Eunbi let out a sigh as she stared at herself in the full length mirror positioned in front of her. The stylist was currently placing some final touches on the white bridal gown she donned and all she could do was stay still and silent, blocking out the noisy drabble coming from her family and relatives who wore dresses of the same theme as hers. 

She wanted to leave. 

Another sigh escaped the same time her mother’s reprimanding voice made its way to her ears.

“Would it hurt you to smile Eunbi? It’s supposed to be your special day!” her mother approached, looking up at her daughter.

“Except it isn’t.” she mumbled to herself.

“What was that?” 

“Nothing.” Eunbi forced a smile in her direction because honestly, that’s all she could do in that moment. Smile, look happy and make it look like that there was nothing wrong when in fact this whole thing was wrong from the very start.

She shouldn’t be getting married.

She didn’t want to get married. 

Her parents did, so why did she have to be the one walking down the aisle? Why is she forced into this marriage she never even dreamed of in the first place? If her parents wanted marriages so much, they could just marry each other then! They can even marry both of the dogs they had at home if they wanted to. Surely it was obvious those two cuties love each other more that Eunbi does for the man she is about to be wed to.

Unfortunately, she wasn’t the luckiest of the human beings in existence. It would most likely take some divine intervention for her parents to change their minds, not when it’s already the day of the wedding.

If only she was given the liberty of objecting and not forever hold her peace, then she would’ve done that as soon as she heard of the wedding plans.

After an eternity, the stylist finally fixed whatever microscopic anomaly she found in the dress and left the room, leaving Eunbi alone with her mother and cousins who were complimenting her and the dress as if it was the first time they had seen her in it.

“What are you girls still doing here?!” her mother suddenly exclaimed as she checked the clock hanging on the wall, “Go and get ready for the procession!” 

The group complied, exiting the room whilst her mother did one final check to make sure her daughter was presentable before accompanying her to the bridal car that was to bring them to the garden where they decided to hold the ceremony in. It was in a nearby park, quite open to the public eye, meaning anyone could witness the wedding even if they weren’t invited. Eunbi didn’t exactly know what kind of stunt her parents and the groom’s parents were trying to pull here, but if she were to guess, it’d most likely be for publicity.

It was because the groom’s parents were well-known figures of society, meaning their names were known by a vast majority of the neighborhood. Eunbi assumed that with a public wedding like this, every onlooker would get to know her family too and hold them in high regard.

She hated that.

For her to be used as a mere pawn just for them to raise their status, they thought that it would benefit her as well, but far from it, it isn’t the future she wants.

It might be cliché, and she hated to admit it, but she’s currently a damsel in distress that needed saving.

However, the chances of anyone coming to her rescue was slim as she doesn’t even know anyone who had enough guts to actually try to stop this. She could run away, be the bride like the ones they would only see on dramas, but where would she go? Even her friends looked forward to her wedding more than she did. She doubts there would be anyone who’d take her in if she pulls off a stunt like that.

Don’t get her wrong, she wants to, but she needs to survive first and foremost. Without a stable job, a house of her own, or even means to put food on her own plate, she’d have to endure this. Maybe… maybe she can think of a solution on the way.

Her life .

Before she knew it, the car pulled up in front of the park with over a dozen arches laden with beautifully blooming flowers and leaves overhanging the pathway of the garden’s entrance. Sinb looked out the car window out of instinct and managed to catch a glimpse of the crowd gathered and the guests already on their chairs, looking prim and proper with their stylish clothing and trying their hardest to flaunt their status to the curious onlookers. Eunbi’s heart sank to her stomach, realization settling in that it was really happening. From that day onward her life wouldn’t be the same. She couldn’t even imagine what lies ahead once this occasion is over. A normal bride would take that nervousness as something positive, but not for Eunbi. She dreaded this day.

Her gaze swept through the area and caught sight of the groom currently flashing his million dollar smile to anyone and everyone, living and non-living.

He looked like a clown.

The groom wasn’t all that bad of a person, but that’s in other people’s perspective. Based from what she’s witnessed he had a penchant for putting himself on a pedestal. He’s gotten so used to a posh lifestyle that anything that wouldn’t meet his expectations is considered ‘trash’. That includes people and things and Eunbi has always been the type who liked simple things. It was already obvious that with their opposing personalities, they would never get along and who was going to adjust to the wants of the other? Of course it’s going to be her, because she’s the one of lower status and a woman. 

Again, her life .

The car door opened, an organ playing a beautiful melody in the background but it may as well be considered a death march anthem in her ears. The place was grandiose, as she expected. The wedding planner certainly outdid herself with how beautifully decorated the place was. On another occasion Eunbi would have appreciated it, but not now, not during this moment. 

If only someone could take her away from there.

---

Unfortunately, no one spoke up in objection during the ceremony. It was the longest ceremony she’d had to endure for all the years she’d  lived and she detested every single second as they crept closer and closer to the end of the ceremony. With the ceremony ending, it’s become official that she is now his and her life is no longer hers to own.

They were now having the reception at a garden patio not far from the location of the wedding ceremony. Eunbi tried her hardest to keep up the smile on her face, thanking anyone who would approach and congratulate them. The ring on her finger weighed like a hundred tons, along with it the responsibilities she would be undertaking as his wife. She didn’t even want to think about the future anymore with the numerous things going on in her head at that moment. The one thing she wanted though was to get far, far away from this place. It was like she heard the clink of the chains in every step she took, reminding her that her freedom was now limited, and that she wouldn’t be able to live the same way as she always did. 

