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Summary: Four years and continents apart. What keeps Yi Jeong and Ga Eul's hope alive are the letters that they write to each other from time to time…

LOVE LETTER

XXXIV

Jae Kyung opened her eyes and for a moment, lay perfectly still. It wasn't because she didn't know where she was or was trying to remember the events from the previous night. She knew all too well that she was in Woo Bin's room, in Woo Bin's bed. However, she also recalled that he had gone to sleep on the couch. So how was it that he was now in the same bed as her, although there was a pillow between them?

Carefully, she turned on her side and gazed at his face. She was sure that he had fallen asleep only after she had; no man was that silent a sleeper. He still looked the same, a little older perhaps and when she had asked him about work, he had been cryptic at best. She guessed that his mafia roots bothered him but they had never spoken about it at all during the time they had spent together.

"Good morning."

Instantly her cheeks flushed and she wished she had never indulged in staring at him. His eyes were closed but he had been awake! "I-I thought you went to sleep on the couch," she stuttered, hoping he wouldn't ask why she had been looking at him.

"It's a little narrow and in the middle of the night, my back started aching. So I thought we could share the bed and I put a pillow in the middle so that I wouldn't have to worry about my modesty."

"Oh, I see. Wait a minute! Your modesty? It's my modesty that needs guarding!"

Woo Bin rolled over to face her, grinning. "Before you say that, take a look at what you are wearing."

Protectively pulling up the covers, she scowled at him. "It's not new, it's black because I like that colour and all nighties have thin straps. But apparently you have been looking."

"I'm a man, what do you expect?"

"Not a man in love I presume. Or else you wouldn't have looked. You shouldn't be so surprised," Jae Kyung said softly. "I know you, or have you forgotten?" When they had been together, he had had eyes for only her.

A light friendly conversation with her was fine. But this was getting too serious for his liking. Woo Bin pushed back the covers, fully intent on getting up but Jae Kyung reached over and placed a hand on his arm.

"Just tell me what I did wrong. I've tried not to think about it but I can't." She hated herself for being pathetic but she was equally desperate for the truth.

"Nobody did anything wrong." Woo Bin pulled away from her touch. "We had an agreement right? Nothing serious, just fun and hanging out together until you went back to America."

"So when you told me that you were glad Jun Pyo had chosen not to marry me, was that just fun too?" Tears filled her eyes and she wiped them away angrily. "You know there was more. I could feel it, so could you."

She was right and he couldn't lie to her about that. She was too sharp for him that way, always had been. "You didn't do anything wrong Jae Kyung. I don't think I've ever been happier with a woman than when I was with you. But we're not a good fit."

She stared at him as though he had just said the dumbest thing in the whole world. "I don't get it. We like the same things, we get along well, and we're even from the same social class—"

"We're not," he cut her off abruptly. "And because of that, our worlds are very different."

"Is this because of your mafia connections?"

Woo Bin's silence was a confirmation in itself. Jae Kyung sat up straighter, not sure whether she felt more outraged or relieved. "So it's not because I've done something wrong but because you think you're not good enough."

That wasn't a question; it was an accusation. Perhaps it would be better not to have this conversation. "Look, it's been done already. There's nothing more to say."

Jae Kyung sprang off the bed as he attempted to walk towards the bathroom in a bid to end their conversation. "No! You aren't getting off that easily. I've spent more than two years nursing my heart and wondering what I've done wrong and it's all because of your stupid ego! Since when have I ever made you feel like you weren't good enough for me?"

Furious, Woo Bin rounded on her. "It's not my ego, it's your parents!"

Surprised and puzzled, she looked at him. "You've never been formally introduced. You've never even met them when we were together."

He had been wondering how long he could keep that from her. Apparently today was a day for confessions. "Your father called your phone and I picked it. I only did that because he called four times and you were still in the ladies'. It was towards the end of your holiday here, we were at a restaurant and you were wearing your favourite red dress."

He still remembered, and so did she. It had been an evening where she had been hoping he would ask her to stay. It should have been a romantic evening, fuelled by her impending departure. Instead, he had turned quiet and distant that evening and it had been the start of the chill that descended upon their relationship.

"What did my father say?" Jae Kyung asked calmly although she had a pretty good idea. When she got back, she was going to scream at her father, however much she loved him.

