Wedding Dress (1/1)

Yoona was in the lounge in the Choi family mansion as she desperately tried knitting.  Yuri started to laugh at her to see that she was failing at the hobby miserably.  Yoona put down the large needles and yarn angrily on her lap and sighed.             “I don’t think this is very relaxing,” she announced.             Yuri started to laugh hysterically as Jiyoung, Seungri, and Daesung entered the lounge and greeted them.  Minsun returned for a three day long press conference in New York and she promised that she would be back in time for the wedding.  Jiyoung, Seungri, and Daesung smiled at Yoona and Yuri as they took out the Wii console and four controllers.  Yuri looked with curiosity to wonder who the fourth controller was for.             “Let’s play tennis on the Wii!” Seungri suggested.             “We have to wait for Taeyang to come first!” Jiyoung insisted.             Daesung ran to the window to see an overlook of the mansion’s front yard.  He grinned to see that Taeyang was making his way to the door to ring the bell.  Daesung ran quickly to the entrance and answered the door as he dragged Taeyang to the lounge.  Taeyang was taken in surprise as he hid his embarrassment with his melodic laughter.  Yuri saw Taeyang and her heart began to beat quickly.  Yoona noticed Yuri’s sudden change in behavior as a smirk appeared on her face.             “Hey guys!” Taeyang greeted Daesung, Jiyoung, and Seungri.             “Hey, hurry up so we can start playing!” Seungri insisted.             “Where’s Seunghyun?  I thought he was going to be here soon,” Taeyang asked.             “Oh, he should be coming home from work right now.  He told me that he was finalizing the merge with Yoona’s family’s company,” Jiyoung said.             Taeyang walked over to Yuri and Yoona and smiled gently at them.  Yoona and Yuri gave him a friendly hug as they exchanged greetings with each other.  Taeyang soon left the girls and went back to return to the boys to play their video games together.  Yoona was just dumbfounded that Taeyang couldn’t recognize Yuri’s attraction for him.             “Uhm, Yuri, can you help me go to the kitchen?  I’m a bit hungry,” Yoona announced as Yuri nodded and followed her to the kitchen.             Fortunately, the kitchen was empty so no one was there to eavesdrop on their conversation.  Yoona started to squeal and Yuri looked at her with confusion.             “Is the pregnancy supposed to make you look crazy?” Yuri joked.             “Stop messing around!  You’ve been telling me about Taeyang since we were sixteen.  You never mentioned his name to me, but I know it’s him!  I could even tell by the way you act when he’s in the same room as you!  You’re crazy for him,” Yoona assumed.             Yuri looked embarrassed.             “No, I don’t like him!” Yuri lied.             Yoona crossed her arms and gave Yuri a little stare.  It was so obvious that she couldn’t believe that Yuri was even denying it.  Yoona had known her for the longest time and she knew when Yuri was lying.             “You’re lying.  Plus, why don’t your brothers and cousins recognize that you have the biggest crush on your close family friend.  Aren’t Seunghyun and Taeyang best friends?” Yoona asked.             “That’s why boys are stupid!  Even Taeyang can’t recognize that I like him!  All guys in the world are just dummies because they don’t realize who and who doesn’t like them unless their told!” Yuri proclaimed.             Yoona heard the door to the main entrance open as she ran out of the kitchen to check who it was.  Yuri followed her as the boys stepped out of the lounge to do the same thing.  Yoona’s eyes bulged to see that Leeteuk was there.  What in the world was he doing at this house?  He hated the family and she just couldn’t imagine him in their home.  He was followed by Taeyeon who was trying to stop him.  Leeteuk saw Yoona and hugged her tightly.  Yoona was in shock.  The last time that she had seen him, he was filled with anger towards her and she felt that he hated her.              “Yoona, please come home already.  I’m sorry that I hit you and you know that I didn’t do that intentionally.  I will never do it again, so please just come home!” Leeteuk pleaded.             Yoona didn’t know what to say.  She was getting married in two days and she just couldn’t come home and cancel the wedding.  She was doing it for her family’s company.  The awkwardness in the room was increased as Seunghyun returned from work.  He was surprised to see Leeteuk in his home.  He gave Leeteuk a deadly stare as Leeteuk returned it with twice the hate.  He stood next to Yoona and put his hand on her shoulder.             “She’s not coming home with you.  She agreed to be my wife and we’re getting married in a couple of days.  We would love it if you could make it, but she’s not going to leave this house.  This is her home now,” Seunghyun told Leeteuk.             