Prompt:
Close friends Yejin and Bin, still single at 38.
-
Bin was going through the financial reports of the previous quarter when his phone beeped. He took a peak and saw that it was a group chat of his friends— oldest friends back in college.
Realizing the urgency of his report due tomorrow, he turned his phone in silent, thinking that whatever they were saying in that chat wasn't that significant. Maybe Hyo Jin sent another photo of her puppy, Bin thought.
His phone was silent, but the light from his phone kept turning on whenever they sent a message. There are 8 people in that group, just imagine how chaotic that was.
He was about to turn his phone upside down when he caught a glimpse of Hyo Jin's message, written in all caps and involved a lot of exclamation points.
It read, "D DAMSEL IS IN DISTRESS AGAIN!!!!!!!!!"
Bin sighed, now that he accidentally read that, there was no way he's not gonna reply. He closed his laptop and went out of his apartment, ready to assume the role of her knight in shining armor.
It's not as if he'd let this damsel stay in distress and do nothing to haul her out of it.
-
She was the first person he saw in the middle of a very busy pub, clutching her bottle of soju in her chest as if holding on to dear life. She stood out, as always, because as everyone drank their sojus in shots, she was chugging hers straight out of the bottle.
Crazy woman.
"Bin!" Hyo Jin called. He saw Yejin turn her head in his direction and waved at him. Bin saw the redness in her cheek as her eyes were, and a little sore from what he could guess as crying.
He sat on the empty seat that she reserved for him as he greeted everyone on their table.
Hyo-Jin, Yoon-ah, Yejin, Ji Sub, and Dong Wook were already settled in the table. Their other friends, Gong Yoo and Ji Won are absent. Bin would've been too, if only this damsel wasn't in distress.
After they all greeted Bin, they all continued with the matter at hand: A crying Yejin, who is again basking on the sad fact that she's still single. Nothing new.
Bin just shook his head. They have known each other for two decades now, and even if they were a relatively close-knit group, Yejin and Bin are the closest ones.
Yejin wrapped her arms in his bicep, and leaned her head on his shoulder, "Bin!!!! What is wrong with me?"
"Nothing's wrong with you, Yejin." Bin replied, tucking in the loose strands of her hair in her ear.
Everyone in the table didn't react and made no effort to stop Bin, because everyone has an idea of what's going on between Yejin and Bin, besides of course, Yejin and Bin.
Ji Sub made him drink two shots to keep up with their drinking session.
Yoon-Ah said, "Yejin's relationship with her past boyfriends didn't work out, she's practically numb by now." Hyo jin continued that statement, ".. and it wasn't that serious for anyone she's been with."
"Ya! I'm still here!"
"Just stating facts here, dear. Am I wrong?"
"Still!" Yejin said, who had gulped her soju straight from the bottle, "I'm the only one single in here, I'm gonna die alone. I'm literally a damsel, do you know that?"
Yejin, who had impeccable knowledge in words because of her job as a writer said, "a damsel, noun, literally young unmarried woman,"
"Then you're not a damsel," Dong Wook said, joking to try to ease his friend's sadness, "because you're not young anymore."
Instead of laughing, Yejin sobbed, "Don't you think I know that? I'm 38 and single! The only single one in this group."
"Ya, I'm still single too." Bin said, and Yejin once again wrapped herself in his arms and leaned in his shoulder.
"Oh. Yes. My Ahjussi is still single too."
"Ahjumma, don't be sad." Bin said in his attempt to make her smile.
Yejin raised her hand to call the attention of the waiter for another bottle of Soju. Ji-Sub said, "Ahjumma Yejin, just playing the devil's advocate here- have you ever thought that maybe, just maybe, you're the problem?"
Yejin smirked. "Hey, Ji-Sub! I'm beautiful! I'm intelligent! I'm kind! I'm freaking 34, 24, 35! Why am I still single at 38? What is there to look for?"
