Jung Taekwoon had his life planned out ever since the day he learned how to walk. He was going to go to a science high school, major in computer engineering and then get employed at one of the biggest companies in South Korea. He wanted to get married no later than 32 and possibly have one boy and one girl. Or maybe just two girls. There was something about girls that warmed his heart just a bit more.

So far, at the age of 26, nothing seemed to be out of line. He had graduated high school with flying marks, did great enough on the college entrance exam to get into a good school, majored in exactly what he wanted, and while the company he got accepted into wasn’t exactly the biggest, it was still content enough for him. With how high unemployment rates were these days, he was just happy enough to be working.

Now all there was left was marriage, but that seemed a little too early. He was only a year and a half in his job, and he didn’t want to get married until he was more settled in.

However, life is famous for throwing curve balls. But instead of winning the lottery or getting chosen to be on a reality TV show, Taekwoon was faced with an even bigger challenge.

Marriage.

When he first hears the news from his parents, he’s furious. The year was 2016, and there were still parents out there who believed in arranged marriage. If that wasn’t frustrating enough, it happened that his own two parents had done just that. Arranged a marriage for him.

The most surprising part? It had been in the making since he was born.

How any parent could keep such a huge secret from their child for twenty-six years was surprising, and he doesn’t remember the last time he was so upset at his parents. The last time he ever got this mad was probably when he was eight, and he found out that Santa Claus didn’t exist, and that it was just his father leaving Christmas presents under the tree.

But this was more than a child’s crushed dreams. This was his future. The rest of his life. Instead of being able to paint his own picture, his sketchbook was now filled with drawings from others, and they were overpowering his.

 

----

 

His bride-to-be comes in the form of Bae Joohyun.

He’s not sure if it’s for better or for worst that he knows his future wife. He knows her a little too well.

Their families have been friends for three generations now, and he’s seen her ever since they were both young. She was a year younger than him, smart, beautiful, and if he wasn’t being forced to marry her, he may have even sort of liked her.

Unfortunately, that is not the case for them as their grandfathers have planned to have them married ever since they served together in the Korean War, and Joohyun’s grandfather saved his own.

His own grandfather had passed away a few months ago, and it was apparently time to fulfill his will. On that will was his marriage plans. His marriage plans that everybody seemed to be aware of him except for him.

How sad.

 

-------

 

The events that follow happen all too quickly. A dinner to finalize the wedding date. A honeymoon is out of the question seeing that everything had come last minute, and Joohyun had classes to attend while he still had to attend work. Only family members and close friends would be invited to the wedding, and it was to be held outdoors. None of the details were chosen by either the husband nor bride, and Taekwoon remembers drawing his dream wedding when he was younger.

Things never really did turn out the way one wanted.

 

--------

 

Three weeks after Taekwoon hears the news of his own marriage, he’s stepping into the apartment that he’s supposed to be living in for the rest of his life (or until they decide to move out or, if things really got bad, get divorced). So much has changed about his life in such a short time, and it was shocking how neither one of them really seemed to be protesting against it.

Not like there was much they both could do. It was in his grandfather’s will, and it would be a great sign of disrespect if they didn’t follow it. Confucianism was rooted deeply into Korea’s cultures, and one of the greatest lessons Confucius taught was to respect thy elders.

But to get married to someone chosen for you just because of respect? It seemed ridiculous, and yet here he was, doing the exact thing.

The apartment was nice and cozy; it was the perfect size for two people. The interior was designed by Joohyun’s mother who worked as an interior designer, and he had to admit that it was well done (although who was he to judge a professional, right?). There was a small kitchen that connected directly into what was supposedly the dining room, there was a couch in the living room along with a small TV, there was one bedroom and - big surprise - one bed.

In his head, he believed that this was all too much. Forcing two grown adults into marriage and then forcing them to get close in a span of a month was practically mission impossible. Despite knowing each other their whole lives, there was a clear difference between being just family friends and being a married couple.

“I hope you know you’re sleeping on the couch for now,” she interrupts his thoughts with a tone icy and stoic. Sleeping on the couch sounded distasteful, but he did not exactly disagree.

Taking one deep breath, he slowly walked over to the couch and sat down, trying his best to get comfortable on his new bed.

 

-------

 

The married life is nothing like he dreamed of. Rather than being woken up by kisses and hugs, he’s woken up by a loud alarm clock that isn’t even his. He remembers Joohyun mentioning something about a first hour class, but he didn’t think it would be this early. He’s not even in the same room as she is, but the sound is loud enough for even the next door dog to hear.

He’s tossing and turning on the couch, trying his best to fall asleep, eventually giving up when he realizes there’s really no use. He would have to get up soon anyway in order to get to work. Guess it wouldn’t hurt to get into a habit of waking up earlier now.

While she seems to be busy packing all her things together, she still manages to set up breakfast for him to eat as well. She simply stuffs a sandwich into , but there’s a bowl of rice and kimchi stew on the table for him.

There are still no words exchanged between the two of them as they both get ready for their individual days, but she breaks that silent rule upon seeing his outfit.

“Please don’t tell me you’re wearing that tie.”

Looking down at the piece of garment that he had picked up, he looks up at her with a confused look on her face. He doesn’t see anything wrong with the tie - it was a gift from Sanghyuk when he got hired - and is curious as to why she would ever ask him that question with such a condescending tone.

