Chapter 23

 

A Sky Full of Stars

Cause you're a sky, cause you're a sky full of stars
I'm gonna give you my heart
'Cause you're a sky, cause you're a sky full of stars
'Cause you light up the path

And I don't care, go on and tear me apart
And I don't care if you do
'Cause in a sky, cause in a sky full of stars
I think I see you
I think I see you

…Because you're a sky, you're a sky full of stars
Such a heavenly view
You're such a heavenly view

-Coldplay; Ghost Stories

 

There might be a moment in your life when everything was going perfect for you, like driving a smooth long road where you are happy, everything is within your reach and nothing could seem to ruin your fine speed until you turn into that one corner and suddenly… collide in to an eight wheeler truck.

 

I think that moment just came to me.

 

I, Kwon Jiyong, 30 years of age, had just crashed.

But then before I press play on this moment I currently find myself in, I think this is the best time to rewind to the time where all this started, that time when I first stepped in to the wide halls of the Lee Mansion. 

 

It was that time when my six year old self looked up at the marvelous architecture and grand furniture that made my jaw drop.  I remember my father telling me to behave and to be careful not to knock down any of Mrs. Lee’s expensive jars.  Being raised in a humble family I couldn’t help but feel a desire to get even just a taste of this kind of life. 

 

My curiosity in exploring the massive rooms upstairs was just starting to grow but then my  musings abruptly cut short when my father leads me in to what seems as the servant’s quarters.  I tear my eyes off the huge staircase leading to the upper rooms, possibly the rooms of the owners of the mansion.  I silently watched as my father prepares himself for the day, he wears his overcoat and fixes his tie in front of a mirror while seeming to memorize a long list of schedules.

 

I remembered asking him if he could teach me how to knot a necktie and he only smiled and gave a small pat on my head.

 

“Stay here Jiyong, there are books in here and some small toy cars you can play with.  The bathroom is just right there if you need it.  Your omma is also busy working in the kitchen so don’t ever go out of this room until I come back, okay?” he tells me, dropping on one knee to level my height and show me how clear his orders are.

 

“Yes, appa,” I answer him, disappointed that I couldn’t explore this huge house.  I could tell that my father wanted to give me more reminders but then a knock at the door stops him from doing so.  A head peeks in from outside, a woman probably in her mid-twenties hurriedly tells my father that Mr. Lee is looking for him.  She continues on saying stuff that I couldn’t yet understand that time.  Her eyes, however finally notice me behind my father after a minute and that’s when a smile appears on her lips.

 

“Is this your son, butler Kwon?” she says, entering and taking a few steps closer to me.

 

“Ah yes, he’s name is Jiyong.  He just turned six this year,” my father says proudly as the lady kneels down to talk to me.  A little push from my father reminds me of my manners as I bow down in respect.  She smiles even more, obviously amused at me.

 

“Hello Jiyong, I’m your noona Hye Mi.  I work with your appa and omma,” she says, lightly patting my cheeks with the palm of her hands.

 

“He’s such a handsome child.  He could be a Hallyu star when he grows up!” she says in delight as my father chuckles at the idea. 

 

“Of course, his mother is very pretty.  Hallyu star?  He still has so many years to think about it,” he fondly says, ruffling my hair in the process.  They both give a good laugh before the comical noona Hye Mi suddenly freezes and abruptly stands up.  She slaps her forehead with her palm several times that I almost laughed out loud.

 

“Omo! I almost forgot! Mr. Lee is looking for you, butler Kwon.  He seems a bit…” she trails off before heavily sighing.  My father, on the other hand only smiles and shakes his head to assure her that everything is alright.

 

“He has his moments.  You’ll get used to it soon.  Just bear it for now.  The guy is having problems with his wife.  Trouble in paradise,” this time it’s my father who sighs heavily before adjusting his suit and taking his leave but not without giving me knowing look.

 

And there I was, alone in the room.

 

It was easy for the first three hours.  I practiced reading just like my mother taught me but that was giving me a headache after a while so I switched to playing but then playing is no good when you are alone. 

 

When I decided to take a peek outside the door, hoping to see my father or my mother, the innocent thought turned in to a decision to play around just outside the hallway where it is easier to glide my toy cars in to a long straight line. 

