Chapter 42 – I Do

 

 

As expected, the two people that were to be married today hadn’t gotten a wink of sleep. Both Yonghwa and Shin Hye were extremely nervous about how their wedding day would play out. Even Seohyun, who wasn’t even part of the ceremony, hadn’t gotten a second of sleep. All three people worried about what would happen by the end of the day. Unfortunately for Seohyun, she was the only thing close to a female friend Shin Hye had. Shin Hye was a nice girl and it was strange to see her not have many friends, but she spent far too much time at work to be social. Somehow she had gotten stuck as Shin Hye’s maid of honor and as her helper for the day. It pained her to be helping the woman that had a possibility of stealing away her true love, but she had no other choice.

“Good morning Shin Hye,” Seohyun greeted in the sweetest voice she could muster. She wanted nothing more than to ask Shin Hye to leave her Yonghwa, but she couldn’t be that weak. Yonghwa had confessed to her that he would come to a decision and she was confident he would come through. “Are you ready for the big day?”

“Yeah, you could say I am,” Shin Hye responded wearily. “I didn’t really get much sleep last night from how nervous I was so I’m a little worn out today.” Even if Shin Hye hadn’t gotten enough sleep, Seohyun could tell she wasn’t too excited about the marriage either. The voice coming out of the petite girl wasn’t one that a bride-to-be should have.

“Are you sure you’re up for running errands?” Seohyun asked with sincere concern lining her voice. Even if the girls were rivals, Seohyun wasn’t an evil person. Shin Hye truly looked like she was about to fall over and faint.

“Nah, I’ll be alright. Let’s just go ahead and pick up all the things we need to before we have to head over to the reception area,” the weak girl suggested. Seohyun, not wanting to bother her anymore, followed her lead without another question. While walking towards their first destination, she couldn’t help but feel nostalgia at the situation. The same awkwardness that she had felt with Min Jung all those years back was wedging its way into her thoughts. She wanted to be friends with Shin Hye, but the fact that they were rivals in love prevented that.

After a few minutes of uncomfortable walking, they were at the place for their first errand. “We’re at a jewelry shop?” Seohyun asked confusedly.

“Yeah, Yonghwa is an idiot and forgot to pick up the wedding rings last week. I swear that guy gets too involved in his work sometimes,” Shin Hye managed to laugh. Seohyun could tell from a mile away that it was a forced chuckle, but once again she wouldn’t question it. “I’ll be done quickly so just look around I guess.”

“Alright.” The woman who would be married in just a few hours ran off to find the person in charge of the pre-ordered jewels while Seohyun wandered around aimlessly. While she wanted to drop all thoughts of the marriage today, they didn’t seem to want to go away. Little things would pop into her head just as others would exit and it was starting to drive her insane.

“You seem to have a lot on your mind,” noticed a voice next to her. “It’s not becoming of a beautiful young woman such as yourself.” Seohyun looked up from the glass case and noticed a middle aged woman staring into her eyes with a piercing gaze. Usually when a stranger looks at you in that way, the first response would be to back off. However, Seohyun couldn’t help but feel intrigued at the ahjumma’s staring. It was as if the lady was using her eyes as a window into her mind.

“It’s nothing,” she lied. The ahjumma continued to hold her gaze, slightly blinking when she heard Seohyun lie.

“Are you the person in charge of the orders?” Shin Hye asked the woman after she looked around the whole store.

“Yes, I am. Sorry for leaving my post. I just thought this young lady needed my help,” the old woman apologized. “I’ll go get your order. You are Miss Park Shin Hye?”

“Yes, that’s me.” After her agreement, the woman disappeared into the back storage area, leaving Shin Hye and a stunned Seohyun to wait. “Seohyun are you alright? You seem a little out of it. If you don’t want to come help me with these things I’ll go and do them alone.”

“N-no, I’m fine,” Seohyun sleepily responded. Something about the woman had left her in some kind of trance. How had she known that she was thinking about something? How did she know something was bothering her? What had gotten to Seohyun especially was that gaze she stared down at her with. She was never a superstitious person, but there was something strange about that woman that she couldn’t explain.

“It’s always nice to see a youngster such as yourself with such a strong desire to get married,” the woman praised. It sounded like a normal praise for the occasion, but it seemed to be directed towards the wrong person. The ahjumma stared at Seohyun as she spoke, not turning to Shin Hye once.

“Um, I think you have the wrong person,” Seohyun corrected the woman. “I’m not the one that’s getting married. It’s Shin Hye who is engaged.” The woman gentle smile grew larger and never broke eye contact with Seohyun.

