Always Stay with Me

Tuesday, September 23, 2014

On the afternoon of her 20th birthday, Kim Gwiboon took deep breaths, slowing breathing in and out. She nervously twiddled her fingers before going to sit at her vanity to inspect her already flawless hair and makeup one final time. She called out nervously, “Eonnie! Halmeoni! Come quickly!” Lee Eunsook comes running into Gwiboon’s room, tripping over her slippers, and landing flat on her face at Gwiboon’s feet. “Eonnie! Not again!” Gwiboon reaches to help Eunsook stand while the older lady grins at her sheepishly. Once Eunsook is safely standing, Gwiboon calls out for her grandmother once more, “Halmeoni! Where are you?” “Coming, coming, hold your horses, dearie,” Kim Miyoung says as she slowly shuffles her way into the room, thinking to herself that her dear sweet granddaughter should know better than to try and rush a 72-year-old.

“So, how do I look?” Gwiboon asked, standing before the two of them as they sat on her bed. She glanced down at her non-descript white dress. It was not her style at all, but she couldn’t afford to be flashy and flamboyant when secretly getting married. She still could not believe she was getting married! Her face flushed at the thought of her beloved Kim Jonghyun becoming her husband. Because Gwiboon, Eunsook, and Jonghyun were all trainees at SM and dating technically wasn’t allowed, Gwiboon would not get the fairytale wedding she’d always dreamed of. But that’s okay, she thought, because she could still get her own Prince Charming. She frowned slightly and thought, even if no one else knows he belongs to her.

“Boonnie! Gwiboonnie!” Gwiboon came out of her trance to hear both her grandmother and her teammate/friend repeatedly call her name. She asked, somewhat embarrassed, “What was that?” Miyoung smiled at her nervous granddaughter and slowly stood, taking Gwiboon’s hands in hers. “You look beautiful, baby girl,” she said, giving her hands a light squeeze. “I only wish,” she let out a sad sign without continuing. “I know, Halmeoni, I know,” Gwiboon said, holding back tears because she did not want to ruin her mascara.

Eunsook glanced between the two and could sense the mood was heavy as Miyoung and Gwiboon were both feeling sad about Gwiboon’s parents. To lighten the mood, Eunsook decided to tell a wedding joke. “Hey, Boonnie, do you know why the King of Hearts married the Queen of Hearts?” Miyoung smiled politely, while Gwiboon rolled her eyes. “Just humor me, okay?” Eunsook pushed her glasses up as they were sliding down her nose and flashed her megawatt smile. Gwiboon signed, “Okay, tell me why.” “It’s because they were perfectly suited to each other,” she exclaimed with great flourish, before adding, “Just like our Boonnie and Jonghyun are.”

Gwiboon smiled at Eunsook, her first smile since Eunsook and Miyoung entered the room, her waves of doubts and insecurities suddenly washed away, because deep down she knew they were a perfect match. She pulled Eunsook up into a hug and wept softly, her teardrops falling onto Eunsook’s green dress. Eunsook didn’t mind though, as she had become accustomed to Gwiboon crying on her shoulder. “Oh, Eonnie,” Gwiboon said in a muffled voice between tears. Eunsook gently patted Gwiboon on the back and said, “There, there,” in a soft, comforting voice. Miyoung, meanwhile, quietly wiped her granddaughter’s tears using the tissue paper conveniently left on the vanity desk. “Don’t cry so, Boonnie baby, this is a happy occasion.”

“You’re right, Halmeoni,” Gwiboon sniffled and blew her nose into one of the tissue papers. She caught a glimpse of her red eyes and runny mascara in the mirror of her vanity and gasped in horror. “What have I done?! We’re supposed to meet Jjongie at the city hall in less than an hour,” she screeched! “Wedding or not, I can’t get married looking like this,” Gwiboon whined on the verge of tears again. Miyoung and Eunsook exchanged glances and said, “We can fix it,” almost simultaneously. Together they carefully washed her face and reapplied her makeup. “See, good as new,” Eunsook beamed. “Yes, my baby is so beautiful,” Miyoung said proudly. Gwiboon swallowed down the nervous butterflies bubbling up in her stomach. “Okay, let’s go get me married,” she said, giving them thankful smiles.

----

Kim Jonghyun nervously paced in the waiting area of the local city hall as he waited for his bride. He had already requested and received the marriage certificate. Now he was just awaiting his Boonnie and their two witnesses, her grandmother and Eunsook noona, to arrive to complete and file the form. He stopped pacing to glance down at the phone in his hand. It was nearly 4:30. They’d agreed to meet at that time because they felt there would be the least amount of people near closing time. Jonghyun glanced around the nearly empty room, but his dear sweet Boonnie was nowhere to be seen. Jonghyun’s phone buzzed and he frowned when he saw the caller ID, Chairwoman Jo Aehri-shi. He quickly pressed ignore as he had no intentions of the Chairwoman ruin his perfect day.

