Seventeen

Small Universes Around Us
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Seoul University —— 2020

Haeun walked into the Student Centre early in the morning, her head pounding. The entire night she spent thinking about Jaehyun and Nayoon and how this entire part of his life was kept a secret from her. She used to think that she knew everything about the people that would be reborn with her.

But just as she had her problems, everyone else had theirs too. 

She wished Jaehyun had confided in her earlier in their past so that she could do more to be there for him like he always was for her. Even when he thought no one else remembered, he did whatever he could to bring her and Taeyong together. She could only wish to have done something like that for him before too.

Haeun wondered what else she didn't know about the past.

She walked by a set of lockers, lost in her thoughts, before stopping and walking backward to do a double-take. Well, this was a pleasant surprise.

Jaehyun had Nayoon pinned against the bank lockers, his fingers laced with hers over her head and their mouths pressed firmly together in a passionate kiss. Or multiple kisses.

Ew, did she just see them use tongue? Oh god, was that a moan?

Haeun’s jaw dropped. So much for slowly working his way back into earning Nayoon’s trust. But to be fair, she wouldn’t be much different if Taeyong had remembered. She was the first one to try to drag him away to the first empty room she could find.

It was still an eye full. She had never seen him kissing or pressing up against a woman with this much passion before and she knew him for almost a 100 lifetimes. It was like seeing a rare and endangered animal out in the wild. 

“Weird, right?”

She flinched and turned to see Taeyong standing behind her, leaning to speak in her ear. “Huh?”

“The two of them. He only mentioned her a couple of times and she only knew him in passing but then a few days later, he’s head over heels for her. Would die for her. I’ve never seen him this in love before.” Taeyong murmured. 

Haeun’s eyes softened, “That’s so sweet.”

“They’re an odd pair but they seem happy.” Taeyong commented, “And apparently there’s a lot of chemistry there.” 

She snorted before eyeing him, “You think we should stop staring at them?”

“Good idea.”

“Want to sit out by the quad? It’s nice out and I don’t have class for another hour.”

“Perfect.”

They walked around until they found a nice spot under a tree. Taeyong shuffled around in his bag before pulling out a container, “Check it.”

She opened it and smiled, “Brownies?”

“What can I say? I’m a pro now.” He teased, watching her take a bite. 

She shook her head, “It’s delicious.” 

“By the way, I was doing some reading about the Joseon period.” Taeyong said. 

Haeun gaped at him, “Like extra readings? How do you have the time on top of everything you need to do for your major?”

“Honestly, I can’t help it. I’m obsessed with it now but sometimes it’s hard to read.”

She set the container down and raised her brow, “Why? Because it’s complicated?”

“Because it’s sad.”

She looked at him, numb, “What do you mean?”

“I mean think about it, a Prince is single all his life because of his duty.” He explained. 

Haeun stilled, her heart heavy at the reminder. Even though Jaehyun was happy now, it was a heavy reminder of all the lifetimes he must’ve spent suffering quietly without Nayoon. 

“Right.” She whispered. 

Taeyong leaned back on his arms, “It’s all about loss. Losing family, comrades, soldiers, spouses. All in the name of duty.”

“Everything is about sacrifices.” She said softly. 

He pursed his lips, “It doesn’t have to be.”

“There’s so much folklore that our ancestors believed in. A lot of it was absolute. Like you will experience loss. You will have to sacrifice. You will find love. Stuff like that.” She countered. 

He shook his head, “Sure, but you should fight for what you want. Just because someone tells you what your destiny is doesn’t mean you have to just accept it.”

“I guess you’re right.” She said quietly. Just because the Lover’s Curse told her that they were destined to lose each other in a sacrifice doesn’t mean she had to let it happen. That was why she was fighting so hard in the first place. “Would you do that?”

Taeyong tilted his head in question, “Like fight for something?”

“Yeah.” She asked softly. 

He puffed his cheeks for a minute, “It depends. If it’s something I couldn’t live without I would go down trying. But if it’s something I’m doing out of selfishness, I might step back.”

Haeun wondered what Taeyong would’ve done if their roles were reversed. Would he fight for her if she didn’t remember him or would he have eventually let her go after a while of trying?

The two of them sat together for a while longer, finishing off the rest of the brownies as they chatted a bit more about their day. It didn’t matter that he didn’t remember anything about their pasts, conversation flowed just as easily between them as it used to. 

“Hey, I was wondering if you wanted to go into the city later today. It’s nice out and it’d be cool to walk around. Maybe grab food?” He offered as he began packing up his things.

She grinned and nodded, taking a bite out of a brownie, “Sounds like a plan.”