“Love is never a waste of time,” the woman commented. Both Shin Hye and Seohyun gave each other equally confused looks as to what she was trying to say. “That’s what you’re thinking right now isn’t it? You’re thinking that you’re wasting your time holding that love in your heart, but I assure you that you’re not. That guilt you feel for loving that man in your heart, throw it away. Love is a guiltless feeling. These rings…” Seohyun looked at the simple gold bands in the case intently as she pulled them out.

“What about them?”

“I know they’ll end up on the correct fingers when the time comes.” Seohyun’s heart almost flew out of her chest at the woman’s explanations. She wanted nothing more than for the woman to say that it would be her wearing the ring at the end of the day. Shin Hye’s reaction was almost the opposite of Seohyun’s. Although she was hopeful, in the end she had been dreading this day. Something about the woman’s words made her believe them. Even though she was only one step away from marrying Yonghwa, she wasn’t too sure about it.

“I’m sorry, but we have to go,” Seohyun interrupted. As much as she wanted to hear that she would be Yonghwa’s wife at the end of the day, it wasn’t fair for Shin Hye to hear that. “Shin Hye let’s go.” Seohyun turned her back on the person giving her so many more doubts in order to keep herself calm. Her anxiety was already through the roof and she didn’t need anyone else filling her head with more false hopes.

“A-alright…” Shin Hye mumbled. In truth she knew what the lady was saying wasn’t all that wrong. After hearing Yonghwa’s confession to Min Jung that day he had gotten beaten up, she wasn’t so sure about marrying him anymore. They were good friends and all, but she didn’t want to force him into something that he wasn’t 100% sure of. Taking the rings out of the jewelry store owner’s hand, she followed Seohyun’s lead out.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Only one hour remained until the start of the ceremony that would tie together two people that weren’t in love with each other. As she should be, Shin Hye was nervous to the point where she couldn’t even stand. She felt a little bad having Seohyun help her get ready, but she was really the only person she could trust with it. They hadn’t seen Yonghwa all day but they assumed that he was probably in a similar state of mind.

“You look absolutely amazing Shin Hye,” Seohyun praised. After hearing the ahjumma’s words back at the jewelry store she had shed a little bit of her worries and eased up a little. In the end the older woman was right and she needed to just stay calm and let things go as they are intended to. If she was meant to be at Yonghwa’s side, fate would set things straight. If she tried to force things to happen, she would end up making things worse.

“I couldn’t have done it without you,” Shin Hye thanked. “I’m so nervous right now and I can’t even think straight. We’ve been engaged for a few months now but I never thought this day would come. I don’t know if I’ll even be able to walk across the aisle.”

“Just keep your head on straight and you should be fine. Remember, you only get married for the first time once and you’ll remember it for the rest of your life,” Seohyun pointed out. “Just remember all the things that you guys are getting married for and why you’re doing it. Keep in mind the feelings you have for each other and it should give you the strength to go through with this.”

“Yeah…” Shin Hye mumbled in response. Hearing Seohyun’s words made the doubts in her head grow even larger. As much as she wanted to marry Yonghwa, she knew they weren’t truly in love. Love is a game that has to be played with two people, but in her case Yonghwa hadn’t even been a player from the start. “I wonder how he’s doing right now.”

In the room where the groom was resting, three younger males kept on asking him if he was ready to go through with this. Ever since Seohyun had come back into his life, his first thought was to ditch Shin Hye. He had so many opportunities to do it, yet he had been too cowardly to take them. Now they were at the end of the road and there was two ways out. Either he married Shin Hye or he didn’t say ‘I Do.’ He cursed himself for letting things get this far, but there was nothing he could do now except act.

“Hyung, are you really going to marry Shin Hye?” Jungshin asked to make sure. Seohyun’s return into their lives had affected everyone and Jungshin wanted nothing more than to stop his wedding. Sure he had the urge to have a cliché ‘STOP THE WEDDING!’ scene just as the couple was about to tie the knot, but he couldn’t do that. It was up to Yonghwa to decide whether he married Shin Hye or not.

“Jungshin, just leave me alone about that already. I know what I’m going to do once the time comes. Go see if the guests need anything.” The three confused boys in the room obeyed the disturbed leader of the group and left him to think on his own. In reality he knew what he needed to do but he was worried about Shin Hye. If he had gotten a bit more courage back then he would have been able to end it in a cleaner fashion. Now that he was leaving her at the altar was just going to make things messier than they should have been.