“It’s hideous. Here, take this instead,” she replied while throwing him a solid, navy tie. To him, there wasn’t much of a difference, and this oddly reminds him of when his mother would pick his outfits for him back in first grade. However, he doesn’t fight back and instead puts on the one she had thrown to him, assuming that a woman’s eye was more accurate anyway.

Later at work, he gets complimented for the first time by the secretary when he walks in.

 

------

 

“I just don’t understand how anybody thinks arranged marriages are still a thing in 2016.”

He’s back at work, and on the outside it looks like nothing has changed, but if one was to look closely enough, they would notice that there is a certain sparkle on his ring finger as well as how neatly ironed his shirts are. While the newlyweds haven’t spoken much, Joohyun still went out of her way to do nice things for him.

( he’s not sure if they were nice things or just things married people did for one another, but seeing that he wasn’t doing much, he continued to consider them ‘nice things’ )

“Reports actually show arranged marriages lasting longer. Something about falling more in love as time passes rather than falling out of love. Who knows what will happen between you two. Besides, Joohyun-ssi is nothing but nice, isn’t she?”

“Yeah, but-”

“Then why are you still complaining?”

“...I don’t even know.”

There’s nothing wrong with Joohyun, really. If anything, there was probably more wrong with him. She’s been ironing his clothes, doing the laundry, making him breakfast every morning, setting dinner and basically being a great person, and he was acting like the grumpy, selfish cat who couldn’t seem to move on from the fact that he was actually married.

A certain realization comes upon him along with a feeling of pain in the back of his heart, and he swears he can hear Hakyeon whispers ‘that’s your conscience’.

 

-----

 

Apparently when the boss says ‘leave’, it does not really mean leave until he walks out of the office himself. When Taekwoon got hired, he was certain that work was supposed to end at 6PM, but it was currently almost midnight, and he was still stuck in his office booth with his stomach complaining every two minutes or so about how empty it was.

By the time he finally gets home, he forgets about the grumbling sound in his stomach and how much he would love to take a hot shower. All he wants at this point is to be able to sleep for the next twenty-four hours with no interruptions.

He’s careful to not make much noise as he’s certain his wife - that didn’t roll off his tongue very well yet - was already asleep.

To his surprise, however, the light above the dining table is lit, and there she is, awake and reading a book. He’s ready to question why she’s still awake when she beats him to it.

“Oh, you’re here. The food’s probably cold by now, but you can heat it up on your own, right? I’m going to bed,” she states and before he can even respond, she’s already walked into the bedroom and shut the door. While he’s a little touched that she would stay up waiting for him, he’s also a little confused with how cold her tone came out. Was she happy to see him or not?

Staring down at the food prepared on the table, he’s surprised to see that it’s nothing simple but rather quite a full meal. He turns his head towards the bedroom door, biting down on his bottom lip with slight regret.

He didn’t even get to thank her.

 

--------

 

There’s a heavy scent of alcohol, a tint of , and loud music bouncing off from all four walls. Taekwoon doesn’t remember the last time he was dragged into a club, but he does remember all the reasons why he never enjoyed it.

The only reason he even decided to join was because he hadn’t seen his friends in so long. While he was stuck with Hakyeon at work every single weekday, the younger kids were almost impossible to see with all their busy schedules. Sanghyuk, Hongbin and Wonshik were all still in school, and Jaehwan had gotten a job as well, making it harder for them to gather together. He would have preferred any other location, but Sanghyuk was stubborn on going to a club. Something about how he should have never majored in mechanical engineering because there are no girls, and how he was sick of the Y chromosome.

There were a few times during the night where girls would come up to him with an obvious plan in their minds, but he quickly disappointed them with the flash of his ring, and a look of clear disinterest. Most of the women walked away, but there were a few that gave him scowls of disgust, and he is about ready to strangle Sanghyuk for making him have to go through all this.

“Why are you even here, hyung?”

“My marital status should have nothing to do with whether I can have fun or not.”

“But you’re ruining my chances with the girls. Why is it that girls are attracted to the quiet, cold and ugly types,” Sanghyuk argues, and he’s about to be offended at that last adjective, but he just lets it go upon seeing the younger male down his drink in one go.

“Didn’t your wife say anything when you told her you were going to a club?”

“Uh, Joohyun doesn’t know,” he admits before taking a sip of his drink and avoiding eye contact with the other boys. He does feel a little guilty, but at the same time, he didn’t exactly feel comfortable back at home either - that was secretly another reason why he decided to tag along.

He’s expecting to hear all the swears that a man could possibly hear but instead, he’s met with complete silence, and that’s even more worrisome. Looking up from his drink, he finds that the others are staring at him as if he’s committed the worst sin in the world, and while it may not be exactly that, he knows himself that it was a move to make.

“I gotta go.”

 

------

 

Throughout the whole taxi ride back home, his heart is heavy and no matter how much he tries to deny it, he knows it’s guilt. Why he ever thought this was a good idea was beyond him, and he couldn’t believe that he could be so stupid. Knowing Joohyun, she was most likely waiting for him.

His prediction was proven to be correct but instead of waiting at the dining table like always, this time she was on the couch, sound asleep. He quietly made his way over to the couch and crouched besides her, contemplating on whether he should wake her up or let her sleep. The couch was awfully uncomfortable - he would know - but she also seemed to be in deep sleep.

Before he could come to a decision, the female opened her eyes slowly, shocking Taekwoon. He hadn’t made a single noise, or so he believed, but she must have felt his presence to wake up so suddenly.

