Chapter 149: The Ending of the Story

TL: Aniea

‘How will this story end?’

While reading a drama script,

Sometimes such questions arise.

It would be ideal if the story were composed with a perfect plot from beginning to end, but that’s realistically a very difficult task.

In fact, there are frequent instances where the script changes abruptly due to the drama’s popularity, the recognition of each character, or the advertiser’s requests.

‘...I hope it ends properly and well.’

From the actor’s perspective, who has to act while receiving last-minute scripts as frequently as every few minutes or, at most, every few days, such concerns might be a luxury.

But as much as I fully immerse myself in the role, it’s only natural for my affection for the work to deepen.

That’s why, before being an actor, as one of the viewers, I often hoped for a well-completed ending.

“What are you thinking so deeply about?”

Kim Eun-ha brought her face close with eyes full of curiosity. If she hadn’t been wearing a wedding dress, she might have come all the way up to my nose.

“I was just wondering how my life ended up here, and what the ending will be for the man named ‘Kang Woo-ju’. Those kinds of thoughts just came to mind.”

“Is that really something to say to the bride right before the wedding?”

“No, I didn’t mean it like that....”

“I’m kidding. Don’t get flustered.”

Hoo hoo-

Kim Eun-ha said with a mischievous smile at the corner of her lips. In response, I subtly turned my head to avoid her gaze.

The bridal makeup, meticulously done over several hours, made her already striking appearance stand out even more.

Though Kim Eun-ha had always possessed extraordinary looks, now she boasted such beauty that even looking at her directly felt like sacrilege.

Thanks to that, even I, who had become quite used to her over the past few months, couldn’t bring myself to face her head-on, rolling my eyes awkwardly.

“Oh my, do you have a guilty conscience or something? Why do you keep avoiding my eyes today?”

Kim Eun-ha, who was already quick-witted, wouldn’t have missed that. She was blatantly giggling and teasing me all day long.

“I did nothing of the sort?”

Hmph-!

Determined not to be defeated, I glared back with strength in my eyes, but Kim Eun-ha just snorted and easily brushed it off.

Smile-

As if to say she didn’t even need to try hard, she softly lifted the corners of her mouth, and just that was enough to break my poker face.

“Urgh... This is cheating!”

Hoo hoo hoo-

Admitting defeat, unable to endure the halo radiating from her, I covered my eyes with both hands, and Kim Eun-ha laughed joyfully.

If she hadn’t been wearing a wedding dress, she might have started tap dancing on the spot to celebrate her victory.

“Someone out there must be really lucky. To spend their whole life with such a beautiful bride. Don’t you think he could die without regrets now?”

“Well, at least after spending the wedding night....”

“......!!”

Thump-!

Kim Eun-ha, her earlobes reddening, punched my arm. Whether she used full force or not, a terrible pain followed, enough to make me scream involuntarily.

“Absolutely against domestic violence!”

“Then don’t say things that make you deserve it.”

“What did I even say? A couple spending a passionate wedding night is a perfectly common and natural- Ow! Stop! That was my bone! You hit the bone!”

“You! Better! Stop it!”

Aaaaargh-!

Only after taking a proper beating until her anger subsided was I finally released.

Of course, even in that situation, I found her reaction, embarrassed over something unexpected, so cute that I smirked, which earned me a few extra hits.

“Ah....”

Getting hit like that brought back a sudden thought. About the ending of the life called Kang Woo-ju that I hadn’t finished reflecting on earlier.

Surely I would continue to face countless hardships. Possibly even ones far greater than those I’ve overcome so far.

It’s no wonder, because Kim Eun-ha still-

No, she has never once given up her position as the Chairman of Mirae Group. She will likely continue charging toward her goals.

‘...It definitely won’t be an easy path.’

The number of potential benefits Kim Eun-ha gave up by officially marrying me is too many to easily calculate.

Of course, I’ll do my best to fill in the gaps, but realistically, there are truckloads of things I simply can’t do.

However.

Despite all that.

We chose each other.

‘Because we have faith.’

The reason was incredibly simple.

If we were together, I believed we could overcome any adversity, and that belief held more value than anything else.

A happy daily life of bickering with Kim Eun-ha, just like now, and someday the image of a child who resembled both of us growing up came to mind.

I don’t know how long it will take.

It might be a longer journey than expected.

But what awaits at the end is certain.

“I’m happy.”

“......!?”

Kim Eun-ha, who had been pinching, hitting, and scratching me for a long while, flinched and stepped back. Her pupils wavered as she looked at me.

“Why are you suddenly saying that?”

“...Is that your thing? Of course, I’ve sensed it to some extent for a while now, but have you finally decided to openly reveal your preferences!?”

“...I think you’re misunderstanding something absurd again, but if I had to clarify, I prefer tormenting over being tormented.”

“!!!”

Kim Eun-ha covered her chest with her arms and stepped two more steps back. Judging by her trembling lips, she was genuinely flustered.

“It was a joke. A joke.”

“You were being serious just now!”

“Oh? Was it that obvious?”

“...Is this marriage really okay?”

“Is that something you say to the groom right before the wedding?”

Zing-!

Returning the exact same words she had said earlier, Kim Eun-ha glared at me with a terrifying look.

If I stayed there any longer, it felt like we’d have a funeral before the wedding could even happen, so I quickly turned around and left the bridal waiting room.

“Woo-ju ssi!”

“Director! And even Writer Jung....”

Since it was still early, perhaps they had hesitated to enter. As soon as I stepped out of the waiting room, I ran into Director Kang In-ho and Writer Jung Ha-rin.

