Anna walked up to sit on my bed and crossed her legs before looking to me with a grin.

“So, I figured since Sora gave you a bit of advice on what to expect, I figured I might as well tell you what happened to me too.” I blinked at her, not really knowing how to take in what she wanted me to know.

“You want to give me advice on…?” I didn’t think it was possible, but her grin grew even more. 

“What to expect once you're married!” Right…I narrowed my eyes before I sat more comfortably on my bed and gave her my attention, which she appreciated.

“Before I got married, I knew our parents were looking for someone but I didn’t care. Since I was a lawyer and I was used to being independent, I viewed this as some sort of partnership instead of a relationship. Even when I first met the guy, I was so busy trying to remember all the cases I had to look at the next day, I almost missed him asking me if we could step out for a moment. “Anna giggled behind her hand and then looked towards my window, a small smile on her face. 

“What happened?” I pulled my knees up and placed my head on them before wrapping my arms around my legs. She turned her head back to me, but I could see her gaze was elsewhere. 

“Our parents and I had arrived at his place and they were all talking about us and how we could host the wedding. What was expected of us and how the businesses would merge. It was all boring and as I mentioned before, I wasn’t even paying attention. When we had stepped outside...he apologized.” 

“Huh?” She laughed before her gaze returned to me. She let out a small smile before speaking again.

“He apologized. As soon as we left his house to his backyard, he turned towards me and said he was sorry for bringing me into this mess. His grandparents wanted to see him get married before they were able to go on a 1 year vacation. Apparently it’s tradition for the family to do something like this.” She sighed but I couldn’t help but laugh. She shook her head before smiling again. “He didn’t believe that he had to be rushed into something so big like this just so the tradition can go on, but he had no say in it. He felt especially bad that I had to be dragged into this but I at the time couldn’t help but laugh. I was so keen on thinking that we wouldn’t have any type of relationship except a strict partnership. But, at that moment, that thought flew out of my head.”

“And then?”

“We talked about each other. I had to get a better understanding of this tradition of theirs and wondered why we didn’t have a tradition like this.” I laughed at that but nodded at her to continue. “He was willing to see if there was a way that we could delay the wedding but his family wasn’t having it. Thankfully we were given a year to understand each other better and…” I leaned forward in my position.

“And?”

“And I was glad that I was able to meet him. We spent that one year talking and getting to know each other. I had even mentioned how I never imagined my future would have someone else in it. He didn’t say anything for a bit before asking me if I was willing to let him be a part of it.” I flailed a little in my seat and squealed at the scene. Anna laughed but I noticed her gaze was soft.

“And?” I was so impatient. She takes too long to answer. 

“She didn’t say much. She kept blushing and stuttering and wouldn’t look at me at all.” 

I turned my head towards the door and saw Doyoung leaning on the doorframe with his arms crossed and a small smile on his face. 

“She stuttered?!” I looked at her, whose face was beyond red.”You stuttered?!”

“He got me by surprise ok?!” I slapped my hands across my face and started laughing.

“You actually got my sister to be speechless? You deserve a reward Doyoung!” He chuckled before coming in. He patted my head before walking towards Anna, who was fuming, and sat behind her. 

“You know you never gave me an answer for that question.” He turned towards her and she turned to look at him with a huff.

“I thought me marrying you was the answer to that question.” She pouted at him, which he smiled at and pinched her cheeks. She swatted at his hands and grabbed them when she noticed them going back to pinch her again. Did they forget I was here? I blinked as he tried to pull his hands away and she kept a grip on them. 

“I won’t pinch you again.” She huffed again before shaking her head.

“Knowing you, you’ll tickle me instead.” He chuckled before keeping his hands still and she relaxed her grip but didn’t let go. I heard my phone go off and looked towards my bedside table to see my phone light up froma text. It’s Johnny…

“Hey, I was wondering...what’s your favorite stone?” I looked out the window with narrowed eyes. My favorite what?

“I don’t particularly have a stone I like...but my favorite color is blue….Does that help?” 

“That does actually! Thanks!!” Well, that was normal…

“Who was that? You look lost.” I looked up and noticed that both Anna and Doyoung were looking at me and I placed my phone down. 

“It was Johnny. He was asking me what my favorite stone was…” Why was that question so random? I heard choking and I looked up to notice Anna’s turned away from me but her shoulders were shaking. Doyoung had a fist covering his mouth, but there was a wide grin that the fist could not hide. 