“Damn it Yonghwa, what the hell did you get yourself into?” After scolding himself a few times he realized it was time for him to get to his spot and wait for his bride. A deep breath was heard before he stood up and walked towards the moment of truth. Walking into the room proved to be a difficult task. Not only were his legs not cooperating with him, but the guests he noticed entering almost made him freeze up. People he hadn’t seen in years were all of a sudden showing up. He received a few glares from some of them, but he knew he deserved them.

“Congratulations,” Goo Hara told the awestricken man in an insincere voice. “Seriously, congrats.”

 “H-Hara?”

“Yeah, it’s me Hara. I heard you were getting married and I just had to see it. Of course it would have been nicer if it was Seohyun walking towards you and not some other girl…” she commented acidly. Behind her were Yoona, Taecyeon, and what he assumed were their kids. Even Uee and her little girl showed up to congratulate him. He was already boiling in the black tuxedo he was wearing and this was only adding more fuel to the fire.

“I’ll talk to you guys later,” he said to them. Yonghwa knew he hadn’t invited them so it was only safe to assume that Shin Hye had. However, Shin Hye and he hadn’t ever even talked about his old friends so there was no way that was possible. Seohyun wasn’t rude enough to invite people without him knowing so it couldn’t have been her either. Either way, he shook off the negativity radiating from his old friends and he headed to his spot at the altar. The peace of mind he was searching for by heading to his position in front of the officiator never came to him. Now he was the center of attention of a few dozen people and they all seemed to be glaring at him almost.

“Are you alright Yonghwa-shi?” the older male asked. “You seem to be bothered by something.” Yonghwa looked up at the important looking man and gave him a reassuring nod. Yonghwa indeed looked like he was about to faint from the anxiety he was feeling. If he wasn’t already dying from the heat of the formal clothes he was wearing, the powerful stares he was getting were finishing the job off.

“Welcome everyone to the wedding of Jung Yonghwa and Park Shin Hye,” Jungshin began, snapping Yonghwa out of his feverish daze. “Thank you all for attending such a joyous occasion and giving all your support to this couple that will now begin their married life. Now without further ado, let us meet the lovely bride, Miss Park Shin Hye!” The audience all turned their heads to see the bride now entering the large double doors as the bridal march played in the background. There was no doubt that Shin Hye was a stunning bride. Her hair, her makeup, her posture, her dress, everything was just perfect. Had Yonghwa not been in love with Seohyun, he was sure he would have fallen for her.

“You better take care of my daughter well,” Shin Hye’s father ordered in an almost threatening voice. Just as the rest of the guests, Shin Hye’s father seemed to be angry at him too. Yonghwa cringed slightly before bowing and taking the beautiful woman from his arm. It made no sense for these people to all be angry at him, but in the end he just passed it off as part of his imagination.

Nothing had been as Shin Hye had wanted it to. She hadn’t been able to walk across the aisle with a smile on her face with butterflies of happiness in her stomach. Her father had growled almost the whole way and he didn’t look happy to be there. The audience was stunned by her beauty, but the atmosphere of anger and disappointment suffocated any positive feelings in her. Even when Yonghwa had took her hand, it felt so distant and foreign. She was touching him, holding his hand even, yet she felt as if she were thousands of miles away from him. He hadn’t even lifted the veil slowly as she had imagined it in her mind.

Time flew by and the long, boring ceremony was reaching its . Yonghwa hadn’t even paid attention to anything the officiator had said before the moment of truth. Had it been Seohyun he was getting married to, he would have paid 110% attention. Instead he had spent the entire time spacing out and planning on how to let Shin Hye down as easily as possible.

Shin Hye was in the same predicament as Yonghwa was. Every now and then she would steal a glance and notice his dazed state. Ever since she had heard his conversation with Min Jung almost a month ago, she hadn’t been able to rest easy. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that Yonghwa was having cold feet and that he was on the verge of just bolting out of the door. In just a few moments she would have to choose whether she said ‘I do’ or not. Her heart screamed at her to say it already and get it over with. That part of her wanted to be as selfish as possible and keep Yonghwa to herself. However, deep down she knew that she should let him be.

“Do you, Park Shin Hye, take Jung Yonghwa to be your lawfully wedded husband?  Do you promise to be true to him in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health?  Will you love and honor him all the days of your life?” the officiator asked. The lines that they had heard at millions of other weddings finally came around to theirs. Both members of the couple snapped out of their respective daydreams and gave each other a blank stare. Yonghwa felt bad for leaving her, but he had to do what he had to do. He waited anxiously for her to say ‘I do’ only to be rejected at the last second by him.

