In this chapter:
Hajin nods enthusiastically, shoving the stick towards him. "Halmeoni is right. It's hard."
He eyes her wryly and takes it, bowing politely to the old woman. "Yes, halmeoni. I'll definitely…" though his expression is neutral, his eyes twinkle mischievously when he looks at Hajin, "do my best to make her happy from now on."
"Now," she fixes his hair, "I can freely, truly love you all I want."
He looks at her and smiles.
"Perhaps it was the stars that guided me. Perhaps they decided I shouldn't keep my Lonely Maiden waiting any longer."
They laugh, and Hajin hasn't felt this free, this light in a long time. She thinks maybe she should have confessed everything sooner, and yet, she knows they hadn't been ready for it then. They had been through so much together - their relationship stretched, broken and trampled upon so badly in the past that she was afraid it might shatter again…
But she also knows she had never intended to keep him in the dark forever, and now that they've finally aired out their feelings, they can start looking forward - confident and secure in their relationship.
"We're a mess," she remarks, straightening up to pluck blades of grass from his hair and tossing them aside.
He hums his agreement, fingering her slightly soaked, stained clothes. "I foresee a frying pan within my immediate future."
She snorts, unconcerned. "I'll tell them we tripped on our way down to the market and ended up rolling down the hill the rest of the way... No, I tripped and dragged you with me. They can't possibly blame you for that."
"Or," he says, looking suddenly serious as he takes both her hands. "We tell them the truth."
Her eyes widen in surprise, and she wonders if he's gone crazy. "They'll never believe that! No one will!"
"The truth," he continues, a devilishly handsome grin on his face, "that I asked you to marry me and you said yes, and in your happiness, you bulldozed me into the ground."
She lifts an indignant, though no less amused, eyebrow. "I said yes, did I?"
"Hm?" he assumes an innocent expression, "Why, is that a no?"
"No."
"No?"
"No, yes!"
"No, yes?"
"Yes, yes!"
"Yes, no?"
"For the love of Taejo!" she growls and really does bulldoze him flat. "Yes . Though I must say, you haven't improved much since Goryeo, but because I love you and can't possibly imagine living a life without you in it... yes." She smiles broadly. "Yes, I'll marry you."
He scoffs indignantly. "If memory serves me right, the first time I asked you, I was offering you a way out of that godforsaken palace. I was willing to risk everything for you, including my father's ire. How is that not a worthy proposal?"
"But you didn't even think to ask me that second time," she mumbles. "You just immediately started talking about babies."
His sudden, strong grip on her hips makes her yelp in surprise. "And what's wrong with babies?"
"What's wrong is my parents will kill me if I ever have a baby out of wedlock."
"It won't be out of wedlock."
"We can't have a baby now!" she splutters, trying to free her hips because she's only just realized she was straddling his thighs between her own - dangerous. "Everyone will think I did it on purpose to force you into marrying me!"
She knows she's raised a valid argument. He's silent for a while, looking contemplative, and she uses this chance to wrench her body free, but as she sits up, he follows, trapping her once more inside his arms. "But how do we even know you're not pregnant now?"
"What?" His question catches her off-guard, leaves her almost speechless. "What do you mean?"
"You've been quite emotional lately. Isn't that one of the symptoms?"
"But of course I'd be emotional," she can't help but sound exasperated, "even you were emotional."
He ignores that. "When was the last time you bled?"
"Last month," she answers readily. "Sometime before your mother's dinner party."
"And this month?"
She blushes, remembering the last time they made love. It had been weeks ago. "Not yet. Soon, I expect."
There's a satisfied smile on his face that makes her laugh despite herself. "Yah! Even if I am, you shouldn't be happy about it. Think of the scandal. You're supposed to be engaged to Yeonhwa."
"Who cares about the scandal?" He grimaces in distaste. "It's a baby. Yours and mine. Nothing can be more important than that." Wistfully, he says, "You don't think I haven't noticed the way your eyes land on every baby you see? Even little baby clothes and toys."
She gives him a pained, almost pouty look. "Do you want me to start crying again?"
"No, I want you to admit you miss her as much as I do," he says matter-of-factly, dipping his head into the hollow between her collar bones and sucking playfully at the skin there.
"Of course I miss her," she finds herself mumbling into his hair, enjoying the sensation.
"Then shall we go somewhere else?"
She comes to her senses, her eyes snapping open. She then rolls sideways onto the grass and says something that deflates him completely: "I want to go to the market."
