Side Story 1 – The Man Who Wants to Get Married (Part 5)

When Hee-tae leaned in to scare her, Soo-yeon kissed his cheek. His eyes widened in surprise.

Even as time passed, Soo-yeon never got used to expressing herself, so she occasionally gave such scarce gestures. After doing such things, she always felt embarrassed and couldn’t meet his gaze. Keeping her eyes fixed on the blanket, Soo-yeon spoke.

“Stay the night. You probably didn’t get much sleep coming straight here.”

“… Damn, doing such cute things while on your period.”

Hee-tae reacted a beat late to Soo-yeon’s words, frowning. He pushed the bowl aside, wrapped his arms around her waist, and entangled his lips with hers, grabbing her swollen chest. Her breasts, which always filled his hands, felt even heavier, as if they might overflow. It really seemed like she was pregnant.

Hee-tae sucked on her neck and caressed her flat stomach, thinking it would be nice if she carried his seed. If Soo-yeon didn’t want it, it would remain just his wish.

“Ah, ha…”

Soo-yeon twisted her body as Hee-tae licked her neck and groped her chest. It was hard to believe that this soft and flexible woman was once so cold and unyielding. She had a trait of enduring even when the roots were rotting, unable to easily cast out the relationships that came into her life.

Hee-tae, unsure if Soo-yeon was only being playful with him, felt uncertain about her stance on marriage as she neither rejected nor accepted the idea. He finally spoke up.

“Soo-yeon, how long are you going to keep me waiting?”

Soo-yeon froze at his question, as he looked down at her while licking and biting her neck. Faced with the unavoidable topic, she couldn’t pretend to ignore it this time.

She knew she had been cowardly. As she aged, she wondered if she had gained maturity or just more cowardice, leading to this moment where Hee-tae finally voiced the issue.

“Even if you’re just playing with me, I’ll stick around like a damn fool, so you can consider there won’t be any other men in your life.”

Hee-tae brushed her hair back from her forehead, leaving a sweet yet menacing threat.

He was saying that if she had reservations about the institution of marriage, they didn’t have to be bound by it, but he would still remain by her side.

If he had proposed with a ring in a restaurant with a night view, Soo-yeon would probably have slipped away smoothly, so his proposal was more like a threat.

But that wasn’t why Soo-yeon had avoided it. It was just a slightly embarrassing reason to talk about, so she covered her face with her palm and spoke.

“Aren’t we too young to think about marriage?”

“After fooling around with a young guy like me, you’re saying this now?”

At that moment, Hee-tae’s barely maintained patience snapped, and he frowned, asking. He couldn’t believe he was hearing a line that a male lead from some 80s drama might say to a pure-hearted female lead.

They had been fooling around like there was no tomorrow, occasionally blushing and talking about love, and now she had come to some conclusion with her small head.

Hee-tae, who usually didn’t treat her as younger, asked again, astonished by her words.

“So, you want to marry some toothless, bald old man?”

“That’s not what I meant…”

“Then why cover your face? You should proudly say you prefer an old guy who can’t even get it up and has sagging balls.”

Hee-tae grabbed her arms and pinned them down. Seeing Soo-yeon’s flushed face, he immediately released his grip.

Her embarrassed face didn’t match her claim of disliking youth. It looked like she had spent sleepless nights excitedly contemplating this issue.

Soo-yeon swallowed a sigh and met his gaze, speaking.

“Jang Hee-tae, you’re still young… Are you really okay with me?”

One shouldn’t live assuming they would never meet anyone else based on their current feelings. Soo-yeon knew that.

After parting with a past lover whose face she no longer remembered, she thought she would never love anyone again. But now, she was madly in love with Hee-tae, willing to do anything. People changed, for better or worse.

So, Soo-yeon feared seeing him regret such a significant decision in his life because of her.

Hee-tae frowned and said,

“Since when did you start treating me like a young man? You didn’t mind being pounded and screaming while getting screwed by a young guy, but now…”

“Shut up.”

Soo-yeon quickly shut Hee-tae’s mouth, stopping his vulgar words.

