AAE -- For Better For Worse

Chapter 11

by LoveCR2

edited by All-About-AAE

 

 

The late afternoon sun, burning bright in a clear blue sky, filters through the wall of glass in the canteen adjacent to  the MBS Announcer 1 Team office. Normally bustling at this time, today it is unusually quiet -- just Joo-Hee and Sun-Mi are taking a break at one of the small bistro tables near the windows. Only the faint hum of vending machines intrudes on the silence.

 

 

Sun-Mi clutches her juice bottle, trying to still her trembling hands. She sits upright, perched on the edge of her chair, feet tight together, one knee fidgeting rhythmically under the table. Across from her, Joo-Hee leans back in her seat, poised and immaculate in a signature light gray Prada skirt suit, legs crossed, one tall power stiletto swinging idly in the air. Beautiful, intelligent, talented, she embodies the paradigm of a TV new anchor at the pinnacle of her professional career.

 

The weight of comparison presses on Sun-Mi. While grateful to be mentored by MBS' top announcer -- in Young-Mi's former place -- she can't dispel a nagging feeling of incongruity. Like with Hyung-Chul, she fears she is living on borrowed time. A Cinderella at the ball -- again. Waiting for the clock to strike midnight, when the magic ends and reality crashes in.

 

 

Joo-Hee studies the woman sitting opposite her -- five years her Junior, a generation in the television industry -- with calm aplomb, her gaze sharp beneath perfectly tweezed brows. Sun-Mi is overtly cheerful, energetic and enthusiastic in her assignments, and predisposed to take people and circumstances at face value. A snapshot of herself once, before the struggle for recognition and significance in a male-driven domain had ruthlessly stripped away her naiveté and battered her spirit to the ground. She remembers her own rookie days. How she clawed her way up by sheer hard work and performance brilliance. Silenced the rumors that her father's seat on the Board had paved her way to becoming MBS' youngest news anchor.

 

The irony of her position humors her. Mentor to a woman who's rise is the antithesis of her own. Plain in looks, modest in intellect, unremarkable in talent, it seemed obvious Sun-Mi could only have come this far with the help of a secret backer -- no one could have so much good luck. But what she can't fathom is how a person so ordinary had managed to capture Hyung-Chul's fascination -- and claimed his heart.

 

 

Sun-Mi clears her throat and takes a sip of juice, trying to mask her nerves. She grips the bottle tightly, bracing herself for whatever Joo-Hee has summoned her to hear.

 

"What is your decision on the London job?" Joo-Hee asks, her voice level but pointed.

 

Sun-Mi squirms in her seat. "I don't know yet. I want to talk with Senior first."

 

"Hmm... I've already told you that Hyung-Chul will approve." Joo-Hee remarks. She reaches for her juice, taking a sip. "Maybe it's that you don't want to go?"

 

The question lands like a rock in Sun-Mi's chest. She smiles uneasily and lowers her eyes, deflecting. "How are the wedding plans?"

 

"It's making me nuts. Why is getting married so hard?" Joo-Hee cracks a brittle laugh.

 

 

Sun-Mi laughs politely, then notices a different expression on Joo-Hee's face -- that she isn't joking.

 

"What is it, Senior?"

 

"By tomorrow it will be in the papers. So I might as well say it now. The wedding is off -- I broke up with Manager Kim."

 

"I'm sorry."

 

"But you don't need to worry. I'm not taking back the London Correspondent post. It's still yours if you choose."

 

"You're sure?"

 

Joo-Hee nods. "I have something more important to do now. So, when will you decide?"

 

Sun-Mi sighs. "That's the problem. Up here..." She taps her brow. "It's settled. But here..." She places her hand over her heart. "It's holding me back."

 

"Perhaps because of Hyung-Chul?"

 

Sun-Mi nods.

 

Joo-Hee leans forward, lowering her voice. "Let me tell you something that might help. You know that Hyung-Chul is in line to become President of MBS, then CEO of Mun-Yung Group, and eventually, Chairman?"

 

"Everyone knows that," Sun-Mi affirms.

 

"Before Hyung-Chul became Director, MBS was failing under his uncle, General Manager Kim. If Hyung-Chul walks away from his responsibilities, GM Kim takes over again. The fate of our Company, and thousands of jobs, could be at risk."

 

"But Senior worked so hard to turn MBS around. Why would he give everything up now?"

 

Joo-Hee's voice hardens. "Because of YOU!"

 

Sun-Mi's catches her breath. Her eyes flit side-to-side, searching for something solid to grasp. "Me?" she gasps. "How?"

 

"It goes back to his grandfather. A promise made when Hyung-Chul was a child, and he was betrothed to secure control of MBS."

 

Sun-Mi's eyes widen. "What? It can't be true!"

 

"You really are naive, aren't you?" Joo-Hee tsk-tsks. "Didn't you ever wonder why one of Seoul's most eligible bachelors never married, despite a long line of hopefuls?"

 

"Yes, I did," Sun-Mi replies, a tremor in her voice. "But he wouldn't have kept something like this from me."

 

"Didn't he hide his role as Director, until you called him out?" Joo-Hee counters. "Hyung-Chul won't admit it even to himself. He's been living in denial and rebellion. But the family elders have had enough. They've issued an ultimatum."

 

"How do you know all this?"

 

"I'm a chaebol heir, too," Joo-Hee answers, her smile taut. "I rebelled too, wanting to determine my own fate. So I paid the price, and was mercilessly put back into my place."

 

"That's why you ended your engagement to Manager Kim?"

 

"Yes. I loved him -- I still do. But in our world, marriage isn't about love. It's about duty. Legacy. Destiny."

 

"And, what is Senior's destiny?" Sun-Mi asks, a knot tightening in her stomach.

 

 

Joo-Hee meets Sun-Mi's eyes. Her voice is merciless. "To marry Yoo Joo-Hee... Me."

 

Sun-Mi's face blanches. She stares out the window, into a blue abyss. Her chest constricts, crushed by Joo-Hee's words like her fingers clench the juice bottle in a death grip.

 

"I know this is a shock," Joo-Hee says softly, her tone empathetic. "But you need to face reality. There's no place for you in Hyung-Chul's future, and never has been. You're clinging to a fake fairytale. A Cinderella waiting for a Prince who will never bring the glass slipper back."

 

Sun-Mi's voice rises. "You're just jealous! Senior loves me! You're just trying to break us up!"

 

"If you don't believe me, then ask him," Joo-Hee says firmly. "Wake up, Jin Sun-Mi."

 

 

She watches as the light fades from Sun-Mi's eyes, leaving behind a hollow stare. She knows that look. She's worn it herself.

 

"Stop clinging. Leave while you still have a choice. Forget Hyung-Chul -- for your sake -- and for his!"