"You're joking."
"No, I really do! There are so many lights and I can hear the music from here." She gets up and brushes the blades of grass off of her clothes. She ignores the red blotch on the base of her neck. With luck, people will assume it's a large mosquito bite.
"You're joking."
"No." To his dismay, she walks even further away from him. "I haven't been to a night market in so long. Let's go down and have a look around."
"You're joking." His consistently flat tone makes her chuckle deviously but she remains firm on what she wants.
"I can see food stalls and games, and some really cute accessories nearby!" she informs him, pointing to the crowd beyond the trees at the base of their hill.
"Soo-yah."
"Omona! There even seems to be an apothecary! I might find some herbs there for Sanggung ..."
"Soo-yah," he practically wails this time, refusing to believe his ears. Of all the times...
She kneels in front of him and gives his lips a good smack. "Ten minutes! We'll have a quick look around and be on our way."
"Is this punishment? I did say I was sorry for leaving you in the dark these past two weeks."
"I just want to walk through the night market with you," she assumes her most innocent look with matching aegyo voice. "It's not as though we do this all the time. Please?"
He has his head in his hands, not wanting to see the look in her beautiful doe eyes, refusing to succumb to this weakness.
But she was having none of it. She leans in, planting both her hands on either side of his crossed legs. She's so disarmingly close, he can hear her every breath; feel it on his fingers. Her long hair tickles his arms, sending wafts of his own shampoo his way with every gust of the evening wind.
It was driving him nuts.
"Five minutes," she bargains.
He chances a peek and is greeted immediately by the sight of her fair collarbone, now slightly red from where he had played with her skin earlier, the neckline of her partially unzipped sweatshirt folding outward, dipping low enough for him to almost catch a glimpse of her breasts beneath the white shirt she had on. He shuts his eyes with a sigh. "Fine, let's go."
Excited, she gets up. Frustrated, he follows her, but he pulls her in before she can take another step. "Five minutes. Yes?"
"Hypothetically speaking."
He narrows his eyes, but before he can protest, she wrenches herself from his grip and races down the hill, "Last one down decides where and what to eat!"
"Wha- you don't play fair!" he can't help but laugh. He reaches her but not before she's able to plant a foot on the road in triumph.
"So, where do we go first?" she asks brightly, checking left and right for any signs of passing cars before crossing the street.
"No matter where I choose to go, we always end up where you want to be anyway." He wraps an arm around her shoulders. "So you choose."
"I can never choose," she tuts. "You should know that by now."
"Then I guess that means this trip is over." He makes to steer her back up the hill, but she pulls him towards the opposite direction, huffing and puffing with all the strength she can muster.
"We are visiting every single one of these stalls tonight," she declares, dragging him towards the nearest one.
"All of them?"
"All of them. Have you ever been to a night market? Any market?" she asks curiously, eyeing the bright accessories on display.
"I tend to avoid crowded places."
Seeing nothing interesting, she looks at him. "Why don't we split up? Let's go around and each buy something, then we'll meet at the fountain over there." She points to a brightly lit fountain situated in the middle of everything, where families and other couples were currently seated, either idly chatting, eating, taking pictures, or just resting.
"No."
"No?"
"Yes." His lip twitches. "I am not letting you out of my sight."
She sighs as he leads her deeper into the crowd, before she realizes that not splitting up meant more time spent together. Happy with this realization, she wraps her arms around his waist and watches as he takes in their surroundings, a curious look on his face.
"Shall we try some street food?" she asks, taking her purse out of the front pocket of her sweatshirt. "Oh, that ahjumma sells the best fishcakes in the entire market. I wonder if she still remembers me…"
Lips pursed, he chides, "I know what fishcakes are. Do I look like some snooty rich boy to you?"
She eyes him up and down - from his perfect hair down to his expensive outfit and accessories. "Yes."
He's affronted by her quick, blunt reply. "Jung, Eun and Baek Ah regularly visit public markets when they're stressed or bored," he informs her with a light flick to her forehead. "Just because I don't like going to crowded places doesn't mean I've never been to any."
"Aish!" she hisses, rubbing her forehead. "You said you'd stop doing that!"
"Oh, I did say that, didn't I?" he mutters thoughtfully, quickly grabbing her by the waist when she stomps angrily away. "Yah, I forgot. I'm sorry."
Learning from the past, she fixes her hands firmly on her forehead, a sulky look on her face.
