To Find Something True

※ forty-one

Jiah's hands dropped to her lap as she playfully hissed, "Aish. You're making me embarrassed."

"See? No one told you to do that."

Jiah let out a deep breath groan before making a face and looking out the window. They sat in silence for a while, letting it fill the car space. After watching the children stop playing and head to their respective buildings, she realized they hadn't left the car. "Why aren't we getting out yet?" she asked, looking at Hoseok.

"We're waiting for Aunt Soojung," Hoseok said.

Checking the time on the dashboard, Jiah assumed Aunt Soojung was already on her way home. Considering that Hoseok's family was going through troubles at the moment, he might have thought it wouldn't be a good idea to bring her to his house. Judging by the distance between Aunt Soojung's apartment and his family's, she assumed they were possibly side by side.

Silence accompanied them until there was a knock on Hoseok's side window. Grinning, Aunt Soojung greeted them. Her hands carried a bag of groceries, while her son carried two. She then mouthed, "Let's go now," prompting both Jiah and Hoseok to pull the door levers and leave the car. Jiah smiled and bowed to the middle-aged woman.

Replying with a smile and a nod, Aunt Soojung chuckled. Then, she said, "Now, come!"

**********

To reach the fifth floor, they took the elevator. Jiah had never seen the inside of an apartment building before, and she found the path to the doors narrower than she had imagined. The doors were arranged as she had assumed, with two doors side by side intersecting with the corridor of the elevators, and two doors located ahead of them.

Turning right, they arrived at Aunt Soojung's house. As Wooshik pulled out a key to unlock the door, Jiah noticed her boss sigh softly. She caught him stealing a glance at the other door, leading her to presume that it was his own home. Curiosity got the better of her, and she couldn't help but look at the other door.

There wasn't much difference between the doors, except that Aunt Soojung's door had a doorknob that required a key to unlock it, while Hoseok's house had a doorknob with a passcode. The corridor echoed with silence and faint movements, but the stillness near the door next to Aunt Soojung's felt darker and eerie.

Finally, the door was unlocked, and Aunt Soojung slapped Wooshik on the back of his shoulder, causing a resounding slap in the corridor. "That took you so long!" she chided.

"My hands are full, uhmma! You should've held the bags for me," Wooshik retorted.

Aunt Soojung seemed flustered by her son's response. Then, she said, "Huh! Get in. Quick!" Both Jiah and Hoseok chuckled at the scene.

They entered the house, and the entrance light automatically turned on as Wooshik removed his footwear. He hurried into the living room and placed the bags on the dining table. The sound of water rushing from the tap and drumming against the metal sink indicated that he was washing his hands.

After Aunt Soojung removed her sandals, she spoke to her guests, "Come in, come in. Don't be shy. There are candies in the living room. They're in a jar. Help yourselves if you'd like."

"Oh, alright!" Jiah replied with a light grin.

While Aunt Soojung and her son prepared dinner in the kitchen, Jiah and Hoseok made their way to the living room. Looking around, she assumed that Hoseok's house might have a similar structure.