A/N: Thanks, mcleen.
Sam Soon ran to the front desk. “Where is he?” She asked the nurse.
The petite lady looked up from her computer. “Ma’am, who are you talking about?”
“Sam Shik!” She leaned over the desk and tried to catch her breath.
“Ma’am, please calm down. Sam Shik? Sam is his last name?”
“Of course not. His last name is Hyun.” Do they only hire morons these days?
The lady typed the name into the computer then looked up at Sam Soon. “Hyun Sam Shik? I don’t see the name here. How do you spell it?”
Oh goodness. “His name is not…”
“Sam Soon?” she heard Jin Hun’s voice from behind. She turned around.
She ran up to him and started feeling him all over. “Are you okay? What’s wrong? What’s the matter?”
A confused Jin Hun said, “Huh?”
“Mi Joo… Mi Joo called. She said you were here. What’s wrong with you? Why are you here?”
He scrunched his face. “I’m here for my annual check-up.”
“What?” Sam Soon let that sink in. “Your annual check up?” she repeated in a much smaller voice.
“Yes….” He searched her face then started laughing. “You ran here because of this?” He laughed harder.
Sam Soon rolled her hand into a fist and hit her palm. “I am going to get Mi Joo.”
Jin Hun broke down into a fit of laughter.
Sam Soon stared at him in disgust. “You! What’s so funny?”
He made a show of scratching his head and thinking. “What was it you were saying about being manipulated by someone half my age? Except in your case, it’s more like a third….”
“Shut up!” Mi Joo was due for some good talking-to. She honestly could not believe that she actually fell for this. She looked at her watch. “I think I can probably catch the next train,” she said to herself then rapidly walked out of the hospital.
Jin Hun ran up to catch up with her. “And you say you don’t love me. Give up already and just marry me," he said, looking pleased with himself.
“Drop dead,” she retorted without looking at him.
“So where are you going to?” The smirk appeared to be permanently planted on his face.
“None of your business.”
“Going to meet Tae Young?”
“If I say yes, will you get lost?” she said, picking up her pace.
“Maybe,” he said, putting his hands in his pocket and following her. Shortly after they arrived at the train station, he looked at his ticket and asked, “What’s in Siheung?”
Sam Soon eyed him. “Why are you asking me? You don’t know why you're going there?”
***
When they got on the train, Sam Soon sat at an unoccupied seat next to a fellow passenger while Sam Shik sat behind her.
About ten minutes after the train started moving, he tapped her shoulder. “There’s an empty seat next to me."
She ignored him.
He tapped her again. “I said there’s an empty seat next to me.”
Sam Soon turned around. “So what?”
“Come and sit here." He patted it.
“Why?”
“Because I want you to.”
“So what? Because you want me to? You must think you’re Zeus or something.” She hissed then turned back around.
“Sam Soon.”
“What?”
“Why don’t you come here? Are you scared?”
She turned around. “Of what?”
He shrugged. “If it’s nothing, come and sit here.”
She grunted and turned back around. The man sitting next to her rolled his eyes and shook his head.
Before she knew it, she felt familiar hands grab her. “What tha…” she exclaimed as Jin Hun pulled her up and dumped her in the window seat. Soon after, he sat next to her.
“Much better,” he said, nodding and looking satisfied.
She hid a smile. What a loser. How come he couldn't be so assertive when dealing with his mother?
A few minutes later, she glanced at him and said, “I’m not going anywhere – I prefer the window seat, anyway.”
“Good to know.”
“So you can let go of my hand now,” she said, tugging it away.
“I’d rather not.” He held on to her.
***
“Remember the first time we rode a train together?”
She didn’t look up from her magazine. “No.”
He nudged her. “You don’t remember the time we went to Pusan?”
She sighed. “Yes, I do. And you know what? I should have seen the signs then.”
He crinkled his forehead. “Which signs?”
“Signs you’re a conman,” she said, pointing at him. “You were supposed to say that you loved me but instead you spoke about my name.” She went back to reading her magazine.
“Do you want me to do it now?”
She laughed. “You couldn’t.”
“Are you sure about that?”
She didn’t even look up at him. “I triple dare you.”
“Alright.” He stood up and cleared his throat. “Excuse me, Ladies and Gentlemen, my name is Hyun Jin Hun and the woman next to me is Kim Sam Soon.”
Sam Soon reached out to pull him down but instead, he pulled her up.
“Okay, you win,” she whispered. She felt weird; she was both frightened and excited about what he looked like he was about to do. “You can sit back down.”
He ignored her and instead, lifted her arm up. “Isn’t she beautiful?” he asked the rest of the passengers.
Yes. She’s alright. Keep quiet!
“We’ve been in love for about five years,” he continued, “but she doesn’t want to marry me. What do you guys think? Should she marry me?”
Yes. Of course. Who cares? Marry him. You're not getting any younger.
“Who said that?” Sam Soon yelled. She looked around for the culprit but was only met with stifled giggles.
“Thank you all,” he said, struggling to keep a straight face. Then he sat down and pulled Sam Soon down with him.
She smirked at him. “See? You’re still a conman.”
***
“So where are we going now?” Jin Hun asked shortly after they walked out of the bakery.
“Why do you keep asking me that?”
A few minutes later, Sam Soon darted into a shoe store. She went up to the sales lady and pointed at some red pumps. “Could I see those?”
The woman looked at her feet. “A size 245?”
Sam Soon shook her head. “They’re not for me – they’re for him,” she said just as Jin Hun joined her.
“W-What?” He looked at the shoes then at the sales lady. He shook his head in horror. “N-No, she’s only kidding.”
Sam Soon turned to him. “You need to stop being so shy. You begged me to come shoe shopping with you and now you’re backing out? I would gladly pretend the shoes were for me if we were the same size but your feet are obviously bigger than mine.”
Other customers had begun to stare at them.
Jin Hun frowned. “Stop it.”
Sam Soon chuckled. “You are so funny. I already told you that I am sick and tired of you stretching my shoes. Just let her get you something in your size, okay? Don’t be embarrassed - I am sure she’s used to seeing this kind of thing.” She turned to the lady. “Aren’t you, Miss?”
The lady smiled back. “Sure.”
“And Sam Shik, when we are done, we can go across the street and get you a bra.”
On hearing this, Jin Hun turned around and walked out of the store.
***
“You didn’t even get anything in the end.” Jin Hun fell in step with Sam Soon shortly after she walked out of the store.
“You’re still here?”
“You must be hungry.” He looked around the street. “What would you like to eat?”
“None of your business.”
Jin Hun’s response was interrupted by Sam Soon’s ringing phone.
She flipped it open. “Unnie, what’s up?”
“Guess?” her sister asked excitedly.
Sam Soon held the phone closer to her ear. “What? You won the lottery?”
“No. Better than that!”
“I won the lottery?”
“Mr. Hwang called and he wants to meet with us!”
Sam Soon screamed and started jumping. “You’re lying.”
“Nope. He’s set an appointment for Tuesday. He’s bringing a few of his colleagues with him and they’d like to take us out to lunch. And he said we should bring our lawyer along!”
“NOOOO!!!”
After getting a few more details from her sister, she hung up and told Jin Hun all about it.
“Congratulations! Let’s celebrate.” He hugged her.
“How?” she asked after he let go of her. She was so happy that she couldn’t even be bothered to analyze why it felt so good to be in his arms again.
He took her hand. “Let’s go in here.”
***
“Is this the kind of place you celebrate in?” Sam Soon said, looking around the fast-food joint.
“When did you become such a snob?”
“Are these together?” The boy at the counter asked after they placed their orders.
Jin Hun shook his head.
Sam Soon glared at him.
“What?” he asked innocently. “When it comes to me paying, we are suddenly together?” He chuckled. “Yes, they are together,” he said to the cashier.
Sam Soon shook her head. “No, you are right. Mister, they are separate.”
“No, together,” Jin Hun insisted.
Sam Soon took some money out of her purse, placed it on the counter, then took her food and went to find a table. Soon after, Jin Hun joined her. Then she got up and found the farthest table away. A few seconds later, he was sitting next to her. Then she got up again.
“Don’t you get tired of embarrassing yourself?”
“Ask yourself that question, Sam Shik. If you want to eat today, you’d better leave me alone.”
She walked away but this time, Jin Hun didn’t follow her.
About 5 minutes later, Sam Soon’s phone rang. She looked at her caller id then looked at him from across the room.
She sniggered. “You’ve become a stalker, haven’t you?” she said into the phone.
He looked back at her but spoke into the phone. He used his hand to hide his mouth and said, “I miss you. Come over here.”
“You are crazy. Leave me alone. I am hanging up now.”
“No! Wait.”
“What?”
“Nothing, really. I just didn’t want you to hang up.”
She snorted. “Okay. Bye now!”
“Wait… come over here,” he said, gesturing for her to join him.
She turned her whole body away so that she was backing him. “No-o. You haven’t gotten the hint yet?”
“Okay,” he said, relaxing into his chair. “So when are we going back to Seoul?”
She shrugged. “Did I ask you to come? I leave when I want to.”
“I might have things to do. Don’t you have to go to work?”
“It’s a half day today and I already baked everything this morning.” She glanced back at him and he waved in response. She turned back around.
“You might have some internet orders," he continued.
“Then I’ll do them later,” she said, in a sing-song voice. She relaxed into her seat.
“I’m ready to leave,” he groaned.
“Then leave!”
“Let’s go together.”
She laughed. “I don’t think so, Sam Shiki,” she said, still sing-songy. She took a bite out of her pizza. “And unless you want to keep listening to me like this,” she said with her mouth full, “hang up now! In fact, I am turning my phone off.”
***
“Alright, let’s go home,” Jin Hun said as soon as they stepped back on the street.
“No-o.”
“Ye-es.” He pulled her and started walking.
“No.” She pulled back at him and brought him to a halt.
She put her hands on her hips. “I haven’t celebrated enough. What else should we do?” She started dancing around again. “And your mother said I’m not the kind of woman that can run an important business.”
Jin Hun turned stiff. “When did she say that?”
Sam Soon turned red. How did she let that slip out? She looked away. “Forget about it.”
“Sam Soon, did my mother say anything to you?” he asked softly.
She smiled at him and looked everywhere but his eyes. “Yep. But that’s all in the past now. Let’s forget about it.”
“What do you mean by that? It’s not in the past. I am asking you right now.”
“Look, don’t ruin my day, okay? It’s all past tense now… time to forget about it.” She started to dance again, hoping that he’d just let it go.
“Look, Soonie, we can’t forget this,” he said, holding her still. “When was this? What did she say? Tell me!”
Sam Soon frowned at him. “Okay, the day’s been ruined. Happy now? Let’s go home.”
***
How was it possible that Sam Shik had the power to emotionally take her from an ultimate high to an ultimate low in a split second? He’d been very angry with her the entire train ride home because she refused to say anything more about what his mother had said. Why couldn’t’ he just leave her alone? She really didn’t want to have to relive all that anymore, after all, she’d moved on to Tae Young.
Tae Young. Her fiancé. That’s the only man she should be worried about? Right? She wasn’t using him? Right? He was the kind of man that she could marry. The kind of man she’d always hoped she could marry – someone who was always looking out for her. Someone dependable. Someone who didn’t get on her nerves. Someone who understood that no meant no. Someone who wasn’t a Mama’s boy. Someone who would stand up to his mother and fight for her. Someone won’t just let time pass by without fighting for them. She looked at her engagement ring. But, shouldn’t she be more excited about getting married? Why did she feel so ambivalent about it? Maybe he was right – seeing Jin Hun was messing with her head. It really had been easier while he was away... at least then, he only lived in her thoughts. Tae Young is the man for you. Tae Young is the man for you, she chanted as she walked up the hill to her house. Then it hit her – she hadn’t even shared her good news with 'the man for her'.
She reached into her bag and picked up her phone. She’d forgotten that she’d turned it off earlier and immediately switched it on. The display read that she’d missed 15 calls.
She was about to go through them when she heard Tae Young’s voice call her from a little ways ahead. She looked up as he jogged down to her.
“Where have you been?” he said, hugging her. “I’ve been so worried.”
When she disentangled from his embrace she said, “I went to Siheung. What’s up? Were you the one that called me so many times?”
He nodded. “I’ve got some news for you,” he said cautiously.
Sam Soon felt goose bumps popping all over her body. What could he possibly have to say to her? She wasn't being obvious, was she? Please, don’t be mad; I am sure I can love you if I try harder, she silently pleaded.
He held her hand. “I had to book our flight to New York for next Wednesday.”
Sam Soon blinked. “What?”
He ran his other hand through his hair. “I think my mother’s getting sick again. My father wouldn’t say anything definite so we have to go up there. Wednesday was the earliest I could get. Is that okay with you?”
Monday, December 13, 2010
Sunday, December 12, 2010
16
Jin Hun barged into his mother’s house. He’d tried to keep calm but what the hell was wrong with Sam Soon? He couldn’t decide which was worse: the fact that she wouldn’t tell him what his mother had said or that she’d hidden it from him in the first place. He slammed the door behind him and headed towards the living room. The maid looked at his face and scurried away.
“Uncle,” an oblivious Mi Joo yelled, running to him.
“Go to your room,” he said, walking past her.
“Uncle?”
“Go to your room!” he repeated, not looking back.
Knowing when to back out, Mi Joo did what she’d been told.
On seeing that the living room was empty, Jin Hun headed towards her study and flung the door which had been slightly ajar wide open. His mother who’d been sitting at her desk poring over some files, looked up in surprise. “What’s with all the noise?”
“What did you say to Sam Soon?!”
His mother looked him over then raised a brow. “What?”
“President Na, what did you say to Sam Soon?” If Sam Soon wasn’t going to give him this information, his mother sure as hell would have to.
She stood up and put her fists on her hips. “Are you crazy? How dare you talk to me in the tone?”
“Mother,” he started venomously. It just wasn’t going to be one of those days. She could save her scolding for tomorrow but today, all he needed was an answer to his very simple question. “What did you say to Sam Soon?” he repeated.
His mother regarded him curiously and sat back down. She straightened her blouse and put on her ‘presidential’ face. “About what? I’m sure I’ve said many things to her.”
He folded his arms. “Something about not being good enough?”
“What?” His mother thought about it for the moment. “Oh, that was a long time ago.”
He moved further into the study. “Just tell me what you said,” he droned. He tried his hardest not to grit his teeth but her nonchalant attitude was grating his nerves.
“The same things I said to you – that I didn’t think she was right for the family and that the best thing she could do was give up on you,” she said dismissively.
“You said that?” He was a little surprised. Okay, maybe not entirely but he didn’t think she’d actually say that to her… at least not in his absence. He knew his mother didn’t approve of the match but he never really thought she'd go that far, especially after so many years. Had be really been stupid to believe that she’d slowly begun to come around? Maybe Sam Soon was right – he shouldn’t have waited for her approval. Dumb, dumb, dumb Jin Hun, he chided himself. He glowered at her. “President Na, if I’ve lost her forever, I will not forgive you. You had no right--”
“God. Don’t be so dramatic,” she said glibly.
“How can you sit there like that? I am your son – have you forgotten that? You had no right to say that to her.” He shook his head in disgust. “So what now? You’re happy? You’re ecstatic that we are not together anymore? You’re happy to see me like this?”
His mother rolled her eyes. “Relax. Be a man for chrissakes!”
At that moment, all Jin Hun could think was that the woman across from him was very lucky that she was his mother otherwise he might have said, or worse, done something he’d have later regretted.
“Besides, that’s your business,” she continued. “If you are together, not together, whatever happens is your business. You’re a grown man – what does it have to do with me? You need to take responsibility for yourself.”
Jin Hun burst out laughing. “Wow. I can’t believe you. You are truly something. You are one hell of an amazing woman.”
“Watch your mouth,” she warned.
He scoffed. “Now, it’s my business? When you went behind my back and spoke to her, whose business was it?”
He waited for a response but his mother didn’t say anything.
“And since it’s my business, stop throwing Eunsoo at me. I thought it was quite clear that I am not interested in her.”
“Eunsoo? I already gave up on that a long time ago. If you don’t want her, that’s fine. It’s clear that you don’t know a good thing when it’s standing in front of you.”
She’d given up on them? “What do you mean? About Eunsoo…?”
His mother shrugged. “As I said, do whatever you like. You’re already 32 years old. I would like to see my grandchildren you know. And if…”
His mother had begun to drone on and on about his marriage choices but Jin Hun was no longer listening. So if his mother didn’t care about Eunsoo, did it mean she approved of Sam Soon? He asked her just to be sure that he understood her correctly.
“I never said that I accept her,” she finally replied. “I just said that I will not interfere. If you are bent on marrying her and since Mi Joo likes her, who am I to interfere? If that’s what I have to do to get you married, I will.”
Jin Hun smirked. Now she tells him. He just loved how his mother only had that epiphany after Sam Soon had left him. Well, if this woman thought she was playing mind games, he hoped that she realized she was going to lose because when he got Sam Soon back, he could care less if she kept her word.
He cleared his throat. “So Mother, would you be willing to say this to Sam Soon?”
“I already have.”
***
“So what do you think about a trip to Hong Kong?” Sam Soon asked, pulling two tickets out of her bag. It was funny how she hadn’t even thought of them till the second after Tae Young had dropped the bomb about their trip to the U.S.
“God, you are greedy. One trip abroad isn’t enough, so now you want to go on another one? Do you even care about the shop?” her sister teased. They were sitting at Yi Young’s dinning table drinking some coffee.
Sam Soon groaned. “Stop it. You know that’s not what I meant.”
Her sister caressed her hand. “Sam Soon, is it really that difficult to make a decision? You're making this far more difficult than it has to be.”
She made a face. “I just don’t want to make the wrong one – this is something I am going to have to live with forever.”
“As you know, it doesn’t have to be forever,” her sister said matter-of-factly.
“Like divorce is even an option. See how hard it is for me to get married in the first place. Who wants a 45 year old divorced woman?” There was no way in hell she was going to go through this a second time.
“Then don’t get divorced.”
“I wish it were that simple. This doesn’t make any sense. I am Kim Sam Soon! I know what I want and I go for it!” She placed head on the table in surrender. “God, send me a sign!”
Her sister regarded her closely. “You want to know the difference between my first husband and this one?”
With her head still on the table, Sam Soon turned to look at her. “He cheated on you?”
“Well, other than that…”
“What other reason? Didn’t you leave because he cheated?”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah. That was the last straw. But even if he hadn’t cheated, it would just have been me being married to someone because I didn’t want to get divorced.”
Sam Soon sat back up.” So what’s different?”
“It was simply the wrong man.”
Sam Soon thought about it. “So you’re saying that you didn’t love him?”
“Well…,” Yi Young paused for a second, “Yeah, I definitely loved him. But love isn’t all you need in a marriage.”
“You loved him and you love brother-in-law. How can you tell the difference?”
“Compatibility. Can you live with this man with all his flaws, and trust me, there are hundreds, forever? Can this man be the father of your children? Is he dependable? Will he always be there for you? Things like that.”
“So Dr. Yi Young, to cut to the chase, are you saying I should marry Tae Young? Or you’re talking about Sam Shik?”
Yi Young smiled apologetically. “You know I’ve loved Sam Shik as a brother-in-law for quite a long time so I don’t think I can answer that question. But you know who you should be with. In there.” She pointed at Sam Soon’s heart.
Sam Soon shook her head. “This conversation isn’t going like I expected. I thought you hated Tae Young – I was getting ready to defend him.”
“I’m sorry to disappoint you, dongsaeng, but right now, I love Tae Young. He’s about to make us rich women,” she said grinning.
Sam Soon rolled her eyes.
“But in all seriousness, it's really not that difficult. Just follow your heart… with a little help from your head.”
“Now, if only both of them could give me a clear message!” She hit her head on the table.
They sat at the table for a while longer and when they started to drift to other topics, Yi Young began, “Ehm, Sam Soon, I don’t know if this is the right time to bring this up….”
“What?”
“You’re about to become an auntie.”