“Joohyun-ah, what are you doing out here?”

“You weren’t coming home.”

His lips are pursed because he’s at a loss for words; he doesn’t know if he should apologize first or tuck her back to sleep. He decides on the latter upon seeing the clock, helping her up from the couch and leading her back into the bedroom.

He leaves only after seeing her fall back asleep, which does not take very long, and when he’s given some time to himself, numerous thoughts float in his head. A part of him is feeling guilty, but another part of him is also still building a wall against his wife. He wanted to be friendlier, he wanted to be more caring, but there was still a certain part of him that was denying that he ever got married. The ring on his finger argued otherwise, but maybe he still wanted to believe he never got married.

Staring back at the bedroom door, Taekwoon runs a frustrated hand through his hair and lets out a deep, slow breath. His life was like a facebook relationship status: complicated.

Lying down on his bed, he closed his eyes, hoping that this newly formed headache was from the drinks and not his tangled mind.

 

------

 

She doesn’t say anything the next morning. So neither does he.

Their breakfast is shared in complete silence with the only sounds coming from silverware hitting the plates as well as subtle chewing. Taekwoon wasn’t sure if the food was going down his throat or through his nose with how awkward the whole atmosphere was, and he was certain that by the time lunch came around, he wasn’t even going to be able to remember what he had for breakfast.

He finishes his breakfast first and heads to get dressed. When he opens up his tie drawer, his hand automatically heads for his black, polka dot tie until he remembers the comment Joohyun made the last time he was going to wear it. It had been one of his favorite ties, but her comment must have made an impact because now he didn’t even want to look at it.

Picking up two simple ties, he walked over to the table and cleared his throat. Her eyes when they look up at him are wide, probably from surprise, and he doesn’t blame her because he’s surprised by where this sudden courage came from.

“Which one should I wear?”

The smile that forms on her face has him feelings all sorts of things he’s never felt before, and he just wants to leave for work right then and there, but she’s walking towards him with twinkling eyes, and suddenly his legs are malfunctioning.

“This one,” she answers while pointing at the one in his left hand, and it looks like she’s about to put it on for him, but he can feel his cheeks about to explode. He quickly takes a few steps back and puts it on himself, trying his best to ignore her disappointed face. He manages to squeak out something that sounds close to a bye, but he’s out of the door before he can tell if she’s heard it or not.

When he’s outside, he leans against the door with a hand over his heart, feeling it beat faster than it’s ever beaten before.

That was a close call.

 

------

 

Stumbling into the house, Taekwoon grabbed at his head, groaning at the pounding headache. The last time he played an alcohol game with the boys, he had won, but it seemed that lady luck was not on his side tonight. He can’t even remember how many shots of soju he took, and how he managed to get back home.

This time, it wasn’t entirely his choice to go drinking. The boys have managed to convince him that it was a congratulatory drink for Jaehwan who managed to get promoted to a higher position. Before he could come up with an excuse or even mention Joohyun, he had already been dragged and fed shots of alcohol.

He made his way over to the couch, ready to just knock out only to be met with a curled up figure. Upon realizing who it was, he kneeled down and lightly shook her.

“Joohyun-ah, why are you out here again?”

He’s expecting it to turn out like it did last time. She wakes up, rubs her eyes in the adorable way she does, mumble something about him not coming home early enough and then stumbling into bed.

What happens instead, he’s not ready for. At all.

“Why are you like this, oppa? Why?” There are tears starting to form in her eyes, but they’re clearly not from sadness but more from disappointment and aggravation. The guilt that was eating him ever since they got married was slowly making its way towards the surface, but it seemed too late to apologize now.

“I’m trying my all to make this marriage work, and you’re not doing anything. It’s like you don’t even care! Look, I didn’t want to be dragged into this either, but it was our grandfather's last wishes, and the last thing I wanted was for our grandparents to not die peacefully. So I tried my best to make it work! I really tried my best, but you… You’re not doing anything. You’re coming home late, probably on purpose because you don’t want to deal with the reality laid out in front of you, and you’re always making me late. Is it that hard to leave a message? A call? So I’m not here worrying about whether you’ll be coming home or not? Do you realize how much I worry whenever you come home late? There’s a part of me that thinks maybe, just maybe, you’ll run away. I know it’s stupid, but with the way you’re acting, can you really blame me?”

The last part comes out more as an exclamation than a question, and he’s at a lost for words. There’s nothing he can say to make her feel better, not even sorry, because sorry isn’t going to do it. He’s been wrong. Everything she said was correct. He had been trying so hard to ignore the reality that they’ve both been dragged into, making her carry all the weight.

He’s about to speak up, explain himself or just beg, but she seems done with him. Standing up, she doesn’t take one more look at him before stomping away to the bedroom. He probably deserved that. No, he probably deserved even more, but Bae Joohyun was too nice.

She was too nice, and he didn’t deserve her.

 

------

 

For the first time since they have gotten married six months ago, he’s the one to wake up first. There is a pounding headache in his head, and he’s certain that the drinks he had last night were gonna come back up, but the last thing he wanted to do was leave a mess when the atmosphere in the house was one already.

A little shocked at the fact that Joohyun could possibly still be sleeping, he makes his way over to the bedroom, carefully opening up the door. There she is, curled up in the bed, and he’s about to leave until he hears mumbling as well as coughing.

