It's Time

Ga Eul knew somehow that they couldn't stay in that moment forever. It took Yi Jung quite a while to convince her to stand up, since she very much wanted not to let that moment end. But it had to end at one point. It had to end to start a new moment. A new better moment.

There was still very little light at the room, but as Ga Eul stood up, she saw more details of the AVR she never took notice of before. At the very left of the room was the sound booth, with the door the same color as the wall camouflaging the whole thing. Ga Eul guessed that was where Yi Jung was the whole time. It must have been sound proof, too.

And there was something wrong about the room. Ga Eul specifically remembered it a bit more crowded with rows and rows of chairs. She didn't bump into any more chairs when she ran to Yi Jung. She wondered why.

She took a side-way glance at the person beside her who was possessively holding her hand, not that she minded. His features were not well seen in the darkness of the room, but it held at contrast. If Yi Jung was a painting, the artist used a lot of sharp edges here and there, and mostly black and white, with a tinge of brown for his intense gaze at her.

"Ga Eul-yang?" he spoke all too suddenly that she almost jumped. His voice sounded much richer in real life that in the recordings, she thought.

"Yi Jung-ah," she replied, her voice small, in comparison with his confident one.

He took both her hands and stood in front of her. "Do you want to know what could have happened if your birthday went according to plan?"

Ga Eul opened her mouth to answer, but the lights switched off again, cutting her before she could say anything. She felt his hand leave hers and for a second she was afraid. But she gained her composure again when she remembered that this time is going to be better. This time, it's going to be perfect.

"You're going to walk into a room," Yi Jung said. His voice was still there, like he didn't move from where he was a while ago. It was definitely not a recording. "Dark, like this one."

Ga Eul heard footsteps around her. It wasn't just her and Yi Jung anymore. There were more people. It was kind of disappointing to lose their "only them" moment, but it was still Yi Jung's plan. She's going to trust it.

"Then you will hear a recording from me about how much I love you..."

He paused, waiting for her to take that in. She made a little sound, somewhere between a gasp and a choke. He was trying to re-do her birthday. It's what he was doing. Right now. Wasn't it? He led her into a dark room. She heard a recording of his voice...

Music played. Ga Eul wasn't particular as to what song it was, or where she heard it, but she was sure that Yi Jung had walked away from in front of her. Someone else was there.

Someone switched on a light that illuminated that person.

"Woo Bin-sunbae!" she cried mostly in surprise.

He smiled. "Happy birthday, Ga Eul," he said and offered a hand. "May I have this dance?" he asked.

Ga Eul's smile wavered a it as she looked at the hand reluctantly that he added, "Don't worry. Yi Jung won't get jealous I took your first dance," with a laugh. He stopped abruptly as if a new thought was occurring to him. "Or maybe he will," he said, his eyes full of mischief. "Would you dance with me to find out?"

She couldn't help it, because of course she wanted to find out as well, and placed her hand on top of Woo Bin's. He swayed to the music, and she followed his lead. Woo Bin laughed suddenly in the middle of the song that Ga Eul had a feeling that somewhere at the back of this dark room was Yi Jeong, standing, looking murderously at Woo Bin. She had to smile.

The lights switched off without warning and Ga Eul felt Woo Bin's hand leave hers. The music was still playing that she hadn't had time to recover and when the light switched on again, it was Ji Hoo standing in front of her stretching out a hand holding a white rose. Ga Eul smiled gratefully and reached out to take the rose. Ji Hoo whispered, "Happy Birthday, Ga Eul."

Ga Eul was about to say thank you when the lights switched off again. She almost rolled her eyes because everything is getting a little too predictable. She didn't because she was proven wrong when the lights switched on.

"Geum Jan Di?" her surprise was not masked well by the tone of her voice. Jan Di laughed. The person beside Jan Di waved his hand, and Ga Eul thought this was what he looked like in the recording waving his hand. "Jun Pyo-sunbae."

"Ga Eul-ah," Jan Di said. "I'm not going to talk long since everything here is timed," she said, wiggling her eyebrows as if hinting something. "But know that whatever happens, I'm going to support you all the way through. Let's just say someone talked me out of being an overprotective best friend for a change. Also, I think you're old enough to handle yourself in the real world."

"Someone talked you out of being an overprotective best friend?" Ga Eul laughed and hugged Jan Di. "Can I have a guess?"

Jan Di laughed with her as they broke from the hug still holding each other's hands, "No," Jan Di said playfully and dropped Ga Eul's wrists to cross her arms. "I take back saying you're old enough to handle yourself in the real world."

"HEY!"

