Until We Meet Again

“If we are not from the same world

I will find you,

my Soo.”

He was lying on his deathbed. The white traditional clothing led him to appear even more ghostly than the paleness of his face already indicated. He knew his time to pass over to the other world had finally come.
 

The fifty years of his life had been a constant battle against the odds and his body and mind were very tired of it all. Although he had spent most of his time in loneliness before he met Hae Soo and after she left him, he felt no regret anymore. With age came wisdom. He understood well enough that he had chosen his very own fate the day he decided to become king.
 

After Hae Soo’s tragic death he had spent years wondering if he had made the right decision. He couldn’t help but blame himself. However, his darkest thoughts were long gone now.
 

Today he knew that Hae Soo had been smarter than any of them combined. She had foreseen it all, his destiny as well as hers. This kind and intelligent woman had set him off on the path he was meant to walk, selflessly giving up her life by his side in order for him to become the great king to his nation he had always been preordained to be. Awaiting the end of his life soon, he could confidently say that at least his legacy could be called a success, unlike his private life which - looking back - had been full of personal misfortunes along the way.
 

Who would have thought that the 8th prince of all people, who had been his rival for the longest time, ended up helping him realize that Hae Soo had truely been someone out of this world? His brother’s heart surely changed as he grew old. They still weren’t close as siblings. The bloody and cruel war for the throne and the fact that the 8th prince used to be Hae Soo’s first love were simply too much for them to truly bond again. However, just like he himself had grown wiser over the years, the thoughts and actions of the 8th prince had improved as well.
 

They never met in person after the 8th prince left the palace but they were exchanging letters once in a while. King Gwangjong knew that his brother had completely given up on the throne. Unlike the rest of his family he rather stayed away from the palace. He wanted a different life for his children and the king felt pleased with the thought that at least as parents they shared the same opinion. In a way, Hae Soo’s heritage had taught them all about it and eventually brought them closer again.
 

If you really loved someone you had to keep that person far away from the palace.

They both knew that now.

Before dying the 8th prince had left him one last letter that almost seemed like a farewell gift to him. In this letter King Gwangjong was able to read about a much younger Hae Soo. In fact, it was a Hae Soo who already knew about his fate to become king years before he even knew himself. The letter was about a Hae Soo who warned the 8th prince to stay away from his 4th brother. It was also about a Hae Soo who, with all of her might and despite great personal hardships, safeguarded his very own rise to the throne.

To think that a scarred outsider with almost no family support could one day become a king certainly made clear how strongly and unwaveringly she had believed in him. When she let his dreadful scar disappear from his face she paved the way for his ascent to the throne. All these years she spent next to him she must have known that she eventually had to let him go one day. She surely hoped their destiny could change. However, King Gwangjong was sure now that she already had an idea about their ending even at the early stages of their relationship. All of her unexplainable habits and restrained behavior suddenly made perfect sense. The love of his life indeed must have been from another world. If the astronomer didn’t tell him before he left, he definitely would have been sure of it then.

Despite successfully being able to grow old in the palace, King Gwangjong never truly felt his heart beat again after Hae Soo’s death. Without the love of his life he felt as if the key to his personal happiness had been lost forever. He could have collapsed and lost his mind over the unbearable pain of missing his only lover like crazy literally every day of his existence. But he refrained from it, knowing very well how devastated his Hae Soo would have been about this pathetic version of him. Instead Gwangjong immersed himself into work. He reigned while always having Hae Soo’s view on the world in mind. And because no one was close enough to indirectly hurt him he couldn’t be blackmailed into rash decisions either. This fact turned him into one of the most independent and strongest kings of his time and earned him the undeniable respect of his nation.

The whole palace knew that King Gwangjong didn’t care much for the queen and his heirs. Whenever he looked at them he couldn’t help but feel like he, in a way, had betrayed Hae Soo. All through his life he could never bring himself to love or at least like any of them. To be the fairest he could be towards them he stayed away and treated them all equally indifferent. To Gwangjong of Goryeo they were nothing more than a part of his work as a king. After all, his heart only held enough space for one queen and right from the start this position had belonged to Hae Soo. If she couldn’t be by his side he didn’t need anybody around him.

His feelings didn’t change until he met her. The little gift of their own flesh and blood that his beloved Hae Soo had left in his world, knowing that doing so would most probably cost her own life. When he saw the small girl for the first time he was enchanted by her beauty and her resemblance to Hae Soo. He felt overjoyed, furious as well as apologetic all at the same time towards the child, Hae Soo and even Jung.

At first he wanted to lash out to his brother. He really wanted to beat the crap out of him for keeping such a meaningful secret from him. But when the 14th prince sank to his knees on that fateful day years after Hae Soo’s death to explain himself his heart felt broken yet strangely healed. He understood then why his lover had to leave the palace. He couldn’t be mad at her anymore after this encounter, because he instinctively knew that the choice she made was the only way to forever protect the fruit of their love, their only legacy from harm. It was in that moment when he could finally forgive his brother and accept their fate.

“Your Majesty, he is here.” Beak Ah spoke, his voice heavy with worry for him. “They are here now.”

King Gwangjong awoke from his feverish thoughts. It cost him so much strength to even open his eyes and turn his head. Beside his bed was not just kneeling the 13th prince now but also his younger brother Jung and a beautifully grown up woman.

A weak smile formed on his lips when he felt the warmth of Seol's hand against his cold skin. She was crying silently and the 14th prince was carefully her back.

“Your Majesty” She sobbed. “You have to recover from this. Goryeo still needs you” She said.

“It’s too late, my dear child. It is almost time for me to leave this world.” He managed to reply. Even breathing was hard now.

He looked around, eventually meeting the eyes of his younger brother.

“Jung-ah, thank you for raising her so well all this while. Make sure to be there for her even when her future children will be growing up. You have been the greatest father to her Hae Soo and I could ever have hoped for. I will never be able to thank you enough.” He spoke, coughing more heavily now.

“Hyung-nim” Jung only managed to say with a lump in his throat.

“You have to take her away before the Queen will be allowed to enter my chambers.”

His younger brother nodded, knowing very well that they had to be gone before the death of the king became official. They came too far with hiding her from Yeonhwa to have her find out about it now at the very end.

“Seol-ah, looking at you today I have no regrets left. I just wish for you to lead a long and blissful life. This will be the last time for you to come to the palace. May the rest of your time in this world will be happy and peaceful. That is all I pray for.” King Gwangjong said, using his last strength to touch the rosy cheeks of the only daughter he had ever acknowledged in his heart.

“No” The young woman sobbed endearingly.

“You look so much like your mother.” He whispered. “Watching you from afar made my heart so much lighter. Knowing that you’ll be well taken care of, I can peacefully leave this place now.”

“No, Aboji!” She cried, placing her forehead on his cold hands.

He chuckled faintly as he held onto her hand with all of his remaining might. “I’ve always wanted to hear you call me like that, even if it was just once during my lifetime. Thank you for fulfilling my last wish.”

She lifted her head and when he looked into her eyes it was almost as if he saw his beloved Hae Soo staring back at him.

Suddenly he felt like being taken back to Eun’s birthday party, where he heard her sing for the very first time. Dozens of memories were flooding around his mind now. He was able to hear her gentle laughter. He saw the both of them riding the boat on their favourite lake. He almost felt her soft lips against his when he remembered the countless times they had kissed each other, longing to be together as husband and wife. It was like all the happy moments they ever spent together were coming back to him now. And then he suddenly saw her sit