His sudden question—What is the one thing you want to do more than anything else in Seoul?—sliced right through the heavy, suffocating logistics of my demanding career as an officer and his punishing reality as a global superstar. In a single heartbeat, the question snapped me out of my administrative anxieties and dropped me straight back into the giddy, unrestrained core of my fan-girl heart.
"Oh, yes!" I exclaimed, my eyes suddenly lighting up with intense, sparkling excitement. I reached out and gripped the heavy wool of his sleeves, completely forgetting the biting cold of the river and the deeply serious conversation we had just been having. "I remember! Tomorrow is our last full day, and there is one place I have wanted to go since the absolute second I booked this trip to Korea!"
"Tell me," Woonseok urged softly. A deep, profoundly satisfied smile spread across his handsome face as he watched my dramatic transformation from a stressed officer back to a vibrant, glowing woman.
"Okay, so it's not a traditional market, and it's definitely not a historical landmark," I admitted, my voice dropping slightly in reverence, almost as if I were confessing a deeply held secret. "It's the famous Shadow Hunters' Exhibition—you know, the massive K-Pop anime and demon hunters movie franchise! The place with all the incredible cinematic props and the immersive digital sets."
I squeezed his arms excitedly, bouncing slightly on my toes. "I love that movie so much, Woon! Whole-heartedly! Especially Jinu. I know it's a fictional anime movie, but the lead demon hunter... Oh God, I love his glowing demon eyes. I am such a ridiculously big fan of his fighting patterns, the dark aesthetic, and the whole forbidden love story with the demon lord—it's just perfect! We have to go there, Woonseok! What do you say?"
Woonseok listened to my breathless, enthusiastic confession with a quiet, immensely amused tenderness. The idea that his sophisticated, deeply serious girlfriend—a woman who managed high-stakes crises back in India—was secretly obsessed with a high-concept, fictional K-Pop fantasy universe clearly delighted him beyond words.
"Shadow Hunters," Woonseok repeated slowly, testing the name on his tongue as a slow, terribly knowing grin began to form. "The one with the spectacular, gravity-defying choreography and the highly publicized, highly fictional love triangle."
He leaned in closer, his dark eyes twinkling with mischief under the sparse park lighting. "I know Jinu."
you have to take me! I want to see the Demon Hunter's sword props in real life and stand in the middle of the final battle scene!"
He reached out, his long fingers gently tucking a stray strand of wind-blown hair behind my ear. His voice was soft, resonating with a heavy, sweet promise. "Then that is our memory, Butterfly. The final, non-negotiable objective."
"It's perfect," he affirmed, pulling me into a quick, enveloping hug. "We will go there tomorrow. I will gladly risk the entirety of my carefully curated career and face the paparazzi for your love of fictional, glowing-eyed demon hunters."
He pulled back just enough to look at me, a wicked, mischievous gleam in his eye. "But be warned, Sana. I might have to pull my phone out and tell 'Jinu' that my girlfriend seems to be harbouring a very obvious, highly concerning crush on him. He's quite fiercely protective of his fans, you know."
I threw my head back and laughed, feeling the absolute last vestige of pressure lift from my shoulders.
"You can tell him whatever you want, Woonseok," I challenged boldly, wrapping my arms securely around his narrow waist and looking up at him with total adoration. "Because after tomorrow, I will be the one who got the actual star. Jinu can keep his swords."
"The memory wasn't going to be about untouchable luxury or isolating fame. It was going to be about a shared, enthusiastic silliness—a perfect, tangible piece of pure joy for her to carry across the miles.
As we continued our slow, aimless walk along the secluded, paved path by the riverbank, still wrapped securely in the warmth of his coat and the certainty of our new plans, my attention was suddenly caught by a small flash of movement in the distance.
"Woon, look," I whispered, lifting a hand to point across the wide, darkened expanse of frosted grass that separated us from the main park area.
From afar, bathed beneath the soft, buttery yellow glow of a distant, flickering lamppost, a small group of children were playing a simple, wildly energetic game. They were chasing a battered soccer ball, tackling each other onto the grass, and dissolving into shrieks of pure, unadulterated laughter. Their tiny, muffled voices carried beautifully on the cool evening air, cutting through the silence of the city.
