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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…

Story Notes: Okay, some explanations are in order. As much as I loved the BoF After Story, the time sequence puzzled me. It seems to all happen in the same day, and yet after leaving, YJ and JP are back to celebrate WB's birthday and it's nightfall by then.

Hence, I worked out my own take on the events. The celebration takes place before JP leaves and I've added JH's presence. But pretty much everything is the same when it comes to YJ's scenes. ^_^

LOVE LETTER

XXX

Yi Jeong slumped into his chair, thoroughly exhausted but incredibly happy. He had just finished his first solo exhibition and after a week, ninety percent of his works had been snapped up, a stunning accomplishment for any potter.

Catching sight of his reflection in one of the glass cabinets, he noticed the dark circles under his eyes. He needed a good night's sleep and some relaxation. Maybe in a few days' time he would call up his friends and catch up with them. It had been a full year since his return to Korea and the past few months had been spent liaising with art galleries, planning for the recently concluded exhibition and getting reacquainted with the art scene.

True to his word, his grandfather had not done anything to get in his way although it would be a cold day in hell before his works ever appeared in the family museum again. As always, he felt a tinge of sadness at never setting foot into the museum he used to play around in as a child. But he could live with it; he had been more than blessed and was grateful for every day he had on this earth. His mother was well, she was currently visiting Ga Eul's grandmother who adored her after they had met during last year's New Year gathering, Ga Eul had just graduated second in her class and had found work at a prestigious primary school, Jun Pyo and Jan Di's wedding was taking place in a fortnight's time.

He wanted to call Ga Eul and share the good news with her but he knew that she would be in class. He would be going to pick her up though and they would be having dinner with her parents before going out for a movie. Maybe tonight would be a good night… Walking over to the small safe he kept in the room, Yi Jeong keyed in the combination and withdrew a small dark red box from it. Gently, he opened the lid and looked down at the two rings inside. One was a beautiful emerald cut solitaire set in platinum. Like the woman he loved, it was simple but classic and breathtaking. The other was a ring he had bought in Sweden just two months before he had left. It had been a tiny jewellery store, run by an Irish couple and he had gone in by accident, thinking it was an art shop. Somehow or other the proprietor and his wife had began chatting with him and before he knew it, he was looking at Irish wedding bands. One caught his eye, a Lovers' Weave Ring which symbolised that the couple would be together for eternity. It was made of white gold and in between the weave of the bands, there were tiny round diamonds. He had bought a set, and had not said a word to anyone, not even his mother. Yi Jeong had never been superstitious but this was one event he did not want to jinx.

For the past few weeks he had been thinking about how to propose. On nights when they snuggled together on the couch or even in his bed, he had caught himself several times before he blurted out a proposal. Sometimes she would squeeze his hand and give him a kiss on the cheek in public when she thought no one was looking and it was all he could do to stop himself from saying, "Marry me."

And this time, there was no one to ask for advice! He was not going to ask Jun Pyo; it was a miracle that the latter had successfully carried out his own proposal. Woo Bin's girlfriend had just left him after accusing him of giving her kindness instead of love, something that had been painfully obvious to his three best friends. Ji Hoo probably would have some great ideas but he would only ask him as a last resort. He was an artist for God's sake; he was supposed to be creative. Surely he could think of a way to propose to the woman he loved.

"Not tonight," Yi Jeong muttered as he placed the box back in the safe. He would think of something while pretending to watch the movie later. In the meantime, he had to shower and get some coffee into his system.

………………

"You sure you're not going to join us?"

Yi Jeong could tell that Ji Hoo and Woo Bin wanted his company but he had something in mind. "I've got something to do," he said with an apologetic smile. "I'll meet you guys tomorrow?" Hopefully he would have good news to tell them then.

Yi Jeong fought the urge to fidget or avoid their eyes as his friends stared at him suspiciously. "You're up to something," Ji Hoo declared.

"Something that he is trying to keep from us," Woo Bin added, leaning against the door.

"You know, Yi Jeong has seemed a little preoccupied lately," Ji Hoo continued.

"It reminds me a little of Jun Pyo's preoccupation with his wedding preparations."

"Operation Special Date?"

They dissolved into snickers as Yi Jeong sighed impatiently and stared pointedly at the door behind them, making it clear he wanted them to leave. "Fine, we get the message." Woo Bin raised his hands and backed docilely out the door that Ji Hoo held open. "Just remember bro, girls like flowers and romantic poetry when you propose to them." And then they hightailed it before he could say anything.

Was he that transparent? But then again, these were his very best friends since childhood and they knew him almost better than anyone else. In spite of their ragging, it had been great to meet up with them again. Woo Bin's message had been unexpected and his location even more so. But Yi Jeong understood the nostalgia that had come over Woo Bin, especially since the latter's birthday was days away. As working adults, their lives had diverged, and it was not so easy to meet up with each other now. In some aspects, life in Shinhwa had been less complicated and more carefree. And it was the place where they had been studying at when he and Jun Pyo had met the great loves of their lives. And that was when he had started thinking about proposing to Ga Eul here. It might not be the most romantic of places, but it was significant in some respect.

