Final
Bride in distress
It was past midnight. In the silence of the night, Yura tossed about in bed. She couldn't sleep for her mind was full of thoughts. Staring at the ceiling of the room, she remembered how she ran away from home.
What an irony it was. Here was a young bride who was to be married in two days time and instead of feeling excited and radiant, she was feeling miserable and depressed. Tears trickled down her face as she recalled the events leading to her impending marriage to Kai. Yura hated how her parents had arranged this marriage for her. She hated how her unnie had ran away, pushing all her responsibilties to her dongsaeng.
Yura knew that it was useless arguing with her unreasonable father concerning the arranged marriage. An unrepentant gambler and alcoholic, her father had incurred heavy debts after his company went bankrupt. Kai's father was his 'saviour', saving him from the wrath of those merciless moneylenders who threatened to expose his debts publicly and to destroy all that he possessed. Kai's father, his good friend, had agreed to pay all his debts with the condition that one of the daughters becomes his daughter-in-law. Yura's mother had no objection, as she believed that Kai's family was financially stabled and he was generally a good man.
Yura rebelled openly but to no avail...
"Either you marry him or my reputation would be destroyed!" her father yelled.
"All you care is about you stupid and ridiculous reputation! Have you ever spare a thought for unnie and I? No wonder unnie ran aw-" Yura felt a stinging blow on my face before she could finish her sentence. Wrath incurred in her as she felt her face swelling up from the blow she just received.
"Don't ever mention your useless sister in front of me again!" he bellowed.
She felt used as a sacrifice for the family in that through her consent to the marriage, she could save the family from public embarassment. Were there really no other ways? Yura felt that the solution need not end in a permanent bond with a perfect stranger. Surely she had the rights to choose her life partner with whom she had to commit to for the rest of her life. The hot tears flowed, more freely now as she brooded over the helpless, unfair situation. Those were tears of anger towards her parents and the tears of fear towards the days to come.
As expected, neighbours and friends started calling him Mrs Kim. She winced a little, each time she was called by that name for the term sounded so alien and repulsive to her. Could they not observe that she was devoid of joy ever since the registration took place?
The clock struck one. Yura was jostled back into reality. She had left home unannounced just like her unnie so as to sort things out. Somehow the quietness of the night and the ticks of the clock soothed her anguished mind. Perhaps, she need not submit to the eternal misery. She wanted to be in control of her life instead of allowing her parents to have the final say. Perhaps she could go to somewhere unknown, leave a note for Kai, explaining her heartfelt thoughts and leading to a secret pact with him to eventually return all the money owed to his father within the three years. He had to be persuaded and convinced that she would not make the best bride for him. Would he agree to that?
Ultimately, if things could not work out, she might contemplate commiting suicide. Yura pondered over these morbid thoughts repeatedly in her mind. She was determined to end her life rather than to live in misery with a stranger...
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