One of his mantras in life was to not to allow himself to be with the wrong person. He did not want to end up with a miserable life like his sister’s, dealing with the odds of daily life where her husband tries to inflict harm on her until she gave up and took her own life. Love is a complicated thing- but still a mystery for him, perhaps? He's the cold type of guy who waits for the woman who can break the ice around him. He has searched and searched for that right woman; he’s 28 and like a typical man, he wanted to experience taking care of and being loved. No luck.

He continued walking leisurely behind his favorite church. Telling himself that: ‘This is the place where I’ll meet the one I’m going to love according to my instincts.’ Since he was little, he believed that he will see the ‘right one’ for him in this place, and he wanted to because this is the same church where his dad first met his mom. Sometimes, he’s afraid that because of this invalid reason of not getting married will make his parents set him up with another woman. Well, he can always run away from that anyway. That pride of him can’t be lowered down.

After a while of thinking, he heard the church bells ring.

Ah, another wedding. He got internally jealous. It must’ve been some young couple- younger than him who has experienced that giddy fluttery feeling inside their chest. The man couldn’t help but to visualize himself in front of the altar with the love of his life. He closed his eyes and smiled faintly as he drifted himself from the real world to travel to his imagination, even stopping his tracks just to focus on his childish act.

“Will you take Choi Siwon as your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, for richer and for poorer, for sickness and in health, till death do you part?” he heard the priest from inside the church as he said those words… though he edited his name.

Silence,

‘Come on; just say ‘I do’.” He mumbled.

He just internalized a sweet ‘I do,’ and ’You may kiss the bride.’ He smiled to himself.

Suddenly, thin fingers were wrapped around his arm and pulled him with great effort to turn to his back then something soft was pressed against his lips. The moment was too fast, too fast for him to comprehend that someone just kissed him right behind the church. He slowly opened his eyes and he saw someone wearing a beautiful white gown. Immersed with the confusion of how his bride became so real, he just stared at the woman though she wasn’t looking at him now- she was looking behind her. Her hand that was still holding his arm was shaky, he can hear her panting.

‘Come back here, Hwang Miyoung!’ A muscular man called and she stiffened, taking little steps backward until she bumped to him.

She ran. He was with her. They were running away.

He was pulled, once again…to a fast runaway with the lady in a white dress. The two ran here and there. Going into the alleyways and streets for God knows how long until she finally stopped her steps near the hidden passage and collapsed down to hug her legs as she leaned back. Half of her hair was covering her face but he knew she was crying. Siwon didn’t know what to do else to provide comfort besides hugging and soothing.

And so he did.

Siwon sat beside the woman and slowly wrapped his toned arms around her tightly even though he was still shaky due to fatigue from running. The other placed her arms tightly around him, too. As if they knew each other for so long that it was really comfortable for them to hug. All she needed was comfort and he gave it to her.  The two of them found warmth with each other. He removed her veil and threw it away so he can rest her head to his chest. He didn’t know why he did it; maybe it was just in his nature to be a gentleman around girls. But no, he was moved because of her.

Arranged marriage, perhaps? But does it still occur nowadays?

Might be,

They stayed there until sunset. Nobody dared to speak a word. It was just comfort in pure silence. With him her hair soothingly and her hugging him tightly as she stared lifelessly at the road. There was trust, comfort, and somewhat happiness within the quiet atmosphere between them. True, it was irrational, odd, weird, or whatever you put it. There was something unnatural.

‘I’m sorry I dragged you here.’ She ended the deafening silence. ‘I- I didn’t mean to, I’m also sorry for the kiss- I thought it was necessary. They didn’t even see it- Oh gosh this is humiliating.’ She bit her lower lip and a shade of pink was hidden behind her make up. ‘It was my first, embarrassingly.’ She managed to chuckle shyly. ‘And, um…Sorry, again.’

‘You silly brat, you ran away from your own wedding to escape… with a stranger. You’re weird.’ He smiled and ruffled her hair.

‘It was arranged, okay. The typical business to business partnership stupidity that parents do to expand their riches that I didn’t know still exist. I threatened them I’d run away if they made an arranged marriage crap with me in it. I did not want to get married with a man I don’t love. I disagreed to them- they betrayed me.’ She grunted and pressed herself closer to him. ‘And… they said it was just for a wedding photoshoot. I stupidly let my guard down because I’ve wanted to have a wedding photoshoot with someone handsome. Ugh, that ‘groom’ was really…not my type.’

He found it cute that she could still joke around at times like this and she didn’t even bother to let go from the hug and she just kept on snuggling herself to him and on the other hand, she was not aware of what she was doing.

‘What are you gonna do now?’ He asked

‘The typical run away? Am I not doing it now?’ she retorted.

‘Are you not going to go back to your parents?’

‘Not until I give birth to my child.’ She mumbled and he choked.

‘W-wait, what? Y-you’re pregnant?’

‘No, stupid. I.. I have a dream, okay? Besides being a fashion artist that I am today, of course I want to be with the one I love. And have a cute family with two babies.’ She smiled faintly.

‘True, who wouldn’t want to be with the right one for them?’ he chuckled softly then squeezed her in his arms only to inform her that they were still hugging. ‘And it looks like Miyoung likes hugging.’ He teased and it finally hit her.