"Maybe you were the one who was looking for something else in your past boyfriends?" Hyo-Jin said, dropping truth bombs.
Yejin heaved a sigh, as much as she agreed to what she said, it was better for her to act clueless in this situation, "what do you mean?"
"Maybe you were expecting them to be someone they're not." Hyo Jin looked at Yejin, then turned her gaze at the man beside her, giving her friend a clue.
Yejin just gave a small smile and shut her eyes, knowing damn well what she's talking about.
Everyone was silent, as all of them felt tipsiness because of binge-drinking.
A drunk Yoon-Ah said to Bin and Yejin, "Oh! Didn't you guys have an agreement? That the both of you will just get married when you're still single at 40?"
Yejin and Bin looked at each other and laughed, remembering that drunken moment 10 years ago when they made the agreement. Yejin joked, "We still have 2 years left."
"Why wait? Just get married already." A drunk Hyo-Jin said, reaching out to where she is seated to push Yejin to Bin.
"You know what? She's right. Why don't we just get married?" Yejin said, looking at Bin for his response. He can see the redness in her flushed cheek and her mesmerizing eyes.
He just laughed and chugged down his shot, "You're kidding, right?"
"Of course not!" By now, everyone in the table was rowdy except for Bin who's obviously flustered by what the drunk Yejin just suggested.
He gulped another shot of soju.
Bin was getting tipsier by the minute, and their friends' drunken cheers weren't helping his line of thought.
The soju gave him a confidence boost and decided to play along. Besides, he's sure that this is just playful banter with him and Yejin.
"Are you sure you don't want to wait until you're 40, Ahjumma Yejin?" Bin bit his lip to stifle his laugh, "What if someone comes along and you're already married to me? As far as I can remember our terms, we said we couldn't divorce."
Yejin turned to him as she was challenging him, "I remember that, Ahjussi. No divorce. That's fine with me." she continued, "..and no, nothing will make me change my mind about you, future husband."
She even pouted her lips at him.
By now, Dong Wook had departed.
"..and I'll do the dishes on Monday Wednesday, Friday." Bin said, who no longer pays attention to anyone else but Yejin and their little reminiscing.
"Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday is my day." She said, now leaning on his shoulder, "On Sundays, we dine out."
Bin nodded, and his lips formed into a smile.
Yoon-Ah had also bid her goodbye.
Yejin changed seats, such as they're now seated across from each other. Still deep in the haze of their conversation, they didn't realize their two remaining friends smiling at the sight of the both of them.
"I also remembered saying in our terms that we will travel to at least one country per year."
"Ohhhh... that. Yes." Bin smiled, as the thought of himself and his closest friend traveling together in a foreign land must be really nice.
"Where do you want to go, Bin?"
"Anywhere you want, Yejin."
She paused to think, mumbling soft 'mmmmm' as she put her index finger in her cheek.
"How about Greece?"
Ji-Sub and Hyo-Jin looked at each other and decided to leave the two alone. It's not as if Yejin and Bin haven't wandered to their own world anyway— the two were talking about the "terms" of their potential marriage for almost 2 hours already. By now, the tipsy Yejin is already booking a flight for 2 on her phone.
"When are you free for our trip?" Yejin asked.
"I have a presentation to work on for this week. Maybe we can travel the week after next?" He said, laughing for no reason at all. The soju must have kicked by this time.
Alone in their table, facing across each other, Yejin and Bin stared at one another as they poured another shot of soju.
"Shall we get married tomorrow?" He asked playfully.
"Okay!" Yejin said instantly, "but hey, ask properly! I'm a lady!"
He laughed. The tipsy Bin stood up and went to her side. He then kneeled on the very dirty floor of the pub and said, "Will you marry me, Son Ye Jin-ssi?"
By now, Yejin couldn't even control her giggles as she nodded.