He had not brought the rings though. And Ga Eul was supposed to be here in forty minutes. As fast as his Lotus was, there was still late afternoon traffic to deal with. He was walking the grounds, looking for an idea when the blue and purple flowers caught his eye. Maybe he didn't have the rings but he could make her a bouquet of flowers. After all, how many girls could say that their boyfriends had done that for them?

Mentally apologising to whoever had put the flowers there, he took them up to the private schoolroom that F4 used to occupy. After scrounging around in Ji Hoo's drawers, he found some wrapping paper and plastic that would do nicely, along with a thick roll of silver ribbon. Looks like all those hours of sitting with Eun Jae during flower arrangement classes were going to pay off after all.

Carefully, he selected the flowers, cutting stems and leaves as he placed them next to each other, trying to see which colours matched the best. Blue for loyalty, wisdom and faithfulness, lavender for creativity and independence, white for purity and perfection. All that she was, he thought happily, smelling the fragrance of the petals as he picked up the bouquet. She would like it. Yi Jeong was about to leave when he spotted the Polaroid camera Woo Bin had left on his table. "Why not?" he murmured, knowing how much she loved photographs. Holding it up, he held the flowers close to him so that they would be captured in the shot. And since girls liked poetry, at least according to Don Juan….Grabbing a marker, Yi Jeong wrote a sentence before placing the small photos carefully amongst the flowers. A quick glance at the clock showed that he had exactly one minute to get to the Art Centre before she did.

It was a long run, but he hardly felt it. All he could think about was her.

…………………..

So much for seizing the moment and all that. Yi Jeong checked his watch for what seemed like the one hundredth time. She was more than three quarters of an hour late. She was not replying to his messages and when he called her phone, an engaged tone was all he got. Panic, cold and clammy, crept down his spine. Had something gone wrong? Had she changed her mind about them? No, she couldn't have. She loved him. Maybe something had happened to her, an accident? Panic blossomed into fear. A life without her was not worth living…

"Sunbae!"

His heart leapt within him and he turned around to see her standing there, smiling apologetically at him. "I know I'm late. There was this massive jam and when I got here, I managed to get myself lost! And my phone died on me. I'm sorry I kept you waiting."

After all the horrors his overly active imagination had conjured, the truth seemed so benign by comparison. It was a little odd though that so many events had conspired to interrupt his proposal. Never mind, only the courageous would conquer love, so Ga Eul had told him once. And she was right.

Lifting up the bouquet, he held it out to her, delighting in the smile of pleasure that wreathed her face as she took it from him. "I made this for you."

"These are so beautiful! And they smell lovely." Her eyes looked suspiciously wet and she blinked a few times before leaning to hug him close. "I love you," she murmured shyly before raising her face to kiss him softly on the lips.

"I love you too Ga Eul yang." It was now or never. Ignoring the way his heart pounded against his ribs, Yi Jeong kissed her again before pulling away to gaze into her eyes. "Will you be my eternal flower?"

She cupped his cheek gently, her fingers stroking his skin, and in her face he could see all the love in the world. "Of course, Yi Jeong sunbae."

Fireworks went off inside Yi Jeong's head and he almost saw stars. She had said yes!

"Aren't you being poetic today? It's a lovely metaphor though. "

The fireworks dimmed a little. That didn't sound like the way a woman in love behaved when she said yes to a proposal from the man she loved. Women cried, they laughed, they hugged the man. They didn't tell him he used a nice meta-whatever.

"I didn't know you could do flower arrangement either. It's prettier than anything I've seen even in the shops."

Okay, the fireworks had officially died out by now. Yi Jeong was so taken aback and stunned by her failure to realise what he had meant that he could only stare at her as she fussed over the flowers. What had he done wrong?

"Oh, you've written that question on the photo as well. I didn't notice it just now, but I've already said yes so…Yi Jeong sunbae, are you alright?"

She must have seen him grimace when she had mentioned she had said yes. 'Not the kind of 'yes' I had in mind,' Yi Jeong thought gloomily even as he muttered that he was fine. So much for poetry! He should have just stuck to being straightforward. If only Woo Bin hadn't opened his big mouth. Even without them being around, F4—well, half of F4—had managed to sabotage his proposal. This had to be karma for disrupting Jun Pyo's proposal to Jan Di a year ago.

"So why did you want me to meet you here? Is there something special you wanted to show me?"

Ouch, talk about taking the metaphorical knife and twisting it in deeper. But she didn't know what she was doing, and so he pushed it aside. "Not really, I was just feeling nostalgic and wanted to be here for a little longer. Now, what would you like to have for dinner?"

As Ga Eul made a few suggestions, Yi Jeong half listened as he starting planning for Operation Proposal: Part Two.