He reached out and fiddled with a strand of her stray hair, "Good. I'll pick you up."

-----

Haeun spotted Jaehyun at the coffee shop and raced up to him, swinging her arm around his shoulders. She was in such a good mood, it had been a while since she felt this hopeful, “Hey! You’ve disappeared. How are you?”

Jaehyun grinned, eyebrows wiggling, “Freshly ed and in love. Things are looking good for your Prince.”

“Disgusting.” Haeun gagged as she let go of him, “I’m telling on you. I have Nayoon’s number now. She's going to hear all my complaints.”

He smirked, “She knows what we’ve been up to. She's in trouble too.”

She rolled her eyes before speaking gently, "Are you happy?" 

Jaehyun gave her a smile so pure that it nearly brought tears to her eyes, "So happy. I still can't believe this is real. That I actually get to be with her. I never thought this day would come."

"You deserve it and more." She said with a sincere smile. "I'm sorry I never did more to learn about the two of you."

He squeezed her arm, "I made Taeyong promise. I knew it'd hurt you to know what I was going through, you'd blame yourself and I didn't want you to. Don't apologize."

"At least you're with her now." She said with a proud smile.

He grinned, ", I'm so sickeningly happy right now, I didn't think I could feel this way to be this happy. I almost feel gross."

“You're going to be unbearable.” She muttered with a laugh. “Hey, can I ask, what did you think when I showed you that book with your family portrait?”

He led her to a small table where they took a seat, “Honestly, I still thought that you didn’t know anything, so I just thought it was a cosmic coincidence. I thought that you showed it to me because you saw the name Jung. I couldn’t tell if you recognized me in the picture so I lied just incase you didn't see me in the picture. I didn't want to freak you out, but it did pique my curiosity, I thought maybe you were slowly remembering or something.”

“You’d think we’d be better at talking to each other by now.” She snorted, “It’s insane that you knew this whole time.”

He gave her a sympathetic look, “It’s more insane that you knew. That must’ve been so hard. Just you and Mark. And Taeyong blatantly pushing you away and ignoring you. I’m sorry that this happened. Have you gotten any other information?”

“No.” She said softly, “I think my whole fixation on those three days is a bust. I’ll still keep digging but it’s obvious there’s nothing there. He just got hurt, healed, and came back. He would’ve told me if something else happened.” 

He rested his hand over hers sympathetically, “I’m really sorry, Haeun. I wish we could do more.”

“Don’t worry.” She said, patting his hand, “Taeyong and I started off rough but I think we’re getting closer. It . I wish this didn’t happen but, I like seeing him this way. It sort of reminds me of when we first met. Plus, I should thank you, even when you thought no one knew, you were still helping Taeyong navigate his feelings and try to get us together. Like our personal guardian angel.”

He faked a gag, "This is too much sweetness, even for me, maiden."

She shook her head and laughed, “Anyways, enough about me. How are you and Nayoon? Is everything really going that well?”

“Yeah.” He said with a small smile, “I introduced her to my parents.”

Her jaw dropped, “Already?”

“You’ve done worse.” He snapped back. “I've seen you and Taeyong get married 6 months into remembering. But I don’t understand how this whole universe thing is working or what will happen the next day or the next month. It's unpredictable. My parents could remember everything tomorrow for all I know. I wanted to introduce them to her as soon as possible.”

She raised her brow, “How’d it go?”

“Honestly? Amazing. They love her. Think she’s amazing and basically made her a part of the family. I hope that by the time they remember, they accept her.” He said softly. 

“You deserve that much.” Haeun said. “And even if they do push back, we’re all on your side here. We won't let it happen."

Jaehyun smiled her fondly, and Haeun resisted the urge to cry. She wanted to hug him, to just breakdown because she was so grateful to have him back. The brotherly warmth that he always shared with her. 

She missed him so much and was relieved that one more person was there for her. 

Joseon Dynasty —— 1890

The palace was abuzz with excitement as the lunar festival grew close. It was being held tonight and Haeun kept changing her robes to find the prettiest one.

The Royal family had sent her family invitations to the celebration at the palace. It wasn’t often that townspeople were invited. Usually, her father would be the only one to go as the palace would invite him because he would deliver cakes and they’d ask him to stay.

She imagined Jaehyun had a little to do with why the entire family, Mark included, was invited to go. 

“Ugh! Nothing suits me.” She grumbled, tossing her last pretty robe onto her bed. 

Her mother smiled, “I’m sure you will look wonderful in anything.”

“No, I’ll look hideous!” Haeun groaned dramatically before dropping down next to her. “I’ve tried on everything.”

She hummed, “Not everything.”

Haeun peeked up at her mom, “What do you mean?”

