AAE -- For Better For Worse

Part 2 -- Chapter 24

by LoveCR2

edited by All-About-AAE

 

 

Hyung-Chul stares at Sun-Mi, bewilderment written over his face, as she drops her bombshell.

 

"I'm sorry, Senior, but it's not just staying over tonight. I don't think I should go to your place at all, anymore..."

 

 

Seeing his reaction, she immediately blames herself. "Please don't misunderstand me. It's not what you think."

 

"I don't know what I think," he admits, still gathering his wits from the shock. "Why don't you tell me?"

 

"My auntie always said when a boy and girl are alone together, anything can happen," she passes on the admonition.

 

"But we're not a boy and girl, we're two adults engaged to marry," he points out the key difference. "It's not the same."

 

"Even so, there is a proper progression to follow," she draws the line firmly.

 

He chides her, "Now you're being old-fashioned again."

 

"It's not just me," she argues. "If we're to be good Catholics, we should avoid any temptations that might lead to sin."

 

 

Not anticipating this line of reasoning, he questions her instead, "Temptations? Sin? Where did you get all that from?"

 

"From the booklets given to me by the priest," she informs him. "Any physical contact beyond a chaste hug or kiss should be avoided before marriage, lest we lose self-control and fall into sin. Even desiring such things is a sin we must confess and be forgiven of to receive God's blessing."

 

"Aren't you taking this religion stuff a step too far?" Hyung-Chul disputes her new thinking. "Besides, it's a bit after the fact to bring this up now."

 

"Just because we did something wrong before, doesn't mean we can't start doing the right thing now," she reasons with him. "We made a mistake, but we don't have to repeat it. Don't you see?"

 

"Sure. Of course," he concurs superficially to appease her for the moment. "But I don't think we did anything wrong in the first place."

 

"Right or wrong, I promised your Mother I'd become a good Catholic for her blessing, and I won't go back on my word," Sun-Mi is insistent. "And we both promised to God in the church, remember? It was because of God's blessing that Daddy was persuaded to give his."

 

"How can you be certain of that?"

 

"You don't know how stubborn my Daddy can be! It's a miracle that he changed his mind!"

 

"God doesn't do miracles today. At least not for regular people like us," Hyung-Chul pooh-poohs her presumptions.

 

 

But Sun-Mi doesn't back down. "Do you think it's just a coincidence that I met your father on the street and he invited me in to talk? Or that he came to speak to my father at exactly the right time? Or that they were both in the same regiment?"

 

"That's just speculation."

 

"Then what about our accident in London? You said that was Fate!" she reminds him. "Who determines Fate, except God? Or True Love? Doesn't it say that all love originates with God?"

 

Reluctantly, Hyung-Chul caves. "All right. You made your point. We'll do it your way."

 

Sun-Mi smiles, pleased at her little victory. As a consolation, she slips her hand into his. He grins happily, his remaining resistance melting away. Just the sensation of her soft, delicate fingers touching his is enough to sooth his ruffled feathers.

 

 

They start off walking again, going up the stone bridge.

 

"Thank you, for being patient," she expresses her appreciation. "I'm making you wait, again."

 

"It's only for a few days, anyway, until the wedding," he rationalizes. "So, have you and your auntie picked the date?"

 

 

Sun-Mi takes a deep breath, before telling him, "I was meaning to talk with you about that, too..."

 

This time, Hyung-Chul steels himself for the other shoe to drop.

 

"There won't be a wedding before I leave for London," she breaks the change in plans.

 

 

He can't believe what he just heard. "You're kidding, right?! I thought we already decided this!"

 

"That was before I talked to the priest," she explains the reversal. "The conversion to become a Catholic for someone like me takes at least one year. Then I will be baptized the following Easter, so the total time is more like 18 months before we can marry."

 

"Eighteen months?! No way!" he balks. "There must be other options."

 

"I asked the same question. There aren't any shortcuts. I'm not happy about it either, but it is what it is," she states flatly. "If this is what I have to endure to marry you, I'm willing. But I hoped you'd support me, too."

 

"Sorry, I was just feeling frustrated, and disappointed," he expresses his feelings.

 

"I know. But since it's the right thing to do, let's do it happily, okay?" she pleads. "I don't want to have any hard feelings between us."

 

 

"I've waited almost six years, what's another 18 months?" he cracks, grinning at the irony.

 

"That's the spirit," Sun-Mi commends him.

 

 

They stop at the center of the bridge, standing together at the railing, looking out over the lake. The still water around them shimmers with the reflected light of the rising full moon. From the nearby island, a lone cricket chirps repeatedly over the hum of distant traffic.

 

Hyung-Chul watches as Sun-Mi touches her thumb to each of her finger tips, before asking, "What are you thinking?"

 

"Counting my blessings," she reveals. "And the last and best, is Senior."

 

"Really?" he preens happily.

 

"Umm... So, what were you thinking?" she is curious to know.

 

He raises a puckish eyebrow and gives her a jaunty wink. "If I tell you, we'll both have to confess to the priest!"

 

 

They share a laugh, then Hyung-Chul asks sportively, "In the spirit of doing the right thing, is a five-minute hug acceptable?"

 

"Hmm ... that depends," Sun-Mi coyly plays along. "As long as we're not alone in someplace private, I suppose it is."

 

"And what if we stretched that five minutes into, say, fifteen?"

 

"You want to hold me, for fifteen minutes?"

 

"If it were possible, I'd hold you forever," he claims.

 

"That might be a problem," she jokes. "Should I ask the priest, first, just to be sure?"

 

"I'd rather take a chance and seek absolution later, if it comes to that," he jests back, immediately enveloping her with his arms.

 

 

Sun-Mi happily rests her head against his shoulder, luxuriating in the certainty of his embrace. She would hold him forever, too, if it were possible!

 

"Seriously now, you really don't mind waiting for me?" she queries, feeling guilty for demanding so much from him while giving little in return. "Tell me honestly, Senior. I don't want to force you, that you'll resent this later."

 

"Of course, I'd prefer we married tomorrow," Hyung-Chul answers truthfully. "But for now I'm content just to be by your side. Whether it's one week, one month, one year ... or 100 years, I will always wait for you."

 

Touched, she declares in turn, "Whether it's one week, one month, one year ... or 100 years, I will always love you, too."

 

Coming together, they seal their promises with a prolonged, passionate kiss.

 

 

After they separate, Hyung-Chul keeps Sun-Mi in his arms as she basks in the bliss of euphoria, lingering his attention on her flushed cheeks and full, sensuous lips, parted slightly as she regains her breath. Moving up to her eyes, he peers intensely into the dark, dilated pupils that gaze back at him with yearning desire.

 

Grinning, he playfully quips, "Do we need to confess that to the priest, or not?"

 

She pushes her lower lip out petulantly. "Senior, now you're just being silly! Making fun of me!"

 

"Am I? Your lips are devilishly tempting!" he teases. "I'm already missing them."

 

 

Sun-Mi's blush deepens, but her eyes sparkle mischievously. "Our fifteen minutes aren't over yet," she hints, raising a flirtatious eyebrow.

 

Then, closing her eyes in anticipation, she purses her lips expectantly...