Hi all. This is the final chapter of Secret Kiss. I hope you all enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

Cheers!

Chapter 3

After that night Ha Ni didn't hear anything further from her supposed secret admirer. Granted she had stood him up, but she secretly hoped he would have had a bit more perseverance, after all, it was rather a long game he was playing and she had left an apology, sort of. She hoped he would have tried to contact her at least once more. But then again maybe he hadn't come back to the park and didn't get her apology, or maybe he didn't know that the flower she left meant, or maybe he thought she didn't want to meet him, or maybe the meet up had just been someone's idea of a sick joke and nobody had actually shown up at all in the first place! She decided to stop thinking about it because she had so many other things to think about.

Her first year at Parang was coming to an end and she still had no idea what she wanted to do with her life. She and her father had recently moved back to the rooms above the noodle shop because her father thought it would be best for both Ha Ni and Seung Jo if they weren't constantly under each other's feet while he was getting ready to marry Yoon He Ra. Thoughts about him made her sad so she pushed them to the side, preferring not to deal with it right now.

In the meantime, Bong Joon-Gu had made a convincing argument to Ha NI about why she should choose him now seeing as how he was the most likely candidate to take over the noodle shop and continue Oh Ki-Dong's legacy and he already loved her enough for the both of them. It was convincing enough that Ha Ni was giving it serious thought, trying to imagine a future with him and thinking it might not be so bad.

These were the thoughts tumbling around in her brain two weeks later as Ha Ni was sitting in a small courtyard nestled in between the Finance and Medical buildings on campus, enjoying a box lunch from home while trying to read from her Biology text book. Thoughts of her secret admirer were long buried in the past.

The courtyard was a fairly quiet spot, surrounded by trees that managed to filter out the brightest sunlight, creating a comfortable shady spot for overburdened students to be able to get outside and enjoy a little bit of nature to calm their frazzled nerves. That's what Ha Ni was doing now, calming her frazzled nerves. She put the book down and took a moment to stretch her arms over her head and admire her peaceful surrounding when she felt her face frown and then wondered what it was she had just seen to make it frown.

She perked up a little and scanned the pathway to the tennis courts that could just be seen coming around the Medical building and she spotted what it was that her eyes saw but her brain was too preoccupied to process right away. He Ra was walking, no, more like ambling slowly towards the tennis courts, hand in hand with Kyung Soo, the tennis team captain. They stopped for a moment and she stepped out in front of him without releasing his hand, running her other hand up his arm to rest on his shoulder and then He Ra rose to her tip toes and planted a quick kiss onto the captain's lips. Ha Ni's mouth fell open in shock as she watched Kyung Soo try to pull He Ra in for another kiss but she managed to wriggle her way out of his embrace and danced in front of him, tempting him to follow her, and then they disappeared around the corner where Ha Ni could no longer see them.

WT actual F was that? Ha Ni's brain screamed. Wasn't she in a relationship with Baek Seung Jo? How could she treat him so poorly and in public too? Ha Ni leapt up from the bench to run after them, only to stop, turn around and grope in her bag for her phone to call Seung Jo and find out what was going on. However, she came to her senses quickly and turned off her phone before she could hit the last digit of his number. It was none of her business. Whatever was going on, it was between Seung Jo, He Ra and Kyung Soo. It did not include her and she had no right poking her nose it his affairs. Resolutely Ha Ni stowed the phone away back in her bag and decided that since her classes were done for the day and she couldn't really focus on her school work anyway, she might as well go home early. She packed up all her stuff and headed for the train station.

She was on the train when her cell phone pinged an incoming text. It was probably one of her friends wondering where she was so she waited until she was sitting down comfortably before checking her messages when she got a big shock. A message from an unknown number that said, Meet me today at the bridge at four o'clock. If you're not there I will take the hint that you are not interested and will never contact you again. If you do come I can promise you – you won't be disappointed.

It had to be him, her secret admirer. But why had he waited so long? Ha Ni glanced down at her watch and gasped when she saw it was 3:45 already. She only had 15 minutes to get to the bridge in the park! It would take at least that long from the train station she got off at, but she wasn't there yet. She shoved her phone back into her bag and sprinted for the door that was still closed eager to jump out as soon as they started to open. To calm herself Ha Ni started counting the seconds. It took 156 seconds for the train to reach her station and when the doors to slid open enough for her to squeeze through she took off for the exit at a dead run.

Huffing and puffing, holding on to her sides, and sweat trickling down her face Ha Ni arrived at the bench on bridge at exactly 4:03 and there was not a soul in sight. Leaning against the railing of the bridge, desperately trying to catch her breath, Ha Ni scanned the area surrounding her for several minutes. Eventually she spotted a young couple sitting on a bench further down enjoying an ice cream cone between them, locked together in their own little world oblivious to their surroundings; an older man shuffling along the pathway leading a tiny little dog on a long leash, taking his time, allowing his friend to sniff every bush and rock along the way. She also saw a couple of kids playing on the swings in the playground, closely shadowed by their obviously protective parents, but no lone male anywhere in sight.

Disappointed, she turned her back to the park and stared out over the river instead. She was only three minutes late, he couldn't have left already, could he? I mean he only gave her 15 minutes. How did he know she wasn't still at school, or even at home already; which in either case she would never have made it in time. Someone was obviously playing with her and was no doubt hiding somewhere nearby laughing their heads off at the stupid girl who ran all the way from the train station to meet her secret admirer, who obviously didn't even exist. She was such an idiot falling for something so clearly fake.

