Epilogue

(PS: The epilogue is written entirely in Choi Soowon's POV)

Hello guys! Do you still remember me?

Well, actually, you should have remember me really well if you already reached this chapter, but if you don’t—which is a regret, let me introduce myself. 

My name is Choi Soowon, but my appa called me Won for short, and my omma called me Soo-ya for short. I am the only son of Choi Seunghyun and Choi Yoona and now I will tell you the story of my life in a few pages.

Don’t complain to me about the length guys, I’ll gladly write you a book about it if I’m allowed. But sadly, I wasn’t and the author only allows me to write this much.

Maybe you still remember how my early life was. My biological mother—Park Bom—passed away after she gave birth to me. I don’t remember her at all and I don’t really have something to tell you about her. It’s not like I don’t love her—I really do—but I spent all of my life without her. The last day she breathes in this earth was the first day I breathes in this world.

Well, don’t be sad. I’ll tell you about my dad, my mom, and my sisters instead. So… be prepared to read blabbers and occasional complaints about them guys.

I have really really amazing parents! My dad maybe imperfect since he was paralyzed 18 years ago, but he is always there with us—especially with mom. He’s the best dad anyone could ask for and I’m really really proud of him.

He’s funny—mom sometimes would call him ‘bingu’ or ‘tabi’ or ‘stupid’ or ‘pig’ when she was mad at dad; he’s cool—once I attended his lecture about motivation and he managed to impress me and practically all audiences at the hall; he’s handsome—it may sounds weird coming from my mouth, but I often heard his lecture participants, even my friends’ moms called my dad ‘handsome’ and mom also said that I inherit his handsome looks; and he’s a certified professional sleepyhead and narcissistic—don’t get me wrong, everybody. It’s not fair if I only tell you good things about my dad, right?

But here’s his amazing quality: he’s the only dad who advise his only son to try ‘things-you-won't-tell-your-parents’—such as smoking cigar and even —in Korea. He even asked me to tell him if I already tried it!!!

Silly right? He’s that kind of dad for me. But for my sisters—Choi Dana and Choi Ahreum, he’s a certified loving and caring daughter’s fool. When we were kids, he talked to them in alien language, play with them past their bedtime, sneak ice cream and cookies for them (and for me too), and buy them whatever they want. Mom would sometimes nag to him for spoiling ‘his princesses’ too much.  Meanwhile dad would shrug his shoulder and smiled innocently to mom. At this, she would sigh, shook her head, but did nothing but smile after that.

Now, when they’re at the most vulnerable age of dating, my dad is the most protective father for Dana and Ahreum. He is so curious about my sisters’ dating life and any boys who hang out with them—more than my mom!!! At this rate, I can bet my whole be@rbricks collection that my sisters will face hard times when they introduce their future boyfriends to my dad.

Well, for my mom, she’s a kind, playful, pretty, but fussy and strict mom. I may only know her since I was 7—to be precise, when I and dad went to Gangneung for a holiday—but she was so kind from the beginning. I like her from our first meeting—she really knew how to approach a kid! Even when dad married mom when I was 8, it wasn’t weird to call her ‘mom’ at the first time. Because… it just clicked. It felt like dad finally found his missing puzzle to complete his life—which formed in a woman I call mom for the rest of my life.

Like dad who is ‘unique’ at times, my mom is kinda like that too. Sometimes, she pulls weirdest and silliest prank on daddy, I, Dana or Ahreum—perhaps she forgets that she’s in her 40s. I don’t mind her pranks, though—as long as I am not her victim.

Now you guys have heard about my mom and dad, right? It will only be fair if I tell you about my sisters too, Choi Dana, 14, and Choi Ahreum, 9. Since I was 10, I’ve known that Dana is not my biological sister, and Ahreum is my half-sister. Dad and mom explained it all to me. They said that I’m a big boy who should know the family line. They also told me to love them regardless being my step sister or my half sister.

Well… despite my parents’ saying….

Remember this: I love them, okay? Dana and Ahreum are pretty—especially Ahreum who had inherit both mom and dad’s gorgeous gene—BUT they are pain in the a$$! Dana is so fussy and she complains too much. She constantly bothers me to introduce her to my friends! While Ahreum is more tolerable than Dana, she’s quieter and more reserved—maybe because she’s still in elementary school, but she often asks me the most random and weirdest things! She also doesn’t know about timing, for God’s sake! There was one time when I took a girl to a date and I met Ahreum and mom at the mall. Mom politely greeted her and talked briefly with her, while Ahreum…… She told my date that my previous date (please note this: DATE, not a GIRLFRIEND) is prettier than her!

God! That wrecked the date, okay?

Before I blabber too much about them—and embarrassed myself even more, let’s move on to the next topic! The next topic is about Uncle Yunho and my grandparents.

Perhaps you’ve known that Uncle Yunho is mom’s ex-husband (who supposed to be dead in Africa years ago) but despite that, mom managed to maintain a good friendship with him. He and his family currently live in Singapore for Uncle Yunho’s job and they visit us once or twice a year with so many gifts! Well, regardless the weird situation—who doesn’t think ex-spouses who parted ways because another ‘person’ could reconcile and have good friendship with their new spouses weird?—I can say that the relationship we have now is the best condition anyone—included in this term are mom, dad, Uncle Yunho and Uncle Yunho’s wife—could ask for. 