Jonghyun’s scowl turned into a bright, somewhat crooked smile when he spotted his Boonnie, followed by Eunsook and Miyoung. His Gwiboon looked positively radiant. Her white dress, though simple, highlighted her figure and her pale pink heels accentuated her height, which made Jonghyun even more convinced that he’d made the right decision by pairing his black suit with heeled black boots. He might have a slight complex about height as his bride was an inch or so taller without heels, but he didn’t dare tell his fiery Boonnie not to wear them.

“I was beginning to think you were having second thoughts,” Jonghyun teased her slightly as they were seated filling out the forms. Gwiboon paused before signing her name to the document, her face slightly flushed. “And what would you do if I did have second thoughts?” she asked somewhat defiantly. Jonghyun stared at her for a full minute, his bright puppy eyes seeming to pierce into the depths of her soul, causing Gwiboon to glance away, flustered. He leaned in and whispered into her ear, causing Gwiboon to blush, “I’d do whatever it takes to win you over again.”

They both jumped upright in their seats when they heard Eunsook clearing her throat. “If you two love birds are all done, Halmeonim and I can sign as witnesses,” Eunsook smirked as they both blushed, while Miyoung smiled at them. “Make sure everything on the form filled out correctly,” Miyoung told them. “I’ve finished the groom’s section,” Jonghyun beamed, “the bride is a little slow, though.” “Almost, there! Done!” Gwiboon completed the bride’s section and handed it to Eunsook for Eunsook and Miyoung to sign as witnesses. Jonghyun and Gwiboon, shyly holding hands, handed their marriage registration forms to the clerk for them to be filed just before closing. While a flustered young clerk was in the middle of congratulating the young couple on their marriage, Jonghyun gave Gwiboon a quick peck on the lips, causing her to push him away out of embarrassment. She rushed off to join an amused Eunsook and Miyoung who watched the kiss from the sitting area. Jonghyun quickly followed his blushing bride.

Once he reached them, he bowed to Miyoung. “Halmeonim, I apologize that due to my hurry to file out the forms, I didn’t greet you properly earlier.” As the four were leaving the city hall building, he continued sincerely, “Thank you so much for raising my Boonnie so well, and for trusting her to me. I promise I will treasure her with my life.” Miyoung looked into his puppy-like eyes, and the young man did not waiver. Despite his young age of 21, Miyoung sensed a determination and maturity about him and could feel the sincerity of his words. Miyoung smiled and patted his hand, “I’m entrusting my Boonnie baby to you. Take good care of her.” “Yes, of course,” Jonghyun beamed. “I should be the one taking care of him,” Gwiboon muttered to herself.

“True, my beloved granddaughter is sometimes stubborn, and emotional, and occasionally blurts out things without thinking, and is maybe a tad vain—” “Halmeoni, how could you list my flaws on my special day,” Gwiboon pouted. Jonghyun giggled and grabbed Gwiboon’s hand, raising it to his lips, and kissing it softly. “It’s okay, Boonnie, I love all you, flaws and all.” “As I was saying before being interrupted,” Miyoung continued with a pointed glance at Gwiboon, “my Boonnie does have flaws, but she has many strengths as well, one being the love of family. You two are now each other’s family, and going forward, I wish you all the happiness in the world.”

Eunsook watched the young couple’s interactions with Miyoung, and whenever either of the three glanced over at her, she smiled, but it was a smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. Of course, she was happy for the young couple, but she was also worried. Eunsook worried about the fate of Shining Girls. If the company found out about this, all three likely would not be able to debut, especially since she had been an accomplice in helping the younger ones secretly date and now get married. She kept that smile plastered across her face and hoped no one noticed how worried she was, how uncertain she was about their future.

----

“Alone at last,” Jonghyun whispered into Gwiboon’s ear from behind her, causing shivers to travel down her spine. Since they were still trainees who lived in the supervised dorms, they couldn’t exactly go on a honeymoon. Thankfully they were able to book this hotel room using Miyoung name. “So, yeobo, what would you like for dinner? We could order room service,” Gwiboon said quickly.

Jonghyun spun her around to face him, planting a soft kiss on her forehead. “Would you like me to order room service, Jjongie?” she asked while glancing down at the floor. He lifted her face until they were staring directly into each other’s eyes. “Are you hungry or… something?” Something in his eyes told Gwiboon what he was hungry for, and she blushed. Jonghyun smiled slyly and told her, “You know which word I want you to repeat,” while entwining his fingers into hers.

“Listen closely, because I have no intentions of repeating this word ever again! Yeobo! Yeobo, yeobo, yeobo!” Gwiboon repeated somewhat defiantly. Jonghyun smirked at her, a mischievous glint in his eye. He leaned in, kissing her deeply, effectively ending her “yeobo” rant. Gwiboon signed and kissed him back, closing her eyes and enjoying the feel of his lips on her. Swiftly, before she could protest being carried, Jonghyun picked up his spirited bride and carried her into the bedroom, where the two enjoyed their wedding night.