"He asked who I was and when I gave him my name, he told me he knew about me, the mafia prince who was Jun Pyo's best friend. I was also very politely asked to leave you alone because he had arranged for you to meet a very promising suitor, one worthy of your calibre who would be an asset to your company."

Woo Bin's voice was very controlled but he couldn't hide the bitterness he still felt. "I'm sorry you had to hear that." Slowly, she approached him, and cautiously put her hand on his arm. He didn't pull away, neither did he respond or look at her. "You should have told me."

He sighed deeply. "Maybe. What was the point? It would have made no difference."

Her fingers tightened on his bare skin. "It would have made a difference to me. I had no idea what my father had planned and just so you know, I refused to meet the guy. I kept thinking about you…" Emotion closed up her throat and she swallowed hard. "We're already adults now. We should make our own decisions, not do what other people tell us we should."

Woo Bin looked at her then and he realised what Hyun Ae had meant when she accused him of only giving her kindness. She had never been able to affect him the way Jae Kyung did. He had been faithful and good to her, determined to make this relationship work to compensate for his failure with Jae Kyung. But she had never excited him emotionally, he had always found himself wondering about the woman he had let slip through his fingers from time to time. Still, he could not bring himself to tell her what he knew she wanted to hear.

Her own words echoed in her ears. As much as she wanted to demand to know what Woo Bin's decision was, to talk him into it, she couldn't. Abruptly, she released him and stepped back. "Like I said, it's your decision to make. But when I go to America this time, I won't be coming back, ever. I'm not waiting for you anymore." There was no point in telling him about Oliver; if those words didn't move him, nothing would.

And with that, she proceeded to gather her belongings and exited the room, leaving a stunned Woo Bin behind.

………………

The evening sun was gentle, warm but not hot. Above, the sky was a palette of various golds and blues, streaked with white clouds. In the garden, there were murmurs of excitement as the guests seated themselves on the satin covered chairs that had been placed in the garden for the occasion. The Justice of the Peace was already there at the gazebo, going through some notes he had taken out of his pocket. Yi Jeong wondered what the man was reading; after all, he and Ga Eul had composed their own vows so all the man had to do was pronounce them man and wife.

Yi Jeong was about to go looking for his best men (since he couldn't pick one he had asked all three of them) when he heard whispered squabbling just down the corner from him. It was Jun Pyo. Curious, he walked over silently, wondering what the conversation was about.

"Oi! Have you found them yet?"

"Me? You were the one who lost them!"

"It wasn't me! Ji Hoo was the one who kept pestering me to pass them over and claimed that he returned them to me. Don't you say I was the one who did it!"

"Well, shouldn't we go look again? The ceremony is about to start and if we don't have them by then…"

At that point, Yi Jeong couldn't contain himself anymore. "You lost the rings?!"

All three of them whirled around. However, instead of looking shocked, they proceeded to laugh and slap each other on the back.

"You idiots!" Yi Jeong growled, knowing full well he had just been the victim of a prank.

"Relax bro, the rings are safe." Woo Bin petted the pocket of his jacket.

"They'd better be. Or I'm telling Jan Di that the three of you lost them and even Ji Hoo will be dead meat, because you ruined Ga Eul's wedding," Yi Jeong said smugly.

"Like we don't know that." Jun Pyo shuddered at the thought of his wife's punishments. Being kicked or hit would be getting off lightly.

"Speaking of weddings, yours is about to start. Time to walk down the aisle and wait for your lovely bride who should be down soon." Ji Hoo nodded in the direction of the garden. "Feeling nervous?"

"Yes, but more happy than nervous." Yi Jeong smiled when he realised how sentimental he sounded. "Let's go."

…………..

He stands at the entrance of the gazebo, the Justice of the Peace on the first step, his three best friends behind him. Swallowing hard doesn't quell the unexpected surge of butterflies in his stomach and Yi Jeong thinks that perhaps, he should have had something to eat. Maybe it has to do with all those eyes on him, fifty pairs to be exact. In the front row are Ga Eul's parents, looking both happy but a little tearful and sad. After all, she will be moving out immediately once they return from the honeymoon and their house will have one less member of the family. Still, there are the weekly Friday dinners and he has no intention of stopping those. They are in some ways, the parents that he never had.

