Mismatch

“ARE YOU KIDDING ME?” Junmyeon almost shouted to the matchmaker sitting in front of him.

Calmly, the woman took a sip of her tea. Looking over her glasses she said, “Mr. Kim, the System does not commit any mistakes. It’s a hundred percent match.”

Junmyeon sighed in exasperation and before his Emotion Watch glowed yellow, he bolted out of the office room, holding the file in his hand without saying goodbye or thank you. His usual manners were lost somewhere else. He got into his car and made his way over to his penthouse apartment, calling his campaign assessor to deliver the news.

Oh, how he inwardly cursed for this unexpected outcome.

It wasn’t that he doubted the System, he never did. Every decision taken by the System, he had followed it to the letter. After all, the System guarded the safety and guaranteed the happiness of all citizens. That was how it had always been and Junmyeon believed that society needed the System to function, that it facilitated life for everyone.

However, he just couldn’t believe that someone like Zhang Yixing had been selected as his marriage partner. It was in no way a beneficial outcome, well not for him at least. Zhang Yixing would be jumping out of joy when he got the news. Junmyeon had been born and belonged to the cream of the crop in society, Zhang Yixing was a mere middle-classer. Junmyeon had graduated first-place from the most prestigious schools, Zhang Yixing had gotten a public, common education. His intellect and mind for business had taken him to become the vice president of a conglomerate holding company, Silver Group, at the age of twenty-six. Zhang Yixing? He worked as a florist. The System had designated Junmyeon as one of the candidates to become the next Leader of the Nation. That had been one of the highest honors in Junmyeon’s life. Meanwhile, Zhang Yixing was a nobody. They were like water and oil, incompatible and mismatched. Why in the world were they a perfect match?

Arriving at his house, Junmyeon walked into the living room and was greeted by his best friends, Tao and Yifan. He sat on the leather couch next to them, his frown still in place.

“Okay, so how did it go at the Marriage Bureau, Junmyeon? Who is it?” asked an eager Tao. While Junmyeon hadn’t been that interested in who it would be (before he got the results), his best friends had been excited to the point of even making a list of predictions since their university days. As the years passed many names had been crossed out, but the final outcome hadn’t been one of the remaining names. They had been wrong, oh so wrong.

Junmyeon looked at the happy and correct couple next to him, feeling jealous of their compatibility. He threw the file at them and sighed loudly yet again.

It only took a couple of minutes before Tao’s smile disappeared and his jaw dropped. Yifan, on the other hand, was stoic as he read the file.

“I’m going to become the laughingstock of society, won’t I?” Junmyeon asked once the couple raised their heads to look at him.

“This is surely unexpected,” Tao uttered.

“This is surely ridiculous,” Junmyeon said.

“Are you sure about this? Did you ask them to calculate it again?” Yifan asked.

“Thrice. There’s no doubt about it. The System says we’re a perfect match.”

“But you don’t necessarily have to marry him. You can always choose someone else. Someone more…Suitable,” Yifan said, with that doctor voice of his that tried to reassure patients everything would be alright.

Junmyeon knew there was an option. He had heard of couples not being pleased with their perfect matches, or people never going to the Marriage Bureau because they had fallen for someone else. It was quite uncommon but not unheard of. Technically, he could marry someone else. However, that union would not be approved by the System and it would be highlighted in red in his personal file, the proof that he had ignored what the System had chosen for him. The criticism would not fail to haunt him once his opponents found out about it. Not marrying Zhang Yixing might put his political career at stake.

“You know that would only make things worse for my campaign,” Junmyeon said.

“What did Minseok say?” Tao asked.

After Junmyeon had been chosen as the last candidate to the next elections, Kim Minseok was hired as his campaign assessor. In a year, he had done a hell of a job because Junmyeon’s popularity had risen to the skies. Junmyeon went from standing in the last place between the three candidates to now being almost at the same popularity rate as the current number-one, Byun Taehyuk, who was now only leading by a few decimals. It was Minseok who told Junmyeon to finally get married because Byun Taehyuk had already gotten married last year and was going to have his firstborn son. Despite the terrible outcome of today, while talking to him during the car ride, Minseok had said they could still use it to their advantage.