Standing by the rail, silently cursing at her own stupidity suddenly Ha Ni felt two strong arms come around from behind her to wrap around her waist and pull her into a very warm, very hard body. Panic bubbled up as her body tensed and she opened her mouth to scream when she got a nose full of her captor's scent and her body immediately relaxed and her heart fluttered. It was the scent of pine, wood smoke and spice.

Could this be real? Could it really be him? Her heart beat quickened and as much as she wanted to turn around and confirm what she suspected, her body refused to move. She could only stand within the circle of his arms, her body quivering, quiet tears falling. He seemed to understand and just pulled her closer against his warmth, one hand stroking her hair, silently waiting for her to be able to speak. Oddly, it was the wild beating of his heart that she could feel against her back that managed to eventually calm her down.

When words finally came, "You're late Baek Seung Jo!" was all she managed to say, tears continuing to slide down her cheek as she felt his lips nuzzling her neck.

"I'm sorry I made you wait" he replied. "I'm sorry about a lot things between us Ha Ni." He said stroking her hair as he gently turned her around to face him.

"Is this real?" she asked.

Seung Jo raised his hand and let dangle in front of her a necklace with two sparkly hearts entwined together and smiled gently down at her. He understood how difficult this would be for her, after all, he had tried to push her away for such a long time but once he realized his feelings for her, he had done nothing but plan for this moment knowing it wouldn't be easy but praying she would still be willing to give him a chance. He placed the chain around her neck and traced his fingers along the golden links until they met at the charm hanging in the middle of her chest. Seung Jo smiled at Ha Ni and cupped her face gently, wiping the tears from her cheeks with his thumbs.

"Yes Ha Ni. It's very real. I promise it's real." He leaned down and placed a tender kiss on her forehead then pulled her in tight for a warm hug. "We have a lot to talk about, don't we?"

They spent the next hour sitting together under a tree in the park, with Ha Ni curled up in Seung Jo's lap with his arms and legs wrapped around her, holding her tightly as he told her about the last few months and everything he'd been through that finally led them to where they were now.

She sat pressed up against him, her head leaning back so she could look at his face while he spoke. It was probably the most he had ever actually said to her in the five years she had known him. He told her about how he felt forced by circumstances to accept the engagement with Yoon He Ra or lose his father's company after his dad's heart attack. How after spending more time with He Ra he realized that it was actually Ha Ni that he loved and how much he missed her while she was staying away from him. How He Ra finally confessed that she had feelings for Kang Soo, the tennis team's captain and broke off the engagement weeks ago. He went on to tell Ha Ni that it was actually He Ra's idea for him to do the secret admirer thing to try to win her back and how she had even helped plant some of the "gifts". He also talked about how upset he was when she didn't show up the first time they were supposed to meet. He was so ready to confess his love to Ha Ni and had waited about 45 minutes before giving up and walking home in a sulk. Ha Ni had actually run past him in her rush to get to the meeting place and didn't even notice. He ended up following her back to the park and watched her until she left. He pulled out the dried up purple Hyacinth blossom out of his jacket pocket to show her the proof. Ha Ni giggled a little at that and placed a quick kiss on his chin in apology. Seung Jo smiled down at her pulling her in to nuzzle against her neck before he told her about today.

"I was done thinking and planning and waiting. Today I was prepared to find you at school and tell you everything and I lucked out when I saw you at the train station. I ended up following you onto the train but you were so clueless you didn't even notice me." He said with a smirk.

"Yah, Seung Jo! You only gave me 15 minutes to get here when you knew it would take longer. You did that on purposed to punish me for not showing up the other time, didn't you!" His only response was a soft chuckle. "You jerk." She said and snuggled closer still. Seung Jo let out a happy sigh. "I have to say I did enjoy watching you run. You need to get in better shape by the way, you were heaving like a bellows after only two blocks." She slapped her tiny hand against his chest but he only grabbed it and carried it up to his lips before softly kissing her palm.

"Can you forgive me Ha Ni? Not just for today, but for everything, for the last few years, for all my harsh words and mean behaviour, and especially for letting myself get roped into that engagement with Yoon He Ra. Can we start over?" She could practically hear the fear of rejection in his voice, but when had she ever been able to deny him anything, ever!

"Of course I forgive you." She said before sitting back and extending her hand shyly. "Hello, my name is Oh Ha Ni. I'm 19 and a first year student at Parang University. I live with my dad above his noodle shop and I really want to get to know you better."

Seung Jo looked down at her hand for a moment before engulfing it with both of his. "Hi. I'm Baek Seung Jo, a genius with very few people skills and I'm also studying at Parang University. I live with my parents and little brother in a beautiful big house that has enough room for both you and your dad to come back and live with us and I really want to marry you."

"W-what did you say?" she blinked up at him, her eyes as large a saucers. The next second she was pushing away from him,

"Yah! I thought you said you wanted to start over? You don't start by asking the other person to marry you! What's wrong with you?" She cried, trying to get up and out of his arms. He only tightened his hold on her and replied, "I thought about trying to date you first and then marry you, but I decided that I don't want to give you the chance to leave me again, so let's get engaged first and then date." The look on his face was awfully smug as he gazed down at her.

"You're awfully confident all of a sudden."

"You're not allowed to look at anybody other than me." He replied very serious all of a sudden, "You're not allowed to love anyone other than me!" The next thing she knew, Seung Jo's lips crashed down on hers in a searing possessive kiss that clearly said Woman! You belong to me!

"That's our second kiss." Ha Ni whispered with a shy smile when he finally let her catch her breath. "Actually it's our third, but you can stop counting now." He smiled before his lips found hers again.

The End.