Leeteuk’s face turned from pale to red in a matter of seconds.  He was going to throw another hard punch towards Seunghyun, but was stopped by Taeyeon.  Taeyeon pulled back her husband with all her strength.             “Honey, please don’t fight!  This is going to cause even more stress towards Yoona and her baby!” Taeyeon reasoned.             Leeteuk tried to calm down as he took a breath.  He needed to be more serene.  He may hate who the father of the baby was, but he wasn’t going to hate Yoona or the baby.  He just didn’t want them getting married.             “Yoona, you need to think logically!  You can’t marry him!  He’s not a good man for you and he’s an enemy of the family!” Leeteuk claimed.             Yoona couldn’t help but laugh at his statement.  Everyone was surprised by her sudden laughter.  They waited patiently for Yoona’s reply to her older brother.  Yoona stepped a little forward so that she was a little closer to Leeteuk.             “Oppa, all my life, I’ve done whatever you asked me to do.  I learned how to talk in several languages, play different instruments, and maintain lady-like manners just for you.  I just can’t believe that just because Seunghyun is your enemy, you think that it applies for everyone else!  Eunhyuk and Heechul hate being in this feud.  Why can’t you sense it?  He’s not my enemy.  He’s yours,” Yoona clarified, “Oppa, I’m getting married whether you like it or not.  It’s for the baby and for the company.  I know about the drop in our company’s profits and I promised you that I was going to fix everything, and I’m doing that right now.  Seunghyun’s been trying to help our company, but you refuse.  If you don’t attend our wedding or accept his help, I’m never returning to the family.  If you meddle or object during the wedding ceremony, I’ll never talk to you again.  If you cancel the negotiations and the merge with their company, you can forget that I’m your sister.  It’s either you keep your pride and lose your sister or lose the pride and still have me in your life.”             Seunghyun was amazed at her words.  He saw Leeteuk’s expression soften and he knew that her words were working on him.  He gave her kudos for cleverly manipulating her brother, but it did seem that the words were coming from her heart.  It was as if she had spilled everything that she was keeping in her.             Leeteuk nodded, “Fine, I’ll come to the wedding and act as if this feud is all over in front of the press.”             Yoona looked delighted.  It was her first time she really smiled in weeks.  She ran over to him and hugged him tight.  Leeteuk was finally making an effort in keeping the peace.  She smiled brightly as she pulled away from the embrace.             “I still can’t move back to the house,” Yoona spilled.             Leeteuk frowned to see that she was staying at Seunghyun’s.             “The press will expect me to stay here since he is the head to his family, but I will visit you,” Yoona informed him.             During the next morning, the word had been spread that the two were having their wedding the next day.  Yoona found it odd that it was different from how she expected her wedding to feel like from when she was a little girl.  She expected to be excited, happy, and in love, but she wasn’t.  She wasn’t in love with him and he sure wasn’t either.  Yoona was just happy that Minsun had planned the whole wedding.  Minsun was probably more excited about the wedding than Seunghyun and Yoona combined.  After the hair stylist and makeup artist fixed her hair, she put on a red dress after the stylist and makeup artist left the room.  She looked in the mirror and tried to reflect on what her life has become.  She touched her flat stomach.  Thank God that her stomach was still flat.  If the press found out that she had a small bump forming, they would have made a big deal out of it.  It was just weird to know that there was something growing in the inside of her.  She quickly snapped out of her thoughts as she heard a knock on the door.  She approached the door and opened it.  As she put her hand on the doorknob, she saw the engagement ring sparkling on her left ring finger.  It was a sign of the love she didn’t have for him.  She smiled to see that it was Minsun and Yuri.              “Today’s a movie premiere night for that woman Uee’s new movie.  It’s also your first public appearance with Seunghyun as an engaged couple.  I just wanted to give you this,” Minsun pulled out a golden locket.             “It’s tradition in our family to have every female, either born or married into the family, receives a locket.  The guys get a Rolex watch, but I would prefer this locket,” Yuri smiled.             “Here is yours.  The tradition is that inside that locket is a picture of you and your future or current husband.  Your locket has a picture of Seunghyun and yourself.  Well according to our family, there goes a saying that once you put that locket on for the first time, your marriage and love for each other will last forever.  