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Songhwa slowly opens her eyes as she stirs awake from her unintentional nap. She looks around and realises that she is already in bed at Ikjun's guestroom. She stretches both her arms, and a small yawn escapes her mouth. Deciding to enjoy the sweet caress of the fluffy bed for a few seconds, she tries to recall how did she end up in her current state.
"I must have fallen asleep while reading on the couch. Then that goofball transferred me here." She says to herself.
The couple decided to just chill at Ikjun’s apartment since Uju is still in Changwon. They wished to spend quality time with each other for the first time in weeks that they both got the weekend off. Fate has decided to play tricks on them as they had conflicting schedule days after they became an official item.
"Well, it is fine. As long as it is going to last only for days and not 22 years." They both laughed at their inside joke.
She is feeling giddy at the thought of her caring boyfriend when she decides to leave the bed and find him. Slipping her dancing feet to her house shoe, she wonders what he is up to.
And as if on cue, a slow and familiar melody reaches her eardrums that made her stop in her tracks.
"Seolma... He must be kidding." Despite knowing the song even with just a couple of plays of piano keys, Songhwa still hopes to be mistaken. Several beats after, her suspicion was confirmed when she hears the voice of Cho Jung-Hyun singing.
🎶 My sad sea 🎶
She cannot help but shake her head and chuckle. She proceeds to find her way out of the room while the song is still playing.
🎶 I can see the sea from here
To most, the sea is a place 🎶
The neurosurgeon reaches the living room and looks for his boyfriend's so-called Bluetooth speaker. He must be playing it through that, she thinks. She rummages the area but to no avail. Deciding to just look for the culprit, she scans her surroundings and finds her man's back in the kitchen. He is cooking something that she presumes to be rose tteokbokki. Their current favorite snack.
🎶 Full of fond memories
Making the sea more beautiful but
This sea I've returned to 🎶
Songhwa takes her steps towards her man. And as she approaches Ikjun, she hears that he is singing to its tune while still oblivious of her presence. She is about to confront him about his sad song choice when the lyrics suddenly strike something in her heart.
🎶 Because of the sad memory
Of you leaving
Make me feel alone 🎶
Upon realising the song's still effect on her up to these days, a wave of emotions suddenly hit her. The old heartache brought about by her first love to which she burned her youth, the yearning she forced herself to live by, and the eventual acceptance of unrequited feelings. But now that they have reached the same page, her world revolves around their reignited but all-new love. All these feelings come crushing her in a flash, and it feels like her heart is going to burst soon. So, she decides to slip her hands to his sides, and gives him her warmest back hug. She puts her chin on his shoulder and embraces him tight. Hoping to express all the affections she cannot put into words, she firmly presses her body against him.
Ikjun is startled to say the least, but he resolves not to show it. Because Songhwa, it was Chae Songhwa who initiated a back hug. A first for them. A first of many, he wishes. It is a gesture that he never thought she would do early in the relationship but of course, is very much welcome.
He responds to her by placing his hand on top of her and holds her tightly. He then spins her around for a proper hug that lasts a little bit longer. It is his way of telling her that,
I have longed for you.
I have missed you.
And I have waited for you so let me savor this moment.
But as goofy as he is, he chooses to say "Oh, there you are my sweet big munchkin. You are finally awake. It must be the smell of the food, right? Are you hungry?" He jests.
🎶The sad sea wants to keep me at bay.
On the other side, even if your smile
Seems to have
Forgotten me
If only I could 🎶
A few lines have gone by, but Songhwa has yet to utter a single word. Instead, she fixes her gaze on him while holding him tight. If he is to look closely, he would see the tears that threaten to escape her eyes. And he does, because he is Lee Ikjun, the ever-attentive partner.
🎶 Love you once more 🎶
Moved by her sudden show of emotions, he closes the small gap between them by putting his lips on her.
🎶 You may miss me and return
My sad sea
My heart is weary
The place I can find reprieve
My sad sea 🎶
As the tteokbokki sauce along with the rice and fish cakes are gradually boiling, Songhwa and Ikjun are kissing. He opens his lips and glides his tongue to her mouth to ask for access, to which she eagerly responds. Feeling the need to be so close to her without even the slightest distance, Ikjun places his hand at the nape of her neck to deepen the kiss. He is about to turn his head to the other side, when he suddenly remembers that this could escalate into something if he does not stop. The last thing he would want is to make her uncomfortable, so he settles for a kiss on the nose. When they pull apart, they intensely gaze at each other. Eyes having a conversation of their own. At that moment, her love for him grows deeper as she sees the restraint on his face. Thus, Songhwa decides that she will show him her mutual desire. But before she can even tip her toes to reach for him, Ikjun already cups her face with both hands and kisses her forehead. A forehead kiss that did not last too long for her liking. But why does it feel like his lips still linger? She muses.
Ikjun playfully pokes his finger into the tip of her nose. He tells her to wait in the dining table so he can prepare their snack. Songhwa follows his advice and takes her seat as she awaits.
