Ryujin has just taken her shoes off and is whistling to herself when the living room lights suddenly come on, shocking the life out of her. She gasps and jumps, staring at the laughing woman standing near the wall.
“Sorry, Unnie,” Yuna apologizes as she takes a seat on the couch. “Didn’t mean to scare you that much.”
“You’re lucky I can’t die of a heart attack. Why are you still up?” Ryujin asks, placing her car keys on the coffee table along with her phone and wallet. She sees a bowl and grabs it, finishing the rest of Yuna’s midnight snack. “And why are you snacking so late? This isn’t like you.”
“I started to crave sweet stuff while waiting for you.”
“Again, why did you wait up?”
“Because I’m curious whether you’d come home or not,” replies Yuna with a knowing grin. “Judging from all the whistling, I’d say you had a great first official date.”
Ryujin pretends to focus her attention on the bowl in her hand.
“When’s the next date?”
“Tomorrow,” Ryujin says.
“Tomorrow, huh? You two are impatient, aren’t you?”
“We are not. We didn’t see each other for a whole week, did we? Now that we have some free time, what’s wrong with spending it together and catch up?”
“One, you’re actually admitting that you want to spend time with her as more than just friends and two, you’re being defensive. I haven’t seen your defensive side in a long time,” says Yuna, amused. “I guess it’s real now. You’re officially an item?”
“Not yet and stop analyzing me.”
“Not yet? Hm… then something else must’ve happened that caused you to act this way,” continues Yuna, ignoring Ryujin’s request. She takes her time to think. “You two aren’t official yet so the ‘will you be my girlfriend’ question hasn’t been asked then why… Did you confess?”
Ryujin averts her eyes back to the bowl and tries to cover her face with it as she stuffs another spoonful of ice cream into her mouth.
Yuna gasps. “You did!”
“Good night.” Ryujin sets the bowl back on the table and grabs her belongings before running up to her room.
“Well done, Unnie!”
She hears Yuna shout and grins as she goes inside her room and throws herself on the bed, closing her eyes. I know. Thanks, Yuna-yah.
———————
Yeji hears the knock on the door and sighs. “Go away!” she yells without taking her eyes off of her phone. Ryujin just texted her that she has arrived home and she’s replying to the message.
Jisu pushes the door open and grins. “I will stop teasing you, I swear.”
When she heard her housemate come home, she immediately rushed out of her room to greet her and started asking questions that made Yeji blush. Then she found out about the kiss and the interrogation escalated as she badgered Yeji with questions about Ryujin’s three-hundred-years-worth of kissing skill.
Having had enough, Yeji went into silent mode, ignoring her friend as she took a quick shower then went to her room without so much as sparing Jisu a glance.
Yeji lets Jisu sit on the foot of her bed and finally looks at her after she has sent her message. “What do you want?”
“To tell you that I’m happy for you.”
Yeji raises her eyebrows skeptically.
“I mean it! I’m happy for you. I know it’s been tough since he left but I’m glad you found Ryujin. I wasn’t sure how it would end should you keep dating mortals so I was beyond relieved when I found out that Ryujin’s just like you.”
“Where is all this coming from? You never told me how worried you are about my love life.”
Jisu shrugs. “I was observing carefully, taking my time before I tell you what I’ve been thinking about. Anyway, so I guess your mission has succeeded. She likes you likes you, huh?” she asks with a mischievous grin.
“Don’t start,” warns Yeji. “You swore you’d stop teasing me.”
“I’m not teasing you! I’m just asking an honest question. You have told each other how you felt and even kissed. That’s very good. What’s next?”
“What usually comes next: more dates.”
“Pfft… you don’t need more dates.” Jisu dismisses Yeji’s answer with her hand. “Dates are for when you still need to get to know each other. You two have done that this past month albeit unofficially. Just ask her to be your girlfriend and seal the deal. Why the wait?”
“Because I think Ryujin still needs more time to ease herself into another relationship.”
