APRICATE ; p.sunghoon

✤ | 09 - shopping for the big day

AERA'S POV

a week had quickly passed after my 'date' with sunghoon at the cafe, and only three days were left before the engagement took place and i would, apparently, have a fiancé.

if someone told me this a month ago, i would have laughed at their faces and called them a grinch.

until now, i had been running between boutique shops of different famous brands. i had brought all my female friends, minju, jiwoo, yunah and koko including my best friend, jeemin. we weren't able to hang out a lot as she was the heir of her father's company, and therefore, spent most of her time learning about the corporation with her father. my mom and jaeyun had come, alongside mrs.park who had somehow brought sunghoon as well. must have used some black magic to take his mind off work. i should learn it from her. might need it in the future.

this shop was the first one, after visiting three others, where i actually liked some dresses. i had wanted to wear a pink coloured gown for the engagement, but other colours like emerald and navy were second in my list.

my mom suddenly squealed, startling us all, as she dragged me and her best friend, mrs.park to a dress displayed on one of the mannequins, while my friends, jaeyun and sunghoon followed behind.

"look at this, aera! isn't this pretty?" my mom pointed at the bright blue coloured silk gown.

"yes, mom... but it kind of looks too bold. but yeah, it's pretty." i said.

"aera will look good in anything she wears." mrs.park suddenly said with a smile so soft it warmed my heart.

"awww, so cute." jeemin dreamily cooed from behind.

"i kind of wished i could see some mother and daughter-in-law drama." yunah said, as koko agreed with her, before both of them got hit by jiwoo in the back of their head.

"same, but then i would be the kind sister-in-law who would save her from the torture." minju said, earning a glare from her mother.

"that's... not how these stories progress, minju." my mom said as minju pouted.

in the midst of this, i could see my brother and my soon to be husband talking with each other seriously. probably some business matters.

i turned my head towards mrs.park as she suddenly handed me a pink gown, followed by jeemin and jiwoo who gave me emerald and sky coloured ones each.

"these are pretty, go try them on!" my mom pushed me inside the dressing room, handing me the bright blue gown, as i noticed some couches in the sitting area outside it, where i assumed they would sit.

i entered inside and decided to try the one that my mom had picked. once i had put it on, i admired the silk fabric and looked at myself in the mirror. it was outside of the colour range i usually wore, but it looked nice.

i came outside, hoping to see my mom and mrs.park in the couch, maybe surrounded by some of my friends. but instead, i saw sunghoon and jaeyun.

and right at that moment, jaeyun's phone rang, catching everyone's attention. he quickly checked the caller id, realizing it was from his office. he excused himself and went near the door of the boutique as he picked up the call.

i returned my gaze back to the couch and stilled as me and sunghoon kept staring at each other awkwardly.

"so, um... hey, uh, this looks good." sunghoon spoke up, wanting to ease the tense atmosphere.

"uh, thanks, i guess." i replied, not understanding if he had complimented me or the dress. because realistically, if it was the latter, then the seamstress should be the one thanking him instead.

thankfully, jaeyun and others returned right after as i showed them the dress, my friends starting to squeal before jaeyun shushed them.

i entered the dressing room again and tried on the emerald and sky coloured gowns and showed them before trying the soft pink coloured one.

truth be told, i loved light pink so much, and the gown looked so etheral. as i put it on, my jaw almost dropped as i looked at myself in the mirror.

"holy shit... why do i actually look good?" i muttered to myself before going out.

upon setting my foot out of the dressing room, i noticed sunghoon, his expression somewhat surprised. what? did he think i was ugly all this time?

my mom crossed the distance and held my shoulder looking at me, "oh my god. you look like a gem!"

jaeyun suddenly started talking dramatically, "aera, you're not looking homeless for the first time. good improvement."

i scowled at him before the girls started complimenting me. i'm so grateful for my friends, i swear.

mrs.park said, "you need to get this, aera. you look so pretty in it! what do you think sunghoon?"

"yeah, it's nice." sunghoon agreed as we decided to take this gown for the engagement party, and the blue one for the wedding ceremony, sunghoon paying for them with a black amex.

we went out of the boutique and decided to dine at a nearby fancy restaurant that had recently opened.

after returning home, i freshened up and laid down on my bed, my head in a whirlwind of thoughts. i would have a fiancé within a few days and a husband within the next month. i quickly shoved these thoughts out of my head and decided to just sleep instead.

× author's note: the ninth chapterrr !! please do vote if you enjoyed reading and comment your thoughts :))

with lots of love, reen <3