 

I told myself that it was just for a couple of minutes then I’d head back in.  No danger.  No harm done.

 

Little did I know that was the turning point in my life.  

 

Where it all began…

 

I never intended to push my car too far nor did I not intend to find myself in the company of another man.   He seemed like another butler only that his suit seemed darker, much more expensive than that of my father’s.  His wavy hair fell down to his eyes as he sat down looking glumly on the ground, never had I seen such contrast to the happy, beautiful view of the garden just outside and the sadness this man covers himself in.  But then what catches my attention is the bowl full of chocolate-chip cookies right next to him.  I’ve never had that much cookies in one sitting.  My mother bakes some for me but still it wasn’t as plenty as the one the sad looking mister has.

 

My eyes lower down to his shoes where my toy car accidentally bumped in to.  A sudden nervousness grows inside of me as I cautiously take a few steps towards him but then my feet halts abruptly when the sad man lifts his head up a bit to look at me.  His eyes seemed tired and the dark circles forming under it screamed lack of sleep.  He seemed cold and I was almost sure that he’d growl and scold me for wandering about.

 

Being reminded of my manners at the very last second, I made an awkward bow before shyly mumbling a soft polite greeting.

 

“Annyeonghaseyo,”

 

My eyes dart once more to my toy car which he picks up, examining it before stretching his arms out to hand it to me.  I take it with both my hands before hugging it close to my chest.  It is after all my favorite toy, given by my parents when I turned six two weeks ago.  It is one of the very few toys I had.

 

I did want to run away after I took back my toy but then surprisingly that didn’t happen.

 

“Hey,” the sad guy suddenly speaks up, looking my way while holding up a cookie, an offer I cannot resist.  He must have noticed how I just couldn’t keep my eyes off the bowl of cookies next to him.

 

In a minute, I found myself sitting next to him as we ate the cookies in silence.  To be honest, I’ve never met an adult who loved to eat cookies.  The cookies were really delicious by the way.  It tastes similar to the ones my mother bakes.  I was finishing one cookie after another but I couldn’t care less.  The sad guy seemed to have the same exact goal in mind.

 

“What’s your name, cookie boy?” he suddenly asks.  His tone as serious as the cold rocks I saw at the garden.

 

“Jiyong.  What’s your name?” I asked back as his lips lightly curve in to an amused smile. 

 

“Han Gun.  You love cookies so much, huh?” He says as I nod eagerly, grinning before taking another cookie.  I probably have chocolate smudges all over my lips but then at that time I never really notice nor bothered me.

 

“Are you eating cookies because you’re sad?” I ask and by the look on his face he didn’t seem to expect the question but I failed to notice it that time. 

 

“Yes,” came his rather soft reply and when I thought that he had nothing more to say he spoke again.

 

“It reminds me of my wife.  We met through cookies.  I was running and I bumped in to her… and her newly bought cookies.  The look on her face was priceless,” he chuckled lightly, shaking his head at the thought, his eyes looking far away like the memory that seemed so distant became near.

 

“You miss her?” I ask again wondering if that was the reason why he was sad.  He looks at me somberly.

 

“Yes,”

 

“Don’t you live together?” I ask relentlessly, unable yet to decipher the sensitivity or gravity of a personal topic.  However, it only managed to make him smile.

 

“We do,”

 

“Then how can you miss her when you live together?” he tilts his head, contemplating on the right answer.

 

“Because… even though two people are physically close sometimes, their hearts drift far apart, and then comes a point where you hope…wish, pray that in the end you’ll find the path back home, back to each other,”

 

My brows furrow with the words I never understood that time so I remain silent for some time until a light bulb pops in my mind.

 

“Hug her, ahjusshi!” I say excitedly as he looks at me confused at my suddenness.  I just wasn’t sure whether it was because of my suggestion or with the way I called him.  More than twenty years later I’d say that it’s probably the latter.

 

“Hug her?” he repeats and I nod before taking another cookie.

 

“My omma says that the heart is located right inside our chest and… since ahjusshi’s heart is far from his wife’s heart then you can bring it closer by hugging!  That way ahjusshi’s heart will not be lonely anymore.” I say, proud of my idea.

 

He looks at me for a couple of seconds before a small smile finally starts to creep on his lips followed by a hearty laughter that echoed through the walls of the huge house.  This even got me more satisfied by my own idea as he nods a couple of times in acknowledgement.  He then pats my head, now looking less pathetic than earlier.

