Three days had passed in a blur of beach visits, street food, and late-night convenience store runs. Now they stood at Seogwipo harbor with their luggage, looking at the boat docked in front of them. Baki and Seongji stood behind the group, taking in the view.
"This is so unreal," Max said, adjusting his backpack.
Derrick was already raising his phone for a photo. "I can't believe we're actually doing this."
Jenny's group was already there near the boarding area. Moon Seong stood with his hands in his pockets, relaxed. Jenny spotted them and came bounding over.
"You made it! I was worried you'd change your minds."
Sujin laughed. "Sally's been talking about this for three days straight. Baki-hyung didn't really have a choice."
A crew member in a white uniform approached them with a clipboard. "Good morning. Are you the party of fifteen?"
"That's us," Jenny confirmed.
"Welcome aboard the Jeju Dream." His name tag read Captain Lee. He went through the basics quickly. No leaning over railings without supervision. Life jackets in every cabin. Breakfast at eight, lunch at noon, dinner at seven. Activities announced throughout the day. "Your rooms are on the second deck. Eight cabins, two per room. Sort yourselves out however you like."
They boarded up the gangway and stepped onto the main deck. Sally's eyes moved across everything at once. Cushioned benches, a small bar, open space to walk. Stairs led up to an observation deck and down to the cabins.
Sujin whispered, "This is so much nicer than I expected."
The second deck had a carpeted hallway with eight doors, four on each side. Each room had two single beds, a small bathroom, a porthole window, and decent storage. Jenny looked at the group. "Who's rooming with who?"
Sally and Sujin paired up without discussion. Warren and Vin Jin took the next room without any discussion either. Max and Derrick claimed the third. Jenny gestured to Jaeryeong and they took another. Moon Seong went with Joseph. Jinho ended up with Heesu. Baki and Seongji took a cabin together. Hyesun took the last one alone.
They dropped their bags and came back up to the main deck. The crew was finishing preparations. Sally felt the vibration through the floor when the engines turned on.
"We're moving!" Max pointed as the harbor began to drift back.
They gathered at the railing and watched Seogwipo shrink behind them. The water churned white in the boat's wake as the Jeju Dream picked up speed.
Captain Lee's voice came through the deck speakers. "Good morning, passengers. We're officially underway. First stop is Udo Island, approximately two hours out. The breakfast buffet is open in the dining area. Feel free to explore the boat in the meantime."
Max turned his head. "Breakfast buffet? Why didn't he lead with that?"
The dining area was on the lower deck. Large windows lined the walls and the ocean filled the view outside. The spread covered the full table: rice, soup, grilled fish, banchan, toast, eggs, fruit, and coffee. The other passengers were already filling their plates. One man stood out immediately. He was enormous, with a heavily muscled frame and short, light-colored hair, and he was working through the buffet at a pace that suggested he intended to finish most of it himself.
They loaded up their plates and found seats by the windows. The boat rocked gently.
Derrick leaned back in his chair. "This is the life. Why don't we just live on a boat?"
"You'd be seasick within a few hours," Warren said.
"I have an iron stomach."
"We'll see when we hit rougher water."
After breakfast they spread out across the boat. Sally went straight for the upper observation deck, dropped into a lounge chair, and closed her eyes against the sun. "This is perfect," she said.
Sujin settled into the chair next to her. "No complaints."
Warren came up a few minutes later with two bottles of water. He handed one to Sally without a word. She smiled at him. "Thanks."
He nodded and leaned against the railing, looking out at the water.
Down below, Vin Jin and Max had found a ping pong table in a small game area. The sound of the ball and their trash talk drifted up to the deck.
Moon Seong called out from his chair. "Twenty bucks on Vin Jin."
Joseph shook his head. "Max has hidden talent."
"Max can barely hold the paddle."
"Exactly. The element of surprise."
Jenny and Jaeryeong were taking photos along the railing. Heesu kept inserting himself into the frame with exaggerated poses. Each one made everyone around him laugh.
The two hours to Udo Island passed without effort.
"Approaching Udo Island," Captain Lee announced. "Docking in fifteen minutes. One-hour stop. Be back at the boat by noon sharp."
The island came into view, small and green with white beaches and a handful of scattered buildings. A quiet little village sat near the dock.
Jenny looked up from her phone as they pulled in. "Udo is famous for peanuts. Peanut ice cream, peanut makgeolli, peanut everything."
"I'm trying all of it," Max said immediately.
They stepped off onto the small pier. The island felt slow and easy. Some locals worked near the docks. A few tourists were renting bicycles from a shop nearby.
Sujin looked at the bikes. "Should we rent some?"
Warren glanced at his phone. "We only have an hour. Not enough time to get far."
"Let's just walk the village then."
They moved down a narrow street lined with shops and small cafes. Sally stopped at a stall selling peanut ice cream and bought one. She took a bite and her expression changed. "Okay, this is actually really good," she said, holding it out to Sujin.
Sujin tried it. "Really good."
Vin Jin tried the peanut makgeolli. He took one sip and went still. His face did something complicated.
Max looked at him. "You look like you're dying."
"It's an acquired taste," Vin Jin said.
They worked through the village, tried more food, bought a few things, and made it back to the boat before noon. The day kept moving. More stops, more scenery, more food. By the time the sky went dark the whole group was full and comfortable and spread out on the main deck.
Moon Seong stood up and stretched. He had slipped away earlier for a few minutes and come back without explanation. Now he looked at the group. "Hey, there's a club on board. How about we check it out?"
Warren's expression didn't change, but something behind his eyes went flat. Vin Jin looked at Moon Seong without saying anything, but the look said enough.
Before either of them could speak, Jenny cut in. "Moon Seong, we shouldn't push that. We've only known each other a few days. Sally and the others might not be comfortable."
Sally thought about it for a moment. Then she said, "It's fine. We're all friends now, aren't we? No reason it should be a problem."
Jenny's face lit up. "Really? Then let's go!"
Warren opened his mouth and then closed it. Sally was already smiling. He left it alone.
Vin Jin said nothing. He kept his eyes on Moon Seong for a second longer than necessary, then looked away.