The drunk 'engaged' couple just sat side by side, talking about everything and sweet nothings. He offered his shoulder to her so she can comfortably rest while they talk.
She fiddled with her hands as she fought her inner self not to say the words she's been wanting to for the past years of her life.
Little did she know, the owner of the shoulder she's leaning on is having the same battle.
"You're fiddling with your hands again. Why are you nervous, Yejin-ah?"
"You know me too well, don't you?" She moved her head so she could see his face.
"I haven't known anyone as much as I know you." He replied as he returned her stare. Their faces are dangerously close, inches away from each other.
Here goes nothing.
Yejin leaned. Bin leaned. It was a very slow process of both of them leaning towards each other's lips.
One.
Two.
Three.
Yejin took the last lean before their lips met. He slowly brushed his lips against hers. They wondered why they have denied themselves of this for all these years— this perfect, languid and comfortable kiss, as if the place where they truly belong is beside each other. He was definitely sure that her kisses intoxicated him, not the bottles of soju he just drank.
No, it was really her.
The sweet taste of her lips with the hint of flavored peach and her signature scent that she wore for almost ten years are driving his sanity away. The kiss reminded him of Christmas morning— it was cozy, it was comfortable, it was home.
At that moment, when he kissed her softly and delicately, nothing mattered but each other. The lines that separated them blurred, as it became unsure where he ended and where she began. The world around them instantly melted away. For both of them, they weren't in a pub. The loud noise of the bar was drowned by that faint sound their lips made.
....but he had to pull away. As if the kiss had sobered him up as fast as it intoxicated her.
"Oh god, I'm sorry Yejin-ah I'm—"
"I love you, Bin." she said, cutting him off.
He reminded himself that this is the soju talking, and taking what she's saying seriously would be the same as taking advantage of her.
He cannot do that to his damsel.
"Why aren't you saying something?" She said, hurt evident in her eyes as she felt like she misunderstood his actions and her love was really unrequited.
"..because if I did say something, I'll say that I love you, Son Ye Jin. more than you could ever imagine. For years now." He stared at her, "but you're drunk and you—"
She kissed him again to shut him up.
"Being drunk doesn't change the fact that I've been in love you since time immemorial, you stupid idiot."
He stared at her with that deep brown eyes. Is this real? Is this not a figment of his imagination? Bin's feelings in his heart are overpowering the logical pull of his brain.
He didn't want to tell her his feelings because he didn't want to lose their friendship.
Little did he know, she was feeling the same thing. What they have as close friends is too good to gamble on. The writer in Yejin hit her in the head for materializing one of the most used plot lines in her world: the refusal to admit one's feelings because of the fear of losing the friendship.
But now that Yejin has decided to drive her life away from that plotline, they couldn't be more happy.
"I love you too, dense ahjumma."
Yejin sported that lovely smile of hers. Bin was never poetic. He was a stoic straight-forward kind of guy, but when she saw that smile— that damned smile— it felt like all the feelings in the world rolled into one. He immediately knew he could write a book to describe how beautiful that smile is.
-
As she held his hand and dragged him along the empty streets of Seoul at 1:00 AM, he selfishly wished the sun won't ever rise. Because he is afraid that her full sobriety would mean the end for this little euphoria of theirs.
Walking along the Hangang Park in Seoul, she said, "Pinch my hand. I need to know that the alcohol isn't making this up."
Bin tightened his grip on her hand, "I'm real."
He tucked the loose strands of her hair in her ear and asked, "Are you still drunk?"
"Just tipsy."
Bin is, too. But he fought it to be sober enough to keep a record of this precious moment in his mind.
"If I had the guts to tell you how I felt years ago.." Bin stopped to ask her, "life would have been really different for us, don't you think?"
Yejin dragged him to the bench and they sat there, overlooking the Han river as they talked about what could have been. "I think I'll definitely be way happier than I am now."
"Me too."
"I think we would've fought a lot as a couple in their late 20s." Yejin said as she giggled.
