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The story of the proposal was mostly told by Yuni. The couple in question was present, but they were the type to be reluctant or shy about telling the story themselves, and the assembled guests were eager to hear it. So, someone who had heard the story from them had no choice but to step up.
While reliving the memory of that day through a third person’s account, at some point, Liu and Yeehyeon found themselves holding each other’s hands, neither able to say who had reached out first.
The proposal had already been about five months ago. The past five months had been a time of sweeter anticipation and happiness than ever before. At the same time, it had also been a torturous five months, as time seemed to flow more slowly than ever.
“So, you were both secretly planning to propose on the same day?”
It was Shushu who said this to the two protagonists, her face filled with emotion. Yeehyeon, his face flushed, glanced at Liu and answered.
“It just… happened to be a coincidence….”
“It couldn’t have been a coincidence. How could you both have the exact same thought on the same day? It just shows how much you two are meant to be.”
It seemed Shushu wanted to believe that telepathy had passed between Liu and Yeehyeon, but there had been a clear catalyst for this proposal. The incident where Yeehyeon had chased after Liu’s car had been a shock to them both, acting as the trigger that made them decide to get married. But they wanted to keep such detailed parts of the story to themselves.
“I’m not one to believe in things like fate or destiny, but still, there’s something a little strange about the relationship between the CEO and Yeehyeon.”
All eyes focused on Yuni again.
“Presenting after becoming an adult is a really rare thing, isn’t it? Was it about a 3% chance? But Yeehyeon presented after meeting the CEO. With that exact 3% probability. That right there isn’t an ordinary thing. It’s like a sign from the heavens telling you to get married, start a family, and have children.”
Contrary to what Yuni thought, and as most of the people gathered here knew, Yeehyeon had not presented as an Omega naturally. Liu’s grip on Yeehyeon’s hand tightened. He then looked down at Yeehyeon and smiled faintly. It was a complex smile whose true meaning only Yeehyeon, only Diamond Dust, could comprehend.
There were only a few people in the world who knew the full truth that Liu was a Ghost and Yeehyeon was a Diamond Dust. Even Shushu and Manager Han only knew that Liu was a Ghost.
Choi Inwoo, one of the very few who knew the truth, glanced at Liu and Yeehyeon.
“If Yeehyeon hadn’t become an Omega, your legal marriage would have been impossible, at least in Korea.”
“Exactly. On top of that, you two overcame that difficult long-distance relationship. Believe it or not, they say the success rate for long-distance relationships is 50 to 70% lower than for regular relationships.”
“Well, overcoming a long-distance relationship is pretty amazing.”
Choi Inwoo uncrossed his legs and picked up his champagne flute as he continued.
“When you two decided to get back together, I thought Liu Weikun would pack up his life in Seoul and fly to Paris immediately.”
“I wanted to.”
Liu immediately affirmed.
“You held back because you wanted to look good for Yeehyeon, right?”
“This person here says he doesn’t like irresponsible men.”
Liu raised the hand he was holding with Yeehyeon’s and shrugged. People let out light laughter, and for a brief moment, Choi Inwoo’s gaze fell on Yeehyeon’s left hand, which was holding Liu’s right. It still wore the simple matching ring.
“But don’t tell me you proposed with just a bouquet of flowers? Now that’s irresponsible.”
“No way the CEO would do that, would he? He’s Liu Weikun. Yeehyeon received a diamond.”
“A diamond?”
Choi Inwoo asked Yuni again as if to confirm, frowning as if he doubted his own ears.
“Yes, a diamond. It was a truly mystical and elegant blue diamond.”
As if seeing the diamond before her eyes again, Yuni stared into the air with a dreamy, ecstatic expression.
“I don’t care one bit about things like jewelry, but I was so captivated I just stared at it for a long time, you know? Leaving aside the price, it’s truly beautiful. It’s like it contains the waters of the deep sea, unreachable by humans. Or maybe like a crystal ball that shows the future? Anyway, it’s a work of art, that thing.”
“Ah… is that so? A diamond. He proposed with a diamond, you say? And a blue diamond, the rarest of them all, at that.”
Choi Inwoo looked at Liu with a wicked smile. It was the smile of a villain delighted to have his enemy’s weakness in his grasp.
“Why, is something wrong?”
