Chapter 33
If audio player doesn't work, press Stop then Play button again
"I can't breathe," Ji-Eun wheezed. "I am not a size two, Anita. Please..."
The middle-aged French woman eyed Ji-Eun sternly as she helped her sit down on the bridal chair inside one of the dressing rooms.
"And pray tell, my love," the woman said. "What have you been doing these past few months? Hmm? I don't think you've ever used your gym privileges here."
Ji-Eun pouted. "I've been working. And I'm an eight or a ten." She saw her attendant walk over to the racks on one side of the boutique that had been housing their wedding collections.
"Oh," the woman clucked. "I could have sworn I've met brides like you before." Anita turned to rummage through the rack carrying the . "Oh, wait! No, I actually haven't because most of them are actually putting in an effort to look paper thin on their big day!"
"I don't want to look thin," Ji-Eun grumbled. "I just want to get through the actual wedding without fainting from stress."
"I will pretend I did not hear you say that," the attendant came back with an armful of dresses that she was supposed to try on. "Now, listen. I've cross-referenced everything that I have on you and on your husband. Though, I must say your tastes are really polar opposites of each other..."
Ji-Eun listened to her bridal attendant attentively, noting her knowledge. She knew that her own Regal Hotel Boutique had information pertaining to her clothing preference since they do deliver an entire wardrobe of clothes to her suite every week. From a plethora of suits, coats, and petite dresses, there were also a lot of comfy casual clothes, a bunch of jackets and hoodies, and some gym clothes that she rarely ever use.
What she's more interested in hearing about was Song Hyun-Shik's preference. And to her mild surprise, his preference leaned more on the flashy and ostentatious side of fashion. As Anita had described, "Your soon-to-be husband likes his women ornamented."
Ornamented? Ji-Eun frowned a little.
"I think there's going to be a problem..." Ji-Eun said thoughtfully.
"Yes, my love. I know," Anita patted her cheek reassuringly. "Don't worry about it. I have ordered a variety of dresses from all over the world for you. Some of them are from famous designers, some from lesser known brands, and some beautiful local ones since I know you have an affinity for those. I made sure that it's to your liking even though it's... designed to impress a vast majority of fashionistas. I'm sure one or two of them will suit your taste."
"I have complete and utter faith in you," Ji-Eun said.
"You better do," Anita said, finally dropping her stern gaze. "Now, I want you to take a look at some of these."
She handed the dresses over to the other attendants present and they put each of them on individual racks. Ji-Eun could only marvel at the display of haute couture in front of her.
How could I pull off wearing dresses like these?! Her mind screamed, igniting panic throughout her body.
Anita walked in front of the dresses, thinking about something.
Finally, she decided on a soft, ivory-colored A-line, strapless, silhouette wedding dress with a fitted bodice and a flowing chiffon skirt. It's a simple, but elegant dress, with a hand-beaded lace empire waist and ruching.
"Let's try this on first," Anita said excitedly. "You have a narrow, athletic build. Just perfect for petite, A-line dresses."
Ji-Eun looked at the gown and smiled. "This is very beautiful," she said, running a hand on the length of the skirt.
"Yes. It's perfect for you," the attendant nodded at her encouragingly. "Plus, the back is not that low and it has that sought after chapel train that most brides want."
She then walked over to the dress that was hanging on the fourth individual rack. "And this too. I like this cream-colored, high-neck, macrame wedding dress. The high-neck design would totally look perfect on your arms and shoulders. And the knotted laces over the organza are just to die for! Not to mention that the train on this dress is different... It's a sweep train."
A what? Ji-Eun could only look at her blankly. These terminologies are going to be the end of me, I swear...
"I don't understand, but I'll put on whatever you want me to put on," she said weakly.
Anita took the dresses off the racks and handed them over to the other attendants. "Go with them. They will do the fitting on you now. Also, they're going to work on your hair and put on some light makeup on your otherwise pale face, so we can see the effect and make adjustments if necessary."
Ji-Eun heard the light scolding and she just smiled back sheepishly.
As professional as her staff are, Ji-Eun still experienced a whirlwind of emotions when she was ushered into the dressing room. Her staff were polite as they moved around her, removing her robe and putting her dress on her, bringing her shoes over, tying her hair in a loose bun, and touching up her simple makeup. Anita had asked her beforehand is she would prefer to wear a veil of any kind and she answered, "No." So, to make up for it, Anita brought in an assortment of headbands and combs.
