The Wall | Yejisu

Chapter 7

The sun shone through the clouds and could be seen clearly. A very bright circle. She fished out the cellphone to take some pictures. Then, she sat back and couldn't help but smile.

    It will be a fantastic journey, Yeji thought.

17:10 Lia's last class ended. While people were talking about where they went, what they did on the weekend, she walked out the classroom and headed straight to the place she park her bike.

    A notice on her phone. She took out and found that Yeji sent her a picture they took at the airport. She didn't know where it was. A city far far away.

It was her first time seeing Yeji's friends. Even in the picture, she could tell that Yeji was happy. And all her friends were excited for the game too. A mixed feeling expanded in Lia's heart. She threw the smartphone into the bag and rode off.

    The sky was bright. Lia didn't go home but went to other places. She rode on the broad street to another smaller street.

The buildings were mostly made of bricks. It gave you a warm and century-old vibe. Streetcars and bikes passed by. Shops and restaurants were open for students and people after work.

    Then, she rode on the bridge. Under the bridge was the river flew from new town to the ocean. A few people took a stroll along the bank.

    An hour later, she finally got home and parked her bike on the yard. Her dad went out an hour ago to meet his counsellor. He started this after they moved to old town.

So Lia was on her own. She slept surprisingly early. She was tired and she missed Yeji. It would make the night longer if she stayed awake.

/

    Tuesday. much the same. Tho, Yeji called her at night after the first game.

    "We win!!" Yeji exclaimed excitedly and Lia could hear other people's voice too.
    "Congrats! When is your next game?"
    "On Thursday"
    "It's good to hear your voice" Lia said softly.
    "You miss me huh. I gotta go. we're going to have a dinner at the restaurant. See you later"

    A smile came back on Lia's face. Though, she thought of some assignments that needed to be done.

    "Damn..."
    Yeah, damn. If I were Lia's table lamp, I would say damn too.

    The next morning, Lia skipped class. She didn't wake up until eleven. She was worn out by the assignments. She could've done them earlier but she spent her time with Yeji.

The assignment was a mess but it didn't matter at all. She was delighted that someone walked in her life and broke the schedule.

    Lia changed and went to the donut store by bike. She would have donuts for the lunch.

    Outside the store where Lia parked her bike, Lia saw the pink-haired girl sitting there, chilled out. She dressed cool. Black k-pop boots, denim jacket, crop top and silver earrings. She also got tattoos on her forearm.

    She saw Lia there and greeted her with a smile.
    "Hi, there"
    "Oh, a, hi"
The sudden hi made Lia at a loss. She was kinda frozen there. The girl gestured her to come.

    "Ryujin" She reached out her hand.
    "I'm Jisu, you can call me Lia"
    They shook hands and said nothing, sat quietly.

    "You look different when you're in the store" Lia said first
    "I guess you look different at school too"
They didn't look at each other, but watched the cars passing by on the streets.

Ryujin took something out from the pocket. It was a ball lollipop, orange one. She looked at Lia and asked
    "Do you want one?"

     She shook head. Ryujin went back looking at the street. A few boys dribbled the basketball on the sidewalk. A small grocery store opened.

    "Why did you skip class?" Ryujin asked
    "I need some sleep. I stayed up late for the assignments. And you?"
    "I don't like going to school. It kills my creativity. And I find things more interesting outside"

    "When did you start working here? I think I haven't seen you before"
    "Two weeks ago. The first time I saw you. It was my first day"
    "Why do you work?"
    "I wanna buy an e-scooter. You stand on it and hold the handles. It can't speed up but I like the feeling when I cross the streets on it"

    Ryujin showed her the pictures. The e-scooter shaped like a L. She asked if Lia would like to buy one. She thought Lia fit it well. But Lia said she liked her lady bike more.

    They had a little chat. Lia found that Ryujin always knows what she would be doing or what she liked. She knew herself very well, confident and was friendly to people.

    "Do you wanna buy this boots? I'm thinking about buying another one with my friend"

    My friend. The word hit Lia's head. She thought while Ryujin talked about the boots. A friend. She went back to the time when she saw the pictures Yeji sent her. A mixed feeling in her heart.

    "Okay, I buy one" Lia said.
    "Cool. I thought you would say no. I bring it to you or we shop together?"
    "We can shop together"
    "Great" A bright smile bloomed on Ryujin's face. The whisker dimple showed up again. She stood up and stretched her body.

    "I'm gonna rent a car and go for a drive. Do you wanna come?"
    "I can't..I have some assignments left"
    Ryujin nodded.

She exchanged the phone number with Lia and left. She walked down the sidewalk with a ball lollipop in her mouth.

Then, Lia walked into the store and bought three donuts for the lunch, three different flavours.

/

Thursday night, on the bus to the hotel, Yeji called Lia to tell her the good news.

"Hey, we win another match~"
"I know you can! Are you coming back now? I miss you"
"Wow, I feel as if your girlfriend"
"I, I didn't mean it. I'm just saying what I feel"

Yeji chuckled and kept teasing Lia. She liked the way that Lia could always say what need to be said. For herself, it wasn't.

Yeji told her about the game today and how Yuna reacted when she knew the dinner was pizza. She ate five pieces in a row! And the weather, the view and the people there.

"The quarter-final will be on Monday. Eight teams left. We, um, want to get in the semi-final"
Her voice sounded a bit worried. Lia sensed that.

"Don't worry. You guys will make it"
Just like how she calmed Yeji down before the flight, her voice touched Yeji's heart. It calmed her down again.

"Thanks. You help a lot. oh, and the little thing you gave me"

They ended the call later and Yeji took a nap. The bus was driving on highway. She didn't put down the curtains. The yellow mellow beam from the light poles brushed her face. The night sky was clear.

But Yeji's brain was still awake. The vague feeling became clear now. She worried about the game. If they lose, they would have to go home, which was fine for some of the players.

But Yeji wasn't. She was second grader, Chae as well. They would be third grader this year and couldn't join the game anymore. It upset her.

Yeji wanna break the record this year. Last year, they couldn't make it to final match. This time, she hoped to play in the final game.

Yeji wanna continue playing soccer with them. Soccer had played an vital role in her life. She didn't want to leave soccer team like this.

Yeji felt that lots of feelings were running in her head. She knew if she told Lia, maybe she was able to help. But she had no idea how to talk about her thoughts.
/