“You’re not going to believe what just happened,” Ryujin says to the person she’s called using the phone that’s docked on the dashboard of her car.
“What happened?” asks Yeji. “Did you meet Chaeryeong”
“Yeah. Apparently, your father wanted her to meet someone who’s also healing. I didn’t know what came over me but the things I said were unbelievable.”
“What do you mean? Unbelievable how?”
“I sounded really confident about what I’ve been through and why I’m doing what I’m doing right now, with you. I think I even channeled Yuna for a bit there.”
“Being confident is a good thing.”
“I guess.”
“Tell me what you said to her.”
Ryujin summarizes her conversation with Chaeryeong, earning positive and encouraging comments from Yeji every now and then.
“I hope she changes her mind,” says Yeji at the end of Ryujin's story.
“I hope so too,” replies Ryujin. “Thank you.”
“For?”
“For being my sunrise.”
Yeji chuckles. “Cheesy Jinnie. You’re welcome. Thank you too.”
“For?”
Ryujin then hears the sound of her own recorded voice, recognizing it to come from the bear. “Stop replaying it. It’s embarrassing.”
“I love it. Thanks for saying all that.”
“You’re welcome.” Ryujin carefully makes a turn to the street she lives in and says, “I’ve arrived home. Gonna hang up now. Talk to you later?”
“Okay. See ya.”
“Love you,” Ryujin says, grinning alone in her car.
“Love you too.”
———————
Yuna looks up from her book when she hears the door opening. “How did it go?” she asks the woman walking inside the house.
“Pretty well. I think all those years of nagging you did finally paid off.”
“What? How so?”
Ryujin retells what happened, taking a seat on the armchair.
“You really said all that?”
“And more. I can’t even remember everything I’ve said but rest assured, I quoted you many times,” says Ryujin.
“I feel accomplished,” jokes Yuna, smiling from her seat.
“You should. I realized how lucky I am. Thanks for sticking with me.”
“You’re most welcome.”
“And to show my gratitude, I’ve decided to grant you that tiny wish you’ve had since forever.”
Yuna raises her eyebrows. “What wish?”
“You’ll see tomorrow. I’ll pick you up after work.” Ryujin then gets up, going to the kitchen to find a snack.
“What wish, Unnie?” asks Yuna, raising her voice from the living room.
“Not telling!” replies Ryujin.
Yuna sighs and shakes her head before returning her attention to the book in her hands.
———————
Yuna gets out of the car and follows Ryujin. “Where are we going?”
“You’ll see.”
They turn a corner and Ryujin stops a few meters later, right in front of a pet shop. “We’re here,” she says.
When Yuna realizes where they are, she gasps and looks at Ryujin. “For real?”
Ryujin nods. “I’ll help you take care of it but choose a small breed please. Our house isn’t that big.”
“Are you sure, Unnie?”
“Positive.”
“But…”
Ryujin pats Yuna’s arm. “It’s going to be fine. I’ll explain why. Go on. Take a look inside.”
“Thank you,” the tall woman says, catching Ryujin off guard by the hug she gives her before going inside the shop.
Ryujin just smiles, following her friend inside.
Yuna has wanted a pet since a long time ago – a puppy, to be exact – but Ryujin never agreed because they have to move around a lot and having a dog is not practical. Leaving it behind will be heart breaking while taking it with them across the globe costs time, money and not to mention the stress that the animal would have to experience.
Once, when they were living apart, Yuna went to the local shelter and adopted a dog. It was still alive when she had to move on although it had gotten old and sick. She wanted to take it with her but considering its condition, no airline would allow it on board and even if they did, she was afraid that it wouldn’t survive the trip. She searched for someone to take care of it but none of her acquaintances wanted an old, sick dog. In the end, she had to return it to the shelter with a heavy heart. It died not long after she left, according to the caretaker who wrote to her.
Ryujin comforted her by saying that she should just get puppies next time so that the dog would at least be healthy enough if she wanted to take it with her.
It took Yuna a while to be able to recover and actually want to have a pet again. But even after that, Ryujin was still hesitant so she accepted the fact that she might not be able to own a dog ever again.
Ryujin greets the barking pups in their cages and watches Yuna talk to the shopkeeper.
“Unnie, what about this one?” Yuna shows her a small white pup.
“Aw… so cute.” Ryujin pats the dog’s head.
