Chapter 4

{ p a r k  y o u n g m i }

I woke in his arms and sunlight streaming over my face. The weather was beautiful, like it knew it was the day of my wedding.

The day I was supposed to be filled with happiness and the joy of being together with my man; but now it was like the day I’m being sentenced to prison. I always wanted a fairytale wedding, to be the princess in a white dress for everyone in the pews to marvel at, and having my prince carry me off to our honeymoon. I smiled at myself, until I heard him chuckle.

“Someone’s sure happy on her wedding day,” Seunghyun said, smirking and making my smile drop at once.

Before I could challenge him, Mrs. Choi opened the door with a mob of older ladies behind her. "Happy morning!" she exclaimed, and smiled at the two of us together. Seunghyun gave a satisfied smile, and let Mrs. Choi and her posse usher me to a car, and off to a church. All of them were smiling and laughing like today was the best day of their lives, and I couldn't help but join their excitement. It was like I was getting ready for my perfect wedding, just with a husband swap. We arrived in a small room, which seemed like a dressing room for a Broadway star.

"She's stunning!"
"Wow, she's going to be such a great bride."
"No wonder Seunghyun picked her, being so choosy."
"I'm jealous of her parents!"

"Ladies!" Mrs. Choi yelled over the women. "Let's get started."

They spent probably two hours curling, hairspraying, and yanking my hair about, applying on makeup as we went. Opening my eyes, I gasped.

"You're so beautiful," one of the ladies murmured, giving me a pat on the back.

I stepped into my dress in a changing room, and looked at myself in the mirror. All this time, work, and money for what? A hostage marriage.

Opening the door, I heard a chorus of oohs and aahs. Mrs. Choi ran up and pulled a tight embrace around me, breaking into tears.

“Even though I’ve only just met you, I know you are the perfect wife for my son,” she spoke between sobs. This is real, I’m getting married!

“It’s time to go out there,” shouted one of the ladies. Before I knew it, everyone went out into the huge, white room finding a spot to sit down. My heart started pounding like crazy as I paced back and forth in the back of the santuary. A little lightheaded, I felt Mr. Choi take my arm and whisper, "I'm so proud." After hear that I couldn’t do anything except for smile.I looked straight into Seunghyun's eyes, not wanting to take a glance at the hundreds of strangers staring at me. Seunghyun smiled a little, and for a second, he actually seemed like a nice man, purely ecstatic about his wedding. Once we got to the alter, I tightly grabbed onto his hand, still nervous and lightheaded. I knew the priest was speaking the words I'd wanted to hear with my future husband.

"I do," his low voice said on queue.

"I do," I heard myself repeat.

“You may now kissed the bride,”

Oh , the kiss! I'd completely forgotten. Before I had time to think it over, he wrapped his arms tightly around my back and kissed me, soft and sweet. I wanted to stay like that forever, wrapped in his grip. To my disappointment, he let go, smiling slightly at my flushed face.  I heard the crowd of people clapping and I smiled to them, but then a wave of nausea crashed over me as I looked straight into the hundreds on people. Then everything turned black.

{ a  f e w  m i n u t e s  l a t e r}

Seunghyun's worried face hung over mine, with his arms holding my back off the ground.

“Are you alright?” he asked, nervously pushing the hair out of my face.

I tried to sit up on my own. “Yeah, I’m fine,” I said, until he started breaking into laughter.

“What?” I asked, annoyed at him laughing at me, in front of maybe two hundred people.

“I didn’t know my kiss was so powerful,” he said in a low voice, chuckling, and helped me stand up to face the crowd.

“Yahh!!” I yelled, hitting his arm. Seunghyun just smiled, and kissed my cheek. The cold, hardened face of his had melted away, and his laughter rang like low bells.

We bowed, and he led me to another room. “Here, I’ll wait outside the door while you change into the dress,” he stated, pointing to a second beautiful short wedding dress.

After I changed, I walked with him, in my killer heels down two flights of stairs to the basement. Whenever I lost my footing, he caught me, laughing.

"You're heavy!" Seunghyun complained jokingly, and set me back upright.

"And you're--" I was cut off my by own astonishment.

The party was being held in a giant hall, with more people, it seemed like, and a dorky wedding band playing. All the people turned to stare at us, and whistled and clapped.

Then I was led to the dance floor for the husband and wife dance.