🎶 The sad sea wants to keep me at bay
On the other side, even if your smile
Seems to have 🎶
He serves the tteokbokki on the table and settles himself in front of her. She immediately stuffs her mouth with food and he could only smile at her antics. My girlfriend is indeed a piggy! What a great tandem she would be with Uju. I must prepare my pockets. He humors himself as he cannot contain his happiness. His thoughts are disturbed when he hears her ask a question.
"Ya, what's with the song choice? Are you sad?"
"Huh, what choice?'
Eventually realising what she meant. He reverts,
"Ahh, Songhwa-ya it was the radio. I was listening to it while cooking when the DJ picked the song because of a story he just read from a certain sender. It was not me. And besides, what is wrong with Sad Sea?" He has the audacity to animatedly raise both his eyebrows at her, which he immediately puts down when he comprehends that she is serious.
🎶 Forgotten me
If only I could
Love you once more 🎶
As they both turn mute, only the sad melody and the message of the song can be heard in the room. When the singer reaches the song's bridge with the highest pitch, their calm facade masks their emotions at their peak.
🎶 If only I could
Love you once more🎶
Breaking their silence, Ikjun then opens his mouth and mutters, "You already know that I practiced Sad Sea with my guitar all throughout our freshman year."
Still hearing no response from her but seeing her eyes fixed expectantly on him, he continues.
"It is because of my first love. The love I desperately buried deep to the deepest part of my heart. The one that was stopped before it even started. Before I could even...
confess to you Songhwa-ya." He reveals while looking intently at her.
She is once again overwhelmed with emotions as evidently shown by a tinge of red on her nose. She wants to silence him, afraid that her dam of tears might be opened if he persists. But she only manages to call his name.
"Ikjun...."
He extends his arm to caress her cheek and comfort her. His eyes, that shine at the sight of the love of his life, wish to tell her that he is well. They are well, so all is well.
🎶 If only I could
Love you once more 🎶
"Songhwa-ya, I am really ecstatic as I share this moment with you. Even with Sad Sea as our background." He even pulls a joke. "Thinking about the past does not hurt me anymore. I am just glad that I was given a chance to love you once more in this lifetime. I will never let you go."
🎶 You may miss me and return
My sad sea
My heart is weary
The place I can find reprieve
My sad sea 🎶
Ikjun stands from his seat and sits beside Songhwa to hug her. Her girlfriend is now a crying mess due to his declaration of love. But in his eyes, she could not be more breathtakingly beautiful than this. He wipes the tears that keep on falling from her eyes.
🎶 My sad sea
My heart is weary
The place I can find reprieve
My sad sea
My sad sea
My sad....
My sad.....
My sad sea......
My sad.... 🎶
She is still hugging him when he whispers,
"Do you want to know another secret, Songhwa-ya?"
She pulls back her arms so she can directly look at him as she nods.
"You are no longer my sad sea. You are now my ocean of love. My love for you is as vast and as deep as the oceans. They say that humans have yet to discover the ends of it. And, I do not think that I would too with respect to my love for you. You surprise and spoil me with your love. And now that I have experienced it, Chae Songhwa, you can never leave me. Arasseo?" He declares.
"You may be cringing now, and so do I. In fact, I can feel goosebumps all over my body!" Raising his tone at the end He starts to cockily brush the hairs on both his arms one after the other. Transporting her back to the day when they initially tried to feed each other.
She may be ugly crying now, but Lee Ikjun would never pass up a chance to crack a joke and make his best friend turned girlfriend smile in any situation, no matter how serious it might be. What more can she expect from her social butterfly and goofball lover?!
"And do you honestly think that only you has a secret? Huh, Ikjun-a? She counters.
Talk about competitiveness! One can never be wrong with Chae Songhwa, he infers. But he knows that she is just mustering up her courage to reveal something paramount to her.
"You pabo-ya! You are my first love, too." She shyly divulges to him.
Ikjun wastes no time to reach for her and holds her close. He leans forward to press his soft lips against hers. Wanting to shower her with kisses, he gives her a peck
on the forehead,
on her nose,
then on her cheeks.
He sweetly stares at her as he gently touches her lower lip. Horrified that he might chicken out again at the last minute, Songhwa pulls him closer to her and kisses him passionately. Kissing him with all her might and all that she has. She reaches for his arm to put it inside her shirt so he can touch her skin. She wants to feel his warmth. She wants to feel all of him. She is making a statement that she wants whatever it is that he wants. Ikjun is a little astounded by her action, but he perseveres. His tongue now gracefully dances with hers. Their lips are smacking wantonly, making it hard for them to breathe. But it seems that no one wants to stop. She is disappointed for a second when Ikjun takes a step backward to peel his shirt off of him. But relief and excitement come immediately as he hastily gets back on their kiss. When Ikjun carries her on the waist and kisses her neck as they move away from the dining towards his bedroom, she knows that another first for them is about to happen.
-the end-