“Oh? Terrible past experience?”
“I think so.”
“Worse than yours?”
“I’m not sure.”
Jisu observes her friend then says, “You haven’t told her about him, have you?”
Yeji shakes her head. “Not yet. I’ll do that later.”
“When? After you two are official?”
“After she tells me what happened to her.” Yeji takes a deep breath. “Call me crazy but I really want this to work so as eager and excited as I am about this, I want her to learn to trust me first.”
“She’s told you about herself, right? That means she trusts you.”
“She does but only to a certain extent, so far. She’s trying, I know she is but… it’s hard for me to explain. I will tell her about it though. That’s for sure. Besides, I’ve changed my mind and kinda sped things up by asking her out. I’m going to try to slow down for real this time.”
“O-kay. You know best.” Jisu moves off the bed and leaves Yeji alone in her room.
———————
Ryujin is in the kitchen when the doorbell rings.
“I’ll get it!” she shouts as she runs to the door, wiping her wet hands on her apron.
“Hi!” she greets Yeji happily and smiles when she sees the wide smile greeting her back.
“Hello. I hope I’m not too early,” says Yeji, noticing Ryujin’s apron.
“No no. You’re on time. I was just doing the dishes.” Ryujin steps aside to let Yeji in.
“You wear an apron while you’re washing the dishes?”
“Not usually but I don’t want my clothes to get wet,” Ryujin says. “Make yourself at home. I’m almost done.” She runs back to the kitchen, glancing at Yuna who has just come down the stairs.
“Hi Unnie,” Yuna greets the woman taking off her shoes.
“Hey, how are you?”
“I’m great, thanks for asking. You?” Yuna goes to the living room with Yeji following closely behind. “Do you want something to drink?”
“I’m great too. It’s okay. I’m not th-…”
Before Yeji can finish her sentence, Ryujin has appeared with a glass of water in her hand, setting it down on the coffee table in front of Yeji.
“I’ll be done in a minute,” says the woman who then disappears again.
Yeji can’t help but grin as she sits down.
“She’s the type to take care of you in a subtle way,” says Yuna, sitting on the couch. “She observes and she’ll just quietly swoops in, never being too obvious or aggressive with her words or gestures.”
“I’ve noticed,” Yeji says. “By the way, Ryujin told me that you have the first copies of ‘Little Women’?”
Yuna nods. “You like that book too?”
“It’s one of my favorites!” exclaims Yeji.
“Mine too. I can show them to you next time you drop by.”
“That’ll be awesome,” says Yeji who then reaches out to take a sip from her glass.
“Done.” Ryujin suddenly walks inside the living room. “Let’s go. I’m starving.”
“She hasn’t had anything to eat today,” Yuna tells Yeji, pointing at Ryujin. “She just sat there and watched me eat while drooling all over the table.”
Yeji frowns. “You should’ve eaten something if you were hungry.”
Ryujin shoots Yuna a killer glare then turns towards Yeji. “I wasn’t really hungry and I was trying to save space for delicious meat!” she defends herself.
“Then let’s feed you. Quick.”
They bid their goodbyes to Yuna and leave, taking Yeji’s car because the woman has insisted on picking Ryujin up and driving her to the restaurant.
“So what time did you wake up today?” asks Ryujin.
“Nine-ish.”
“That’s practically dawn,” Ryujin says. “For your standards.”
“Haha.” Yeji glances at Ryujin and sticks her tongue out for a quick split second, making the latter laugh.
A few hours later and they’re walking out of the restaurant all happy and full. Lunch was comfortable and last night’s events have considerably improved the atmosphere because their hearts and minds are more relaxed now that they know each other’s feelings.
“I know you said you’d only tell me about one past love story a week,” Yeji says, swinging Ryujin’s hand that she’s holding as they walk back towards her car, “But can you make an exception just this once? I have quite a packed week ahead and I’m afraid I won’t be able to see you until next weekend. Don’t leave me hanging.”
