Soft Landing With You ( a 'Crash Landing on You' fanfic)

When the Music Fades...

Jeong Hyuk looked across from him to the sleepy face of his girlfriend. She was fast asleep, cozy in the warmth of the car and the throw pillow she refused to let go of. This was their routine in the last few days since they met again. He would come over in the evening and they would have dinner, watch a movie, play music on the piano, or like they did last night, take a drive and chat about anything and everything. When they returned, Seri refused to go inside so he went in took some sustenance, a throw pillow and a blanket and drove them to a hill where they could watch the sunrise.

It was surreal. From meeting again at the top of the hill to dinner later that day at Seri's house where had talked about their lives in the last three years like they were updating each other about the other's lives. Jeong Hyuk was so proud of Seri who had worked on her relationship with her mum. As he sat there, a proud look on his face, gazing at the face of his beloved as the sun slowly lit the sky; it feels like a dream. Well, if it is, he thought as Seri came to wakefulness because of the sudden light hitting her face, I never want to wake up.

"What time is it?" Seri said, her voice raspy with sleep. She stretched to get the kinks out and looked over. "It's 6:15" Jeong Hyuk replied, the intense look of doting in his eyes made Seri blush, look away and get down from the car. Jeong Hyuk joined her some minutes later with a blanket and water. "Here" He said, handing a bottle of water. She thanked him, received it and he leaned against the car, joining her. He leaned over and placed the blanket around her shoulders, mumbling about being careful of the cold.

He had being up for an hour now from a bad dream. He dreamt that his reality was a dream and when he woke up and saw Seri by his side, he refused to go back to sleep. He had some time to think in that while and it made him realize that although they had talked about everything and anything, they had been avoiding discussing the practicality of a relationship between the two of them. The problem with that really, was his fault so he should step forward with his plans first.

"About the concert this evening" Ri Jeong Hyuk started, a far away look in this eyes, "you could say the performance this evening is an audition of sorts. I applied to get my doctorate at the Bern School of Music. I'm considering working as a music lecturer at my alma mater. In the alternative, I can work as an art emissary or a military liaison at the North Korean embassy in Bern. Working at the embassy though, my life may be under more surveillance but it's more stable with less of a chance to be recalled home. For me," Jeong Hyuk turns to Seri, looking into her eyes, "more time with you is more important."

Seri met his eyes and felt a surge of emotions and quickly looked away and cleared her throat. "I'm considering appointing a vice president of Seri's Choice so  I can spend more time in Switzerland. I will set up a home office here to keep monitoring things." She says, and smiles at Jeong Hyuk. "I may have to travel a couple times a year but I'll be based here. At some point, Seri's Choice may expand to Switzerland. It's already in Europe."

Seri reaches out to Jeong Hyuk and hugs him, encouraging him, "I believe in you, I know you will do well tonight. All your hard work will pay off." I don't know why, Jeong Hyuk thought, she is tiny but when she hugs me, I feel like I'm wrapped in the warmest blanket on the coldest day of the year.
"Besides," Seri followed, a knowing smile on her face, "I will come to the hotel later... To celebrate with you."

****
With a final note, Jeong Hyuk ended his performance to a standing ovation. He rose and bowed, receiving flowers. His was the final performance of the evening; earlier there had been a cello solo, a student from Seri's sponsorship program and the orchestra before his piano piece. The performances were complimentary, each magnificent in its own way.

While relaxing and receiving guests in his rest area, his favorite professor from school came in and introduced Jeong Hyuk to some of his professor friends from the Bern School of Music; Jeong Hyuk had applied for his doctorate program at the school. Their conversation was cheerful and they complimented him on his performance and set up an appointment with him for the following day.  While changing, Assistant Ha, his Father's secretary that had followed him on this trip reports that they will have to leave ahead of schedule and they will not be attending the after party. Ri Jeong Hyuk sighed, disappointed but not surprised. He met with the organizers and made his excuses before getting in the car and returning to the hotel.

The trip home was silent. Jeong Hyuk, left to his thoughts, played with the ring box his mother gave to him. He had planned to take Seri to the penthouse of the hotel where the concert took place and propose; they were fewer North Koreans monitoring that place. With the change in plans, he told Manager Hong (Seri was swamped with people) that he will text Seri, but Manager Hong should tell her that he left early. Jeong Hyuk sighed, even his first proposal was a bust.

At some point, Assistant Ha congratulated him and handed him a phone to read a message from his father. Jeong Hyuk smiled at the thoughtful action until he noticed the last line on the message was "buckle up". Jeong Hyuk lost his smile as  a trail of ice ran down his spine. He met Assistant Ha's eyes and he nodded at Jeong Hyuk while putting on his seat belt. Just as he heard the seat belt click, the car careened, ran into a flint and stumbled, taking out the metal edge of the road.
Jeong Hyuk's last thought before his shut his eyes were,
Mum, if regrets were a glass of water, mine is running over....