Saved Me; Ryeji FF

twenty five.

"What's on the list, Ryu?" The excited cat-eyed woman asked with a spring in her step, walking past the locals in the town.

Ryujin took her phone out of her pocket to view the shopping list that Chaeryeong had sent them. The other women went souvenir shopping and Ryujin and Yeji were in charge of buying groceries for dinner.

"Ingredients for dinner and a cake." The dark-haired woman mumbled as she kept her eyes on the screen.

From her peripheral, there was a missing presence beside her. Her heart raced as she looked around, her eyes scanning the streets frantically for any sign of Yeji.

"Shit." Ryujin mumbled beneath her breath, dialling her number and placing it to her ear.

As the phone began to ring, she continued walking through the streets with her mind jumbled with confusion and fear.

The thought of losing Yeji, let alone in a foreign country, caused a tight vice in her chest. The world around her seemed to close in, dread began to settle in the pit of her stomach as she frantically scanned the sea of people walking past her, searching in the nearby stores in hopes of spotting her.

And then, just as her anxiety reached its peak, she caught a glimpse of a familiar figure inside a souvenir store. Relief washed over her while she sprinted over to her.

"Yeji..." Her body collided with Yeji's back, wrapping her with a gentle back hug.

Confused by the sudden contact, she peeked over her shoulder with her eyes narrowed onto the hitman. "What's going on? Are you okay?"

Ryujin rested her chin lightly on Yeji's shoulder, her breath warm against her skin. "Don't wander off like that again." Her voice quivered slightly, holding her a little tighter, "I don't want to lose you."

A soft chuckle escaped Yeji's lips before softly caressing the arms wrapped around her body, "Sorry, got a little too excited."

Her lips curved into a smile against the taller's shoulder before pulling herself away, finally feeling relieved to have Yeji with her again. As Yeji turned away from Ryujin's gaze, she picked up a snow globe off the wooden table filled with antique objects that she truly admired. Inside the glass, a miniature mountain range with swirling snow entranced both of them. At that moment, Ryujin's attention was drawn not only to the magical object but also to the reflection of Yeji on the smooth surface of the glass.

A surge of clarity washed over her. It was as if all the doubts and hesitation that had clouded her heart had suddenly drifted away with the cold breeze. Yeji wasn't just someone she cared about deeply. She wasn't just a person she had grown fond of during their time together. It went beyond that.

It was the way Yeji's presence lit up the room, the sound of her sweet and infectious laughter, and the gentle touch of her hand when she caressed her blemished face. She adored the way her eyes brightened whenever she talked about her photography, and when her face would scrunch up in concentration when she was trying to complete her essays, the melodic tunes Yeji would hum when she was driving as she absentmindedly tapped her fingers on the steering wheel.

Ryujin learned to find joy in her everyday interactions with Yeji- the way they'd steal glances at each other when they thought the other wasn't looking, the inside jokes that only they understood, and the comfortable silences that didn't need to be filled with words.

"What are you thinking about?" The photographer asked playfully, quickly making eye contact with her.

She quickly snapped out of her thoughts, "Nothing."

Yeji squinted at her, knowing that there were gears turning in her mind. "What do you think about this?" She handed the globe over to Ryujin, "Do you like it?"