Call Me Noona

Chapter 29 - My Love (Mature)

We ordered our furniture, including a display shelf for his whale collection, and arranged delivery of everything. I called Nikki and asked her to ship my things over. It was mostly my clothes and art supplies, but there were a few sentimental things as well. I had everything organized in her basement, so we just needed someone to come pick it up and send it off. I sent her the money and she got it handled. She was really excited about the wedding, especially when I told her that she could pick out her own style of dress... as long as it was scarlet red.

I also asked SeoYeon if she would be able to fly over. She was the next closest friend that I had. She said she would be honored and would most certainly attend and asked if Shownu would be there. I told her that he would be the one escorting her in the ceremony and I thought she was going to shatter glass with her squeal. I think she was more excited about seeing Shownu than my getting married.

We had already started the process of getting all the paperwork in order so that we could register our marriage, as it takes a few days for everything to be ready. In Korea, you file and process your paperwork, register the marriage, then you have your ceremony. Registering and the ceremony can be months apart, and the ceremony is purely for appearances. Mostly for the parents in many cases. It is common for marriages to be an arrangement between two families, although 'love marriage' has become more popular in recent years. Ours was definitely the latter.

In Korea, you have an officiant and possibly a Master of Ceremonies, but it is just a ceremony. Usually they are people close to the couple. This is different than in the US where the ceremony is binding and has to be officiated by a person licensed to conduct weddings. Therefore, when we registered the marriage we would actually be married. Our paperwork had been cleared and we were ready. Valentine's Day was right around the corner, so I suggested we do it then. He loved that idea.

We got the papers signed on the apartment and it was now our new home. The furniture arrived and we started moving his things up from the dorm downstairs. I just had my clothes and Minggom until my stuff arrived from Atlanta.

We did a bit of painting and decorating, we hung photographs, and we displayed trophies and other items from his career. Kihyun helped me organize the kitchen, and the furniture arrived. We set up our studio, one side for me and the other for him, and arranged our bedroom. We left a blank space over the fireplace for our wedding portrait, which would be along in a couple of months. We bickered a little over what went where, but then we made up after. We started finding things to bicker over just so we could make up.

We decided that we would wait until we were officially married to move in. It was only a couple more days, so we knew we could hold on. It would be symbolic of the beginning of our life together. Minhyuk gave me a beautiful crystal crane, which is a traditional gift that the groom presents to the bride. It represents a husband's fidelity to his wife. We placed it on the mantel where it caught the light from the massive windows. When the sunlight hit just right during the day, tiny rainbows shot out around the room from its facets.

Valentine's Day morning, I woke up at Halmeoni's and he woke up in the dorm, just like most mornings. I had taken the day off, but he had a schedule that morning that he could not change. He told me that he would come by Halmeoni's at lunchtime and we would go to the district office from there. This was our last breakfast together, and Halmeoni was a little sad. Harabeoji tried to remind her that he was always there, and she just waved her hand at him. He grinned at her and went back to his paper. After we cleaned up breakfast, I went to pack up my things.

EunJin had helped me with a dress to wear for the occasion. I wanted to feel special but not overdressed, since it was basically a visit to the courthouse. It was pale ivory silk with simple lines that flowed into a slightly flared tea-length skirt. It zipped up the back and had a classic, elegant style. It was perfect for an elegant dinner or event. I spun around in the mirror and watched as the skirt fluttered like butterflies around my knees. I felt very feminine and sexy. I stood in front of the full-length mirror and looked at myself. I realized that I looked happy. Gone was the vacant look in my eyes and the shadows underneath them. The smile had returned to my face and the light to my life. I wrapped my arms around myself and squeezed, imagining that I was hugging Minhyuk. I was getting married today... to a man I had dreamed about for years and never imagined I could be with. I was getting married to a man who held my heart in his hand. I was getting married to my soulmate.