***
Jin Hun needed a day to let everything sink in. Not only had his mother asked Sam Soon to break up with him, apparently, she’d later on told her that she accepted them. So what was going on in Sam Soon’s head? He drove up to her house and called her out. To his surprise, she didn’t make any excuses and agreed to meet with him.
“Do you mind if we sit? I’m a little tired,” she asked, shutting the gate behind her. She was already in her pajamas and didn’t even bother to cover it up with a robe.
“Is everything okay?” Jin Hun noticed how tired she looked.
She gave him a small smile. “It’s just one of those days. Can we sit in your car?”
Jin Hun led the way and opened the door for her. Then he went over to the driver’s side and sat in the seat.
They sat in silence for a few minutes.
“So what do you want to say?” She was looking ahead.
“I spoke to my mother about what she said.” He, too, didn’t turn his face.
“Okay.”
That was her only reaction? “So why didn’t you tell me?”
She shrugged. “What difference would it have made?”
He turned to her. “Why would you say that? Of course it would have made a difference.”
She looked at him. “Really? It would? It’s not like she told me something that I didn’t already know.”
“So why did you listen to her? You broke up with me because she asked you to, didn’t you?”
“Hmm… yeah, sure. That’s it,” she said sarcastically.
“Sam Soon, why are you acting like this?” He wanted to shake her back to the woman he’d spent so many years loving. Why was she acting defeated? Why had she given up?
She looked at him. “How am I acting? This is all in the past, right? For four years you didn’t do anything about it, so what’s all this?”
“But that’s all over now.”
“It is?” she scoffed.
“My mother accepts us now. Didn’t she tell you?”
“Is that what she told me? She kept going around in circles and said a lot without saying much. God, why are we even talking about this? Is there even a point? It will never be the same. Look at how my mother loves you – your mother will never love me like that.”
“So what? What matters is how we feel about each other. I can’t control the way she acts, Sam Soon.”
“Of course you can’t. How could you possibly do that?” She said spitefully. “But what difference does it make? We’re not together anymore.”
Jin Hun was getting increasingly frustrated. Did she no longer love him? A week earlier, he was sure she did but right then, with the way she was speaking, he wasn’t sure. And he wanted to smash something.
She put her hand on the door handle. “Is that all you wanted to say? I am sick of going around in circles with you about this. It’s all in the past. I am tired of thinking about this. I am tired of feeling this way. I think it’s time for us to really move on. I really want to move on.”
She was sick of it? So was he. What the fu.ck? It wasn’t supposed to be this hard. Jin Hun watched her open the door and step out. When she was at the front of the car, he got out of it. How dare she think that they were really over? “So are you saying that you don’t love me anymore?”
She sighed. “Of course I love you. You don’t wake up one morning and just stop loving someone.”
Encouraged by her response, he bridged the distance between them in seconds. “So why are you doing this?”
“What did I read the other day? It takes 6 months for every year of the relationship to get over someone,” she continued to herself. “I guess I have about a year and some months left, I suppose.”
What was she saying? How in the world had they got to this point? He wanted to punch himself for not nipping this at the bud. He should never have left after she broke up with him. He should never have given in. He should have forced her to take him back. He looked at her down turned eyes and reached out and cupped her face. “Answer me. Why are you doing this?” When she didn’t react, he got more agitated. “It can’t be because of that Tae Young character. If you love me, you can’t love him!”
“He doesn’t have anything to do with this.”
Was she completely insane? “Are you for real? You’re engaged to him. You’re wearing his ring on your finger! And you say this has nothing to do with him?”
“That’s right!” she screamed, pushing his hands off her face. “He has nothing to do with us!” Tears had begun to well up in her eyes. “We aren’t together anymore not because of any other man but because of you! I am too scared to be with you!”
What? “Why can’t you be with me?”
“I am sick of always having to do everything. If not for me, we would never have had a relationship. I kissed you first. I was the first person to say I liked you. Remember that? And then you went back to Hee Jin. And then the only reason you ever came back to me was because you hated seeing me with other men.”
“That’s not true. And why are you bringing all this up?!”
“And even after all that, it took you a while to break up with Hee Jin. Remember that? Remember that?”
“So the whole time we’ve been together, you’ve been harboring all this?” His blood had begun to boil. Had their entire relationship been a lie?
“Of course not,” she said at a lowered pitch. “But it’s just that I can see the pattern – your pattern of inactivity. I don’t want to feel like I am the only one holding our relationship together. You know how to be bold and brash when it comes to me – see how you’ve been acting the last couple of days. Sam Soon, don’t do this. Sam Soon, come here,” she mimicked him. “I’m not stupid – I know what you’re trying to do. But when it comes to us, you can’t do anything. Your mother wouldn’t have accepted us if I never left you. Do you understand what I am saying? You even,” she paused for a second.” Do you remember how you wanted me to get pregnant so that your mother would accept us? Even then, it had to be me doing things to convince your own mother!”
“How was it only you? Can you get pregnant alone?”
“No. But does that sound rational? Can’t you be a man for once?! Maybe it’s an age thing – is that what it is? Do I have to wait for you to grow up?”
Jin Hun was damn near speechless. “Are you just saying these things to hurt me?”
“And then this whole time… these four years, you got so comfortable with our relationship that you were satisfied with everything. Oh, I could come over to your apartment, spend the night a few days a week and you were happy, going around, skipping along like character in a CF,” she said sarcastically.
Jin Hun just stood back and watched her diatribe.
“Did you ever once, just once think about me? Did you ever think about what I was going through? You know I wanted to get married. You’ve always known I wanted to get married and you didn’t even care for one minute about it! You were happy not doing anything. Doing nothing! How can I marry a man like that?”
“How come you never said any of this before?”
“Because I never realized it. Or maybe I just didn’t want to.”
He was still speechless. And hurt. So very hurt.
Still looked at him, she wiped her cheeks with the back of her hand. She glared at him for a few more seconds and started to leave.
Jin Hun grabbed her hand. “You can’t leave. We have to resolve this. If you want me to change, I will.”
“But you see, I can’t believe you. This is exactly how you were when we first started dating. But I’m scared that two years down the road, you’ll get comfortable with our relationship again and it’ll be back to square one.”
“Don’t forget that you love me. Never forget that you love me.”
“How can I forget that? It would be so much easier if I didn't love you,” she said, her voice cracking. She bent her head and started sobbing again. Jin Hun took her in his arms and let her cry. God, what had he done? And how in the world could he prove to her that he would be the man she wanted?
“Uncle,” an oblivious Mi Joo yelled, running to him.
“Go to your room,” he said, walking past her.
“Uncle?”
“Go to your room!” he repeated, not looking back.
Knowing when to back out, Mi Joo did what she’d been told.
On seeing that the living room was empty, Jin Hun headed towards her study and flung the door which had been slightly ajar wide open. His mother who’d been sitting at her desk poring over some files, looked up in surprise. “What’s with all the noise?”
“What did you say to Sam Soon?!”
His mother looked him over then raised a brow. “What?”
“President Na, what did you say to Sam Soon?” If Sam Soon wasn’t going to give him this information, his mother sure as hell would have to.
She stood up and put her fists on her hips. “Are you crazy? How dare you talk to me in the tone?”
“Mother,” he started venomously. It just wasn’t going to be one of those days. She could save her scolding for tomorrow but today, all he needed was an answer to his very simple question. “What did you say to Sam Soon?” he repeated.
His mother regarded him curiously and sat back down. She straightened her blouse and put on her ‘presidential’ face. “About what? I’m sure I’ve said many things to her.”
He folded his arms. “Something about not being good enough?”
“What?” His mother thought about it for the moment. “Oh, that was a long time ago.”
He moved further into the study. “Just tell me what you said,” he droned. He tried his hardest not to grit his teeth but her nonchalant attitude was grating his nerves.
“The same things I said to you – that I didn’t think she was right for the family and that the best thing she could do was give up on you,” she said dismissively.
“You said that?” He was a little surprised. Okay, maybe not entirely but he didn’t think she’d actually say that to her… at least not in his absence. He knew his mother didn’t approve of the match but he never really thought she'd go that far, especially after so many years. Had be really been stupid to believe that she’d slowly begun to come around? Maybe Sam Soon was right – he shouldn’t have waited for her approval. Dumb, dumb, dumb Jin Hun, he chided himself. He glowered at her. “President Na, if I’ve lost her forever, I will not forgive you. You had no right--”
“God. Don’t be so dramatic,” she said glibly.
“How can you sit there like that? I am your son – have you forgotten that? You had no right to say that to her.” He shook his head in disgust. “So what now? You’re happy? You’re ecstatic that we are not together anymore? You’re happy to see me like this?”
His mother rolled her eyes. “Relax. Be a man for chrissakes!”
At that moment, all Jin Hun could think was that the woman across from him was very lucky that she was his mother otherwise he might have said, or worse, done something he’d have later regretted.
“Besides, that’s your business,” she continued. “If you are together, not together, whatever happens is your business. You’re a grown man – what does it have to do with me? You need to take responsibility for yourself.”
Jin Hun burst out laughing. “Wow. I can’t believe you. You are truly something. You are one hell of an amazing woman.”
“Watch your mouth,” she warned.
He scoffed. “Now, it’s my business? When you went behind my back and spoke to her, whose business was it?”
He waited for a response but his mother didn’t say anything.
“And since it’s my business, stop throwing Eunsoo at me. I thought it was quite clear that I am not interested in her.”
“Eunsoo? I already gave up on that a long time ago. If you don’t want her, that’s fine. It’s clear that you don’t know a good thing when it’s standing in front of you.”
She’d given up on them? “What do you mean? About Eunsoo…?”
His mother shrugged. “As I said, do whatever you like. You’re already 32 years old. I would like to see my grandchildren you know. And if…”
His mother had begun to drone on and on about his marriage choices but Jin Hun was no longer listening. So if his mother didn’t care about Eunsoo, did it mean she approved of Sam Soon? He asked her just to be sure that he understood her correctly.
“I never said that I accept her,” she finally replied. “I just said that I will not interfere. If you are bent on marrying her and since Mi Joo likes her, who am I to interfere? If that’s what I have to do to get you married, I will.”
Jin Hun smirked. Now she tells him. He just loved how his mother only had that epiphany after Sam Soon had left him. Well, if this woman thought she was playing mind games, he hoped that she realized she was going to lose because when he got Sam Soon back, he could care less if she kept her word.
He cleared his throat. “So Mother, would you be willing to say this to Sam Soon?”
“I already have.”
***
“So what do you think about a trip to Hong Kong?” Sam Soon asked, pulling two tickets out of her bag. It was funny how she hadn’t even thought of them till the second after Tae Young had dropped the bomb about their trip to the U.S.
“God, you are greedy. One trip abroad isn’t enough, so now you want to go on another one? Do you even care about the shop?” her sister teased. They were sitting at Yi Young’s dinning table drinking some coffee.
Sam Soon groaned. “Stop it. You know that’s not what I meant.”
Her sister caressed her hand. “Sam Soon, is it really that difficult to make a decision? You're making this far more difficult than it has to be.”
She made a face. “I just don’t want to make the wrong one – this is something I am going to have to live with forever.”
“As you know, it doesn’t have to be forever,” her sister said matter-of-factly.
“Like divorce is even an option. See how hard it is for me to get married in the first place. Who wants a 45 year old divorced woman?” There was no way in hell she was going to go through this a second time.
“Then don’t get divorced.”
“I wish it were that simple. This doesn’t make any sense. I am Kim Sam Soon! I know what I want and I go for it!” She placed head on the table in surrender. “God, send me a sign!”
Her sister regarded her closely. “You want to know the difference between my first husband and this one?”
With her head still on the table, Sam Soon turned to look at her. “He cheated on you?”
“Well, other than that…”
“What other reason? Didn’t you leave because he cheated?”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah. That was the last straw. But even if he hadn’t cheated, it would just have been me being married to someone because I didn’t want to get divorced.”
Sam Soon sat back up.” So what’s different?”
“It was simply the wrong man.”
Sam Soon thought about it. “So you’re saying that you didn’t love him?”
“Well…,” Yi Young paused for a second, “Yeah, I definitely loved him. But love isn’t all you need in a marriage.”
“You loved him and you love brother-in-law. How can you tell the difference?”
“Compatibility. Can you live with this man with all his flaws, and trust me, there are hundreds, forever? Can this man be the father of your children? Is he dependable? Will he always be there for you? Things like that.”
“So Dr. Yi Young, to cut to the chase, are you saying I should marry Tae Young? Or you’re talking about Sam Shik?”
Yi Young smiled apologetically. “You know I’ve loved Sam Shik as a brother-in-law for quite a long time so I don’t think I can answer that question. But you know who you should be with. In there.” She pointed at Sam Soon’s heart.
Sam Soon shook her head. “This conversation isn’t going like I expected. I thought you hated Tae Young – I was getting ready to defend him.”
“I’m sorry to disappoint you, dongsaeng, but right now, I love Tae Young. He’s about to make us rich women,” she said grinning.
Sam Soon rolled her eyes.
“But in all seriousness, it's really not that difficult. Just follow your heart… with a little help from your head.”
“Now, if only both of them could give me a clear message!” She hit her head on the table.
They sat at the table for a while longer and when they started to drift to other topics, Yi Young began, “Ehm, Sam Soon, I don’t know if this is the right time to bring this up….”
“What?”
“You’re about to become an auntie.”
***
Jin Hun needed a day to let everything sink in. Not only had his mother asked Sam Soon to break up with him, apparently, she’d later on told her that she accepted them. So what was going on in Sam Soon’s head? He drove up to her house and called her out. To his surprise, she didn’t make any excuses and agreed to meet with him.
“Do you mind if we sit? I’m a little tired,” she asked, shutting the gate behind her. She was already in her pajamas and didn’t even bother to cover it up with a robe.
“Is everything okay?” Jin Hun noticed how tired she looked.
She gave him a small smile. “It’s just one of those days. Can we sit in your car?”
Jin Hun led the way and opened the door for her. Then he went over to the driver’s side and sat in the seat.
They sat in silence for a few minutes.
“So what do you want to say?” She was looking ahead.
“I spoke to my mother about what she said.” He, too, didn’t turn his face.
“Okay.”
That was her only reaction? “So why didn’t you tell me?”
She shrugged. “What difference would it have made?”
He turned to her. “Why would you say that? Of course it would have made a difference.”
She looked at him. “Really? It would? It’s not like she told me something that I didn’t already know.”
“So why did you listen to her? You broke up with me because she asked you to, didn’t you?”
“Hmm… yeah, sure. That’s it,” she said sarcastically.
“Sam Soon, why are you acting like this?” He wanted to shake her back to the woman he’d spent so many years loving. Why was she acting defeated? Why had she given up?
She looked at him. “How am I acting? This is all in the past, right? For four years you didn’t do anything about it, so what’s all this?”
“But that’s all over now.”
“It is?” she scoffed.
“My mother accepts us now. Didn’t she tell you?”
“Is that what she told me? She kept going around in circles and said a lot without saying much. God, why are we even talking about this? Is there even a point? It will never be the same. Look at how my mother loves you – your mother will never love me like that.”
“So what? What matters is how we feel about each other. I can’t control the way she acts, Sam Soon.”
“Of course you can’t. How could you possibly do that?” She said spitefully. “But what difference does it make? We’re not together anymore.”
Jin Hun was getting increasingly frustrated. Did she no longer love him? A week earlier, he was sure she did but right then, with the way she was speaking, he wasn’t sure. And he wanted to smash something.
She put her hand on the door handle. “Is that all you wanted to say? I am sick of going around in circles with you about this. It’s all in the past. I am tired of thinking about this. I am tired of feeling this way. I think it’s time for us to really move on. I really want to move on.”
She was sick of it? So was he. What the fu.ck? It wasn’t supposed to be this hard. Jin Hun watched her open the door and step out. When she was at the front of the car, he got out of it. How dare she think that they were really over? “So are you saying that you don’t love me anymore?”
She sighed. “Of course I love you. You don’t wake up one morning and just stop loving someone.”
Encouraged by her response, he bridged the distance between them in seconds. “So why are you doing this?”
“What did I read the other day? It takes 6 months for every year of the relationship to get over someone,” she continued to herself. “I guess I have about a year and some months left, I suppose.”
What was she saying? How in the world had they got to this point? He wanted to punch himself for not nipping this at the bud. He should never have left after she broke up with him. He should never have given in. He should have forced her to take him back. He looked at her down turned eyes and reached out and cupped her face. “Answer me. Why are you doing this?” When she didn’t react, he got more agitated. “It can’t be because of that Tae Young character. If you love me, you can’t love him!”
“He doesn’t have anything to do with this.”
Was she completely insane? “Are you for real? You’re engaged to him. You’re wearing his ring on your finger! And you say this has nothing to do with him?”
“That’s right!” she screamed, pushing his hands off her face. “He has nothing to do with us!” Tears had begun to well up in her eyes. “We aren’t together anymore not because of any other man but because of you! I am too scared to be with you!”
What? “Why can’t you be with me?”
“I am sick of always having to do everything. If not for me, we would never have had a relationship. I kissed you first. I was the first person to say I liked you. Remember that? And then you went back to Hee Jin. And then the only reason you ever came back to me was because you hated seeing me with other men.”
“That’s not true. And why are you bringing all this up?!”
“And even after all that, it took you a while to break up with Hee Jin. Remember that? Remember that?”
“So the whole time we’ve been together, you’ve been harboring all this?” His blood had begun to boil. Had their entire relationship been a lie?
“Of course not,” she said at a lowered pitch. “But it’s just that I can see the pattern – your pattern of inactivity. I don’t want to feel like I am the only one holding our relationship together. You know how to be bold and brash when it comes to me – see how you’ve been acting the last couple of days. Sam Soon, don’t do this. Sam Soon, come here,” she mimicked him. “I’m not stupid – I know what you’re trying to do. But when it comes to us, you can’t do anything. Your mother wouldn’t have accepted us if I never left you. Do you understand what I am saying? You even,” she paused for a second.” Do you remember how you wanted me to get pregnant so that your mother would accept us? Even then, it had to be me doing things to convince your own mother!”
“How was it only you? Can you get pregnant alone?”
“No. But does that sound rational? Can’t you be a man for once?! Maybe it’s an age thing – is that what it is? Do I have to wait for you to grow up?”
Jin Hun was damn near speechless. “Are you just saying these things to hurt me?”
“And then this whole time… these four years, you got so comfortable with our relationship that you were satisfied with everything. Oh, I could come over to your apartment, spend the night a few days a week and you were happy, going around, skipping along like character in a CF,” she said sarcastically.
Jin Hun just stood back and watched her diatribe.
“Did you ever once, just once think about me? Did you ever think about what I was going through? You know I wanted to get married. You’ve always known I wanted to get married and you didn’t even care for one minute about it! You were happy not doing anything. Doing nothing! How can I marry a man like that?”
“How come you never said any of this before?”
“Because I never realized it. Or maybe I just didn’t want to.”
He was still speechless. And hurt. So very hurt.
Still looked at him, she wiped her cheeks with the back of her hand. She glared at him for a few more seconds and started to leave.
Jin Hun grabbed her hand. “You can’t leave. We have to resolve this. If you want me to change, I will.”
“But you see, I can’t believe you. This is exactly how you were when we first started dating. But I’m scared that two years down the road, you’ll get comfortable with our relationship again and it’ll be back to square one.”
“Don’t forget that you love me. Never forget that you love me.”
“How can I forget that? It would be so much easier if I didn't love you,” she said, her voice cracking. She bent her head and started sobbing again. Jin Hun took her in his arms and let her cry. God, what had he done? And how in the world could he prove to her that he would be the man she wanted?
Thursday, December 09, 2010
17
Jin Hun sat at his desk then threw his keys into the drawer. Just like every other Monday, he began his day by logging on to his computer and reviewing his calendar for the week. Except it wasn’t just any Monday. After all, he didn’t normally show up to work with bags under his eyes, or spend most of the earliest hours of the morning trying to figure out a way of fixing the mess his love life had become.