“It’s a small breed. A maltese.”
“Aren’t they loud though?” asks Ryujin.
The shopkeeper approaches them and says, “They are. They love being near humans and they are lively and playful. Unfortunately, because of their liveliness and the barking, they’re also the most abandoned breed in this country.”
“That’s so sad,” says Yuna, pouting cutely while lifting the white quiet pup to her eye level. “But you’re quiet.”
“This one is surprisingly quieter than the others,” says the shopkeeper. “But most small breeds will be noisy so if you want a quieter dog, I suggest going with another breed.”
“What do you think, Unnie?”
Ryujin shrugs. “Up to you. We don’t live in an apartment, thankfully, so even if it barks a lot, it won’t bother the neighbors.”
“Do you want to come with me?” Yuna asks the puppy, bringing it close to her face. She laughs when it licks her nose. “I think that’s a yes. I’ll take her.”
“Her? It’s a she?” asks Ryujin.
“Yeah. I think I’ll call her Dubu since she’s white and all.” Yuna carefully holds the pup and follows the shopkeeper to get supplies for the dog.
Ryujin laughs. “You and your love for bean curds.”
Once they’re in the car with the tiny pup curling in a blanket on Yuna's lap, she can no longer contain her curiosity and asks Ryujin why she has agreed to get a pet after all these years.
Ryujin explains Yeji’s wish to live with Jisu – or near her – for as long as possible.
“Ah. So I guess we’ll be staying in this city for a long time then?” asks Yuna.
Ryujin nods. “Although I’m not sure how Yeji would manage to hide her never aging looks from Jisu’s family or future husband, it’s her wish to spend as much time as possible with her best friend and I understand that wish.”
Yuna pets the small dog on her lap. “I see. I guess that’s a good thing. Not only do I get to have Dubu, I think it will give me more time to help Chaeryeong unnie too.”
“Yeah. And should we have to leave your Dubu behind, there’s Jisu’s family now so she will be taken care of.”
“I hope we won’t have to,” Yuna says, pulling the dog a little closer. “You’ll be with me till the end, won’t you, my little baby?” she coos to the white pup.
Ryujin steals a glance and quietly sighs. Nothing lasts forever and it is impossible to avoid saying goodbye to your loved ones, especially as an immortal. She can only hope that when the time comes, Yuna would be stronger and more prepared than before.
————————
Yeji waves goodbye to the staff and walks out of the building with a huff, glad that another day’s work is behind her. She won’t be having any other shoot this week so she plans to spend her time with Jisu and Ryujin whenever both of them are free.
The sun is setting and she’s tired so instead of taking the bus or subway, she decides to hail a cab instead because she didn’t bring her car and her manager had driven her to the studio from her agency this morning.
But before she can walk to the main road, she sees someone familiar waiting for her across the street.
The corners of her mouth twitch as a huge smile starts to spread on her face.
She stops to stand at the edge of the pavement, not crossing the narrow distance that separates them. “What are you doing here?” she asks.
“Waiting for someone,” replies the woman holding a single stem of pink rose. “Someone very special.”
“I see. What’s the occasion?”
“It’s our one month anniversary.”
Yeji can’t help but laugh. “That person is very lucky.”
“We both are.”
Yeji takes a step forward to cross the street but Ryujin does that too so both of them stop by reflex. Since there are cars passing through the street every now and then, it would be dangerous for both to move simultaneously and meet in the middle of the road.
When Yeji moves back to the sidewalk – thinking that Ryujin would be the one crossing the street, the other woman does the exact same thing and retreats to her side of the road.
This happens a couple of times like some silly slapstick comedy and they both end up laughing at themselves.
“You stay there. I’ll cross,” Yeji orders Ryujin and finally crosses the street after checking for passing cars.
“It looks much more romantic and smooth in the movies,” remarks Ryujin.
Yeji comes to stand in front of Ryujin and smiles. “Hello.”
“Hi. This is for you.” Ryujin gives Yeji the flower and leans in to kiss her. “Happy one month anniversary.”
“Happy one month anniversary,” replies Yeji with a smile. “You’re not going to do this every month, are you?”
“Don’t worry. There’s only the six month anniversary left and it’s going to be annual after that.”
“Thank you for the flower.” Yeji links her arm with Ryujin’s as they start walking to the latter’s car that’s parked nearby.
“You’re welcome. Wanna have dinner?”