He has to laugh. "I can't take you seriously when you look that cute, Soo-yah."
She throws down her hands in irritation and he sneaks in a kiss, much to her chagrin, but the feeling is quickly replaced by mortification when So begins kissing her face.
"Pye- there are people everywhere!" she hisses, her face beet red.
He ignores her discomfort. "Say you forgive me first."
"I forgive you!" she says at once, putting a restraining hand on his lips and bringing up her hood to cover her flushed face from the many observers around them.
"Aigoo, someone's still glaring," he sighs heavily and grips her hand to prevent her from fleeing. "Pray tell, what do men do to earn forgiveness these days?"
"Careful, Your Prehistoricness, you're reverting to old speech," she grumbles, trying to pull him away from the varied looks they were getting - from amusement to open interest to head-shaking disapproval.
"A real kiss, hyung!" an excited teenager pipes up from the crowd, shrinking away almost immediately under Hajin's gimlet glare.
Not wanting to antagonize her further, So allows himself to be dragged away to the rim of the market.
"Thanks, now I can never show my face here ever again," she snaps the moment they're relatively alone.
"Why not?" he asks nonchalantly, pulling her into a one-armed hug as they walk through a less busy street. "I see nothing wrong with letting the entire city where you grew up in know how much I love you. You are my fiancée, after all."
"Did you not see the scandalized looks on those old people's faces?" she looks at him like he's crazy. "That halmeoni carrying the cabbages looked about ready to pass out."
"I don't care much what other people think," he shrugs. "It comes with ruling a kingdom with an iron fist for 25 years."
"I have no such experience."
He lowers her hood, away from her face. "You should only worry if you think what we have is a passing thing-"
"Of course not," she interjects at once.
He smiles. "Then stop worrying. It's bad for the baby."
She sighs in defeat. "You better not be too disappointed when I start bleeding tomorrow morning!" she warns grimly. "But er… speaking of babies…" She clears her throat, the flush on her cheeks returning with a vengeance. Nervously, she wonders if she should bring up the topic at all… what will his reaction be? Will she ever be ready for such answers?
"Hm?"
"It's just… I er… did some… research…" she mumbles, inserting her hands into the front pocket of her sweatshirt so he wouldn't see her fiddling fingers. "About you and the Queen. Did you and Yeonhwa really… have…?" She can't finish her question, too embarrassed and conflicted.
Thankfully, So understands immediately. "Ah. I wondered when you'd bring that up…"
She waits with bated breath, barely able to look at him, and he's equally silent, looking thoughtful.
Finally, he speaks, "You know I only really married once?" He looks down at her. "My first marriage to the Princess Gyeonghwa was never consummated, though she maintained the status of a second queen until the end."
Hajin nods, interest piqued by this firsthand account of history.
"And I did need an heir," he says slowly, trying to gauge her reaction. The eager look on her face catches him momentarily off-guard. "The ministers were under the impression that more heirs meant more stability. I thought it was a silly notion, considering the bloody aftermaths of my father's reign, but they were adamant about it, so…" He waves his hand as though that ought to explain everything else. "They would have settled for two princes, but the second died at a young age."
He says it so casually, Hajin's not sure if she should express her condolences.
"I saw the need for more heirs when that happened, but after three consecutive girls, I couldn't do it anymore." He frowns at the memory. "I ended up severely punishing anyone who so much as breathed a word regarding heirs in my presence. But to put everyone's minds at ease, I did decide to increase the Crown Prince's protection and had him learn martial arts, but that's about all I was willing to do for the sake of their supposed "stability".
"Much as I tried to, Soo-yah… I couldn't bring myself to really get to know any of those kids," he continues, looking slightly apologetic. "I knew more than anyone what it felt like to be estranged from a parent, or two, but that didn't stop me from distancing myself from all of them, innocent though they were… and I couldn't bring myself to add another one, if it meant estranging him or her, too."
She takes his hand and squeezes it in understanding.
"Your Seol was the only one I wanted," he says softly, squeezing back.
Hajin closes her eyes as she leans against him. She's known it all along, though she wishes it were otherwise - he had suffered in Goryeo too. While her suffering was all-around, intense and consuming, it had been fleeting compared to his.
With a forlorn sniff, she mumbles, "Okay, you win. I'll give you your baby."
To her indignation, he laughs. "Yah, I was only joking earlier. I would never force you to do anything against your will. In your own time, my darling."