Plus, you two have to share a room when you get married:  no excuses,” Minsun smiled.             Yoona became a little skeptical.  She just knew that it didn’t apply towards Seunghyun and herself.  She didn’t even know the man on a personal level.  Yoona put on the locket anyways.  She knew that it was probably false.             “How do I know if it’s actually true?” Yoona questioned.             Yuri began to laugh and let her mother explain.             “It’s true because not one marriage has been broken in the Choi family.  The only way that a married couple in the family gets separated is by death.  I was like you; I laughed when my mother-in-law told me the same thing that I’m telling you right now, but as the decades flew by, I found it to be true.  Not one of the marriages in this family has been broken,” Minsun explained.             “The marriage between me and Seunghyun is arranged.  I know that I’m not going to fall in love with him.  I’m sorry to say this but it is likely that we will get divorced,” Yoona contradicted.             “Yes, that may be true, but you’ll end up falling in love with him.  You’re going to love him so much that you’re going to think that you’re going to be insane,” Minsun assured her.             Yoona had to be honest with herself.  She thought that Minsun was being completely crazy.  How could she be so sure that she was going to fall in love with him?  She was still in love with Siwon for goodness sake!  She didn’t want to be disrespectful so she just smiled and nodded.             “I know what you’re thinking right now.  You think that I’m going mad.  All I have to say is that you’re in the same exact shoes I was in twenty-five years ago.  I had an arranged marriage with my children’s father, and I didn’t love him, but I learned to.  If I didn’t love him, I wouldn’t have had three children with him,” Minsun told her.             Yoona’s skeptic mind started to wonder even more.  Minsun was in the same exact position as her two decades and a half ago?  That was kind of hard to believe.  She looked so happy now, even if her husband was dead.  She had a wonderful family and a fabulous life.  Yoona was just confused.  Minsun and Yuri left her alone in the room to give her some privacy to think.  She needed it:  she was getting married tomorrow.             Within fifteen minutes, Yoona left the guest bedroom she was staying in.  She walked down the stairs.  While she walked down the stairs, she had a million things running through her head.  She had never thought that she would be thinking this hard at this age.             Seunghyun saw Yoona walk down the stairs.  It seemed as if she was reflecting on her life.  He had to admit that she looked beautiful.  He hated to admit it, but she looked even better than Goo Hara.  He quickly snapped out of his thoughts to avoid an unnecessary fantasy about Yoona.  He sighed.  She looked so beautiful.             Before they arrive to the movie premiere, the Choi family publicist instructed them to act all lovey dovey with each other.  That meant kissing, hugging, holding hands, and skin to skin contact.  Yoona and Seunghyun laughed together to see that they both cringed at the same time.  The publicist rolled her eyes and giggled.  If she didn’t know that they were faking to be in love, she would have thought that they actually liked each other.  When they stepped out of the limo, the reporters rushed them.  Flashing lights from the cameras were hitting every inch of Yoona’s body as Seunghyun grabbed her hand and led her into the theater.  Yoona agreed to play out the script so she tippy toed while Seunghyun bent down a bit as she whispered something into his ear.             “I hate pretending that we’re a couple,” she laughed as she whispered.             Seunghyun nodded in agreement as the paparazzi went crazy as they tried to figure out what she had whispered to him.  Seunghyun then put his arm around her shoulders as he kissed the crown of her head while they walked into the theater.  Yoona and Seunghyun knew that the theater was filled with photographers, so they decided to act like a couple inside the theater, too.  Their publicist would have been proud to find out that they did it on their own.  Yoona saw some flashes go off while Seunghyun wrapped his arm around her shoulders and while his head leaned on her.  Yoona then fed him some popcorn as Yoona saw another flash go off.  She rolled her eyes.  She knew that this was going to become a long night.             When they got home, it was already around ten o’clock.  Yoona couldn’t believe that it was her last night as an unmarried woman.  Seunghyun went into his room without a goodbye as she changed into her pajamas.  She took off her makeup and slipped out of her expensive dress into a pair of pajamas.  She saw that there was a balcony extending from the bedroom, so she decided to watch the stars before she went to sleep.  