He looked at an entry in his calendar and buzzed his secretary.
“What’s this lunch appointment for tomorrow?” he asked.
“Ms. Park asked me to add it to your calendar last Thursday.”
Soon after he hung up, he called Eunsoo and she explained that there’d been a last minute lunch request made by some of their investors.
***
The waitress led Jin Hun to one of the tables next to the windows overlooking the street beneath. Eunsoo was sitting with her back to the entrance and when he arrived, she stood up and greeted him. After exchanging a few pleasantries, Jin Hun sat next to her, leaving the empty seats across them for their clients.
After a few minutes of small talk, Jin Hun looked at his watch and commented, “I guess they should be arriving in a few minutes.”
“Well”, she began, hitting the table and sitting up straight. “Actually, no one else is joining us.” She glanced at him.
Jin Hun blinked then looked at her from the corner of his eye. “Pardon?”
“I wanted to speak to you outside of your office and I didn’t know how else to do it. You’re always refusing or postponing our lunch dates so I guess I was forced to do it this way,” she said, grinning uncertainly.
Jin Hun leaned back in his chair. Knowing that this little meeting most likely hadn’t been arranged by his mother shed a different light on it. “Okay, what do you want to talk to me about?”
She tucked her hair behind her ear and took a deep breath. “How exactly do I put this…?” she began. “Well… I think that we should start dating.”
He narrowed his eyes. “Excuse me?”
She played with the napkin on the table then stopped and put her hands on her lap. She turned her entire body to him. “It makes sense, don’t you think? You’re not dating anyone, I’m not dating anyone.” She started talking with her hands. “I know you’re attracted to me – I’ve seen the way you look at me sometimes and you’re not exactly a bad-looking guy.”
“Ah-ha.” He noticed that she was attractive but outside of the office, outside of his mother's scheming, he never really thought about her.
“And it makes perfect sense; I already understand your business,” she said, counting it off on her fingers, “your mother likes me; I’ve built a relationship with all your partners and major clients; we probably want the same things and I think our personalities match. In a nutshell, I think we are compatible.”
“I see.”
“And in a few months… if things go well, we should get married.”
"Married?" Jin Hun chuckled. "We should get married,” he repeated, letting the words roll off his tongue. “You and I should get married?”
“Yes, it makes perfect sense. I’m sure you can already see all the changes I’ve made to the hotel – imagine how great it would be if we became a team.”
“What about your father’s business? I always thought you’d be going back there."
“Why would you think that?” she said dismissively. “My brothers are going to be running it.”
***
Sam Soon tried to keep a smile planted on her face as she sat across from Mr. Hwang and his two colleagues. She sipped her drink without actually tasting it.
We should get married.
The phrase had been playing in Sam Soon’s head ever since she walked into the restaurant. Even though she could only see his back, she’d immediately recognized Jin Hun the second she saw him. She’d been telling herself to clear her mind of him and everything she felt in preparation for what could be the most important lunch of her life when she heard him say those words. On any other day, she’d have walked up to Jin Hun and confronted him. How dare he propose to another woman shortly after proposing to her?
And to think that she’d been so close to asking Tae Young to go to New York alone. In fact, she’d pretty much decided to call him later that evening. She’d been so tired of battling with her feelings that she felt she needed a break from it all… a little time to be free of all the pressure that both he and she had been putting on her. On thing she’d learned after the confrontation the past Sunday was that she wasn’t close to forgetting Sam Shik. But sitting right there, she couldn’t pretend that she wasn’t heartbroken to see that he really hadn’t changed. Maybe she thought, or at least hoped, that this time, just this time, he’d fight for them but instead he was spending his lunch proposing to another woman. She still couldn't believe it though. How could he say he loved her and propose to someone else? Sam Shik? Her Sam Shik? That was definitely the last thing she'd expected. Had she misheard him?
She pinched herself under the table. God, she was a fool. On hell of a foolish idiot who’d veered off her course. Five years earlier, her one and only desire had been to get married and start a family but somewhere along the way, she’d allowed herself to be distracted by the stupid concept called love. What had love ever done for her other than bring unnecessary heartache?
Sam Soon felt an elbow nudging her. She turned in its direction to see her sister signaling for her to pay attention to the conversation that they were all sharing.
After a few more comments about the weather and that days news, Mr. Chu, the shorter of Mr. Hwang’s colleagues said, “So let’s get down to business, shall we? Ms. Kim, thank you so much for the samples you sent to us a few weeks ago. The office was full of smiles shortly after they arrived.”
“Thank you,” she said gracefully.
“But the thing is,” he said, glancing at the other men at his side of the table, “we’ve decided that we want to develop our own pastries and desserts.”
“Excuse me?”
“What you have at Samsuni is great, but we want something that is different from that – something that is unique, something that you can’t get anywhere else.”
“I don’t understand.” Sam Soon looked at her lawyer who remained expressionless. She looked back at Mr. Chu. “Are you saying that you don’t want to work with us?” And if so, why did they waste their time?
“No. What we would like you to do is come and work for us.”
“What?” Yi Young blurted out.
“What we want is someone who’d spend some time developing and fine tuning our products. We don’t want to just distribute another company’s line of pastries." He paused. "We want our own line -one that will bare our logo and ours alone.”
After a moment of silence, Sam Soon’s lawyer jumped in with questions.
Sam Soon sat back in her seat and glanced at Mr. Hwang. How could he just sit there and act like he and his company hadn’t previously misrepresented themselves? Or had she just made the wrong assumptions?
“Are you finished?” The waitress asked, reaching out for her plate. Sam Soon shook her head. It sure as hell was turning into such a shi.tty day that even the waitress didn’t want to allow her to finish her meal. As she picked up chopsticks, a ray of sunlight reflected on her diamond. She dropped the sticks and played with her ring. She sure did waste a lot of time dreaming of impossible things, didn’t she? Stupid things like a 35 year old woman marrying the perfect man and running a nationally renowned business. Sam Soon, time to refocus, she told herself.
He looked at an entry in his calendar and buzzed his secretary.
“What’s this lunch appointment for tomorrow?” he asked.
“Ms. Park asked me to add it to your calendar last Thursday.”
Soon after he hung up, he called Eunsoo and she explained that there’d been a last minute lunch request made by some of their investors.
***
The waitress led Jin Hun to one of the tables next to the windows overlooking the street beneath. Eunsoo was sitting with her back to the entrance and when he arrived, she stood up and greeted him. After exchanging a few pleasantries, Jin Hun sat next to her, leaving the empty seats across them for their clients.
After a few minutes of small talk, Jin Hun looked at his watch and commented, “I guess they should be arriving in a few minutes.”
“Well”, she began, hitting the table and sitting up straight. “Actually, no one else is joining us.” She glanced at him.
Jin Hun blinked then looked at her from the corner of his eye. “Pardon?”
“I wanted to speak to you outside of your office and I didn’t know how else to do it. You’re always refusing or postponing our lunch dates so I guess I was forced to do it this way,” she said, grinning uncertainly.
Jin Hun leaned back in his chair. Knowing that this little meeting most likely hadn’t been arranged by his mother shed a different light on it. “Okay, what do you want to talk to me about?”
She tucked her hair behind her ear and took a deep breath. “How exactly do I put this…?” she began. “Well… I think that we should start dating.”
He narrowed his eyes. “Excuse me?”
She played with the napkin on the table then stopped and put her hands on her lap. She turned her entire body to him. “It makes sense, don’t you think? You’re not dating anyone, I’m not dating anyone.” She started talking with her hands. “I know you’re attracted to me – I’ve seen the way you look at me sometimes and you’re not exactly a bad-looking guy.”
“Ah-ha.” He noticed that she was attractive but outside of the office, outside of his mother's scheming, he never really thought about her.
“And it makes perfect sense; I already understand your business,” she said, counting it off on her fingers, “your mother likes me; I’ve built a relationship with all your partners and major clients; we probably want the same things and I think our personalities match. In a nutshell, I think we are compatible.”
“I see.”
“And in a few months… if things go well, we should get married.”
"Married?" Jin Hun chuckled. "We should get married,” he repeated, letting the words roll off his tongue. “You and I should get married?”
“Yes, it makes perfect sense. I’m sure you can already see all the changes I’ve made to the hotel – imagine how great it would be if we became a team.”
“What about your father’s business? I always thought you’d be going back there."
“Why would you think that?” she said dismissively. “My brothers are going to be running it.”
***
Sam Soon tried to keep a smile planted on her face as she sat across from Mr. Hwang and his two colleagues. She sipped her drink without actually tasting it.
We should get married.
The phrase had been playing in Sam Soon’s head ever since she walked into the restaurant. Even though she could only see his back, she’d immediately recognized Jin Hun the second she saw him. She’d been telling herself to clear her mind of him and everything she felt in preparation for what could be the most important lunch of her life when she heard him say those words. On any other day, she’d have walked up to Jin Hun and confronted him. How dare he propose to another woman shortly after proposing to her?
And to think that she’d been so close to asking Tae Young to go to New York alone. In fact, she’d pretty much decided to call him later that evening. She’d been so tired of battling with her feelings that she felt she needed a break from it all… a little time to be free of all the pressure that both he and she had been putting on her. On thing she’d learned after the confrontation the past Sunday was that she wasn’t close to forgetting Sam Shik. But sitting right there, she couldn’t pretend that she wasn’t heartbroken to see that he really hadn’t changed. Maybe she thought, or at least hoped, that this time, just this time, he’d fight for them but instead he was spending his lunch proposing to another woman. She still couldn't believe it though. How could he say he loved her and propose to someone else? Sam Shik? Her Sam Shik? That was definitely the last thing she'd expected. Had she misheard him?
She pinched herself under the table. God, she was a fool. On hell of a foolish idiot who’d veered off her course. Five years earlier, her one and only desire had been to get married and start a family but somewhere along the way, she’d allowed herself to be distracted by the stupid concept called love. What had love ever done for her other than bring unnecessary heartache?
Sam Soon felt an elbow nudging her. She turned in its direction to see her sister signaling for her to pay attention to the conversation that they were all sharing.
After a few more comments about the weather and that days news, Mr. Chu, the shorter of Mr. Hwang’s colleagues said, “So let’s get down to business, shall we? Ms. Kim, thank you so much for the samples you sent to us a few weeks ago. The office was full of smiles shortly after they arrived.”
“Thank you,” she said gracefully.
“But the thing is,” he said, glancing at the other men at his side of the table, “we’ve decided that we want to develop our own pastries and desserts.”
“Excuse me?”
“What you have at Samsuni is great, but we want something that is different from that – something that is unique, something that you can’t get anywhere else.”
“I don’t understand.” Sam Soon looked at her lawyer who remained expressionless. She looked back at Mr. Chu. “Are you saying that you don’t want to work with us?” And if so, why did they waste their time?
“No. What we would like you to do is come and work for us.”
“What?” Yi Young blurted out.
“What we want is someone who’d spend some time developing and fine tuning our products. We don’t want to just distribute another company’s line of pastries." He paused. "We want our own line -one that will bare our logo and ours alone.”
After a moment of silence, Sam Soon’s lawyer jumped in with questions.
Sam Soon sat back in her seat and glanced at Mr. Hwang. How could he just sit there and act like he and his company hadn’t previously misrepresented themselves? Or had she just made the wrong assumptions?
“Are you finished?” The waitress asked, reaching out for her plate. Sam Soon shook her head. It sure as hell was turning into such a shi.tty day that even the waitress didn’t want to allow her to finish her meal. As she picked up chopsticks, a ray of sunlight reflected on her diamond. She dropped the sticks and played with her ring. She sure did waste a lot of time dreaming of impossible things, didn’t she? Stupid things like a 35 year old woman marrying the perfect man and running a nationally renowned business. Sam Soon, time to refocus, she told herself.
Wednesday, December 08, 2010
18
“But will she have ownership of any of the recipes?” Sam Soon’s lawyer asked Mr. Chu. For the past ten minutes, they’d been battling about the job offer and as time went by, all Sam Soon wanted to do was punch Mr. Hwang for stepping into her shop. After all, if he’d just left her alone, she wouldn’t have wasted her time on the pointless lunch, nor would she have heard Jin Hun proposing to who ever that had been.
Having had enough of the stupid restaurant, Sam Soon dropped her glass on the table. It fell so hard that she was surprised that it didn't break. She looked up from it to find everyone staring at her. She stood up. “Look, I am not going to close my shop, okay? So why are we even discussing this?”
Mr. Chu raised his head at her. “It will be a great opportunity for you and besides, I am sure we could come up with some kind of compromise….” He glanced at her lawyer.
She looked around the restaurant and saw that a small group of professionals had taken Jin Hun's former table. She turned back to Mr. Hwang and his colleagues. “Well, I’m leaving. It was nice meeting you all,” she said, sounding like she meant the exact opposite.
She heard Yi Young and her lawyer trying to stop her but she just ignored them and followed her feet out of the restaurant. The second she stepped out of the building, she hailed a cab and gave the driver Jin Hun’s address. Who the fu.ck did he think he was? How dare he propose to someone else so soon? Did he ever love her? Had their years together meant nothing? All she wanted was an explanation, and to wring his foolish neck. They were about 15 minutes away from his apartment complex when her phone rang. She looked at the caller id – it was Tae Young. She’d actually forgotten about him for a moment. For a split second she contemplated not answering it but decided that he’d never done anything to deserve being treated like that.
“Hi, Honey,” he said cheerfully.
“Hi.”
“So how did the meeting go?”
“Why don’t you call your friend to find out?”
“Er…” He seemed to be at a loss for words.
It wasn’t exactly his fault that Mr. Hwang has deceived them so she decided not to take it out on him. “Let’s not talk about it, okay?”
“But…” He paused. “Well, you can tell me all about it on the looong plane ride. Have you packed yet?”
“No.”
“Why not? Remember that our flight leaves really early. Make sure you’re ready when I come over to pick you up.”
“Well....”
“Is anything the matter? What happened at the meeting?” When she didn’t respond, he said, “Well cheer up. After you meet my parents, we’ll set a date and get married then we can worry about whatever it is together. I really can’t wait for you to be part of our family.”
A few minutes later, Sam Soon hung up the phone. She sighed. She knew a nice man who dreamt of marrying her and there she was about to go and talk to someone who'd forgotten her so quickly. Focus, Sam Soon, focus, she reminded herself.
“Hey, Mister,” she said to the cab driver, “can you turn around?”
***
Arriving in New York had been uneventful except for the fact that they’d arrived at Newark International Airport. At first, Sam Soon had wondered if she’d been spelling New York wrong for all these years but then when Tae Young explained it, she wondered why he’d said they were flying to New York when in fact, they arrived in New Jersey. Or did he just say that because their final destination was New York? Not that the city really mattered because apparently, she couldn’t understand much English. How come they sounded so nasal and absolutely nothing like her English teacher? Her suspicions had been realized – yup, her teacher sucked. Although she had to admit that even Tae Young seemed to be having a bit of a problem communicating with the locals because he had to repeat every single thing he said to them. It was a bit amusing watching him get frustrated.
And as these thoughts went through her mind, she wondered if that was what she was supposed to think about on the way to meet her in-laws for the first time. Growing up, she’d never pictured herself sitting next to her fiancé in a cab riding on the streets of New York about to meet her parents-in-law for the first time at a hospital. Something just didn’t feel right about it. And as she thought about it, she remembered the first time she’d met President Na at Jin Hun’s apartment. No, she’d certainly never dreamed of that, but for some reason, it hadn't felt odd. And as she giggled at the memory, she looked out of the window and saw the Statue of Liberty for the first time. Then she wondered if that was exactly the spot on the bridge Jin Hun had been the first time he’d seen it.
***
“Tae Young, you really came?” His mother was sitting up in her hospital bed holding a book.
“Of course I did, Omma,” he said, going up to her and hugging her.
She was a slightly built woman who looked nothing like him. However, Sam Soon could see the resemblance to Soo Hyun, with both of them having the same snub nose and round eyes. She was dressed in her hospital gown but with her bright complexion and demeanor, Sam Soon wondered if she was really sick.
“Where’s Appa?” Tae Young asked.
“He just went out to get something to eat. Did you come straight from the airport?”
Tae Young nodded.
“But why did you rush here? Didn’t your father tell you that it was only the flu and they were just keeping me for some tests?”
He nodded again. “But I didn’t believe him.”
His mother shook her head disapprovingly. “Why wouldn’t you believe him? When has he ever lied?”
After a moment, his mother’s eyes drifted from him and settled on Sam Soon. She grinned at her. “This must be the woman making my son so happy these days.”
Sam Soon smiled and looked down humbly.
“You do look chubbier than in the picture he sent,” she observed. “Was that an old photo?”
Tae Young shook his head. “No. The last one I sent was from about two months ago.”
His mother’s eyes widened. “You gained so much weight in two months? Are you pregnant?”
Sam Soon chuckled. She sort of liked this blunt woman. “No, Eomeoni….” She paused. It was weird calling anyone other than President Na by that name. In fact, it sounded wrong. She cleared her throat. “I am not pregnant -I just eat a lot.”
“Then you should watch what you eat. It’s not good for a woman to be fat.” She gestured for Sam Soon to move closer. “I hope the rumor I heard about you staying at a hotel is not true,” she said to them.
***
The next day, Tae Young’s mother had come back from the hospital and after dinner, Sam Soon and Tae Young decided to take a stroll around Manhattan to look at some of the sights she’d read about. They’d just finished taking pictures at Grand Central Station when Sam Soon came face to face with the Grand Hyatt hotel.
“Hey, let’s go there.” She started walking towards it.
Tae Young followed her. “What’s so special about it? It’s just a hotel.”
They walked in and roamed about the lobby, feeling the golden pillars and walking over the marbled floors. The idiot really did waste a lot of money, she thought, noticing how expensive everything looked. They walked to the restaurant and then took a peek at the ballroom after which Sam Soon turned to Tae Young and said, “Do you think we could get a room?”
He looked surprised. “What?”
She smiled. “I want to see what the view is like.” Her smile faded when she looked at his face of confusion. What the hell was she thinking? She ran out the hotel and kept running and running till she ran out of breath. Then she staggered a few feet further till she got to an empty bus stop and sat down. She could hear Tae Young’s voice behind her as she tried to readjust herself on the cold, plastic seat but right then, there was one thing she was sure of; she could never forget Sam Shik. But even worse, she didn’t ever want to.
***
Jin Hun opened his car door when he saw Yi Young’s husband’s car pull into their driveway. “Noonim,” he called as soon as they stepped out.
Yi Young was surprised. “Sam Shiki?”
Jin Hun greeted them and after he refused to go into the house, her husband left them.
“What are you doing here?” Yi Young asked him.
“Where have you been?” For four days, Jin Hun had staked both of the houses, wondering where all three women had disappeared to. He’d called Sam Soon’s phone but it seemed to be permanently off and he’d been going out of his mind. He’d barely slept an hour each night.
“I went to spend some time with my husband’s family. Why are you looking for me?”
“Where’s Sam Soon?” he blurted out.
“She’s gone to see Tae Young’s family in America.” Yi Young watched him carefully.
His heart stopped. What? She actually had the guts to take it that far? Even when she still loved him? Was she crazy?
“Do you have an address?” If he had to go over there and bring her back, he would. He was sick of trying to convince her. If he had to force her, well, that's what he'd do.
“I have the phone number and name of the hotel she’s staying at. Why don’t you come in so that I can give them to you?”
***
Tae Young walked into the spare bedroom to find Sam Soon packing up her suitcase. “Hey, what are you doing?”
Sam Soon glanced at him. "I'm packing my things."
"Why?"
She looked at him but tried to avoid his eyes. “Tae Young, I don’t know how to say this but I don’t think I can do this," she said apologetically.
He went up to her and took her hands. “What do you mean?”
She shook her head vigorously. “I am so sorry. I am so sorry I took it this far. I never should have said yes to you. I never should have accepted your proposal.”
“What happened? Is it my family? Did my mother say anything?”
“No. Your mother’s great.”
“Then what is it?” he asked desperately.