She hugs his waist. "But I feel so terrible about everything…"
"Don't." He smiles fondly down at her. "She was beautiful, Soo-yah… and she was happy. She had all the freedom you ever wanted for her."
"Really?" she sniffs. "Was she really happy?"
"Yes, she was."
The thought of her baby girl living a happy life without her was too much for Hajin. She bites her lip to try and master her emotions, making her nose and throat hurt in the process.
Seeing her tearful expression, So reaches out to pluck a stick of bbopki from a nearby stand and gives it to her. The old woman managing the store eyes the pair of them curiously.
"Pregnant," he explains with a perfectly straight face.
Normally, Hajin would savor the treat, eating around the central figure… but she doesn't have the will to even do that, much more contradict him. She just takes the candy and bites into it, cracking the heart in two.
The woman's expression clears and she nods knowledgeably. "Of course. Here, my child, have another."
"No, I couldn't possibly…" Hajin shakes her head, trying to push it away. "I'm feeling much, much better now. I was just…" she clears her throat. "I was just-"
"Nonsense! I've been there before - cried over every little thing. It's nothing to be ashamed of," she says with a kind smile. "I'd watch the sugar, though, so maybe just the two sticks for you. Would you rather have a star? Heart?"
Hajin takes the star. "Thank you." Turning to So, she informs him, "Did you know that if you manage to eat around the figure, you get one for free?"
"Yes, I do know that." He pays for the candies and starts to steer her away, but she holds him back. She plucks a dolphin off the stand, a small smile on her lips, but it quickly disappears when he says, "No."
"Young man!" the old woman snaps sternly, making them both jump. "Did you not see how happy she was? How can you say no just like that? Oh, you're just like my husband! You know, even if you aren't fond of sweets, you need to make an effort for her sake. Men!" she tuts disapprovingly. "Do you think creating a new life is easy? The least you can do is make sure she's happy all the time!"
Hajin nods enthusiastically, shoving the stick towards him. "Halmeoni is right. It's hard."
He eyes her wryly and takes it, bowing politely to the old woman. "Yes, halmeoni. I'll definitely…" though his expression is neutral, his eyes twinkle mischievously when he looks at Hajin, "do my best to make her happy from now on."
Hajin blushes and looks away to pay, but with that same kind smile, the old woman waves her off and wishes her well, "Babies are a wonderful thing, my dear. Do come around with the little one next time! I'll prepare especially little candies for her. Or is it a him?"
"Um… too early to tell," Hajin says hastily, pushing So away and bowing her thanks profusely until they're out of earshot.
"You walked right into that one," So says, biting off a piece from the bbopki Hajin had given him.
"I feel like a criminal," she flinches guiltily. She slaps his arm with the back of her hand. "Why did you have to tell her I was pregnant?"
He looks amused. "Then, should I have told her you were crying over the daughter we had over a thousand years ago? I don't mind long distance relationships, but I'd rather not have them while in an asylum."
"You could have told her my goldfish died. That's just as likely to make me cry."
"I didn't know you had a goldfish."
"I don't."
"Then why would I say that?" he asks, exasperated.
"Because now I'll have to constantly watch where I'm going! How would it be if I meet her again a few months from now and she'll see I'm…" she gestures to her body, "baby-less?"
"Of course, there's one quick way to solve your dilemma," he grins, "we get you pregnant tonight. Problem solved."
"You said to wait," she reminds at once.
"Weren't you willing to do it a few minutes ago? That, coupled with your new predicament - both point to the same conclusion."
"You are engaged to Yeonhwa," she says, pointing her empty bbopki stick sternly at him. "I haven't forgotten that for a second."
"Really? I forget about it all the time."
"I've been wondering though… why is she so obsessed with you?" she demands, eyeing him suspiciously. "You weren't lying when you told me there was nothing going on between you two, were you? I mean, before you and I met again… what was your relationship with her? You said you two went on a date. One date."
He runs a hand uncomfortably through his hair. "Okay, but you have to promise to listen until the very end."
"You lied?" she asks in a small voice.
"What? No! Soo-yah," he says hurriedly lest she started crying again. "Yeonhwa and I went on that one date last year, like I told you. That was it, I promise."
"So… what else is there?"
He sighs. "I told you I've known her for years, because of Wook…" She nods, and he continues, "I'd be lying if I say I never noticed her feelings for me. I did notice, I just never paid it much heed, partly because she was Wook's sister, and Wook was my best friend at the time. Mostly because I saw her as something of a sister, myself.
