Chapter 8

Ji Hoo's smile disappeared from his face and he stood up, his face filled with worry.

"Jan Di?"

She cried softly, unable to contain her emotions any longer.

All this time, she thought...

"You know, this scene played out way differently than I imagined," she heard Woo Bin say, as he scratched his chin.

"I told you you needed more practice!" Yi Jung hissed.

"Hey, you're the one that was out of tune!" Woo Bin snapped.

Ji Hoo turned to glare at both of them, and they both fell silent.

"Jan Di, what's wrong?" Ji Hoo asked again, as he pulled her into his arms. He pulled out a handkerchief and carefully dabbed away the tears from her cheeks.

She swallowed hard.

"I thought you were going to leave me," she whispered, hoping only he could hear her. "I thought you found someone better."

Ji Hoo arched an eyebrow. He held her by the shoulders and peered closely to examine her eyes.

"Jan Di," he said, forehead creased. "Have you been drinking?"

She couldn't help but laugh. She looked around.

"So all this...was for us?"

"It took you longer than I thought to figure it out," Yi Jung observed. "I thought for sure the moment Ji Hoo started singing you'd clue in." He leaned over to whisper to Ga Eul. "I thought doctors were supposed to be smart."

Woo Bin took one of his crutches and smacked him on the shin.

She heard Yi Jung give a loud yelp as Woo Bin chuckled. "Hey, how about that? I do like crutches better!"

"So, what did you think? We make a pretty good boy band huh?" Yi Jung was all smiles, as the five of them sat around a table in the gazebo.

"I can't believe you guys did all this for us." Jan Di gave a thankful smile at each of them. "I never even thought…"

"We got you good, huh?" Yi Jung looked extremely pleased with himself. "After all, I am a pretty good actor." He seemed thoughtful for a minute. "Maybe I should be an actor. I'm handsome, smart, rich, talented…"

"Don't forget humble," Woo Bin interrupted.

"Ah yes, humble too," Yi Jung continued.

Woo Bin just gave an exasperated sigh. "You're hopeless." He turned to face Ga Eul. "Geez, what do you see in this guy?"

Ga Eul rolled her eyes. "He has his moments."

"I bet those are few and far between," Woo Bin murmured.

Jan Di narrowed her eyes at Yi Jung. "Did you really write that song?"

Yi Jung snorted. "What do you think?"

She looked at Ji Hoo, who was holding her hand. "You wrote it, didn't you?"

He dipped his head in answer. She was in awe. "When did you start planning this?"

"Around a month ago?"

She heaved the biggest sigh of relief she had ever released. All her worries and fears about their relationship dissipated in the air. I shouldn't have worried myself so much. She wanted to ask Ji Hoo what happened abroad, but she decided to hold it off until it was just the two of them.

"Did you know about this?" She directed her question at Ga Eul.

"Yi Jung just told me this morning," Ga Eul replied. "He didn't want me to know sooner so my reaction would be 'natural'." She made an air quote as she said the last word.

Jan Di had to agree. It made sense. A thought popped into her head and she whipped around to face Woo Bin.

"Wait, did you set the golf club on fire so you could move the venue here?"

Woo Bin pretended to look hurt. "Hey, what do you think I am? A crook?"

"No, no. I just..." She turned away, embarrassed.

"There was a small fire," Yi Jung stated. Then he grinned. "A bon fire. They have it there all the time." He looked around admiringly. "Semiwon Garden was always where we planned it to be." He pointed at Ji Hoo. "Well, where he's always planned it to be." He made a sweeping gesture with his arm over the ponds around them. "His lotus paradise."

It was true. Semiwon Garden was a botanical garden solely focused on lotus flowers. It wasn't small either – it was a massive garden. A real lotus paradise. Jan Di had heard of it before, but had never been there...until now.

She shook her head. "I can't believe you guys managed to secure this place."

"Woo Bin owns this," Ji Hoo stated casually. Woo Bin just gave a nonchalant shrug.

So when he said he knew the owner...

Woo Bin looked pleased with himself. "I told you the owner was a pretty cool guy."

...

Jan Di gave Ji Hoo's hand a gentle squeeze. She thought of him planning all this despite his busy schedule and her heart fluttered wildly in her chest.

Then she realized he never actually got to propose and her eyes went wide in panic.

"What's wrong?" Ji Hoo leaned closer to her.

"Can we go for a walk? I need to talk to you." She whispered in his ear.

Ji Hoo nodded and the two of them stood up and started walking towards the ponds.

"I'm sorry I ruined your proposal," she walked holding his hand. Her eyes caught sight of something odd floating on the pond.

What is that? She thought.

It looked like a shoe. A man's dress shoe. She looked around and there was only the one shoe. How odd. Why would there be a shoe here?

"I guess I got a little ahead of myself." Ji Hoo looked at her apologetically. "I didn't want to pressure you. I guess you weren't ready."