"Aww," I sighed, leaning the side of my head heavily against Woonseok's solid shoulder. "They are so incredibly cute. Look at how much fun they're having, just kicking a ball around. No phones. No complicated schedules. No senior officers or agency managers to report to."
Woonseok stopped walking and looked exactly where I pointed. His intense gaze softened considerably. He stood perfectly still, watching the children's innocent, breathless abandon for a long, silent moment. A quiet, deeply unguarded smile slowly formed on his lips.
"That's the ultimate freedom, isn't it?" he murmured, pulling me even tighter against his side, as if trying to absorb the warmth of the scene. "The kind of freedom you entirely forget exists when you spend your life busy running a global enterprise—or fighting desperately for just an hour of a sane, private life."
"Exactly," I agreed softly, watching a little boy dramatically trip over the ball and burst into giggles. "They have absolutely no concept of international time zones, paparazzi, or long-distance logistics. They just have the grass, the ball, and the moment."
I tilted my head back to look up at his profile, my heart feeling uncomfortably full. "That's what I want for us, Woonseok. Moments exactly like that. Uncomplicated, pure joy. Even if they are just two hours long, tucked away in the dark."
He lowered his chin, pressing a lingering, gentle kiss to the top of my head. His eyes remained fixed on the playful chase happening far away.
"You've shown me how to find those moments again, Butterfly," he promised, his voice thick with emotion. "You've reminded me that life isn't just about avoiding the chase or hiding from the cameras; it's about actively choosing the right person to chase the joy with. And right now, all I want to do is chase you through this freezing garden until we both collapse with simple, uncomplicated happiness."
He finally lowered his gaze to meet mine, his dark eyes shining with a profound, earth-shattering sincerity. "The children are a perfect reminder. No more complicated rules. Just us, and the beautiful, simple truth."
Woonseok's gaze remained fixed on the tumbling children for a moment longer before he slowly, deliberately turned his full attention back to me. The heavy tenderness in his eyes subtly shifted, replaced by a deeply affectionate, brilliantly teasing light.
"So," he began, his voice dropping into a low, playful challenge as he arched one dark eyebrow. "I'm detecting a very strong, very immediate emotional reaction to the sight of small, chaotic humans. Tell me, Butterfly... do you love kids? Is this a hidden, highly classified requirement in the 'Future Planning' section of your strict rule book?"
I laughed out loud, nudging his ribs playfully with my elbow. "Oh, you are completely impossible! Of course, I love kids! Who in their right mind doesn't love kids? They're adorable and full of life." I paused, a wry smile touching my lips. "But sometimes they are so much dramatic work!" I added with a laugh.
I met his gaze, my smile slowly softening as I considered his teasing question with sudden seriousness. "Why? Are you not a fan? Too much unpredictable noise for the quiet, perfectly controlled sanctuary you crave?"
He tightened his arm around me, shifting us so our shoulders were pressed firmly together. He looked out over the dark, gleaming water of the Han River, his voice dropping into a quiet, contemplative register as he actively considered his own unwritten future.
"I think I would be a good father," Woonseok mused aloud, a thoughtful, entirely serious look crossing his striking features. "I am exceptionally good at managing schedules, handling complex logistics, and organizing chaos. And God knows I have plenty of professional experience dealing with highly dramatic behavior, tantrums, and spontaneous, unreasonable demands."
He glanced down at me, a quick, mischievous grin flashing. "Plus, I think I would actually enjoy the absolute anarchy of it. It would be a rather brilliant, welcome break from my highly controlled, heavily monitored life."
He brought his focus entirely back to me. The teasing was gone, replaced by the warm, sincere, overwhelming love that always anchored my soul to his.
"But truly, Sana... I want the life you want. If the greatest dream you hold in your heart involves filling a house with the chaos, the mess, and the loud laughter of a family, then that is exactly the future I commit to building with you. Because the only thing I care about in this world is seeing that simple, unburdened happiness on your face. And if that happiness comes with a couple of noisy little co-conspirators running around our living room, then I am more than ready to upgrade my security detail."
His words weren't a formal proposal, but they were something even heavier. They were a profound, staggering commitment, casually outlining a beautiful, solid future that stretched far beyond the next two days, encompassing the quiet, enduring joy of a shared, ordinary life.
My eyes went incredibly wide. I stared into his beautiful, earnest eyes for a long second, my brain short-circuiting. I have never imagined this in my life, I thought, completely paralyzed by the sheer magnitude of his words. For him to say this... with his life... it is such a massive, impossible thing.
