AAE -- Wishes Of The Heart

Chapter 209

written by LoveCR2 -- 2005

edited by All-About-AAE -- 2019

 

"This is about what's best for a child. You don't have to do it alone, Sun-Mi. That wasn't part of the agreement." -- Min-Cho Atwater

 

 

GRENADA, SPAIN ...

 

"Tomorrow... I have a flight out of Malaga, in the afternoon..."

 

Sun-Mi announces her plans to Min-Cho as they dine on an intimate outdoor balcony of the Restaurante Mirador de Morayma ...

 

 

That afternoon, they had spent several hours exploring the historical Alhambra Alcazabar (fortress), palaces, and gardens of the extensive hilltop complex, then wandered the narrow, winding alleyways of the Moorish Albayzin quarter before coming to this restaurant famous for its variety of local cuisine.

 

Arriving before dusk at the historic carmen, a walled mansion with terraced gardens, their table offered a spectacular view of the Alhambra across the Rio Darro, as the sun set and the lights came on to illumine the buildings against the night sky.

 

 

"I feel like we've been here before," Min-Cho remarks with a slight, amused smile, sipping Albarinho as he appreciates the view across the table, illuminated by candlelight...

 

After two months of sailing the Priceless Pearl II under the bright Mediterranean sky, despite liberal use of protective sunscreens, her skin has gained a sun-kissed, golden tone that glows against her ivory Zara lace embroidered cotton sundress.

 

"How can that be? I've never been to Spain myself, and certainly not with you," Sun-Mi's question takes him literally.

 

"Not the same place, but the same situation. Last time it was at the restaurant on Mount Lycabettus, with a view of the Acropolis..."

 

"And before that, on the banks of the Thames, with Tower Bridge," she quickly grasps his point and carries it to conclusion... "You mean that I'm disappointing you again, right?"

 

 

Min-Cho is about to reply when their waiter, a short, wiry man with a finely-trimmed mustache, appears tableside...

 

"Is everything to your satisfaction?" he asks in heavily-accented English.

 

"The steak is perfect." Min-Cho answers as he cuts off another piece of 'Solomillo de ternera' (veal sirloin steak).

 

"It's all so delicious," Sun-Mi agrees, savoring a bite of her entr�e, 'Salm�n sobre verduras' (salmon on a bed of vegetables).

 

"May I interest you in our selection of desserts?" the waiter invites them to indulge.

 

"Your recommendations?" Min-Cho requests.

 

"That would be the 'Pastelillo templado de chocolate' (Warm Chocoloate Tart) and 'Arroz con leche' (Rice Pudding)," the waiter offers.

 

"Chocolate for the lady, and I'll have the pudding," Min-Cho takes the liberty of ordering, "with espresso, please."

 

"Very good, Sir," the waiter acknowledges the order, before moving on to the next table.

 

 

"You're so arrogant!" Sun-Mi airs her complaint quietly at Min-Cho's upstaging of her prerogative.

 

"But was I right?" he counters.

 

"Yes," she admits. "I've had my eye on the chocolate tart since I spotted it on another table. How did you know?"

 

"Two people don't spend weeks together in a cramped cabin without learning almost everything about each other," he makes the point, "even if I hadn't lived with you before in London."

 

"I think you know me better than anyone else, even my Daddy," she concurs with his assessment.

 

"Still, you surprised me -- announcing your decision to be a mother, and asking me to help you out," he thinks back to when she first broached the matter with him, a day out of Kos Harbor.

 

"You didn't seem so surprised at the time," Sun-Mi recalls his willingness to accommodate her request. "And like always, you came through in flying colors... I owe you more than I can ever adequately repay."

 

"If I can talk you into sailing on to Santorini, it would be a good down payment on that debt," Min-Cho prompts for a change in her plans.

 

"I'd like to. This trip has been like a dream come true, seeing all these places in a single holiday," she reflects on the possibility of extending it. "But I have so much to do, settle in, get the nursery ready. And the garden will need a lot of attention, too."

 

"You have to careful of your health," he questions her priorities. "Why not hire someone for all that hard work?"