"You should know that curiosity killed the cat!" Jan Di mused.

Jun Pyo nodded in agreement. "I know this! It was when a person was luring the cat into a trap with a can of tuna..."

Jan Di covered Jun Pyo's mouth with her hand. "Anyway... Even if you're still a kid in some way or another, I think Yi Jeong-sunbae will take care of you no matter what," she said, her voice softening.

The lights went off again before Ga Eul can react and when it turned on, she thought she knew what will happen but she didn't. She absolutely didn't.

"Sheila-unni..."

Sheila smiled shyly at her which seemed alien to Ga Eul. She was so used to seeing Sheila bold and confident but right now, Sheila looked... nothing like herself. Sure she was still wearing a skirt and makeup that screamed Don't mess with me, but it didn't help covering the sorry look in her eyes. "Ga Eulie," she said. She never called Ga Eul like that before. It seemed like an endearment, yet in a careful kind of way. "I can't even begin to tell you how sorry I am..."

"Unni, please, it's ok, it's over," she said. She didn't want to hear it. She didn't want to get plunged back to the past again. To the most painful part of her life. She didn't want anything to remind her of it. She didn't want Sheila to say sorry. She would be lying if she said she forgave Sheila immediately. It was hard, of course. But she'd let go of it. It's over. It's all in the past. Sheila didn't have to say sorry anymore. And yet...

Something in the look in Sheila's eye stopped Ga Eul. "Please, let me just say this, Ga Eul," she pleaded, her voice weak. She paused as if waiting for Ga Eul to stop her. She didn't. Sheila continued, this time in a more louder voice. "I've been obsessing over So Yi Jeong my entire life. That explains my over-possessiveness over him even if he wasn't mine in the first place. Ask Eun Jae. She has a first hand experience," she laughed bitterly, that Ga Eul wanted to place her arms around her. But she stopped. Sheila had to tell her something. She wasn't going to ruin this moment.

"I never really realized I crossed the line. All I thought was about myself. About how to get Yi Jeong, that I never really saw you. I mean," she took a deep breath. "I don't even know you, Ga Eul. I don't know who you are personally. I just know you as the girl who stole Yi Jeong from me," she laughed again, this time with a lighter tone. "It's selfish, I know. But after all that happened I realized that it's not just you I don't know, but Yi Jeong as well. I realized that Yi Jeong just seemed like a prize to me. Something I have to win so I could place him on the shelf with my other trophies. I realized, I was just blinded with my vanity, that I wasn't really in love with Yi Jeong and that it was I that had a problem... and when I saw that, I saw all of you."

Some lights in the room switched on. It was not totally dark anymore, yet it was not bright either. Ga Eul could just see outlines of people around her, silhouettes of them out of the corner of her eyes. She was tempted to look for Yi Jeong all over the place but she stopped herself. She trained her eyes on Sheila. She was going to hear her and understand her. And when this was over, she's going to have Yi Jeong.

"I saw Geum Jan Di and Gu Jun Pyo being the stupidest couple ever, but you just have to love them," she said and all of them laughed. "I saw the white prince Yoon Ji Hoo, and the Mafia Prince slash Don Juan slash Song Woo Bin," there was something about her smile when she said Woo Bin's name. "And I saw you, Chu Ga Eul. I realized just now that you weren't Yi Jeong's type." Ga Eul would have slapped high fives with Sheila if the situation was lighter. She just laughed with her instead. "That you were the Miss Goody-Two-Shoes who loved what she does, and cared for everyone. Yi Jeong didn't like those kinds of girls. The Yi Jeong I knew didn't like those kinds of girls. But I could also see now that Yi Jeong wasn't the Yi Jeong I grew up with. He became more sensitive of the people around him. More aware. More careful... I could almost say he's not the person I grew up with, and I think that's a good thing."

Someone was standing beside Ga Eul now. She was so concentrated on Sheila she didn't even realize everyone walked slowly towards them, towards the middle of the room. The person beside Ga Eul, she could guess who it was even with all her senses down, took her right hand and intertwined it with his.

"And that's the thing I wanted to apologize for. For not seeing this beautiful couple that should never be taken apart," she said, her voice cracking, tears starting to run down her cheeks. "Ever," she managed to choke out.

Ga Eul looked sideways to find Yi Jeong looking at her. Not with passion but with expectation. He wanted her to say something. No. He wanted her to do something. Something only she would be able to do. She nodded in understanding and Yi Jeong released her hand. Ga Eul walked over to Sheila and wrapped her arms around her. Sheila began to cry harder but embraced Ga Eul as well.

