Chapter 11

Yuri's POV

Tall. Tanned. Handsome. Just like Daniel Henney.

It wasn't hard to spot the owner of the bookstore since there weren't many people in there to begin with. Plus, the resemblance to Daniel Henney is just too close --even his name sounds foreign. Kevin Yang it says on his name tag. And right below it is his position at Prologue. Owner.

So this is the kind of guys that Jessica likes. In terms of appearance, I'll say he passed. But there's just so much more to find out about this young entrepreneur.

Jessica and I went our separate ways once we entered Prologue. I wanted to get to know Kevin while Jessica seemed to just want to know if her book is in. Little does she know, SooYoung had already bought her apple/book earlier. Kekeke. I made an excuse to get some help from the owner since it was my first time in this store and didn't know where the language section is.

"Could you help me get that book up there, please?" I asked Kevin.

"My pleasure," he said with a smile. As he reached up to get me the book that I pointed out, the sleeves of his t-shirt lifted up slightly, showing his well-toned arms. Impressive. He doesn't look 3 months pregnant either. Rather, the black t-shirt clinging to his skin showed a very defined body.

"So you want to learn English?" Kevin handed me the foreign book full of nonsensical scribbles. I flipped through it and noticed that there wasn't a single picture or Korean word. How am I supposed to learn English when I don't understand anything in this book.

Pretending to understand the jumble of black words, I nodded my head approvingly at the book while replying, "Yes, I want to improve my English. Would you recommend this book?"

"Well, if you just want to improve your English, then I think I might have a better book for you. Come with me." He brought me to this secluded corner where there were few books --and fewer customers. Aigoo, not even ten minutes has passed and he's already trying to make a move on me.

"Here." He handed me a much thicker book than the advanced one in my hand. "It's great because it has much more everyday use words and it has both the English and Korean translations. It's much cheaper too," he said winking at me.

I blushed at my inappropriate thoughts earlier of him trying to take advantage of me. For a business person, he's honest. Ok, I'll pass him for ethics too. But I still don't know if he's good enough for our Jessica.

"What about your friend? What kind of a book is she looking for?" He leads me back to the front of the store. "I see her pretty often here."

"Oh, I'm not too sure. Let me go ask her." As we walk by a display of new books, I intentionally knock them over. Let's see how his temper is.

Feigning a gasp, I say to Kevin with one hand over my mouth, "I'm so sorry! I ruined your nice display here. And some books are probably bent too." Oh god, what am I doing? If he doesn't explode at me, then I'll feel guilty.

And he doesn't. Instead, he's already picking the books up off the floor and placing them back on the table. "Don't worry about it. Books are meant to be read, and so pages will eventually be bent. It's the content that's important. I highly doubt that you possess magical powers to change..." he looks down at the book in his hands "... Harry Potter' fate."

I chuckle at the irony of his comment. Not only did he not get mad, but he comforted me. Wow! This guy is passing with flying colors.

Before I could think of any other tests for him, I hear Jessica's cold voice from behind me. "Yuri. Let's go."

"Oh, Jessica, this is Kevin. The owner of this store." I looked at her empty hands. "You didn't find your book? Maybe Kevin can help."

"Hi Jessica! Nice to meet you. Tell me what book it is that you're looking for and I'll try to help you. Maybe it's in this pile of books here on the floor." He motions to the mess that I purposely created.

We both began to laugh at our little inside joke, but stopped once we received Jessica's icy glare.

"Bitter is the new black." Jessica said breaking our short chuckles.

There was a short period of silence before Kevin asked, "Pardon me??"

"Hehe, this is the Sica effect. You'll see what I mean later on," I explained to him.

"Bitter is the new black,"Jessica repeated. "The book that I'm looking for."

Kevin scratched his head. "I'm sorry, but I just sold the last copy. I'll make the order for you, but it'll take some time since it's coming from the States."

I took this opportunity to exchange phone numbers with him which he gladly gave. "Oh, and this is Jessica's cell phone number."

"Yuri!"

"What? The book is for you. It only makes sense that he calls you and not me," I told the apple haired girl staring at me in disbelief.

"Kevin, call us the moment the book is in. Or you could just call if you get bored. Let us know what other good books are in cause Jessica really enjoys reading books."

"Oh really? Sure! I would love to inform my loyal customer of the latest reads." He shyly looks at Jessica. "I notice you come here pretty often. Umm... so if you need anything in the future, don't be shy to call."

"Ok," was all Jessica said.

The three of us walked towards the cash register but before we reached the counter, I bumped into Kevin by accident which triggered a chain of reactions. I could tell that Kevin's intention was to keep me steady but he must have hit Jessica when I fell on him. She lost her balance and started to fall on the ground. Kevin released me just in time to catch her. I peeked over his broad shoulders to see Jessica holding onto him tightly and her face blushing as red as a tomato.

An old woman who was waiting by the cash cleared her throat loudly, breaking the moment of awkwardness. The two let go of each other. Kevin went behind the counter to accept the woman's payment and Jessica just stood behind me in line. She held onto my sleeves and as much as I wanted to comfort her by hugging her, I didn't want Kevin to see just how embarrassed my cute little Sica is right now.

We paid for my new English book and said bye to our new friend, Kevin. Once we were out the store, Jessica turned to me with an angry expression on her face.

"Kwon Yuri! What was that all about?" she yelled.

I gave her an innocent look. "What? What was what all about?" I said knowing full well that she was talking about my matchmaking back there.

"The flirting! And giving my cell phone number to him, pretending to fall on him!"

Taken aback by her accusation, I yelled back, "I wasn't flirting!" Was I? I hope she doesn't think that I'm trying to take her man.

Desperate to change the subject, I suggested that we go out for dinner tonight since there might not be much food left at home by now. Jessica agreed but emphasized that I should pay since I'm at fault for giving out her number without having asked her for her permission.

"So where are we going to eat?"

"How about the place that we went to last time? Maybe I'll even go to the back and cook one of my specialties for you," I suggested. I've been working on a new recipe and really wanted her to be the first to try it.

"Sure. What's the place called anyway?" She was walking in the opposite direction of the restaurant so I grabbed her hand before she was about to cross the street. Even though I managed to steer her in the right direction, I didn't let go.

"Jae Won oppa's restaurant is called Yol Saek."

"Ten Colors?"

"Yup. There's an interesting story behind the name. You can ask him when we get there." I tugged her hand to follow me. "Come on, let's go. Shiksin number 3 must be hungry now." I laughed at my own joke and heard Jessica's giggles follow suit.