Sam Soon looked away from the confusion in his eyes. There was absolutely nothing she could say to justify what she was doing so she decided to just tell the truth. “I’m still in love with Jin Hun.”
He shook his head. “No, you’re not."
She gave him a sidelong look.
“You’re in a new country – everything is different. You’re just confused.”
“I’m not confused. It’s because I am in a different country that I know I can’t be without him. I don’t feel right here,” she said, pointing to her heart.
He hissed. “That's a load of crap. And if you love him, so what?”
She raised her brow. “What?”
“You decided he wasn’t good enough for you, didn’t you?”
She shook her head. “He’s good enough for me – what’s so great about me? Why wouldn't he be good enough?”
“He’s a weak man, remember?”
“No, he’s not. And even if he is, I can be strong for both of us. I just can’t get him out of my mind – I’m sorry. I belong with him - with all his flaws. Even if I have to be the one that does everything in our relationship, I’ll do it. What’s the big deal? I won't die if I keep doing it, would I?”
He folded his arms. “And this isn’t something you could have told me in Seoul before I went and spent millions of Won on your ticket?”
She exhaled. “I’m sorry. I’ll give you a refund when we get back.”
He grabbed her by the shoulders. “It’s not about the money. Can't you see that you're making a fool of me?”
Sam Soon struggled to get out of his grip then pushed him off her. “How dare you hold me like that? Have you lost your mind?”
He glared at her then sat on the bed. “Well, I just can’t let you leave like this," he said calmly.
“How can you stop me?”
“Do you want my mother to die? I know you don’t care about me but do you want to stress her so much? If you’d never come it would have been different. But to just leave in the middle of the trip, how is she going to take it?”
Not that she wanted to hurt his mother, but she didn't exactly look like she was on her last legs. However, he had a point. “So you want me to pretend?”
“No. But if you have any decency at all, even just a little, you’ll complete the trip. Is this fair to my parents? Some of my father’s friends are coming over tomorrow to see you. What do you want me to tell them? All this could have been avoided if you'd never gotten on the plane. But you did and that's your fault. Don't disrespect my family and just stay for the rest of the days."
***
Jin Hun stood in line at the airport to check-in for his flight. His mother had screamed at him and said that he wasn’t thinking clearly, that it made no sense for him to run after someone who was marrying another man but he didn’t care. Calling the hotel had turned out futile as he'd been told that they'd never checked in. He’d already asked some friends to do some digging around the Korean community over in New York so that at least he’d have a reasonable place to start once he arrived, but with a name like Lee, he knew the search was going to prove difficult. But he didn’t care – he was up to the challenge. As he dragged his feet and moved towards the counter, all he could do was pray that Sam Soon wouldn't do anything rash like choosing to get married before returning to Korea.
The person in front of him got out of the line.
“May I have your passport and ticket?” the chubby lady at the ticket counter asked him.
Having had enough of the stupid restaurant, Sam Soon dropped her glass on the table. It fell so hard that she was surprised that it didn't break. She looked up from it to find everyone staring at her. She stood up. “Look, I am not going to close my shop, okay? So why are we even discussing this?”
Mr. Chu raised his head at her. “It will be a great opportunity for you and besides, I am sure we could come up with some kind of compromise….” He glanced at her lawyer.
She looked around the restaurant and saw that a small group of professionals had taken Jin Hun's former table. She turned back to Mr. Hwang and his colleagues. “Well, I’m leaving. It was nice meeting you all,” she said, sounding like she meant the exact opposite.
She heard Yi Young and her lawyer trying to stop her but she just ignored them and followed her feet out of the restaurant. The second she stepped out of the building, she hailed a cab and gave the driver Jin Hun’s address. Who the fu.ck did he think he was? How dare he propose to someone else so soon? Did he ever love her? Had their years together meant nothing? All she wanted was an explanation, and to wring his foolish neck. They were about 15 minutes away from his apartment complex when her phone rang. She looked at the caller id – it was Tae Young. She’d actually forgotten about him for a moment. For a split second she contemplated not answering it but decided that he’d never done anything to deserve being treated like that.
“Hi, Honey,” he said cheerfully.
“Hi.”
“So how did the meeting go?”
“Why don’t you call your friend to find out?”
“Er…” He seemed to be at a loss for words.
It wasn’t exactly his fault that Mr. Hwang has deceived them so she decided not to take it out on him. “Let’s not talk about it, okay?”
“But…” He paused. “Well, you can tell me all about it on the looong plane ride. Have you packed yet?”
“No.”
“Why not? Remember that our flight leaves really early. Make sure you’re ready when I come over to pick you up.”
“Well....”
“Is anything the matter? What happened at the meeting?” When she didn’t respond, he said, “Well cheer up. After you meet my parents, we’ll set a date and get married then we can worry about whatever it is together. I really can’t wait for you to be part of our family.”
A few minutes later, Sam Soon hung up the phone. She sighed. She knew a nice man who dreamt of marrying her and there she was about to go and talk to someone who'd forgotten her so quickly. Focus, Sam Soon, focus, she reminded herself.
“Hey, Mister,” she said to the cab driver, “can you turn around?”
***
Arriving in New York had been uneventful except for the fact that they’d arrived at Newark International Airport. At first, Sam Soon had wondered if she’d been spelling New York wrong for all these years but then when Tae Young explained it, she wondered why he’d said they were flying to New York when in fact, they arrived in New Jersey. Or did he just say that because their final destination was New York? Not that the city really mattered because apparently, she couldn’t understand much English. How come they sounded so nasal and absolutely nothing like her English teacher? Her suspicions had been realized – yup, her teacher sucked. Although she had to admit that even Tae Young seemed to be having a bit of a problem communicating with the locals because he had to repeat every single thing he said to them. It was a bit amusing watching him get frustrated.
And as these thoughts went through her mind, she wondered if that was what she was supposed to think about on the way to meet her in-laws for the first time. Growing up, she’d never pictured herself sitting next to her fiancé in a cab riding on the streets of New York about to meet her parents-in-law for the first time at a hospital. Something just didn’t feel right about it. And as she thought about it, she remembered the first time she’d met President Na at Jin Hun’s apartment. No, she’d certainly never dreamed of that, but for some reason, it hadn't felt odd. And as she giggled at the memory, she looked out of the window and saw the Statue of Liberty for the first time. Then she wondered if that was exactly the spot on the bridge Jin Hun had been the first time he’d seen it.
***
“Tae Young, you really came?” His mother was sitting up in her hospital bed holding a book.
“Of course I did, Omma,” he said, going up to her and hugging her.
She was a slightly built woman who looked nothing like him. However, Sam Soon could see the resemblance to Soo Hyun, with both of them having the same snub nose and round eyes. She was dressed in her hospital gown but with her bright complexion and demeanor, Sam Soon wondered if she was really sick.
“Where’s Appa?” Tae Young asked.
“He just went out to get something to eat. Did you come straight from the airport?”
Tae Young nodded.
“But why did you rush here? Didn’t your father tell you that it was only the flu and they were just keeping me for some tests?”
He nodded again. “But I didn’t believe him.”
His mother shook her head disapprovingly. “Why wouldn’t you believe him? When has he ever lied?”
After a moment, his mother’s eyes drifted from him and settled on Sam Soon. She grinned at her. “This must be the woman making my son so happy these days.”
Sam Soon smiled and looked down humbly.
“You do look chubbier than in the picture he sent,” she observed. “Was that an old photo?”
Tae Young shook his head. “No. The last one I sent was from about two months ago.”
His mother’s eyes widened. “You gained so much weight in two months? Are you pregnant?”
Sam Soon chuckled. She sort of liked this blunt woman. “No, Eomeoni….” She paused. It was weird calling anyone other than President Na by that name. In fact, it sounded wrong. She cleared her throat. “I am not pregnant -I just eat a lot.”
“Then you should watch what you eat. It’s not good for a woman to be fat.” She gestured for Sam Soon to move closer. “I hope the rumor I heard about you staying at a hotel is not true,” she said to them.
***
The next day, Tae Young’s mother had come back from the hospital and after dinner, Sam Soon and Tae Young decided to take a stroll around Manhattan to look at some of the sights she’d read about. They’d just finished taking pictures at Grand Central Station when Sam Soon came face to face with the Grand Hyatt hotel.
“Hey, let’s go there.” She started walking towards it.
Tae Young followed her. “What’s so special about it? It’s just a hotel.”
They walked in and roamed about the lobby, feeling the golden pillars and walking over the marbled floors. The idiot really did waste a lot of money, she thought, noticing how expensive everything looked. They walked to the restaurant and then took a peek at the ballroom after which Sam Soon turned to Tae Young and said, “Do you think we could get a room?”
He looked surprised. “What?”
She smiled. “I want to see what the view is like.” Her smile faded when she looked at his face of confusion. What the hell was she thinking? She ran out the hotel and kept running and running till she ran out of breath. Then she staggered a few feet further till she got to an empty bus stop and sat down. She could hear Tae Young’s voice behind her as she tried to readjust herself on the cold, plastic seat but right then, there was one thing she was sure of; she could never forget Sam Shik. But even worse, she didn’t ever want to.
***
Jin Hun opened his car door when he saw Yi Young’s husband’s car pull into their driveway. “Noonim,” he called as soon as they stepped out.
Yi Young was surprised. “Sam Shiki?”
Jin Hun greeted them and after he refused to go into the house, her husband left them.
“What are you doing here?” Yi Young asked him.
“Where have you been?” For four days, Jin Hun had staked both of the houses, wondering where all three women had disappeared to. He’d called Sam Soon’s phone but it seemed to be permanently off and he’d been going out of his mind. He’d barely slept an hour each night.
“I went to spend some time with my husband’s family. Why are you looking for me?”
“Where’s Sam Soon?” he blurted out.
“She’s gone to see Tae Young’s family in America.” Yi Young watched him carefully.
His heart stopped. What? She actually had the guts to take it that far? Even when she still loved him? Was she crazy?
“Do you have an address?” If he had to go over there and bring her back, he would. He was sick of trying to convince her. If he had to force her, well, that's what he'd do.
“I have the phone number and name of the hotel she’s staying at. Why don’t you come in so that I can give them to you?”
***
Tae Young walked into the spare bedroom to find Sam Soon packing up her suitcase. “Hey, what are you doing?”
Sam Soon glanced at him. "I'm packing my things."
"Why?"
She looked at him but tried to avoid his eyes. “Tae Young, I don’t know how to say this but I don’t think I can do this," she said apologetically.
He went up to her and took her hands. “What do you mean?”
She shook her head vigorously. “I am so sorry. I am so sorry I took it this far. I never should have said yes to you. I never should have accepted your proposal.”
“What happened? Is it my family? Did my mother say anything?”
“No. Your mother’s great.”
“Then what is it?” he asked desperately.
Sam Soon looked away from the confusion in his eyes. There was absolutely nothing she could say to justify what she was doing so she decided to just tell the truth. “I’m still in love with Jin Hun.”
He shook his head. “No, you’re not."
She gave him a sidelong look.
“You’re in a new country – everything is different. You’re just confused.”
“I’m not confused. It’s because I am in a different country that I know I can’t be without him. I don’t feel right here,” she said, pointing to her heart.
He hissed. “That's a load of crap. And if you love him, so what?”
She raised her brow. “What?”
“You decided he wasn’t good enough for you, didn’t you?”
She shook her head. “He’s good enough for me – what’s so great about me? Why wouldn't he be good enough?”
“He’s a weak man, remember?”
“No, he’s not. And even if he is, I can be strong for both of us. I just can’t get him out of my mind – I’m sorry. I belong with him - with all his flaws. Even if I have to be the one that does everything in our relationship, I’ll do it. What’s the big deal? I won't die if I keep doing it, would I?”
He folded his arms. “And this isn’t something you could have told me in Seoul before I went and spent millions of Won on your ticket?”
She exhaled. “I’m sorry. I’ll give you a refund when we get back.”
He grabbed her by the shoulders. “It’s not about the money. Can't you see that you're making a fool of me?”
Sam Soon struggled to get out of his grip then pushed him off her. “How dare you hold me like that? Have you lost your mind?”
He glared at her then sat on the bed. “Well, I just can’t let you leave like this," he said calmly.
“How can you stop me?”
“Do you want my mother to die? I know you don’t care about me but do you want to stress her so much? If you’d never come it would have been different. But to just leave in the middle of the trip, how is she going to take it?”
Not that she wanted to hurt his mother, but she didn't exactly look like she was on her last legs. However, he had a point. “So you want me to pretend?”
“No. But if you have any decency at all, even just a little, you’ll complete the trip. Is this fair to my parents? Some of my father’s friends are coming over tomorrow to see you. What do you want me to tell them? All this could have been avoided if you'd never gotten on the plane. But you did and that's your fault. Don't disrespect my family and just stay for the rest of the days."
***
Jin Hun stood in line at the airport to check-in for his flight. His mother had screamed at him and said that he wasn’t thinking clearly, that it made no sense for him to run after someone who was marrying another man but he didn’t care. Calling the hotel had turned out futile as he'd been told that they'd never checked in. He’d already asked some friends to do some digging around the Korean community over in New York so that at least he’d have a reasonable place to start once he arrived, but with a name like Lee, he knew the search was going to prove difficult. But he didn’t care – he was up to the challenge. As he dragged his feet and moved towards the counter, all he could do was pray that Sam Soon wouldn't do anything rash like choosing to get married before returning to Korea.
The person in front of him got out of the line.
“May I have your passport and ticket?” the chubby lady at the ticket counter asked him.
Tuesday, December 07, 2010
The End.
“Thank you so much,” Jin Hun said into the phone then hung up. In the hour he’d spent waiting for his flight, he’d spoken to a private investigator a friend in New York had recommended and even he had questioned his sanity for flying to a city of 8 million people to find one. But once Jin Hun had explained to him that he would spare no expense in finding Sam Soon, the investigator quickly came around.
“Korean Airlines Flight number 203 is ready for boarding. Could the First Class passengers please approach the gate?”
Jin Hun got off his seat and pulled his hand luggage. How odd was it the last non-business trip he’d taken to New York was to say good bye to a girlfriend and now he was taking the same flight to find another?
***
“I wish you didn’t have to leave so soon,” Tae Young’s mother said, hugging Sam Soon. “Make sure you plan the next one better.” She caressed Sam Soon’s upper arm.
Sam Soon smiled and nodded, hoping that her guilt wasn’t seeping from her skin. “Goodbye, Mother and feel better,” she said. When she turned around, she shot an angry glance at her so-called fiancé and slid into the waiting cab.
It wasn’t that she thought she was entirely blameless. In fact, she knew she was very much at fault. Because if she’d never accepted his proposal in the first place, none of this would had happened. If she hadn’t been foolish enough to get on the plane and meet his parents, she wouldn’t have put him in such a difficult position. Which was why she hadn’t stormed out of his house that fateful evening. She knew that his parents deserved some respect so she agreed to spend two more days so he could come up with a reasonable explanation for why she was cutting their trip short.
Although it wasn’t her first time of pretending to be in love with someone for show, it was so different that she kept comparing it to the previous 'contract' and that kept Jin Hun constantly in her mind. Not that she'd have forgotten him otherwise. She’d picked up the phone a few times to call him and even gotten through once but it had gone straight to voicemail. Since then, she’d found herself regretting not saying anything after hearing that click but what she had to say was better said in person. Surely, it’s not that easy to wring someone’s neck for proposing to someone else over the phone now, is it?
“Call us when you set a date,” his mother said as the driver started the engine.
“We will,” Tae Young promised cheerfully.
Back in the moment, Sam Soon frowned at him in disgust and the moment the car sped away, she slid so far from him that was touching the door.
“Is it that difficult to be around me?” he asked with a pained voice.
Oh, not again. “What do you mean?”
“You can’t wait to get away from me? You’re acting like I have a disease. Did I ever mean anything to you?
Sam Soon groaned. She was getting really sick of the madness. For the last two days, he’d been sending her on a long guilt trip trying to make her feel bad about what she’d done, like she wasn’t feeling bad enough as it was.
“I wish you hadn’t led me on," he continued. "You know, maybe I would have found someone else, someone who’d have been happy to become part of my family. You know, someone I wouldn't have wasted an engagement ring on.”
“Haven’t I already returned it to you?”
“I really regret meeting you, Sam Soon,” he continued, ignoring her question. “What will I tell Soo Hyun? She’s already lived through the death of her mother, how will she live through this?”
“Sir,” Sam Soon said to the cab driver, “could you please increase the volume of the radio?”
***
Sam Soon dropped her phone in her purse. For the fourth time since she’d arrived back in Seoul, her call to Jin Hun had gone straight to voicemail. Surely, he wasn’t avoiding her calls, was he?
Feeling Tae Young’s eyes boring into her back, she moved closer to the conveyor belt and looked out for her luggage. After sitting next to him for what seemed like a million hours on the plane, she’d hoped he’d have taken the hint and left her once they arrived back in Korea but apparently, he hadn’t.
“Will you at least come and see Soo Hyun?” Tae Young asked from behind her.
Sam Soon turned around. “What?”
“You owe her an explanation. She loves you like a mother. Do you think it’s fair for you to just leave her like that?”
She stretched out her arm to him. “Okay, take it. Is this what you want? Grab a knife and cut it off.” She gritted her teeth. In fact, she was ready to cut off her own damn arm if it meant she wouldn’t have to listen to his lectures anymore. “I know what I did was wrong. I’ve already apologized. What more do you want?”
He shrugged and shook his head then walked to the other side of the conveyor belt.
Sam Soon watched him and wondered how she’d been blind the whole time they were together. Why did she ever think that he was so mature? One thing this whole mess had made her realize was that all men were the same: they wanted what they wanted when they wanted it and if they didn’t get, they threw a tantrum. Perhaps her theory that men only grew up after having children was flawed. Maybe they only got better at putting up a facade.
She was still lost in her thoughts when he returned with her luggage and dropped it in front of her. He looked at her through sad eyes and started to walk back for his bags.
Sam Soon grabbed his arm. “I really am sorry about all this. I hope you know that.”
“But not sorry enough to come back to me, right?” he asked, not turning around.
Sam Soon let go of him. “I’m sorry.”
***
Jin Hun leaned against the railing and he let his head hang down for a minute. How stupid was he? Her flight wasn’t arriving for another fifty or so minutes and factoring in Customs, he knew he wouldn’t see her in at least an hour and a half but he’d been standing there for hours like a fool. A loud growl escaped his belly and he reflexively touched it. He’d tried to have breakfast but he’d barely tasted it because all he could think about was the unavoidable public confrontation he was about to partake in.
He looked up at the new arrivals as they strolled past him. He’d seen so many people in the past day that their faces were beginning to blend into one another. He’d even begun to put them into categories. There were those who had no one to pick them up so they headed straight for the taxi stands. There were those who weren’t expecting to be picked up and broke a smile filled with joy when a loved one surprised them. There were those who walked up, down and all around waiting for someone who’d obviously disappointed them. Then there were those who searched for a familiar face then smiled on seeing them. He looked at all those faces as they moved past him when his eyes unexpectedly fell on a familiar one in the fourth category.
He glanced at his watch then back at her. Then he wiped his eyes and peered at her again – he really wasn’t imagining things. As he couldn’t go past the barricade, he walked to the receiving area, took a deep breath and waved as she walked towards him.
Sam Soon stopped in her tracks when she spotted him. He saw the barrage of emotions cross her face; from shock, to anger and to confusion before she resumed walking, but this time, with calculated steps.
“Did Unnie have a sex change?” she asked when he was within ear shot.
He jogged the few yards between them. “What?”
She looked around the airport. “Where’s my sister?”
She looked beautiful even though he could tell that she was tired. He wanted to reach out and touch her face but instead, reached for her luggage. She slapped his hand away.
“What are you doing here?”
He looked at her and pursed his lips. “I’m here to get you.”
“What?”
He grabbed her hand. “This has gone on long enough. I’m taking you home with me tonight.”
She pulled back from him but his grip was ironclad. “Are you crazy?”