“…”

“Um, Miss Shin Hye, do you take Jung Yonghwa…” the officiator continued saying, but she didn’t hear any of it. Her tongue and lips quivered as she struggled to give an answer. It was the moment of truth and she had to make the best choice. She didn’t know whether to give him a selfish yes and get rejected or give him a selfless no and let him go. Yonghwa cursed himself inwardly for letting things get to that point and just waited for her to sign her death sentence.

“Wait,” Shin Hye interrupted. “Yonghwa, wait here.” The crowd began to mumble in surprise when Shin Hye stepped off the altar and began to scan the crowd for the woman that Yonghwa truly loved. Yonghwa was left completely speechless from what he had just heard. He was sure that Shin Hye would say yes to him, yet she had just left the room in search of something. Even if he had wanted to go search for Shin Hye and ask what was up, his feet were glued to the floor.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Seohyun dejectedly walked out of the place where the man she loved married another woman that day. She promised both Yonghwa and Shin Hye that she would stay the whole duration, but she couldn’t interrupt such an important day for them. If she was there it would only pressure Yonghwa into making a decision and she couldn’t have that. It would be up to him to decide whether he lived his life with her or Shin Hye. In her eyes, this was true strength and true love: the strength to let him make his own decision.

“Seohyun,” Shin Hye’s voice echoed through the elaborately decorated halls of the building where weddings took place. “Wait!” Seohyun turned and met with the girl that was supposed to be vowing to spend her life with Jung Yonghwa. Shin Hye clumsily held her long dress and ran over to her rival in love, almost tripping a few times in the process.

“Shin Hye, what are you doing here? The wedding isn’t over that fast is it?” Seohyun asked confusedly. Shin Hye’s face didn’t look like someone who had just gotten rejected, so Seohyun was sure that Yonghwa hadn’t ended the wedding early.

“Come with me,” Shin Hye ordered, taking Seohyun’s hand and dragging her away. Without knowing what was going on, the perplexed woman followed without arguing. Seohyun became even more confused once she set foot in the room she had just been in as Shin Hye had gotten ready. “Open that box in the corner over there. Put on the dress that’s inside it.”

“Shin Hye, I… what’s going on here?”

“Just open the box,” she commanded confidently. Seohyun nodded slightly and decided to obey the petite woman’s instructions. A large pink box with a white ribbon wrapping around it sat in the corner, waiting for her to open. Seohyun’s eyes almost popped out of her sockets once they met with the object that was in the box. “Shin Hye...?”

“I knew this would end up happening,” Shin Hye began as she took off her wedding dress. “Wear that dress in the box. I don’t know if it’s exactly what you would like but I thought you would. You seemed to like it a lot that day we were in the bridal shop together. Don’t worry about me, just worry about you. Let’s just hope the dress fits you.”

“Shin Hye, I don’t understand what’s going on here. Why are you telling me to put on this wedding dress?” Seohyun asked bewilderedly. It would make sense to anyone else as to why someone asks you to put on a wedding dress, but Seohyun was far too astonished to think.

“It’s your wedding dress duh. Did you notice that a lot of your old friends were here even though I didn’t know them at all? Did you notice how everyone was angry with Yonghwa for some reason even though he hadn’t done anything?” Shin Hye questioned. Seohyun had found all that very strange, but she still had no idea where Shin Hye was going with this.

“Yeah, but this still doesn’t make any sense to me.”

“I knew about you and Yonghwa for almost a month now. I found out about it when I heard him and Min Jung arguing the day I bought the dress. You know I planned to actually marry him,” she chuckled sadly. “I kept telling myself to not let him go and to keep him for myself, but I just couldn’t. I invited everyone here and set this up so you two could get married.”

“What? Shin Hye, you can’t be serious. This is a joke isn’t it?” Seohyun sarcastically asked. “This has to be a joke.”

“It’s not a joke I assure you that. You two are idiots for letting so many things get in between you and I set this up to finally tie you two together. To be honest I was really close to saying that ‘I do’ but in the end my guilty conscience wouldn’t let me,” she explained. Without any hesitation Shin Hye continued to tear off her wedding dress and throw on a more appropriate bridesmaid dress. “Well, put that on already.”

“A-alright…” Soon enough Shin Hye was rapidly moving her hands up and down Seohyun’s body in order to get the wedding dress onto her. It was slightly loose, but other than that it fit perfectly. Without any words, Shin Hye forcefully threw the new bride onto a chair and began to layer on makeup.