"Definitely. With that pride of yours?" He teased, and he immediately got almost 10 hits from her with that comment. He put his arm around her and continued, "I would have asked you to marry me when we were 34."
"I would've been pregnant with our first child at 35."
"Second one at 36." She looked at him, and fought hard not to get lost in his eyes.
"Second and third." he corrected, "We're definitely aiming for twins."
She nodded with a big smile on her face. How she wished all of it were true.
"I would've been a great wife, Bin. I would've support you in pursuing what you really want to do." Bin let out a bitter smile. He always wanted to become a professional photographer, but circumstances just didn't allow him to pursue his passion. She joked, "Now as your fiancée, I can still support you, right? You should do it, Bin."
"I'd be happy to, Jagiya." Bin took out his phone and stood up. He went in front of her as he raised his phone's camera, taking a photo of her. With only the lamppost as the source of light, he knew he didn't need anything else, because she was already a light in herself.
For him, at least.
"What are you doing?" She said in between laughs as he continued snapping candid photos of her.
"I'm doing what i really want to do," he said, angling the camera in another direction, "..with my favorite subject."
She couldn't hide her smile anymore.
"Come here," Bin held out his hand for her to take, and she did so within seconds. He led her to the railing as the cold breeze from the Han river hit their faces. The air was helping in relieving her tipsiness, but his scent was intoxicating her once again. She leaned on the railing, and she felt his presence at her back when he wrapped her in an embrace.
"Why did it take us so many years to found ourselves in each other's arms?" Yejin said. Bin felt her arms on top of his, as if she was hugging back his arms.
"I was just waiting for you." Bin said softly, kind of like a whisper in her ear that made her weak.
"I WAS JUST WAITING FOR YOU." She replied back.
Bin and Yejin stood there in silence, the tipsiness brought by the soju slowly waning. It was already 4:16 in the morning, and she can already feel the exhaustion and the need for sleep after a long night of binge-drinking. Bin must have felt it too, because as much as he doesn't want this perfect moment to end, he was concerned for her rest so he offered to take her back to her apartment.
Yejin shook her head, but shared his sentiments on not wanting this to end. "I don't want to be alone tonight."
He stared at her.
"Bin, can I stay with you?" He nodded.
But just like that, their perfect euphoria ended.
-
The sun rose at 5:26 am today. He was well aware of everything.
Bin didn't sleep, he just stared at her face for the remainder of their time together, knowing that once she wakes up, she'll have blurry memories of last night, and they will again be back as two individual entities rather than one.
When Yejin woke up, a coffee was already waiting for her, ready to save her from the curse of her hangover's splitting headache.
Bin stared at her as she sipped her hot coffee. Bin didn't know how to react in front of her. Should he act like nothing happened? Should he bring it up?
"Don't you have a report due today?" She asked.
He decided to drop little hints of last night and try to feel out her reaction. "Report? No. I'm getting married today."
And so the defense mechanism for all of this is to joke around, knowing that she'll have a blurry memory of last night.
Or so he thought.
He looked at her just as how he did for the past ten years— from apart. so close, yet so far. He looked at her while she was fumbling over his kitchen. Her reaction to what he said was unfathomable. He can't quite figure if she's shocked, or if she remembers something about the two of them being 'engaged'.
"Ohh, yeah." Yejin said as she wore that lovely smile as warm as the morning sun, "Could you drop me at home? I should at least get a white dress. A bride has to be pretty on her wedding day, right?"
Bin couldn't be more happy that she took the first step. Being the ever gentleman, he wanted to be sure that she's comfortable about everything.
Including their relationship.
Especially their relationship.
"Well then I need to go to the mall first. I need to buy my bride a ring."
Bin went to her and wrapped her in his embrace as they kissed. Completely sober and completely in love.
Maybe the damsel was not really in distress, she's just lonely waiting for her one true love that has been by her side all this time.