 

“You’re right, Jiyong… maybe I should do just that,” he finally tells me.

 

“You seem to know a lot about these things.  Do you have a girlfriend?” he asked teasingly and I shake my head so many times in complete rejection.

 

“I’m still too young ahjusshi,” I say as he chuckles before suddenly facing me.

 

“Jiyong-ah, what do you want to be when you grow up?”    

 

The question comes unexpectedly yet I already had an answer in mind.  It was  something I’ve been fascinated me recently, something that made me feel that I could see myself doing at that very moment, something that could get me closer to all that I wanted.

 

“I want to be like my appa!”

 

“And…what does your appa do?” he asks curiously before biting on a cookie.

 

“My appa wears expensive looking clothes, travels to many places, gets to ride on big cars and eat at many places!  He would order people around too.  Sometimes, he gives me presents from his work.”

 

“Really? So… tell me, where does your appa work?” he asks again.

 

“Here, at this very expensive house!” I say, beaming with pride.

 

“I see.   What’s your appa’s name?”

 

“Kwon Shin Mun,” I answer immediately as his face brightens up as if realizing something.

 

“Little dragon!  I barely recognized you.  It’s been years since…” he smiles with a bit of disbelief etching on his face while this time I become the one who had gotten confused.  He mumbles my nickname, ‘Yong-ie’, and something along the lines of ‘you were still a crawling around when I saw you’.

 

However, before I could even put the puzzles together, which wasn’t really happening any time soon, somebody calls out my name in a dangerous tone.

 

“Jiyong!” my father hisses sharply and I could tell he was trying to keep himself in control. 

 

My whole body freezes.  The cookie I was about to eat halted mid-way in front of my open lips.  I quickly straighten up, unable to look at my furious father in the eye.

 

At that moment I knew I was up for a really long lecture from not only my appa but my omma as well.

 

“Shin Mun, it’s alright.  I actually went to look for Jang gun so I could head out for a short trip down town but found Jiyong instead.  We were just sharing cookies and nice stories,” the sad ahjusshi suddenly says before giving me a wink.  He doesn’t seem so sad anymore and I couldn’t help but feel like he was some sort of hero for saving me from one very bad situation. 

 

My appa seemed taken aback, his face turning in to something like wanting to ask me a hundred questions.  I watch quietly as he begins explaining my presence in the mansion and apologizing for whatever inconvenience I have given.  But then the sad ahjusshi dismisses all that with a wave of his hand before standing up and asking more about me.  

 

From then on, it’s as if the formality my father showed earlier vanished as they began to chat like old friends.

 

“He takes after Yeh Sun in terms of looks, fortunately, but the attitude and personality he definitely got from you.  Seems he’s going to be a little trouble maker in the future as well,” the sad ahjusshi says in a teasing tone.

 

“The only reason I got in trouble is because of you and your grand adventures.  Can’t wait to see how your, undoubtedly, crazy child go running out to the countryside and plan very elaborate schemes that would beat the C.I.A.,” my appa replies bitterly, his eyes narrowing towards the sad ahjusshi who had a mischievous glint in his eye.

 

“Oh and did I mention, your dense child’s grand schemes would probably all be epic failures?  The fruit doesn’t fall far from the tree,” my father adds.  The sad ahjusshi scoffs and shakes his head before finally getting serious.

 

“Now, would it be great to see Jiyong here play with somebody close to his age,” he looks at me with a small smile before turning to my father again.

 

“I’m telling you, the more your son hangs out with the adults, the quicker his intellect grows.   His thinking is way more developed than children his age.  He’d mature fast if this keeps on,” sad ahjusshi points out as my father brushes it off with the shake of his head.

 

“He’d be a very good influence and keep your son out of trouble then,” my father says with a hint of pride.

 

“Well, one thing’s for sure if I’ll have a son they’ll surely be the best of friends,” the sad ahjusshi gives my nodding father a meaningful look.

 

“But,” my father adds slowly, his eyes landing towards me.

 

“If you will have a daughter then…” he didn’t get to finish his sentence as the sad ahjusshi kneels down to face me and places a gentle hand on my right shoulder.

