Through Thick And Thin
Through Thick And Thin
Since the Yeongs were attending a wedding, Ara's mother could not let her go, wearing trousers. It was Byeol's way of influencing Ara to start acting more of a lady than her usual boyish ways.
For that occasion, Ara wore a long dress, and once again; she flaunted her natural beauty. She did not have any fancy styling on her hair, nor did she wear any make-up, but the genuine glow on her face was captivating.
She unknowingly attracted the eyes of the surrounding men, especially with her candid words and her impulsive and contagious laughs. Ara was just too carefree for her own good that a few of Jae-hyun's friends easily took notice on her.
Ara was still turning twenty-one, but she was tall and undeniably attractive.
Despite constantly being with Geun, Jae-hyun's friends did not dread, ogling at Ara, and that utterly caused Geun an additional headache.
Of course, Nari and Chan-Mi had their fair share of gawking boys, but Geun figured it was his father's responsibility to look after his siblings. His; was Ara.
While Geun had tiring nights as of recently, attending to the new clients of the gun factory, he still forced himself to attend Alexis' wedding. Besides, he owed a lot of her uncles and aunt, supporting him in his slow take over to the Yeong empire at such a young age.
Moreover, he had become close with Alexis' husband. He and Jae-hyun had practically practiced martial arts, now and then. It was a pre-requisite to marrying into the family, even his uncle Lu Fang and Aunt Andy imposed.
Geun thought that the celebration was about to come to a close. He had to address two important matters at hand; his headache brought about his tiring nights and the dilemmas coming from the eyes of the idol-looking men around them.
When Alexis called for all the single ladies in the ballroom, he could practically see the exciting looks of the flower boys, eager to be matched with his sisters and of course, Ara.
He convinced himself by providing a reason for his annoyance, 'Ara can't be distracted. She still needs to be my aid.'
While he knew Chan-Mi would put up a fight for the bouquet, there was a chance that the flower would not land in Ara's hands. He quickly urged Ara to get up and follow him outside the venue.
"Where are we going?" Ara asked, stomping her feet as they exited the party.
"Are you kidding me, Ara? What if you catch the bouquet? Then I'd have to join the garter toss! That would be too troublesome!" Reasoned Geun.
"What? Why would you join the garter toss on my accord?" Ara probed, following Geun around, making his way to the lobby. "Where exactly are we going?"
"I'm getting a room. I have a bad headache, I need to rest for a while," told Geun. "There is bound to be an after-party when my uncles and aunts get together. Trust me, it's going to be a long night."
"O-k-a-y, but can I just stay behind and join the fun?" Ara asked, pointing in the direction of the ballroom.
"I need a head massage," explained Geun. "Stay with me."
***
Resting on Ara's lap, with a pillow over her thighs, Geun closed his eyes, forcing himself to get comfortable on the hotel bed. He gave her some instructions while receiving a massage.
"Put a little more pressure," said Geun.
"It's because you have been spying on your new buyers too much," suggested Ara as she caressed his temples.
"I have to. My family is selling arms, Ara. We have to be at least responsible sellers and not just be blinded with a staggering offer," told Geun. "It's like what my father said, we can't be indirectly responsible for the loss of innocent lives."
His words made Ara smirked as she resumed massaging his forehead. She sighed and then brought up a problem she had been meaning to tell him about. She answered, "Geun, grandpa wants us to go to Busan for his eighty-second birthday.'
With a sigh, Ara revealed, "He really wants to... introduce you as well." She stopped at her caressing and told, "This is your fault, you know - you and the marriage alliance suggestion. Now he is looking forward to seeing more of you!"
Reaching for her hand, he reminded, "Continue massaging."
Only after Ara's fingers returned to putting pressure on his forehead, did Geun answer, "I'll go. I'm - I'm with you... on our scheme... through thick and thin."
"Pfft! Sounds like a wedding vow," Ara unwittingly said before she heard a Yawn coming from Geun.
It did not take long for him to completely doze off and Ara had nothing else to do but to kill time.