“Sure but nothing fancy, please. I’m in the mood to pig out so let’s go somewhere comfortable.”
“Your wish is my command,” replies Ryujin, opening the car door for Yeji and earning herself a kiss on the cheek for the gesture.
She tells Yeji about the puppy she gave Yuna a couple of days ago over dinner and the latter immediately plans to visit Ryujin’s house the next chance she gets.
“How’s work coming along?” asks Yeji on their way home.
“I haven’t had the chance to do much since last weekend so nothing’s changed.”
“I see. I was just about to suggest that you stay over tonight but if you need to work…”
Ryujin steals a glance at the woman sitting next to her. “You’re free tomorrow?”
“I’m free for the rest of the week. Maybe even the rest of the month.”
“Oh? No more jobs?”
“Nothing scheduled for now.”
“What are you planning to do with all that time on your hands?”
“Take lessons at the agency, go to auditions or hang out with you and Jisu,” answers Yeji. “If you’re not working, that is.”
“Sorry. As much as I like to spend every day with you, I might not be able to. Not until everything’s ready for the exhibition. When I’m in the zone, I can’t be bothered or nothing will get done.”
“That’s okay. I know how you artsy people work. There’s this musician oppa who once locked himself in his house for months to prepare his next album. He only allowed his family inside to drop food off or clean up the place. A friend nearly reported him missing.”
“I… did that too, many times.”
“You went missing?”
“No. I locked myself up in my studio for days. Yuna would put food and water outside the door for me like I’m some kind of prisoner and I would only leave the studio to go to the toilet.”
“Please tell me that you showered.”
“Um…”
“Ew!” Yeji playfully pushes Ryujin away while the latter chuckles. “Well, if you must do that again, I don’t mind but kindly give me a heads up so I won’t report you missing.”
“Yes, Ma’am. I’ll be sure to do that. It’s going to happen again soon, I think.”
“That’s okay. So what about tonight? Can you stay over?”
Ryujin nods. “It’s our anniversary, after all.”
"Awesome!"
———————
Jisu walks out of her room the next morning to see Ryujin heading towards the front door. “You’re leaving?” she asks when she notices that the woman’s fully dressed.
Ryujin turns her head. “Yeah. I have work to do.”
“Have you told Yeji?”
“I have but she was still half conscious so I left her a message too.” Ryujin goes to put on her shoes. “I’ll see you around,” she tells Jisu before leaving the apartment.
Jisu waves goodbye then goes to the bathroom. She’s just finished having breakfast in front of the TV when Yeji walks out of her room with her eyes still half closed and her hair a mess.
“Jinnie?” she calls out in her hoarse voice.
“She left,” replies Jisu, turning her head to see her best friend dragging her feet to the bathroom while only wearing a t-shirt.
She waits until Yeji comes out a few minutes later, looking more awake, before telling her to put on some pants.
“Ryujin really left?” asks Yeji, ignoring the remark about her clothing. “I thought I dreamt that.”
“She said she left you a message. In your phone maybe?”
“Hm…” Yeji goes back to her room with Jisu following behind her.
She climbs onto the bed, searches for her phone and checks her messages.
“Good morning, gorgeous. Sorry I had to leave so soon. My mind is filled with ideas and I have to go home and get them out before they’re gone. In the mean time, don’t report me missing and think that I’m ignoring you if I don’t text you often. I’ll be in my studio, working. Love you.”
Yeji smiles, types a quick reply and sets her phone down. “She’s gone home to work,” she tells her best friend as she lies down.
“I see.” Jisu takes hold of the teddy bear dangling off the side of the bed and hugs it as she lies down. She wasn’t expecting the sound that comes out of the bear and jerks in surprise when she hears Ryujin’s voice. “Whoa!” She lifts the stuffed animal and stares at it. “What was that?” She presses the soft tummy and laughs when she hears the whole message.
Yeji quickly takes the bear from Jisu. “Do not laugh at my Jinnie.”
“So you have two bears and a human named Jinnie now?”
“Yes.”
Jisu sighs and shakes her head. “You’re so smitten.”
“So are you.”
“I’m not as smitten as you are.”
“I refuse to believe that. I hardly see you these days.”
“That’s because both of us are working.”
“Don’t try to defend yourself. You always came home late. Much later than usual and I know it wasn’t because of work.”