“Oh Hana. My sweet, innocent, dumb little sister.” ...That was an insult right? I felt my right eye twitch before glaring at the duo.

“We should get going. The twins were asking if we could all watch a movie before we all started getting ready.” Doyoung got up, before turning towards my sister, and held his hand out. 

“I need to tell her one more thing. I’ll meet you downstairs.” He nodded and pated me on the head again before leaving. I turned my focus on Anna, who had a small smile on her face. 

“Are you ok?” She nodded, before pulling out a box from behind her. Where did that box come from? I frowned at the box before looking up at her. 

“You know, I was really worried about who Johnny was when I heard that he was the one courting you. Believe me when I say I spent a whole day trying to find anything I could use against him in a court case if he ever hurt you. Doyoung even helped in trying to find anything that happened in the business world. His record was squeaky clean.” I laughed when I noticed the frown on my sister’s lips. See sighed and shook her head before smiling again.

“He really isn’t that bad you know.”

“I know now. You seem a lot more happier. And hearing how things went yesterday, I was happy to know that he is the one your are getting married to. That is why,” She opened the box towards me and I couldn’t help but gasp. Inside the box was a necklace made out of wire. Flowers with crystals and small beads adorned the wire, making it look like an elegant choker. 

“This is..” I can’t believe it!

“It’s the necklace I wore for my wedding. I want you to wear it for yours. I figured this could be your something borrowed.” I choked up and felt tears drip down my face as I took a hold of the box. I heard a laugh before I felt arms wrap around me, my head falling onto a shoulder. “Why are you crying?”

“Thank you. You didn’t have to. Especially this necklace. He gave you this necklace. I can’t” I heard laughter again before I felt her patting my head. 

“This is my gift to you. It’s only for a little while and I felt like it would go well with your dress.” That got my attention as I pulled back and looked at her. 

“You saw my dress?” Her eyes went wide and she quickly got up from the bed and made a run for it out the door.

“Hurry up for the movie!” I blinked at her retreating figure before looking down at the box. Thank you Anna.  I wiped away the last of my tears before placing the box in my table drawer, next to the blue ring. I smiled at the two gifts before shutting the drawer and making a run for the living room. 

We ended up watching a bunch of old cartoons and having a mini dance party before we were all ushered to our rooms to get ready for the ball. It was such a blur I didnt realize it was already 5 by the time the maids had left my room and I was left staring at the mirror. My hair was pulled back into a low bun with a few tendrils framing my face. My bangs were twisted and clipped back and there was glitter sprayed all across. My make up wasn’t too much, just a natural look. The only strong point being my lips stained a dark maroon. I stood up to see the dress, which seemed to fit me perfectly. The uneven part in the front not looking awkward at all. Oh God. I sighed at the tip of my shoes peaking out from under my dress. I lifted the dress to see the black pumps with lace tying at my ankles. I’m going to break my neck if I’m not careful. There was a knock on my door and I turned to see Taeyong standing with a smile. 

“May I come in?” I nodded and tried to turn and find my way back to the chair, only to twist my ankle. I could feel myself flailing but I felt a grip on my arm before I could faceplant to the floor. Taeyong calmly led me towards the chair while I tried to calm my face down.  “Did you mention to Johnny that you are in need of bubble wrap 24/7?”

“I might have mentioned it.” I flinched but he laughed instead. He sat me down before kneeling to the floor. 

“Let me see your feet.” I showed my heel clad feet, and he was looking around the lacing. “What did he say?”

“He said he owns hospitals and I said that we were a perfect match.” He laughed at that before stepping back and sitting on my bed across from me. 

“Today is the day. Are you ready?” I sighed and placed my hands in my lap and started wringing my fingers, a nervous tick that I  developed over the years. 

“Yes and no. I like him, Taeyong. He has been nothing but good to me, which puts a lot of my worries at ease…” 

“But?” I sighed and looked up at him.

