Thump, thump… thump, thump.(She presses a hand against her chest.)
Why does my heart race with this burning heat, as if chasing after a shadow I can never grasp?Is this pain… the whisper of love....soft, uncertain, and destined to remain unanswered?
Why is it that when the wind brushes past me, I still hope it carries your scent?Why do my eyes continue to search for your figure in every crowd, even though I know…deep inside your heart, I may be nothing morethan a stranger merely passing by?
Is this what it means to love without being loved?A silent ache blooming beautifully in sorrow…A longing that endures, despite having nowhere to rest.
(This novel is entirely fictional, inspired by the late Joseon era during the reign of King Injo, 1623–1649.In this story, that era is reimagined as the reign of King Taehwa, Cheongjin Year 4.)
SZZZT— SZZZT!!
The lively noise of the marketplace roared all around, mingling with the hurried rhythm of footsteps.....firm, eager, relentless, as though each step carried burdens longing to be released at the journey's end.
Amid the sea of voices...vendors shouting, people haggling....another pair of steps fluttered softly beside the crowd. So light they blended into the chaos like a quiet breath.
"Move aside a little!"
A slight shove on both sides of his body.
"Hey! Watch it!"
The young man grumbled under his breath, one arm supporting a basket overflowing with fresh vegetables, wobbling dangerously with every step.
"Are you alright?"
The voice beside him was sweet....like honey brushing softly along the skin, filled with genuine concern.The young woman turned to him, smiling gently, placing a light hand on her chest, brows knitting just slightly in tender worry.
Kurum let out a dramatic sigh, his tone soaked in theatrical misery.
"Seriously… why must I suffer carrying this giant basket while trailing after you? Was I cursed from birth or something?"
His words carried irritation, yet the warm humor behind them was unmistakable...annoyance born not from bitterness, but affection.
Her response, however, was not sympathy.Instead, her lips curved into a soft smile… then blossomed into bright laughter, sweet and sparkling like scattered light.
"Ha… ha… ha! Hahaha!"
Kurum's brows pinched together, half flustered, half shaken by her laughter.He fumbled, unsure how to act.
"What are you laughing at? I'm being serious!"
Sunlight wrapped around her face as she laughed, scattering gold across her soft hair that framed her oval face.Her smile was like the first dawn after a storm.Her touch warm, her eyes shimmering brown like they held a secret no one could name.
For a brief moment, even the bustling market seemed to fall silent, surrendering to something unspoken.
Kurum looked away, clearing his throat.
"Why are you smiling like that?"
"You're the one smiling, Kurum," she teased playfully."You're always pretending to be clueless. Here, let me help."
Before he could protest, she snatched the basket from his hands and strode forward gracefully through the crowd.Her laughter drifted around them like petals dancing in the breeze.
He stood still for a heartbeat, torn between fondness and helplessness, before rushing after her....grumbling, but following all the same.
In that fleeting moment, the world was no longer just a marketplace or the heavy path of daily burdens.It became the shared laughter of a man and a woman.
"No.....no, let me do it."
Kurum pulled the basket from her hands again.But as he turned back toward her.....
He froze.
A stranger stood before him.A young man dressed in pink and violet hanbok, unmoving, hand suspended in the air where hers had just passed.
A jade bangle now lay lifelessly in his palm.
Around them, the market bustled as usual, yet for one brief breath, all sounds dulled...pressed down by something left unsaid.
Kurum exhaled softly, recognizing immediately what was happening.
"Young lady, take it. I'm giving it to you,"the stranger said, extending the emerald jade bangle toward Soran.
Soran blinked, flustered, forcing a polite smile.
"I… cannot accept something so expensive, sir. I have no intention of buying it."
She bowed gratefully to him.
"Come now… just take it. It's nothing costly for someone like me. Isn't it a good thing? A handsome young man of noble birth offering you such a gift so generously?"
He tilted his head, smirking with charm, proudly listing his virtues.But Soran wasn't listening anymore.....her gaze lost in contemplation, torn between choices.
Kurum stood a short distance away, gripping the vegetable basket tightly.His eyes did not flare with jealousy....only steady, quiet acceptance.The kind carried by someone long accustomed to being overlooked.
(I have no sweet words, no silk blankets, no bold charm to offer gifts like strangers do.All I have is time…Years of shared laughter and tears.Memories carved deep like letters etched into wood.)
Yet now, even time felt dull.....worthless.
Soran suddenly turned back to him, cheeks pink, smile lingering on her lips.
"I didn't take it," she said quickly, almost defensively."I didn't even want it!"
Kurum nodded softly, voice barely a whisper.
"I know."
(But do I really? …Does she know what I feel?)
He sighed, wounded by a quiet sorrow only he understood.
They walked side by side again.Something small....yet deep....had changed between their footsteps.Like a melody interrupted mid-note, unsure how to continue.
Soran pretended nothing had happened.Kurum kept glancing at her in silence.
The market remained lively.....vendors shouting, children laughing, the smell of roasted chestnuts in the air.But to Kurum, everything passed like mist....uncertain, untouchable.
Until Soran broke the silence casually,
"Do you think he was a noble? He looked like someone from the inner court… or maybe some newly graduated scholar?"
"Probably," Kurum answered flatly, avoiding her eyes.
"He didn't look like someone who stays long in places like this… and he seems like the type who flirts with every girl!" Kurum muttered.
Soran laughed softly."Well… even so, he was rather kind, wasn't he?"
Kurum forced a tight smile, showing neat white teeth.
"Yes… kind. Men who flirt with every girl are always so very kind…"
His voice stretched in mocking sing-song, but the basket in his hands only felt heavier.
As the sun dipped below the horizon, spilling gold across the stone path and red cloth canopies,the memory of that jade bangle lingered....casting a trembling shadow between Kurum and Soran.
A feeling both fragile and sharp....cool jade, beautiful yet distant.
Meanwhile, the stranger walked alone toward his residence, twilight glowing before him, a faint smile on his lips.In his warm hand, he held the jade bangle he had purchased…