In Love With a Country Bumpkin
by: abby
A/N: Hello all! Thanks for all the reviews and adding my other story on your favorite lists. Here's another one shot I wrote before "Reading Between the...Clay" that I posted on the official Yi Jeong and Ga Eul fanfiction site. I thought it should be posted on here as well. It's very mushy gushy. Enjoy! Please read and review! It's winter break soon, which means more stories. I need ideas. =)
She never ceases to amaze me. It's no wonder why I'm head-over-heels, crazy, dangerously, unconditionally, optimistically, wholeheartedly, every-other-possible-adjective in love with a one, Miss Chu Ga Eul.
It surprises me too, trust me. Think about it: Me, So Yi Jeong, a world-renowned potter with hands chosen by the Kiln God himself, the heir to my family's enormous fortune, and a self-proclaimed playboy. Well, this last fact has been untrue for quite sometime now—5 years to be exact, but still. The legendary So Yi Jeong is in love with a country bumpkin turned kindergarten teacher? Who would've imagined such a thing could happen!
Ah, but it did, and I'm glad. It's weird. No matter how hard I tried to deny it in the past (I don't now), we've always had this "thing" between us…this spark…this connection, if you will. I will always remember that day we met…that day she yelled at me and stormed off…
"It seems you think everyone goes crazy when you sweet talk with that cute face of yours. You misjudged me. I'll act like I didn't hear what you said tonight."
I admit, my ego took a bit of a blow that day. She was definitely the first girl to ever tell me off like that. A good girl with a stubborn personality. That was my first impression of her, and that impression has pretty well stuck ever since. She seemed overly optimistic. I thought her ideals were tacky; I thought she was problematic. I thought I could never be attracted to a girl like her. I obviously thought wrong.
Nevertheless, she's changed my life with that stubborn perseverance of hers. Back when I thought that my shot at love had already passed me by, she gave me a rude awakening on that paddle boat…
"Although a player like you could never understand, everyone has a single partner…a soulmate… that is their eternally destined partner."
Oh how I doubted her at first. But that patient country bumpkin with her quiet determination definitely put up with a lot of things about me that other girls wouldn't be able to handle or understand…
She baked me chocolates that I, the dumbass that I am, initially rejected.
She saw with her own eyes my playboy ways, and when I insulted her, she threw water in my face (something I definitely deserved that night). Yet, despite all that, she still stood by my side.
She believed in my skill as a potter and made my injured hands move again.
She helped me get over my first love. A feat I thought was nearly impossible. But then again, like I said, she never ceases to amaze me.
She taught me to face things head on and live life with no regrets.
She made me believe again…in love, in soulmates, in life, in myself, in her.
She helped me move on…with her.
She helped me love again.
She became my air…my once in a lifetime meeting…my second shot at love.
Chu Ga Eul, did you know that I was your soulmate? Did I know that I was yours? I think I always had an inkling feeling…
"Yah, So Yi Jeong, what on earth are you thinking about out here? You should be inside working on that new sculpture. Your exhibit is in one week." I hear her sweet voice softly behind me. I'm caught. She's found me, and she sounds concerned...like always. I smile a smile that she can't see.
"Ga Eul-ah, komawoyo." I turn around to face her and peer into those worried dark brown orbs of hers.
"Eh? For what?" I smile as her eyebrows furrow in confusion.
"For staying by my side. Komawoyo, thank you, for never giving up on me. I don't know what or where I would be without that nosy presence of yours." She chuckles. My heart warms.
"Sunbae…" I offer my hand to her, a gesture that I've made countless times to her in the past. It feels so natural now, so comfortable, so right. She accepts, reaching for my outstretched hand. She flashes me that pretty smile of hers as she interlaces our fingers.
Wanting to be closer, I pull her toward me. She yelps in surprise, and I can't help but smirk as she turns a noticeable crimson and nervously looks around with wide eyes at anything else but me. Still ever the shy, innocent, good girl.
"Yah, Chu Ga Eul, look at me." She slowly lifts her head and stares at me. Once our eyes meet, though, her gaze, full of love and affection, immediately softens.
"Ga Eul-ah…" Keeping our eyes locked, I softly brush some unruly strands of hair away from her angelic face and tenderly run my thumb across the soft skin of her cheek. Such attentive actions were once part of my 5-second-kill playboy technique. But no more. Alas, these actions are now exclusively reserved for the lovely woman in front of me. What a transformation, right? I know.
"Let me warn you one last time: I'm definitely a cool guy, but I'm not a good guy," I half-joke and attempt to look at her with a serious face.
She laughs again and repeats what she said to me five years ago: "So Yi Jeong, and let me remind you one last time to throw away your misconception that nice girls always want good guys."
I offer her another one of my famous smiles before deciding to finally close what seems to be a gaping distance between us. I slip my arm around her petite waist and pull her close, really close. Releasing our entwined hands, I softly grasp the tip of her chin with my now free hand and slowly lead her face toward my own. I watch as she closes her eyes in anticipation. Licking my own lips in excitement, I meet her halfway and, soon enough, we engage in a sweet, chaste kiss. Even though we've already done this a dozen times, this kiss feels so new, so fresh, so right. I honestly could kiss her forever if it weren't for the need for air. Damn oxygen.
She becomes more comfortable and slowly reciprocates, and I feel her arms encircle my waist in return. I can't help but deepen the kiss as I throw everything I have into it…my love, my apologies, my gratefulness, my passion for her. All of the feelings that I have for this girl are going into this one kiss. I can only hope that she is doing the same.
After what seems like an eternity of heavenly bliss, I painfully break away first and rest my forehead against hers. I place a small kiss on her nose, and she softly smiles at me.
"Break's over, sunbae. Time to finish that sculpture for the exhibit." She releases herself from my tight grasp, grabs my hand, and attempts to drag me back to my work studio. I groan but can't help but smile at her cute determination.
I finally give up my struggle and leave my outdoor haven to follow her inside. "Aigo, fine. You win. But promise me that we can do what we just did again later," I smoothly request and wink at her surprised, embarrassed face.
"Sunbae!" She softly hits me in the chest and playfully pouts. I laugh and place my arm around her shoulders as I guide her back inside.
Fine. I'll admit it. I'm no longer afraid to say it. I, the notorious F4 playboy and legendary potter So Yi Jeong, am in love with a country bumpkin turned kindergarten teacher. I, who was once a firm non-believer in happy endings, am in love with my best friend, my soulmate, and my future wife (if she accepts, of course). Can you believe it?
I can.
A/N: That's it! Thanks for reading and don't forget to review! Your comments and feedback are greatly appreciated. =)