Feeling a bit overwhelmed at the attention she's getting, she sent a distressed message to her secretary outside.
'I need you here.'
In two minutes or less, she heard Jaehyun's voice outside the dressing room.
"Ji-Eun-ah," she heard his voice from outside the room. "Are you alright?"
She raised a hand to stop the attendants that were fussing over her.
"I'm sorry," she apologized, her breathing felt heavy. "I'm going to need a minute."
"Yes, of course," the attendants promptly stepped away and left her alone. "Please let us know when you're ready to continue, Lady Chung."
Ji-Eun closed her eyes and tried to steady her breathing. After a minute of silence, she heard the door open and somebody walked inside the dressing room.
She opened her eyes and saw a shocked Oh Jaehyun at the door. "Jaehyun-ssi," she rasped. "Thank goodness. You're here."
Snapping out of his daze, he slowly walked over to her. "Oh..." He let out a breath.
"You're looking at me like I'm a Giant Panda," she said. "I look like an idiot, I know."
"No, I..." he started stammering. "You look... different."
"Different," she raised an eyebrow at him, calm finally returning to her. "I guess... it's not that bad?"
"On the contrary," he said, touching her shoulders lightly and turning her around to face the floor to ceiling mirror. "You look very beautiful."
She saw her reflection blinking back at her.
"Oh my..." She felt awed by what she saw. Her usual business-like, stony demeanor had been completely replaced by a younger-looking girl with a lightly made-up face and soft features. The dress flowed freely down her body, fitting her perfectly. The simple ruched design of the dress brought out all her good features, making the person wearing the dress the main focus and not the other way around.
"This is..." she said, looking at herself carefully. "These people are too good."
Jaehyun shook his head and smiled at her reflection. "You've always looked like this, you know. Maybe just a bit enhanced, but otherwise..."
At his words, Ji-Eun finally relaxed. "Thank you."
Jaehyun released her shoulders and looked around the room. "Maybe you should finish dressing up? Where are your shoes?"
He felt at that moment that he had turn away to hide his pitiful expression, so he did and began busying himself with something. He wanted to slap himself, but that would be too obvious, so he chose to just move away.
"Jaehyun-ssi," she said. "Right now, you're not at work. Let the attendants do it."
But I had to do something or else... He sighed.
"Alright," he said. "The Song family is waiting for you, so you better get going."
She nodded absently, still looking at her reflection. After a few seconds, she realized what he just said and she whipped her head to look at him.
"Wait... What Song family?" She said worriedly. "Isn't Auntie Su-Won the only one outside?"
Oh Jaehyun hid his tumultuous emotion behind a smile as he answered, "Your husband is here."
Ji-Eun stared at him blankly, her mouth slightly hanging open.
"Song Hyun-Shik arrived at the Boutique few minutes ago."
Please report us if you find any errors so we can fix it asap!
"I can't breathe," Ji-Eun wheezed. "I am not a size two, Anita. Please..."
The middle-aged French woman eyed Ji-Eun sternly as she helped her sit down on the bridal chair inside one of the dressing rooms.
"And pray tell, my love," the woman said. "What have you been doing these past few months? Hmm? I don't think you've ever used your gym privileges here."
Ji-Eun pouted. "I've been working. And I'm an eight or a ten." She saw her attendant walk over to the racks on one side of the boutique that had been housing their wedding collections.
"Oh," the woman clucked. "I could have sworn I've met brides like you before." Anita turned to rummage through the rack carrying the . "Oh, wait! No, I actually haven't because most of them are actually putting in an effort to look paper thin on their big day!"
"I don't want to look thin," Ji-Eun grumbled. "I just want to get through the actual wedding without fainting from stress."
"I will pretend I did not hear you say that," the attendant came back with an armful of dresses that she was supposed to try on. "Now, listen. I've cross-referenced everything that I have on you and on your husband. Though, I must say your tastes are really polar opposites of each other..."
Ji-Eun listened to her bridal attendant attentively, noting her knowledge. She knew that her own Regal Hotel Boutique had information pertaining to her clothing preference since they do deliver an entire wardrobe of clothes to her suite every week. From a plethora of suits, coats, and petite dresses, there were also a lot of comfy casual clothes, a bunch of jackets and hoodies, and some gym clothes that she rarely ever use.
