My squinted eyes searched the room as the morning sun shone through the window pane. A slight morning breeze wafted past me, sending a sudden chill down my spine.
    The kimono that I wore to bed had slipped off while I tossed and turned in my sleep.
    Beside me, facing the opposite direction, Jun Myeon slept soundly. Hardly a snore to be heard from his mouth. 
    I lifted myself from the bed and stretched my arms upward. Letting them fall to my sides, I turned to observe Jun Myeon.
    Judging from the way he slept, he had come home very early this morning. Dressed in a complete suit, body curled into a loose sleeping position, and shivering from being too tired to crawl into the blanket. He wasn't even snoring. Jun Myeon twitched as the wind blew through the window.
    Generously, I wrapped him tightly in the side of the blanket I had been sleeping in.
    As my hands reached around his waist to tuck him in, he grabbed my arm with a tight grip. Surprised by this, I froze in my position.
    Jun Myeon slowly turned his head to look into my eyes.
    Although his energy was burnt out, he still smiled at me with whatever strength he could summon. "...Good morning..."
    Those tired words made my face burn up like a sauna. Quickly, I pulled myself away and faced the opposite direction. I stuttered nervously. "D-did I wake you?"
    "No..." Jun Myeon replied. "I've been awake for a while now..."
    My chocolate-brown eyes looked back at him. The dark circles under his eyes signaled that he needed rest. "You should go back to sleep." I hurriedly got off the edge of the bed and rushed myself into the closet to change into some decent clothing.
    I stayed locked in the closet for a good ten minutes, trying to decide on something normal to wear - but there was hardly anything I wanted to wear. All the clothes seemed either too promiscuous or too dressy. Who handled my wardrobe anyways?
    Rather than avoiding him in the closet, I procured some clothing to cover my half- body. A black satin button-up and bright washed jeans. Everything I chose out hugged around my skin smoothly, as if it were fit for me. Even the undergarments seemed to be the perfect size.
    Looking in the mirror, I noticed a strange item. Somewhat of a gold shimmer seemed to stand out underneath the threads of hair.
    My hands reached up and untangled it from hundreds of hair strands. Pulling it out, I realized that it was a gold barette. Was this mine?
    Remembering back to yesterday, my mother (who had helped me to dress in my wedding hanbok) played slightly with my hair, putting little decorations here and there to make it stand out.
    "Jieun..." She spoke in a tone that sounded somewhat distressed. "You'll grow into a beautiful woman, won't you?"
    "Yes, mother." I responded. "I hope I grow up beautifully like you have." With a smile, I turned my head to look at her. But my smile faded away as I saw the look on her face.
    She looked distraught; as if she didn't want me to leave.
    Unsure of how to respond, I looked straight ahead and re-answered the question. "I will grow up to be the best wife I can be."
    Seeing that I had restated myself, mother pulled me around to face her. "I'm so proud of you, my little Jieun." She forcefully embraced me in her arms. Why was she being like this? I shrugged the thought away and put my arms around her too.
    Back in the moment, I looked into the eyes of my reflection. I needed to become the kind of person that mother was. A respected lady of the household; tending to the house, taking care of family business, and beautiful.
    I escaped from the small closet and walked into the room to find that Jun Myeon had disappeared from his bed.
    In the master bathroom, I found him brushing his teeth and washing his face. Seeing as to how I strutted in fully dressed, Jun Myeon's eyes became fixated on me rather than his own reflection in the mirror.
    "You look wonderful this morning." The dark circles under his eyes were still visible.
    I carefully walked up to him, looking around the area of the bathroom. "You aren't tired?" I peeked up at him.
    Washing out the foam from his mouth, Jun Myeon faced me with water running down his face. "Not when you're around." A smile appeared on his face and I looked away, feeling embarrassed. He kept saying sweet words that made my heart float like a paper in the wind.
    While I looked away, he snuck a kiss on my cheek.
    Taken by surprise, I fell back a little - only to be caught by his hands. Goosebumps grew all over my skin and my cheeks became hot. He was definitely a perfect man.
    He quickly pulled me back up and handed me my toothbrush. "Go somewhere with me today, miss?"
    I took my toothbrush from his hand. "I... I..." Words became stuck in my throat. Unable to speak a word, I gulped it all back down and just squeezed a wad of toothpaste onto the tips of the brush.
    "It will be fun, I promise." Jun Myeon said as he walked out of the bathroom. With just a simple promise, my heart had been tugged into his hands.

    My mind wandered all over as we drove into the city. Hundreds of people walked on the sidewalks, the roads, and into shops. Couples held hands and shared food. Watching all of this was like a dream come true.
    I swallowed my saliva. This would be my first time socializing with other people. I wanted to walk up to every one of them and say 'hello'; have a normal conversation with a girl who could be my friend.
    From the driver's seat of the car, Jun Myeon chuckled. I turned back to him to see that he was observing me carefully.
    "So this is really your first time out in the city?" He focused his eyes back on the road.
    Idiotically, I nodded my head while pursing my lips.
    Slowly, Jun Myeon parked the car in a building he called the parking ramp. He told me that it was for people who would take long doing business or other things in the city.
    As we exited the elevator of the parking ramp, I clumsily ran into someone and fell back. Squealing, my bottom hit the floor.
    Quickly, Jun Myeon ran to my side. "Are you okay, miss?"
    "Watch where you're going." A man said with a perky attitude. But suddenly, he paused and silence filled the air.
    Curious as to why it had become quiet, I looked up at him. My eyebrows raised in surprise to a face that I hadn't seen in a long time.
    "M-m-miss Jieun?" Park Sehyuk knelt down in front of me and bowed his head.
    From beside me, I could sense that Jun Myeon was tense. His hands quivered, trying hard not to squeeze my arms.
    "Park Sehyuk-sshi," Jun Myeon spoke with a firm voice.
    Sehyuk lifted his head and looked into the eyes of the man beside me. "Kim Jun Myeon-sshi..." Confused, Sehyuk turned to me. "What's going on here?"
    Arrogantly, Jun Myeon spoke to the other man. "I suggest you apologize to my wife."
    "Wife!?" His eyes grew wide and he looked back at me. "Miss Jieun, I beg you to tell me what is going on here!" He got up from the floor and attempted to help me up.
    Angered that he had been ignored in all the confusion, Jun Myeon lifted me with enormous strength. "There is no need. We will be leaving now." Without another word spoken, Jun Myeon dragged me away from Sehyuk and the parking ramp.

    When we were far enough, Jun Myeon turned to me.
    Although we had come to a stop, my eyes were focused on the roads behind me. Was Sehyuk following us? Would he come this far to see me? Why was the air between them so poisonous?
    The questions the buzzed around in my head wouldn't stop. It was like a bee hive.
    "Miss..." Jun Myeon's voice broke my thoughts. "Do you know that man?"
    My eyes caught with his own. "I did know him. But he has long disappeared since those times." I looked at the pavement under my feet. "He was a member of my family."