Power & Sex, and... 37

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"What's so hard about that?"

With those words, Ara turned to face me, pressing her lips against mine. I was honestly taken aback by her boldness, but I couldn't push her away, so I just accepted her kiss. Cameras flashed nonstop beside us, and the reporters erupted in cheers that nearly shook the restaurant.

"You have to give us some pretty photos, okay?"

"Of course, ma'am. We wouldn't dream of anything less."

Twenty-somethings really were bold and fearless. Thanks to Ara's daring move, the atmosphere in the restaurant heated up even more, turning warm and lively.

The reporters bombarded Ara with questions about how we'd met and the journey to marriage. She answered calmly with a smile, recounting our story from before we met up to now.

"So, did you really seduce the assemblyman, ma'am?"

"Yeah. Back then, my honey had just gotten fired as Congressman Hwang's secretary and was unemployed. He'd come down to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Busan and started studying every day at the library where I worked. I got interested in the books and materials he was reading, and naturally, that led to interest in him."

"How did you approach him?"

"Well, I offered to buy him lunch."

"What did you get him for lunch?"

"Sure. There's a great dumpling place near the library. We had dumplings there."

"But I hear there's a big age gap between you two?"

"That's why my honey kept running away, saying he wasn't a thief or a robber—he didn't want to steal from me."

"So what happened?"

"I just pinned him down."

"Pardon? What do you mean?"

The conversation was veering into risky territory. Worried she might slip up, I shot Ara a glance, silently begging her to rein it in. But she just grinned at me and kept going.

"You guys are mostly men, so you might not get it, but from a woman's perspective, my honey's got this subtle charm. I threw away my pride and chased him hard several times, but this clueless guy wouldn't budge."

"So what then?"

"What do you mean 'so what'? I had no choice but to ask my coworkers at the library. 'What do you do in a case like this?'"

"And?"

Ara's banter with the reporters was spiraling out of control. If they weren't journalists, I could've shut her down by force, but since they were, I resigned myself and trusted in her smarts.

"Men usually get women drunk to seduce them, right? Then the woman has no choice but to cling on after giving in. They told me to try that."

"Did you?"

"No way. My honey never drinks enough to get wasted—he's too careful. So I dragged him in by force."

"Where?"

"You gonna keep asking awkward questions like that? You already know."

"Heh! Heh!"

Ara's cheeks flushed red, but she said her piece. The reporters, charmed by her youthful audacity in her early twenties, smiled warmly, hanging on her every word, eager for what she'd say next.

"Anyway, that day I was thrilled. I knew for sure this man would never abandon me."

"What do you mean?"

"It's probably still in my honey's inside pocket right now."

"What's that?"

"Proof from that day."

"..."

"Pfft~ You reporters really have no clue."

"You'll have to explain it for us."

"Proof that my honey was my first man."

"What?"

One female reporter's voice rose in shock at Ara's words.

"Why? Why so surprised?"

"So you had no experience, and you forced the assemblyman?"

"Pfft~ So what? There's that Western saying: 'Fortune favors the bold.' Nothing says a woman can't do the same."

"But how did you end up with that proof?"

"Heh! I was moved that day too. When I came back after washing up, he'd torn off the sheet, folded it neatly, and kept it. Cost me 30,000 won to replace the sheet, though."

Thanks to that, the spotlight turned to me. The reporters' eyes pressured me to produce the evidence—the sheet fragment. Unable to withstand their silent demand, I pulled it from my inside pocket, neatly folded and wrapped in plastic, and showed it to them.

"Whoa~ Assemblyman, you're something else. Unfold it a bit for us."

They snapped photos of the fragment in my hand, urging me to unfold it, but I couldn't go that far.

"Sorry. This is as far as it goes. Anything more is private between me and my wife."

I cut them off coldly and carefully tucked the envelope back into my pocket. I couldn't turn my wife's intimate secret into public entertainment, like snapping pics of her body for the world's curiosity.

Anyway, Ara's fearless revelations unexpectedly endeared us to the reporters. Beyond our meeting, they revisited the election mishap from the opponent's misunderstanding and our wedding event at Song Sang-hyeon Plaza on the campaign's final day.

"How did you decide on such a unique wedding?"

"My older sister friend promised a memorable ceremony, so I had high hopes, but I never imagined she'd pull off something like that."

"Did the assemblyman agree to it?"

"Honey was too busy campaigning."

"When did he find out?"

"Probably that same day when Chief Kim reported it. He'd gotten confirmation from the election commission that it didn't violate laws, right on the last day of campaigning."

"Weren't you upset about not wearing a wedding dress?"

"The dobok I wore that day was my wedding dress. No need to limit it to the Western style, right?"

"Still, didn't it feel unfair?"

"Not at all. But there is something I'm bummed about."

"What?"

During the campaign frenzy, everything was a blur, so I hadn't ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠even guessed she had regrets. Even after the wedding—hell, up to now post-election—life had been nonstop chaos. I hadn't considered she might feel neglected. Racking my brain for what I might've missed, I watched her curiously.

"We still haven't gone on our honeymoon. After the wedding, we voted, fretted over results, then once victory was certain, honey was off shaking hands everywhere—no time to even see his face. Now with the assembly in session, we barely meet once a week, living like weekend couples. Can't even suggest sleeping together. And Mother-in-law's nagging us to have a baby soon."

The reporters whooped "Whoa~", banging tables in delight. From an outsider's view, it was amusing, but hearing it, guilt hit me hard—I'd robbed her of her rights as a woman, as my wife, hiding behind busyness. I couldn't lift my head, just gripped her hand tightly, gazing apologetically.

"So many eyes on the assemblyman—how can you hold hands like that?"

"Pfft~ Why are you jealous of a husband holding his wife's hand? If he hadn't grabbed it, I'd be pouting."

"True. Reporter Seo messed up. No wonder his wife nags him daily."

"You're Reporter Seo? Where's your hometown?"

"Icheon."

"Whoa, me too! What's your generation name?"

"Beom-ja generation."

"Really? I'm Eun-ja, so that makes me your grandma."

"Pardon?"

"Anyway, take good care of this grandma from now on."

Ara was a firecracker. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠She'd just adopted a major daily's chief reporter as her grandson. Seo couldn't argue, just nodding with a pleased smile. The Seo surname wasn't rare but not common either—must've felt like a nice connection.

Thanks to Ara, we'd secured a central paper's bureau chief as a firm ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠ally, even if just the local guy. In Korea, clan ties trumped school networks any day. Seo Dong-beom's expression softened noticeably after confirming our shared surname.

The dinner with reporters ran so late we canceled our reserved evening train, opting for tomorrow's dawn ride. We wrapped up past 11, left my rented car in the city hall lot for the office manager to return, and headed home in Ara's car. Reporters heading to their cars or offices did double-takes at Ara's red Morning, marveling that an active assemblyman's wife drove a compact. They snapped pics of us in the car before saying goodbye.

"We're in trouble."

Ara looked on the verge of tears, flustered.

"Why?"

"Unnie and Jeong-ah are waiting at the coffee shop next door."

I startled too and called Eun-mi. It rang, then she picked up.