 

"Growing flowers with my own hands... It's part of having that small, cozy home with a garden and a white fence around it," she reminds him of the idyllic dream she'd shared."

 

 

Their waiter appears again, bringing the desserts and espresso...

 

"Enjoy," he encourages them before moving on.

 

Sun-Mi takes a small bite of her chocolate tart, which simply melts in her mouth... "Heaven!" she exclaims, then is curious about Min-Cho's choice. "How's yours?"

 

Min-Cho swallows a scoop of pudding, makes a show of evaluating the taste, then quips, "It's like I'm in heaven, too, but only because I'm eating with an angel seated across from me."

 

"You really shouldn't idealize me like that," Sun-Mi modestly disavows his cherubic characterization as over the top, "By now you should know I'm no angel, especially before I have my morning coffee!"

 

Min-Cho chuckles with her joke, because he'd learned quickly how important it was to have the coffee maker's timer set each night before they retired to sleep...

 

"Let's consider it as a difference in perception, okay?" he proposes accommodation for their divergent perspectives.

 

"Agreed," she accepts, "but I do appreciate the sentiment."

 

 

They lapse into a pregnant silence while they finish the desserts, then Min-Cho responds to her question from before their aside...

 

"I'm not disappointed, just missing you already," he expresses his burgeoning feeling of emptiness. "I'm not ready to let you go, not just yet."

 

"But we knew, from the beginning, this day would come," Sun-Mi states pragmatically

 

"Are you sure you want to go forward like this?" he asks, to be certain she has no doubts left unspoken.

 

"My mind is made up, if that's what you're asking."

 

"Being a single mother is hard," he cautions. "Raising a child is much easier with two parents, working together..."

 

 

Sun-Mi smiles at the barely disguised scheme...

 

"Are you proposing marriage? If so, say it straight out," she chides him.

 

"You've already turned down direct proposals more than once, so I hoped a different approach might be more persuasive," he admits to his last-minute gambit.

 

"Still, my answer is 'No' ... I've already burdened you too much," Sun-Mi declines again, as he expected she would.

 

"Being with you on this trip was a blessing, not a burden," he makes his argument. "Why would a lifetime journey be any different?"

 

Sun-Mi sighs with exasperation. "Haven't I made myself clear by now? You know my reasons."

 

"Actually, I feel that you've never honestly given me the real reasons," he contradicts, then starts on her usual litany, "just things like you're not a very good girlfriend, so how could you be a good wife? ... that you can't commit, because your heart is divided, never agreeing with your head. ... that you're the kind of person who will always disappoint..."

 

"Okay... Enough!" she interjects, "But those things are true," she stands firm.

 

"They're also excuses," he challenges her stance, "there's no perfect OTPs in this world."

 

"It's not about perfection, but fairness," she clarifies her reasoning. "When one side always has to give, resentment is inevitable. Maybe not right away, but eventually, it's certain to happen."

 

"So you won't marry?" he presses. "Even to Yoon Hyung-Chul?"

 

He instantly regrets forcing the issue when he sees the sadness in her eyes as she answers quietly, "A person doesn't need marriage to pursue a dream, and find a fulfilling life."

 

 

Min-Cho concedes he is making no headway sailing into this relentless headwind, and so tacks wide...

 

"But that still leaves what to say when the child asks about a father... And as usual, I have the solution for your problem..."

 

"What is it this time?" she grumbles.

 

"Instead of 'Unknown' put my name on the birth registration," he offers. "Even a remote father is better than none."

 

"There's no need. You've already done too much," she refuses.

 

"This isn't just about me and you, it's about what's best for a child. You don't have to do it alone, Sun-Mi. That wasn't part of the agreement you made."

 

When she doesn't argue back, Min-Cho can sense her resistance is caving, and tests the water, "At least, you'll think about it?"

 

 

Sun-Mi nods, but her expression is mixed, and Min-Cho knows he still has work to do.

 

But she is finished with discussing it...

 

"I want to go back to the boat... to sleep," she tells him unequivocally. "I'm tired..."