by V. Muñoz
My eyes grew wide, and my mouth fell open , making Namjoon chuckle. “Better get used to this, wifey.” He winked at me while his thumb stroked the back of my hand.
Before I could counter his statement , the car stopped – we had arrived . M y heart was beating faster, and I couldn’t move. Was I really going to marry my best friend just to escape the man I was obliged to marry? My head was crammed full of thoughts again but Namjoon’s voice pulled me out of my head .
“We don’t have to do this if you don’t want to , princess.” He still didn’t let go of my hand. “But if it makes you feel any better - I wouldn’t want to marry anyone else but you.”
His words made me look up at him. “Joonie... ” My voice was barely a whisper, but Namjoon heard me. His brown eyes looked at me and there was so much insecurity and hurt in them, it confused the hell out of me.
“I… Joonie, you know I like you, don ’t you? A lot actually,” I blurted out, Namjoon’s eyes lighting up at my words, his dimples popping out when he smiled.
“Y-yeah, I like you, too.” Hearing him stutter made me grin. The confident and notorious heartbreaker Kim Namjoon stuttered because I t old him I liked him.
“Then let’s do this and see what happens.” I opened the car door and alighted, leaving Namjoon smiling wide .
The old lady behind the counter in the district office looked us up and down. “Okayyyy…” Her eyes shifted to the filled out paper Namjoon had placed in front of her . “Miss Rodriguez, Mr. Kim, you have all the relevant documents with you. The form is filled out correctly, you ’ve decided on a family name and you have brought two witnesses with you.” She looked behind us at Namjoon’s driver and his bodyguard, the only people we could find on such short notice and who wouldn’t immediately call my mother or his father. The old lady picked up one of the stamps on her desk and pressed it down onto the paper. “Congratulations, you’re now legally married.”
She handed us our marriage certificate. Namjoon grinned at me before he thanked the lady and rushed out of the registration office holding my hand .
“I can’t believe we really did this.” I let out a relieved laugh once we were outs ide .
“Me neither.” Namjoon smiled at me and extended his hand. “Come on, let’s get you a pretty ring and then we visit your mother in her office, wifey.” I giggled like a child when Namjoon and I hopped into the car.
*
Namjoon took me to the most expensive jeweler in Busan, letting the sales assistant show me the most exquisite pieces of jewelry. One ring in particular caught my eye: a 10-carat marquise-cut diamond ring with dozens of smaller diamonds surrounding it. He saw the sparkle in my eyes when the sales assistant showed me the ring, but when I heard the price my smile dropped a bit. Namjoon noticed and reacted immediately.
“We ’ll take it.” He pulled out his black credit card and handed it to the sales assistant, who eyed me with jealousy. My head snapped in his direction.
“Joonie, are you out of your mind?! I can’t let you buy a ring that costs more than an apartment in Haeundae Zenith , ” I hissed through your teeth.
“Watch me, princess.” He winked at me and towards the cashier’s desk, but I gripped his forearm.
“Namjoon I’m serious. That’s too expensive. I’m already thankful that you did this marriage thing for me, but that ring…” I sighed.
“...is perfect for you, Valentina. Look, I know we are do ing everything in reverse right now.” We both giggled. “But you deserve the best , and I want to give that to you, princess. You’re my wife now and I know I’m just your fucked up best friend and I’m bad at love, but I want to see if maybe… maybe we can really make this work. Not just for a year but a lifetime.” I couldn’t believe the words coming out of Namjoon’s mouth.
“Wait… are you saying that…?” I narrowed my eyes at him, a grin already forming on my face.
“I want to be with you, Val. But give me time, I still need to work on myself and sort some shit out. You out of all people know how fucked up I am.” He tucked a loose strand behind my ear. I leaned into his touch and smiled.
“I know that you’re fucked up. But I’m happy you want to be less fucked up for me.” Namjoon pressed a soft kiss to my forehead.
“Thank you,” he murmured before he pulled away and took my hand as he walked to the cashier’s desk.