“But, there is a reason why we never talked before this. I don’t know anyone that is coming today, except for our family and possibly his three friends. Oh yeah, one of his friends wanted to talk to you by the way.” He raised his eyebrow but I shrugged. “All...most of those people act so entitled. As if the money they have gave them the right to treat others lowly. You don’t act like them, shunned. You don’t talk like them, shunned. It makes me so angry, but what can I say? And Johnny…” I heaved a sigh and looked down at my hands again. “Johnny is one of the top people they all worship. He is someone that they all look upto and want to be friends with. They don’t like me because I don’t talk to them, nor do I want to. Can you imagine the commotion that is bound to come from this marriage?” Taeyong stayed silent and I tried to calm my breathing down. 

“Have you talked to him about this?”

“I mentioned it vaguely, but he doesn’t seem to care about what anyone else thinks. He wants to be someone I can rely on and not think about as the others.” It went quiet again before I heard a sigh. I looked up to see Taeyong rub his hand over his face before looking at me.

“I give up.”Huh? He sighed again before standing up. “I’m going to talk to him today.” I opened my mouth to protest but he held his hand up. “No, I am going to talk to him. This will be my only talk, that I promise.” I pursed my lips but nodded. He nodded too before walking over and offering his hand. “Come on. It’s time to go.”I sighed and held his hand before standing up. We walked towards the stairs and saw everyone crowded around the area. I felt my hand being squeezed and I squeezed back before taking the first steps down. 

“Oh my.” I heard a gasp and looked at my mom who was holding her hand towards with her eyes watering. “My baby’s all grown up.” Oh boy. I looked at Anna, who had a small smile on her face. We reached the bottom and after a flurry of compliments and mother fixing a few things in my hair, we moved towards the car. The drive seemed too short when we reached and I had to hold my dress up so I wouldn’t trip over it when I stepped outside. Thankfully, after a lot of begging from my side and my siblings, my mom decided not to introduce me or Johnny when we came in but only for the announcement later on. 

“Do you need a hand?” I looked to see all four standing at my side with their brows furrowed, but I shook my head. There were already a few guests that were walking into the building, but they all turned and smiled when they saw my family walk on. In fact, they all parted to let us walk through into the main hall where the ball was. Why are we this extra?  Coincidently, Johnny and his family showed up at the same time. He nodded at me with a smile and I did the same. His family came towards ours, smiles on all of their faces. 

“Why, this must be the beautiful Hana! Oh darling, I can’t wait for you to become a part of our family.” Johnny’s mother stepped forward and gave me a hug. 

“Thank you Mrs. Seo. I-”

“Oh nonsense dear, call me mother.” I tried really hard not to cringe but gave a polite smile. “Now dear let me tell you how glad I am about the wedding happening so soon. Why, when I was told about this plan to happen in three months, I couldn’t believe my ears.” She gave out a haughty laugh, a laugh that made me stand up straight and cross my arms. There was something wrong with that laugh. “Why don’t you two run along now and entertain your guests before the announcement.” She grabbed my arm and I tried really hard not to flinch when her nails dug into my skin. I did almost end up losing my footing but thank goodness Johnny was there because he was quick to steady me. 

“You ok?” He bent down to whisper but I could only nod. 

“Oh look at them getting so close.” I turned around to see his mom drag my mom away while the fathers were standing there and talking about something. My siblings were looking at me though, eyebrows scrunched together. Taeyong especially glancing at my arms with  worry. I realized I was wringing my hands and stopped immediately. I shook my head at them , which they nodded at, before turning back to Johhny. 

“Are you ok? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.” He sighed before shaking his head. 

“I’m fine.” He looked up and nodded at my siblings. “Good evening to you all.” 

“Good evening.” Sora smiled while Anna and Doyoung nodded.

“Good evening. I do need to talk to you for a few minutes though.” Taeyong nodded his head towards the doors before starting to walk, Johnny following behind him. 

“Well I hope that he gives words of encouragement. He is getting married to you after all.” I pouted before crossing my arms.

“Johnny’s going to need more than words of encouragement when it comes to me.” I heard laughter before turning around towards the others. At the moment the kids came running up to us, slightly out of breath. 

“Mommy! Have you seen uncle Johnny?” Jeno looked up at Sora.

“You said he would be here!” Jaemin poted before turning his eyes towards me.

“Your dad is talking to him. He will be back soon.” They both looked at each other and nodded before running off again. “I really need some of that energy.” I huffed and the others laughed again. The three were talking about business and other things, me zoning out not even half way through the conversation. A few moments later I felt a tap on my shoulder and I turned to see Johnny, who was smiling.  I turned my gaze on to Taeyong who was walking up to Sora and placed his arm around her waist. He must have felt my gaze because he turned to me and raised his eyebrow.                                                     

“What?” I turned my gaze back to Johnny.