 

“If I will be blessed with a daughter then I ask, that you will take of her, protect her and be her very best friend even until I no longer walk this earth,” he looks at me genuinely, his eyes seemingly asking for my answer, a promise I will hold for a lifetime.

 

“Isn’t that what a butler does?” my question must have caught him off-guard with the way he tilts his head a bit, opening him mouth yet closing it again, as if choosing his answer carefully.  He glanced up at my father for a second who nodded.

 

“Yes Jiyong, that’s what butlers do,”

 

“So, I’m going to be a butler when you have a baby?” his lips slowly curve in to a smile. 

 

Maybe that was my initial definition of what butlers are, given how my father seemed to go to work like he wasn’t really going to work, how he’d talk to this ahjusshi whom I found out was the owner of the house, my father’s boss and best friend, not to mention, my godfather as well, the richest man in all of Asia.  All that I only knew when I got home that day.  I remember getting so excited despite my mother’s light scolding when she heard what had happened.  All I could think of was when he positively affirmed my questions.   The only words forming and screaming in my head was,

 

I am going to be a butler.

 

I hard time falling asleep that night with all my thoughts and imaginations about the all the possibilities of what my future would look like.  I’d be lying if I said I didn’t think of becoming rich and finally getting to buy all the toys and sweets I wanted.  But then more importantly, I couldn’t stop thinking of my future little brother or perhaps, my future little sister, my future best friend. 

 

I finally fell asleep after an hour of thinking and for a few more minutes there I lay dreaming about the conversation I had with Mr. Lee, the images of pinky-swearing with him swimming in my head.

 

“Will she like cookies?” I ask innocently, holding one of the chocolate-chip cookies I have been happily munching.

 

“I’m… pretty sure she will like cookies, maybe even strawberries and pancakes too” he answers with the biggest smile I have ever seen from him.

 

“And I am also very certain, that she will like you very much, Jiyong”

 

“She will like you a lot, butler Kwon,”

 

Butler Kwon

 

I guess it’s time to press play.

 

#

 

“Am I right, butler Kwon?”

 

“I mean, it’s such an honor to actually be at par with a lot of candidates which come from high social backgrounds, some families of which actually have enormous influence here and abroad.    Truly, you’re perseverance astounds me.  I mean, it’s very sweet how you continue to maintain such close friendship to the Lee household,” Sung woo’s words continue to sting and the effect doesn’t take too long to feel. 

 

In my whole life I had never felt bare as the local media jots down notes quickly, piecing the puzzle immediately.  It wouldn’t take long before they dig up old news about CL’s infamous butler.  If so, I’m also sure the airport incident would again resurface and this time they’d finally solve the “mystery man” the Lee heir was caught kissing.

 

Chaerin!

 

My thoughts completely go haywire as camera flashes bathe me.  The mere thought of the public knowing about her secret love affair with… with someone like me brings my mind in to chaos.

 

All my fears and insecurities come crashing down on me through a huge realization, she’d suffer from this as well.   If they find out of the relationship we desperately tried to keep, her credibility of handling her scandal-free company would be questioned.   The future I had planned for her, for us, all of it becoming impossible in an instant.

 

I desperately sought solutions in my head yet the chance that this news will not affect her and her family are less than slim.   I don’t care what happens to me anymore, Chaerin will always come first.

 

I need to protect her.

 

I need to… leave.

 

I need to detach from anything related to her.

 

I need to save her first.

 

Mindlessly, I was taking a few steps back, needing to separate myself from her.  If I have to go down, then I fall alone.  I could feel her gaze at me and her whisper of my name, a definite tone of despair yet my eyes couldn’t meet hers.  I couldn’t look at her.

 

Was it shame? Embarrassment?

 

Maybe it is.

 

For a second I hated myself, my family’s poor social status, how life had been so unfair.  If only I had been born rich, if only I had been more powerful, more…

 

…deserving of her.

 

If only I had just kept my feelings—

 

“His perseverance and determination have indeed brought him to where he is now.  I myself have been a witness to this.  Out of love, he struggled to give his family a better life, sometimes even forgetting himself.  Because of that, seeing him now… makes me so proud of him,” 

 

I slowly look up at the sound of her voice, back up at the podium instead of seeing Sung Woo, there stood Chaerin and finally our eyes meet.  At that moment, my inner conflicts disappear as I remain stunned.