He tries his best to be careful as he walks over to her. Taekwoon’s surprised at how she looks. Horrible would be one way to describe it - although sick might be a little better. There were beads of sweat on her forehead, her hair was sticking to her face, and the color in her face seemed to have faded completely.

He’s never taken care of a sick person before, and he’s unsure what to do first. But then the memories of how his mother would take care of him flush into his mind, and he’s worried that he’ll mess it up and possibly make her even more sick. With how much he hurt her already, how much more sick could she possibly get, right?

Most of the day is spent with him staying besides her, wringing the wet towel that he makes sure it cold on her head as well as making sure that she has enough blankets to keep her work, walking out only when he’s certain she’s deep asleep to make porridge and go to the drug store for medication.

The few times that she does wake up, he walks outside so she can eat in peace and quiet as well as just not see his face as he’s afraid it would only get her angrier and worsen the fever.

Like that, a day goes by, and he doesn’t remember the last time he’s ever cared so much about someone. Watching her sleep, he cautiously removes a piece of hair from her face, and his hand stays there a moment too long. Her face is still warm, and he can feel the heat transferring to him as well.

“I’m sorry.”

He’s certain she can’t hear him with how sound asleep he is, but he knows he’ll be saying it more often, and this seemed like a good time to start practicing.

“I’m sorry, Joohyun-ah.”

 

------

 

The next morning, he makes sure to wake up extra early.

Breakfast seemed like it was easy to make because it was always set up for him, but when he attempts it himself, he realize just how much effort and time it requires. Joohyun’s been doing this for him every morning, and he’s been taking it for granted. The guilt that has been building inside him only continues to grow taller with every task he does.

He’s almost done when he hears a squeak, turning around to find her peeking out from behind the bedroom door. They meet eyes, and he’s not sure how to respond so he gives her an awkward smile before going back to finishing breakfast.

When everything is finished, he takes a seat across from her. There is slight hesitation from Joohyun, but she eventually grabs the spoon and starts eating. It’s completely silent, and it reminds him of their first meal together as a married couple. Even after six months, their situation was the same, and he was to blame.

“I’m sorry.”

Her spoon stops midway to , and she slowly lowers it like she knows that he’s about to go on. Smart girl.

“I’m sorry for never calling you beforehand when I was going to be late. I’m sorry for stumbling in late every weekend because I wanted to avoid all of this. I’m sorry I took all your hard work for granted. I’m sorry for giving up before even trying. I’m sorry for just being a horrible person, and I’m just sorry.”

His apology comes out fast and there’s so much more he wants to say, but he can’t come up with the correct words that will describe just how apologetic he is, so he’s hoping that this is enough. He looks up at her with hopeful eyes and is relieved to see that there’s a slight smile on her face as she continues to eat.

That slight smile is enough to get his heart racing. He tries his best to convince himself it’s from the relief he’s feeling, but with the way his cheeks are heating up, he knows there’s a different reason behind it as well.

A smile to copy her own soon forms on his face as he finally picks up his own silverware. It felt as if a heavy boulder in his heart has just been removed, and he can’t help but chuckle to himself as he eats.

He probably looks like a fool, but that was okay.

He was a fool.

 

-------

 

“I don’t think Joohyun has grown since like the seventh grade.”

He’s eating lunch with Hakyeon when the thought sort of blurts out of nowhere. After his apology, Joohyun had started talking about the things they would do together when they were younger, and he feels bad because she seems to remember more than he did. Perhaps their relationship had always been like this: her caring more than he did. That could change. That will change. He’ll make sure it changed.

“I’m guessing she forgave you?”

“I’m assuming so since she packed me this lunch.” And as if to show off, he waved the side dish in front of his friend’s face before obnoxiously chewing on it.

“Alright, I get it. Not everybody can be married to possibly one of the greatest people in the world.”

“Mhm. I’m a lucky man,” he replies, finishing his lunch with the goofiest smile on his face.

Hakyeon throws a tissue at his face, but he could care less. This was the tastiest lunch he’s ever tasted, and nothing could possibly ruin his mood.

 

-------

 

Joohyun surprises him with a candlelit dinner when he comes home early on Friday night, and he’s disappointed only because he wanted to be the one to do that first. She always seemed to beat him to events, and that was just one more thing he needed to catch up with.

She’s talking about her day and how university is kicking her these days. Something about midterms coming up soon, but he’s admittedly not listening and simply watching her talk.

There are small details about her that he never realized until now. She has a habit of raising only one eyebrow when she’s talking about something concerning, she scrunches her nose up like a bunny when she’s frustrated by something, and she chews almost too fast to the point where he’s worried she’ll bite her tongue instead.

“Are you free tonight?” he asks while not realizing that he’s interrupted one of her rants. He’s about to tell her to continue, but she nods enthusiastically, and he takes that as both an ‘okay for interrupting her’ as well as a ‘yes’ to his question.

“Great.”

 

--------

 

They go to the movie theater because that’s where all the typical first dates take place and because this was technically their first date together, he thought it was the perfect place. The movie they decide to watch is some comedy, but he can’t even tell what it’s about because all he’s concerned about is her.

He’s contemplating on whether to pull the lame yawn-and-put-your-arm-on-her-shoulder or to just grab her hand because it’s not like they were trying to get together - they were married, for christ’s sake.

While he was dying on the inside, it seemed that she was genuinely enjoying the movie. Or at least the loud laughs and crinkled eyes were an indication of that. He doesn’t realize it, but he’s staring at her instead of the screen, and a sudden urge takes over him.