What she's more interested in hearing about was Song Hyun-Shik's preference. And to her mild surprise, his preference leaned more on the flashy and ostentatious side of fashion. As Anita had described, "Your soon-to-be husband likes his women ornamented."
Ornamented? Ji-Eun frowned a little.
"I think there's going to be a problem..." Ji-Eun said thoughtfully.
"Yes, my love. I know," Anita patted her cheek reassuringly. "Don't worry about it. I have ordered a variety of dresses from all over the world for you. Some of them are from famous designers, some from lesser known brands, and some beautiful local ones since I know you have an affinity for those. I made sure that it's to your liking even though it's... designed to impress a vast majority of fashionistas. I'm sure one or two of them will suit your taste."
"I have complete and utter faith in you," Ji-Eun said.
"You better do," Anita said, finally dropping her stern gaze. "Now, I want you to take a look at some of these."
She handed the dresses over to the other attendants present and they put each of them on individual racks. Ji-Eun could only marvel at the display of haute couture in front of her.
How could I pull off wearing dresses like these?! Her mind screamed, igniting panic throughout her body.
Anita walked in front of the dresses, thinking about something.
Finally, she decided on a soft, ivory-colored A-line, strapless, silhouette wedding dress with a fitted bodice and a flowing chiffon skirt. It's a simple, but elegant dress, with a hand-beaded lace empire waist and ruching.
"Let's try this on first," Anita said excitedly. "You have a narrow, athletic build. Just perfect for petite, A-line dresses."
Ji-Eun looked at the gown and smiled. "This is very beautiful," she said, running a hand on the length of the skirt.
"Yes. It's perfect for you," the attendant nodded at her encouragingly. "Plus, the back is not that low and it has that sought after chapel train that most brides want."
She then walked over to the dress that was hanging on the fourth individual rack. "And this too. I like this cream-colored, high-neck, macrame wedding dress. The high-neck design would totally look perfect on your arms and shoulders. And the knotted laces over the organza are just to die for! Not to mention that the train on this dress is different... It's a sweep train."
A what? Ji-Eun could only look at her blankly. These terminologies are going to be the end of me, I swear...
"I don't understand, but I'll put on whatever you want me to put on," she said weakly.
Anita took the dresses off the racks and handed them over to the other attendants. "Go with them. They will do the fitting on you now. Also, they're going to work on your hair and put on some light makeup on your otherwise pale face, so we can see the effect and make adjustments if necessary."
Ji-Eun heard the light scolding and she just smiled back sheepishly.
As professional as her staff are, Ji-Eun still experienced a whirlwind of emotions when she was ushered into the dressing room. Her staff were polite as they moved around her, removing her robe and putting her dress on her, bringing her shoes over, tying her hair in a loose bun, and touching up her simple makeup. Anita had asked her beforehand is she would prefer to wear a veil of any kind and she answered, "No." So, to make up for it, Anita brought in an assortment of headbands and combs.
Feeling a bit overwhelmed at the attention she's getting, she sent a distressed message to her secretary outside.
'I need you here.'
In two minutes or less, she heard Jaehyun's voice outside the dressing room.
"Ji-Eun-ah," she heard his voice from outside the room. "Are you alright?"
She raised a hand to stop the attendants that were fussing over her.
"I'm sorry," she apologized, her breathing felt heavy. "I'm going to need a minute."
"Yes, of course," the attendants promptly stepped away and left her alone. "Please let us know when you're ready to continue, Lady Chung."
Ji-Eun closed her eyes and tried to steady her breathing. After a minute of silence, she heard the door open and somebody walked inside the dressing room.
She opened her eyes and saw a shocked Oh Jaehyun at the door. "Jaehyun-ssi," she rasped. "Thank goodness. You're here."
Snapping out of his daze, he slowly walked over to her. "Oh..." He let out a breath.
"You're looking at me like I'm a Giant Panda," she said. "I look like an idiot, I know."
"No, I..." he started stammering. "You look... different."
"Different," she raised an eyebrow at him, calm finally returning to her. "I guess... it's not that bad?"
"On the contrary," he said, touching her shoulders lightly and turning her around to face the floor to ceiling mirror. "You look very beautiful."