“He said it might benefit my public image. Me, marrying an average person, it might bring in supporters for my case, especially from the working class. I don’t see how, though. But I’ll leave that to Minseok.”

“Well, you don’t know him yet. Maybe over time, you’ll end up liking him anyway,” Tao tried to comfort Junmyeon.

Junmyeon laughed mockingly. “Have you read the file? We’re complete opposites. I thought I would get someone at least a bit near to my caliber. Someone I could be proud to introduce to my friends and family. Someone I could discuss arts and classical music with, not the gardener.”

“He’s a florist,” Tao said.

“Same thing! You guys are so lucky to be a match,” Junmyeon said and sighed for the nth time that day.

Indeed Tao and Yifan had been lucky. The three of them had been friends since elementary school. The couple had fallen in love during their university years. They got together in secret but often feared what would happen if they weren’t a perfect match. Yifan’s family pushing him to get married as soon as he graduated didn’t help. And when Yifan had finally gone to the Marriage Bureau, who had been chosen? Huang Zitao, of course. It made sense, they were equals in most aspects, from their families’ position in society to their decent jobs that had been chosen by the System.

“So, what are you gonna do then?” Yifan asked.

“Marry him, that’s all I can do. I’m pretty sure he’ll come running to me tomorrow, or maybe even tonight,” Junmyeon said, crossing his arms and sinking into the couch.

Junmyeon had been wrong, though. Two weeks passed and Zhang Yixing had neither called nor gone to see him. It didn’t make sense. He was sure the Marriage Bureau had also notified Zhang Yixing that his marriage partner had been found. Why hadn’t he come? Junmyeon was probably the best decision the System had ever taken for him.

Impatient of waiting for Zhang Yixing’s arrival every day, and told by Minseok that the sooner they announced their relationship, the better, Junmyeon took the matter into his own hands and went to look for his future husband.

At least the flower shop was centric and it not in some corner in the outskirts of the city. Junmyeon got off the vehicle and stood near the entrance. ‘Qian’s Flower Shop’ he read on the sign with purple letters. Some flowers were outside on the floor and on shelves. People were gathered around looking at them. He breathed in and opened the door. A ringing bell announced his arrival. Various scents invaded his sense of smell when he stepped inside. Junmyeon looked around the local and saw a variety of flowers and plants, a myriad of colors and shades, from roses to Matsumoto asters (his mother’s favorites). A young woman approached him.

“Welcome, Sir! How may I help you?” she asked with a perfect smile.

“I’m looking for Zhang Yixing.”

“He’s helping a customer right now, over there,” the woman, Sooyoung, he read on her name tag, replied and pointed to Junmyeon’s left.

He took slow steps and approached the said place. Oh no, he thought when he saw Zhang Yixing.

Zhang Yixing stood there, holding a bouquet of flowers and talking to an elderly woman. To put it simply, he looked scruffy. He was wearing an old pair of Chucks, ripped jeans, a white t-shirt twice his size, and a black apron. His clothes looked worn out and couldn’t compare to Junmyeon’s expensive tailored suit. That dark hair was a curly mess, and he had long bangs that covered his forehead, nothing like Junmyeon’s neatly styled and brown hair. And to top it all, Zhang Yixing was wearing a pink flower crown on his head.

Junmyeon waited until the old woman took the bouquet and walked away. Then, Yixing’s eyes met his. Finally, he strolled to meet Zhang freaking Yixing.

“Hello, Mr. Zhang Yixing.”

“Hi! Welcome!” Yixing greeted him also with that overly friendly voice. Dimples appeared on his cheeks when the man smiled. Then he tilted his head, looked at Junmyeon’s face carefully, pensive until he exclaimed, “Oh right! I remember! You’re Kim Junmyeon! One of the candidates for the next election.”

Junmyeon nodded but couldn’t understand why Zhang Yixing had decided to start the conversation with that.

“How can I help you? Are you sending flowers to your mother? A friend? A partner? We have a perfect flower for anyone and every occasion.”

His frown deepened. “I think you know very well what I’m doing here.”

Perplexed, Yixing shook his head.

“How can you not know we’ve been chosen as a perfect match?” Junmyeon asked annoyed.

