Mira's Acceptance
Unlike my younger brother Jaejin, Changhee's older brother Lee Changguk and younger sister Mira never found it easy to understand him. Even after he'd had his hair cut into a feminine style, the sight of him in men's clothes with an almost bare face still radiated an unmistakably feminine aura that they simply couldn't stomach. The idea that someone like that would appear with a woman and announce a marriage must have struck them as incomprehensible. The meeting we arranged was so thick with awkwardness that it collapsed in less than ten minutes.
On the way home Changhee cried for a long time. Our parents hadn't opened their hearts completely either, but at least they hadn't treated him with such cold contempt, so the shock hit him harder. I felt as though it were my fault he'd been made to cry, and the guilt sat heavy in my chest. I refused to simply back down. I wanted to see them again and try, however slightly, to change their minds. There was no clever strategy, so I decided to approach them one by one.
Changhee's brother refused outright. He told me to consider his sister lost and never contact him again, then hung up on me. I could understand his feelings, yet the thought that we had to be treated like criminals or perverts left me deeply frustrated. At least I managed to meet his younger sister. Mira's gaze remained cold and her manner indifferent, which was irritating, but since I was the one asking for understanding I swallowed my pride and tried to persuade her. Even if we couldn't reach the point of regular visits, I hoped we could at least stay in touch and consult one another on important matters.
I gently reminded her that as long as our parents were alive, there would inevitably come a time when the family had to gather for something major. That got a reaction. I seized the opening.
"Both your brother and sister are married now, so things are different from when you were single. You probably feel a sense of betrayal, and I imagine you're unsure how to introduce Changhee to your own family. I've thought about it too, and I understand it can't be easy to accept all at once. Even my fairly open-minded parents and brother have only opened their hearts about halfway."
Mira looked me in the eye for a long moment—the first time she had done so. She seemed pleased that I understood why she had stormed out earlier.
"But as I said, the biggest occasion that forces siblings together is usually when something happens to our parents. Then we have no choice but to gather, and money almost always becomes an issue. Neither of us has faced that yet, but we both know it's inevitable, don't we?"
Mira gave a small nod.
"I don't think we should turn our faces away from each other at those moments. Changhee used to speak so proudly of his family—how generous and hardworking his parents were, how attentive his brother was, how bright and positive his sister remained even in hard times. He called them all treasures. Sometimes I think that's one of the reasons I fell for him."
It wasn't a lie. Whenever the subject of his family came up while he was preparing to come out, Changhee's eyes would shine as he talked about how they had weathered difficult times together. I had simply polished the words a little.
"If that's how he speaks of you, then your family must be the kind that stands by its own even when people whisper behind your backs. I hope you'll open your hearts little by little, even if it's difficult right now. If you do, I'll be able to do more when real trouble comes—especially with money. I'll make sure my gratitude shows."
Mira studied me even longer than before. I met her gaze for a moment, then looked away to my coffee cup before it could turn into a pointless staring contest.
"My brother won't even meet you, so I can't speak for him, but I think I understand. I'll go home and think about it some more. And don't misunderstand—my brother and I are still in shock. We met you after hearing from Mother, but seeing him that day was really..."
Her voice trembled as the memory of that day surfaced. Watching her bite down hard on her lip, I felt a rush of apology. Still seated, I bowed deeply. She waved it off.
"Loving someone isn't a crime. There's no need to apologize. Just think of it as us being startled because it wasn't ordinary. Looking at you, you seem like a sister-in-law, but when you're confident you feel more like a brother-in-law. Heh... not many people get to experience something this bewildering, right? Heh..."
It was the first time she had given anything like a real laugh. I laughed with her. It felt good. Her heart had softened a little, and the relief was immediate. I could leave the matter of her brother to Mira and time.
We held a modest ceremony with only our immediate families present—Changhee's brother and his wife were the only ones absent. Changhee and I both wore wedding dresses and walked in hand in hand. Changhee had insisted it would be nice for my parents to see me in a dress, and though I pretended to be reluctant, the truth was I had always wanted to wear one at least once. Changhee's parents and sister couldn't hide their astonishment when they saw him in the elegant gown; his mother even shed tears. My own parents and brother remained composed, creating a stark contrast.
Changhee cried several times along with his mother, which meant his makeup had to be fixed repeatedly, but once the ceremony ended he wore a bright smile like someone finally relieved of terrible constipation, and I could relax.
The family wedding was over quickly. We finished with lunch at a reserved restaurant that doubled as a formal introduction. Thanks to my father's efforts to lighten the mood, Changhee's parents looked noticeably brighter when we parted.
That wasn't the end of our celebrations. We rented Delma and held a second ceremony and reception for everyone who knew about our relationship. After the tense morning ceremony we had rested at home, so we arrived glowing with happiness. Changhee wore a lavish, provocative wedding dress designed by a famous couturier, while I wore the matching tuxedo. During the reception he changed into a maid outfit and I put on a black leather queen's ensemble.
Jeongsook couldn't take her eyes off Changhee all evening. She had watched his transformation through me, but the last photos and videos she'd seen had only shown his full breasts. He hadn't wanted to show the orchiectomy, and the subsequent facial procedures had been deliberately kept hidden until today, so finding any trace of Lee Changjun in Changhee's face now was nearly impossible.
"I'm so jealous, Kim Soyoung! But just wait a little. Soon you'll be the one envying me!"
Jeongsook shouted it in a drunken voice. When I gave her a puzzled look she giggled. Something flashed through my mind—her husband. That was what she meant. I realized she was planning something enormous, but I didn't ask. I didn't want to discuss such things on a happy day like this.
When the reception reached its peak, we held the gift-giving ceremony for my maid and slave, "Changnyeo." Changhee, who hadn't expected another event after already receiving the wedding gifts, covered his mouth with both hands, eyes brimming with tears.
"I told you, didn't I? Your testicles could never simply be thrown away—they're the symbol of our love."
I whispered it against his ear. He looked back and forth between the box in my hand and my face, his expression asking, Is this really it? I smiled and nodded. Tears spilled down his cheeks.
"Thank you, Unni. No—Master. For reminding me again how much you love me."
He whispered back, then kissed my cheek lightly and wiped away the lipstick.
Changhee's testicle did not end up on the living-room shelf. Through Dr. Ma Yeojeong's connections it was cleanly sterilized, carefully dried, and sealed inside special plastic—transformed into a one-of-a-kind earring. Seeing the dried, date-like object wrapped in its amber-tinted casing dangling from both of his ears gave me a pleasure I could hardly put into words. Those swaying orbs felt at once like my own lost testicles and like Changhee's hands reaching out for my love. They belonged to both of us.
Without testicles, Changhee's erections were still largely unproblematic. Female hormones meant he needed more stimulation, but when I caressed his erogenous zones he still grew hard, and when we wanted he could penetrate me. The sensation was different from a man's, but since both of us preferred oral sex and SM play over conventional intercourse anyway, it hardly mattered.