“I can’t really do hair, but your hair is so pretty and long that I’m sure he won’t mind if it’s just in a simple style,” Shin Hye chirped happily as she ran a brush through it. After a few of the brush and just one or two pins, Seohyun’s hair was set for everyone to see her. “Alright girl, all your friends are out there and ready to see you marry that .”

“Shin Hye, this is-”

“Don’t say anything Seohyun,” Shin Hye interrupted. “Just go out there and get married to him already. Don’t let anything that anyone says or does break you apart ever. You wouldn’t want this effort of mine to go to waste would you?”

“Why are you doing this?” Seohyun asked in desperation. She would much rather see Shin Hye crying and weeping than in the happy state she was in. Shin Hye’s smile and giddy attitude broke Seohyun’s heart and she couldn’t stand it. “Why are you giving him up?”

“You should know that better than anyone else. Why did you give him up to me in the first place?” Shin Hye countered. “You let him go because you loved him. Remember what they always say:  If you love someone, you should be able to let them go. I’m just repaying your favor.”

“Are you sure you’re not making a mistake here?” Seohyun asked to make sure. She couldn’t have Shin Hye screw up her own wedding, only to regret it later.

“Nah, I’m not making any mistake here. Yonghwa was going to leave me at the altar anyways. I might as well do him the favor and dump him myself first,” she giggled. Upon hearing her explanation, Seohyun’s heart calmed down a little. She knew exactly the feeling of leaving someone in order to make them happy.

“You had this all planned from the beginning? Shin Hye, I don’t think I could ever repay you for what you’re doing here,” Seohyun noted. “I’m speechless right now.”

“You can repay me by making Yonghwa happy alright?” Shin Hye responded with the most genuine voice she could use. “From the start he wasn’t for me. I knew he wasn’t going to love me ever but I kept lying to myself about it. I’m happy that I got to help him and comfort him when he needed it, but I can’t hold someone that doesn’t love me away from you.”

“Thank you so much Shin Hye,” Seohyun appreciated. “There is nothing I can say to you right now about how grateful I am to you.”

“We still have to see if Yonghwa will take you as a wife,” Shin Hye teased. “We can’t get too far ahead of ourselves. I already texted Jungshin so that he will present you as you come in. I got your brother to come at the last minute, so he will walk you across the aisle.”

“How did you find all those people?”

“Your friend Min Jung was more than happy to help. I’ve been in contact with her for a long time and she helped me plan all of this,” Shin Hye replied. “She’s the one who tried to get everything to fit your and Yonghwa’s preferences. Without her I would most likely still be trying to marry him. Enough of this, we can talk about it later. Get moving.”

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

“Sorry for the delay on the main event everyone,” Jungshin began on the microphone. “Turn your heads towards the doors at the back of the room in order to see the true bride come in. I introduce to you, the bride, Seo Joohyun.” After the MC, Jungshin, finished the introduction, Seohyun came through the doors in the same manner Shin Hye had done so just a few moments ago.

“You sure have a weird taste for a wedding little sis,” her brother joked while walking her to the man of her dreams. “I almost want to kick your idiot husband’s for making you suffer so much, but then again it was mostly father’s fault.”

“Oppa, I had no idea that this was even going to happen,” Seohyun remarked. “Did you already know about this?”

“Yeah, Shin Hye-shi told us that she would fake this whole thing in order for you to get married a few weeks back. You and Yonghwa are the only people here that were kept in the dark about this,” whispered.

“What? How come nobody asked me if I wanted to marry Yonghwa or not?” Seohyun asked him. However, they had reached Yonghwa’s side already and she didn’t seem like she would get an answer.

“Yonghwa, you’re a capable man that’s been through a lot. Although I don’t approve of some of your actions, I believe you will be someone that can take care of my sister. I apologize on behalf of my family for causing you trouble, but that’s all in the past. Just make her happy alright?” Yonghwa, still being in the dark about all of this took Seohyun slowly by the hand and pulled her over to him. Just as he had imagined it a billion times in his head, he removed her veil and laid his eyes on the woman he had dreamt about for ten years.

Somehow it seemed like it was all a dream once again. Both Yonghwa and Seohyun couldn’t believe that they were kneeling in front of someone who had the power to make them into a married couple. Just as Yonghwa and Shin Hye had ignored all the words of the officiator, Seohyun and Yonghwa did so too. Instead of doubting each other though, they tried to make sense of the situation. Somehow they were together and just moments away from getting married. How this had happened, neither of them knew.

“Now, since this is a rather ‘interesting’ wedding, I will have you say your own vows,” the officiator announced. “Yonghwa-shi would you like to take the initiative.”

