Dec 8, 2013

"Ahbuji."

Mr. Kim who was standing near the window of the living room turned around to see his son standing behind him, looking gloomy. "What are you doing out here? I thought Seul-ki has just gone up."

"She did..." Sunggyu said, and Mr. Kim could tell that he didn't want to expand further on what might have happened between them, so he only let out a sigh and walked towards the sofa, and Sunggyu watched him sat down before he joined his father.

"Did you have a fight?"

"I'd rather have a fight than having her being like this..."

"Is she still upset?" Sunggyu nodded and Mr. Kim drew in a deep breath. "I don't blame you. It's my fault for-"

"No, it's partially my fault." His son said, quickly. "I've been doing things that make Seul-ki feels insecure in our marriage but having said what I said earlier... Ahbuji, please do explain this to me. I still don't understand why you wanted me to marry Seul-ki so much."

Mr. Kim sighed again and eyed his son for a moment before he told Sunggyu of how he met Seul-ki when she was little, and Sunggyu listened attentively, with his face brooding most of the time but when he heard how Seul-ki was asking witty questions even as a child, he smiled to himself.

"She asked you whether you were a kidnapper?"

"Yes. I laughed hard at that."

"I remember she asked whether I was gay the first time I went out with her." Sunggyu said, snorting a bit. "And I guess it's really a habit of her to relay a whole drama series to people." He added, smiling weakly.

'Yes... It was her routine with her mother anyway." His father said, and Sunggyu was reminded of Seul-ki's story when she was little and it made him silent for a while.

"I thought she was just a typical high school girl, notorious and all but I figured then that she's really sensitive... But one who does not know her childhood would never thought she had gone through all those... " He paused and clenched his jaw. "Ahbuji... Did you make me marry her because you felt sorry for her?"

Mr. Kim looked at his son carefully. "Did you marry her because you feel sorry for her then?"

Sunggyu was silent as his gaze stayed on his father's eyes for a moment before it dropped a little. His fingers were clasped together with his thumbs kissing one another as he fell into a deep thought. "I married her because I thought... That she wasn't so bad and she cooks well. But honestly, even though I was forced to marry her... I wasn't whole-heartedly rejecting her. I thought that... even if I get married to her, I can find ways for us to be happy. That was what I thought. I thought it is good to be like you and eomonim... to find love after marriage... I know it's a gamble but I don't know... I guess because it's Seul-ki."

"Because it's Seul-ki." His father repeated, somehow knowing what his son meant.

"Yes, because she's Seul-ki..."

"Now that you have your answer, what would you do now? Will you leave her?"

Sunggyu looked a little miserable at the question and he stopped fiddling his fingers and heaved a sigh. "How did you and eommonim find love, ahbuji?"

Mr. Kim smiled meaningfully as he looked up the ceiling, remembering something. "Things were really awkward between me and your mother just after we got married. We are like strangers living under one roof, not even exchanging words at time but... your halmeoni..."

"Halmeoni?"

"Um... I guess she did something crazy enough." Mr. Kim said, shaking his head.

"What happened?"

"Well..." Mr. Kim turned a little red and scratched his cheek and Sunggyu who didn't understand what he was trying to explain looked at him strangely. "You could say that there were events that made me realised how much I care for your mother and from that, I felt the need to protect her."

"Is the need to protect the same as love?"

"To love is to protect and to protect is only essential when we love someone."

"I see..." Sunggyu said to himself, looking thoughtful. "Were you trying to protect Seul-ki when she was little because you have affection for her?"

 "As my own daughter, yes. I even tried to adopt her, you see."

"Adopt her!"

"Yes."

"I'm glad you didn't then." Sunggyu said, sniffing, feeling a bit shy. "Or else I would never get the chance to marry her..." Mr. Kim laughed a little and Sunggyu felt his face burning and cleared his throat. "I want to protect her as well... The first time I saw the way she walked away from me from that cafe after discussing on plans on how to fail the marriage... I felt the need, the want... to protect her... It's a bit strange but that is what I feel... It was even before you lied to me about Halmeoni being sick..."

"It isn't strange at all. Feelings come at times you would never expect them to come."

Sunggyu smiled and looked at his father. "Maybe we need more time for us to develop mutual feelings, but no... I am not leaving her. I want to keep on trying."

"Do tell that to Seul-ki." Mr. Kim said and Sunggyu nodded as he got up and left for his room after saying good night to his father. He opened and closed the door slowly and got on the bed. He sat up and watched Seul-ki's small back and bit his lips to figure out what to do then. After a few minutes of contemplating, he finally lied down, facing her back, wanting so much to touch her but thinking about how she must still be hurting, he refrained himself and finally went to sleep.

When he woke up the next morning, Seul-ki was nowhere to be seen, and it made him jumped a little. With his eyes barely open, he fled his room and went downstairs and looked for her and Seul-ki who was in the kitchen looked a bit shocked to see him.

"Mor-Morning." He croaked, seeing her wearing an apron with her hair tied back as usual.

"Good morning, Sunggyu-sshi." She replied, timidly.

"Morning." His mother said, looking up from her cutting work. "Why didn't you wash your face before coming down?"

"I thought..."

"You thought what?" His mother provoked.

"Nothing." Sunggyu said, eyeing Seul-ki who was silent as she stirred something on the kitchen. "What are you cooking?"

"Go and wash your face, Sunggyu. And do hurry up since you will be travelling again today."

"Eh? What does that mean?"

"Halmeoni is asking you to bring Seul-ki to her today."

"But why?" Sunggyu asked, loudly.

"She wants to see her granddaughter-in-law of course."