Without any hesitation, he grabs her hand that’s not holding the popcorn tub and quickly turns his head to face the screen, hoping that it wasn’t obvious that he had been thinking about this for the last thirty minutes.

The way her hand squeezes his back is enough to convince him so.

 

-------

 

He doesn’t remember if he ever let go her hand after that, but when they walked into their apartment, their hands were connected. Just looking down has him blushing, and he tries his best to keep a stoic expression on his face.

However, the warm feeling is soon gone when she lets go, scurrying over to the bedroom to probably wash up, and he does the same in the outside bathroom. It seemed just like another typical night, but something had definitely changed.

Whenever he had a second to think by himself, the only thing he could think of was her. Whether it was washing his face, brushing his teeth or just lying on the couch to fall asleep, her face would not leave his thoughts no matter how hard he tried.

The couch was also feeling rather harder and lonelier tonight, and he found himself tossing and turning more than he usually did. When he finally seemed to have reached his limit, he quickly sat up on the couch, running a frustrated hand through his hair. There was so much he wanted to say and do, but there was a part of him that was telling him that it was all too quick.

Just a few days ago, he was admittedly cold towards her and now he could feel his heart racing with every look she gave him as well as his face exploding each time her hands simply grazed against his. It seemed almost impossible for someone to fall in love so quickly. Perhaps there was always a section of his heart that belonged to her, and he was too scared to admit it. Whatever it was, it had grown impatient and was making itself known to the world.

Picking up his blanket and pillow, he carefully made his way towards the bedroom and opened the door. Thankfully, Joohyun wasn’t asleep yet, instead busying herself with her phone.

“Uh- you see, the living room is a little cold,” he started, trying his best not to stutter, “so I was wondering if I could-”

And before he could finish his sentence, she had already scooted over to one side of the bed, her eyes never leaving her phone. There’s a pang of disappointment in his heart when she doesn’t even bat an eye towards him, but he’s thankful enough that she lets him in.

The bed is a lot more comfortable than the couch, and he cannot believe that he had been sleeping on a rock for approximately five months.

There’s still a slight bit of embarrassment about being in the same bed as his wife - which is ridiculous - but he closes his eyes, trying his best to fall asleep. Suddenly, he feels a pair of arms wrapping around his arm as well as a chin on his back. Without himself realizing it, he’s holding his breath as if exhaling would damage her.

He’s waiting for her to say something, but he’s left with silence and a beating heart. He’s glad that the room is dark because his cheeks have definitely turned a deep red, and he finally lets his breath out which doesn’t help his already pounding heart.

Closing his eyes, he tries his best to fall asleep, but that proves to be difficult. And so he lays there, staring at the wall, trying his best to hide the smile that makes its way across his face. Carefully, he takes his own hand to wrap it around her’s. It all seems like a dream, but the way her fingers twitch around his is proof enough that this is reality.

Sometimes, reality just may be better than dreams.

 

-------

 

Saturdays were meant to be slept in.

When Taekwoon wakes up, he feels a sort of emptiness upon realizing that Joohyun was already up. His hands were still near his waist, but her hands weren’t in them, and he noticed that he was in the same position as when he fell asleep last night. Not a single part of him had moved.

Walking outside, she’s in her usual position in the kitchen, making breakfast, and it’s bad because even seeing her has him feeling lightheaded and short of breath. He hasn’t felt this way since playing soccer back in high school, and he never knew he could feel this way because of a person.

She spots him before he can present himself, and she waves him over. He tries to avoid eye contact because he doesn’t know what will happen if she looks at him, but things don’t go as planned because as soon as he approaches her, she grabs onto his arm, dragging him around the kitchen.

Her words just sound like buzzing to his ears as he can barely stay standing. His knees are growing weak, and he thinks he needs to go back to bed. Maybe he’s sick. Maybe sleeping in one position wasn’t a good idea.

But she’s latched herself onto his arm and will definitely not let him go, so he takes a few deep breaths and risks it all by looking down at her. She’s staring up at him with a beautiful smile on her face, and it takes everything in him to not faint. He clears his throat before giving her a pat on the head, grabbing her hand with his free hand.

“Since I gave up my day for you yesterday, you have to give me a day as well!”

She doesn’t give him any time to argue back, not like he was going to, before she frees herself from his embrace to go back into the kitchen. He can hear his heart pounding in his ears, and he can’t tell if he was still alive or not with how fast his heart was pacing.

It’s not like he needed his heart to live anyway now that he had her.

 

------

 

The big plan that Joohyun had in mind turned out to be ice skating. The whole way there, she talks about how she would wait for winter to come just so she could go ice skating, and how it was hard to find anyone to go with. An only child, and all the other kids preferred staying indoors when it was cold outside. Apparently she hasn’t ice skated in a while so she warns him beforehand that she may be pretty bad.

Bad was an understatement.

As soon as they step on the ice, she’s already losing her balance and holding onto him. The corner of his lips curl upwards as he grabs onto her arm, protecting her from landing on the ice.

“You seem to be really bad at this.”

“I told you! I haven’t skated in a while. I’ll get the hang of it eventually!”

However, a good thirty minutes past, and she’s still close to the rail with one hand never leaving his, and he can’t help but find the whole situation absolutely adorable. Her lower lip is sticking out - a habit of her’s when she’s concentrating - and she seems to be genuinely trying, but her body refused to obey.