Really, why did this have to happen in the first place?  Why her? Why now? Why?

Thanking a relative that she doesn’t even remember for nth time that day, her gaze swept over to the tables, some of them vacant as the guests fancied the dance floor and the buffet table more than having idle chat with some of the other guests. As far as she knows, they probably don’t even know each other and was more focused on staring each other down and criticizing each other’s looks and reputations. The only people who were actually having fun were her cousins and some of her friends who were hooking up with some of the men present in the celebration. 

She just rolled her eyes at them.

“Is something wrong?” the groom, now her husband, leaned close to her ear and asked after noticing her gazing off to the side.

“Nothing.”

He just hummed, leaning back again and obviously disappointed with her lack of enthusiasm in answering his question. She understood why he did that in the first place, some cameras were pointed their way and he did it for display. He was probably annoyed that she didn’t reciprocate his attempt at acting affectionate in front of the people and that was fine. She wasn’t in the mood in the first place.

“I’d like to use the restrooms if that’s fine with you.” she asked, having had enough of the suffocating atmosphere.

He almost looked hesitant to allow her to leave his side, after all he wanted a certain display for him to flaunt to the others. What with Eunbi looking extremely beautiful that all men in the area were jealous of him having such a person as his wife, there was no doubt in her mind that he was soaking all the looks of jealousy in, further elevating his ego.

Did she look like an Oscar trophy to him? She probably did.

After a few minutes he finally relented and she was quick to get out of his sight, wanting nothing more than to be alone and finally breathe. 

She was suffocating, she felt so enclosed and chained and everyone was so controlling and fake that she didn’t want to deal with any more of it.

Her feet took her to parts unknown and before she knew it, she found herself in an open space just behind the area where the wedding ceremony took place. The sound of the music and chatter from the reception area became muffled as she walked farther away and as soon as she could finally think clearly again, she breathed in deep, exhaling everything out: her worries, her thoughts, her feelings, her inner turmoil.

She saw a fountain at the center of the area and headed towards it, taking a seat along the edge and stared absentmindedly at the water as it rippled, the sound of the water flowing from the top of the spout as it flowed down was oddly soothing to her ears. It was definitely more welcome than the noise of the crowd. 

“Hm… for a bride you don’t seem too happy on your wedding day.”

Eyes opening wide in surprise, she looked around, catching a glimpse of a figure just opposite of where she sat. The flowing water made it difficult to recognize the person who spoke, but she could clearly see that it was a woman. She wore all black, a strike contrast to the dress code that the wedding planner had asked the guests to adhere to. Other than that, she could make out the person’s black hair falling straight down her shoulders, all other features were still blurred by the running fountain water.

One thing was for sure though, Eunbi didn’t know who this woman is. 

“Who are you?” 

She watched as the figure lifted something in her hand and brought it to her lips. A drink? No, it looked like a wine glass, but there wasn’t any other place here that had wine except for the reception. Is she a guest? 

That seemed unlikely, she would have definitely noticed someone wearing black amongst the sea of whites in the wedding ceremony earlier no matter how out of it she was during the event. 

The figure put down the glass, placing it on the edge of the fountain and took a seat, not bothering to show herself to Eunbi. The bride had the urge to stand up and see for herself who she was talking to but decided against it. At that moment, all she wanted was some peace of mind and this woman didn’t seem to be there to bother her. 

There was a brief moment’s silence from the woman, neither of them saying a word which left Eunbi’s question unanswered. She could only watch her take sips from the wine glass, again and again until she could see that it was empty.

“You should go back.” the woman stood up, taking the glass with her, “The dance is about to start you know.” 

Eunbi scoffed, “They can just dance without me.”

“A shame.” she replied, “I thought you loved to dance.”

Eunbi’s brows furrowed upon hearing the statement, “How do you know that?” 

She waited patiently for the woman to answer but was interrupted by a shrill voice calling out to her angrily. Momentarily distracted, she turned just in time to see her mother stomping towards her, her face nearly red in anger.

“Eunbi! We’ve been looking for you everywhere!” she growled and reached forward, grabbing her daughter’s hand and urged her to stand up so they could go back to the party, “The dance is about to start so stop misbehaving and hurry it up!”

“Mom…”

She wanted to pull her hand away. She didn’t want to go back to that place. Heck, she’d prefer talking to this unsociable stranger than be gawked at by all those people like a mannequin on display, only there for the purpose of entertaining them.

Any other form of objections fell on deaf ears as she was dragged further and further away from the fountain. For a second, she looked back, wanting to see the person who brought her a small sense of comfort even for just a moment and saw her still stood by the fountain, wine glass in hand currently raised to her lips. It took only a few steps before she was able to see the woman clearer, and the first thing that stood out to her was the way her skin was a strike contrast to the black top and skirt that she wore. 

That and the gaze that was trained on her as she was being pulled away. She couldn’t see her face clearly since the woman had cleverly covered the lower part of her face with the wine glass, but she could see those eyes that looked cold, but seemed to tell her something.

It was only for a brief moment, but she can’t seem to get it out of her head.

---

A/N

​​​​​​it's been a while since i last wrote stuff, i feel like i've losr my touch (〒﹏〒)

but yeah, this was supposed to be a one shot but it'll get too long so ┐( ˘_˘)┌ i'm dropping all the chaps anyway tho, so read at your leisure. and thank you for reading ^^ ( ◜‿◝ )♡

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