She shook her head quickly. "No, it's not that." Then she cocked her head to the side and eyed him questioningly. "Whatever happened to waiting until your residency was over?"

He raised his shoulders slightly. "I got impatient." He stepped in front of her, took both her hands in his, and looked down at the ground. "I know we said we'd wait, but I just couldn't do it anymore." He looked up and gazed intently into her eyes. "I want to look forward to coming home from a long day of work knowing you're there waiting for me." His lips curled into a playful smile. "I want to wake up at 3am, roll over, see your face, and know that I'm right where I'm supposed to be."

Jan Di's cheeks reddened, but she managed a shy smile. Then she remembered another part of their reason to wait. She debated asking him about it for a few minutes.

"What about Jun Pyo?"

Ji Hoo had told her he wanted to make amends with his friend.

Ji Hoo's face turned pensive. "I went to see him," he began, and Jan Di's eyes widened in shock. "It was the main reason I went abroad." He ran a hand through his hair. "I had to chase him around the States, but I eventually caught up to him."

Ji Hoo's confession rendered her speechless.

I knew there was an explanation. It just never crossed my mind it would be this.

And then he told her everything. Everything that happened to him while he was in Canada and the United States. Jan Di couldn't help but feel sorry for all that Ji Hoo went through.

For her.

For them.

"I tried my best, Jan Di," he explained, and she could feel the pain in his voice. "I went to talk to him. It took longer than I thought..." He sighed, wearily. "I'm sorry I couldn't keep either promise."

Jan Di wrapped her arms around him.

She understood. She knew the consequences of choosing Ji Hoo.

"He doesn't hate us if that's what you're worried about," Ji Hoo continued. "He just needs more time."

Ji Hoo was lost in thought for a few minutes. Then he met her eyes.

"Jan Di," Ji Hoo's face was solemn. "If you had to go back and choose again...would you still choose me?"

Jan Di was taken aback by his question.

She thought about the moment she realized she loved Ji Hoo.

How truly happy she'd been since they got together.

All his sacrifices, his unending patience, his unconditional love.

She put a hand on his cheek and stroked it tenderly.

"I chose you. And I'll choose you, over and over, without pause, without doubt, in a heartbeat. I'll keep choosing you."

Ji Hoo sighed and she saw relief flood his entire body. After a couple of minutes, a sly grin spread across his face.

"Oh, I also spoke to your parents this morning and asked for their blessing," Ji Hoo disclosed.

"What did they say?"

"Your father took me aside for a man-to-man talk."

Jan Di's father had come back to the city to be with them after a few years on the fishing boat. Her parents had managed to reopen their dry-cleaning business, and are now busier than ever. Ji Hoo promised her Madam Kang wouldn't be able to touch their home or business again. Jan Di often wondered if Ji Hoo had bought their entire building.

"What about umma?" She asked, her head tilted to the side.

Ji Hoo's face broke into a grin. "She was...happy for us."

He remembered sitting down in front of Jan Di's parents and asking them if he could marry their daughter. Her mother jumped up and down excitedly screaming:

"Finally! It's about time! You guys took long enough!" and wouldn't stop hugging him and kissing his cheeks, much to the embarrassment of her husband.

Jan Di was amazed at how much planning and preparation Ji Hoo had gone through for her.

She stared at him, her eyes scanning every inch of his face – that soft, beautiful, baby face that she loved so much. He never ceases to amaze me...

"Yes," she whispered, and Ji Hoo wrinkled his forehead, unsure of what she meant.

She took the box from his coat pocket, took his ring out, and placed it carefully onto his ring finger.

He smiled crookedly as he took her hand and placed her engagement ring onto her ring finger. She looked admiringly at the two rings that now graced her finger.

After a few minutes of silence, she bit her lower lip and knitted her brow. "Are you sure you want to marry me though?"

"What do you mean by that?"

"I mean, I don't really have anything to offer you." She smiled shyly at him. "You've got the money, the looks, the brains, the talent..." Then she frowned. "What if one day you find someone better than me? Someone perfect?"

He shook his head. "There will always be someone better than us..." he began, as Jan Di stuck her lower lip out. "But none of that matters to me. I'm not looking for someone perfect, but someone who's perfect for me."

"The only thing I can offer you is my love," she whispered.

"That is the only thing I need," he answered.

He paused and seemed to reassess his answer. "That and your cooking skills."

She laughed out loud. Then she faced him and turned serious once more. She remembered Yi Jung's words a few weeks ago – how loving someone was a risk, since people never knew how long they'd last.

"Are you sure you're ready to risk everything for me?"

Ji Hoo placed both palms gingerly on her cheeks and touched his forehead lightly on to hers. His lips were mere inches away from hers.

"Jan Di..." His voice was so gentle and so full of longing it sent electric currents all over her body. He brushed his soft lips lightly against hers.

She closed her eyes as she heard him whisper:

"You are the risk I will always take."

...