He stepped closer to her so that they were only inches apart. “You’re coming back with me. Do you understand that? I’m not letting you go.”
She scrunched her nose and pushed him away. “Did you forget to shower this morning? You stink!”
He stepped away but didn’t let go of her. “Well, you are going to have to get used to that smell because I am not leaving you.”
“Really? And what does your fiancé think about this?”
Huh? He was about to ask what the hell she was talking about when he saw Tae Young’s face amongst the sea of new arrivals. He released Sam Soon then walked to him so that he was blocking his path. Tae Young tried to walk past him but Jin Hun wouldn’t let him so instead, Tae Young stood and glared at him.
“What do you want?” he snarled.
“Look, I think we need to talk,” Jin Hun said.
Tae Young glanced at Sam Soon who was a few feet to the side of them then looked back at the man standing in front of him. “I’m sure there’s absolutely nothing for us to talk about.”
“Listen, I have nothing against you but I can’t let you marry Sam Soon.”
Tae Young released his grip on his bag so that it fell to the floor in a loud thud. “You can’t let me? Who do you think you are?”
“I’m sure you’re a nice guy but you need to go and find someone else. I won’t tolerate you interfering with us anymore. So just go and find someone else and leave her alone.”
Tae Young laughed sarcastically. “Are you some kind of comedian? What makes you think you can tell me what to do? You won’t tolerate?” Then the smile disappeared. “Do yourself a favor and get the fu.ck out of my face.”
“Hey, buddy, I’m not looking for a fight, okay?”
“Don’t ‘buddy’ me. What the hell? Just get the fu.ck out of my face. You’re the last person I want to see at this moment.”
But Jin Hun didn’t oblige, he just couldn’t. Things were better for everyone this way. “I will leave as soon as I can see that we are all on the same page.”
Tae Young’s demeanor changed as he became more agitated. “Look, Mister. Just go away. Trust me; you don’t want me to repeat myself – just step aside.”
As if on cue, Sam Soon jumped in between them so that her back was to Tae Young. She put her hand on Jin Hun’s chest and pushed him back. “Hey, what the hell do you think you are doing? You have no right to talk to him like that.”
Jin Hun tore his eyes away from Tae Young’s reddening face and trained them on Sam Soon’s hand. Surprised, he studied it then quickly looked at the other one and then on to her face and searched it. “Where’s your ring?”
Sam Soon struggled to free herself from his grip and this time he let her. Then she folded her arms and looked away.
His mind was racing at a million miles per hour. What had happened in America? He was still waiting for a reply to his question when Tae Young picked up his bag and said, “Are you coming?”
“I thought I already told you that I wasn’t,” Sam Soon said without looking at him.
Jin Hun looked at both of them and said nothing.
“What about Soo Hyun?” He glanced at his watch. “We are a little early so they should be arriving in a few minutes. Don’t you think you owe her an explanation?”
Sam Soon looked at Jin Hun then slowly turned to Tae Young. “I’ll come over and talk to her tomorrow.”
“If you don’t do it now, don't bother,” he said. With that, he walked away.
***
Sam Soon picked up her bag and moved to a less crowded area so that they weren’t blocking any of the other passengers. She dropped it then waited for Jin Hun to join her.
Looking far more relaxed than he had when she found him waiting for her, he repeated, “Where’s your ring?”
Sam Soon shook her head and rolled her eyes. She figured that the airport was as good a place as any. “Where’s your fiancé?” She waited for the question to sink in then looked back at him.
“What are you talking about?”
She told him what she’d overheard at the restaurant. “What do you have to say to that?”
Exasperated, he folded his arms and slowly paced around the space in front of her. He nodded. “It’s official – I’m in love with a crazy woman.”
“Just answer the question.”
“Are you kidding me? Why would I get engaged to someone else when there’s only one person I want to marry? Do you think I am you?”
Was this where she was supposed to say, “Touché”? She frowned. “Whatever, Sam Shik.”
“That was Eunsoo. I don’t think she’s going to get much from her father’s company so she decided to find a new one. That’s was it. If you’d even bothered to ask me, I would have told you.”
“Yeah, right. So why have you been avoiding my calls?”
“You—You’ve been calling me? Since when?”
“Yes, I’ve been calling you! I called you at least ten times today.”
He reached into his pocket, pulled out his phone and handed it to her. “Look at it,” he said, pointing to it. “My batteries are dead.”
“What kind of grown man doesn’t carry his charger around?”
“I forgot it yesterday.”
“Yesterday?”
“Yeah. I was about to get on a flight to New York--”
She felt a lump in her throat. “New York?” she interjected.
“Yes,” he said matter-of-factly. “As I was saying, I was about to get on the plane when your sister called me to say that you’ll be returning today. So I waited for you.”
She felt her eyes sting. Wow. She smiled. “So this is why you stink.” She remembered how much of a clean freak he was and that made her smile even harder.
Jin Hun lifted his arm and sniffed himself. “It’s not that bad.”
She laughed. She hadn’t felt so happy in months. “Trust me, it is. Why didn’t you just go home or at least go to a hotel?”
“I didn’t want to take the risk of missing you. Look, didn’t you guys arrive early? What if you’d decided to go straight to get a marriage license or something like that? I couldn’t let that happen. Besides, it was urgent – I had to tell you immediately.”
“Tell me what?”
“That regardless of what you say, I refuse to let you marry someone else.”
Sam Soon quickly looked away to hide a smile then they stood in uncomfortable silence for a few moments.
Jin Hun moved so close to her that she could feel his breath on her nose. “So where is the ring?” he whispered.
Sam Soon stepped back from him. “Why do you keep asking that? It should be obvious by now that I’m not marrying Tae Young.” Dummy.
He breathed a sigh of relief. “So, what about us?”
“What about us?”
Once again, Jin Hun shortened the distance between their faces to a few inches. Sam Soon pushed him away. “Which part of, “you smell,” don’t you understand?” she asked, scowling.
“You’re going to have to get used to this smell if you become my wife.”
“I don’t think so. If this ever happens again, I’ll drag you into the bathroom and pour ice cold water on you – that’ll teach you.”
He took her waist and pulled her close to him again. “So you’ve finally agreed that you can’t live without me?” he whispered.
“I can live without you, but I don’t want to.” She put her arms around his waist. “I missed you so much that it literally hurt.”
He cracked a smile. “So you know what it’s been like for me this past year, except I really don’t think I can live without you.”
Yeah, Yeah. She looked at her reflection inside his eyes. “What about your mom?”
“What about her? She approves and she should be getting here any minute from now.”
Sam Soon tried to break away from his embrace but he wouldn’t let her. She didn’t mind that much because she’d missed the feel of his body around hers. So she just moved her head back and looked at him curiously. “Here?”
He nodded. “Yes. I’m fighting for this relationship too. I made her understand that if she had to kneel and beg you to come back to us, she’d have to.”
She let out a boisterous laugh of disbelief. “Yeah, right.”
“Okay, okay, maybe not kneel. But she’s here to show you that she approves.”
Sam Soon put her head back on his shoulder. “I wonder what you had to do to make her agree to that.”
“You’ll never know. Just know that your husband can be very persuasive.”
Her husband. She loved the sound of that. She separated from him and said, “You can’t put me through this hell again. Do you understand that? If something happens in the future, you have to know that we’re both in this together. I can try to do it for the both of us, but it's better if we both take action.”
He nodded. “I know and I’m sorry. And the same goes for you. You just can’t run away whenever you get scared. Or when you’re disappointed in me.”
It was her time to nod. “I know and I’m sorry too. Just try not to make me disappointed.”
He smiled. “I’ll try my best. And if I’m bad, you can always punish me,” he said seductively.
She shook her head. “You’re such a pervert.”
Laughing, he picked up her bag and held her with his other arm. They walked in silence for a few minutes when she stopped and looked at him. “So to sum it up, what we’re saying is; I love you…”
He nodded. “Yes.”
“… and you love me…”
“Of course.”
“… and we’re getting married?!”
“Definitely.”
Suddenly elated, she jumped into his arms, causing him to drop her bag. “We’re getting married!”
“Oof. How come you gained all that weight back?” he asked, still holding her up.
“Don’t spoil the moment,” she warned, looking down to him.
“Aunty!” a voice screamed from the exit.
Sam Soon looked at the direction of the voice to see Mi Joo standing next to her grandmother. Smiling, Sam Soon got off her Sam Shik and spread her arms apart to let the young girl run into them.
The END.
Epilogue
“ See? I told you I’d fit into my wedding dress,” Sam Soon said, rubbing the bodice of her white silk gown.
“Yeah, I’m quite surprised. But you look beautiful.” He was sitting next to her in the moving car with his jacket lying next to him.
“Didn’t the hall look beautiful? Yep, the perfect place for a wedding. I’m going to have all my weddings there,” she said dreamily.
“All your weddings?” He frowned. “How many do you plan on having?”
“At least one every year. Surely, there has to be some benefit to marrying a rich hotelier.”
Jin Hun nodded knowingly. “I see how it is. Besides, if you had let me in on this plan sooner, I would have insisted on my location.”
Sam Soon rolled her eyes. “Not again. I am sick of hearing about the men’s bathroom, okay?”
“You keep saying that I am not sentimental enough but think about it. That was the place we first met…”
“… and that was where you first admitted to liking me. Yes. Yes. As funny as it would have been to see President Na in the men’s bathroom, please shut up.”
Jin Hun laughed. He really loved teasing her like that. He sighed then cleared his throat. “Aren’t you going to start calling her ‘mother’ again?”
She sighed. “I will, I will. I just forget sometimes, okay? Mama’s boy.”
He laughed again then looked at the nape of her dress. “A mama’s boy wouldn’t have the kind of thoughts I’m having right now.”
“Pervert.”
“I’m not a pervert but you did insist that we wait till our wedding night to make it more 'special'. Time’s up, honey.”
Sam Soon looked through the tinted window. “Does this look like nighttime to you?”
He looked around the limo. “Since it’s dark in here, I’m going to say yes.” He leaned over and kissed his wife deeply.
When he came up for air, he opened his eyes to see her looking impish at him. “What?”
“We're married now.”
“So?” he asked, leaning in for another kiss.
“Guess what the next step is.”
“What?”
She laughed. “Baby!”
“Korean Airlines Flight number 203 is ready for boarding. Could the First Class passengers please approach the gate?”
Jin Hun got off his seat and pulled his hand luggage. How odd was it the last non-business trip he’d taken to New York was to say good bye to a girlfriend and now he was taking the same flight to find another?
***
“I wish you didn’t have to leave so soon,” Tae Young’s mother said, hugging Sam Soon. “Make sure you plan the next one better.” She caressed Sam Soon’s upper arm.
Sam Soon smiled and nodded, hoping that her guilt wasn’t seeping from her skin. “Goodbye, Mother and feel better,” she said. When she turned around, she shot an angry glance at her so-called fiancé and slid into the waiting cab.
It wasn’t that she thought she was entirely blameless. In fact, she knew she was very much at fault. Because if she’d never accepted his proposal in the first place, none of this would had happened. If she hadn’t been foolish enough to get on the plane and meet his parents, she wouldn’t have put him in such a difficult position. Which was why she hadn’t stormed out of his house that fateful evening. She knew that his parents deserved some respect so she agreed to spend two more days so he could come up with a reasonable explanation for why she was cutting their trip short.
Although it wasn’t her first time of pretending to be in love with someone for show, it was so different that she kept comparing it to the previous 'contract' and that kept Jin Hun constantly in her mind. Not that she'd have forgotten him otherwise. She’d picked up the phone a few times to call him and even gotten through once but it had gone straight to voicemail. Since then, she’d found herself regretting not saying anything after hearing that click but what she had to say was better said in person. Surely, it’s not that easy to wring someone’s neck for proposing to someone else over the phone now, is it?
“Call us when you set a date,” his mother said as the driver started the engine.
“We will,” Tae Young promised cheerfully.
Back in the moment, Sam Soon frowned at him in disgust and the moment the car sped away, she slid so far from him that was touching the door.
“Is it that difficult to be around me?” he asked with a pained voice.
Oh, not again. “What do you mean?”
“You can’t wait to get away from me? You’re acting like I have a disease. Did I ever mean anything to you?
Sam Soon groaned. She was getting really sick of the madness. For the last two days, he’d been sending her on a long guilt trip trying to make her feel bad about what she’d done, like she wasn’t feeling bad enough as it was.
“I wish you hadn’t led me on," he continued. "You know, maybe I would have found someone else, someone who’d have been happy to become part of my family. You know, someone I wouldn't have wasted an engagement ring on.”
“Haven’t I already returned it to you?”
“I really regret meeting you, Sam Soon,” he continued, ignoring her question. “What will I tell Soo Hyun? She’s already lived through the death of her mother, how will she live through this?”
“Sir,” Sam Soon said to the cab driver, “could you please increase the volume of the radio?”
***
Sam Soon dropped her phone in her purse. For the fourth time since she’d arrived back in Seoul, her call to Jin Hun had gone straight to voicemail. Surely, he wasn’t avoiding her calls, was he?
Feeling Tae Young’s eyes boring into her back, she moved closer to the conveyor belt and looked out for her luggage. After sitting next to him for what seemed like a million hours on the plane, she’d hoped he’d have taken the hint and left her once they arrived back in Korea but apparently, he hadn’t.
“Will you at least come and see Soo Hyun?” Tae Young asked from behind her.
Sam Soon turned around. “What?”
“You owe her an explanation. She loves you like a mother. Do you think it’s fair for you to just leave her like that?”
She stretched out her arm to him. “Okay, take it. Is this what you want? Grab a knife and cut it off.” She gritted her teeth. In fact, she was ready to cut off her own damn arm if it meant she wouldn’t have to listen to his lectures anymore. “I know what I did was wrong. I’ve already apologized. What more do you want?”
He shrugged and shook his head then walked to the other side of the conveyor belt.
Sam Soon watched him and wondered how she’d been blind the whole time they were together. Why did she ever think that he was so mature? One thing this whole mess had made her realize was that all men were the same: they wanted what they wanted when they wanted it and if they didn’t get, they threw a tantrum. Perhaps her theory that men only grew up after having children was flawed. Maybe they only got better at putting up a facade.
She was still lost in her thoughts when he returned with her luggage and dropped it in front of her. He looked at her through sad eyes and started to walk back for his bags.
Sam Soon grabbed his arm. “I really am sorry about all this. I hope you know that.”
“But not sorry enough to come back to me, right?” he asked, not turning around.
Sam Soon let go of him. “I’m sorry.”
***
Jin Hun leaned against the railing and he let his head hang down for a minute. How stupid was he? Her flight wasn’t arriving for another fifty or so minutes and factoring in Customs, he knew he wouldn’t see her in at least an hour and a half but he’d been standing there for hours like a fool. A loud growl escaped his belly and he reflexively touched it. He’d tried to have breakfast but he’d barely tasted it because all he could think about was the unavoidable public confrontation he was about to partake in.
He looked up at the new arrivals as they strolled past him. He’d seen so many people in the past day that their faces were beginning to blend into one another. He’d even begun to put them into categories. There were those who had no one to pick them up so they headed straight for the taxi stands. There were those who weren’t expecting to be picked up and broke a smile filled with joy when a loved one surprised them. There were those who walked up, down and all around waiting for someone who’d obviously disappointed them. Then there were those who searched for a familiar face then smiled on seeing them. He looked at all those faces as they moved past him when his eyes unexpectedly fell on a familiar one in the fourth category.
He glanced at his watch then back at her. Then he wiped his eyes and peered at her again – he really wasn’t imagining things. As he couldn’t go past the barricade, he walked to the receiving area, took a deep breath and waved as she walked towards him.
Sam Soon stopped in her tracks when she spotted him. He saw the barrage of emotions cross her face; from shock, to anger and to confusion before she resumed walking, but this time, with calculated steps.
“Did Unnie have a sex change?” she asked when he was within ear shot.
He jogged the few yards between them. “What?”
She looked around the airport. “Where’s my sister?”
She looked beautiful even though he could tell that she was tired. He wanted to reach out and touch her face but instead, reached for her luggage. She slapped his hand away.
“What are you doing here?”
He looked at her and pursed his lips. “I’m here to get you.”
“What?”
He grabbed her hand. “This has gone on long enough. I’m taking you home with me tonight.”
She pulled back from him but his grip was ironclad. “Are you crazy?”
He stepped closer to her so that they were only inches apart. “You’re coming back with me. Do you understand that? I’m not letting you go.”
She scrunched her nose and pushed him away. “Did you forget to shower this morning? You stink!”
He stepped away but didn’t let go of her. “Well, you are going to have to get used to that smell because I am not leaving you.”
“Really? And what does your fiancé think about this?”
Huh? He was about to ask what the hell she was talking about when he saw Tae Young’s face amongst the sea of new arrivals. He released Sam Soon then walked to him so that he was blocking his path. Tae Young tried to walk past him but Jin Hun wouldn’t let him so instead, Tae Young stood and glared at him.
“What do you want?” he snarled.
“Look, I think we need to talk,” Jin Hun said.
Tae Young glanced at Sam Soon who was a few feet to the side of them then looked back at the man standing in front of him. “I’m sure there’s absolutely nothing for us to talk about.”
“Listen, I have nothing against you but I can’t let you marry Sam Soon.”
Tae Young released his grip on his bag so that it fell to the floor in a loud thud. “You can’t let me? Who do you think you are?”
“I’m sure you’re a nice guy but you need to go and find someone else. I won’t tolerate you interfering with us anymore. So just go and find someone else and leave her alone.”
Tae Young laughed sarcastically. “Are you some kind of comedian? What makes you think you can tell me what to do? You won’t tolerate?” Then the smile disappeared. “Do yourself a favor and get the fu.ck out of my face.”
“Hey, buddy, I’m not looking for a fight, okay?”
“Don’t ‘buddy’ me. What the hell? Just get the fu.ck out of my face. You’re the last person I want to see at this moment.”
But Jin Hun didn’t oblige, he just couldn’t. Things were better for everyone this way. “I will leave as soon as I can see that we are all on the same page.”
Tae Young’s demeanor changed as he became more agitated. “Look, Mister. Just go away. Trust me; you don’t want me to repeat myself – just step aside.”
As if on cue, Sam Soon jumped in between them so that her back was to Tae Young. She put her hand on Jin Hun’s chest and pushed him back. “Hey, what the hell do you think you are doing? You have no right to talk to him like that.”
Jin Hun tore his eyes away from Tae Young’s reddening face and trained them on Sam Soon’s hand. Surprised, he studied it then quickly looked at the other one and then on to her face and searched it. “Where’s your ring?”
Sam Soon struggled to free herself from his grip and this time he let her. Then she folded her arms and looked away.
His mind was racing at a million miles per hour. What had happened in America? He was still waiting for a reply to his question when Tae Young picked up his bag and said, “Are you coming?”
“I thought I already told you that I wasn’t,” Sam Soon said without looking at him.
Jin Hun looked at both of them and said nothing.
“What about Soo Hyun?” He glanced at his watch. “We are a little early so they should be arriving in a few minutes. Don’t you think you owe her an explanation?”
Sam Soon looked at Jin Hun then slowly turned to Tae Young. “I’ll come over and talk to her tomorrow.”
“If you don’t do it now, don't bother,” he said. With that, he walked away.
***
Sam Soon picked up her bag and moved to a less crowded area so that they weren’t blocking any of the other passengers. She dropped it then waited for Jin Hun to join her.
Looking far more relaxed than he had when she found him waiting for her, he repeated, “Where’s your ring?”
Sam Soon shook her head and rolled her eyes. She figured that the airport was as good a place as any. “Where’s your fiancé?” She waited for the question to sink in then looked back at him.
“What are you talking about?”
She told him what she’d overheard at the restaurant. “What do you have to say to that?”
Exasperated, he folded his arms and slowly paced around the space in front of her. He nodded. “It’s official – I’m in love with a crazy woman.”
“Just answer the question.”
“Are you kidding me? Why would I get engaged to someone else when there’s only one person I want to marry? Do you think I am you?”