Speaking of parents, his father is absent, which is the norm since he has missed every important date in his son's life. This time though, he doesn't feel as angry and disappointed. His mother had relayed the message to him and in it, he realises that his father is proud of him, that he didn't come not because he didn't care. And speaking of his mother, she's seated right beside Ga Eul's halmoni, the two of them dabbing at their eyes with handkerchiefs. She looks very proud and happy, a little wistful but she has come such a long way indeed from those dark days. He's glad that he arranged for her to go on a tour of Scotland and then Europe with Ga Eul's immediate family.

As he stands and waits, his hands shoved deep into his pockets so that he doesn't fidget with them, he wonders again how he managed to get to this moment. He has been waiting for what seems like forever and now forever is here. He thinks about when they first met, he hadn't even fully registered her presence beyond the fact that she was Jan Di's good friend whom he could use. When she had walked out the door of his studio, he had realised she wasn't just any girl. And now with the blessed accuracy of hindsight, he knows now that it was his first encounter with the woman who was going to be his wife.

Restless eyes that scan the doorway finally spot movement. First comes Jan Di, carrying a bouquet of deep red roses. She looks at Yi Jeong with approval—he hasn't let her best friend down after all—then blushes because her husband has just shamelessly winked at her. Behind her is Jae Kyung, who looks nothing short of stunning. Yi Jeong hears Woo Bin inhale sharply beside him and from the corner of his eye, he notices how pale his best friend suddenly is. Ji Hoo's prank worked but the question of how well has yet to be answered.

And then Ga Eul steps into sight and everything else vanishes from his mind. Beauty itself is walking towards him, clad in white, with sunlight in her hair and on the transparent veil she wears. She carries pink and red irises, a symbol of their promise; her eyes are luminous and fixed on his as she walks up the aisle alone, all eyes following her. His arms ache to hold her.

Without a second thought, he holds out his hand to her when she is within reach and revels in the warmth of her palm against his. As the ceremony begins, Yi Jeong whispers softly to her that she is the most beautiful thing he has. Ga Eul thinks that she might just start crying then.

They wait, almost impatiently, for the cue to say their vows. And then the moment arrives.

"Yi Jeong, you were the person who taught me that I had to have a strong heart when it comes to relationships. Like pottery that has been crushed, moulded, cut and placed in the heart of a blazing fire, I would have to endure difficulties in order to get what was truly mine." She squeezes his hand tightly, inhales deeply and continues. "On this day, I would like you to know, you are the best gift that I have ever received. It's true what they say, that out of the fire comes something pure and lasting. It hasn't been easy for us, but I would do it all over again as long as you are with me."

She pauses, blinks rapidly so that the tears don't spill. He runs his thumb over her knuckles encouragingly, feeling a lump in his throat. Because of Ga Eul, he believes that he is worthy of happiness.

"I, Chu Ga Eul, take you, So Yi Jeong, to be my lawfully wedded husband. I will love you, cherish you, protect you and stay with you for better or worse, in sickness and in health. And even if death did part us temporarily, I would wait until we were together again." She passes Jan Di her flowers before taking the ring in slightly shaking hands. "With this ring, I give you my promise." The ring slides easily onto his finger, a larger version of the Lover's Weave ring he has bought for her. Ga Eul exhales and then smiles radiantly up at him.

Now it is his turn.

"Ga Eul, I once told you I didn't believe in happy endings. Thankfully today, I can safely say that you've gotten rid of that belief once and for all." She chuckles softly, holding tightly to his hands. "We're not at the end yet, this is only the start and it's a journey that has begun with great hope and happiness. It won't always be smooth, but I know that we will make it. You've always been my soulmate, sometimes I think you know me better than I know myself. And whatever our souls are made of, yours and mine are the same."

Taking the ring in his hand, he holds it, poised near her finger. "I, So Yi Jeong, take you, Chu Ga Eul, to be my lawfully wedded wife. I will love you, cherish you, protect you and stay with you for better or worse, in sickness and in health. And even if death did part us temporarily, I would wait until we were together again." Gently, he slips the ring onto her finger. "With this ring, I give you my promise."

The Justice of the Peace beams down at them, somewhat amused that there is barely a dry eye amongst the guests. "I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride."

But the groom hasn't bothered waiting for that latter instruction. Her veil is already pushed back and she is in his arms as they kiss under showers of golden light to the sound of gentle applause.