“Um, yeah,” Yonghwa responded absentmindedly. Even if he couldn’t make sense of the situation, he had to get his act together for the vows. “Seohyun, will it be possible for me to take you as a wife?” he began. “I’ve never had anyone to care for until you came around. Life was an aimless waste of time that I couldn’t even deal with. I was alone, I was in the dark, and I hated the world. However, you came around and bugged me to death until I finally opened my eyes. Slowly I began to notice how I needed that bright smile of yours in my life in order for me to live. I’ve done so much wrong to you and I don’t deserve to even look at you, but I need to do this. I don’t really know what’s going on here, but I’ll take this as an opportunity to finally claim you as mine. Do you take this idiot in front of you as your husband?”

If everyone in the room hadn’t known this was a surprise wedding, they would think that Yonghwa had already prepared those words. Seohyun, touched from the sincerity and truth in his words began to have tears in her eyes, but fought them down in order to prevent her makeup from getting ruined. “I do. You don’t even have to ask me.” Shin Hye walked up and handed Yonghwa the ring that the jewelry store ahjumma predicted would be Seohyun’s. He took her slender hand in his and placed the ring on her finger, symbolizing that she was now his.

“Seohyun-shi would you please continue with yours.”

“Yonghwa, there’s so many things that I want to ask you right now. As I can’t really ask any of that, I’ll just keep it short. Even though you treated me like the plague every time you saw me, I knew that I had to be part of your life. Before I knew it, I had fallen for your egotistical and cynical personality, even though it hurt me,” Seohyun began. “After so many things keeping us apart, we’re finally here on this altar and it seems like a dream. Although we’ve caused each other so much suffering, it’s over. Do you want to take me as your wife?”

“Of course I do,” he replied eagerly. Just as he had done so, she placed a ring on his finger as well.

“These two are now one. Seohyun-shi mentioned something about it being over, but it isn’t. Marriage isn’t the end of love, but only the beginning. After all that has happened to this couple, fate has finally placed them in front of each other once again. As this couple has had too many objections in the past, I won’t even bother to ask for any at this moment,” the officiator joked, receiving a few snickers from the audience. “You are now husband and wife.”

Before the last line of ‘You may kiss the bride,’ came out of the officiator’s mouth, they lunged at each other with full force. Even though the whole world had been against them, even though everything that could go wrong had gone wrong, they were finally tied together forever. Ten years of separation would be nothing compared to the eternity they would be sharing as one. Fate had finally broken through all the roadblocks and helped the two reach the peace they had so desperately desired. Even if fate hadn’t been on their side, they would have fought against it and won over.

“We still have a lot to talk about you know,” Yonghwa whispered to her after breaking the kiss. “Are you sure you made the right decision?”

“I couldn’t have made a better one,” she responded confidently. “We have the rest of our lives to talk about the past so let’s not do that now. Everyone is here to enjoy themselves so let’s give them what they want.” Yonghwa nodded with a smile on his face and looked over to the audience clapping for them. Although most of them didn’t approve of the methods taken to finally create this marriage, they couldn’t help but be happy.

“Well, you two finally tied the knot huh?” Taecyeon remarked while giving Yonghwa a high five. “Yonghwa, none of us are very happy about you ditching us, but we will kick your later. I’m congratulating you for now, but be ready to get your kicked.”

“I wouldn’t have it any other way Taecyeon,” Yonghwa joked back. “I’m so sorry that I screwed up so badly and I know I will never make it up to you. If there’s anything I can do to repay the debt I owe you for breaking my promise, just let me know.”

“Just keep our girl happy,” Yoona cut in. “Oh and you better end up like me pretty soon.” Yonghwa looked at Yoona’s plump belly and noticed she was expecting, even though she already had quite a few kids at her young age. It seemed like Taecyeon was quite the potent man from what he could tell.

“You’re expecting again Yoona?” Seohyun questioned in disbelief. “Four kids by age 28 is just crazy.”

“Hey, she can’t complain about it. She wasn’t exactly pushing me off of her while we were making it,” Taecyeon teased ertedly.

“You never change do you…?” Yoona asked sarcastically.

“Yeah, yeah, whatever, go and get pregnant,” Hara cut in bitterly. “Just don’t leave Seohyun again alright? I know quite a few people that have some anger management issues that would love to take it out on you Yonghwa.”

“Arasso, arasso,” Yonghwa laughed in response. It had been quite a few years since he was able to act comfortably around people and he loved it. It seemed like they hadn’t been apart at all. Just as it had been in high school, the old gang was back and making jokes like always. Soon enough Uee and Min Jung came into the picture, increasing the happiness of the newlyweds. Before they could keep on laughing, Shin Hye came up to them and pulled them aside quietly.