Was this where she was supposed to say, “Touché”? She frowned. “Whatever, Sam Shik.”
“That was Eunsoo. I don’t think she’s going to get much from her father’s company so she decided to find a new one. That’s was it. If you’d even bothered to ask me, I would have told you.”
“Yeah, right. So why have you been avoiding my calls?”
“You—You’ve been calling me? Since when?”
“Yes, I’ve been calling you! I called you at least ten times today.”
He reached into his pocket, pulled out his phone and handed it to her. “Look at it,” he said, pointing to it. “My batteries are dead.”
“What kind of grown man doesn’t carry his charger around?”
“I forgot it yesterday.”
“Yesterday?”
“Yeah. I was about to get on a flight to New York--”
She felt a lump in her throat. “New York?” she interjected.
“Yes,” he said matter-of-factly. “As I was saying, I was about to get on the plane when your sister called me to say that you’ll be returning today. So I waited for you.”
She felt her eyes sting. Wow. She smiled. “So this is why you stink.” She remembered how much of a clean freak he was and that made her smile even harder.
Jin Hun lifted his arm and sniffed himself. “It’s not that bad.”
She laughed. She hadn’t felt so happy in months. “Trust me, it is. Why didn’t you just go home or at least go to a hotel?”
“I didn’t want to take the risk of missing you. Look, didn’t you guys arrive early? What if you’d decided to go straight to get a marriage license or something like that? I couldn’t let that happen. Besides, it was urgent – I had to tell you immediately.”
“Tell me what?”
“That regardless of what you say, I refuse to let you marry someone else.”
Sam Soon quickly looked away to hide a smile then they stood in uncomfortable silence for a few moments.
Jin Hun moved so close to her that she could feel his breath on her nose. “So where is the ring?” he whispered.
Sam Soon stepped back from him. “Why do you keep asking that? It should be obvious by now that I’m not marrying Tae Young.” Dummy.
He breathed a sigh of relief. “So, what about us?”
“What about us?”
Once again, Jin Hun shortened the distance between their faces to a few inches. Sam Soon pushed him away. “Which part of, “you smell,” don’t you understand?” she asked, scowling.
“You’re going to have to get used to this smell if you become my wife.”
“I don’t think so. If this ever happens again, I’ll drag you into the bathroom and pour ice cold water on you – that’ll teach you.”
He took her waist and pulled her close to him again. “So you’ve finally agreed that you can’t live without me?” he whispered.
“I can live without you, but I don’t want to.” She put her arms around his waist. “I missed you so much that it literally hurt.”
He cracked a smile. “So you know what it’s been like for me this past year, except I really don’t think I can live without you.”
Yeah, Yeah. She looked at her reflection inside his eyes. “What about your mom?”
“What about her? She approves and she should be getting here any minute from now.”
Sam Soon tried to break away from his embrace but he wouldn’t let her. She didn’t mind that much because she’d missed the feel of his body around hers. So she just moved her head back and looked at him curiously. “Here?”
He nodded. “Yes. I’m fighting for this relationship too. I made her understand that if she had to kneel and beg you to come back to us, she’d have to.”
She let out a boisterous laugh of disbelief. “Yeah, right.”
“Okay, okay, maybe not kneel. But she’s here to show you that she approves.”
Sam Soon put her head back on his shoulder. “I wonder what you had to do to make her agree to that.”
“You’ll never know. Just know that your husband can be very persuasive.”
Her husband. She loved the sound of that. She separated from him and said, “You can’t put me through this hell again. Do you understand that? If something happens in the future, you have to know that we’re both in this together. I can try to do it for the both of us, but it's better if we both take action.”
He nodded. “I know and I’m sorry. And the same goes for you. You just can’t run away whenever you get scared. Or when you’re disappointed in me.”
It was her time to nod. “I know and I’m sorry too. Just try not to make me disappointed.”
He smiled. “I’ll try my best. And if I’m bad, you can always punish me,” he said seductively.
She shook her head. “You’re such a pervert.”
Laughing, he picked up her bag and held her with his other arm. They walked in silence for a few minutes when she stopped and looked at him. “So to sum it up, what we’re saying is; I love you…”
He nodded. “Yes.”
“… and you love me…”
“Of course.”
“… and we’re getting married?!”
“Definitely.”
Suddenly elated, she jumped into his arms, causing him to drop her bag. “We’re getting married!”
“Oof. How come you gained all that weight back?” he asked, still holding her up.
“Don’t spoil the moment,” she warned, looking down to him.
“Aunty!” a voice screamed from the exit.
Sam Soon looked at the direction of the voice to see Mi Joo standing next to her grandmother. Smiling, Sam Soon got off her Sam Shik and spread her arms apart to let the young girl run into them.
The END.
Epilogue
“ See? I told you I’d fit into my wedding dress,” Sam Soon said, rubbing the bodice of her white silk gown.
“Yeah, I’m quite surprised. But you look beautiful.” He was sitting next to her in the moving car with his jacket lying next to him.
“Didn’t the hall look beautiful? Yep, the perfect place for a wedding. I’m going to have all my weddings there,” she said dreamily.
“All your weddings?” He frowned. “How many do you plan on having?”
“At least one every year. Surely, there has to be some benefit to marrying a rich hotelier.”
Jin Hun nodded knowingly. “I see how it is. Besides, if you had let me in on this plan sooner, I would have insisted on my location.”
Sam Soon rolled her eyes. “Not again. I am sick of hearing about the men’s bathroom, okay?”
“You keep saying that I am not sentimental enough but think about it. That was the place we first met…”
“… and that was where you first admitted to liking me. Yes. Yes. As funny as it would have been to see President Na in the men’s bathroom, please shut up.”
Jin Hun laughed. He really loved teasing her like that. He sighed then cleared his throat. “Aren’t you going to start calling her ‘mother’ again?”
She sighed. “I will, I will. I just forget sometimes, okay? Mama’s boy.”
He laughed again then looked at the nape of her dress. “A mama’s boy wouldn’t have the kind of thoughts I’m having right now.”
“Pervert.”
“I’m not a pervert but you did insist that we wait till our wedding night to make it more 'special'. Time’s up, honey.”
Sam Soon looked through the tinted window. “Does this look like nighttime to you?”
He looked around the limo. “Since it’s dark in here, I’m going to say yes.” He leaned over and kissed his wife deeply.
When he came up for air, he opened his eyes to see her looking impish at him. “What?”
“We're married now.”
“So?” he asked, leaning in for another kiss.
“Guess what the next step is.”
“What?”
She laughed. “Baby!”
Monday, December 06, 2010
Bonus Chapter: Part 1 of 4
“Oh my God!” Sam Soon exclaimed.
Her outcry was so sudden and unexpected that Jin Hun immediately stopped walking and jerked his head in her direction. “What? What?!”
But instead of looking frazzled or distressed, Sam Soon was smiling and pointing at the tall man frantically waving at them from across the barricade. She glanced at Jin Hun then turned back to look at him. “Oh goodness. He gets better looking every single time I see him. How is that humanly possible? Aren’t you supposed to get uglier with age?”
Jin Hun sighed then started walking again. “Need I remind you that you’re married or is that ring not big enough?” He lifted the hand he’d been holding since they cleared customs to show it to her.
“Oh, shut up about the ring, okay? It’s big. I can see that. Even a blind man can see it from ten miles away. Do you need to keep bringing it up?”
“Yes, I do. Especially at times like this when you forget that you’re married.”
“Please give me a break, okay? I’m married but I’m not dead.” She straightened her back and put on a regal air. “Do you want me to pretend that I can’t see that Henry is a beautiful man?” she asked dramatically. She knew that he wasn't really jealous but it was fun to tease him.
Jin Hun looked her up and down then shook his head. “What would you say if I started going on and on about Hee Jin’s looks?"
“Oh… I see. You’re trying to annoy me, huh?”
He smiled and gave her a quick peck on the cheek. Yep, whenever she started playing her little games he always knew the right buttons to push. And he just loved seeing her reaction.
Sam Soon instinctively put her hand on her cheek. “What’s that for? Is that supposed to make me forget what you just said? We both know that there’s a difference between me commenting on Henry’s looks and you talking about Hee Jin’s.”
“There is? Really?” It was his turn to be overdramatic. “Please explain it to me, Honey,” he said as they approached their excited friend.
Henry practically ran over and hugged them. Over the past year or so, especially after they were married, any tension that they’d previously pretended didn’t exist suddenly disappeared. Sam Soon’s cynical side attributed it to both couples being secure in their relationships while her more romantic side liked to think that with age came wisdom and they’d somehow learned to appreciate one another. Their occasional emails turned into bi-weekly phone calls and before they knew it, they’d become quite immersed in one another’s lives. And even though she’d never met their little Soo Jin, she already felt like her Godmother.
Henry stepped back for a moment then looked his friends over. “Wow, marriage really does agree with you, Sam Soon. You’re looking great.”
Sam Soon went back into Meryl Streep mode and suddenly started shaking her head and waving her finger. “No. No… you can’t say that. A married person should never say such things!” she warned.
Jin Hun groaned.
A completely confused Henry looked at both of them and asked, “Sorry, what? Why?”
Sam Soon burst out laughing.
“Just ignore her,” Jin Hun said, picking up their bags. “So where are you parked?”
***
“Oh, she’s so cute,” Sam Soon said, bouncing little Soo Jin on her lap. “She’s so cute! Just like her mother,” she continued, emphasizing the last word. She hit the seat in front of her, “Did you hear that, Sam Shik? I didn't say father. I said mmmmmmother!”
“What’s she on about?” Henry asked from the driver’s seat.
Jin Hun shook his head. “Trust me, it’s nothing important.” He reached across to the stereo knob and turned the dial. “I forgot how many commercials they played on American radio.”
Hee Jin turned to watch Sam Soon as she played with her child. After a few minutes she said, “You really look good with her.”
Sam Soon blushed. “Really?”
Hee Jin nodded. “Yes. You look like you were born to be a mother.”
A suddenly shy Sam Soon bent her head and covered her mouth with her hand. “Really? You think so?”
“Yes. Of course. I wouldn’t say it if it wasn’t true. You’re born to take care of kids.”
Sam Soon scrunched her face. “Hey, wait a minute. Are you trying to rope me into babysitting?”
Henry chuckled from the driver’s seat. “And it almost worked,” he said, still laughing.
Hee Jin kicked his seat. “Hey, you. Shush.” Then she turned to Sam Soon. “No, of course not. I can see that you’re great with her so if you want to come over and spend some time with her, just let me know. But tell me in advance so that I can schedule a hair appointment for that time – I need a trim ASAP,” she said as she ran her fingers through the ends of her hair.
“Funny,” Sam Soon said as she handed Soo Jin back to her mother as it seemed that even the little girl had joined in what had become quite raucous laughter.
***
“So you really don’t want to stay with us? I think I’m offended,” Henry joked as he drove them through Manhattan.
“With all your packing, I’m sure we’ll be in the way. When are you moving again?” Jin Hun asked.
“The movers are coming on Tuesday,” Hee Jin said from behind Soo Jin’s palm. She sat her daughter on her lap and continued, “but we won’t be getting there till two Sundays from now.”
“You haven’t even been in New York for a year and you’re already moving somewhere else? What exactly are you running away from?” Sam Soon joked.
“No. No. I am not running away from anything – it’s all that woman’s fault,” Henry said, pointing to the seat behind his.
“How is it my fault that you got offered a fantastic job at John Hopkins? In fact, yeah, it’s my fault.”
“No… but it’s because of you I didn’t go to Africa.”
“Oh… Oh. It’s my fault you can't live without me, huh?” she teased.
Henry laughed. “Yes... kinda. But when I wanted to go, you asked me to stay till you graduated. Then when you graduated, you wanted to do your residency, then you wanted to get married, then you wanted to have a baby.”
“Yes. Yes. I got pregnant all on my own. I completely forgot about that.”
Sam Soon laughed. “Really? I’m sure you could make millions selling your secret.”
“But yeah, Jin Hun, I’ve got a great opportunity to do some great things at John Hopkins so we couldn’t pass it up. Plus she got a great offer from George Washington so I guess it’s our destiny or something.”
“And is your mother-in-law going with you?” Jin Hun asked.
“Well she says she’s not coming, but she is,” Hee Jin said confidently. “My Dad keeps complaining that we’ve kept her for too long but too bad. Soo Jin needs her Nana. Don’t you, Sweetie? Don’t you?” she finished, switching to a baby voice as she talked to her daughter.
“So why don’t you take your Dad along?” Sam Soon asked.
“I don’t think so,” Henry boomed.
After a moment of mildly shocked silence, they all burst out laughing.
“Why not?” Sam Soon asked. “Besides, I can see that your Korean has improved a lot since you started staying with your mother-in-law.”
“Yeah. She insists that we only speak Korean at home. That way, Soo Jin won’t lose her identity blah blah blah.”
“I guess that makes sense,” Sam Soon said, turning her attention back to Soo Jin. She reached for her hand and started playing with it. “My God, Hee Jin, she’s so well behaved. We’ve been in this car for what - 25 minutes? And she hasn’t cried once.”
Hee Jin rolled her eyes. “You should have heard her this morning – she’s just taking a break. Trust me.”
“No… she’s ado-”
“Hey, Soonie, look out the window,” Jin Hun interrupted.
Sam Soon complied but only barely so. “Oh, Times Square… it kinda looks the same, I guess,” she said dismissively then turned her attention back to Soo Jin. “Oh, you’re so cute. So cute… awww. Aren’t you? Yes, you are. Yes, you are,” she cooed.
Noticing the blank expression that had suddenly clouded Jin Hun's face, Henry turned to him and said, “So you’re staying at the Courtyard? I thought you’d be at the Waldorf or some fancy hotel like that.”
“Why?” Sam Soon said, finally letting go of Soo Jin’s hand. She straightened her blouse and continued, “All we need is a nice place to rest our heads. What’s the point in spending all that money just to sleep?”
“And this is coming from the wife of the future owner of a 5-star hotel? Is this what you say to your guests when they check in and 'spend all that money just to sleep"?” Hee Jin asked.
After unsuccessfully spending a minute trying to come up with a reasonable rebuttal, Sam Soon gave up and said, “Oh, shut up.”
They all burst out laughing.
***
“Not bad,” Sam Soon commented as they walked into their hotel room. “It looks just like the photos on the internet.” She dropped her handbag on the bed and walked into the bathroom.
After handing the concierge his tip, Jin Hun dropped their luggage next to the closet then plopped on the bed. He bounced on it a few times and said, “Feels good.”
With a freshly rinsed face, Sam Soon walked back into the room and filled the little fridge with the drinks she’d purchased at the airport then grabbed the remote control and sat next to him. “I guess it feels okay,” she said as she put her head on his shoulder. Then she switched on the television.
She was flicking through channels when she felt Jin Hun’s fingers on her other hand. She turned to him and smiled lazily. “Hey, what are you doing?”
He picked up her hand and softly caressed her palms with his fingers. It was weird; weren’t you supposed to get bored with being with the same person all the time? But with her, he seemed to discover new things everyday. Like surely, that bump wasn't on her palm yesterday, was it? He looked up at the eyes that were staring at him. “What does it look like I am doing? I am playing with your hand.”
“Why?”
He pulled her hand closer to him and softly kissed it. “Because it’s cute. I like playing with cute things.”
“Really? My hands are cute? I remember you comparing them to pigs.”
“So what?” he said in between kissing her fingers. “Pigs are cute.”
Sam Soon laughed then hit him before pushing him away. Bastard. “I hate you!” She started to get up.
“No, you don’t,” he said as he grabbed her hand.”
She looked down at him. “What are you doing?”
“What does this look like?” he asked before forcefully pulling her on top of him.
Still laughing, she grabbed his face and softly kissed his chin. She really couldn’t ever get tired of kissing him. She kissed the side of his mouth then looked directly into his eyes. “You’ve got such a one track mind. You know that, right?”
“Only when it comes to you,” he said then kissed her full on the lips.
After a few minutes of making out, Jin Hun suddenly stopped.
“Hey, what’s the matter?” Sam Soon asked.
“I think it’s time for me to take a shower,” he said, getting off the bed.
“Are you crazy? Come back here." She pulled him. What the hell? After getting her all hot and bothered he just wanted to leave like that?
He pulled her fingers off him and placed her hand on the bed. “Trust me, I want to but isn’t it like almost the middle of the month?”
“And?”
“You know… so we can’t.”
“What are you talking about? Of course we can.” She stretched her hands out to him. “Come here.”
Jin Hun looked a little disgusted. “Honey, I love you but I don’t think so.”
“Why not?" Sam Soon stared at him in confusion till it finally dawned on her. She giggled. “No,” she said, “it’s fine. Come here. My ‘visitor’ isn’t here.”
“Really?” He thought about it for a moment. “Well, today is the 11th so I guess it’s not quite the middle yet.”
She looked at him in disbelief. “I can’t believe you actually have a calendar for this. Gosh!”
Jin Hun laughed but made no attempt to get back on the bed.
“So are you coming here or not?”
He scratched his neck. “Well, it was a long flight… I think I really need to take a shower,” he said turning around and walking towards the bathroom.
“Are you kidding me?”
Then he turned around and gave her a sly look. “But didn’t you promise to always keep me clean?”
Sam Soon raised her brow. That was more like it.
“Now what are you waiting for?” he asked as he stretched his hand to her. “Come here!”
Her outcry was so sudden and unexpected that Jin Hun immediately stopped walking and jerked his head in her direction. “What? What?!”
But instead of looking frazzled or distressed, Sam Soon was smiling and pointing at the tall man frantically waving at them from across the barricade. She glanced at Jin Hun then turned back to look at him. “Oh goodness. He gets better looking every single time I see him. How is that humanly possible? Aren’t you supposed to get uglier with age?”
Jin Hun sighed then started walking again. “Need I remind you that you’re married or is that ring not big enough?” He lifted the hand he’d been holding since they cleared customs to show it to her.
“Oh, shut up about the ring, okay? It’s big. I can see that. Even a blind man can see it from ten miles away. Do you need to keep bringing it up?”
“Yes, I do. Especially at times like this when you forget that you’re married.”
“Please give me a break, okay? I’m married but I’m not dead.” She straightened her back and put on a regal air. “Do you want me to pretend that I can’t see that Henry is a beautiful man?” she asked dramatically. She knew that he wasn't really jealous but it was fun to tease him.
Jin Hun looked her up and down then shook his head. “What would you say if I started going on and on about Hee Jin’s looks?"
“Oh… I see. You’re trying to annoy me, huh?”
He smiled and gave her a quick peck on the cheek. Yep, whenever she started playing her little games he always knew the right buttons to push. And he just loved seeing her reaction.
Sam Soon instinctively put her hand on her cheek. “What’s that for? Is that supposed to make me forget what you just said? We both know that there’s a difference between me commenting on Henry’s looks and you talking about Hee Jin’s.”
“There is? Really?” It was his turn to be overdramatic. “Please explain it to me, Honey,” he said as they approached their excited friend.
Henry practically ran over and hugged them. Over the past year or so, especially after they were married, any tension that they’d previously pretended didn’t exist suddenly disappeared. Sam Soon’s cynical side attributed it to both couples being secure in their relationships while her more romantic side liked to think that with age came wisdom and they’d somehow learned to appreciate one another. Their occasional emails turned into bi-weekly phone calls and before they knew it, they’d become quite immersed in one another’s lives. And even though she’d never met their little Soo Jin, she already felt like her Godmother.
Henry stepped back for a moment then looked his friends over. “Wow, marriage really does agree with you, Sam Soon. You’re looking great.”
Sam Soon went back into Meryl Streep mode and suddenly started shaking her head and waving her finger. “No. No… you can’t say that. A married person should never say such things!” she warned.
Jin Hun groaned.
A completely confused Henry looked at both of them and asked, “Sorry, what? Why?”
Sam Soon burst out laughing.
“Just ignore her,” Jin Hun said, picking up their bags. “So where are you parked?”