Her mother pulled out a large white box and presented it to Haeun. “Here.”

“What is that?”

She smiled, “I found it outside the shop. It was addressed to you. I believe there is a note inside.”

Haeun blinked and opened the box before gasping. Inside was the most beautiful pink and green silk robe with gold threading lining the hems. She picked up the little card and flipped it open, reading the ink message.

In case you have nothing else to wear, sunflower. See you tonight. -Taeyong

-----

The palace was decorated beautifully, rich red drapes hanging from the ceilings and lanterns swinging as people walked by. 

Haeun’s eyes were wide as she looked around the ballroom as music floated through the air. 

“Woah.” Mark whispered. “This is incredible.”

She could only nod, speechless at the sights in front of her. She had been in the palace many times but it never looked anything like this. People were talking, dancing, and laughing, and once the awe wore off, her eyes searched for one person. 

Haeun spotted Taeyong by the front of the room where the Royal family sat. The King, Queen, and Prince were seated on their thrones, Taeyong standing by their sides. The air in the palace was lighter, Taeyong was smiling. She bit down on her lip, he was dressed in his royal guard robes and looked positively dashing. 

His eyes scanned over the crowd as if he sensed her presence until his eyes landed on hers. A slow smile spread over his face when his eyes trailed down to the robes she was wearing. A blush raised on her cheeks when he lifted a brow at her and winked at her. 

Shivers ran through her before pulling her gaze away and accidentally landed on Jaehyun who was also looking her way with a happy grin before leaning over and whispering something to Taeyong. Haeun quickly turned away just as Mark grabbed her arm and dragged to a table filled with sweets. They filled their stomachs while whispering and talking about everything they unfolding in the celebrations in front of them.

After a while of mingling and circling the entire ballroom, her parents left to speak to some of the officials and Mark had left her side to go do some more exploring when Doyoung and Young Ho offered. She had decided to stay and just enjoy the music, the food, and watching Taeyong. Her favourite pass time. 

Until a Noblewoman walked up near her with a group of maidens. One of the girls spoke in hushed tones, “Did you hear? There are rumors that the Prince will not marry and will not seek a bride.”

The Noblewoman snickered, “That’s no problem, I have my eye on someone else.”

“Who?” The girls gasped, looking around. 

Haeun peeked over at the group and watched the Noblewoman smile coyly, “The Prince’s head guard.”

Haeun felt her heart stop and her palms grow sweaty as she dropped the little cookie in her hand. She looked over at the girls and found them all staring at Taeyong. 

“Oh, wow, he’s gorgeous.” One of the girls whispered, “How come I’ve never noticed him before?”

Haeun felt her hands tremble before they curled into fists.

The Noblewoman snickered, “If I can’t get the Prince, I might as well aim for the man closest to him. Apparently, he's very close to him, so his bride would get nearly all the perks of a Princess. His name is Lee Taeyong, isn’t he so masculine? I heard he is the youngest head guard in the history of the palace and is so talented.”

One of the other women pursed her lips, “Wait, but I heard that he has a bride.”

Haeun perked up, feeling a bit more at ease. Surely the women would stop gossiping about her man once they knew the truth. Of course, she and Taeyong chose not to announce their relationship until they were engaged but still, these women should know he’s taken. 

The Noblewoman laughed, “She isn’t his bride. I just heard that he’s frolicking around with some woman from town. He’s probably playing around with her until he needs to marry, you know how men are. I’m sure once the time comes, he’ll look for someone more suitable for a head guard. That woman is nothing I need to worry about.”

Haeun felt dry and tears itch up . She knew Taeyong like the back of her hand. He approached her first, he loved her fully, he wanted to marry her, he had said it multiple times. She had complete faith that he would stay loyal and only had eyes for her. He wouldn’t leave her for a Noblewoman that he barely knew. 

But it hurt to hear someone be so dismissive of the love they shared and speak about her like she was someone so easy to step over. 

Is that how people would see her if they announced their marriage? Would she be seen as unfit? Up until now, she didn’t think people would have such opinions on the bride of a guard. 

Feeling overwhelmed, she looked up just as Taeyong glanced over at her and panicked. She turned away from the women and hurried out of the ballroom. When she failed to find Mark, she escaped the crowds by running into the Queen’s garden.

Letting out a breath, Haeun stood by the sunflowers, trying to calm herself down. Lanterns were floating overhead, glittering in the sky like little stars. She would've admired the beauty if she wasn't so preoccupied. 

She was being foolish, it shouldn’t bother her what other people think. The Noblewoman could be the most alluring woman on this planet but she knew Taeyong would always pick her. 

Right?

