Daydream

The day has arrived.

Honestly, you felt like everything was a blur, up until this moment.

“I now pronounce you as husband and wife.”

The words wash over you like a rushing wave, and your mind has no other thoughts than the one standing in front of you. Your eyes lock with one another, upon your wife. Your wife. The glare in her brown pupils shimmers brightly under the faint sunlight. Looking further down reminds you of the ungodly amount of time you both took to pick the perfect dress, and even when she had finally found the one, she still worked endlessly with the tailor to make it even more glam for her own sake.

But it all blooms beautifully to this moment. All those hard weeks of planning and spending precious time was worth this day full of joy and love.

With no hesitation, you kiss her. The crowd erupts in cheers and claps for the both of you, and you can hear the slow sob of happiness from your mother, mixing in with the laughter of Jiheon’s father. It’s loud, but all you can feel was the taste of her lips, as familiar as it could be, that same strawberry scented lipstick that she always loves to wear. You pull away and look at her lovingly, resisting the urge to tuck a strand of hair that covers her eyes. You know that the photographer is still snapping away, capturing this exact moment, so you don’t wanna ruin it with your fingers in front of her face.

The reception comes swiftly, with all the guests from before admiring both of your new dashing outfits. Your best man kicks off the event with a speech, surprising you with how much detail he knew about your relationship with Jiheon, even mentioning how panicked you were when you messed up Jiheon’s engagement ring size. Thankfully enough, the ring now perfectly sits with its rightful owner—the woman in that cream dress she loves dearly because it was one of your first Valentine gifts to her—who you can now proudly call as your wife.

Shortly after, both of you are on the small stage, about to cut into your wedding cake. Specially made by your sister, the strawberry cake melts in your mouth as Jiheon feeds it to you, smiling and laughing brightly when some icing got onto your nose. You will never forget that eyesmile and that sweet laughter of hers when you put a little icing on her own nose, with the audience swooning over your shenanigans.

Your first dance went terribly—both of you were off-rhythm, your feet and legs keeps getting tangled with each other, your heads would bump as you turn her around—but all of that didn’t matter. How she rests against your chest and wrapped up in your arms, swaying to the soothing music has made it into a precious moment that you’ll remember until the end.

After a few more songs passed, you let Jiheon continue her dance with her mother while you make your way to the bar. The bartender hands you a bourbon, and you watch your wife enjoying herself in the moment from afar. Your heart feels the warmth of pure satisfaction and relief, finally being able to tie up another chapter in your life, especially with the one that has changed your life for the better. Without Jiheon, you definitely wouldn’t be the man that you are today. As you look upon that silver ring on your finger, that perfect, complete sense of rightness fills your mind, reminiscing every choice that you’ve ever made in order to be in this exact moment.

Suddenly, as you were deep into your feels, a familiar face comes into your view.

You look to your left and sees Chaeyoung holding up two bottles of champagne in front of you. “Hey, Wooyoung, help me pick a champagne! Should I go with Moët, or Veuve?”

“Wha—” Before you can answer, your vision starts getting blurry.

In the midst of your confusion, Chaeyoung’s voice rings in your ear, “Wooyoung? Choi Wooyoung? Helloooo?”

You blink a few times. Your sense finally comes back into your body.

“Yah, Choi Wooyoung! Are you listening?”

The bar vanishes. The bright dance floor dims out. All of the guests disappears in the middle of their dance, and suddenly, you’re in the campus’s cafeteria, with students flocking all over having their lunch and enjoying their break. In front of you was still Chaeyoung however, not in her black dress, but in a green sweater, and a spoon in her hand instead of the champagne, looking at you confusingly. Your heart pounds fast, like you just finished running a marathon, while the mind is deciphering what just happened to you.

Your voice comes out rough. “I’m sorry?”

Chaeyoung sighs, “I asked about what champagne I should get for my sister’s wedding, Moët, or Veuve. Then you just stared at me blankly, like you just saw a ghost.”

You shake your head a little, trying to shake of the lingering feeling of Jiheon’s hand in yours, and the weight of a wedding ring that isn’t there.

Another voice comes from your right, “Are you okay, oppa?”

The girl in your daydream appears now in real life, not as your wife, but currently as your girlfriend of two years. Jiheon looks at you with concern in her eyes, and she asks the question again, this time holding your arm. You notice the empty spot on her ring finger almost immediately. For a second, you swear you can still see the diamond ring there—but alas, it is nothing of a future memory that you will look forward into making it a reality.

You take her hand into yours. “I’m fine, honey. Just blacked out for a bit there.”

Chaeyoung snickers, “Assignment’s getting to you already? You should take a break man, you’ve been working a lot.”

“Aww, you actually care about me? That’s new,” you reply.

She rolls her eyes. “Hey, whatever happens to you would break that girl’s heart, you know.” Chaeyoung says, pointing at Jiheon with her spoon.

Jiheon suddenly realizes something and looks at her watch. “Uhh unnie, don’t you have a date with Ren soon by the way?”

Chaeyoung’s eyes widen, and at the same time, her phone lights up. “Oh shit!”

And with that, laughter breaks from both of you, seeing how Chaeyoung struggles to finish her meal, stuffing all her belongings into her bag and running for her life to her date. As you watch her leave the cafeteria, you decide that it is time to go back to your apartment as you had finished all of your classes for the day. Jiheon agrees, as she also wants to cook dinner for today, so you help her pack her things, and make your way back home.

The walk to your apartment is rather calm. It was raining earlier, so the surroundings are a good mix of cold and warmth. Your mind tries to ignore it, but the daydream earlier felt too real for you. Hope starts to build within you, confident that the daydream will eventually be a reality. Though your natural skeptic instincts starts to flood your mind as well—like what if your parents suddenly disagree with your choice? What if your timing wasn’t right? What about the funding for the wedding, will you have enough?

Seeing how spaced out you were opted Jiheon to tug your arm for your attention. “Oppa, you’re doing it again.”

You immediately snapped out of your trance. “Huh? What did I do?”

She pokes her finger on your cheek. “That face. You’re thinking too much.”

“Oh. You saw it huh?”

Jiheon sighs, “How would I not?”

You snicker, “It’s nothing really. I’ve just been daydreaming a lot, I guess.”

“Like with Chaeyoung unnie earlier?” You nod. “What did you dreamt about?”

“It’s… a little embarrassing honestly,” you start. “But it’s definitely not bad per se.”

“Well then tell me!”

“So um, I thought about us, in this garden, having a…” You hesitate, but quickly enough, you finish off your words. “Our wedding together.”

Jiheon stops, which brings you to a stop as well. Her eyes brightens. “Whaaaaat?! Our wedding? Tell me more, tell me more!”

You smile at her reaction, and continue the walk. “Well, I just remember seeing how mom was crying out and how your dad laughed at how badly I messed up my speech. A lot of cameras, like a lot. Ren gave a speech at the reception too.”

“Did we have a cake?” she asks.

“We do. It was a strawberry cake from my sis. Then we had that dance—we were terrible at it, but you kept laughing out loud everytime you stepped on my shoes.”

Jiheon laughs, “You are the one that has a stiff body!”

“Blame Ren for making me burn my abs in training.”

“Well, I see nothing wrong with your dreams oppa. What got you so tensed up then?”

You blink a few times and starts fumbling your words. “Honestly, it’s just—hm… I—maybe,”

“Oppa.” Jiheon says steadily.

“Yeah?”