“He didn’t threaten you did he?” Johnny only laughed before placing his right hand on my back and leading me towards the guest. We greeted people as they came in and walked around the huge ballroom and thanked them for coming. There was soft music in the background and a few couples were in the middle of the ballroom dancing. Everything seemed peaceful and quiet and everyone seemed to be having a good time. 

“Is your arm ok?” I looked up and saw Johnny pointing at the area his mom had grabbed me. “You keep rubbing the area.” I looked at my forearm and could see the crescent shapes of the nail indents. I nodded however, and clasped my hands in front of me. 

“Yeah I’m fine, just caught off guard that’s all.” He didn’t look convinced but seemed to have let it go. Soon his friends had stepped in, all three wearing suits with vests. I laughed as they all came towards us with their hands in their pockets and smirks on their faces. 

“You didn’t think we would let your fiance get all the glory did you?” Ten gestured towards his suit and I laughed when I heard Johnny grumble. 

“Goodness Ten. If this was your plan, what would you have done if I had picked a different colored shirt instead of white? Would all three of you come with the same colored shirts?” Mark laughed while Ten shrugged.

“Who knows? All I know is that we three would have looked awesome either way.” Jaehyun held his index finger and thumb in an “L” shape placed it under his chin. I heard Johnny grumble again which caused me to laugh. We talked more about random things, Johnny only chiming in from time to time. I didn’t realize how much time had passed before I heard a tapping on a microphone. I turned around to look at the stage and saw both my family and Johnny’s family standing in the middle of the ballroom, my mother holding the mic to her lips. From the corner of my eyes I saw Johnny nod at Ten, who passed a small box towards him and gave a small nod back. 

“Welcome all friends and family to this wonderful occasion that has brought us all together to celebrate the engagement of my daughter Hana, and the son of the Seo’s, John.” We heard clapping from all around us and a few hollering from the corners of the room.  I smiled at everyone who looked towards us and clapped, mentally trying to remember to keep the smile on my face. “We will keep this short as I know you would all like to get on with the festivities, so if John and my daughter could come up here..” I felt a hand on my back again and Johnny stood right next to me before we walked towards our families. When we reached them, Johnny’s mom took the mic and smiled at the audience. 

“Once the rings are placed, then everyone is welcome back to the festivities.” Rings? What rings? I heard Johnny clear his throat and I turned towards him. Anna walked up behind me and pressed a box into my hand before walking back to Doyoung. Why does no one ever tell me anything?!?! I felt all of the stares and I couldn’t help but turn crimson, hating the attention. 

“Hana?” I glanced up and saw Johnny holding his hand out. Right. I’m not alone. I opened the box and saw a thin simple silver band. I took the ring out before handing the box back to whoever got it and placed my left hand in his awaiting one. He gently grasped it and pushed a sapphire stoned silver ring on my ring finger. The stone not obnoxiously big, but not tiny either. There were small diamonds encircling the stone with two silver leaves coming out from both sides. It’s beautiful. I glanced up and smiled at him before holding my hand out and placed the band on his finger when he placed his hand in mine. The crowd cheered and our parents thanked everyone for coming and told them to return to the festivities. 

“Do you like it?” I glanced up at Johnny who had a look of worry on his face. “I was at the ring shop earlier when I had texted you.” My eyes went wide and then realized why Anna and Doyoung were laughing at me. They could have said something. Then again, I didn’t realize we had a ring for him either. 

“No I love it. Thank you.”

“Are you sure? I can get something else.” I laughed and shook my head.

“Oh no this is fine. Thank you Johnny, really.” I smiled up at him, which he returned with a full out grin after a few seconds. Dammit it’s that smile. I choked but looked away, feeling the heat rise towards my cheeks. 

“Well you guys are now one step closer to getting married. Soon we’ll be the bachelors, right guys.” I looked up and saw Ten wiping a fake tear while Mark and Jaehyun sported a sad face while clutching their chest where their heart was.

“If your so sad about being a bachelor then get married already.” Johnny crossed his arms with a scowl and I couldn’t help but laugh again. These four will be the reason I die I know it!