“You really are lucky to have such a generous fiancé , miss.” The sales assistant tried her best to sound friendly, but I could hear the jealousy in her words. She didn’t hide her attraction to Namjoon, and while he would usually make a move on her , his eyes were focused on me.
“Oh, we’re already married. Thanks for the good service.” Her mouth fell open when Namjoon took the ring out of the small box and put it onto my ring finger before we left.
Namjoon and I were heading to my mother’s office while he was on a call with his father. One of his father’s private detectives had taken pictures of Namjoon and me entering the district office and leaving the jeweler ’s with the ring on my finger. His father sounded pissed . I knew he had arranged for Namjoon to marry the daughter of the biggest food supplier in Korea once he finished college. Marrying me wasn’t really lucrative as everyone in Korea knew that my family had been experiencing financial issues since my father went to jail. That’s why my mother had to look for investors in the US and put me as a cherry to top off the deal. Now those deals would never happen, I was officially M rs. Kim.
“Yeah… God no, I didn’t do that to piss you off… yes, she’s next to me… okay, we ’ll stop by for dinner tonight, bye.” Namjoon sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose after ending the call with his father.
I side-eyed him. “So… I guess he’s pissed?” A hoarse laugh escaped Namjoon’s throat. “Then let’s convince him tonight that this , ” I pointed at him and myself. “...is not that bad, not even for his business ventures.”
Namjoon smiled at me before he leaned over and placed his head onto my shoulder. “Thanks, princess,” he mumbled under his breath. The two of us didn’t talk during the rest of the drive, just silently enjoy ed each other’s presence.
*
It took you only 15 minutes to arrive at the building that housed my family’s company. The receptionist politely let us know that my mother was in a meeting with Erik Parker. I grimaced when I heard his name and from the corner of my eye, saw Namjoon clench his jaw. “It’s on the fifth floor, meeting room four,” the receptionist chirped at us. I thanked her and quickly made my way towards the elevators.
Namjoon nervously tapped his feet while we were waiting. “Stop it, Joonie, you’re making me nervous, too , ” I hissed at him.
“Sorry, princess. It’s just… are you okay with… you know… Parker being there ? ” Namjoon spit out the name like venom, disgust marring his handso me face . I moved in front of him, one hand resting against his chest.
“I can handle it, Joonie. Can you?” I tilted my head and looked at him with worry. “I know you want to hurt him… I’d love to do that, too. But right now is not the right time for that.”
The sound of the elevator doors opening made me spin around. I entered the elevator and Namjoon stood behind me, then he leaned forward and we pressed the button for the fifth floor at the same time, making me gasp at the sudden contact. I slowly turned my head to the side so that I was now facing him. Namjoon smiled at me before he leaned closer. I almost expected him to kiss me, but right before his lips met mine, he stopped.
“Does that mean I can fuck him up later?” A dirty smirk played on his lips and I shoved him away and rolled my eyes.
“You are unbelievable.” But I still couldn’t hide the fact that him wanting to hurt the guy who hurt me turned me on. I couldn’t stop myself from smiling shyly.
When we arrived at the meeting room, my mother and Erik Parker were having a hearty laughter. Or at least that’s what my mother wanted it to look like. In reality, she was barely able to truly laugh at something at all. Whe
n my father went to jail and left her with all the financial issues and the company on the verge of bankruptcy, she lost her humor as she fought to save it. Now she was bitter and looking to regain the societal respect our family had enjoyed before all the drama. I t was almost heartbreaking to watch. Almost.
When things went downhill all she would’ve needed to do was stay with my father. But she decided to divorce him because it was more convenient for her. My father had a plan on how to make things right, but with my mother filing for divorce, it was overridden. I was still angry at her for letting my father down in his time of need and for desperately trying to sell me off to the next investor, so my pity could only go so far .
Namjoon laced his fingers with mine before I knocked against the glass door. My mother gestured to me to come in and Erik Parker turned his head, trying to get a glimpse of me. He looked at me like a predator, licking his lips in satisfaction. Erik got up from his seat and wanted to prance over to me but then he noticed Namjoon’s presence behind me, making him stop in his tracks.