“I’ve been looking everywhere for you, sunflower. What are you doing out here?”

She spun to see Taeyong walking towards her, “It was crowded, I didn’t think you’d get a chance to step away.”

“And miss seeing you in these robes? Absolutely not.” He cooed, sliding his arm around her waist. 

She hummed leaning close, feeling overwhelmed by his proximity and scent, “Well, I’m glad I picked somewhere secluded because now I can do this without anyone watching.”

Haeun kissed Taeyong, heated against his, tasting like sugar, caramel, and something just uniquely hers. He could spend his whole life trying to recreate it and he'd never get close to the real thing. To her. 

Pulling back, she grinned at him, “Thank you for the robes. You didn’t have to do this for me. They’re beautiful.”

“I wanted to do something nic

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tang53 #1
Chapter 23: I love this story that I come across a few days ago. It is amazing and beautiful. I love how intact their friendship is and their loyalty to each other even after their reincarnation.
Shawolgurl
#2
Chapter 23: Hi.. new reader here!! I just stumble upon this story a couple days ago, and i just can't stop reading it. I literally read this non-stop until the last chapter. I enjoy reading this story so much!!!
I love the characters, the plot, their friendship, their conversations, everything . I don't think i've ever read story about reincarnations and soulmates that is so beautiful, well written and wholesome like this. Thank you for sharing this with us.
I'm looking forward to read your other stories. <333
Pennywise45 #3
Chapter 23: I've only read your nct stories, but I absolutely love them so much. Your books have me feeling a certain way and I'll be sure to check your other stories out. I literally don't know if I can move on from Small Universes Around Us and Maison des Fleurs because they are masterpieces.
supacha #4
Chapter 23: Thank you for writing this fic. You are fantastic and i hope you know that your fics bring joy and happiness to your readers. Its so full of love and i love it!
exiAkim #5
Chapter 23: This is the first time I finished a story here at asianfanfics after 5 years. I'm so glad I decided to come back here. I've been busy with work and life and stuff so it's hard and I want something to reward myself.
Thank you for the wonderful story!
I know it's so late already but I appreciate your work. The plot, the characters, the twist, and everything is wonderful. Can't wait to read all your other fics. Keep up the good work. Fighting!
AutumnLady94 #6
Chapter 23: I've always known that you are absolutely a sick writer but I just wanna beat myself for not reading this fic earlier. I've read your other fics and somehow I've always put this fic on hold. I'm ing mad rn. This fic is outstanding, no surprise, because you gave birth to this. Thank you very much for the mind-blowing plots, nonsense but intriguing scenes and heartbreaking love stories. I hope you well and never stop writing bombs. Let us know if you wanna do publishing. I'll buy without even thinking properly. Again, thank you.
EJ-ARMYz
#7
Chapter 23: I got interested when you up the first chapter, but i were busy with my studies and looking for internship opportunity. So it took me a long time to read your story.



I'm glad i got to read this now. It's mindblowing journey for me. I think you always write the story that connects with other people's life. I mean it's easy to feel attach with the character's feeling, behaviour and situations like i'm the one in the story. I also love how you potray the relationships between the characters as in love relationship and friendship. It's make me think that i need to appreciate more people in my life and what would i do if i lost them. So thank you for that! Hope to see more form you!! <3
Lemlouma
#8
Chapter 23: Dear author,

Thank you for writing such a heart wrenching story that made me tear up a few times too often~
Although this story sometimes left me thinking some parts were not making much sense, I'm glad I still kept on reading because as usual the confusion was solved with time.
You have created one of the most incredible love stories and I enjoyed it from beginning to the end, sometimes even wished for more detailed explenations, also found it refreshing how although it got complicated it was still so easy and simple sometimes - you did a great job in putting out your definition of 'soulmates' as if you had experienced it yourself and at the very least made readers wish to fine exactly that.

So thank you for the effort and I wish you to get even more support on this and all your other stories~
Greetings and the best of wishes from me
MissMong24 #9
Chapter 23: Ah, be still my heart. WOW that was such a rollercoaster! Loviet you never disappoint. This was so so so beautiful THANK YOU SO MUCH for taking the time to write this piece and share it with us. I was clearly able to feel the love the two had for each other and i also especially love how their friends were so supportive of them too. Goes to show how pure and kind haeun and taeyong are. I also really like that despite how hopelessly in love they are to each other but they still have their own close friends around them as well and i think it serves as a nice reminder to your readers that a romantic relationship cannot fulfill your everything, you also need your own set of friends who can support you in the ways that your significant other cannot.
MissMong24 #10
Chapter 17: OMG WHAT IS HAPPENING NOOOO