“I’m glad I made the right choice,” she commented. “You two have been through so much and deserve it.”

“Shin Hye, do you know how much in debt I am to you for doing this?” Yonghwa asked her. “I can never repay you for all you’ve done for me. I can’t explain using words how grateful I am for having met you.”

“There’s no need to repay me. It wasn’t a chore to do this all for you two. I’m nobody to intrude on the right you two have to love each other,” Shin Hye explained. “Although it would have been nice for you to fall in love with me, I’m fine with this. Just promise me you won’t make me regret this alright?” A feeling of nostalgia washed over Yonghwa and Seohyun as Shin Hye let them go. Just as Min Jung had done so at their prom, Shin Hye was renouncing her love in order to make Yonghwa happy at the side of another woman.

“Shin Hye, this is the second time I’ve done something like this to a woman that’s close to me and I feel terrible. I’m really sorry that I couldn’t reciprocate your feelings. Maybe if enough time had passed I could have, but we can’t know for sure,” he began to explain. “You’re such a wonderful person and I can’t believe I couldn’t see that about you. Thanks for being there for me when I needed it and don’t hesitate to ask me to do the same. I’ll be there the second you call.”

“Aw, don’t cry,” Shin Hye whined once the pair in front of her began to tear up. “As much as I want to say that I’m strong and I can bear this, I can’t. I’m only human after all. I want to see you smiling Yonghwa, but since it’s beside someone that’s not me, it hurts. I wish I could be here to support you, but I think I’ll head out. You guys understand right?”

“Yeah, we do,” Seohyun replied. “Shin Hye, you’re one of the most selfless people I know. Just as Yonghwa said, I don’t know how we will repay you. This whole surprise wedding thing is just too unbelievable and doesn’t even make sense to me.”

“Alright, well, I’ll be off now.” Shin Hye bowed to them and turned her back to them, just as Min Jung had all those years back.

“Hey Yonghwa,” Min Jung called out. “There’s some weird old lady that came by and gave me this small box. She told me to give it to you, but she wouldn’t tell me her name.” Yonghwa and Seohyun both looked at each other with a surprised look and opened the box up. Inside it were two lockets, each with a picture of them together.

 

The necklace and rings were put to good use after all.

Take these lockets and wear them proudly. Remember, there are no love stories with a happy ending.

Do you know why? That’s because love doesn’t have an ending at all.

If fate tells you that you will lose, fight it anyways. Even that old man pulling the strings gives up every once in a while.

 

“That ring ahjumma…” Seohyun mumbled. “You remember that weird lady that gave you my butterfly necklace? I think I met her again when we went to go pick up the rings this morning. She kept talking about fate and love and how I shouldn’t be worried about it. It sounds awfully similar to the lady that talked to you when you bought that necklace.”

“Yeah, even the notes are written in the same handwriting and tone,” Yonghwa noticed. The pair searched amongst the crowd for the strange woman that seemed to know exactly what would happen. Yonghwa dragged Seohyun towards the door once he caught a glimpse of her exiting the room. She didn’t seem to be walking too fast so he was sure they would catch her.

“What’s wrong? Did you see her?” Seohyun asked, looking around the lobby. “I don’t see her around.”

“I swear I saw her leave and come out here. There’s no way she was fast enough to run out of the building before us,” Yonghwa pointed out. “I have no idea what she is, but I guess we should be thankful to her.”

“I think some things are better left unexplained,” Seohyun stated firmly. “Let’s just go in and have fun. This is our wedding day after all.”

“Yeah, let’s go,” Yonghwa agreed.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The festivities ended, leaving the newlyweds to go to spend almost an entire month in Jeju. It was a little too overused for their taste, but they couldn’t complain since Shin Hye had set everything up. Jeju was where most Korean couples went for their honeymoon and they wished they could have done something a little more extravagant.

“Yah, pick me up and take me into the room,” Seohyun nagged once they reached their hotel room.

“Screw that, you’re too heavy,” Yonghwa complained. It had been years since they had fought in that manner and both of them were loving it. Yonghwa hadn’t used his tone of defiance and anger since they had become an official couple and Seohyun had to admit she missed it. “It’s too much of a drag to carry you. I’m too tired from today so just walk your in.”

“Yonghwa…” Seohyun growled while crossing her arms. “I’m not moving until you carry me through that damn door.” Returning to her old behavior, Seohyun refused to give into his old personality. Truth be told, he was also enjoying her nagging after so many years of not hearing it.

