(Apologize in advance for any grammatical errors )
Prolog
Junho looked into her eyes, trying to show her the millions of emotions he's feeling at this very moment. The happiest man on Earth, that was simply the words that best described him right now. Not only because he has found his other half, his soulmate, the love of his life, but also because today they were officially married. He is hers. She is his. And the fact that he could see the abundant of love and adoration he feels for her mirrored in her eyes just tripled his happiness. He looked down at their intertwined fingers and smiled as he saw the rings on their fingers.
Soon Shin wanted nothing than enjoying this breathtaking proximity, which was still new for her. Her hand, still shy and unsure, went up to touch his face.. absorbing the fact that this face is hers. And hers only. Forever. She touched his lips, his nose, his thick eyebrow, to his cheek, before he caught and held her hand there, covering it with his. Then he brought her hand to his lips and kissed every single finger so softly. She felt a sudden eruption in her body and clutched his waist for a support, as she felt her legs turned into jelly.
He pulled her closer and bended his head down. Their foreheads touched, and then both moved their faces forward to let the tip of their noses meet. They let out a chuckle while savoring the moment, breathing each other breath. He tilted his head a little and… and ever so naturally, their lips met. It was light, butterfly kisses at first.. tasting, tempting, inviting. Soon, as she locked her hands around his neck and molded her body to his, he deepened the kiss and brought them into nirvana…..
The Adventure of Lil Bro
Once upon a time, there lived three buddies named Lil Bro, The Tongue, and The Hand. They were best friends since they were kids. The three loved spending their time visiting and playing around the Dough, the twin hills across the Forbidden Forest. Both hills had button-like stone at each top.
Today, just like yesterday and the day before and last year, they spent a breezy afternoon playing around the Dough. The Tongue, as soon as he reached the hills, did his most favorite hobby: painting.
"Mates, have you heard about Heavenly Happiness?" asked the Tongue, while making circles on the ground, painting the Dough surface with his wet tongue.
"Heavenly..happiness?" , asked Lil Bro curiously as he played slide on the valley between the twin hills.
"It's not happiness… it's Happiness," emphasized the Hand, who was exercising by jogging up and down the hills, "the ultimate kind of happiness any creature wants to experience."
"How can we find this Happiness?" asked Lil Bro.
"Deep inside the Forbidden Forest, there's a Cave of Love. Get inside the cave and you'll find a black hole, " the Tongue explained.
"As you go further and further, you'll hit this invisible Layer and experience the Shower of Life. That's how you feel the truest, best kind of happiness," continued the Hand.
"Yes!" shouted the Tongue, "a lot of people said that the sensation is just ..indescribable."
"THAT SOUNDS COOL!" exclaimed Lil Bro, who sat uprightly the moment he heard the magnificent effect this Happiness could offer.
"But…" said the Tongue.
"But?" asked Lil Bro.
"It only happens if you do this quest with the love of your life," said the Hand.
"The love.. of my life?"
The mention of love of life brought Lil Bro's mind to that face, that one person. The face he once met when he was lost in the Forest. Should he start this mission of pursuing the true happiness, he wants no one else but her.
The two friends agreed to help him getting through the Forbidden Forest and entering the Cave of Love. As the sun started to set, the three marched their way to the Forest, ready to face the unknown in search for truest happiness.
At the edge of the Forbidden Forest, they stopped. The three blew out their breath full with determination before stepping into the darkness. It was almost complete blackness and they could hardly see anything. The Tongue led the way, parting the thick bushes with its wet pink brush, making a pathway for his two friends trailing behind him.
After what seemed like an eternity, they finally reached the far end of the Forest, where the Cave of Love situated. It was a huge stone wall with a small hallow as its gate. The three friends stood there, contemplating the next move.
"I'll go in and see first," the Hand said.
The cave hole was so small that it would be impossible for him to go through it as a whole. Not wanting to waste the time, the Hand made a quick decision and went into the hole by its index and middle fingers. If Forbidden Forest was surrounded by darkness, the Cave of Love was the complete opposite. It was bright white with honey-covered wall and sparkling dust in every direction. He walked on for further investigation when suddenly he bumped into invisible wall in front of him and fell backward. He tried to walk through it again but this time he was thrown unceremoniously to the ground. He got up grumpily and then looked around, trying to find any hidden clue or button, when his eyes saw something on the wall. There, written with gold ink, was a line:
"Only two of each other halves can go through and reach true happiness"
Lil Bro was pacing up and down in front of the cave while waiting for the Hand to come back. He was on the verge of wanting to go after him when he saw him come out from the cave. He hurriedly ran to meet him.
"How?"
The Hand blew out a breath and looked at his friend.