 

“The Jiyong I grew up with is not a quitter.  It’s in his blood.  For all those years he has persevered, he never gave up without a fight, fighting for what’s right, for the people he loves, fighting for the happiness he deserves.  That, I could honestly say, I learned from him,” I could hear her sharp intake of breath and I knew there was no stopping her.  

 

If there was one trait I knew very well of Chaerin, a trait I am up until this day still very amazed in is how devoted she could be that no matter how crazy or rash her decisions are as long she knows it to be right, I’m so sure she will hold all responsibility for it till the very end…

 

…even if it ruins her. 

 

 “Yes he did come from what people in this room call—an underprivileged background.  He may currently have an average social status… but he won’t be for long because he will soon be part of my family,” the soft whispers and murmurs the people in the room, most of them consisting of Chaerin’s relatives, friends of the Lee family and most of the company’s important officials had gotten louder in shock and surprise yet I couldn’t hear any of them anymore. 

 

The only thing I could hear is…

 

“Kwon Jiyong is soon to be my husband and thus will be, in the future, one of the biggest shareholders of our company… because there is nobody else I would want to be with for the rest of my life, may I be rich, poor or whatever crappy statuses you can all think of, till I die but him,” she says in a tone of complete defiance, surely a signature move only she can pull off.

 

My eyes never left hers, even when she shoved a very shocked Sung Woo out of her way and stepped down the small stage confidently towards me.  The next thing I felt was her cold hands holding my own cold ones, her face inches away from mine.

 

“Before you get any of those stupid I-am-the-man ideas of yours and leave me again.  I’d like to remind you that I’m not a little girl who always has somebody to catch her anymore.  This time it isn’t your fight alone, Kwon Jiyong.  If you fall, then so do I.  We’ll do this together,” she whispers amidst the spotlight shining upon us.

 

“So now, could you please just put everything aside and for once could we just be two normal people living perfectly ordinary lives and tell me, do I finally deserve you?” she cups my face with both her hands, her eyes bearing all sincerity.  It reminded me of the time when she, so young and innocent, told me that she was to be with me for the rest of our lives.

 

She was so sure. 

 

There was no hesitation at all.

 

“Even if we were to live an ordinary life, I can assure you Lee Chaerin, you are definitely not normal, you are crazy and you deserve me… more than anyone in this world,” my reply comes short as I kiss her in such desperation, such need, in a way that I had done whenever we are alone only this time we aren’t.

 

A voice coughs and clears itself from behind us.  We slowly part before I my eyes land on another pair of eyes and before I could again start stating all my clean intentions for his daughter, Mr. Lee throws a small deep velvet colored box at me.  I catch it, thanking my fast reflexes as relief washes all over me.   This object meant more to me than any small box out there. 

 

Mr. Lee gives me a meaningful look and a small nod.  I could see my parents beside him smile, my mother already wiping her tears of happiness while Mrs. Lee sniffs and rest her head on her husband’s shoulder, looking like she had just seen the most touching painting in the world.  I glance back at Chaerin, her clueless expression looking right at me then at her parents.

 

“Why’d you always have to beat me in everything? You love me first, confess first and now propose to me first.  Damn it, Chae, how many more of my plans are you going to ruin?” I ask before I slowly kneel on one knee in front of her.

 

“Jingyo…W-What are you doing?” she asks slowly, her eyes fixed on the small box in my hands.

 

“Improvising…again,” I say with my heart beating madly in my chest that I may as well have a heart attack at this very moment.

 

I open the box to reveal the diamond ring I have been anxiously thinking about all week.  I was anxious enough that I couldn’t sleep easily nor eat properly for several nights.  Too anxious to actually keep it myself so I had to give it to Mr. Lee until I could finally reveal it, supposedly tomorrow in a beautiful butterfly garden, in front of the woman I wish to be with for the rest of my life.

 

“Chaerin, will you—“

 

“YES!” she flings herself towards me instantly that I almost loose balance.  I was about to protest again with how she beats me first but then her lips silence mine.  I would have wanted everything to stay like this however I felt an arm on my shoulder.