“Fine, I’ll do it. Troublesome woman…” he grumbled. His arms placed themselves on the correct places and carried her bridal style into the room, honoring the tradition most married couples followed. He hadn’t been lying when he said he was tired so he threw her on the bed as fast as he could once they got in. He followed suit and plopped down on the bed they would be sharing for the first time as a married couple.

“Lazy bastard,” she insulted when she noticed him already dozing off. With a mischievous smile on her face she made her way to the bathroom and ‘prepared’ herself for the events of that night. “Yonghwa! Wake up you bum!”

“What do you want now? Your such a-”

“I’m a what?” Seohyun purred. Yonghwa sat up straight when he saw his new wife standing in front of him with almost nothing covering her. Even if he had seen her in worse situations, he was not immune to her feminine charms. “Aren’t you going to finish that sentence?” Just as she had done a few days back, she seductively inched her way onto him.

“You’re a… a… I don’t even know what I was going to say…” he trailed off. “So what do you plan on doing?”

“Oh, I’m sure you’ll love it~” she cooed playfully. Seohyun brought her face down onto his, going in for a kiss. Déjà vu struck once more as he felt the familiar pain in his abdomen again. “You thought you were going to get some tonight? Well screw off Yonghwa! You’re sleeping on the couch tonight.”

“Yah! What the hell is your problem!? You just ran your knee into a place you shouldn’t have!” Yonghwa pointed out. It was hard for him to breathe, let alone speak from the pain he was feeling at the moment. He should have seen it coming, but he let his heated state blind him.

“My problem? Well let me list them all for you. You left me for 10 years, you were about to marry another woman, you didn’t propose to me, you made me marry you at some secret marriage that I didn’t even know about, I didn’t get to plan my own wedding, I didn’t invite who I wanted, I didn’t get to pick you my own dress… shall I go on?” she complained.

“Well, I guess you’re right,” Yonghwa agreed. “But we’re married now and we should put that in the past.”

“Nah, I don’t think I like that idea,” Seohyun interrupted. “Anyways, there’s a lot we have to talk about so don’t even think about doing anything with me. Remember what I said to you that day I tried to seduce you. You’ll be facing punishment for so many more years to come.”

“Now, it’s me who doesn’t like that idea,” Yonghwa responded evilly. Before she knew it, Seohyun was thrown on her back onto the bed forcefully. “You have all that stuff to blame me for? Well, let’s see if you remember it after this.”

“Yonghwa, I’ll scream if you lay a finger on me,” Seohyun threatened. She desperately wanted to keep her act up, but she knew her body would begin to betray her.

“Oh, you’ll be screaming alright. Don’t you worry about that,” he replied in a husky voice. The way he was conducting himself had Seohyun in a heated trance that dulled all her senses. “I think I like the sound of you yelling out my name so please, don’t stop yourself for my sake. Remember what Yoona asked of us? Well we have to get working on that if we want you to end up in her state.”

“ert! Byuntae!” she yelled as he took her arms and pinned her down.

“Ahaha, look at the pot calling the kettle black,” he joked. “What happened in that cabin is nothing compared to what’s happening tonight.” After he slowly shed his clothes, Seohyun quietly squealed as he began to claim what was finally now rightfully his. They had waited ten years for this moment and they wouldn’t trade it for the world. The situation at the cabin had been a wonderful experience for both of them, but now that they were lawfully wedded husband and wife, they knew it would mean a thousand times more.

 

 

Author’s Note: Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah! I’m crying right now :*(. I still have one more chapter to go on this so I hope you’re all ready for the end. Sorry I couldn’t update for around 5 days, but I wasn’t at home and I couldn’t really write. My parents, aunt and uncle left for a small trip and left us all at my uncle’s house. Since I was surrounded by my 3 siblings and 3 cousins, I had no time at all to write so sorry I left this till the end.

I don’t really know what to say about this chapter since I have mixed feelings about it. Some parts feel good to me, others feel crappy. Cliché marriages are cliché, but whatever. I don’t really know how else I can do a marriage scene, but at least I didn’t put in anyone saying “STOP THE MARRIAGE!!” Anyways, I’ll let you guys decide what to think about it since that’s what I’m writing for. Hopefully it can make up for my billion years of not updating. I still have the epilogue chapter coming out so this story isn’t over just yet. Also, I will be starting my new story along with the epilogue chapter. Since I’ll be writing two chapters to update in one day, I might not update tomorrow. Expect them to come out either Friday or possibly Saturday.