Author's Note: While Gu Seung-jun quickly became one of my favourites by the end of the drama, him trying to force Seri into marrying him did not quite settle well with me. Here's my take on her inner monologue during their interaction in Episode 8.

Yoon Seri has always prided herself as a strong, independent, self-made woman. She never once backed out from a challenge: made herself a household name by building her own company from the ground up, defeated both her brothers in the race for their father's position despite being the youngest, survived a damn tornado while paragliding and somehow ended up alive on the wrong side of the country. Despite all the unpleasantness that life has thrown her way, she never once cowered, never faltered. She did everything with grace, with her head held high, and with the infuriating smirk that her enemies loathed to see.

Almost everyone on the entire Korean peninsula knew not to mess with her, and a part of her thought that Gu Seung-jun was a part of that population especially with the devastating rejection she delivered during their last meeting in Seoul. But apparently, he knew he had the upper hand this time and wasted no time trying to convince her that he was her only way out of North Korea. She knew what he was doing. He was baiting her, playing with her fear, and he did so knowing that she had no choice but to listen. And that made her furious.

She pulled her long cardigan tighter around her as she watched the snow fall from behind the huge glass doors of her bedroom. The whole house was filled with light and space because of the glass panels that surrounded it but somehow it only made her feel even more trapped. She longed for the warmth Ri Jeong Hyeok's home provided. She wanted to wake up to his cooking in the morning and bury herself under the thick covers of his bed during the night. She wanted to feel his presence near her. She just wanted to feel safe again.

Her eyes scanned the movement of the trees beyond the walls of the house and wondered what she would do if he were to suddenly appear. She wondered if he knew she was gone and if he was looking for her. Her heart desperately wanted to believe that he would come for her but knew that it was selfish to think that way. He already had so much on his plate with the gunshot wound and the military storming into the hospital, the last thing he should do is look for her and expose himself further.

She only felt numb when Seung-jun presented her with a dinner of bouillabaisse and Sauvignon Blanc. Her thoughts began to drift back to the clam bulgogi she had with the soldiers and the secret smiles she shared with Jeong Hyeok behind their backs. The memory only made her heart ache. Seung-jun pulled the chair for her to sit before going around the table to sit across from her.

Marriage.

A topic that she never seriously gave much thought about given that the only people brave enough to bring it up were her brother who wanted to set her up for an arranged marriage and an ex-lover who had one drink too many. Watching Seung-jun push the ring over the last knuckle of her ring finger felt like an out-of-body experience. In situations like these, her mind would have readily supplied her with a snarky comeback and her body would have reacted accordingly. By then, she would have taken off the ring and already be halfway out the door.

She is Yoon Seri. Nobody tells her what to do.

But at that moment, she just felt helpless. She felt numb. Instead of Seung-jun's hopeful face, she wanted to see Jeong Hyeok's soft gaze. Desperately.

"I know you have feelings for someone else. In an abnormal situation like this, it is only natural for you to do so. You were lonely and scared. You had no one to count on. But those emotions aren't real. They'll be gone once you leave here. They're fake."

That's not true. Not a single word is true. What I feel for him is real.

"So, forget all about it and marry me."

She wanted to laugh. He said it like it was the easiest thing in the world.

There was a trick she learned as a child, a trick she uses whenever she finds herself in a situation she had no control over. She first did it when her mother abandoned her on the beach that fateful night, the time she learned that she can trust no one but herself. She starts counting inside her head. It takes a while to get to a hundred, but it gets the job done. She needed to focus. She needed a way out. One. Two. Three.

Then all the lights inside the house went dark.

"What will you do out there?"

The shout echoed through the entire house and made her pause. Her hand gripped the doorknob in quiet desperation. Her heart was beating wildly inside her chest, prompted by the sight of Jeong Hyeok just meters away from where she was standing. She wanted to run outside, push away the guards, and stop them from hurting him. He didn't deserve this. He didn't deserve to be treated this way just because he's protecting her. She couldn't stand by and just watch. She needed to do something. But Gu Seung-jun won't stop talking.

"Do you think he can really send you back home? He kept failing."

"Don't talk about him that way," Seri finally fought back, her hands shaking in anger. "He did the best he could, and I chose not to go at the last minute. We're going to come up with another way."

"Have you not thought about the consequences? We're in North Korea," he reminded her as if she were a child who could not understand. "Your safe return to Seoul does not mean that Ri Jeong Hyeok's safety is guaranteed."

His words have done nothing but made her resent him more. "What makes you so sure of that?" she challenged him.