 

“Son, I’m sorry to cut your happiness short but you and Chaerin have to leave now before more of the media gets hold of this news.  It’ll only be a matter of time before more cameras come,” my father hurriedly whispers while pushing both of us towards the exit at the same time.  I saw Mrs. Lee give my fiancée, her daughter, a quick hug and it was then that the chaos erupts.  A good number of butlers, some of which I worked with before at the Lee mansion quickly form a human barricade between us and the screaming reporters.

 

Tightly holding on to her hand, I lead Chaerin out to the nearest exit only to find more flashing lights.  Some of the media had run out as well at the other exit.   At that time I was more than determined to knock whoever gets in the way.  But then Chaerin’s friends block them immediately.

 

“You owe us big time, grumpy cat!” Seungri yells in between grunts from trying to push back reporters alongside Youngbae, Seunghyun and Daesung.

 

“Yah!  I order you to get back!  Don’t you know who I am?? I’m Lee Seunghyun, my family owns the hugest entertainment magazine and I’ll fire you a—oomph!” a huge camera had blocked his face followed by a war of profanities and some hand to hand combat a.k.a. brawl with Daesung and Youngbae trying to stop Seungri from body diving unto the group of reporters. 

 

“South Korean boy group Bigbang has just made a comeback!” a smiling Choi Seunghyun yells.  It momentarily stops the brewing fight with all eyes looking at him surprisingly however it doesn’t last long as a sarcastic yell comes in reply to the tall chef.  “Lies!”  and in an instant they all continue on with the punching, kicking and body slamming. 

 

“Jingyo bear oppa! Chaerin! Over here!” I hear Dara and Bom yell out as I veer at the opposite direction down to a carpeted staircase and out of the building.

 

“Where should we go? Where do you want to go?” I ask Chaerin who like me was trying to catch her breath from the sudden adrenaline rush.  I was willing to take her anywhere around the world, away from all this chaos.

 

“The city hall,” she answers as I look back at her, a thought dawning upon me.

 

“You want to get married now?!” I ask, almost yelling out in surprise as she nods several times and I can’t help but feel like there is something I wasn’t aware about.

 

“We need to, Jingyo,” she finally speaks, a hand on her chest as she tries to compose herself.  I’ve almost forgotten how much she hates running.  One look at my stunned face and she hastily explains things, things that have skipped my happy mind.

 

“You seriously need to pull yourself together, oppa.  The majority of our company’s board members are here tonight so before they kick you out and send you back to New York for having a secret relationship inside the office then it’s better we speed things up.  You need to be part of the family quick,”

 

“Right…” I answer slowly as the bigger picture sinks in and so far everything I have been planning to do is crumbling down.  I had pictured a lavish wedding fit for my queen and have started with the initial plans by already calling a few friends who were all ready for any changes if ever Chaerin would want something else. 

 

But now, none of that is going to happen with the way things have quickly come to place.  I guess it was more of the thought that my future wife deserved more than this is what made me feel the huge dismay and guilt in my chest.  She may have sensed this as I felt her hand squeeze my own, reassuring me.

 

“Aish! Why is driver ahjusshi taking so long? I’ve called him ages ago,” Dara whined looking again and again at the direction where the cars round up.

 

“This isn’t working…” Bom mumbles, glancing at us worriedly however in a second her face lights up.  She then walks to the sidewalk near the highway, raising her hands up and flailing it up in the air towards incoming cars.

 

“Oh dear, our Bommie’s lost it!” Dara wails, attempting to dial her driver’s phone for the third time.  Apparently there has been a ruckus down the parking what with the parked media’s cars being called to the front as well.

 

“No, I don’t think so,” Chaerin suddenly says before grabbing my hand and pulling me to where Bom is now standing, still jumping and flailing in her spot.

 

“Dara, we’re going to take a cab!” Chaerin yells out before we reach Bom who by now has successfully managed to call a taxi.  I didn’t even have time to thank her properly as she shoved both I and Chaerin inside, yelling the location to the flustered driver.

 

“Dara’s already called your nana Hye Mi.  She’s heading off there now!” Bom hurriedly yells out to Chaerin who has her upper body sticking out the window of the cab giving Bom a quick hug and wave at Dara.

 

“I love you all and I really owe you, big time,” I hear her say before sliding back in to make herself comfortable next to me as the driver steps quickly on the gas, out of Bom’s orders of course.