"Ugh." Sunggyu groaned and ruffled his hair. "Do we really have to go?"

"Yes. You know that she doesn't tolerate any disobedience. Besides, it's Seul-ki she wants to meet the most, not you."

"But Seul-ki is mine, not hers!" Sunggyu said, mindlessly and Seul-ki stopped her hand and took a peek to look at him and his ears turned red immediately. "I mean... Seul-ki is... AHHH! We! Will just! Go then! Yes! I better go and! Get ready..." He mumbled and ran upstairs again; feeling extremely embarrassed when he thought about how Seul-ki was looking at him but somehow his heart was in relief, seeing her looking at him like that, and he knew he probably stood a chance, remembering her rosy cheeks.

Upon arriving at the countryside, after driving awkwardly with Seul-ki being silent again for another hour, Sunggyu thought he had enough when he was sitting on his feet before his Halmeoni. Halmeoni kept on looking at Seul-ki for a moment, nodding her head and for a second, Sunggyu thought that they were going to spend the whole day just being stared at. Seul-ki was eyeing the whole room, which was decorated traditionally. In fact, they were at the hanok house where they got married and everything was fascinating her.

"How are things going at home?" She asked, addressing Sunggyu after watching Seul-ki looking around with a bit agape.

"Well... Things are okay." He muttered, looking up the ceiling.

"Kim Sunggyu, look at me when you speak!"

"Yes, Halmeoni." He said, sulking a bit and Seul-ki stopped gawking and looked at Halmeoni as well.

"Aish, look at this kid." Halmeoni began, making a face. "And look at your hair! What kind of man these days keep such long hair! You might as well wear your hair in a knot!"

"I'm sorry." Sunggyu said, bowing a little. "I'll go get it cut later..."

"Go get it cut? What's the use of having your wife here? Surely she can cut it for you!"

Seul-ki's back straightened up immediately and she looked panicky as she looked at Sunggyu and then at Halmeoni. "But I do not know how..."

"Then you should learn! A good wife will always cut her husband's hair for him."

"Halmeoni, I can just go to the salon..."

"But it's a waste! Your hair isn't that very long but they will still charge you at the same price!"

"But Halmeoni!"

"No buts!" She said, firmly. "Seul-ki."

"Y-Yes?"

"I believe you can cut your husband's hair for him." Her voice wasn't hostile but it made Seul-ki a little panicky. She shrank a little and looked down at Halmeoni's blue hanbok skirt, not knowing what was actually going on.

"Yes..."

"Well, then. Kim Sunggyu, when are you going to give me a great grandchild?"

Both Sunggyu and Seul-ki just froze and were quiet as a stone for more than few seconds before Sunggyu ruffled his hair in embarrassment.

"Don't tell me you haven't even touched her!" Halmeoni cried and looked at the young couple in disbelieved. "Are you going to wait until I've turned into ashes before you get a child?"

"Halmeoni...! Don't say such things... I... Seul-ki and I... we are not ready to have children." Sunggyu explained, looking at Seul-ki whose face is red. "And Seul-ki is still too young."

"I had your father at the age of 17. Seul-ki is almost 20."

"That was in the older times, Halmeoni..."

"Still! Kim Sunggyu, have you even touched her?" Sunggyu's face turned red and he squeezed his eyes and bit his bottom lip and looking at Seul-ki who made a confused but still embarrassed face, he shook his head. "Aigoo, my neck!" Halmeoni cried, holding the back of her neck and whimpered.

"Halmeoni, are you okay?" Seul-ki asked, trying to lurch at her.

"I'm okay. I'm okay," She replied and winced and then she sighed. "Go and get ready first before dinner." Halmeoni said but neither of them budged before Halmeoni yelled at them and they scrambled up to their feet and went towards their room but once they were there, some middle-aged ladies whom Seul-ki recognized as the ones who helped her during her wedding appeared before them.

"We will take care of your wife from now on." One of them said, and dumbstruck, Sunggyu could only watch as his wife was being dragged away by the women. Seul-ki managed to turn over her shoulder to look at Sunggyu, rather miserably but none of them were in the power to argue because they obviously knew that everything was under Halmeoni's order.

He sat down, sulking to himself in his room and spent the time just rolling his eyes before he cleaned himself up. He put on a fresh change of clothes and waited for Seul-ki but she never appeared for the next one hour and worried, he went out of his room just to find a helper was outside the room.

"Madam Kim asked for your presence in the dinner hall." He bowed politely and Sunggyu thought that he was in some kind of historical drama when he saw him wearing a hanbok. The helper, in his 50s, motioned him to walk towards the hall and Sunggyu had no choice but to obey him. Once he was there though, he found out that one else was there, not even his halmeoni.

"Where's Seul-ki?" He asked, impatiently.

"She'll be arriving soon." The helper said and Sunggyu tilted his head and sat down on the floor, feeling hungry. "You can drink some soup first."

"Oh, really?" He asked gladly, and began on the soup, ignoring the helper who kept on looking at him when he started on the other solid food. When he has finished eating, he tapped on the table and kept on looking at the door. He was obviously getting tired of waiting that he lied down on his side, with his hand supporting his cheek. When he got tired, he asked the helper again the whereabouts of Seul-ki but at that time, the door was opened and he was expecting Seul-ki but only the lady from before appeared. He frowned.

"Where's Seul-ki?"

"You'll meet her soon." The lady said. "If you come this way."

Sunggyu felt his stomach twisting a bit as he followed the lady out of the room and they were all escorting him to the entrance of the house, and he looked dazed when he saw a van parked outside it. They opened the door for him and he was just standing there and laughed nervously.

"Where are we going?"

"To