I opened my mouth, a breathless confession right on the tip of my tongue. I was just about to say something, anything, to bridge the massive emotion swelling in my chest, when—
"Ooh!"
We both sat up straight, a little too quickly, and turned our heads in total unison.
Standing barely three feet away from us, bathed in the shadows of the willow tree, was the small group of children. They were huddled together, hands over their mouths, giggling hysterically. Their little faces were alight with mischievous, entirely unabashed curiosity as they stared at the romantic moment they had just brazenly interrupted.
Their innocent, knowing smiles were far more mortifying than any blinding paparazzi flash could ever be.
My face instantly went scarlet. The heat rushed up my neck and settled violently in my cheeks. I scrambled to take a step back from Woonseok, desperately trying to smooth down my messy hair and adjust my jacket, feeling exactly like an awkward teenager who had just been caught making out on her second date.
I glanced at Woonseok. The serious, devoted man from three seconds ago had vanished. The playful, competitive glint had spectacularly returned to his eyes. He effortlessly picked up the stray soccer ball that had rolled near his boots and walked casually toward the group of children, a warm, completely disarming smile taking over his face.
"I think we just got our first lesson in future practice," Woonseok said softly over his shoulder, a teasing whisper meant just for me.
He then turned his full, blinding charisma onto the kids, speaking in flawless, incredibly friendly Korean. "I'm so sorry. Did our boring conversation get in the way of your very important game?"
The children, instantly emboldened by his friendly demeanor and towering height, simply pointed at us and dissolved into another wave of shrieking giggles.
Woonseok chuckled, dropping gracefully to one knee to meet them at their eye level. "You are completely right," he said with a heavy, highly dramatic sigh, a brilliant twinkle in his eyes. "We are very, very bad at playing our games over there. We were just standing around. Perhaps you highly skilled professionals, could teach us how it's done?"
He looked back at me over his shoulder, his smile wide, dazzling, and openly challenging.
"Butterfly!" he called out, his voice ringing out, filled with pure, unadulterated laughter. "It seems our audience has officially arrived. Come on. Let's show them that our future is filled not just with boring romance, but with lots and lots of aggressive soccer. We have to be prepared for anything, remember?"
I walked over to join them, my blush still burning hot on my cheeks, but my heart swelling with an impossible, buoyant happiness. I looked at the global icon balancing a soccer ball on his knee for a group of five-year-olds. He wasn't just my celebrity boyfriend anymore; he was a man who effortlessly embraced life's chaotic interruptions. He was a man who could take a deeply embarrassing, mortifying moment and spin it into a shared, radiantly beautiful memory.
The acute embarrassment of being caught quickly melted away into the freezing night air, completely replaced by the sheer, chaotic joy of the moment.
Woonseok, armed with his incredible, boundless energy and his easy, magnetic charisma, instantly had the children laughing and running in circles. We played a wild, entirely rule-free game of soccer on the frosty grass. Woonseok was a blur of motion, expertly juggling the ball with his feet, doing fancy footwork to impress them, and then occasionally letting the kids completely "win" by executing exaggerated, highly dramatic falls onto the ground, clutching his chest in fake agony.
Laughter, pure, uninhibited, and glorious, echoed endlessly through the quiet park.
As the last faint hints of purple twilight completely faded to black and the Seoul city skyline became razor-sharp against the night, Woonseok finally, breathlessly, called a halt to the game.
"Alright, alright, my little champions," he panted, kneeling down to their level one last time, brushing the grass off his expensive coat, his voice incredibly gentle. "It's getting late now. The stars are out. Your parents will be looking for you. It's time to go home."
The children, their cheeks flushed and their eyes bright with happiness, reluctantly started to gather around their scuffed ball. But right before they turned to leave, they suddenly rushed past Woonseok and directly toward me.
"eonni!" one little girl exclaimed, her small hands reaching out to grab the hem of my coat.
I smiled, my heart melting. I quickly dug into my purse and pulled out a small, crinkling bag of fruit candies I always carried for long days at the office. "Wait, wait, don't leave yet," I said, crouching down and offering each child a generous handful. "Here. This is your prize for being such incredibly good players."
