Christmas night at the Yang household

Da-kyung sat outside in the gazebo on the lawn and sipped a cup of cocoa. The whole house was asleep, but she didn’t feel like sleeping. She was nervous about confessing to Won. What if he doesn’t like her? What if he rejects her? “Let’s be brave Yang Da-kyung. We can do this. Rejection isn’t the end of the world.” She said to herself. Suddenly, Won sat down beside her.

“Who are you talking to?”

“Oh, kamchagiya!”

“What are you doing out here all alone? Aren’t you cold?”

“Aniyo, I’m fine. I just wanted to enjoy the night air.”

They both sat in silence for a while, each one lost in their own thoughts.

“I have something to say to you.” They said at the same time.

“You first.” They said again.

“I think you should go first Da-kyungssi.”

She took a deep breath and gave herself a mental ‘fighting’ gesture. “Wonssi, we’ve been married a little over seven months now. At the beginning, I really hated you. I couldn’t wait for our contract to be up so I never had to see you again. Today, I met Ji-hwan oppa at the mall, I was really happy to see him but something felt missing. He still had the same smile, he still looked the same, handsome as ever, but somehow I didn’t feel a thing. I have been feeling a bit confused for a while, especially since that night we kissed and today, after I saw oppa it hit me. So, I guess what I’m trying to say is, I care for you a lot Kim Won. I’ve started to care for you for a long time. I know we have a contract but I was wondering if we could take a chance and try to make our marriage real.” She finished and released a breath she hadn’t known she’d been holding.

Won watched her while she talked, she was staring at the floor while she talked and so she didn’t notice the myriad of expressions that crossed his face. He experienced jealousy when she talked about her ex-boyfriend but he was floored by her confession. He broke into a smile after a while and reached for her hand across the table. This caused her to jerk her head up quickly and look into his eyes. “Da-kyungssi. Da-kyungah,” he said more informally, “you asked me what I meant when I said the house was quiet, this is my answer. I’ve discovered that I like coming home to you. I like hearing your voice and watching you move around the house. I like it when you smile; I think you have the most beautiful smile that lights up the room. When you left all those things left and the house became quiet, it felt empty without you. I lost Hyun-joo because I wasn’t brave enough to tell her that I loved her, I wasn’t brave enough to give our relationship a chance but I don’t want that to happen with us. I don’t want to let you go; not now not after three years, I can’t bring myself to do that. So, I guess what I’m saying is that I really, really love you. I want us to take a chance and make our marriage real too.” He rose to his feet and pulled her to rise too, and then he wrapped her in a tight hug.

“Thank you Kim Won, for loving me, thank you.” She mumbled into his chest.

Won realized she didn’t say she loved him in return, but that’s okay. ‘I’ll say it enough for both of us.’ He thought to himself.

The next morning, Won woke up to see Da-kyung sitting at her desk reading her book. She sat with both legs on the chair, right arm resting on her knee and left hand holding the book. She was deeply engrossed in her book that she didn’t notice he was staring at her with a huge smile on his face.

“You look even more beautiful in the morning.” He said and she looked up from her book.

She smiled back at him, “Good morning.”

“Why are you all the way over there?” he asked,

“I didn’t want to disturb you since you looked so peaceful.”

“Come here.” He patted the space beside him and she came and lay next to him. He pulled her into his arm and snuggled up to her. “Ah, this feels nice.” He said and she giggled.

“You’re leaving today, right?” she asked,

“Yes, I have to get back to work tomorrow. I left some very important business pending.”

“Oh, well I’m going to miss you.” It felt good to say that out loud.

“Why don’t you come along then? We could leave together.” He gently her hair like he wanted to do for a long time.

“I can’t. I left so soon the last time I came home that I haven’t had a proper vacation with my parents.”

“You should have stayed longer then.”

“Who told you to sound so sad on the phone? I can’t help it if I was so worried about you.” She said and he laughed. “Come down, I’ll make breakfast for you.” She got off the bed.

“I’ll be there shortly, I need to freshen up.”

Won sat at the island in the kitchen and watched Da-kyung make breakfast. He had offered to help her but she insisted that he just sat and he did. It felt like a dream to him, a very happy dream. It made him smile.

“Here you go. Try it.” Da-kyung placed a plate of spaghetti in front of him and sat opposite him.

“You’re not going to eat?” he asked.

“I’m not hungry yet, I’ll eat with my parents later. I made this for you because you have to leave soon.” She said.

Won took a bite out of the food. “Hmm, maa!”

“Really? You think?”

“You’re a great cook.” He smiled and she blushed. ‘She’s so pretty when she blushes.’ Won thought to himself.

