Ch.217217. Honeymoon

This is the third trip I’m taking with Hwa Nabi, just the two of us. In February it was Jeju Island, in March it was Japan. And today, in July, it’s Puerto Rico.

As you can tell just from the destinations, today’s trip is different in nature from the previous two. If the first was for rest, and the second was primarily for rest combined with learning, the third one now is a honeymoon to celebrate our marriage.

…Yes, a honeymoon. From now on, I’m going on a honeymoon with Hwa Nabi, who is now my bride. The itinerary is a generous 7 nights and 8 days, since it’s before the start of the summer semester and neither of us had any urgent matters to attend to, so we scheduled plenty of time.

Seven nights with my beloved in a foreign land. As I vaguely imagined that intangible something, my heart fluttered for some reason. I shouldn’t be like this already when we haven’t even set foot in Puerto Rico yet.

“Siwoo. Did you pack everything? You’re not forgetting anything, right?”

“…”

“Hello? Siwoo?”

“…”

“—Husband. I asked if you packed everything!”

I was startled out of my daze. A roar had erupted next to my left ear. Finally coming to my senses, I turned around while firmly gripping the handle of my suitcase.

Hwa Nabi was looking at me with a pout, her lips twisted slightly upward.

“Huh? What did you say?”

“You didn’t hear me? I asked if you packed everything without missing anything.”

“Yeah, I packed everything well.”

“And did you double-check one last time?”

“I’ll do that now.”

My half-hearted answer must have been obvious, as Hwa Nabi’s eyebrows twitched while she stared at me.

“Siwoo. Are you not going to focus? What if you forget something?”

“…We checked yesterday, didn’t we? And our sharp-minded bride looked over everything several times. I’m sure we haven’t forgotten anything.”

I tried to subtly compliment her and pull her into an embrace, but as if she’d anticipated it, Hwa Nabi extended her finger and pressed it against my forehead to stop me. She must have seen through my plan to win her over with flattery.

“There you go again, glossing over things. I may not know much else, but didn’t I say we should be thorough when preparing?”

“Yes, you did.”

“So, is it okay to try for skinship at random times like this? Or not?”

“…Not okay, I guess?”

“You know it well. So why did you do it?”

Hwa Nabi asked sweetly with a bright smile. Finding myself at a loss for an answer, I averted my gaze, pretended not to hear, and opened my suitcase.

Both Hwa Nabi and I tend to pack a lot of things. So besides our individual suitcases, we should probably bring an extra one for souvenirs and miscellaneous items.

“It’s hot there, so we won’t need outerwear, right?”

Since the island is known as a winter escape for mainland residents, we probably won’t need to layer up for cold weather.

As I rummaged through the suitcase and asked, Hwa Nabi approached closer with half-lidded eyes. After examining the contents of the suitcase, she tapped on a neatly folded shirt.

“Isn’t this a thermal shirt? It’s for winter.”

“Hmm, you’re right.”

Why is this here? I don’t remember packing it, so it must have gotten mixed in without my knowledge when I was gathering clothes.

Caught with the wrong clothing item, I awkwardly rubbed the back of my neck. Hwa Nabi glanced at me briefly, then took out the shirt and held it up.

“Goodness, really. I don’t know what our husband would do without me.”

“I absolutely couldn’t do without you. Why ask something so obvious?”

I answered without hesitation, and I could see the corners of Hwa Nabi’s mouth lift slightly. She seemed pleased with my response.

“Heh, right? You couldn’t manage without me, could you?”

“No, I couldn’t. But… what did you just call me?”

“Hm? What did I call you?”

“Just now. Didn’t you call me ‘husband’?”

“I did. Why? Did you not like it?”

I quickly shook my head at Hwa Nabi’s question. It’s not that I disliked it. Not at all.

“It’s not that, I was just wondering why you suddenly mixed up the way you address me. You usually just call me ‘Siwoo.'”

“That’s true. But isn’t it about time I changed how I address you? We’re married now, so I can’t keep calling you just ‘Siwoo’ forever, can I? Right, husband?”

“…”

My heart suddenly raced at Hwa Nabi’s words as she tapped my waist.

Hmm, how far is she planning to go with this? She’s already being so flirtatious with me.

Husband, she called me. It sounded so good that I almost smiled, but I managed to compose myself.

I cleared my throat as my voice caught, and tried to respond casually.

“You have a point. But using two different forms of address feels a bit awkward.”

“I’d like to settle on just one too, but ‘Siwoo’ is still what comes naturally to me. When I’m not thinking about it, I unconsciously revert to the original way of addressing you.”

“Well, that can’t be helped. You’ve been calling me that for almost three years, haven’t you?”

It’s not something to brag about, but it took me over two years to start calling Hwa Nabi without her surname. Even now, I sometimes slip and use her surname or call her “you” when I’m not paying attention, so it will probably take her even longer to change.

And whether she changes how she addresses me or not doesn’t really matter. I do find “husband” more heart-fluttering than “Siwoo”… but that’s just my personal feeling. From Hwa Nabi’s perspective, it’s probably more comfortable to use what comes naturally to her.