Being her stubborn self, she insists that she’ll improve, but the moment he lets go of her hand, she’s on the floor once more, and he tries his best to hide the broad smile on his face. Skating over to her, he helps her up and escorts her outside.

That seemed to be enough for the day.

 

--------

 

Handing her a cup of hot chocolate, he fixes the hat on her head, tugging it upwards and away from her eyes. She’s still pouting and whining about how he wouldn’t let her finish, but he tells her that if she continued trying, she would end up on the ice one too many times, and he didn’t want to be carrying her home.

“I don’t remember the ice rink being this cold when I was younger.”

“Probably because you were too busy falling to notice the temperature,” he teases, chuckling to himself, only stopping when she hits him in the stomach. He coughs instinctively in surprise and straightens his back, pretending like he said nothing.

He takes a sip of his own hot chocolate before glancing down at her. One of her hands were wrapped around the warm drink while the other was cupping her own face, trying to transfer the heat of her hands onto her cheeks.

“Here, look at me.”

He set his cup down on the bench besides him before turning to face the female. Taking off his gloves, he settles his now-warm hands onto her face, silently gasping in shock at how cold they are.

“You should have told me you were this cold,” he states as his brows furrow together in frustration. He was about to take off his scarf to wrap around her, but her hands grabbed his own to keep them on her face.

“Your hands are warm,” she barely manages to say as his hands are squishing her cheeks together. Admittedly, she was cute, and the smile that spread onto his face came almost automatically. Her words were slurred and hard to decipher, but she didn’t seem to care that he was continuously pushing her cheeks even closer together.

The warmth of his hands had caused her to close her eyes, her hands still wrapped around his. Taekwoon continued to stare down at her and how much of a child she looked right now. He somewhat saw the Joohyun he remembered from his childhood, the one he claimed to protect at all times, the one he promised to be there for whenever she needed him, the one he never realized he was absolutely infatuated with.

He realizes too late that his memories and thoughts have taken over him because the next moment, he’s leaned in to meet his lips with her’s, using one of his hands to wrap around her neck, pulling her closer. There’s no response from her, but when his senses return to him, he opens his eyes and pulls back.

His cheeks are flushing red, and he can feel them heating up. He clears his throat and turns away from her, silently cursing himself. What had taken over him in that moment, he was unsure of, but it was definitely done in the moment. There’s a hundred different thoughts mingled in his head as he tries to come up with the right words.

Still tangled in thoughts and regrets, he turns back around to explain himself. Instead of a confused-looking Joohyun, he’s met with her lips instead, firm against his as she practically leaps onto his lap with her hands wrapping around his neck. It’s now his turn to be absolutely frozen in shock, but his lips respond quickly as his hands rest on her waist.

There’s people staring, and Taekwoon’s never been the biggest fan of public displays of affection, but the more he tries to push her away, the closer she seems to lean towards him. He finally gives up and lets her take the lead, ignoring the gasps and whispers from the outsiders.

 

-------

 

The car ride home was filled with a bunch of loving gazes from Joohyun and Taekwoon trying his best to focus on the road. However, her little touches on his arm made it almost impossible to keep a straight face, and he was certain she received much joy from the way his body seemed to tense up every single time she even slightly touched him.

When they finally do get home, it doesn’t really get much better.

He’s trying his best to avoid looking at her because every time he does, his heart is ready to leap out of his chest, and his face heats up to the point of explosion. He has to take secretly deep breaths in order to relax himself, but she’s not helping.

Her arm is linked with his as she walks as closely as she can to him, her eyes never leaving his face. He’s certain he is as red as a tomato, but he tries his best to hide it - although, he seems to be miserably failing.

Not many words are exchanged, but they don’t need to be as it seems that she’s having the time of her life teasing him. When he manages to pry her arm off of him, she responds with a hug instead, and he holds his breath, hoping that his heartbeat would slow down. With much gathered courage, he looks down at her.

“I have to shower, Joohyun.”

She shakes her head with a slight pout on her face, and he lets out a sharp breath at how every little thing she does gets his heart racing. He grabs her arms, hoping to have her release him, but she’s mighty stubborn and instead of letting go, she gets on her tiptoes to give him a quick peck on the lips.

His eyes grow wide, but she’s having the time of her life. He’s had enough of her little games as well as the feeling of being teased that he forgets the step of thought processing and simply depends on his instincts.

“Okay, yeah, forget showers,” he mutters under his breath before gently pushing the female onto the nearest wall and leaning in. He swallows her laughs and continues to wrap her lips with his.

Needless to say, neither of them really do end up showering that night.

 

---------

 

“I’m going to be late.”

He’s groaning in frustration as he hurriedly takes a bite of the sandwich Joohyun has made. He insisted on skipping out on breakfast, but she threatened to not let him out of the house if he didn’t, and so she’s basically dressing him as he eats. His eyes continue to flicker between her and the clock, and he wants to leave, but he knows he doesn’t stand a chance around him.

She’s tying his tie, and he’s staring straight into her eyes, watching her concentrate. Her bottom lip is stuck out again, and he can’t help but chuckle at how she seems to be struggling with the garment.

“I can tie my own tie, Joohyun-ah.”

“No, I’ve always wanted to do this, just give me a few more minutes.” He doesn’t really have a few more minutes, but he lets her continue, lightly tapping her forehead where her worry lines have formed.