“Kim Suhbang.” Da-kyung’s mother called from the kitchen door.

“Good morning omoni, abeonim.” He rose and greeted her parents who had just woken up.

“Why are you up so early?” Da-kyung asked,

“What do you mean early? It’s 9:30 already.” Her father said and sat next to Won.

“When you get to this age, you’ll find it harder to sleep through the night. Besides, breakfast isn’t going to make itself.” Da-kyung’s mom and started going through the fridge.

“I see you’ve already had breakfast.” Her father said to Won.

“Ah neh. I have to leave soon, so Da-kyung made me breakfast.”

“Why so soon?” Her mother asked as she beat up eggs.

“I have some very important meetings that I put on hold for the holidays. I have to go back and attend to them as soon as possible.”

“I’ll help you pack.” Da-kyung said and they both left the kitchen.

“Drive safely.” Da-kyung said as Won got into his car. He had started the engine when she knocked on the window and when he rolled it down, she kissed him lightly on the cheek. “See you soon.” She said and hurried back into the house. Won smiled and drove home.

Eun-sang, Bo-na and Hye-won sat in a bridal shop while Rachel tried on wedding dresses. They were already frustrated because she had tried on more than ten dresses and hadn’t settled on one.

“Are we even going to find a dress at all, why don’t you just push back the wedding?” Bo-na wondered aloud.

“I can’t do that.” Rachel called out from the dressing room.

“What’s the rush anyway? It’s not like another girl is going to steal Hyo-shinssi from you.” Hye-won rolled her eyes. Bo-na and Eun-sang coughed and cleared their throats. “What, did I say something wrong?”

“Actually, Rachel was once engaged to Tan.” Eun-sang said quietly.

Hye-won raised her eyebrow so high it was in danger of disappearing into her hair, and then she burst out laughing. “What kind of relationship did you people have with one another? Seriously, it’s like a drama with you people. Any other secrets I should know about?”

“I also once dated Tan.” Bo-na said, and Hye-won laughed even louder. She was still laughing when Rachel stepped out of the dressing room.

They all gasped. “I think this is the one.” She said. She was wearing a floor-length off-the-shoulder cream brocade and lace dress. 

“It’s beautiful.” Bo-na said.

“Finally. Are you sure?” Hye-won asked and Rachel nodded vigorously. “Let’s go and pay then. We still need to buy shoes and pick up our dresses.” Hye-won said.

“You look really beautiful Rachel.” Eun-sang said with a smile and Rachel smiled back at her.

The boys were on their way back from the store they had gone to buy their tuxedoes, Chan-young was driving, Tan was in the passenger seat and Hyo-shin and Young-do were at the back. Tan was on the phone with Eun-sang who was telling him how the shopping went and how long it took them to find the right dress, and then the right shoes to go with the dress and all the while, Tan listened attentively to her.

“I envy you all.” Young-do said.

“Why?” Hyo-shin asked,

“You’re getting married, Tan has Eun-sang, Chan-young has Bo-na and I’m going to be the lone bachelor.” He smiled.

“What about Hye-won?” Hyo-shin asked,

“What about her?”

“I thought you liked her.” Hyo-shin said.

“I do.”

“Then what’s the problem?”

“I don’t know what to say to her.” Young-do admits with a sigh.

Hyo-shin gaped at him, “You don’t know what to say? You? You’re kidding me.” He laughed.

“It’s not funny sunbae. I really don’t. I get tongue-tied around her and my mind doesn’t function properly.” Young-do was embarrassed at having to admit that he didn’t know how to approach the girl he liked. “I can’t treat her like I treated Eun-sang, she’d hate me and kick my .”

“Young-doya, it’s simple. Just ask her out. Take her to dinner, a movie, skiing, anything.” Chan-young said from the front. Young-do thought about it and remembered Eun-sang advising him to take the girl he likes by the hand and ask her to go eat noodles with him. 

“We’re arriving right now, just trying to find a place to park the car.” Tan said to Eun-sang and hung up. Chan-young pulled into the parking lot of the restaurant and they all went in.

“Chan-youngah!” Bo-na squealed when he walked into the restaurant ahead of his friends. He placed a kiss on her head and sat down beside her. Eun-sang instinctively raised her head and Tan kissed her cheek.

Hyo-shin took a sit next to Rachel and her cheek.  “Are you too tired?”

“Ani, I’m not. I found a really good dress, it was worth it.” She replied.

“Aigoo, look at all these couples, it makes me sick.” Hye-won tsked.

“Hye-wonssi.” Young-do said from beside Tan, “do you want to go eat noodles with me?”