Ryujin smiles and says, “What’s the rush? We have all the time in the world.”
“I know but I’m curious.”
“You’re only curious about the last one, aren’t you? And you’re trying to speed things up to get to her story.”
“I’m most curious about her, yes, that I’ll gladly admit but I’m curious about all the others as well.”
Ryujin takes a second to think. “Alright. I’ll tell you one more this week.” She pulls Yeji towards a coffee shop, buys her a drink then begins telling the story of the ordinary salaryman who, at first glance, didn’t seem special.
“We met at a bar. His drunk friends challenged him to hit on me and because his boss was there, he didn’t dare refuse. He apologized profusely and I felt bad for him so I gave him my real contact number.”
“Did he call you the next day?” asks Yeji, leaning forward while resting her chin on one hand. Her other hand reaches out, sliding under Ryujin’s that’s lying on the table, next to her coffee cup.
Ryujin chuckles and holds Yeji’s hand. “He did. He apologized yet again then asked whether he could buy me dinner to make up for the inconvenience.”
“What’s so special about him then?”
“Are you familiar with the typical old-school salaryman type? They work long hours, do whatever their bosses tell them to including going out to drink almost every night of the week… neglecting their private lives for the company, basically.”
Yeji nods. “I’ve heard about that culture.”
“They don’t get paid a lot although, at that time, they got better pay if they were loyal and for being seniors. The company would take care of their retirement so it’s one of the reasons why a lot of people willingly sought after that security despite the stress and mediocre pay.”
“So he was one of them?”
“Yeah but unlike his peers, he willingly put me first and that almost cost him his job.”
“Wow. What did he do?”
“He was too modern for his time. He wanted a balanced life and not put his job above everything else. If he had made a promise to meet me for dinner or drinks, for example, and his boss suddenly told him to come to the office gathering, he’d politely decline and explained that he had made a prior appointment with someone else. If the gathering was with a client or if it was an important meeting, he’d of course cancel with me and join them. Otherwise, if he knew that they were only socializing or randomly getting drunk, he’d skip.”
“His bosses must’ve been furious.”
“They were.” Ryujin starts playing with Yeji’s fingers. “He didn’t get a raise or a bonus because of it and he was already making too little as it was. When I asked him why, he said he had seen his senior colleague’s family life and he didn’t want that to happen to him. The job wasn’t something he wished to keep forever anyway. His dream was to open his own business but his parents wanted him to have a stable office job.”
“What did his colleague’s family life look like?”
“In his own words, practically fatherless. The man of the house was never there. He did bring back money to support his family but emotionally, his children rarely saw him and he’d come home drunk at least three days a week. If his wife complained about his behavior, he’d yell at her and they’d argue before he passed out.”
Yeji winces, feeling bad for the family. “Ouch.”
“Yeah. Poor kids.” Ryujin stops tracing Yeji’s fingers and goes back to holding her hand. “Anyway, I only dated him for a short while. I told him that although he hated his job, he needed it to support himself before he could set up his dream business so it would be best if he prioritized it first and not get fired. I wasn’t worth the sacrifice because I wouldn’t be able to give him what he wanted,” she says, lifting her head to see Yeji’s small smile. “What’s with the smile?”
“At first I thought that you were going to tell me tales of exciting, adventurous romance but so far, all you’ve mentioned are ordinary people in their ordinary lives – regardless of social class – who sacrificed a lot for you, who went out of their way because of their love for you,” says Yeji. “That says a lot about you, Ryujin.”
“In a good way or bad way?”
“Good way, of course.”
Ryujin nods, relieved to hear Yeji’s answer.
“But it’s quite burdensome too,” continues Yeji. She lifts her chin that’s been resting on her hand so she can use both hands to hold Ryujin's.
“Why is that?”
“Because I’m not sure I can live up to that.” Yeji looks down at their hands, silently wondering what that special person had done for Ryujin to be considered as the best and whether she’d be able to do the same.
