Body & Soul 🇰🇷 Part 1

Chapter 75: Seon-Ho

I was getting so emotional I couldn't sleep. It had been so long since I had last seen her; I made a trip to see her in the home I put her in which wasn't at all far from my new place. I saw her comforting a crying child in the dead of night in the courtyard, I'm pretty sure she was one of the servant's family members. I was shocked I almost fell over; Yeon wasn't wearing her vest...or trousers under her skirt. I guess I couldn't blame her as they were in an all women's area and I'm pretty sure she wasn't expecting a man to watch her. Every time she lifted her skirt to walk I could see her long slim legs glistening in the moonlight. She had her hair completely out which made her look so much more mature and her waist...it was something else...and it was doing something to me that I had never felt before. I mean, growing up and going through puberty was painful and awkward...but this was my first time as a man looking at...a fully gown woman...and I felt things that were sending me to my knees. "What's the matter? Why are you crying?" She asked her tenderly. "I...I gave this boy I like a flower...and...and he didn't like it. He...he stomped on it...and he went to another girl" she was crying so hard that Yeon pulled her onto her lap...exposing her thighs momentarily that almost sent me to the floor. I really had to grab the gate so I didn't fall over...and tried some deep breathing exercises. "Its ok my love, not everyone who loves somebody always has them return their love"she replied so sadly I couldn't help but notice. The little girl looked up at her still crying "how do you know? Have you ever been in love?".

Yeon was taken aback by the answer and instantly tried to get up so she could distract herself with chores. Even though it was dark, I didn't miss the tears falling down her face. I felt my heart leap with hope for the first time. Surely she wasn't...was she reacting to me? "Tell me...please...who was your first love?". Yeon looked at her for a while before giving in and placing her back on her lap. "Hmmm...my first love...is a slave called Ae-Ri".

I swear I almost felt my heart stop. No-one ever mentioned my mother, and I didn't even think anyone remembered her. Not even myself...
"A woman? How can a woman be your first love?" She looked at Yeon questioningly, who was already getting lost in her own thoughts "Well...there was a big funeral in my village when my mother died when I was really young, younger than you are right now. And at her funeral...I couldn't help but notice there was a really poor...but really beautiful woman who was cradling her son in her arms the whole time, and she was crying harder than anyone there. She was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen" re counted wistfully. I had tears in my eyes that I could not control. I literally collapsed to the ground but thankfully she was far away enough not to hear me. "So...do you love that boy afterwards?" The little girl asked, full immersed in her story as I was. "Not then...when I saw Ae-Ri holding her son for the wile day affectionally...I didn't like him then. In fact, I was really jealous of him when I saw him in her arms when I lost my mom. When I saw them together...I wanted her to take me in her arms instead and take me far away from the funeral. I started following her around after that for a while. I thought...if I was nice to her that she would want me as her daughter. I was just...a girl to wanted a mother more than anything back then. But...then she died...and then I didn't hate that young boy anymore. In fact...since then I wanted to take care of him like I wanted his mother to take care of me...and that's it." We were both soaked in tears. "So...is that boy your lover?" The little girl asked her hopefully, still upset over her own crush. She looked at her sadly before trying to usher her inside "No...he's in love with someone else". Hearing that almost broke me completely I almost made myself scarce...until... "But unnie...why do you wear that blue belt around your arm?"

I was completely frozen on the spot until I managed the strength out of nowhere and dared to inch my way further...until I could see the girl pointing at Yeon's arm...with my old belt I had thrown away ages ago...I never knew she had kept it all these years? Yeon just instantly hid her hand before one of the servants called for them both to come inside.

I ran, as fast as I could back to my accommodation and locked myself in before I started running around like a crazy person trying to find that box I kept all this time...the box a piece of my mother's skirt that I was always tugging at. I held it and all of Yeon's embroidery that she had been sending to her 'sponsor' and broke down once again for both women just as much as the first time. "I'm sorry mother...I'm so sorry that I resented you after you died for me. I'm so sorry your son is unfilial, please forgive me. But...but I finally found someone who loves us, both of us...and she will take care of us both I promise you..."

After that I didn't have a problem letting her know I was watching her by teasing her with these new antics she was playing with at work, catching her off-guard and making her blush like crazy. At first she looked at me in shock and I knew she was studying my reaction but I just looked right back at her to assure her that she didn't scare me off. And I wasn't lying, it actually made her more attractive to me...but it also made me way more protective of her than usual. I was unusually calm around her but there would always be something that happened around her that would set me off.

This went on for a while before we both began to agree on mutual meetings; I knew that once I showed her that she didn't scare me at all that she would begin to finally trust me a little more. She still was furious at the fact that myself and her brother was still at the palace despite everything that she had revealed to us but I assured her that we both had the situation under control. I didn't want to upset her as she just started talking to me again...and if she was going as far as to hide it from me then I knew I had to keep a closer eye out on what she was up to. But I was starting to get her comfortable around me now that I was becoming familiar with her, she was beginning to open up to me a lot more. We spoke to each other like we never had before; our goals, our dreams, what we wanted to achieve and how we wanted to live. I unexpectedly took her in my arms...something I had never done with anyone in my adult life- not that there was anyone who wanted my embrace always and I promised her that I would protect her no matter what. I know that this easily took her my surprise and for a minute I thought I had actually embarrassed myself...but she actually embraced me in return and just lay her head onto my shoulders; something I had seen her do with her brother multiple times, a gesture that I knew that I had regained her trust again.