She saw her reflection blinking back at her.
"Oh my..." She felt awed by what she saw. Her usual business-like, stony demeanor had been completely replaced by a younger-looking girl with a lightly made-up face and soft features. The dress flowed freely down her body, fitting her perfectly. The simple ruched design of the dress brought out all her good features, making the person wearing the dress the main focus and not the other way around.
"This is..." she said, looking at herself carefully. "These people are too good."
Jaehyun shook his head and smiled at her reflection. "You've always looked like this, you know. Maybe just a bit enhanced, but otherwise..."
At his words, Ji-Eun finally relaxed. "Thank you."
Jaehyun released her shoulders and looked around the room. "Maybe you should finish dressing up? Where are your shoes?"
He felt at that moment that he had turn away to hide his pitiful expression, so he did and began busying himself with something. He wanted to slap himself, but that would be too obvious, so he chose to just move away.
"Jaehyun-ssi," she said. "Right now, you're not at work. Let the attendants do it."
But I had to do something or else... He sighed.
"Alright," he said. "The Song family is waiting for you, so you better get going."
She nodded absently, still looking at her reflection. After a few seconds, she realized what he just said and she whipped her head to look at him.
"Wait... What Song family?" She said worriedly. "Isn't Auntie Su-Won the only one outside?"
Oh Jaehyun hid his tumultuous emotion behind a smile as he answered, "Your husband is here."
Ji-Eun stared at him blankly, her mouth slightly hanging open.
"Song Hyun-Shik arrived at the Boutique few minutes ago."
"I can't breathe," Ji-Eun wheezed. "I am not a size two, Anita. Please..."The middle-aged French woman eyed Ji-Eun sternly as she helped her sit down on the bridal chair inside one of the dressing rooms."And pray tell, my love," the woman said. "What have you been doing these past few months? Hmm? I don't think you've ever used your gym privileges here."Ji-Eun pouted. "I've been working. And I'm an eight or a ten." She saw her attendant walk over to the racks on one side of the boutique that had been housing their wedding collections."Oh," the woman clucked. "I could have sworn I've met brides like you before." Anita turned to rummage through the rack carrying the . "Oh, wait! No, I actually haven't because most of them are actually putting in an effort to look paper thin on their big day!""I don't want to look thin," Ji-Eun grumbled. "I just want to get through the actual wedding without fainting from stress.""I will pretend I did not hear you say that," the attendant came back with an armful of dresses that she was supposed to try on. "Now, listen. I've cross-referenced everything that I have on you and on your husband. Though, I must say your tastes are really polar opposites of each other..."Ji-Eun listened to her bridal attendant attentively, noting her knowledge. She knew that her own Regal Hotel Boutique had information pertaining to her clothing preference since they do deliver an entire wardrobe of clothes to her suite every week. From a plethora of suits, coats, and petite dresses, there were also a lot of comfy casual clothes, a bunch of jackets and hoodies, and some gym clothes that she rarely ever use.What she's more interested in hearing about was Song Hyun-Shik's preference. And to her mild surprise, his preference leaned more on the flashy and ostentatious side of fashion. As Anita had described, "Your soon-to-be husband likes his women ornamented."Ornamented? Ji-Eun frowned a little."I think there's going to be a problem..." Ji-Eun said thoughtfully."Yes, my love. I know," Anita patted her cheek reassuringly. "Don't worry about it. I have ordered a variety of dresses from all over the world for you. Some of them are from famous designers, some from lesser known brands, and some beautiful local ones since I know you have an affinity for those. I made sure that it's to your liking even though it's... designed to impress a vast majority of fashionistas. I'm sure one or two of them will suit your taste.""I have complete and utter faith in you," Ji-Eun said."You better do," Anita said, finally dropping her stern gaze. "Now, I want you to take a look at some of these."She handed the dresses over to the other attendants present and they put each of them on individual racks. Ji-Eun could only marvel at the display of haute couture in front of her.How could I pull off wearing dresses like these?! Her mind screamed, igniting panic throughout her body.Anita walked in front of the dresses, thinking about something.Finally, she decided on a soft, ivory-colored A-line, strapless, silhouette wedding dress with a fitted bodice and a flowing chiffon skirt. It's a simple, but elegant dress, with a hand-beaded lace empire