Despite his crude talk, he was a very good partner. Unlike their first meeting, Jang Hee-tae turned out to be unexpectedly kind and gentle, always yielding to Soo-yeon. She knew she would be incredibly happy if she married him.

But knowing this made her worry more for him. While they had been together without much thought, considering marriage brought up various concerns.

“Jang Hee-tae, you seem to want kids soon.”

“You’re quick-witted but pretend not to notice.”

“I also want to see our kids, but recently, I heard from a doctor that it might be difficult for me to get pregnant. I was afraid you’d be disappointed, so I kept thinking I’d tell you someday…”

Soo-yeon’s voice trailed off weakly, as if weighted down by her words.

Hee-tae had become such a significant person in her life that he changed her reluctance to receive. She didn’t want to lose him. Couples often lost each other at the crossroads of marriage, and she didn’t want to lose Hee-tae. She couldn’t share her insecurities and shortcomings with him, fearing she couldn’t fulfill his dream of having a family.

At that moment, she felt a light kiss on her lips and looked at him.

Instead of a deep kiss, Hee-tae gave her a light peck and then smiled wryly.

“That’s absurd. Do you think I’m someone who goes crazy over just any kid?”

“Aren’t you?”

“Of course not. I want to see a kid who looks like you and me. I’m not interested in other people’s kids.”

Hee-tae felt his deep-seated anxiety melt away quickly. Even though he knew Soo-yeon wouldn’t joke about such things, her stubborn silence had made him uneasy for a long time.

He never thought he would desire someone’s life so much, hoping the child they might have would resemble him.

But Soo-yeon had shown him that. Therefore, it was a desire that held no meaning without her.

“Damn, you melted my heart over something like that.”

Hee-tae spoke, hugging Soo-yeon as she burrowed into his arms with a reddened nose.

He regretted making comments about her breasts possibly producing milk. Thinking about how Soo-yeon must have agonized over the topic of pregnancy without being able to speak made him feel sorry.

Just like in their first meeting, when she had silently suffered with a beautiful face, nothing had changed now.

Hee-tae usually found it ridiculous and tiresome to feel pity, but when it came to Soo-yeon, he only felt tenderness. He wanted to hold her tightly and protect her gently.

“I don’t care if we have kids or not, damn it… I just didn’t want you to marry some other well-educated guy. Understand?”

Hee-tae had spent many days imagining and getting angry at the thought of some hypothetical well-educated man taking Soo-yeon away.

If they didn’t talk about marriage and just maintained the status quo, they could stay together as lovers. But he didn’t know what was on Soo-yeon’s mind, so he spent many days feeling like he was on a rollercoaster.

“Whether you get pregnant or not, I’m going to fill you with my cum.”

Hee-tae declared in her ear. Despite his lewd words, his touch on her back was surprisingly gentle. He continued his reassuring yet crude talk, calming Soo-yeon.

“If you get pregnant, great. If not, we’ll just enjoy the sex.”

“Okay…”

“The most important thing is that I want to be with you. Don’t you think it would be amazing to grow old together?”

Soo-yeon rubbed her face against his chest, nodding.

She knew he had waited for her for a long time. Over time, Hee-tae had softened his rough nature, never saying a harsh word to her. He had changed his job and even his way of speaking to be a good person for Soo-yeon.

She feared becoming a choice he would regret. But now, with nothing left to hold back, she hugged him tightly and mumbled in a hoarse voice.

“Once we register our marriage, there’s no going back.”

“You said I was still young and asked if I’d be okay with it, and now you’re saying this. It seems you really love me, Soo-yeon.”

Hee-tae chuckled, his chest shaking as he held her, who was talking about registering their marriage.

Despite her initial reluctance, she eventually accepted everything, blinking her pretty doll-like eyes as she followed his every move. He had never doubted her affection, as she had always shown consistent love.

“Why else would I be with you?”

Soo-yeon mumbled, burying her lips in his chest. She wanted to be with him because she loved him, but she was scared of losing him. The origin of her anxiety was love. The desire to be loved more and not lose him made her anxious and cowardly.

Nevertheless, they had to face each other like this to break the anxiety. So that their relationship wouldn’t get tangled up and severed due to mere assumptions about each other. So that their connection could move on to the next page safely.