It was when my parents were going back and forth trying to destroy each other… Yo-hyung and I had originally intended to postpone enlistment in the military until we were much older, but after the divorce was filed, things got terribly messy… the entire family and the company suffered. Hyung and I were both old enough to start learning the ropes of the company, so everyone wanted to use us for one reason or another - mother, father, uncles, aunts, board members…" He shakes his head.
"Lies were spread, scandals unearthed… it was terrible, Soo-yah. Hyung and I enlisted together and disappeared for 2 years. In hindsight, I think maybe we should have sucked it up and stayed, if only for Jung's sake… but we were younger then and fed up with everything, so we left. I did recommend Jung to Mr. Park, though, because I figured learning martial arts was as good a way as any to release pent up frustration."
Hajin nods, trying to digest this information. It was all very interesting and tied up nicely with what little information she had, but what did it have to do with Yeonhwa?
"And as you know," he continues, giving her a look that told her he knew exactly what she was thinking, "while in the military, we're… er… completely starved of females. Living, breathing, seeing nothing but males day in and day out… though there is that feeling of camaraderie and belongingness…" he shakes his head, "being around too much testosterone for long periods of time does things to you."
She narrows her eyes in warning. Does he mean what she thinks he means?
"Er…" he coughs delicately, "after getting discharged, I decided I didn't want any more casual flings and… one night stands," he looks anywhere but at her, "Hyung felt the same and married his girlfriend almost immediately in private. And Wook… sort of decided it was a good idea to try and set me up with his sister…"
Hajin wrinkles her nose in distaste. "And was it a good idea?" Her voice is a few notches higher than usual. So senses danger.
"I'd be lying if I say she isn't attractive," he says fairly, to which she gives a grudging nod, "I hadn't seen her in years and suddenly seeing her as a woman was very mind-boggling. We got along well during dinner."
Hajin's frown deepens with every word, wondering how this scenario could possibly end badly.
"I probably would have called her the next day, except that night was the first time I started having dreams of Goryeo," he explains, taking her elbow and making her face him. He runs a light hand over the side of her face - literally, the woman of his dreams - and remembers the feeling of contentment that came over him that day when he had taken her arm, said her name, and seen the recognition in her lovely eyes; when he knew he was home again, in her company; when all his wishes culminated into that one miraculous moment when he finally held her again in his arms after a thousand years of searching.
"It was the first time I saw your face… and even though I didn't know who you were, I knew you were important," he smiles warmly at her. "The dreams continued until I finally met you again, so really, I had no thought left to spare for any other woman, even if I wanted to. You consumed me. You always seem to consume me."
She swallows hard. "So… I ruined Yeonhwa's chances with you? Again?"
"And I will forever thank you for it," he kisses her forehead and draws her into a hug.
Though Hajin feels guilty and sheepish at the thought of Yeonhwa waiting in vain for So to return her affections after one seemingly perfect night together, she can't stop the smile from spreading across her face as she leans her head on his shoulder, his familiar body pressed against hers.
His phone rings suddenly, and he fishes it out of his pocket with a sigh to answer, looking surprised at the caller. "Hyung?"
She lifts her eyebrows in question, hearing who was on the other line. It was ten in the evening… why would Yo be calling him this late at night?
The conversation was brief, but it was enough to change So's disposition entirely so that by the time he hung up, he was back to looking like the professional chaebol that he is rather than the passionate lover she currently wanted him to be.
"Soo-yah, I-"
"Something urgent?" she asks with a defeated sigh. "Do you have to rush off to some place now?"
"I'm sorry," he says sincerely. "I'll make it up to you another time."
She shrugs and straightens up. "I did say only five minutes. It's been considerably longer than that." She crosses her arms, feeling anxious at the thought of whatever urgent matter Yo wanted to discuss. "Should I be worried?"
"No," he assures her with a smile. "Everything will turn out alright in the end, you'll see."
She nods and waves her goodbye, trying not to look too sorry for herself. "Drive safely. Text me when you get home, okay?"
"Silly girl." He takes her hand and leads her out of the market. "I'll take you home first."
Hello~! Sorry I took so long to update, I've been so busy with work and life orz
Thank you very much for all your kind reviews in the previous chapter! Esp to the silent readers who've finally decided to manifest themselves :P
I'm still busy right now so can't reply to all your comments XP I'll try in the next chapter! (again) lol