As I handed out the colorful candies, they practically swarmed me. Their tiny, sweet faces looked up at me with absolute, unfiltered adoration. One by one, before I could even register what was happening, they reached up on their tiptoes and planted sticky, wildly affectionate kisses on my freezing cheeks, their little voices chorusing their overwhelming gratitude.
"Thank you, eonni!" they chirped in unison.
One of the little boys, clutching a strawberry candy, looked at me with huge, solemn eyes and boldly declared, "eonni, you are so beautiful."
My heart swelled until I thought it might actually burst. I laughed, a bright, happy sound, bending down and returning each sweet kiss to their soft, rosy, wind-chilled cheeks, utterly charmed by their innocent, unabashed affection.
Woonseok, who had been watching this incredibly heartwarming scene from a slight distance, suddenly appeared right beside me. His usual, highly composed, effortlessly cool demeanor had subtly but hilariously shifted.
He placed a large, heavy hand on my arm, a deeply possessive, mock-aggrieved look flashing in his dark eyes as he glared down at the small children.
"Hey!" Woonseok barked, his voice dropping into a low, highly theatrical growl, though a tiny, genuine hint of ridiculous jealousy colored his tone. "What exactly is this? An entire chorus line of competition? I thought I was the only one allowed to get free kisses from my beautiful girlfriend."
He looked incredulously at the small children, then back at me, his handsome, globally worshipped face contorting into a perfect, petulant pout. "I just spent the last entire hour running around this freezing park like an absolute idiot for them. I let them steal the ball! I threw myself on the dirt! And they get all the cheek kisses? This is an absolute outrage, Butterfly. I think I am officially, deeply jealous of five-year-olds."
The children, instantly sensing his playful, fake jealousy, just shrieked, giggled uncontrollably, and finally ran off toward the park exit, waving their candy-filled fists goodbye.
I straightened up, laughing so hard my sides ached, and playfully nudged his ribs with my elbow.
"Oh, Woonseok," I said, shaking my head at his sheer absurdity. "Don't be ridiculous. They're literally just kids." I paused, stepping into his space and leaning up to whisper softly against his cold ear, my breath ghosting over his skin. "And besides... I have plenty of very special kisses saved up just for you."
He instantly grinned, his theatrical jealousy completely evaporating into the night, rapidly replaced by a look of deep, triumphant, predatory satisfaction.
"The global idol, a man utterly accustomed to millions of screaming, adoring fans chanting his name, had just found himself ridiculously, fiercely jealous of a few children's innocent affection. But in that silly moment, he understood a profound truth: her love, freely and quietly given, was the greatest prize he would ever win."
I laughed, thoroughly delighting in Woonseok's theatrical jealousy, and gave his strong arm a final, highly affectionate squeeze. The chaotic, wonderful scene with the children had been the absolute perfect, sweet ending to our stolen time in the park.
"Okay, we really have to go now, Mr. Jealous Idol," I said, repeating the playful title, my voice light and airy.
My mind, still slightly dizzy and giddy from the laughter, the running, and the overwhelming rush of pure affection, was entirely, dangerously unrestrained. The heavy filters of my usual caution were completely gone.
I shook my head, my eyes bright with mirth, and the stray thought that had just formed in the back of my mind tumbled out of my mouth before my brain could even attempt to stop it.
"You know," I said, chuckling as I looked at him, "if we ever... I mean, if we do have a kid one day, are you really going to get this aggressively jealous of them, too? Am I going to have to carefully divide my cheek kisses evenly every morning between you and a small child just to keep the peace?"
The words left my lips and instantly hung in the freezing air between us.
Suddenly, they felt incredibly, terrifyingly massive.
The playful smile completely froze on Woonseok's face. His dark eyes, which had just been sparkling with boundless amusement, widened slightly in shock, and then instantly became incredibly, laser-focused and soft. He didn't answer immediately; he didn't laugh it off. He simply stood perfectly still and held my gaze.
The heavy implication of the word "we"—and the terrifyingly casual, intimate idea of our shared, future child—echoed profoundly in the quiet night.
My own laugh instantly died a violent death in my throat. The crushing gravity of what I had just said—my deepest, most subconscious dream spoken entirely aloud without permission—hit me with a scorching, humiliating force.
My face instantly went bright, violently red, a burning blush that had absolutely nothing to do with the cold river air and everything to do with pure, unadulterated mortification.