“Hmm, about that long, right? I guess I’ve been calling you that for so long that it’s stuck.”

“Right. So if it’s uncomfortable, just call me the way you used to. It’s not like much changes just because we got married, right? Besides, we haven’t even submitted our marriage registration yet.”

Since we were already living together before getting married, the only thing that would change is our family relationship on the resident registration. And even that hasn’t changed yet, right? We agreed to submit the marriage registration after returning from our honeymoon, so officially, we’re still unrelated.

“…Hmm, that’s right. We haven’t submitted our marriage registration yet? Then ‘Siwoo’ and I aren’t in any relationship yet.”

“Yeah, that’s—”

Just as I was about to agree without thinking, I realized that Hwa Nabi was looking at me with a strange smile.

…Wait, is this some kind of test? I stopped mid-sentence and quickly changed course, turning to face her.

“No, that’s not right. How can you say we’re not in any relationship? We may not have submitted the registration, but we had the wedding ceremony. That makes us husband and wife now.”

“Hmm, do you really think so?”

“Yes, that’s right. Why, don’t you think so?”

“…Heh, no. ‘Husband’ is right. We are married now.”

Hwa Nabi nodded and turned her attention to the suitcase. She began neatly organizing the contents, humming a tune she rarely does, which suggests she’s in quite a good mood.

Hmm, did I barely get the right answer? I breathed a sigh of relief and made a mental note. Just keep doing what I just did, no more, no less. I can do this, right? I’ve managed so far, and I should be able to continue.

We’ve both been so busy with the wedding preparations, but now we finally have a chance to relax together. So let’s maintain this good atmosphere for the week.

You know what they say, the honeymoon sets the tone for the rest of the marriage. In other words, these seven days and nights in a foreign country will determine my future. Yes, that’s how important it is. So…

“Ah, I’m really looking forward to our honeymoon. It’s going to be so much fun, don’t you think?”

“Yeah, me too. I think so.”

…Let’s really do well, seriously.

*

Packing complete.

Carrying our respective suitcases, Hwa Nabi and I took a taxi at 4 PM and arrived around 5 PM.

So now it’s 5:11 PM, and our scheduled departure is at 7 PM, giving us two hours to spare. Since we arrived early, we completed the departure procedures in advance and entered the lounge to look around.

We bought some snacks in case the in-flight meal isn’t enough, and sunglasses and brimmed hats to wear at our destination. Finally, we browsed the wine section in a corner of the duty-free shop.

“Nabi. Does your father like wine?”

“Well, since Dad often attends social gatherings, he does enjoy it. But he’s quite particular about his taste and doesn’t drink just anything. And among wines, he only drinks champagne.”

“Really? What kind does he like?”

“He often drinks Dom Pérignon Rosé or Krug, but those are popular and quite expensive at duty-free shops.”

Curious about the price, I checked and found they cost around 500,000 won per bottle. It was more expensive than I expected, but since it’s a gift, I paid without hesitation and asked the staff to keep it for me.

When we return to Korea in a week, I just need to stop by the duty-free shop to pick up the well-packaged champagne.

“Oh, we should also buy a gift for your mother. Siwoo, what does your mother like?”

“Mom would be happy just to see your face.”

I said this sincerely, thinking that showing her face one more time would be a greater gift than bringing lots of things. But Hwa Nabi tapped my shoulder as if to say, “Don’t be ridiculous.”

“It’s not polite to go empty-handed. Doesn’t your mother like champagne or something similar?”

“She’s not allergic to alcohol, but she doesn’t particularly enjoy drinking. She does like rice cakes though.”

“Rice cakes? What kind? Honey rice cakes? Or garaetteok?”

“The sweet ones, you know. What are they called, honey rice cakes? She likes those, and garaetteok too.”

“Really? Then how about honey rice cakes and mead?”

“Honey rice cakes should be fine, but mead might not be appropriate.”

“Ah, right. Mead wouldn’t be suitable, would it? That’s for newlyweds to drink.”

Mead is for newlyweds to drink? That’s news to me. I tilted my head in confusion, and Hwa Nabi moved closer to me. She looked up at me with a grin and quietly added:

“In Scandinavia, newlyweds drink mead for a while. That’s why the honeymoon is called a ‘honeymoon.’ Isn’t that romantic? It’s like saying the newlywed life is as sweet as honey.”

“Yeah, it is. But why mead specifically?”

“Why what’s mead?”

“The reason newlyweds drink mead. I was wondering if there’s some special meaning behind it.”

“Hmm, I think it might be for this reason.”

Smooch.

Her lips briefly touched mine before pulling away.

“Newlyweds will have many occasions to kiss like this, right? Maybe they drink mead so it tastes even sweeter.”

I was surprised and looked at Hwa Nabi, who had been selecting champagne. But she just tapped her plump lips with her finger, wearing a coy expression.

“What does my husband think?”