She stepped outside as she found a chair in the balcony.  She took seat and saw that about three shooting stars filled the starry sky.  She surprised herself to see that there were tears in her face.  Flashback (when Yoona was still twenty years old)…             Yoona was in the lake under a tree.  Yoona smiled as Siwon rested his head on her lap.  She caressed his jet black hair as he closed his eyes.  He opened them and sat up straight.  It was already night and he knew that there was going to be a meteor shower soon.  He pointed at the sky as three shooting stars flew across the sky.  Yoona opened her mouth in amazement.             “Darling, that is a meteor shower.  You could call it a group of shooting stars, but I prefer the word meteor shower.  It sounds better,” Siwon laughed as he hugged her from behind.             Siwon surprised her by carving their initials under a large tree.  He stood up proudly to display it to Yoona.  Yoona was so blissful and happy.  She had the perfect boyfriend.  She could smell the light aura of his cologne as she inhaled it to take in his scent.  She loved him.  She was sure that she was in love with him and he was in love with her also.             “You’re so smart.  That meteor shower was beautiful!” Yoona cried with excitement.             “You know every time I look at the stars, I think of you.  Of course there are contrasts between the stars and you,” Siwon told her.             Yoona pouted.             “What are you trying to say?  Are you trying to say that I’m not as pretty as the stars?  Are you trying to say the stars are more unique than me?” Yoona protested.             Siwon laughed at her cuteness.  She was just adorable when she was glowering.  He kissed her on the cheek as Yoona put her arms around him as she snuggled into his embrace.             “There’s a contrast between the stars because they can’t compare to your beauty.  Honestly Park Yoona, I think—no—I know that you’re the most beautiful woman on the face of this earth.  You’re beautiful inside and out.  The stars are unique from each other, but if you combine all their uniqueness together, it still can’t compare to how unique of a woman you are.  You really are one of a kind.  The last thing that you contrast from the stars is the fact that…well, they’re just not as bright as you.  Yoona, I can honestly tell you that you’re the only woman for me.  I had never told you or any girl this, but I really do love you,” Siwon gave her the chills with his words.             He leaned in for a kiss—her first kiss.             Yoona was forever in love with him.  She knew it.  He was just someone that was irreplaceable.  This night was special to Yoona.  This was the night he had confessed his love for her and the night of her first kiss. End of Flashback             Yoona couldn’t help but cry.  That was the only thing that she could do.  She sank to the floor as she buried her head in between her knees.  She was still deeply in love with Siwon, and even though she lied to Yuri, Jessica, and the others that she was over him, she couldn’t lie to herself and say that she didn’t love him anymore.  She felt even more tragic after knowing the fact that she was getting married to someone else. The next morning…              Yoona felt like a robot as a group of staff were helping her put on a dress.  She sighed as three full body mirrors displayed every inch of her dress to her.  Her hair was in an elegant bun while the white dress hugged her body tight.  It was a good thing that her pregnancy was not evident.  She felt different as she looked at the makeup applied on her face.  She hated it.  She looked beautiful, but she didn’t feel like herself.  She saw a joyful Minsun walk into the bedroom looking excited.  She clasped her hands together to take in Yoona’s beauty.  Yoona smiled at her with gratefulness that she wasn’t one of those evil mother-in-laws.  Minsun was just rejoiced that the bride wasn’t Goo Hara.  Yoona found it weird that the whole family didn’t like Goo Hara, and what could possibly be wrong with her?  Yoona had not met her and she knew better than to judge right away.  She figured that she would give Hara a chance.  She may be in a bad position of being the bride to Seunghyun and the mother to the baby, but she knew that if Minsun and the others were wrong and she really did love him, she would understand.             “Hurry up, dear, the wedding is starting soon.  We need to drive to the church already and the guests had already arrived.  I’m happy to say that my dear son had already entered the church.  Come on,” Minsun smiled.             Yoona felt all the weight being put on her shoulders.  She felt pressured, but she was going to do it.  She needed to help save the company since Leeteuk had already sacrificed a merge just to save Yoona from a marriage with a man that wasn’t right for her.  