.
Rose soon forgot all about this plan when she noticed the Han River. The enormous winding river worked its way through the city and beneath bridges which connected the opposing sides of Seoul. Intrigued, she pressed her nose to the window when a wooden footbridge came into view. It led to an island floating alone in the middle of the water. Her interest didn't go unnoticed by an older gentleman sat behind her. Gently, he tapped Rose on the shoulder and said in unsteady English, 'Rainbow bridge.'
'Rainbow?' she asked, delighted by the name. 'Um... public? Tourist?'
The man nodded. 'Everyone can use. Nice place. Popular.'
'Thank you,' she said, her heart now set upon seeing it. 'Bus?'
He nodded again. 'Bus there. Wait.'
Excitement needled at Rose's insides as she stared out of the window throughout their journey. It was a pity that Si-woo hadn't taken her to the island. If it was a pretty place, she thought she might suggest the location to Yuta and see if they could squeeze it into their schedule. Standing atop the Rainbow Bridge with the city in the background would certainly make for a positive advertising campaign. Plus, that way, Hitomi would get to see it with her and that was all she really wanted.
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