“No one’s telling you to.” Ryujin covers Yeji’s hand with her other hand. “You’re the one who wanted to know about these people.”
“That’s only because I wish to understand you more.”
“Thank you for that but please don’t compare yourself to them or be burdened because you think I’d only love you if you do what they did.”
Yeji looks up after hearing Ryujin’s words.
“These people are memorable because they had great character, not specifically because of what they did for me. I’m sure they’d do the same for whomever they met and fell in love with after I left them,” explains Ryujin. “If it makes you feel any better, the one I’m saving for last never did anything extravagant. All she did was be kind and it was that kindness that made her special.”
Ryujin gently squeezes Yeji’s hands. “I like you for who you are. I never want you to become someone else.”
Yeji takes a deep breath and exhales. “Thanks.”
“I mean it.”
“I know.”
“Don’t feel burdened.”
“I won’t.”
“Good.”
A moment of silence passes as they hold on to each other.
Ryujin suppresses her happy smile as she observes Yeji, finding this person to be more endearing by the day. So you wanted to know about these people in order to find out what kind of people I loved. She almost chuckles at the thought. If only you could see my heart and listen to it because I think it has already fallen for you from the first day we met no matter how much I wanted to stop it or keep it from getting hurt again.
“What do you want to do for the rest of the day?” she asks, letting go of Yeji’s hands so she can pick up her coffee cup.
Yeji shrugs. “Up to you. I have nothing planned.”
“Hm… This might sound boring but… wanna go to an art gallery?”
“To see another one of your secret exhibitions?” asks Yeji with a smile.
“No, to see other people’s work.”
“Why not? I’m game for anything.”
“Cool. Finish your coffee then we’ll leave.”
———————
“Wanna come in and have dinner with me?” asks Ryujin as she unbuckles her seatbelt. "Yuna’s not home. She’s out with some of her book club friends again and I prefer not eating alone.”
“Sure.” Yeji turns off the engine and walks out of the car, following Ryujin inside the house.
“What do you want to eat?” Ryujin asks, heading straight to the kitchen to check their food supply. They’ve spent the day touring an art gallery then shopping so both are hungry.
“Are you going to cook?" Yeji takes a seat at the kitchen counter, watching Ryujin who’s standing in front of the open fridge, frowning at its contents. “Or if you’re lazy, we can order take outs.”
“Only if you’ll let me pay,” Ryujin says, closing the fridge. “You’ve paid for lunch so now it’s my turn.”
“But you paid for dinner yesterday.”
“Exactly. I paid yesterday so it’s now my turn again.”
“Nuh-uh. You paid for the coffee after lunch so it’s my turn now.”
“Coffee is not food.”
“I don’t care. If you insist on paying then you’re going to have to eat dinner alone. I will leave.”
Ryujin walks up to the counter from her side of the kitchen, standing across from Yeji while crossing her arms, pretending to look angry. “You are stubborn, aren’t you?”
Yeji shakes her head. “I am not! You are!” she says in an aegyo tone, complete with a pout, then laughs at herself, covering her red face with her hands, embarrassed by her own attempt at a joke.
When she puts down her hands, she finds Ryujin looking at her with a soft gaze and smile that sends flutters down to the pit of her stomach. It’s a look of sincere adoration that she thought only existed in comic books or romantic movies – a look she never imagined to be at the receiving end of. Instantly, one of her favorite jazz songs ‘The look of love’ starts playing in her head and her face starts burning again. “Why are you staring at me like that?” she asks seriously, trying hard to control her expression and appear calm although she’s melting inside.
Ryujin snaps out of it, clears her throat and quickly walks away, towards the living room. “Fine. We’ll go dutch tonight then,” she says as she takes out her phone and calls the Chinese restaurant to order their dinner.
Yeji takes a second to regain her composure, placing her hand on her chest to feel her thumping heart. Damn it. What are you doing to me, Ryujin?