She finally finishes and seems to be satisfied with her work. Taekwoon takes a look at the tie, and it’s a little sloppy to the point where he might just have to fix it himself, but he simply gives her a smile along with a pat on the head.

“Wait, there’s one more thing I’ve wanted to do!” she exclaims, and he’s looking at her in confusion because he’s all done and ready to go; there doesn’t possibly seem to be anything else to do.

Joohyun grabs his neck tie, gently pulling on it. Their faces are mere centimeters from one another, and she gives him a smile. “Have fun at work,” she states before kissing him lightly. She quickly lets go of the tie afterwards and ushers him out the door, claiming that it’s not her fault that he’s late.

He never planned on blaming her anyway.

 

-------

 

While Taekwoon may not be the best worker, he believed he was quite diligent. He got what he had to get done in a decent amount of time and received compliments from time to time from his boss.

However, work was a little hard to do when your best friend would not stop staring at you. He had tried his best to ignore it, but it was getting more and more difficult to do so.

“Hakyeon, just tell me what’s on your mind or just stop staring at me, please. It’s getting burdensome,” he explained to his friend as he rubbed his forehead in frustration.

“Did you realize that you haven’t stopped smiling for like the past forty minutes?”

No. No, he hadn’t. Why anybody would keep count of how long they’ve been smiling was beyond his thoughts, and he wasn’t quite sure why his best friend insisted on counting that either.

“Uh, no. What’s it to you?”

“Nothing, nothing. It just seems like you’re in a much better mood. Guess Joohyun’s been good to you.”

“Joohyun’s always been good to me-” he doesn’t realize how defensive that sounds until it leaves his lips, and he clears his throat, hoping that Hakyeon doesn’t recognize his tone. But then again, this is Hakyeon who seemed to know Taekwoon better than he knew himself.

“Uh huh. Well, alright. Whatever you say. Just tell me when the baby’s coming because my niece has outgrown all her clothes.”

The comment comes out of the blue, and it causes Taekwoon to go into a coughing fit as he grabs for his water. Letting Cha Hakyeon become his best friend was the worst decision he ever made, and yet he couldn’t help but have his cheeks heat up.

That thought was never going to leave his head now.

 

-------

 

“Look, I know tomatoes weren’t on our grocery list, but these look so fresh. We can’t possibly not buy them!”

There’s a firm grasp on Joohyun’s wrist as Taekwoon tries his best to tear her away from the tomatoes, but she’s looking at him again with those puppy-dog eyes, and he can feel himself already loosening the grip. Rolling his eyes, he lets go of her, watching her jump like an excited child who was given permission to buy her favorite toy. How one could possibly get so excited over pieces of fruit was a mystery to him, but he could not deny the smile that crawled upon his face upon seeing her happy expression.

“Joohyun? Bae Joohyun?”

Hearing his wife’s name being called out by an unknown male voice had daggers forming in his eyes even before he looked at the possible culprit. The culprit ends up being 181cm, rich dark brown hair with eyes that seem too large for such a small face. It would be a lie if Taekwoon said he didn’t feel threatened, proven by the way he immediately grabbed for Joohyun’s hand.

“Minho?”

So his name was Minho. Minho.

“I haven’t seen you in a while. You haven’t changed one bit.”

“Hey, I know I haven’t grown since I was like seventeen, but come on, don’t need to point it out.”

His eyes flickered between the two figures who seemed to be sharing such a casual conversation, and he cleared his throat to announce his presence.

“Oh! This is my husband, Jung Taekwoon. Oppa, this is my friend from high school, Choi Minho. I haven’t seem him ever since he moved to Incheon for college.”

Offering a hand, he tried his best to offer a smile as well, but his face was a little stiff, and he’s certain that the smile on his face definitely did not look friendly nor natural.

“Nice to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you as well, Taekwoon-ssi. I’d love to stay more, but I have to get going. My own wife is waiting in the car, and I told her I was gonna be quick in using the restroom. It was nice seeing you, Joohyun. You too, Taekwoon-ssi.”

With that, the dashing young man left, and Taekwoon’s grip on her hand had grown tighter. There were still flames in his eyes as he watched until the man completely disappeared from sight.

 

----------

 

“You know, you didn’t have to stare him down like that. It’s not like sunbae was gonna hurt me or anything.”

Grocery shopping ended faster than Taekwoon would have liked, but Joohyun said something about him possibly burning the market down with his eyes, and so she quickly ushered him out of there before they both got accused of arson.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

A sound similar to a scoff left her lips as she let go of his hand to slap him on the arm. “Mhm. Anyway, Minho was my first love. And my first boyfriend. And my first kiss-”

“I never asked.”

“Well, you seemed mighty curious about him when you grabbed his hand so tightly.”

He wasn’t so sure if he was furious or annoyed at this point, but whatever it was, he wanted the feeling to go away because obviously, Joohyun was having too much fun firing him up. He could hear her little snickers and feel the pokes on his side. No matter how much he tried to ignore her, she wouldn’t stop talking and teasing him.

Closing his eyes, his bottom lip stuck out into a pout as he walked into the parking lot towards wherever he parked the car, hoping that by the time they reached it, she would stop talking about her so-called first love.

What happened next all happened too quickly. First was the sound of a car honking and the next thing he knew, he was on the ground. And so was she.

“Joohyun-ah!”

He screamed as he rushed over to her side. He remained untouched, but it seemed she had taken the fall badly. Had she tried to save him? What just happened? There were numerous thoughts in his head as he tried to shake her awake, hoping that there were no serious injuries.

