𝒎𝒊𝒅𝒏𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒓𝒂𝒊𝒏ヾ𝗌𝖾𝗈 𝗒𝗎𝗅

oo. too close

ᅳ    𝗂  𝗌𝗍𝗂𝗅𝗅  𝗌𝖾𝖾  𝗒𝗈𝗎  𝗂𝗇  𝖾𝗏𝖾𝗋𝗒  𝗌𝗎𝗇𝗌𝖾𝗍 💭
𝗺𝗶𝗱𝗻𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻. 𝗌𝖾𝗈 𝗒𝘶𝗅

AS THE CLOCK STRIKE 5am , the two of them came out from their room and headed towards the ancestral room where they offered their offerings then headed towards the gate.

Danggu stood there while holding a sleeping baby in his arms which is Gang as a horse was beside him "Morning Yul-ah , Lady Shin"

"Morning"

Yul look around the gate but saw nothing so he turn towards Park Danggu with confusion "I thought we are getting two horse?"

Danggu grinned at his old friend "Well the horses are currently used for training as there is a horse race competition and none of them were available plus this horse is the best among all the others"

Seo Yul can clearly see through his friends intentions but didn't bother complaining because even if he do, he knew that he will ended up loosing his sanity so he just sigh and got on the back of the horse.

No one knew what was going in Yeongran's mind right now but they can clearly tell that she was embarrassed. She gave a small pat on Gang's cheeks and jumped up on the horse back — sitting in front of Yul.

"Make yourself comfortable"

Yul whispered from behind and his lips slightly touched the tip of her red ears. Yeongran was in a mess. She could feel the faint breath of the man kissing her skin softly as if a small feather was teasing her and the hard chest from behind.

Yeongran let out an inaudible gasp when Yul took the reign of the horse in his hand as Yeongran was caged between his arms, she can feel his heartbeat. She grabbed on the fabric of her dress and just looked down trying to control her emotions.

"If you need anything just tell me alright?"

His breath tickles her.
Too close.

She just nods her head as an answer.

They were greeted by several citizens on their way until they reach the woods, everything quiet down but the birds were flying around. Yeongran was stiff for few minutes but soon she was slowly relaxed and started admiring the woods.

The woods was somewhere Yeongran finds herself in peace and the song of the cuckoo gives her joy ; the sunlight peeking through the trees and the small wildflowers blooming as they welcome a new day.

Yeongran summoned her flute and Seo Yul couldn't help but ask her "I heard from people that the mage there in Gusu has a name for their spiritual tool so I suppose your flute has it too?"

She nodded her head and look at the serenity blue jade flute she carved out with small flower details at the end and a sky blue colored tassel hanging down from it where a small white lotus shape was hung with some small bells attached to it. Even from a small glance one could tell that the flute was expensive and has a strong energy.

Yeongran lips arched up and twirled the flute in her fingers "Yes, I named it as yilan . Yi from hanja meaning joy or harmony and Lan from chinese meaning orchid"

Seo Yul smiled as he saw how excited Yeongran when talking about music and asked her to play some music if she wants. He slowed down the horse as Yeongran brought the flute close to her lips and played a soft melodious tune.

Maybe it's because they were in the woods, the soft melody resonated in all four directions and the people who were in the mountain searching for herbs or firewoods were startled when they heard he melody but they didn't complain as the song gave them comfort and made them forget their tiredness.

The two decided to eat breakfast at an inn as they didn't eat anything in the morning when they set out for journey. They order simple dishes as they have a long journey ahead.
For the first time in five years, they never spend time together so much even after being married or even talk to each other about something personal.

Once they were done with their breakfast they set out for their journey. Soon they reached the Fortress and the maids around gave a warm welcome to the couple.

Master Seo JungWoo came out with a big smile in his face as he welcomed his son with a big hug "Oh my god, it's been so long since I last saw you my son"

The father son exchanged their greetings and Seo JungWoo finally gave his attention to his daughter-in-law — his eyes turned red immediately and a wave of emotions flooded him.

"Yeongran-ah..." It came out as a whisper which pulled a tight knot inside Yeongran's heart as she hug the older one. She noticed that he aged a lot and felt guilty.

"How could you abandon us Yeongran-ah... You don't know how much I missed you my child"

Unexpectedly, a tear rolled down from Yeongran's eyes which she quickly wiped it off. "I missed you too Dad...how have you been"

"I've been healthy, really healthy"

Seo Yul's heart warmed up seeing the interaction of the two. One may mistaken them as father and daughter because no father-in-law and a daughter-in-law would share such strong bonds but he knew their relationship.

Out of all the people that Yeongran grew up with, Master Seo JungWoo was one of the teachers who taught Yeongran and the one who gave her love, care and guidance.

They went inside the mansion and the maids led them to their room and were asked to rest as they came from far away and travelled nonstop.

The walls were renovated, new interiors were added but all the memories builded within the four walls, the pains and sufferings Yeongran went through, the heartbreak and the tears was witnessed by it. The mansion witnessed the young love blossoming and withered before blooming.

Yeongran's mind flashed all the emotions and flashback that took place within this mansion and softly smiled

Soon they settle inside the room but they noticed that there was only one bed. Yeongran was about to complain but remembered that they were a " married " couple in the eyes of the Fortress people.

Seo Yul saw the awkwardness of the lady and grabbed his clothes "I'll go and clean up at the bathroom outside. Take your time" and he went out leaving Yeongran alone inside the room.