***
“Oh, she’s so cute,” Sam Soon said, bouncing little Soo Jin on her lap. “She’s so cute! Just like her mother,” she continued, emphasizing the last word. She hit the seat in front of her, “Did you hear that, Sam Shik? I didn't say father. I said mmmmmmother!”
“What’s she on about?” Henry asked from the driver’s seat.
Jin Hun shook his head. “Trust me, it’s nothing important.” He reached across to the stereo knob and turned the dial. “I forgot how many commercials they played on American radio.”
Hee Jin turned to watch Sam Soon as she played with her child. After a few minutes she said, “You really look good with her.”
Sam Soon blushed. “Really?”
Hee Jin nodded. “Yes. You look like you were born to be a mother.”
A suddenly shy Sam Soon bent her head and covered her mouth with her hand. “Really? You think so?”
“Yes. Of course. I wouldn’t say it if it wasn’t true. You’re born to take care of kids.”
Sam Soon scrunched her face. “Hey, wait a minute. Are you trying to rope me into babysitting?”
Henry chuckled from the driver’s seat. “And it almost worked,” he said, still laughing.
Hee Jin kicked his seat. “Hey, you. Shush.” Then she turned to Sam Soon. “No, of course not. I can see that you’re great with her so if you want to come over and spend some time with her, just let me know. But tell me in advance so that I can schedule a hair appointment for that time – I need a trim ASAP,” she said as she ran her fingers through the ends of her hair.
“Funny,” Sam Soon said as she handed Soo Jin back to her mother as it seemed that even the little girl had joined in what had become quite raucous laughter.
***
“So you really don’t want to stay with us? I think I’m offended,” Henry joked as he drove them through Manhattan.
“With all your packing, I’m sure we’ll be in the way. When are you moving again?” Jin Hun asked.
“The movers are coming on Tuesday,” Hee Jin said from behind Soo Jin’s palm. She sat her daughter on her lap and continued, “but we won’t be getting there till two Sundays from now.”
“You haven’t even been in New York for a year and you’re already moving somewhere else? What exactly are you running away from?” Sam Soon joked.
“No. No. I am not running away from anything – it’s all that woman’s fault,” Henry said, pointing to the seat behind his.
“How is it my fault that you got offered a fantastic job at John Hopkins? In fact, yeah, it’s my fault.”
“No… but it’s because of you I didn’t go to Africa.”
“Oh… Oh. It’s my fault you can't live without me, huh?” she teased.
Henry laughed. “Yes... kinda. But when I wanted to go, you asked me to stay till you graduated. Then when you graduated, you wanted to do your residency, then you wanted to get married, then you wanted to have a baby.”
“Yes. Yes. I got pregnant all on my own. I completely forgot about that.”
Sam Soon laughed. “Really? I’m sure you could make millions selling your secret.”
“But yeah, Jin Hun, I’ve got a great opportunity to do some great things at John Hopkins so we couldn’t pass it up. Plus she got a great offer from George Washington so I guess it’s our destiny or something.”
“And is your mother-in-law going with you?” Jin Hun asked.
“Well she says she’s not coming, but she is,” Hee Jin said confidently. “My Dad keeps complaining that we’ve kept her for too long but too bad. Soo Jin needs her Nana. Don’t you, Sweetie? Don’t you?” she finished, switching to a baby voice as she talked to her daughter.
“So why don’t you take your Dad along?” Sam Soon asked.
“I don’t think so,” Henry boomed.
After a moment of mildly shocked silence, they all burst out laughing.
“Why not?” Sam Soon asked. “Besides, I can see that your Korean has improved a lot since you started staying with your mother-in-law.”
“Yeah. She insists that we only speak Korean at home. That way, Soo Jin won’t lose her identity blah blah blah.”
“I guess that makes sense,” Sam Soon said, turning her attention back to Soo Jin. She reached for her hand and started playing with it. “My God, Hee Jin, she’s so well behaved. We’ve been in this car for what - 25 minutes? And she hasn’t cried once.”
Hee Jin rolled her eyes. “You should have heard her this morning – she’s just taking a break. Trust me.”
“No… she’s ado-”
“Hey, Soonie, look out the window,” Jin Hun interrupted.
Sam Soon complied but only barely so. “Oh, Times Square… it kinda looks the same, I guess,” she said dismissively then turned her attention back to Soo Jin. “Oh, you’re so cute. So cute… awww. Aren’t you? Yes, you are. Yes, you are,” she cooed.
Noticing the blank expression that had suddenly clouded Jin Hun's face, Henry turned to him and said, “So you’re staying at the Courtyard? I thought you’d be at the Waldorf or some fancy hotel like that.”
“Why?” Sam Soon said, finally letting go of Soo Jin’s hand. She straightened her blouse and continued, “All we need is a nice place to rest our heads. What’s the point in spending all that money just to sleep?”
“And this is coming from the wife of the future owner of a 5-star hotel? Is this what you say to your guests when they check in and 'spend all that money just to sleep"?” Hee Jin asked.
After unsuccessfully spending a minute trying to come up with a reasonable rebuttal, Sam Soon gave up and said, “Oh, shut up.”
They all burst out laughing.
***
“Not bad,” Sam Soon commented as they walked into their hotel room. “It looks just like the photos on the internet.” She dropped her handbag on the bed and walked into the bathroom.
After handing the concierge his tip, Jin Hun dropped their luggage next to the closet then plopped on the bed. He bounced on it a few times and said, “Feels good.”
With a freshly rinsed face, Sam Soon walked back into the room and filled the little fridge with the drinks she’d purchased at the airport then grabbed the remote control and sat next to him. “I guess it feels okay,” she said as she put her head on his shoulder. Then she switched on the television.
She was flicking through channels when she felt Jin Hun’s fingers on her other hand. She turned to him and smiled lazily. “Hey, what are you doing?”
He picked up her hand and softly caressed her palms with his fingers. It was weird; weren’t you supposed to get bored with being with the same person all the time? But with her, he seemed to discover new things everyday. Like surely, that bump wasn't on her palm yesterday, was it? He looked up at the eyes that were staring at him. “What does it look like I am doing? I am playing with your hand.”
“Why?”
He pulled her hand closer to him and softly kissed it. “Because it’s cute. I like playing with cute things.”
“Really? My hands are cute? I remember you comparing them to pigs.”
“So what?” he said in between kissing her fingers. “Pigs are cute.”
Sam Soon laughed then hit him before pushing him away. Bastard. “I hate you!” She started to get up.
“No, you don’t,” he said as he grabbed her hand.”
She looked down at him. “What are you doing?”
“What does this look like?” he asked before forcefully pulling her on top of him.
Still laughing, she grabbed his face and softly kissed his chin. She really couldn’t ever get tired of kissing him. She kissed the side of his mouth then looked directly into his eyes. “You’ve got such a one track mind. You know that, right?”
“Only when it comes to you,” he said then kissed her full on the lips.
After a few minutes of making out, Jin Hun suddenly stopped.
“Hey, what’s the matter?” Sam Soon asked.
“I think it’s time for me to take a shower,” he said, getting off the bed.
“Are you crazy? Come back here." She pulled him. What the hell? After getting her all hot and bothered he just wanted to leave like that?
He pulled her fingers off him and placed her hand on the bed. “Trust me, I want to but isn’t it like almost the middle of the month?”
“And?”
“You know… so we can’t.”
“What are you talking about? Of course we can.” She stretched her hands out to him. “Come here.”
Jin Hun looked a little disgusted. “Honey, I love you but I don’t think so.”
“Why not?" Sam Soon stared at him in confusion till it finally dawned on her. She giggled. “No,” she said, “it’s fine. Come here. My ‘visitor’ isn’t here.”
“Really?” He thought about it for a moment. “Well, today is the 11th so I guess it’s not quite the middle yet.”
She looked at him in disbelief. “I can’t believe you actually have a calendar for this. Gosh!”
Jin Hun laughed but made no attempt to get back on the bed.
“So are you coming here or not?”
He scratched his neck. “Well, it was a long flight… I think I really need to take a shower,” he said turning around and walking towards the bathroom.
“Are you kidding me?”
Then he turned around and gave her a sly look. “But didn’t you promise to always keep me clean?”
Sam Soon raised her brow. That was more like it.
“Now what are you waiting for?” he asked as he stretched his hand to her. “Come here!”
Sunday, December 05, 2010
Part 2 of 4
Thanks for the comments, ellasam and bunnykaye. ellasam, I certainly wasn't trying to imply that Jin Hun didn't like kids but that Sam Soon had baby fever... I'll attribute that to bad writing on my part.
Now on to Part 2...
After having breakfast in Koreatown with Henry and Hee Jin, Jin Hun and Sam Soon decided to take the ferry to the Statue of Liberty.
“What?” Jin Hun asked as he noticed a somewhat pleased expression on her face. Even though they were in a large crowd of fellow tourists, they’d managed to find a nice spot overlooking the water. Sam Soon was leaning against the barrier while Jin Hun was behind her with his arms placed protectively around her.
“I thought I was going to be sick but I’m feeling pretty okay,” she said more to herself than him.
His brows furrowed in worry. “Why would you be sick?” He placed his hand on her forehead to feel her temperature.
She slapped it off her face and said, “That’s not it.”
“Then what?”
She glanced at him and said, “Oh, you know… sea sickness and all that. But,” she continued, inhaling the sea air, “I’m pretty okay.” She nodded satisfactorily, “I kinda like this.”
He looked down at the water. “Yeah, it’s pretty great. We should go sailing sometime.”
Sam Soon laughed. “Sailing? Or you mean you want to go on a cruise?”
“No. I mean, sailing,” he said, holding her tighter as he put his chin on her shoulder.
She turned to look at him. “Like you’ll get a boat and sail it yourself?”
“Yes.”
“And do you know how to sail?”
“I can learn… or better still, we can learn together.”
She laughed. “I probably won’t have time for that.”
“Why not? Every weekend, we can take classes together.”
She chuckled sarcastically. “Yeah, right. If you want to learn to sail, do it by yourself.”
“Alright. Whenever I suggest something you don’t want to do it then later on you’ll be complaining that I spend too much time at the hotel.”
She laughed and patted his face apologetically. “Okay, Honey. You learn to sail and I’ll come with you… but you’ll be bringing a sailor or someone like that along, right?”
He shook his head. “Why would I do that?"
She shrugged exaggeratedly.
"What are you saying? You don’t trust me?”
“I trust you, but just you and me sailing together? That’s how we’d get lost and it’ll be the Island of Dr. Moreau all over again.”
***
When they got to the bottom level of the Statue of Liberty, Sam Soon noticed some people getting turned away. Jin Hun asked some people around them if they knew what was going on and was told that those tourists didn’t have their Time Passes.
Sam Soon tapped his hand. “Time Pass? Do you have one?”
“Yep,” he said, confidently.
“What are they?”
“Basically, you have to sign up ahead of time so they can do a background check and all other stuff.”
“Wow… how did you know to do that?” She pointed at some of the tourists that had been turned away. “Those people didn’t even know and I think they live here.”
“Exactly,” he said, nudging her to move along with the line. “Which is why you should always trust me.”
***
“Okay…" she started, shortly after admiring the view from the top of the Statue. "So this is what we have to do. Everywhere we go, since you decided you’re a photographer…”
Jin Hun groaned. “Gosh. Yes, at a point in my life, I was interested in photography. But do you have to keep talking about this all the time?”
Sam Soon giggled and then in mock seriousness, said, “Well, you’re pretty good. So don’t you think our holiday photos will benefit from your expertise?”
He rolled his eyes. “So you want me to take all the photographs?” She always tried to flatter him whenever she wanted him to do all the work.
“Well, here’s my idea,” she said excitedly. “We have to take a picture of us kissing at every major tourist spot we visit.”
“What?”
She smiled to herself. “When we are old, we can show the pictures to our grandkids and say, ‘Hey look! Grandpa and Grandma have fun before our teeth fell out and our hair went grey.'”
“And they need to see us kissing to know this? In fact, I don’t even want to show them pictures of us doing that,” he said, shuddering as he imagined looking at photographs of his grandparents kissing.
“Well I do. And I think it will make this trip special.”
He didn’t like the sound of that. “So the fact that we’re here together doesn’t make it special enough?” He studied her intently to gauge her reaction to the question.
She rolled her eyes. “Why are you trying to take it the wrong way? Let’s just do it, okay?”
He shook his head. “I don’t think so. When we get home, Mi Joo and Mom would want to look at the photographs and I really don’t want them seeing that.”
“We can always hide these ones.”
Jin Hun still wasn’t convinced. What was up with Sam Soon and wanting to do embarrassing things in public? “What about all the other people here,” he said, looking around them. “I really doubt that they want to see that.”
Sam Soon glared at him for a few moments before shrugging her shoulders then walking over to the only free binoculars on the deck. She put some coins in then bent over and looked through them.
Sensing that she was a little annoyed, Jin Hun walked over and stood beside her. “Wow, look at the view! What do you think? Doesn’t it look pretty great from over here? The water looks so fresh and clean.” He turned to her and waited for a response. When no sound came from her end, he continued. “Isn’t it funny how when we were over there,” he said, pointing afar, “we were looking up here. But now that we’re here, we’re looking back there. It’s funny how we keep looking everywhere but where we are. I’m sure there’s a psychological explanation for this. Something about the grass always greener and all that.”
When she still didn’t respond, he nudged her and said, “Hey, I want to take a look too. Move over.”
Sam Soon stepped aside without saying a word. Then without looking at him, she walked over to another side of the deck.
About a minute later, while Sam Soon was wondering if her ploy was working, she felt him slide his arms around her from behind. She hid a smile but didn't move a muscle.
“Do you plan to be in this mood all day?” he whispered into her ear.
She showed her camera to him. “You know how to fix it.”
“So if I don’t agree to this you’re not going to stop?”
She sent him a pleading look. “Our grandchildren’s happiness is at stake here.”
Jin Hun shook his head. “Okay, how about this? I can kiss you on the cheek, that way I wouldn’t feel uncomfortable showing the pictures to the whole world.”
Sam Soon sighed. She could work with that. So it wasn’t going to be a scene out a romantic movie but it’ll work for the real world. “Okay. Here,” she said, handing him the camera, “put your skills to good use.”
Jin Hun disentangled from her so that they could find a good spot with Manhattan and the ocean behind them. Then when they were ready, similar to how they were earlier, he put one arm around her from behind so that her back was resting on his chest then he put his head right over her right shoulder so that their cheeks were almost touching. When he was satisfied with their pose, he stretched his other arm around them and took some test shots. After a few moments, he found a good angle and told her to get ready.
“Yes, I am ready. Goodness, this is taking forever… take the picture.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes, I’m sure. Just take it, okay? Remember we still have to go to the Empire State Building today.”
“So are you ready?”
“Ya!” she growled as she turned her face to him. Before she could notice the smile on his face, he quickly kissed her on the lips as he snapped their photo.
Now on to Part 2...
After having breakfast in Koreatown with Henry and Hee Jin, Jin Hun and Sam Soon decided to take the ferry to the Statue of Liberty.
“What?” Jin Hun asked as he noticed a somewhat pleased expression on her face. Even though they were in a large crowd of fellow tourists, they’d managed to find a nice spot overlooking the water. Sam Soon was leaning against the barrier while Jin Hun was behind her with his arms placed protectively around her.
“I thought I was going to be sick but I’m feeling pretty okay,” she said more to herself than him.
His brows furrowed in worry. “Why would you be sick?” He placed his hand on her forehead to feel her temperature.
She slapped it off her face and said, “That’s not it.”
“Then what?”
She glanced at him and said, “Oh, you know… sea sickness and all that. But,” she continued, inhaling the sea air, “I’m pretty okay.” She nodded satisfactorily, “I kinda like this.”
He looked down at the water. “Yeah, it’s pretty great. We should go sailing sometime.”
Sam Soon laughed. “Sailing? Or you mean you want to go on a cruise?”
“No. I mean, sailing,” he said, holding her tighter as he put his chin on her shoulder.
She turned to look at him. “Like you’ll get a boat and sail it yourself?”
“Yes.”
“And do you know how to sail?”
“I can learn… or better still, we can learn together.”
She laughed. “I probably won’t have time for that.”
“Why not? Every weekend, we can take classes together.”
She chuckled sarcastically. “Yeah, right. If you want to learn to sail, do it by yourself.”
“Alright. Whenever I suggest something you don’t want to do it then later on you’ll be complaining that I spend too much time at the hotel.”
She laughed and patted his face apologetically. “Okay, Honey. You learn to sail and I’ll come with you… but you’ll be bringing a sailor or someone like that along, right?”
He shook his head. “Why would I do that?"
She shrugged exaggeratedly.
"What are you saying? You don’t trust me?”
“I trust you, but just you and me sailing together? That’s how we’d get lost and it’ll be the Island of Dr. Moreau all over again.”
***
When they got to the bottom level of the Statue of Liberty, Sam Soon noticed some people getting turned away. Jin Hun asked some people around them if they knew what was going on and was told that those tourists didn’t have their Time Passes.
Sam Soon tapped his hand. “Time Pass? Do you have one?”
“Yep,” he said, confidently.
“What are they?”
“Basically, you have to sign up ahead of time so they can do a background check and all other stuff.”
“Wow… how did you know to do that?” She pointed at some of the tourists that had been turned away. “Those people didn’t even know and I think they live here.”
“Exactly,” he said, nudging her to move along with the line. “Which is why you should always trust me.”
***
“Okay…" she started, shortly after admiring the view from the top of the Statue. "So this is what we have to do. Everywhere we go, since you decided you’re a photographer…”
Jin Hun groaned. “Gosh. Yes, at a point in my life, I was interested in photography. But do you have to keep talking about this all the time?”
Sam Soon giggled and then in mock seriousness, said, “Well, you’re pretty good. So don’t you think our holiday photos will benefit from your expertise?”
He rolled his eyes. “So you want me to take all the photographs?” She always tried to flatter him whenever she wanted him to do all the work.
“Well, here’s my idea,” she said excitedly. “We have to take a picture of us kissing at every major tourist spot we visit.”
“What?”
She smiled to herself. “When we are old, we can show the pictures to our grandkids and say, ‘Hey look! Grandpa and Grandma have fun before our teeth fell out and our hair went grey.'”
“And they need to see us kissing to know this? In fact, I don’t even want to show them pictures of us doing that,” he said, shuddering as he imagined looking at photographs of his grandparents kissing.
“Well I do. And I think it will make this trip special.”
He didn’t like the sound of that. “So the fact that we’re here together doesn’t make it special enough?” He studied her intently to gauge her reaction to the question.
She rolled her eyes. “Why are you trying to take it the wrong way? Let’s just do it, okay?”
He shook his head. “I don’t think so. When we get home, Mi Joo and Mom would want to look at the photographs and I really don’t want them seeing that.”
“We can always hide these ones.”
Jin Hun still wasn’t convinced. What was up with Sam Soon and wanting to do embarrassing things in public? “What about all the other people here,” he said, looking around them. “I really doubt that they want to see that.”
Sam Soon glared at him for a few moments before shrugging her shoulders then walking over to the only free binoculars on the deck. She put some coins in then bent over and looked through them.
Sensing that she was a little annoyed, Jin Hun walked over and stood beside her. “Wow, look at the view! What do you think? Doesn’t it look pretty great from over here? The water looks so fresh and clean.” He turned to her and waited for a response. When no sound came from her end, he continued. “Isn’t it funny how when we were over there,” he said, pointing afar, “we were looking up here. But now that we’re here, we’re looking back there. It’s funny how we keep looking everywhere but where we are. I’m sure there’s a psychological explanation for this. Something about the grass always greener and all that.”
When she still didn’t respond, he nudged her and said, “Hey, I want to take a look too. Move over.”
Sam Soon stepped aside without saying a word. Then without looking at him, she walked over to another side of the deck.
About a minute later, while Sam Soon was wondering if her ploy was working, she felt him slide his arms around her from behind. She hid a smile but didn't move a muscle.
“Do you plan to be in this mood all day?” he whispered into her ear.
She showed her camera to him. “You know how to fix it.”
“So if I don’t agree to this you’re not going to stop?”