The table went silent waiting for Hye-won to answer. She gulped and cleared . When she said the couples made her sick, she hadn’t intended for Young-do to ask her out because she looked pathetic. She glanced at him and noticed the look of anxiety mixed on his face and she realized he was sincere. “I’d love to. When?”

“Next weekend, after the wedding.” He smiled at her.

“That’d be nice.” She smiled back and the table erupted in ‘oohs’. She wanted to sink into the floor.

Won walked into the house after work and headed straight for his room. He was especially tired and cranky today. He had had to deal with yet another bullheaded small business owner who wanted to back out of a deal they had already signed because his lawyer convinced him they were going to destroy the individuality of his business. He walked into his bedroom and saw Da-kyung sitting cross-legged on the bed, sketchbook open in front of her, pencil in her hair and pieces of paper everywhere. He stopped and admired her; he had never seen her in work mode before. She was so engrossed in what she was sketching that she didn’t notice when he came up to her and placed a kiss on her hair. “Welcome.” She said with a smile.

“When did you get back?” he asked as he placed his case on the floor and moved her things to a side to sit opposite her.

“This morning. My parents send their regards. I wanted to surprise you like you did for me.” She smiled.

Won took her face in his hands and smiled back. “Do you know how much I missed you? It was so quiet around here I thought I was going to go crazy.”

“Don’t worry, I won’t stay away from you for too long anymore.” She said and they sealed that promise with a kiss.

“We, the families of Lee and Yoo, cordially invite you to the wedding ceremony of our son and daughter, Hyo-shin and Rachel.”

Hyo-shin paced up and down in the waiting room. Rachel was late and the ceremony would be starting soon. He tried calling her but she wasn’t answering. “Have you tried calling Eun-sang or Bo-na or Hye-won? What is taking them so long?” Hyo-shin said, still pacing.

“Eun-sang said Rachel left her phone at home accidentally. They are stuck in traffic.” Tan replied.

“Oh my god. We aren’t going to make it, the ceremony starts in twenty minutes, all the guests are already seated. Maybe we should just call the whole thing off.” Hyo-shin said. He was so nervous he was close to tears.

“Sunbae, take a deep breath and calm down. Rachel will get here soon enough, you don’t need to cancel the wedding.” Young-do said as he grabbed Hyo-shin by the shoulders to calm him down. “Tan, try calling Eun-sang and ask her if they can’t find a way to get here faster.”

The girls were in car, Rachel was almost hysterical. “I can’t believe I’m going to be late for my own wedding. I should have listened to everyone. Is this a sign? Maybe I should call it off.” She poked her head out of the window, there were cars as far as the eye could.

Hye-won pulled her back into the car. “What is wrong with you? Pull yourself together Yoo Rachel.”

Just then, Eun-sang’s phone began to ring, it was Tan. “Yeobseyo Tanah. We’re still stuck in traffic. What? Try to find a way? There is no way. I just…” Hye-won cut her off, she had seen a delivery man riding by on his bike.

“Tell Tan we’ll find a way.” She said and got out of the car.

“We’ll be there soon.” Eun-sang said and hung up.

“Ajhussi! Ajhussi!!” Hye-won ran after the man on the bike. He stopped and she caught up to him. “Ajhussi, can you do us a big favour?” she asked as Rachel, Eun-sang and Bo-na ran up to her. “This is my friend, she is getting married today but she is about to be late. Can you please let us rent your bike so we can get to the venue quickly?”

“But I have a delivery to make.” The man said.

“Ajhussi, please it’s really important.” Hye-won pleaded.

“So is my delivery.” He replied.

“Ajhussi, I will pay you. How much is your rate? I will pay you double, no triple.” Rachel said desperately.

The man agreed to lend them his bike, but they noticed they couldn’t all fit on it along with the driver. “Ajhussi, can you come and sit in this car for a moment?” Hye-won said and the man looked at her skeptically. “Ajhussi, we’re not going to kidnap you. We can’t all fit on the bike, one of us has to stay behind but all four of us have to get to the wedding. Ajhussi, PLEASE!!!” The man finally agreed and they all got on the bike. “We promise not to scratch it and return it in one piece.” Hye-won yelled as she started the engine.

“Do you know how to drive this thing?” Bo-na yelled from the back.

“Maybe!” Hye-won yelled back at her.

Chan-young walked into the waiting room. “It’s time.” He said to Hyo-shin.

“Is Rachel here yet?” he asked.

“Not yet, I tried calling Bo-na but I couldn’t hear what she was saying. Something about Hye-won and a bike.”

“A bike?” Young-do said incredulously, “Is there anything she can’t do?”

“It’s time, we need to go.” Chan-young said again and Hyo-shin took a deep breath. He hoped Rachel would make it in time.