waist and ruching."Let's try this on first," Anita said excitedly. "You have a narrow, athletic build. Just perfect for petite, A-line dresses."Ji-Eun looked at the gown and smiled. "This is very beautiful," she said, running a hand on the length of the skirt."Yes. It's perfect for you," the attendant nodded at her encouragingly. "Plus, the back is not that low and it has that sought after chapel train that most brides want."She then walked over to the dress that was hanging on the fourth individual rack. "And this too. I like this cream-colored, high-neck, macrame wedding dress. The high-neck design would totally look perfect on your arms and shoulders. And the knotted laces over the organza are just to die for! Not to mention that the train on this dress is different... It's a sweep train." A what? Ji-Eun could only look at her blankly. These terminologies are going to be the end of me, I swear... "I don't understand, but I'll put on whatever you want me to put on," she said weakly. Anita took the dresses off the racks and handed them over to the other attendants. "Go with them. They will do the fitting on you now. Also, they're going to work on your hair and put on some light makeup on your otherwise pale face, so we can see the effect and make adjustments if necessary."Ji-Eun heard the light scolding and she just smiled back sheepishly.As professional as her staff are, Ji-Eun still experienced a whirlwind of emotions when she was ushered into the dressing room. Her staff were polite as they moved around her, removing her robe and putting her dress on her, bringing her shoes over, tying her hair in a loose bun, and touching up her simple makeup. Anita had asked her beforehand is she would prefer to wear a veil of any kind and she answered, "No." So, to make up for it, Anita brought in an assortment of headbands and combs.Feeling a bit overwhelmed at the attention she's getting, she sent a distressed message to her secretary outside.'I need you here.'In two minutes or less, she heard Jaehyun's voice outside the dressing room."Ji-Eun-ah," she heard his voice from outside the room. "Are you alright?"She raised a hand to stop the attendants that were fussing over her."I'm sorry," she apologized, her breathing felt heavy. "I'm going to need a minute.""Yes, of course," the attendants promptly stepped away and left her alone. "Please let us know when you're ready to continue, Lady Chung."Ji-Eun closed her eyes and tried to steady her breathing. After a minute of silence, she heard the door open and somebody walked inside the dressing room.She opened her eyes and saw a shocked Oh Jaehyun at the door. "Jaehyun-ssi," she rasped. "Thank goodness. You're here."Snapping out of his daze, he slowly walked over to her. "Oh..." He let out a breath."You're looking at me like I'm a Giant Panda," she said. "I look like an idiot, I know.""No, I..." he started stammering. "You look... different.""Different," she raised an eyebrow at him, calm finally returning to her. "I guess... it's not that bad?" "On the contrary," he said, touching her shoulders lightly and turning her around to face the floor to ceiling mirror. "You look very beautiful." She saw her reflection blinking back at her. "Oh my..." She felt awed by what she saw. Her usual business-like, stony demeanor had been completely replaced by a younger-looking girl with a lightly made-up face and soft features. The dress flowed freely down her body, fitting her perfectly. The simple ruched design of the dress brought out all her good features, making the person wearing the dress the main focus and not the other way around. "This is..." she said, looking at herself carefully. "These people are too good." Jaehyun shook his head and smiled at her reflection. "You've always looked like this, you know. Maybe just a bit enhanced, but otherwise..." At his words, Ji-Eun finally relaxed. "Thank you." Jaehyun released her shoulders and looked around the room. "Maybe you should finish dressing up? Where are your shoes?" He felt at that moment that he had turn away to hide his pitiful expression, so he did and began busying himself with something. He wanted to slap himself, but that would be too obvious, so he chose to just move away. "Jaehyun-ssi," she said. "Right now, you're not at work. Let the attendants do it." But I had to do something or else... He sighed. "Alright," he said. "The Song family is waiting for you, so you better get going." She nodded absently, still looking at her reflection. After a few seconds, she realized what he just said and she whipped her head to look at him. "Wait... What Song family?" She said worriedly. "Isn't Auntie Su-Won the only one outside?" Oh Jaehyun hid his tumultuous emotion behind a smile as he answered, "Your husband is here." Ji-Eun stared at him blankly, her mouth slightly hanging open. "Song Hyun-Shik arrived at the Boutique few minutes ago."