At first, Ara continued to massage Geun's forehead, especially on his temples and around his eyes. However, after some time, Ara wound up just staring at Geun's resting face.
Her head leaned from left to right, studying his well-shaped jaws, his tall and almost perfectly pointed nose, his thick brows and long lashes. She smirked and thought, 'Geun is so lucky to have perfect parents.'
"What crazy girls don't know is how complicated you are," she muttered before slowly removing Geun's head from her lap and she slid out as his pillow before she walked over to the other side of the bed.
Making sure not to alarm the Yeongs of their sudden disappearance, she sent Chan-Mi and Nari a text, saying where Geun was resting.
***
After two hours of sleeping, Geun woke up, still feeling his head was badly aching. He was at least relieved that he had a bit of rest.
He turned to his right and was surprised to see that Ara had taken a rest herself.
She was facing the other side of the bed, into the curtains of the room. He leaned over and studied her face.
Geun realized how she was in a deep sleep.
He checked with Chan-Mi and found out they were all staying at the hotel for the evening and it would seem like the afterparty had just begun for them.
It was always like that when all of her aunts and uncles gathered. He was no longer surprised that they were booking the ballroom until the wee hours.
Thus, it was an excuse for him to stay in his room.
Geun texted Chan-Mi, "Can you tell Uncle Chun-Ho that Ara is sleeping in with Nari?"
"What? Nari is at the hospital with Mom!" Objected Chan-Mi.
"But she will be back at the hotel, right?" Geun asked.
"Yes, after I don't know when. You know how Nari is lately," replied Chan-Mi.
"Well, it will be like that either way. Tell Nari to pickup Ara from my room when she returns from the hospital," Geun texted back. He turned to Ara and added to his message, "Besides, Ara seems really very tired. She is also sleeping."
"Do the work for me, noona. I'm not really feeling well and I can't walk Ara out to wherever Nari's room is." He gave another explanation through text, being perfectly careful not to wake Ara.
After not seeing a reply from Chan-Mi, he messaged again, "Ara is safer here with me than letting out on her own."
"She does not really need protection," Chan-Mi pointed out, replying swiftly.
Recalling the number of flower boys around in the same hotel, Geun replied, "I saw several beasts earlier. I tell you, it's a dangerous place out there."
"Fine. Whatever!" Replied Chan-Mi. "Don't ever take advantage of Ara!"
"Take advantage? She is the one taking advantage of me," Geun answered, including a frown emoji.
***
After another hour.
Ara woke up with the sound of her mobile buzzing on the bedside table of the hotel bed. Her eyes fluttered open, and she recognized she was in a chic-looking room. Her eyes suddenly widened with the realization that her hand was resting on a man's solid chest.
Her heart instantly raced, understanding how she was sleeping on someone's body. While she knew it was Geun, what frightened her was how she was in his arms!
She asked herself in silence, 'Did I? No.'
Ara was aware she was a restless sleeper, and she concluded, she found herself in Geun's warmth. She gradually looked up to Geun's sleeping face and realized he was still at it like a rock!
'Relax, Ara. It's not the first you rested together in the same bed - yeah, but that was when we were in middle school!' She scolded herself, knowing things were different now. A lot of things had changed since her 18th birthday between her and Geun.
She acted casually, trying to roll to the other side. She meant to get up right after, but the next thing he felt was Geun, turning to her side and putting his arm around her.
'What the.' She maintained to close her eyes and just peeked through her eyelids, observing what Geun was doing.
She let out a sigh, seeing that Geun was still asleep.
'Wait, why do I even care?' She silently asked herself before getting up completely and pushing Geun's arms away.
With a hand on her wrist, the next thing she heard was Geun's bedroom voice. He said, "Ara, I'm not feeling well. Can you look after me, please... That's an order sentinel."
"Your boss is in need of aid."
***
Author's Notes:
Merry Christmas Everyone! Enjoy the time with your family!
My apologies, by the way, I am struggling to reply to comments lately, but know that I always appreciate your comments.