Yixing’s mouth fell open and his eyes widened. He stood like that for a couple of seconds. When he recovered his composure, he said, “We-we should take this in the office. Follow me.”

They walked to Yixing’s office if it could be called that. It was probably half the size of Junmyeon’s office, and it lacked the order and tidiness. The desk was cluttered with books, magazines and whatnot. Even inside there were some flowers next to a small window. Yixing took a seat and Junmyeon sat in front of the desk.

“So, you were chosen as my match,” Yixing said.

“Yes. Didn’t you get the notice with the files?”

Yixing looked at his laptop. “I did. But I never read it.”

Again they were silent. Yixing seemed thoughtful, and Junmyeon asked himself why Yixing didn’t seem excited, ecstatic about marrying the possible next Leader of the Nation. He was a great match, that was what everyone would say. Tired of waiting for Yixing to say something more, Junmyeon went ahead.

“Okay, well my assessor said we can announce our engagement next week. Maybe we’ll have a small gathering with friends and family. And we think the wedding should be held in August. Late summer seems like the perfect time of the year.”

The expression on Yixing’s face went from shock to amusement. He burst out laughing, a laugh that irritated Junmyeon’s senses.

“What’s so funny?” Junmyeon asked unamused.

“You’re so direct, like not even a proposal or a little introduction about yourself but straight to the point.”

“Proposals are outdated. And if you had read my file then you would have known me. Besides, I’m constantly in the public eye, you must have heard things about me.”

“That doesn’t count. You’re only showing what the media wants us to see, and those files are basically a résumé of people’s lives.”

“Whatever. I think you should move in tomorrow. We’ll live in my place of course. I’ll hire someone to come help you move in your things.”

It looked as if Yixing wanted to laugh again but held it in, covering his mouth. “Clearly, this sounds like something I’ve dreamt of all my life, but I’m sorry Junmyeon. I’m gonna have to decline.”

Junmyeon blinked once, twice, thrice and a couple more times. He couldn’t process what Zhang Yixing had just said. Is this man crazy? he thought. Maybe that would explain that appearance, that lack of joy at hearing the greatest news he could ever get.

“You can’t do that. You must marry me.”

“Why?”

“Because we’re a perfect match!” Junmyeon exclaimed, “The System has chosen you to be my husband.”

“So? Just because we’re a hundred percent match doesn’t mean I have to marry you.”

“Yes, it does.”

“There’s nowhere written in the System’s law that stipulates we must.”

“But you have to marry me! My political career might be jeopardized if you don’t.”

Yixing offered an apologetic expression when he said, “I’m sorry, but you’ll find a way to save it.”

“Why don’t you wanna marry me? My family is one of the greatest in the city, if not the whole country. I’m the Vice President of the company I work for, and I’m only twenty-six. I have everything, possibly more than you will ever have your whole life. I might be the next Leader of the Nation. I’m a great catch!” Junmyeon said exasperatedly. Zhang Yixing just kept getting on his nerves. It was Junmyeon who should have the right to decline, to be reluctant. Yixing was nothing but winning with this union. Was he so dumb he couldn’t see that? Junmyeon sighed loudly and tried to calm himself. He did not want to stress and make his Emotion Watch light up and show that hideous yellow color. His self-control was one of his pride.

“Bossy and cocky. How charming, everything I’ve wanted,” Yixing said under his breath.

“What did you say?”

“Look, Junmyeon, it’s great that you are those things. Good for you! But I have no idea who you are. You have no idea who I am, regardless of what those files say. And I don’t care if the System decided we are a perfect match. Again, I’m sorry if your popularity might drop or whatever. But I’ve always told myself that I’m gonna spend the rest of my life with someone who makes me happy, someone I love... And that is not you,” Yixing said. He stood up and added, “I have to go back to work. It was a pleasure meeting you.”

Junmyeon stared with his mouth open as Yixing walked out of the office, leaving the door open.

“Is he freaking kidding me?”

Author's Note

Hello friends! Finally, I'm able to upload the first chapter :3

Well, I've decided not to make this story angsty. But there will be a bit of Kaixing in the future. Also, this is tagged sci-fi but I don't think I'm gonna focus much on the typical sci-fi stuff? Sorry, I don't know how to explain it haha

Thanks for reading, and have a lovely day! <3