 

“Are you alright?” I ask gently, putting my arm around her and resting my head against hers.

 

“I will feel better when we get there without any more trouble,” she breathes out and I can’t help but lean down to capture her lips with mine.

 

“It’ll all be over soon.  I’ve heard it’s beautiful in Spain this time of the year,” I said cheekily as I see her lips curve in to a wide smile.

 

“You’re not going to take me on a tour and abandon me on some garden again, are you?” she jokes as I let out a chuckle, tempted to steal another kiss from her but before I could even do so the cab jerks to the side and stops so suddenly.  This awakens my protectiveness and with that my arms circle Chaerin pulling her down, my body becoming her shield from whatever harm is coming.

 

However, what I thought to be harm came in an amused jest.

 

“No tears, very in love and definitely happy.  This is new,” the taxi driver, a middle-aged man wearing a gray cap turns half his upper body to give me a good look.

 

Chaerin who’s head lifts up a bit to look at taxi driver suddenly springs up and from here on my confusion only grows bigger. 

 

“Yang ahjusshi!!” she says, a wide smile appearing on her face.

 

“France is beautiful but there is no place like home, good to see you too, you crazy little strawberry” the driver chuckles and receives a bear hug from Chaerin.

  

“You look far better than the times I’ve seen you, perfect I must say.  So tell me, who this fellow is and what sorcery has he done to you to forget that Jingyo of yours?” he asks as Chaerin and I pause to look at each other.  My quizzical look making her laugh as she finally answers.

 

“Uhm a-ahjusshi… this is… Jingyo,” she says rather shyly and just then I thought he’d offer his blessings or warm wishes his sudden change of demeanor surprises me.

 

“So this is the bastard who made you cry since you were fifteen!  And it took you this long to realize the treasure in front of you!!” his voice booms, shaking the car a bit with the way his body shook in anger.

 

“A-Ahjusshi!  You can’t do that to my future husband!” Chaerin protests, trying to keep Yang ahjusshi calm in his seat as I remain stunned and stuttering.

 

“Listen to me, boy, if you are going to make her cry again…” his face gets my insides shrivel and the back of my neck sweating but then I gulped it all down.

 

“I love her.  I cannot promise a perfect life but I will work my very best to give her the happiness she so deserves.” I say sincerely.  There was a long tensed silence and finally his features calm and a small smile.

 

“Better late than never,” he says as I finally get to breathe and relax.

 

“Oh well then, hold on to anything you can,” he suddenly says, his hands back on the wheel.

 

“Why?” Chaerin asks and I before any of what he said sinks in the engine roars to life and the car speeds up faster than any of us can say ‘marriage’.

 

And after having a bit of a chase with one of the media’s cars, Yang ahjusshi finally maneuvers his way out of the cat and mouse chase.   We arrived safely at the city hall’s steps as I take Chaerin’s hand and before we enter the doors of the building I look at her.

 

“Are you ready?” I ask as we both stop.  She looks at me meaningfully and I could swear that I had never been thankful to finally make forever happen with this woman, the woman I love. 

 

“For what?” she asks back, her eyes turning into little crescents.  She looked so beautiful.

 

“To fly with me,” I say simply as she tilts her head a bit.

 

“But I don’t have wings Jingyo,” she replies, her smile never leaving her face.

 

“Then I’ll be your wings, Chae-roo,” I smile as well, remembering very well how she first pondered over this problem.

 

“Like always?” she holds my hand tight.

 

“Till forever, my love,” I say, kneeling just like the first time and carrying her on my back, her hands around my neck as we fly.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Author's Note:

Everyone, I present the final chapter for Suit and Tie.

I know, I know, I can you hear some of you sobbing and I hate goodbyes so I'm going to add another and this is going to be the epilogue.  Of course, we all have to know how happy our Jingyo and Chae-roo will be.  
 

And what else can I say but THANK YOU, THANK YOU and THANK YOU to all  you who have subscribed, upvoted, commented and begged me to update every single time. I can feel the LOVE.  Although, it has been an empty year for SkyDragon I'm happy that this story has helped with the thirst we all feel.  

 

So far, I've tried writing fanfics of Chaerin paired with other guys (mainly Soo Hyuk) but then it just didn't feel right so, I gave up and made another one of our beloved pair, SkyDragon.