“Ah, Valentina, I see you brought Namjoon with you.” My mother sounded annoyed and explained to Erik that Namjoon had been my best friend since childhood. Erik seemed to be pissed and glared at me. When Namjoon cleared his throat and stepped in front of me, the focus completely shifted to him.
“Actually Mrs. Rodriguez, I’m her husband now.” He held up my hand with the expensive ring and smiled proudly.
My mother’s mouth fell open and she stumbled back into her seat. Erik Parker, however, punched his fist against the glass table so hard that it cracked. “What the fuck is that?! You’re promised to me! We had a deal!” he yelled.
I moved to the other side of the table, now facing Erik Parker. “Sorry, I don’t marry abusive assholes.” I purred at him, making his face turn red with anger. He was on the verge of exploding, but Namjoon intervened.
“If I were you, I’d leave now before things get ugly.” He growled at Erik, making the entrepreneur flinch. Erik looked at me in disbelief, then at my mother, then at Namjoon again. When his eyes landed on the tall man beside me however, I could see fear sparkling in his eyes, a sight I didn’t want to e ver forget.
“Whatever.” He threw his hands up and left the meeting room in a rush. When Erik Parker was finally gone, my mother groaned loudly, drawing our attention back to her.
“Care to explain what you two did this time?” She gestured to me and Namjoon to sit down, her chin resting on her knuckles, waiting for an explanation.
Namjoon sighed and leaned back before he began explaining. “Well, that, Mrs. Rodriguez, is a quite interesting story…”
Chapter 4
“Oh, I can’t wait to hear that story! Are you even aware of what you did? Erik Parker was our big chance to get the company back up and you just ruined it with that scene!” My mother pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed.
Namjoon clenched his jaw in annoyance, and I wanted to stop him, but the words came out of him faster than I expected . “He beat her up yesterday, Mrs. Rodriguez. Do you really want someone like him near her?”
My mother pursed her lips. “What did you do this time, Valentina? I told you to not provoke him again.” I couldn’t believe my own ears. My mother was more upset about the fact that I probably provoked him than worried I was p hysically assaulted . I narrowed my eyes at her in disbelief.
B efore I could say something, Namjoon exploded: “What kind of mother are you? You would’ve let your daughter marry someone who beats her up?! Just for the sake of that goddamn company?!“ My mother flinched at the words. She opened her mouth but Namjoon didn’t let her talk.
“I know you were never the biggest fan of me being friends with Val because you think I’m a bad influence for her. Where’s all that protectiveness now, huh?!” Namjoon was fuming and even though I felt disappoint ed by my mother’s reaction, there was a nother feeling rising up inside me . I found it incredibly attractive that Namjoon w ould stand up for me in front of her.
“Namjoon, you better stop now,” my mother sneered at him.
“Oh, because you can’t stand to hear the truth, Luna?!” Namjoon never called my mother by her first name, making my eyes grow wide. He really didn’t care about respect or that it was inappropriate to call elders by their first name . Namjoon was apparently too angry to care about that.
My mother’s face turned red as she stood up. “That’s enough, Kim Namjoon,” she stated in an almost soothing tone before turning to face me. “My pretty daughter, I thought I taught you better than that… look at you, instead of talking to me in the first place about what happened with Erik Parker, you just let him sugarcoat you and marry him…” She shook her head in disbelief.
“Mrs. Rodriguez …” Namjoon growled at my mother, a clear warning to stop talking. She burst out laughing and walked closer to me. My mother took my face in her hands and I could feel Namjoon’s hand reaching out to mine, holding it tight.
“Good luck, but don’t come back home crying when things go wrong with him.” And with that my mother left the meeting room. Namjoon looked almost frantic , but when my gaze met his, his eyes softened, and he smiled at me.
A choked laugh escaped my throat, making Namjoon’s eyes widen. “Val…,” he took my hands in his and stroked his thumb over my palms. “Hey, please talk to me, princess.”
“Can we please just go? This whole family drama makes me feel nauseous.” I squeezed my eyes and rolled my neck before I got up. Namjoon nodded and followed me to the elevators, his hand never leaving mine. I knew my mother would be upset about me marrying Namjoon, but I would’ve never imagined that what really made her upset was that I didn’t want to take Erik Parker’s beating . I clenched my fists in anger ; how could my own mother expect something like that from me? Just to secure an investment?
