How It Should Have Ended (A Ji Hoo and Jan Di Story)

Chapter 10

Jan Di ran for the bus, screaming for it to wait. She got on just in time, and one of the seniors at the front gave her a hard time for being late. She apologized, went to the back of the bus and sat down. She was startled to see Ji Hoo sitting there.

"Sunbae!" she exclaimed. When she heard he was going on this volunteering trip, she had tried her best to get in too. Since he was graduating his schedule had been ridiculously busy, so she hadn't seen him as much as she hoped. Her grades had suffered terribly because of that too.

They arrived at the small village and started setting up. Jan Di was busy helping the senior students but kept making mistakes, much to her frustration. She glanced and saw Ji Hoo sitting with the kids. He would be a great pediatrician one day, she thought, as she walked over to him.

A little girl ran to him and gave him a hug. The kids had started calling him Doctor Prince. Most of them wanted to marry him when they grew up. Ji Hoo just smiled at them, his eyes bright. Jan Di sighed. She lamented on how easy school had been for Ji Hoo while she was quite possibly doomed to repeat another year. Graduation seemed such a distant possibility to her right now. She told him she never would even have made it this far if it weren't for him.

"You were my source of strength, sunbae."

"So, you want me to repeat too?" he asked, smiling.

She made a face. A part of her was afraid that if she said yes, he might actually do it.

They were interrupted by a loud noise and dust flying everywhere. They looked up and saw a helicopter flying above. A familiar voice echoed below: "Commoner, can you hear me?" it said, which was unmistakably the voice of Jun Pyo. "Geum Jan Di, respond. If you're there, meet me at the beach."

Jan Di furrowed her brow in wonder. "Gu Jun Pyo?" she asked, though she already knew the answer. She turned questioningly at Ji Hoo. "How did he know I was here?"

"I told him," he answered. "Go see him."

Jan Di walked slowly to the beach, still in disbelief. Jun Pyo stood there, waiting. He looked at his watch and frowned. "You took five minutes! Can't you walk faster?"

"Gu Jun Pyo, what's going on?" she asked as she reached him.

Why didn't she run to him and give him a hug? She wondered. What was wrong with her? She hadn't seen him in four years, for goodness' sake!

"What do you mean?" he asked. He was wearing a suit. His once curly hair was now straight. Jan Di's heart hammered in her chest.

"Gu Jun Pyo has come back for Geum Jan Di." He made fun of her white gown, as she still stared at him not believing her eyes. After four years...

"It's really Gu Jun Pyo", she declared, her eyes brimming with tears.

He pulled her in for a hug. She had her hands in her pockets, and didn't hug him back. He was a little disappointed at her lack of affection, but he shrugged it off. "I missed you," he said. "Enough to die. I'm never letting you go again."

Jun Pyo looked at her. "You promised, didn't you?" he began, "that when I come back you'd take responsibility of me?"

She laughed at this. "Look here," she said, "I never promised you anything. I said I would think about it."

Jun Pyo's face became serious and he knelt in front of her. Jan Di was panicking inside.

I'm not ready for this! She cried. He presented her with a ring.

"Geum Jan Di, please marry this great Gu Jun Pyo."

Jan Di was in full panic mode but her face remained expressionless. She didn't want him to think she was rejecting him, but she knew she wasn't ready to get married either. Help, she cried silently. The few seconds of silence that passed by seemed like hours.