"I think you should go alone this time. Without us."
Lil Bro stared at him blankly, not knowing what the words meant.
"Go," said the Hand while patting his back, assuring him to move on with his quest.
He watched his friends walked away and soon enough his sight was gone, leaving him alone. He stared at the cave gate for a long time. Then, with full of determination, he stepped into the cave.
It took him some time to adjust his eyes with contrast brightness inside the cave. As he was looking around the cave, completely hypnotized by its sparkling walls, he walked right into the invisible wall and fell backward. After letting out a series of grumpy monolog, he tentatively moved his hand forward when the tip of his fingers met the unseen resistance. Looking around the cave in search for a hint, he saw the gold line written on the wall.
"Only two of each other halves can go through and reach true happiness", he murmured to himself repeatedly.
Nobody ever told him what to do. No books ever showed how it's done. But somehow he knew instantly what he was supposed to do. He shut his eyes tightly, and with every fiber of his being, wishing for a miracle to happen. He gathered all his might and concentration in thinking of one face, one person he wants the most. After a complete silence, he opened his eyes. And then he saw her.
Standing a few feet away from where he stood, she dazed him with her glowing beauty. Her honey-colored hair was hanging loosely up to her elbow. Her eyes were sparkling like a diamond under the sunlight.
"P.. p-princess?"
She didn't say a word but smiled, which made her beauty even more radiating than it already was. He walked to where she stood. He looked into her eyes and then took her hand.
"Take me with you", she said through her enchanting voice.
He studied her eyes intently, trying to digest her words. As if she could read the doubt in his mind, she motioned her head to some point behind his back. He followed her gaze and he saw a white horse suddenly appeared on the far end of the cave. It walked right to their side and stood there, waiting to be mounted. He helped her mount the horse before climbing up behind her. He felt a sudden jolt of excitement, as they galloped into the black hole, in search for a true happiness.
He spurred the horse harder, and everything began to change. The wind grew wilder and wilder. The air became hotter and soon it was getting difficult for them to breathe. The moment they hit the invisible Layer, their bodies were lifted from the horse, floating into the air. At the same time, Shower of Life, the beads of milky substance, burst out of their bodies.
The beads from the Shower of Life turned into dots of multiple colors, which then connected one to another, crisscrossing all round them, forming a large rainbow, sphere-shaped web. The colorful sphere was rotating slowly for a moment before exploding, spitting everything into the air.
They were thrown into the ground. Both laid there, shattered.. yet contented, and for a solid moment, nobody moved an inch. After what seemed like an eternity, Lil Bro looked at her and grasped her hand
"A..are you okay?" , he said weakly.
She didn't say a word. .. simply because she couldn't find one that could best describe the magnitude of sensations she felt after what had just happened. As such she could only smile. With both hands, she cradled his face and wiped away the beads of sweat coming down on his cheek. Then she pulled down his face to hers and kissed his lips softly. Both closed their eyes and soon … their souls flew to the oblivion..
Epilog
Soon Shin felt like she was floating on a cloud… flying and flying towards the warm sun. Then the sound of bird chirps came into her ears, bringing her back to Earth. She opened her eyes slightly, and the photos on the wall came into her blurry vision. The dizzy feeling forced her to close her eyes back as she tried to remember where she was. That's when the memories from last night popped up and she opened her eyes wide. … and became aware of how close he was. She had her back pressed against his chest while having his left arm circling her tummy, caging her close in a warm embrace.
She turned around ever so slowly to face him, afraid of making him awake. While looking at him sleeping so peacefully, one realization came to her senses and made her smile. Her husband. He's.. now.. her husband. This amazing man, who never ceases to support her through the thick and thin, is her husband. Her fingers went up, touching his face. Her index finger was trailing on the top of his nose when his lips twitched into a smile. She withdrew her hand but he caught and held it firmly in the air, all while having his eyes closed. He pulled her closer before opening his eyes.
"Good morning," he said.
She smiled before saying, "Good morning."
The-never-end
Credit goes to:
Browne, Renni and Dave King. Self-Editing for Fiction Writers: How to edit yourself into print. 2nd Ed. 2004. New York. Print
Rowling, J.K. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. London: Bloomsburry. Pdf
Rowling, J.K. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. London: Bloomsburry. Print
Rowling, J.K. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. London: Bloomsburry. Pdf
Rushdie, Salman. Haroun and the Sea of Stories. 1990. Penguin Books. Print
Sparks, Nicholas. A Walk to Remember. Pdf
Fellow Soompi's YTBLSS writers : akinahana89 & babyviolets (thanks for the inspiration)
Special thanks to: naebdukki101, samsooky & Yoeda for the endless encouragement