As for my grandparents—you’ve read dad’s story about them right?—I gladly tell you that dad and Auntie Hyeyoon reconciled with grandpa a few years after my birth. Due to grandma’s efforts—she mediated, bridging, and practically did everything to fix the broken relationship between her children with her husband—peace had came for our big family! Now, Auntie Hyeyoon and her family had moved back to Seoul and once every 3 month, our family will gather at grandpa and grandma’s place for lunch or dinner—and if you’re wondering, there is no sarcasm or hateful remarks anymore. It has been years since they reconciled, remember?

I think I had told you enough about my family, but I know that I haven’t told you about myself properly. My mistake, I admit. But like the saying, ‘save the best for the last’ right?

That’s exactly what I’m doing right now.

Choi Soowon, 17 years old, currently a sophomore in Hansung Science High School, have everything boys around my age asked for but a girlfriend.

Maybe questions like ‘WHAT? He doesn’t have a girlfriend with that handsome face?’ popped in your mind. Yeah yeah, I get it. It’s not only you who asked that, guys. My family and my friends also asked that question to me numerous time—to the point I already have an automatic answer to that question (which is, “I’m too busy” or “I’m enjoying my life without a girlfriend, why I should have one?”).

But… despite my parents’ blessing and support for me to find a girlfriend, I never dated anyone seriously for 17 years. Yeah, I did take girls out in a date—to a mall, to cinema, to theme park, or just stroll around the neighborhood—but they're not my girlfriend. We just wanted to have fun together and there were no confessions at all, so I never went steady with them.

If you're wondering (and your imagination started running to a weird direction), I’m not a playboy or womanizer who play around with girls—I never ‘hang around’ with two girls at the same time nor left them suddenly without a notice. It’s also not because my different ual orientation or weird preference for a girl, but… I want to go steady with a girl once and for all.

I want her to be my first and my last girlfriend.

I want her to be my best friend, mother of my children, and lifetime partner.

I want her to be the true love of my life. Just like my father and my mother who found their true love in each other.

Does it sound girly? Yes, it does. But you can’t help to fantasize and to dream like that if you have Choi Seunghyun and Choi Yoona as your parents. My parents are seriously cheesy, I tell you! But at the same time, they’re so loving with each other.

Yes, they are really far from perfect—with dad’s disabilities and mom’s introvert personality—but they accept each others’ flaws. They even embrace those flaws in order to turn it into goods.

They believe and support each other so well. They also strongly believe that they can pass everything through as long as they are together.

Of course, bickers, arguments, misunderstandings are unavoidable in any marriage—theirs are just as bad as others—but they managed to talk those out and find solution. Their stupid quarrel or misunderstanding lasted 2 days, maximum. After those 2 days, I, Dana and Ahreum would find the loving couple back.

Due to those unstoppable cheesiness and sweetness from my parents, it inevitably changes my perspective of relationship and marriage. I bet it wasn’t only me; they also changed Dana’s and Ahreum’s perspective too. They unconsciously write ‘I want to have a relationship like my parents, period’ in our innocent brains since we were kids.

What my parents (unconsciously) do isn’t bad, but now can you imagine with that kind dream, how can I possibly find a steady girlfriend for myself?

xxx

3 years later.

Choi Household.

It was a nice, bright Saturday afternoon when I was smoking in the backyard with dad. Yeah, ever since I turned 19, I smoke for relieving stress (sometimes with dad—who hasn’t quit smoking at 50 years old).

We barely talked when smoking together—both of us busy with our cigarette and mind, yet I found this moment as my bonding moment with dad. There were no cheerful chit-chat from Dana or Ahreum, and obviously there was no nag from mom.me and dad.   It was only me, dad and our cigarettes (and sometimes our small talk or quite chit chat).

But today was an exception.

I was dying to ask dad a something.

“Hey dad,” I called as I puff my smoke. I was smoking my 2nd cigarette while dad was smoking on his 3rd. Dad didn’t turn his head to me, but I knew he steal a glance.

“Yeah?”

“Can I ask you something?”

“Of course, son.” He said as he exhaled the smoke. I saw his closely and noticed his calmness and disinterest—that made me unsure and immediately rethought to ask him this ‘sacred’ question.

But before I could speak a word, dad noticed my hesitation. “You know that you can ask me anything and anytime, right?”

I nodded as I smoked my cigar deeply and exhaled it slowly before asking my question. Man, this question is hard to ask!

“How did you find someone like mom?” Honestly, I was really shy to ask this. But my curiosity beat my shyness—I was dying to ask this question since I met ‘this girl’ six months ago. She’s so special. “How did you know that she’s the one for you?”

“What happened to you Won-ah? Are you sick? Or are you in love?” Dad giggled at the question but kept smoking. I didn’t respond to his question because it was stupid. He would tease