She sent him a pleading look. “Our grandchildren’s happiness is at stake here.”
Jin Hun shook his head. “Okay, how about this? I can kiss you on the cheek, that way I wouldn’t feel uncomfortable showing the pictures to the whole world.”
Sam Soon sighed. She could work with that. So it wasn’t going to be a scene out a romantic movie but it’ll work for the real world. “Okay. Here,” she said, handing him the camera, “put your skills to good use.”
Jin Hun disentangled from her so that they could find a good spot with Manhattan and the ocean behind them. Then when they were ready, similar to how they were earlier, he put one arm around her from behind so that her back was resting on his chest then he put his head right over her right shoulder so that their cheeks were almost touching. When he was satisfied with their pose, he stretched his other arm around them and took some test shots. After a few moments, he found a good angle and told her to get ready.
“Yes, I am ready. Goodness, this is taking forever… take the picture.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes, I’m sure. Just take it, okay? Remember we still have to go to the Empire State Building today.”
“So are you ready?”
“Ya!” she growled as she turned her face to him. Before she could notice the smile on his face, he quickly kissed her on the lips as he snapped their photo.
Saturday, December 04, 2010
Bonus Chapter: Part 3 of 4
Not to Sam Soon’s surprise, Jin Hun didn’t actually kiss her on the lips at every site they visited. In fact, he'd only done it the first time but she was happy anyway. Even though it was nothing new or particularly special, she did look forward to ending each visit with a peck on the cheek. The Empire State building was closed by the time they’d arrived on the first day so the next time they managed to get there, they’d done the same old thing of climbing to the top and looking at the view (which had begun to get old) and were getting ready to take their photo.
Jin Hun had taken a few test shots but none of them have come out right. It seemed that every time he looked away, he moved his hand and their faces got out of focus.
“Don’t you think you should be an expert by now? Haven’t you done this enough times?” Sam Soon complained.
Jin Hun put his arm down and looked at her. “Do you want to do this instead?”
She raised her palm to him. “Yeah, give it to me. I’m sure I can do better.”
Jin Hun scoffed but didn't comply. Instead, once again, he wrapped his free arm around her then raised the camera.
“Do you need some help?” a female voice asked from behind.
They both turned around to find a blonde woman smiling at them.
“No, it’s alright, thank you,” Jin Hun said.
“No, no, give to me. It’s okay; it’s not a bother. I’ll help you. I can see you’re struggling. O.K?”
He nodded and thanked her.
Sam Soon smiled and also thanked the woman as Jin Hun handed her the camera. Then in Korean, she said, “Seeing how eager she is to help us, I hope she doesn’t run off with our camera. Wasn’t it expensive?”
The woman shook her head and in slightly accented Korean, said, “You don’t have to worry about that – I have mine at home.”
***
“Gosh, I’m so hungry,” Sam Soon said rubbing her stomach.
Jin Hun shook his head. “So that’s your reaction to embarrassing yourself? Food?”
She rolled her eyes. “How was I to know that she’d lived in Seoul for 10 years?”
“Exactly. That’s why you shouldn’t say things like that in the first place.”
She rolled her eyes again. “Thanks for the lecture, Professor Hyun. Are we going to get food or not?”
“Well, I guess I could eat. What do you want? Better not say hamburgers because I am not eating any of that junk.”
She frowned. “You’re such a snob. But why would I want to eat something so processed?” She pulled out her tourist map. “I know there’s a Chinese restaurant close by. I remember that it was across Madison Square Garden. You could get a huge bowl of food for like $4.00,” she said, using her hands for emphasis.
“It’s real Chinese food? Because I can see that the food we’ve been eating here hasn’t been agreeing with you,” he said, referring to her increased visits to the restroom.
She looked at him curiously then went back to looking at her map. “Found it!” Sam Soon exclaimed, pointing at the location on the map. She looked up at the street signs. “Actually, it’s only about two blocks from here.” She grabbed him. “Okay, let’s go.”
Following her, he asked, “How do you know about this place?”
“Use this,” she said, poking her finger on his head, “how do you think I know it? I’ve been here before, remember?”
“Oh, so you came here with whatever-his-name-is?”
Sam Soon sensed that his mood was beginning to change. She didn’t quite understand how two years wasn’t long enough for him to stop getting sensitive about her past relationship with Tae Young. She wanted to scream at him about it but her mother and sister had both advised her to just give him time. “So what are you going to order? I think I’m getting some Lo Mein,” she said, trying to change the subject.
They were about to turn onto 7th Avenue when Sam Soon heard someone call her name. She turned around to see Tae Young’s mother smiling at her.
“Good afternoon, Mother,” Sam Soon said, bowing to her. Oddly enough, she’d thought about her when Jin Hun had initially suggested that they visit New York. She knew that she couldn’t visit her on the trip but she was glad to see her and even more so because she was looking healthy.
Jin Hun hoped that neither of the women noticed him wince when he heard her call her ‘mother’. Not that he thought that she should have called her something less personal like ‘Ajumma’ but that word was reserved for his mother and hearing that just made him realize, yet again, how close he’d come to losing her.
“What are you doing here?”
Sam Soon took Jin Hun’s hand and walked closer to her. “My husband and I here on vacation.”
“Oh! So this is your husband?” After she and Jin Hun had exchanged pleasantries, she said, “So how do you find our city the second time around?”
Sam Soon looked up to the sky then at some of the buildings. “It’s the same in some ways and different in others. I guess we are creating new memories,” she said, smiling at her very straight-faced husband. “So Mother, how’s your health? Has everything been going well?”
She smiled and nodded. “Yes. Very well. Thank you for asking. Ah… you know it’s so good to see you. I've been wondering about you.”
After a few more minutes of small talk, they said their goodbyes and parted ways.
“Phew!” Sam Soon exclaimed. “Now, let’s go get some food.”
“Yes, I see you’re so eager to revisit the restaurant you and whatever-his-name-is went to.”
***
After the lunch that Jin Hun barely touched, they did some shopping in Chinatown, went to SoHo then rode the subway to Central Park.
The sun had already begun to set when they started walking through the park. To Sam Soon surprise, even though it was already getting dark, it was still filled with people.
“Argh!” Jin Hun growled. “It wasn’t supposed to be like this.” He’d had it all planned out; a carriage ride through Central Park would create a memory of New York that she’d never forget but now he was no longer in the mood. Gosh! If Sam Soon hadn’t wanted to go to that cheap restaurant, he’d never had run into Tae Young’s mother.
Sam Soon eyed him carefully. “Whatever your problem is, don’t you think you’re taking this a bit too far?”
“What?”
“Your mood. If you knew you were going to be like this you should have just stayed at the hotel! Who spends all this money to go on vacation then acts like this? I wonder about you sometimes.”
Was she kidding him? He pointed at a park bench. “Just go and sit over there.”
“What? Who are you ordering around?”
“Please, just go and sit there, okay?”
Sam Soon looked him up and down. “Are you crazy?” she asked, scowling.
He grabbed her then pulled her to the bench and sat her down. “Please just sit down, okay? I have something to say.”
Confused but intrigued, Sam Soon sat as she watched him pace in front of her. “It’s nothing bad, right?” she asked, slightly frightened.
“No. But… argh! Why? Maybe I should do it tomorrow? But it won’t be the same.” He looked at her uncertainly then reached into his pocket and handed her a small box. “Here. Take it.”
She grasped it but he wouldn’t let go. “Ya! Are you giving it to me or not?”
Jin Hun frowned. “No. Forget it. I’ll give it to you later tonight.”
“What? I want it now!”
They struggled for a few minutes before he let go of it.
“Sam Shik, have you lost your mind? What’s your problem?” she screamed between pants. If she’d known she was going to get so much exercise she’d have worn her tracksuit.
She opened the box and found a silver necklace inside.
“Noonim!” he shouted.
Sam Soon snapped her head up at him. “What did you just call me?”
Jin Hun chuckled. “I feel better already,” he said, nodding and smiling satisfactorily.
She shook her head then refocused her attention on the necklace. She picked up the locket and read the inscription. “The Best Mother.”
She could feel the moisture forming in her eyes when she looked up to him. He simply smiled then sat next to her.
He took her hands, letting the necklace fall to her lap. “What’s today?”
Sam Soon shook her head in ignorance.
He laughed. “I knew you’d forget. It’s exactly 2 years since you finally agreed to be my wife.”
She smiled. She remembered that day at the airport very clearly but had never thought to remember the date… which was funny because she still remembered the date of their first kiss. Maybe it was because buried deep in heart, despite all the difficulties they’d been through, she’d always known they’d end up together. So in some ways, that fateful day was no different than any other.
“So,” he continued, “even though it’s taken us a little while to expand our family, even though we’ve had our disappointment in the past, I know that we’ll be great parents and I’m willing to do whatever it takes – even if it means we have to adopt. As far as we raise them they are our kids, right?”
She nodded.
Still holding her hands, he continued, “I know you've been anxious and I know you’ve been trying to hide your worry, but you don’t have to because I can see it anyway. If I remember correctly, you said you wished I was a scarf around your neck, well,” he said, caressing her neck and collarbone area, “I am. So always remember that. Even though it seems like a big deal, we’ll find away. It’s really not been that long since we started trying, has it?”
She shook her head. By this point, the tears were falling freely down her cheeks. Jin Hun pulled out his handkerchief and wiped her face dry. When he was done, he looked into her eyes and said, “So don’t worry about it too much.”
She nodded then covered her mouth and mumbled something.
“Huh?”
She mumbled again then just kept mumbling.
What kind of reaction was this? “What the hell are you saying?” Jin Hun pulled her hand off her mouth. “Say it again."
Sam Soon giggled. “Promise not to get mad when he get home.”
He raised his brow. “About what?”
“Just promise, okay?”
“How can I make a promise without knowing what it's for?”
“Just say yes so that we can move on. You are ruining a precious moment here.”
“I’m ruining it?”
She sighed then stood up. “Okay, let’s go back to the hotel.”
Jin Hun pulled her back to the bench. “Okay, okay, I promise. I hope I’m not going to regret it.”
She laughed mischievously. “Don’t worry, you will. Anyway, back to this,” she said, picking up the locket, “I guess this means we’ll only have two children since it can only take two photos.” She snapped it open.
“No,” he said, taking it from her to examine it, “I’ll just get you more. I’m sure we can fit at least 5 of them on this chain.”
Sam Soon laughed. “I see you’re dreaming again. Okay, I want to try it on.” She turned around to back him, “Put it on.”
When he was done, he caressed her shoulders and gave her a peck on her neck. “What do you think? You like?”
“It’s beautiful.” She turned around to kiss him the way the romantic scene demanded.
When they broke apart, Jin Hun reached into his bag. “I guess we need to do that again for this, huh?” he said, pulling out the camera.
“No, we don’t,” she said, certain that she wouldn’t need a photograph to remind her of the day her Sam Shik kissed her on a bench in Central Park.
Jin Hun had taken a few test shots but none of them have come out right. It seemed that every time he looked away, he moved his hand and their faces got out of focus.
“Don’t you think you should be an expert by now? Haven’t you done this enough times?” Sam Soon complained.
Jin Hun put his arm down and looked at her. “Do you want to do this instead?”
She raised her palm to him. “Yeah, give it to me. I’m sure I can do better.”
Jin Hun scoffed but didn't comply. Instead, once again, he wrapped his free arm around her then raised the camera.
“Do you need some help?” a female voice asked from behind.
They both turned around to find a blonde woman smiling at them.
“No, it’s alright, thank you,” Jin Hun said.
“No, no, give to me. It’s okay; it’s not a bother. I’ll help you. I can see you’re struggling. O.K?”
He nodded and thanked her.
Sam Soon smiled and also thanked the woman as Jin Hun handed her the camera. Then in Korean, she said, “Seeing how eager she is to help us, I hope she doesn’t run off with our camera. Wasn’t it expensive?”
The woman shook her head and in slightly accented Korean, said, “You don’t have to worry about that – I have mine at home.”
***
“Gosh, I’m so hungry,” Sam Soon said rubbing her stomach.
Jin Hun shook his head. “So that’s your reaction to embarrassing yourself? Food?”
She rolled her eyes. “How was I to know that she’d lived in Seoul for 10 years?”
“Exactly. That’s why you shouldn’t say things like that in the first place.”
She rolled her eyes again. “Thanks for the lecture, Professor Hyun. Are we going to get food or not?”
“Well, I guess I could eat. What do you want? Better not say hamburgers because I am not eating any of that junk.”
She frowned. “You’re such a snob. But why would I want to eat something so processed?” She pulled out her tourist map. “I know there’s a Chinese restaurant close by. I remember that it was across Madison Square Garden. You could get a huge bowl of food for like $4.00,” she said, using her hands for emphasis.
“It’s real Chinese food? Because I can see that the food we’ve been eating here hasn’t been agreeing with you,” he said, referring to her increased visits to the restroom.
She looked at him curiously then went back to looking at her map. “Found it!” Sam Soon exclaimed, pointing at the location on the map. She looked up at the street signs. “Actually, it’s only about two blocks from here.” She grabbed him. “Okay, let’s go.”
Following her, he asked, “How do you know about this place?”
“Use this,” she said, poking her finger on his head, “how do you think I know it? I’ve been here before, remember?”
“Oh, so you came here with whatever-his-name-is?”
Sam Soon sensed that his mood was beginning to change. She didn’t quite understand how two years wasn’t long enough for him to stop getting sensitive about her past relationship with Tae Young. She wanted to scream at him about it but her mother and sister had both advised her to just give him time. “So what are you going to order? I think I’m getting some Lo Mein,” she said, trying to change the subject.
They were about to turn onto 7th Avenue when Sam Soon heard someone call her name. She turned around to see Tae Young’s mother smiling at her.
“Good afternoon, Mother,” Sam Soon said, bowing to her. Oddly enough, she’d thought about her when Jin Hun had initially suggested that they visit New York. She knew that she couldn’t visit her on the trip but she was glad to see her and even more so because she was looking healthy.
Jin Hun hoped that neither of the women noticed him wince when he heard her call her ‘mother’. Not that he thought that she should have called her something less personal like ‘Ajumma’ but that word was reserved for his mother and hearing that just made him realize, yet again, how close he’d come to losing her.
“What are you doing here?”
Sam Soon took Jin Hun’s hand and walked closer to her. “My husband and I here on vacation.”
“Oh! So this is your husband?” After she and Jin Hun had exchanged pleasantries, she said, “So how do you find our city the second time around?”
Sam Soon looked up to the sky then at some of the buildings. “It’s the same in some ways and different in others. I guess we are creating new memories,” she said, smiling at her very straight-faced husband. “So Mother, how’s your health? Has everything been going well?”
She smiled and nodded. “Yes. Very well. Thank you for asking. Ah… you know it’s so good to see you. I've been wondering about you.”
After a few more minutes of small talk, they said their goodbyes and parted ways.
“Phew!” Sam Soon exclaimed. “Now, let’s go get some food.”
“Yes, I see you’re so eager to revisit the restaurant you and whatever-his-name-is went to.”
***
After the lunch that Jin Hun barely touched, they did some shopping in Chinatown, went to SoHo then rode the subway to Central Park.
The sun had already begun to set when they started walking through the park. To Sam Soon surprise, even though it was already getting dark, it was still filled with people.
“Argh!” Jin Hun growled. “It wasn’t supposed to be like this.” He’d had it all planned out; a carriage ride through Central Park would create a memory of New York that she’d never forget but now he was no longer in the mood. Gosh! If Sam Soon hadn’t wanted to go to that cheap restaurant, he’d never had run into Tae Young’s mother.
Sam Soon eyed him carefully. “Whatever your problem is, don’t you think you’re taking this a bit too far?”
“What?”
“Your mood. If you knew you were going to be like this you should have just stayed at the hotel! Who spends all this money to go on vacation then acts like this? I wonder about you sometimes.”
Was she kidding him? He pointed at a park bench. “Just go and sit over there.”
“What? Who are you ordering around?”
“Please, just go and sit there, okay?”
Sam Soon looked him up and down. “Are you crazy?” she asked, scowling.
He grabbed her then pulled her to the bench and sat her down. “Please just sit down, okay? I have something to say.”
Confused but intrigued, Sam Soon sat as she watched him pace in front of her. “It’s nothing bad, right?” she asked, slightly frightened.
“No. But… argh! Why? Maybe I should do it tomorrow? But it won’t be the same.” He looked at her uncertainly then reached into his pocket and handed her a small box. “Here. Take it.”
She grasped it but he wouldn’t let go. “Ya! Are you giving it to me or not?”
Jin Hun frowned. “No. Forget it. I’ll give it to you later tonight.”
“What? I want it now!”
They struggled for a few minutes before he let go of it.
“Sam Shik, have you lost your mind? What’s your problem?” she screamed between pants. If she’d known she was going to get so much exercise she’d have worn her tracksuit.
She opened the box and found a silver necklace inside.
“Noonim!” he shouted.
Sam Soon snapped her head up at him. “What did you just call me?”
Jin Hun chuckled. “I feel better already,” he said, nodding and smiling satisfactorily.
She shook her head then refocused her attention on the necklace. She picked up the locket and read the inscription. “The Best Mother.”
She could feel the moisture forming in her eyes when she looked up to him. He simply smiled then sat next to her.
He took her hands, letting the necklace fall to her lap. “What’s today?”
Sam Soon shook her head in ignorance.
He laughed. “I knew you’d forget. It’s exactly 2 years since you finally agreed to be my wife.”
She smiled. She remembered that day at the airport very clearly but had never thought to remember the date… which was funny because she still remembered the date of their first kiss. Maybe it was because buried deep in heart, despite all the difficulties they’d been through, she’d always known they’d end up together. So in some ways, that fateful day was no different than any other.
“So,” he continued, “even though it’s taken us a little while to expand our family, even though we’ve had our disappointment in the past, I know that we’ll be great parents and I’m willing to do whatever it takes – even if it means we have to adopt. As far as we raise them they are our kids, right?”
She nodded.
Still holding her hands, he continued, “I know you've been anxious and I know you’ve been trying to hide your worry, but you don’t have to because I can see it anyway. If I remember correctly, you said you wished I was a scarf around your neck, well,” he said, caressing her neck and collarbone area, “I am. So always remember that. Even though it seems like a big deal, we’ll find away. It’s really not been that long since we started trying, has it?”
She shook her head. By this point, the tears were falling freely down her cheeks. Jin Hun pulled out his handkerchief and wiped her face dry. When he was done, he looked into her eyes and said, “So don’t worry about it too much.”
She nodded then covered her mouth and mumbled something.
“Huh?”
She mumbled again then just kept mumbling.
What kind of reaction was this? “What the hell are you saying?” Jin Hun pulled her hand off her mouth. “Say it again."
Sam Soon giggled. “Promise not to get mad when he get home.”
He raised his brow. “About what?”
“Just promise, okay?”
“How can I make a promise without knowing what it's for?”
“Just say yes so that we can move on. You are ruining a precious moment here.”
“I’m ruining it?”
She sighed then stood up. “Okay, let’s go back to the hotel.”
Jin Hun pulled her back to the bench. “Okay, okay, I promise. I hope I’m not going to regret it.”
She laughed mischievously. “Don’t worry, you will. Anyway, back to this,” she said, picking up the locket, “I guess this means we’ll only have two children since it can only take two photos.” She snapped it open.
“No,” he said, taking it from her to examine it, “I’ll just get you more. I’m sure we can fit at least 5 of them on this chain.”
Sam Soon laughed. “I see you’re dreaming again. Okay, I want to try it on.” She turned around to back him, “Put it on.”
When he was done, he caressed her shoulders and gave her a peck on her neck. “What do you think? You like?”
“It’s beautiful.” She turned around to kiss him the way the romantic scene demanded.
When they broke apart, Jin Hun reached into his bag. “I guess we need to do that again for this, huh?” he said, pulling out the camera.
“No, we don’t,” she said, certain that she wouldn’t need a photograph to remind her of the day her Sam Shik kissed her on a bench in Central Park.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)