Jong Kook held the ring between his thumb and forefinger. He flipped it to and fro and watched the stone sparkled from his movements. This diamond ring was not as grand as the one which Ji Hyo and Gary had reserved jokingly in Macau but he knew that the monetary value of the ring should be the least of his concern. His concern was whether Ji Hyo would accept a proposal ring from him. 

He had made up his mind to set up their own home after their last reunion at her parents’ place. If one’s heart is where home is, then Ji Hyo was his home. She was the one whom he wanted to return to each day. She was the first and the last person whom he wanted to see each day. He could not bear to have another day which he could not hold her close to him. He was certain that Ji Hyo was the right woman for him. He wanted her as his wife. He wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. He had never wanted and needed someone as much as her. He hoped that she also felt the same way about him.

He wanted to give her a special proposal – a proposal which she would remember forever. Shall he do it in a restaurant with a romantic dinner? Should he propose to her at the top of a Ferris wheel? Should he bring her to a bridal shop and propose to her there? He continued racking his brain for romantic proposal ideas.

Ji Hyo stood behind his mother respectfully. He greeted his mother first and hugged her. He then turned to Ji Hyo. He wanted very much to hug her and squeeze her tight but he was concerned about her injured arm. He noticed that she was still wearing her elbow support. He drew her close to him by her shoulders and gave her a kiss on her forehead. She curbed herself from running her arms round his waist and leaning up for a kiss on the lips due to his mother’s presence.

Upon the calls for an encore, Jong Kook went on the stage once again with a large bouquet of red roses in his hand. He looked at the crowd before him. He was happy and grateful that his concert was a sold-out and that there were so many people who supported him. He looked across the crowd for that special someone and she was sitting there with his two buddies. He could see her wide grin. He was so happy that she had always shared his happiness, and he hoped that in the next few moments she would make him the happiest man on earth.

“I would like to invite an important and special guest to stage,” he announced to his audience. He walked down from the side steps and towards Ji Hyo. She was sitting in the front row at the side section. He stood before her. He gave her the bouquet of flowers and extended his hand to her. She was not expecting this. Being an artist herself, she knew that she could handle the limelight but it did not mean that she was totally comfortable with it. She took his hand nervously and stood up. He intertwined his fingers with hers.

He led her up onto the stage in the midst of the loud applauses from the audience. He made a deep bow before the audience. “I would like to dedicate this last song for the night to this special person before me,” he uttered while he looked deeply into her eyes.

He serenaded her with his song “Letter”. He meant every word that he sang. He had never considered himself as perfect but he had been striving to be a better man for her ever since they got together. He wanted her to fill every part of his life. Her heart was swelled with emotions by his singing. This was the sweetest thing that he had ever done for her. For a moment, she forgot she was on stage. There was only him in her eyes and she was in a space which belonged solely to the two of them.

When he sang the last line of the song – “You’re my last love”, he bended down on one knee before her. He pulled the ring out from his pocket and presented it to her. “Will you marry me, Ji Hyo?” he asked tensely.

The crowd gave a loud “AWW” and turned quiet as all the screens in the concert hall showed the two persons on stage in close-up. The spotlight was shining on them. All eyes were on Ji Hyo. Everyone was waiting in anticipation and excitement for her reply. When she did not react immediately, the crowd chanted the words “marry him”.

She was brought out from her reverie by the loud “AWW” from the crowd. She had returned to the real world where it was not just the two of them. She looked at Jong Kook with an expression which he could not read. Each chant of “marry him” pounded on her mind and heart. Her heart hurts so badly that she could not control her tears from flowing. Since he had turned such a precious moment into a show, she decided to act her part too. She was an accomplished actress after all. She slowly extended her hand to him. She gave him a big and wide smile in the midst of her tears.

He slipped the ring into her left fourth finger and it fitted snuggly.  He raised himself up and kissed her on her right cheek affectionately. He was overjoyed that she had accepted his proposal. When the crowd chanted the words “kiss her”, he held the sides of her head gently using his thumbs to brush her tears away, and he kissed her on the lips. The hall was filled with the crowd’s thunderous clapping. In his nervousness and joy, he had not felt the coldness of her lips and lifelessness of their kiss. He gave a final ninety-degree bow to the audience and led her to the backstage.

They had just reached the changing room when Haha ran up to Jong Kook and gave his hyung a hard and loud clap on his back. “Daebak! Daebak, Hyung! I would never have thought that you would pull something like this off!” Haha then extended his hand to Ji Hyo to congratulate her. It was the limpness of her handshake that made him took a step back from his excitement and merriment. He saw her expressionless face. He knew something wasn’t right. He and Gary quickly got everyone else in the changing room to leave.

Jong Kook was astonished when Haha and Gary got the people out of the room. He finally looked at Ji Hyo and sensed that something was very, very wrong. “Ji Hyo,” he called out to her. She refused to acknowledge him.

“Ji Hyo,” he called out to her again. He held her by her shoulders. She still refused to look at him or answered him.

He tried to pull her to a seat and she struggled out of his grip and stood firmly on the ground. “Why did you do this?” she asked in a low voice.

“Huh?” He didn’t understand her question. He gripped her wrist tightly and fearfully.

“You didn’t give me a choice,” she said despondently as two lines of tears ran down her face. Without losing his grip on her right wrist, he used his right hand to wipe her tears away.

