HWARANG Rewritten✅

39. Late-night water fights

Chapter 39.
Late-night water fights.

Sa-do entered the room noisily making the others look up in shock and nervous worry. Seon-woo almost fell down but grabbed onto Ji-dwi at the last moment before pulling himself up. "Sa-do! What brings you here?" he exclaimed with fake enthusiasm.

"I live here," the girl deadpanned rolling her eyes. She walked a few steps past them before turning to face them again. "The store house is to the back of the estate. The wall is pretty low so scaling it should be easy. Wait for the guards to pass. You will have some seven-minute time gap to make it to the storage shed before they come back for patrolling." She turned away to hide her hurt expression.

"Sa-do," Soo-ho called out, grabbing her wrist to stop her from leaving. "I am sorry."

"Sorry about what?" Sa-do scoffed harshly, pulling her hand back. "You knew. You guys knew everything. What I had been through, what he had done, how much I hate him, how I wanted to make him pay for all his mistakes," she paused to take a breath, "if you still think I will out your plans instead of supporting you then that is my fault for failing to prove that I am trustworthy. I will be more than happy to sit this one out so just make sure you don't get caught and get those medicines to Makmang village soon."

Sa-do brushed away a traitorous tear that slid down her face despite her trying hard not to cry. The others remained silent, not knowing what to say to such a confession and accusation. Letting out a frustrated sigh and stomping her foot she started pacing. "Just be careful and don't get caught," she said at long last, her voice having lost all its edge and coming out as a soft defeated plea.

...

That night Sa-do couldn't sleep and after hours of restless tossing and turning she got up and left the room.

She allowed her feet to carry her to the river, her mind already preoccupied. She stood on the bank for a few minutes, gazing blankly at the star-studded night sky before releasing a heavy sigh. She couldn't deny the fact that she was extremely hurt by how the others hadn't even trusted her enough to let her know of their plans. Not even Ji-dwi.

Taking off her shoes, she stepped into the shallows. The cold water awakened her, making her skin tingle and the chilly night air hit her from all sides. Suppressing a shiver, she waded a little further until the water gradually flowed past her, just below her knees.

Sa-do was so consumed by her thoughts and emotions that she didn't hear another person approach. She jumped when a pair of arms snaked around her waist and let out a small scream before turning back and realizing it was just Ji-dwi. Giving a grieved sigh she looked away from him.

"Are you mad?" he asked, resting his chin against her shoulder and leaning into her. She shook her head. "Are you sad then?"

"Just a bit disappointed," she admitted with a pout.

Ji-dwi tugged on her till her back was pressed flush against his chest. "I am sorry."

"Don't you trust me? Or do you think I will support him just because he is my father?" Sa-do's emotions were wavering precariously and she was one push away from an emotional breakdown.

"I trust you," Ji-dwi easily admitted with no trace of doubt or hesitation. "It's just that after what happened in Baekje, I don't want to let you anywhere near him because I am scared you will get hurt and I won't be able to save you."

Sa-do huffed. How was she supposed to stay angry at him if he said things like that? She turned in his arms to face him and gazed into his warm brown eyes. "I can look after myself. I don't need you coddling me," she told him gently, in a way to that he could understand.

"I know," Ji-dwi admitted but then whispered, "I just want to keep you safe."

"Hiya! You do realize I am a Hwarang right?" she scoffed teasingly. "I will have to go on missions at some point to different places. You can't exactly follow me everywhere. What do you plan to do then? Stop me from going?"

Ji-dwi's face morphed into a thoughtful one as if he was actually considering the idea. "Don't," Sa-do warned, punching his shoulder lightly.

"Hiya! How dare you hit me? I am your King!" he exclaimed in mock outrage making her chuckle which made him smile too. "Would you like to join us for the heist?"

Ji-dwi's offer made her eyes light up as she asked, "really?"

"Hmm. You obviously know that place better than us. It will be easier with you and that way I can keep you safe too. I am scared that otherwise you will try to sneak in and go solo," he remarked and she nodded. That was, indeed, what she would have done. Ji-dwi rolled his eyes at her predictable excitement.

"Thank you," she gushed, placing a quick kiss on his cheek. Ji-dwi tutted, clearly not satisfied, as he leaned down to brush his lips against hers gently, making her gasp. "Hiya!" she exclaimed, taking a few steps away from him and nervously looking around.

Refraining from laughing at her anxiousness he just skeptically questioned, "who do you think is going to be here at this time of the night?"

"Well... you are here," she pointed out after some thinking.

"Only because I was awake and heard you leave and wanted to check up on you." Sa-do was stunned by his bluntness and swallowed. Narrowing his eyes, Ji-dwi inquired, "why? Do I make you nervous?"

Sa-do's eyes widened as she shook her head in denial. Teasingly stepping closer to her, he raised an eyebrow as if asking what about now? Before he could take another step though something cold hit his face. "Did you just...?" he spluttered, incredulous, "splash me?" He looked like he could scarcely believe it and Sa-do's eyes widened as he raced towards her.

She narrowly escaped his arms and dashed across the water, an exhilarated laugh passing her lips. He eventually caught her, flicking a few drops of water at her face, making her squeal as she tried to get away. His arms caged her though, effectively immobilizing her. "Still nervous?" he teased; his voice playful.

Sa-do shook her head defiantly about to deny his overconfident claim but Ji-dwi, once again, silenced her with his lips, pulling her in a searing but tender kiss that made her heart skip several beats and heat spread through her whole body. Her surprised gasp was lost and her knees weakened as she clutched onto his shoulders for support.

 
Pulling away, Ji-dwi breathed, "you talk to much," and then tapping her nose, he added, "also, your face is red." Sa-do was still reeling from the kiss to snap back at him with some smart retort and blinked blankly. "Definitely nervous," he decided with conviction as he flicked another few drops of water at her face, breaking her stupor. "Come on. You will catch a cold if you stay here any longer," he suddenly said, pulling her out of the chilly water.

"Aigoo! Look at you worry about me," Sa-do sang teasingly as she pinched his cheeks, finally having regained her senses and composure. Ji-dwi swatted her hand away, holding it instead and interlacing their fingers as they walked back towards the barracks with him updating her on the plan for the heist.