The two, who had recently started officially dating, were walking arm-in-arm as if proudly showing off their relationship.

Everyone but them already acknowledged their chemistry, but seeing them as an actual couple changed the vibe altogether.

“Weren’t you two in the middle of filming recently? I assumed you’d be too busy to come, but thank you so much for making the time!”

“Of course we had to come! We do have filming starting this afternoon, so we’ll just say hello and head out, but still, how could we not show up between us?”

“I hope the day comes soon when I can repay this kindness.”

“We still have a long way to....”

“Director.”

Ahem-!

I lightly cut him off and gave him a signal, and he immediately shut his mouth with an “Oops” expression.

It was just a moment, but his brow furrowed sharply, likely from getting pinched in the side by Jung Ha-rin. I knew that feeling well myself.

“The preparations are mostly done, so you can go inside now. Eun-ha ssi will be glad to see you.”

“Alright, congratulations again! Looks like a lot of people besides us are waiting to see you, so let’s catch up properly later.”

“Call me anytime.”

“Don’t forget you said that.”

Hehehe-

Director Kang In-ho and Writer Jung Ha-rin disappeared into the waiting room with mischievous smiles, as if plotting something.

Watching the two of them walk off together in harmony, I shook my head slightly, then immediately headed to the lobby as they advised.

“Sunbae!”

“So you all came too.”

““Congratulations on your wedding-!!””

Choi Ji-hwan and other juniors from the department bowed 90 degrees and greeted me. Among them were some I had clashed with before.

“We’re really sorry for back then!”

“Since that day, we’ve been living in constant reflection.”

“I even volunteered at the orphanage this time!”

Each of them confessed their past faults in loud voices, making the lobby rather noisy for a while.

Thankfully, the wedding hadn’t started yet and there weren’t many people around aside from them. Otherwise, it might’ve caused a serious misunderstanding.

They probably came early keeping that in mind. It seemed like something planned by Choi Ji-hwan, who had somehow become my zealous junior.

“Alright, alright, that’s enough now.”

I quickly grabbed the shoulders of the juniors who were about to cry and helped them stand.

I had heard a few updates about them before. Supposedly, they had turned over a new leaf and were living like completely different people.

Honestly, I don’t believe people change that easily, but upon hearing that Kim Eun-ha had gotten involved, I thought, “Well, that makes sense.”

‘...People usually change after going through something big.’

It was almost amazing that they were still alive, and I felt a sense of relief that they had made it through unscathed.

Of course, the word “unscathed” might be a little far from its usual meaning in this context.

In any case, it must have been an extremely uncomfortable meeting from their perspective, so just the fact that they had the courage to come and apologize deserved praise.

“I really didn’t expect it, so thank you so much for coming. If anything tough comes up in the future, talk to me through Ji-hwan anytime. I’ll help however I can.”

“Sunbae...!!”

The juniors looked at me with faces full of emotion. The way they even clasped their hands together made them look like fanatics, so I quickly made an excuse and slipped away.

“You’re still popular, I see.”

“You came?”

At the familiar voice, I turned my head and saw Seo Jun-woo approaching, neatly dressed.

He gave a light greeting to the juniors bowing to him and then looked at me with a somewhat defeated expression.

“...I can’t believe I’m getting married later than you.”

“You’re not even dating anyone.”

“You’re surprisingly late on the news, huh?”

“Hm?”

As I tilted my head, not understanding what he meant, someone peeked out from behind Seo Jun-woo.

I was so surprised to see a very familiar face that my mouth opened on its own. Because the person behind him was none other than Park Soo-bin.

“Surprised, right?”

“You two, don’t tell me....”

“Shh. For now, just keep it between us.”

“Since when?”

“We kept in touch even after filming that project together. And recently, with news of you popping up here and there, the timing just kind of worked out for us.”

“I openly made the move.”

Hehe-

Park Soo-bin replied playfully with a grin. Seo Jun-woo scratched the back of his head and looked off into the distance with an embarrassed look.

After chatting for a bit, we promised to catch up later. There were still many people waiting behind them.

“Congratulations on your wedding, oppa!”

“Congratulations!”

“It’s still not too late....”

Not only the orphanage director, Kim Kaelin, Kang Han-na, Kim Cheol-su, and the others from the play.

But also the actors and staff I had worked with over time filled the wedding hall.

While I was busy welcoming each and every one of them, a sudden wave of emotion washed over me.

Back when I was holed up in a tiny studio apartment with unpaid rent, waiting to die alone, I never imagined I’d be inviting this many people to my wedding.

“Groom, it’s time to start preparing now.”

“Oh, yes!”

Before I could even sink into my thoughts, a staff member came over and started explaining things to me.

One by one, guests filled the wedding hall. The host’s voice echoed through the speakers.

As the ceremony officially began, the chaos swept away what little composure I had left.

“Bride, enter!”

Even in the midst of it, that single announcement from the host snapped me awake. The doors opened with sweet music, and Kim Eun-ha began to walk in slowly.

Filling in the absence of her parents, Chairman Kim Seok-ho personally took her hand and stepped onto the stage with her.

The two of them drew closer and closer. Chairman Kim Seok-ho, walking silently toward me, looked at me with a solemn gaze and asked,

“Are you ready?”

“Of course.”

“Then that’s enough.”

As Kim Seok-ho gave a nod,

Kim Eun-ha smiled confidently and reached her hand out to me, and I took it without a moment’s hesitation.

Wooooooo-!!

Amidst the applause and cheers of so many people, we took a bold step toward our future.