“A long time ago, there was this Minton alumnus who was worried about proposing and said he needed a diamond ring but didn’t know what to buy. I remember very clearly what Liu Weikun said in front of that guy.”
“Really? Did something like that happen?”
But Liu showed no sign of being flustered. He just shrugged and calmly drank his champagne.
“Then let me remind you in detail.”
Putting down his champagne flute, Choi Inwoo even adjusted his posture. Then, as if recalling an event from yesterday or reciting a poem he had memorized until it rolled off his tongue, he began to speak without hesitation.
“The perception of a diamond as a symbol of eternal love is merely an illusion created by the De Beers company’s marketing strategy. A diamond may be hard, but its durability is not strong, so it scratches easily, and if you strike it with a hammer, it can be crushed like candy. Furthermore, it is a thermodynamically unstable substance, so at this very moment, all diamonds on earth are slowly turning into graphite. Therefore, a diamond is neither eternal nor unchanging. Even the custom of proposing with a diamond ring is a kind of trend instigated by that famous De Beers copy, and its history is not even a hundred years old. —That’s what you said, wasn’t it?”
Pwahahaha. It was Kwon Juhan who burst out laughing, even slapping his knee.
“Wow, that’s scathing, so scathing. I knew very well that the CEO was a prickly guy before he met Yeehyeon, but this is on another level. Didn’t a fight break out?”
Manager Han also laughed and nodded his head.
“Now that I hear it, I remember too. The alumni were used to CEO Liu’s prickliness. They just let it go.”
Yuni, who had been listening to the story, said to Liu with an amused expression.
“And after all that, you yourself proposed with a 15-carat diamond? That’s a little outrageous.”
“Whaaat?”
Kwon Juhan, sitting next to her, practically shouted, and Yuni almost spilled champagne on her new dress.
“Ah, you scared me! Why are you yelling?”
“Fi-fi-fifteen carats?”
Kwon Juhan even half-rose from his seat, lifting his hips awkwardly. Then, as if his throat was dry, he gulped down his champagne and spoke with a grim expression.
“The engagement ring Beyoncé got from Jay-Z… that was definitely 5 million dollars. It was an 18-carat white diamond.”
“You remember the strangest things.”
“It might be 3 carats smaller than what Beyoncé got, but what Yeehyeon received is a blue diamond, which is more expensive than a white one. That means it’s worth at least 5 million dollars. And you expect me not to yell?”
“My, my, look at the great detective.”
“Well, this much is common knowledge.”
“That wasn’t exactly a compliment. And isn’t Beyoncé’s 5-million-dollar engagement ring gossip, not common knowledge?”
Ben and Jun, who were hearing what Yuni and Juhan were talking about through a slightly delayed translation from the Koreans around them, turned pale. They had heard the talk about the diamond’s price. Jun, in particular, looked almost terrified.
Liu immediately checked Yeehyeon’s expression. As expected, Yeehyeon looked rather fidgety. Liu wrapped an arm around Yeehyeon’s shoulders and stroked them. When Yeehyeon looked up, Liu gave him a smile that meant ‘it’s okay.’
Kwon Juhan, who had been bickering with Yuni, suddenly looked back and forth between Yeehyeon and Liu with a face full of questions.
“But where would someone like Yeehyeon wear a 15-carat diamond? A diamond ring the size of a fist doesn’t suit Yeehyeon at all.”
“It’s a necklace, not a ring.”
Yuni answered.
“Yeehyeon wearing a diamond necklace? Wouldn’t he have to wear a gown or something?”
Kwon Juhan chuckled to himself, perhaps imagining Yeehyeon dressed in an evening gown and wearing a 15-carat diamond necklace. Yuni, frowning, jabbed Juhan in the side with her elbow.
“Hey, stop. It wasn’t given as an accessory, it’s about the symbolism, the symbolism.”
“What symbolism?”
This time, Liu himself stepped in.
“It was from my mother’s collection. A gift from my father on their 20th wedding anniversary.”
At the very least, the guests gathered here were not the type to gossip about the price of the diamond the new groom had received. They were also close enough that there was no need to hide things. It would have been better if Kwon Juhan hadn’t mentioned the 5 million dollars, though. In any case, at this point, it seemed better for him to explain it himself. For Yeehyeon’s sake, who was growing anxious.
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