She felt as if Seunghyun wasn’t the right man for her either, but she had to admit that he was way better than the Japanese investor that wanted to marry her.             The ride to the church felt awfully short as she dreaded the second she step into the church.  She knew she had to hold back her tears.  The public would think that she was unhappy and Leeteuk would probably stop the wedding, not caring if it broke his promise to not interfere with the wedding.  She took a long sigh and stepped out of the limousine.  She put on a smile to conceal her agony and reluctance.  The publicist also told her that she needed to act as if she was deeply in love with him.  She did a good job.  The photographers believed that she was actually happy.  She saw Leeteuk waiting impatiently at the front of the church.  He saw her as she took his side.  He was going to be the one to walk her to the aisle since her father had already died.  The photographers entered the church to take pictures from the inside.  She finally got some privacy with her older brother.  She took his arm as she looked at him.  He looked so eager to tell her something.             “Yoona, I have received some news about Siwon!  He’s actually—,” Leeteuk discontinued as he saw Yoona shake her head.             “Leeteuk oppa, I really don’t want to know about him at this moment.  I’m getting married, and it’s not with him.  I really want to forget about my past and move on,” Yoona requested.             Leeteuk swallowed up some of his pride and nodded in agreement.  He hated it that his sister had to grow up so quickly.  She wasn’t supposed to get married at the age of 21.  She wasn’t supposed to get pregnant, and she wasn’t supposed to force herself into a marriage.              The music started as Yoona saw a few flower girls and bearers walk the aisle.  She was nervous as she pulled off a smile.  She needed to look happy.  She saw Taeyang and Yuri walk the aisle together.  They looked sweet together.  Yoona smiled for real to see that maybe her best friend would have a happy life where she actually loved the man she was going to get married to.  Yoona and Leeteuk began to walk the aisle together as the flashing of the cameras continued.  They both held back their own tears.  They both needed to look happy.  Yoona walked by her friends.  Jessica and Sunny were sitting together with Jaebeom and Taecyeon.  They gave her encouraging smiles.  When Yoona walked by her own family, she saw that Heechul was crying his eyes out as Sohee tried to comfort him.  Eunhyuk tried giving her his best smile, but Yoona saw sadness in his eyes.  He knew that she didn’t want to do this.  She then walked by Seunghyun’s family.  She found it weird that she felt comfortable with them.  When they took her in, they took her in with open arms.  Yoona smiled brightly at them.  The moment finally came when Leeteuk had to give up his sister to his enemy, Seunghyun.  Leeteuk let go of Yoona’s hand as he whispered something into Seunghyun’s ear.             “Take good care of her, or else,” Leeteuk warned as he went to sit down on his seat.             Seunghyun just nodded.             In time, the vows were made and the rings were exchanged.  Yoona looked at the wedding band on her finger.  It meant nothing to her.  It didn’t mean anything to him either.             “You may now kiss the bride,” the priest pronounced.             That was the awkward part.  They had never really kissed while they were both sober.  Yoona fidgeted a little with nervousness and Seunghyun stood dumbfounded.  The crowd was waiting and the pressure was on Seunghyun to kiss her.  He encircled her slim waist and bent down to kiss her.  Yoona felt her heart racing.  His lips gently touched hers as she ran her fingers through his hair.  The flashes were going double the speed as the photographers took photos like crazy.  The kiss soon ended as Seunghyun took Yoona’s hand as they both walked out of the church together.  Rice and flower petals were being thrown at them as they laughed together.  They figured to make the best out of the marriage.  They were only going to be married for one year anyways.             Yoona stopped walking as she saw something unbelievable.  Seunghyun looked at her with curiosity and saw that she was looking at a man.  He was interested on who the man was.              Yoona felt as if her heart had stopped beating.  She couldn’t believe that she saw Siwon in front of her.  She was wearing a wedding dress, she was wearing a wedding ring, and she was holding another man’s hand.  Siwon saw the signs as he stood aback with hurt filling his heart.  His hand was in a tight balled up fist as he put his hand into his pocket quickly and took it out.  What was he hiding from Yoona?  Siwon had returned from the army and finds that the love of his life was now married to another man.  He was only gone for two months and she had already moved on.  It hurt him that he finally realized that Yoona was in a wedding dress and he wasn’t the groom.