Hye-won sped across the road, weaving in and out of traffic and barely making it to the venue with two minutes to spare. They didn’t have time to look in a mirror to correct their slightly disheveled looks, nor could they take time to fix their make-up. They rushed quickly to the hall just as the wedding march began to play signaling for the bride to walk down the aisle. Her bridesmaids went ahead of her and when she got to the door, her father was waiting. “What took you so long?”

“Traffic.”

He held her hand and walked her down the aisle to her anxiously waiting groom. He handed her over and they both bowed to him. The ceremony started. “Dearly beloved…”

“Do you think we should renew our vows?” Won whispered to Da-kyung.

“It’ll be too troublesome trying to explain why. We’ve been married barely a year.” She responded.

“What about three years from now, when the contract expires. We can have a real wedding, or just a private one.” He whispered again.

“That would be nice, a private wedding.”

“And we can go on a second honeymoon.” He leaned closer and whispered into her ears causing her to giggle.

“…I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride.” The priest said and Hyo-shin kissed Rachel.

“I love you.” He whispered to her.

“I love you too.” She whispered back.

“Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you for the first time, Mr and Mrs Lee Hyo-shin.” The priest said and everyone clapped.

When the ceremony was over, everyone moved to the reception hall.

“What is this about a bike?” Tan asked as they all sat down at a table. The bride and groom were up on the high table with their families and the rest of them sat at individual tables of six.

“Hye-won, I think my admiration for you went up ten notches today.” Bo-na said. “Chan-youngah, you should have seen her as she weaved in and out of traffic.”

“It was like a scene out of a movie. My ears are still ringing from the wind whipping by so fast.” Eun-sang said.

“It wasn’t anything as wonderful as you make it sound.” Hye-won blushed.

“What? It was awesome, I had fun. Hey if you and Young-do start dating, maybe he can let you ride his bike.” Bo-na laughed.

“Aigoo Lee Bo-na!” Hye-won said and tried to smack her across the table but Bo-na dodged. They ate their dinner and soon everyone was dancing.

“Do you know we’ve never had a proper dance together?” Tan said to Eun-sang as they glided slowly across the floor.

“I’m not much of a dancer.” She replied.

“What did you think of the ceremony?”

“It was beautiful. It’s nice to know that Rachel and Hyo-shin sunbae would be so happy together.”

“Do you want this kind of ceremony?” he asked,

“Is this a proposal?” she replied.

“Not now, I mean, perhaps sometime in the future. Whatever kind of ceremony you want, I’ll give it to you.”

“This ceremony might be sweet, but it’s not us. When our time comes, we’ll do something that is just us.” She said and laid her head against his chest.

“Cha Eun-sang.”

“Hmm.”

“I love you.”

“I love you too.”

“Hye-won, do you care to dance?” Young-do said. Almost everyone was on the dance floor except the people who didn’t have dates.

“I’d love to.” She said and they went to dance.

“Hye-wonssi,” he said as they started to dance,

“Yes?”

“I think you’re a very special girl, I admire your strengths and I think you are very beautiful.” Young-do’s voice broke as he spoke. He was trying to keep the nervousness from his voice.

Hye-won was glad it was not too bright; she felt her face grow hot and lowered her head so he wouldn’t see her face.

“Hye-wonssi, I know that we are just getting to know each other but I really like you and I would like to ask you to be my girlfriend.” He finally finished and breathed.

Hye-won was silent for a few minutes, then she started to giggle which eventually turned into full-blown laughter. “Hye-wonssi, why are you laughing? Is it funny? I guess I shouldn’t have asked.”

“Ani, I’m glad you asked. I really am. I just think it’s really cute. You seem like such a cool and together guy but watching you be nervous is really cute. I was a little nervous too, I think you’re a wonderful guy who made some bad choices in the past but who hasn’t ever made bad choices, right? I’m glad you asked me to be your girlfriend, I would like that very much.” She smiled at him.

Before the end of the night, Rachel called for all the unmarried ladies to gather around because she was going to throw the bouquet. “Are you ready? One, two, three.” She tossed the bouquet and everyone scrambled to get it. It landed in Bo-na’s hands and she squealed.

“Aigoo.” Chan-young said put a palm to his forehead. All his friends laughed and for the rest of the night.

Author’s note: Hi everybody. I trust you are all doing well? This chapter is extra lovey dovey and I suggest you get the insulin ready if you are diabetic. Or get ready for a cavity from all the sugar. I’m in a good mood these days, the dark clouds have shifted for a while in my life. Thank you for reading, subscribing and commenting. The story is coming to an end and only a few more chapters are left, maybe two or three. I hope you continue to enjoy the story as I write it. Kamsahmnida.