"Seo Dan," he delivered the final nail on the coffin that made her heart drop. "She knows about you. She said that she will expose you. And when she does, Ri Jeong Hyeok… he will die here."

He'll die.

She turned her head away, refusing to listen to him any longer. Slowly, she began to count inside her head. One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Instead of the voice taunting her and feeding on her fear since yesterday, she can only hear the waves crashing onto the shoreline. She needed to focus. She needed to save him. Her hands were shaking. Her heart was threatening to burst through her chest. She wanted to throw away her pride for once and just crash into the arms of the man who'd willingly die for her.

But she couldn't. And she wouldn't. Because she loves him. She needs to save him.

Her mind was barely conscious of the fact that her hand has opened the door and her feet have started to walk towards him. Only when their eyes met that she felt her resolve slowly start to crumble. Her hands were itching to reach for him. She wanted him to embrace her and take her away from this place, but that would mean he would pay the consequences. He would get hurt. He might even get killed. All because of her. All because he was a good man and was trying to protect her. Her eyes stung with fresh tears and her heart began to ache at the sight of the fresh cut above his eye and his bruised lip.

Why can't he take care of himself better?

"What…" her voice caught. "What are you doing here?"

The more she talked, the angrier she got. All of the unreleased resentment she felt towards Gu Seung-jun since yesterday came rushing out and attacked the person who deserved it the least. He didn't deserve it, but she was also angry with him. Angry that he was not taking care of himself. Angry that he was out in the cold, exposed and wounded, when he should be in the hospital getting treatment and resting comfortably. Angry at their impossible situation that will most likely just break both of their hearts in the end.

"Are you hurt?"

Her entire body froze at his question before a sudden rush of emotions flooded through her. Her lower lip quivered as more tears rolled down her cheeks. Damn him. He had every right to be angry with her. He didn't have to look for her, he didn't have to come and fight off the guards just to get to her, he didn't have to come and rescue her. But he did. He was cold, tired, and wounded, and he's asking if she was okay.

"You're in no place to worry about others," she cried, utterly upset. "This is ridiculous."

Jeong Hyeok has done nothing but care for her since the moment she came into his life. He has never pressured her to do anything she wasn't comfortable with, never once asked anything in return for every sacrifice he had made, and never once cornered her into a situation where she felt lost or trapped. Seung-jun was able to accomplish all that in one day, and Jeong Hyeok was the one she was getting mad at.

He stepped closer after her whole tirade and it took everything in her not to step back. One touch and she might crumble. She didn't want to appear weak in front of Seung-jun, but her knees seemed to have turned into jelly when his left hand reached out to squeeze her upper arm in comfort.

"Do you mean it?" his voice was quiet, hurt.

No.

A tear slowly rolled down her cheek before she nodded stiffly. "I mean it."

The silence between them took two seconds but it felt longer to Seri.

"I understand. I got it," he answered, nodding.

No questions asked. No pleas heard. Just pure acceptance. She wanted to scream.

He reached up to wipe the tear off her cheek with the pad of his thumb, and his voice was almost pleading when he added. "So, don't cry."

I don't mean it. Please. Take me with you.

The sad smile he gave her before he walked away broke her heart. Only when he was out of sight did she let go of all pretenses and released the sobs building inside her chest. Not even the invitation to go back inside the warm house was enough to appease her. She tried to convince herself that she did the right thing to let him go, to make him feel like she didn't need him, because it would guarantee his safety. Associating himself with her will only get him hurt.

Then her worries kicked in, and all the worst-case scenarios that can happen to him walking alone in a snowstorm began to flood into her mind. Her stubborn pride prevented her from moving, telling her that she would look silly for telling him off and then running after him right after. But it only took less than a minute for her to race towards where the car was parked and to step on the gas pedal.

Afterwards, with her hand clutching the sleeve of his thick coat, her red-rimmed eyes slowly looked up to meet his curious ones. There were no words to convey the chaos happening inside her head and in her heart. All of her thoughts and emotions scrambling to be the first one she hears and her temples were starting to throb in pain. The swirling snow and the cold winds were not helping her either.

Everything goes blissfully quiet the moment he pulled her into his arms.

It was warm, and it was like the whole world had turned silent. Seri expelled a breath she did not know she was holding before finally succumbing to his embrace. All her fears and worries seemed to have melted away and his overwhelming presence surrounding her made her eyes sting with fresh tears. She's safe now. Jeong Hyeok pulled her closer as he leaned his head against hers.

She's finally home.