Chapter 15: At Least There’s A Dress

                Every muscle ached. They hurt in a good way, in a way that let Bongcha know she was getting stronger. However, that didn’t stop her from whining softly under her breath as she waited for her fiancé in the small park a few blocks away from her home. The plot of land had been bought up by her family and then turned into a playground as an act of charity. Though children usually preferred to go to the larger playground a mile and a half up north, Bongcha liked the small play area.

                She swung her legs back and forth, gently moving the swing she was sitting on. She could hear Seungri approaching from behind but still let out a peel of laughter when he pushed her on the swing. He got out of the way and waited for her to still before asking, “So why did we need to meet up today?”

                “You trust me right?” Bongcha probed instead of answering immediately.

                “Of course,” was his immediate answer, “Why?” His dark brown eyes stared her down in a way similar to his father. She would never mention that to him though; he hated the thought that he could be anything like the old man.

                “Because I’m going to tell you something that you won’t like to hear,” she admitted. Seungri’s face changed from curious to something in between resigned and worried. He sat down on the other swing and waited for Bongcha to continue. “It’s Haejung… I met with your father yesterday and he made me listen to her proposition him to have you marry her instead-”

                “What?” he interrupted.

                “Haejung wants to marry you instead of me,” she said, somehow managing to keep eye contact with him. She knew that if she looked away first, she would lose whatever it is this was.

                “You’re lying,” he accused, “I know you don’t like her but you don’t have to-”

                “Ask your father then!” It was Bongcha’s turn to interrupt. Her grip tightened on the iron chain holding her seat up in the air. She shook her head before standing up. “Why would I lie about something like this? Even if I didn’t like her, I would never do something to hurt you.”

                He was silent. His jaw was set in a harsh, stubborn line. He still didn’t believe her one hundred percent. “Why would she do something like this then?”

                “Because you’re freakishly attractive, intelligent, and kind-hearted under all of that ego and cocky attitude,” Bongcha sighed as she took a step away from him. She twisted her ring around her finger before shoving her hands in her pockets, “You know what? Forget it. Don’t ask your father; you’d end up arguing anyways. Talk to her. Talk to Haejung instead.”

                He didn’t reply and she didn’t wait for him to. Instead, she walked back towards the car waiting for her and gave the driver directions to Jiyong’s apartment. She ignored the burning pain in her calves as she walked up the few flights of stairs till she reached his room number. She rapped on the door and waited for him to answer.

               It didn’t take long for the door to open and, as soon as their eyes met, he stepped back to allow her to come inside. Without a word, she walked into the living room and planted herself on his couch. He went into the kitchen and the coffee pot before joining her on the couch. “So,” he began, “What happened?”

                “I don’t think he believe me,” she paused, “Or maybe, he didn’t want to. I don’t know. Either way, I’m pissed off and a little bit hurt.”

                “A little bit?”

                “A lot a bit,” she mumbled as she hugged a pillow to her chest. She puffed out her cheeks before blowing the air out. She did this a few times before settling down enough to continue, “At least we got our first big wedding fight over now I guess.”

                “Come on,” Jiyong said as he stood, “Instead of comforting you, I’m going to show you something that’ll make you feel better.” She followed him but brought the pillow along with her as they walked down the hall towards his studio room. He paused before opening the door to smile at her, “Say hello to your new wedding dress.”

                When the door opened, Bongcha dropped the pillow and let out a gasp of surprise. Her dress was draped upon a mannequin but it was not the dress she remembered. The bodice had been altered to hug her curves a little more in order to compensate with the massive beading he had done to cover up the paint splatters. The skirt had also been changed to a mermaid style instead of the A-Line she had originally. The underskirt now used as the main skirt while the fluff was now confined to the base of the skirt to flush out the mermaid tail. It was breathtaking to look at but a little nerve-wrecking to wear.

                “Oh, Oppa, it’s beautiful,” she gushed, “But… do you really think that I can pull that off?”

                “Baby girl,” he ruffled her hair, “you don’t need to worry about that, but, here, go try it on.” She nodded and immediately shut the door in his face. When she pulled one the dress, it fit like a glove. Well, he had made it for her and her body. She zipped it up as best as she could before turning to look at herself in the mirror. She covered and laughed. She really did look beautiful.

                There was a knock on the door, “Can I come in?”

                “Y-Yeah, of course,” she replied. He entered and grinned when he saw her expression. He walked up behind her and finished zipping the dress up before taking a step back to allow her to continue examining the beautiful woman he had always seen.

                “I told you you’d look amazing,” Jiyong bragged.

                “Shut up, you’re ruining the moment,” Bongcha snorted before turning to him. She tried to thank him and to figure out how to put in to words the way she was feeling. She couldn’t quite figure out how to do that so, instead, she wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug. “Oppa, you really are the best.”

                “No, baby girl, you are,” you murmured before letting her go, “You are the best and don’t you ever forget it.” Her cheeks flushed a light pink color at the compliment, causing Jiyong to tweak her nose. She giggled before turning back to the mirror and sighing.

                “I guess I should take this thing off, huh?”

                “Probably.”

                “And I guess I should probably call him, huh?”

                “Definitely,” he ruffled her hair one more time before turning towards the door, “I’ll be waiting in the living room with a cup of coffee when you finish.” He closed the door gently behind him and she somehow managed to take the dress off once he had left. She put it back on the mannequin before throwing on the clothes she had been wearing before.

                Her phone felt heavy in her hand as she stared at Seungri’s number. She didn’t want to call him for fear that he’d still be upset. She wanted to call him to let him know that she wasn’t upset. Nothing with Seungri was ever easy.

                Finally, she pressed the number and held it up to her ear as she waited for him to pick up the phone. It rang and it rang. It rang and it rang. Then, she went to voicemail. She didn’t leave a message. She tried again.

                It rang and it rang.

                It rang and it rang.

                “Hello, this is the phone of Lee Seunghyun. Obviously, I’m not here to pick up the phone so leave a brief message with your number. I’ll try to get back to you soon.” She sighed but clicked end before the beep went off. She’d try and call him back later, but now there was a freshly brewed cup of coffee, heavily diluted with creamer, that had her name on it.

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It's coming out really well now! Wow! I'll update soon again I think~