‘Oh, . Sorry!’ She jumped up and bowed in perfect 90 degrees to him repeatedly while saying ‘sorry’ each time. Siwon laughed at her and just held her wrist to pull her for a walk though he wasn’t sure if it was safe for them to walk with dirty clothes so he decided to call his driver to pick them up. The moon was up and they need to go off.

‘I didn’t know you were rich, Siwon’ Miyoung giggled and lied onto the carpeted floor in Siwon’s house…or should she say, mansion. She was still in her ragged wedding dress. She didn’t know why she was this happy when in fact she was in a stranger’s house. Trust. She trusts him, that’s why. And it’s weird.

‘Don’t tell me that, we just met hours ago. I won’t expect you to know a lot about me.’ He laughed at her adorableness.

Miyoung went into the bathroom to clean herself up. She was provided with new clothes that Siwon’s sister bought but refused to use.

What is this feeling? She thought to herself. It isn’t right to trust a man you just met; she has been warned about strangers. Strange, she learned how to trust Siwon. She wasn’t even afraid that she might get , assaulted, or kidnapped in this household of her new found friend…or should I say, love.

While taking a long bath, Miyoung was thinking of her dreams. Miyoung said that she wanted to have a family with the one she loved. ‘I’m 25 and I want to have a family before 30.’ That’s what she always says to herself. She did all: prayers, meeting out with friends, blind dates, going out alone, and many more yet she hasn’t found the one that her heart was looking for…maybe, until she kissed someone right behind her favorite church. She was unconsciously staying to her previous words that 'I'll meet the one for me accidentally.' when she was a child. Like a loving daughter who looks up to her parents so much that she also wants to be 'accidentally in love' type of girl. She wanted to have a love that feels great and unexpected to have but it doesn't mean that she'll fall in love with every stranger that she'll meet. She'll always wait for a sign for her to confirm if she's in love or not; it was a random sign that she, herself does not know. 

Why is she feeling like this anyway? She just met him.

She, too, presumed that God will let her meet the right man for her. Possibly, God let Siwon to wander behind the church during the fake photoshoot for a reason. Maybe that reason was the ace of her dreamed life. It will be a big lie if she denied that she didn’t find the guy attractive.

Siwon, at the same time, was taking a bath in his room. He was deep in thought about what happened earlier. He couldn't agree more to himself that he felt something with her. Like an electric current, there was a spark between him and Miyoung. Trying to be logical, he thought that it must've been because of the kiss. As a first timer, he generalized that men felt the same during their first kiss as well only to back himself up with the feeling of denial that he found her attractive and her intimate actions toward him strengthen the weird feeling because he had never once been that close with a woman before.

Everything was new to him: the hugs, the kiss, the proximity, the comfort, the satisfaction, and the unexplainable happiness. All done with the woman he just met. Inexperienced about these stuff, he didn't know how he would react. Nobody dared to touch him because he was this scary oppa in school that would freak girls out because of his infamous glare; sometimes he thought that he should be soft and nice towards the opposite but as a man with pride he stuck to that 'cold unapproachable guy who wants someone to break the ice around him' type. Well, it was really an abrupt and coincidental meeting with Miyoung. He was off-guard, out of the cold image that he was preserving in front of women. Everything was a bliss of joy/confusion to him and probably with her, too. It wasn't some kind of fairy god mother's magic or a witch's twist; there are no such creatures in the real world. Coincidence, maybe? A really odd coincidence.

Convinced that he's still confused and all his thoughts just lead to more confusion, he finished his bathe and went up to dress something casual. After making himself appear socially acceptable after trying a few hairstyles, he ended up messing his hair into an unexpectedly beautiful one.

He nodded to his reflection and went to meet the woman who confused the hell out of him.

-

Both ate at the dining table. It was as if they were friends for a long time. The conversation was continuous and fun; they have been talking for too long, actually. The moon and the starry sky were the witnesses on the smiles and playfulness that they shared all night long; they were lying on the Bermuda grass at Siwon’s mini patio behind the mansion. Yep, he is really rich. Like talking with an old friend, they talked about the fun and complicated moments of their lives. There was happiness. Who would've thought that these two just met a few hours ago at the back of the church when the guy was simply daydreaming about his future wife kissing him then suddenly a lady ran up to him to kiss his lips just when the imaginary bride of him said 'i do'? Nobody will notice to be honest. Their personalities were like pieces of a jigzaw puzzle that filled each other.

This is too much for a coincidence...in a good way.

Cupid had found his next targets. His arrows were aiming at the two playful people of their twenties who were tickling each other under the night sky. But he just smiled and decided to retrieve his arrows. Why? Cupid realized that he wasn’t needed because he knew that Siwon and Miyoung will find their own way towards the love that they wanted.

The way they stare at each other, how her eyes turn into beautiful shimmering crescents and how his dimples show made it obvious that something was going on between them thought it was lighter than love but deeper than friendship.

Fate, don't play with their innocent hearts.

Destiny, please be real.

-

There was a sudden skip of a heartbeat that made everything slightly clear, that made them assume something mutual. 

It wasn’t first love that they felt between each other, it was deeper than that. It was something random and beyond words. That they knew they will fall in love with each other. It wasn’t because they were hungry to find their true love, it wasn’t because they kissed, it wasn’t because they hugged, and it was something more than that. It was something incomprehensible, yes. And they secretly hope that they can talk about these unspoken words someday.

‘Have I really found the one for me?’ Both thought.

Maybe it is really love that they felt, no?

It was just the start.