Did I just... did I seriously just ask the biggest pop star in the entire world if he'd be jealous of our hypothetical child? Panic seized my chest. I snatched my hand back from his arm as if I had been burned, trying desperately to rewind the last ten seconds of time.
"Let's—um... let's go!" I stammered, my voice pitching an octave higher as I frantically pulled the collar of my coat up, trying to physically hide my flaming cheeks from his piercing gaze. "We are getting so late, remember? Anvi and Sanvi are going to lock us out of the hotel room! It's past 10:30! We have to go, Woonseok. Seriously, let's go!"
I quickly turned on my heel, ready to sprint back toward the main path and the safety of his car.
Woonseok, however, didn't move a single inch.
As I spun away, he reached out with lightning speed, gently but firmly catching my wrist. His grip was an unshakeable anchor. He pulled me gently back around until I had absolutely no choice but to face him.
The fierce, unshakeable sincerity burning in his eyes instantly halted my panicked, humiliating retreat.
"Sana," he murmured. His voice was incredibly low, vibrating with a deep, utterly captivated timber that sent a shiver straight down my spine. "Don't run from that question. Please. It was the most beautiful thing you have said to me all night."
He smiled—a slow, gentle, incredibly possessive curve of his lips that made my breath catch.
"And the answer to your question is yes," Woonseok answered, stepping closer until our chests were almost touching. "Of course, I'd be jealous. I would be fiercely, ridiculously jealous of absolutely anyone who took your attention away from me."
He reached up, his thumb gently brushing across my burning cheek.
"But," he added, his voice dropping to a final, thrilling whisper that felt like a vow, "I would happily, gladly fight for your kisses with our child every single day. Because I know that fighting for those kisses would mean I get the privilege of watching you be a mother. And that, Butterfly, is a future I fully intend to fight for."
He paused, his eyes searching mine, making sure I understood the absolute depth of his next words.
"But you must know this," he continued, his tone turning incredibly fierce and protective. "Even then... you will always be my first priority. Always. And please, Sana, do not ever worry. That doesn't mean I want to force you into anything. Having a family, having children... it all depends entirely on your decision. If we have kids, you are my priority. If we don't have kids, and it's just the two of us forever... that is perfectly okay too. My life is yours, whatever you decide."
He didn't give my overwhelmed brain any time to process the second, even more profound confession. He simply leaned down and kissed the tip of my cold nose—a quick, happy, perfect seal on the monumental moment—and then let go of my wrist, casually gesturing for us to start walking briskly toward the park exit.
"Now," Woonseok said, smoothly injecting a sudden, playful, buoyant energy back into his voice, completely changing the subject as if he hadn't just rearranged my entire universe. "Let's go before your terrifying friends deploy the security team for a curfew breach."
He turned slightly, raising his hand to wave a final goodbye toward the distant, retreating figures of the children.
I stood completely frozen on the path, utterly lost in the sight of him.
I watched his broad shoulders, his messy hair, the easy grace of his movements. My mind was reeling. How... how can a man be this incredibly mature? I thought, my heart pounding a frantic rhythm against my ribs. How can someone love this deeply? In the span of two minutes, he had told me that if we had a family, I would remain the absolute centre of his universe. And in the very next breath, he had completely removed all pressure, giving me the ultimate respect and agency over my own body and my own future, telling me that a life with just me was more than enough.
I have never experienced this kind of love, I realised, a sudden, hot tear pricking the corner of my eye. I have never known a true man until him.
Woonseok, sensing I wasn't walking beside him, stopped and turned his head back toward me. He raised his dark brows in silent question.
He immediately saw the overwhelming emotion pooling in my eyes. The playful energy vanished. He closed the distance between us in two long strides, reaching out to gently cup my face in both of his warm hands.
"Hey," he whispered, his thumbs gently wiping away the cold sting of the wind from under my eyes. "Are you okay, Butterfly? What happened?"
I looked up into the face of the man I loved—the global idol, the fierce protector, the gentle partner. I let out a slightly shaky, breathy laugh, a radiant smile breaking across my face, entirely illuminating the night.
"I'm fine," I said, my voice thick but incredibly steady, leaning my cheek lovingly into his warm palm. "I'm just so happy, Woon. Thank you." I reached up, covering his hand with mine. "Let's go now."