The elevator doors opened , pulling me out of my thoughts. I quickly walked through the lobby, Namjoon still holding my hand in his. We were almost out of the company building when a too familiar voice called after Namjoon and me. “Yah, Valentina-ah, Namjoon-ah! Nari found out about your marriage and we were just in the neighborhood, hoping you’d be here and there you are.” Chinhae stated in a cheerful tone and hugged me before patting Namjoon’s shoulder. “Yah, how was it? No, wait, don’t tell me yet. Let’s grab some lunch and then you can tell US everything! Right, Nari?”
I glanced at Namjoon who was just as flabbergasted by the sudden appearance of our other best friend as I was. I didn’t want Chinhae to know about the family drama that had just unfolded in the meeting room, so I gave Nari my best fake smile and linked arms with her before we walked out of the lobby. “That’s also a good way to finally get to know each other, Nari. You know, from wifey to wifey.” I winked at her, making the other woman giggle shyly. Well, maybe I would be able to finally make things right with Chinhae’s wife at lunch.
*
“Your ring must’ve cost a fortune, Valentina.” Nari admired the ring like a magpie with wide eyes, making me giggle. After her second glass of champagne, she had finally started to loosen up, and I was able to get to know her. She was nicer than I had thought in the first place and right now, drunk Nari seemed just way too cute. “Yah, Chinhae-ah, look at that ring! Why didn’t you buy me one like that?” She punched her husband ’s upper arm, making him choke on his drink.
“Whoa, Nari, sweetheart, don’t be so rude to your husband. Your ring’s nice, too.” He rubbed his arm and looked at his wife with wide eyes.
“But look at this, it’s Harry Winston,” she whined while playing with my fingers , not breaking her gaze from the expensive piece of jewelry. “You really must love her a lot, Namjoon.”
“Anything for my princess.” His hand reached out for my free hand before he lifted it to his lips, giving it a soft kiss while looking me in the eyes. I was surprised by his actions , but I could also feel my skin heating up. What the hell was going on? Yes, he had confessed that he liked me but this… this was something else.
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I signaled for him to get up so that I could get out of the booth. “I’ll.. head for the restrooms really quick,” I mumbled before rushing away from the table. Once I was in the restroom, I turned on the cold water and splashed it on my face. On the one side, I wanted this more than anything ; Namjoon finally show ing that he cared for me in a deeper way than just being best friends. O n the other hand, however, I knew Namjoon for his teasing, so even if I now knew that he liked me and we were married, it confused the hell out of me, and I wasn’t sure if he was just playing one of his flirting games or if he was being real with me. I pinched the bridge of your nose and leaned against the cold tile wall, a soft knock against the restroom door interrupt ing my thoughts.
“Val, it’s me. Can I come in?” Great, Namjoon was outside. I took a deep breath and unlocked the door. He quickly entered with a glance over his shoulder to make sure no one saw him. Once he was inside, he locked the door.
I switched my spot and leaned against the sink, arms crossed, my gaze wandering through the room. “Princess, hey.” The soft touch of Namjoon’s hands on my chin fixed my eyes on his figure in front of me. I almost wanted to lean into his touch, but quickly shoved his hands away.
“Namjoon, what was th at ?” I snarled at him.
“What do you mean? I’m your husband, of course I say stuff like that when people ask...” Namjoon looked at me in confusion.
“That’s not what I meant… Were you serious? Or is this just another game to you? Did you mean it when you said that you like me?” I didn’t dare to look him in the eyes, too afraid of the rejection that might come.
“Val, look at me,” he lifted my head up by my chin, my gaze meeting his. “I was serious about everything I said today. I like you, but I’m horrible at love. I wanna be with you, but I still need to sort my shit out. I would never play with your feelings, princess.” He leaned closer , his lips lightly grazing mine. I knew he was waiting for my permission, so I decided to close the distance and finally felt his lips on mine.