"Hey, unni, it's ok. It's all over. I forgive you," she whispered so only Sheila would hear. "Would it be funny if I said thank you that you did all of those?"

Sheila whimpered like she was just hit. Ga Eul tightened her embrace on her. "Because our love was shaken and was proven true. You helped us grow. You helped us realize that love wasn't everything. There's also patience, understanding, forgiveness, trust... We were just kids before experimenting in what the adults were saying about love... but now I think we've matured. Matured enough to really confidently say that we are in love. And that this love is the eternal kind. So thank you, unni. For helping us grow, and right now, for bringing us back together."

Sheila was still sobbing but she felt more comfortable. More at ease. Ga Eul broke the hug with Sheila, took some steps back to where Yi Jeong was still standing. Sheila wiped her face with her hands and smiled more confidently at Ga Eul. She also took some steps back and Ga Eul realized that they were inside their literal circle of friends.

"Happy birthday Ga Eulie," Jan Di said, from Ga Eul's right side.

"Happy birthday," everyone else chorused.

"Happy Birthday, Ga Eul-yang," Yi Jeong whispered.

Ga Eul looked into his eyes that told her more than anything else that he loved her. She remembered first meeting him and seeing nothing, no emotions from these eyes at all. And now, seeing these eyes burn with love for her proves to her more than anything that Yi Jeong loves her from the bottom of his heart. But of course, she still wanted to hear it.

"Say it," she told him.

He drew her closer to himself as if it was just the two of them there. "I love you, Ga Eul-yang," he whispered.

She smiled. "I can't hear it."

He chuckled at her childishness. "I love you," he said, louder this time.

"I can't hear it!" she said stubbornly, a playful smile on her lips.

"I LOVE YOU GA EUL-YANG!" he yelled, his arms spread wide like he was announcing it to the world.

That did it. She took him by the collar and kissed him. Right in front of everybody in that room. She kissed him without regrets, without thinking about anything else besides that fact that she loved this person. This person who put the trouble of surprising her, of taking care of her, of recording all those stupid messages, and talking to her best friend out of being overprotective. This person she was kissing was the person she will be with forever. She was sure of it.

All the lights inside the room switched on and balloons and confetti dropped down on them with everyone singing happy birthday. Music blasted louder, (it didn't stopped playing from a while ago) and Ga Eul realized that food was already served. Then Jan Di and Yeon Neul, who was there the whole time, brought out a cake from the sound booth (Ga Eul had time to wonder how big that room was). They got in the center and Yeon Neul raised the only knife in the room.

"Before this day ends," he said. "I just want you to know, Eulie, that... I was the one who talked to Jan Di out of being an overprotective best friend!" he announced the way a broadcasting team would have announced that Korea won several golds in the Olympics.

"No you weren't," Ga Eul said.

"How can you be so sure?" he asked.

"I'm sure," she smiled and took the knife from him. "I'm also sure that that's not the only thing you want to say."

Yeon Neul chuckled. "Yeah, well," he started. "Just stay happy, ok?"

Ga Eul nodded. "I will," she said. "Thanks, oppa." She sliced the cake and distributed them to everyone in the room.

While everyone was partying, and Yi Jeong and Ga Eul were dancing together in their own personal space, Ga Eul's arms around Yi Jeong's neck and his hands on her waist, Yi Jeong started, almost shyly, "Ga Eul-yang, this was not part of the program but can I ask you something?"

"What is it?"

He took a deep breath. "Will you be my girlfriend?"

She frowned in disappointment. "That's it?"

He laughed. "When did I become so predictable?" he complained.

"Only to me," she smiled. "So, what's the real question?"

He thought for a while. "On second thought, it's not a question after all."

"You're stalling," she said impatiently.

He bent down to kiss her. "Say it, first. Just whisper it, over and over."

She did. And she didn't want to stop. "I love you, Yi Jeong. I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you..."

He placed a finger on her lips to quiet her. "Can I say what I have to say now?"

She nodded.

"Marry me, Ga Eul."

Ga Eul laughed. "That's taking things too fast."

"Let's re-word it then. Be mine forever."

"I'll still marry you, though."

"Oh, you can't be so sure. Reality is so complicated."

Ga Eul laughed. "Tell me about it."

-Fin-

(a/n: This is sweetheartbreaker saying thank you to all those who supported Complicated Reality. :D you mean so much to me! AND AGAIN I AM SORRY FOR THE VERY LATE UPDATE! hihi. hugs and kisses, guys. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Who knows? There might be a sequel. ;) ... or not. Haha. Thanks again. Belated Happy Valentine's Day!)