“Do you really think I could turn you down in front of your fans?” she asked him in a slightly louder voice. He didn’t know how to respond to her.

She looked at him in the face and asked, “Can I reject you in front of them?” Her voice was stronger and louder this time. Her streams of tears were running faster too.

“Do you really know what I want?” Her voice broke at this question. He saw the pain that flashed across her eyes. “Do you really know what I fear?” she asked silently.

She moved her left hand towards her right hand which was held tightly by him. Her right fingers twisted and rolled the ring off from her left fourth finger. She passed the ring from her right hand to her left one. She raised her left hand with the ring before his face. He was dumbfounded that she had returned the ring to him. When he did not take the ring from her hand, she placed it on the dresser table next to them. He was stunned by her action. She struggled to free her right wrist from his grip. He loosened his grip. She stepped away from him. She took one more step away after another until she reached the door. She paused at the door for a split second hoping that he would call her back. When she heard nothing, she opened door with a pained heart and strode out of the concert hall.

She could not describe the pain that she was feeling. She was very disappointed with Jong Kook. The love-line in Running Man had created a lot of opportunities for Gary to get close to her but it was also the love-line that made him lost her. She had always wanted to know for sure if she could trust a guy’s gesture was truly because he had cared for her. She wanted no trace of doubt in her trust for her guy. She was perplexed why Jong Kook would propose to her in such a way. Didn’t he realise that what he had done was worse than the onscreen love-line? In the Running Man show, she could still reject Gary jokingly but how could she reject Jong Kook in front of his fans? Did he really know and understand her enough?

Her love for him was not a show. It was something private, personal and close to her. It was not something to be used for earning applause. She had fallen for him because each of his caring and thoughtful gestures towards her in and out of the Running Man show was something that had occurred naturally between them. It wasn’t something that he needed to do to pull in the show ratings. Even though she had thought that they were just good friends during their Running Man days, she always felt that his hugs for her were because he had cared enough for her. She would never agree to be his girlfriend if the Running Man show had not already ended when he asked her. Why would Jong Kook use their proposal as a finale for his concert? Was their relationship just another mean for him to gain publicity and popularity? She hated herself for thinking of him in this way.

Without the flowers, without the ring, she would still have agreed to his proposal if only he had asked her without the fanciful display. 

Jong Kook had held many concerts before but he was unusually nervous that day. He had asked Gary to keep him company before his concert started. Due to Ji Hyo’s schedule, she had missed his previous night’s performance and she could attend tonight’s concert only. Gary had thought that it was unusual for Jong Kook to be exceptionally nervous just because Ji Hyo was attending his concert.

Jong Kook was babbling about some lighting issues when he suddenly paused and blurted out that he intended to propose to Ji Hyo. Gary was shocked by Jong Kook’s revelation but he recovered his composure quickly. When Jong Kook asked him whether he thought he would stand a chance, he had told Jong Kook to have courage and that Ji Hyo was likely to accept his proposal.

Even though Gary had already known about Jong Kook’s intention to propose to Ji Hyo, he was surprised when Jong Kook approached her with the rose bouquet. He had never thought that Jong Kook would propose to her so openly. When Jong Kook sang that song to Ji Hyo, he saw the contentment and mesmerisation that she had over him. They were truly in love. For the first time, his happiness for them had overshadowed the sourness that he felt in his heart. However, his happiness was extremely short-lived. He caught the quick change in her expression when Jong Kook proposed to her on stage. She went blank first, then tears flowed from her eyes and finally she gave a wide smile. Her tears did not seem to be tears of joy to him. Her smile seemed like a plaster to him. He was worried for both of them.

He could not sense any joy from her when she was in the changing room. He knew his worry was right when Haha started chasing people out of the changing room to give Jong Kook and her their private moments. 

He had arrived at her apartment. He saw her car. Her apartment was in pitch darkness. He stood at her door. He felt her presence behind it. His keen sense of hearing picked up a muffled sob from the other side. He slid himself into a sitting position and he leaned against the door. He sent a text message to Haha telling him to inform Jong Kook that Ji Hyo had reached home. He could not bring himself to message Jong Kook. Although he knew that Jong Kook had not meant to hurt Ji Hyo, he was still angry with him for making her cry. 

Even if the heart explodes, the lips stay closed 
I've been sparing the words, I love you 
I want to give you everything, but my hands are shabby 
Fear continues to grow in my heart

I don't have very much and lack even more 
But I've been trying hard to gain 
You must've been lonely, but without any complaints 
You smiled and waited for me

I love you, I promise you eternity 
There are no words that could describe you 
My tears speak to me, as they sink into my heart 
The name that will not be erased until my life ends

There isn't a reason to always share what I feel 
My love is bound to show 
Even without a purchased gift, 
One compliment would overjoy that person and bring her into my arms

I love you, I promise you eternity 
There are no words that could describe you 
My tears speak to me, as they sink into my heart 
The name that will not be erased until my life ends

In a place in my heart, sadness lies 
I'm sorry for having memories without you in them 
I didn't want to have any part of me not to be filled with you

I was a person born today 
I have started to fill my heart again, the first word I said was your name

As if the world is ending tomorrow
With every part of me I love you 
The name that will not be erased until my life ends