Just as he was about to take out his phone to dial 119, she slowly sat up, grabbing at her head. Letting out his breath that he didn’t even realize he was holding in, he reached for her, pulling her into his embrace.

“Don’t scare me like that.”

“T-The tomatoes.”

“What?” He let go of her, brows furrowed as he tried to decipher what she was saying.

“The tomatoes are crushed,” she said much clearly as she pointed into the direction of the now-crushed fruit.

Taekwoon’s not sure if it’s a sigh of relief or a laugh that leaves his lips, but he pulls her again nevertheless. He couldn’t believe that even in this situation, she was concerned about the tomatoes.

 

--------

 

“Don’t do that next time.”

A tiring and terrifying day, they were both ready to simply head to bed. With a hand resting on Joohyun’s cheek, Taekwoon looked upon her with worry. Although the situation occurred hours ago, it continued to replay in his head, and he couldn’t stop being concerned.

“What? You mean save you? You know I’d do that over again, oppa, because I know you would do the same.”

While that was true, he couldn’t have her risking her life for his own. He couldn’t bare to see that happen. Leaning over, he gave her a gentle kiss on her forehead before extending his arms around her and pulling her closer. With her now safely in his embrace, he rested his chin onto her head, mumbling into her hair.

“That’s right, but I don’t want you getting into danger because of me.”

“That’s a little hypocritical, don’t you think so?” she replied, raising her head to look him in the eyes. There was a look of slight annoyance in her eyes, and he knew this wasn’t an argument he was going to win. Bae Joohyun was always stubborn, and he could simply never win over her. Instead, he leans down to give her a quick kiss on the lips, his hands playing with her hair.

“Let’s just go to sleep.”

With her still in his embrace, he closed his eyes, the grasp he had of her waist getting tighter. Just when he was about to lean over and turn off the lamp, he felt a small hand on his neck, pulling him down and before he knew it, soft lips were on his own, moving with much aggression and lust - two things he didn’t know ever existed in Joohyun.

Without leaving him much time to react, she wraps her other hand around his neck as well, pulling their bodies closer, and he’s about to question what she’s doing, but then her hands are under his shirt, and he can’t help the quiet groans that escape his lips.

Growling on instinct, his body finally starts reacting as his arms around her waist have traveled upwards towards her face, and his lips have started moving automatically against her’s, each fighting for dominance.

He doesn’t even realize it, but his shirt is being ed and then almost ripped off of him, and he’s still a bit careful with his hands, not entirely sure if he has permission to travel any lower. His curiosity is answered when she starts ing her own shirt only to grab his hands and lead them towards her pesky clothing. His hands follow through almost automatically, fingers struggling as his mind is a little hazy at the moment.

His lips travel south, settling onto her neck as he leaves gentle butterfly kisses which causes her to groan in frustration. He obliges with little nips and bites that have her squirming as her hands grab his now bare shoulders, pressing his lips closer to her’s. A slight smile forms on his face, and he’s certain that she can feel it against her skin with the way she grabs his hair. He manages to find her weak spot, and he continues to kiss the specific area because he loves hearing her quiet whines as well as the way her body seems to curl up every time he touches it.

What eventually leads him to stop is the feeling of her hands on the belt of his pants. He immediately grabs her hands, putting them to a halt as he gazes directly into her eyes. It seems she’s a little taken back by the hesitation as she completely freezes on the spot.

“You sure?”

And instead of an audible answer, he’s met with an even fiercer kiss, and so he lets go of her hands and lets her continue, his own traveling dangerously lower. Their bodies continue to move together into the darkness, the lamp on the drawer acting as the single light to spotlight their movements.

 

-------

 

By now, he’s all too used to this. Joohyun waking up first, him walking out to her making breakfast.

Approaching her from behind, he surprises her with a back hug, resting his head on her’s. Their height difference was one of his favorite things about them. She was perfectly small enough to fit into his embrace.

Without giving her any time to take in his presence, he leaned down to plant kisses all over her cheek. Her giggles sounded like music to his ears, and he turned her around to plant a final kiss onto her lips.

He’s about to pull away from her when she pulls him back in and soon they’re inseparable. His hands are gently caressing her face while her’s are wrapped around his neck. She’s still laughing because apparently his kisses tickled, and he can’t help but smile at how childish she appeared right now.

They’re forced to break apart only when they smell something burning.

 

------

 

Jung Taekwoon had his life planned out ever since the day he was born. However, the year he turned twenty-six, life hit him with a curveball. At first, he tried his best to deny the reality that had hit him in the face. He spent months avoiding it at all costs, trying his best to pretend that his life had not just taken the wrong path.

It took him a while, but he eventually learned that ignoring it was not the answer. Ignoring it only caused more harm: to the situation, to himself, and most importantly, to her. There were lots of troubles and disagreements, but that’s what marriage is about. Learning how to accept a person’s differences, learning how to be less selfish, learning how to love one’s imperfections.

“What are you thinking about?”

Marriage was definitely not on Taekwoon’s to-do list that year, but nevertheless he’s glad that it happened. Because without it, he wouldn’t be able to hold Joohyun’s hand like this nor walk her to school nor wake up every morning to her ticklish kisses and delicious breakfast.

“Nothing much. Just you.”

Jung Taekwoon never liked when things didn’t go the way he planned.

But he liked her.