“You’re rarely home on weekends,” retorts Jisu.
“So are you,” replies Yeji without missing a beat.
“You invited Ryujin over a lot.”
“You talk on the phone in your room for hours.”
“You’re always texting on your phone.”
“You do that too!”
“Not as much as you do.”
They simultaneously stick their tongues out at each other then laugh.
A moment of silence falls upon them before Yeji says, “Remember how we used to imagine ourselves living next door to each other after we got married? With our respective husbands and kids?”
Jisu nods, keeping her gaze on the ceiling. “That doesn’t have to change, does it?”
“No. Ryujin has agreed to let me stay here for as long as I want but we have to tell your oppa about me. He will be very confused when he sees me not aging.”
Jisu turns her head and smiles at her friend. “Don’t worry. I’ll take care of that.”
“What about your kids?”
“I’ll take care of that too. Or you can always ask one of your make-up unnies to teach you to disguise yourself as a middle-aged woman,” jokes Jisu.
Yeji looks away. “What if I can’t stay?” she asks in a small voice.
Jisu takes hold of Yeji’s hand. “Distance won’t matter with the technology we have today. We’ll stay friends forever, Yeji. Don’t worry about it.”
Yeji nods, squeezes Jisu’s hand and tries hard not to cry at the thought of saying goodbye to her best friend.
Jisu understands how Yeji’s feeling and although it’s hard for her too, she tries to appear strong and not make it harder on her. “Why is this bear wearing a karate outfit anyway? Ryujin can’t do martial arts, can she?” she asks, stealing the bear from Yeji.
“Long story. Take a look inside the pants.”
“What? What kind of pervert do you think I am?” exclaims Jisu although she pulls the bear’s pants to take a look anyway. She snorts and laughs when she sees the pink panties. “Sexy.”
“I know, right? I’m going to buy her pink lingerie for Christmas.”
Jisu laughs even harder. “Oh boy. That’s hard to imagine.”
“Don’t imagine it! Hey! Stop imagining my girlfriend in sexy underwear!” Yeji pushes the laughing Jisu until the woman nearly falls off the bed.
“You started it!” Jisu pushes back.
“I did not!”
“You did!”
“I did not! Now stop thinking about Ryujin!”
“Alright alright!" Jisu lifts both hands in surrender. “I don’t even like the thought of a four hundred year old woman in lingerie. All those wrinkles,” she grins mischievously and jumps out of the bed before Yeji could hurt her, “And saggy boobs.”
“YAH! SHE DOESN’T HAVE WRINKLES OR SAGGY BOOBS!” shouts Yeji after her friend who runs out of her room while laughing loudly.
———————
“Oh my god! She is so cute!” Yeji squeals the moment she sees the white dog, running towards it. “Hi little Tofu,” she greets the pup in English and lifts it, giggling when it licks her face.
“I think she likes you,” Yuna says.
“We always wanted a dog but pets are not allowed in our building, sadly,” Jisu says as she squats next to Yeji to pet the dog that’s been placed back on the floor.
“Both of you can always come here to play with Dubu,” Yuna offers. “Or we can take her out to the park together.”
“That’ll be fun.” Yeji stands up, leaving the pup to play with Jisu. “Where’s Ryujin?”
“In her studio. She’s in prisoner mode again.”
“Prisoner mode?” asks Jisu.
“I leave her food and water outside the door like she’s a prisoner,” explains Yuna.
“Why?”
“Because she’s locked herself in there to work.”
“How long has it been?” asks Yeji. “The last time she texted me was on Thursday, after she left my place. She told me that she’d be busy and might not be able to talk to me or see me for a few days. Then I got several sporadic messages after that but nothing since yesterday.”
“That’s why she insisted on coming with me with the excuse of wanting to see your dog,” says Jisu. “She also came close to tagging along on my date yesterday.”
“I did no such thing!” argues Yeji.
“You were whining and complaining like a baby because you had nothing to do.”
“I was bored. It’s been almost a week since I last saw Ryujin or had anything to do. Can you blame me?”
“You can wait for her. I think she’s going to come out of her little prison today. The music got louder this morning and when I came home from work, it had died down so I think she’s done, for now,” Yuna says, ending the two friends’ argument. “I’m sure she’ll either text or call you later.”
“If she does, it would be fun to surprise her,” says Yeji, grinning at the thought of surprising Ryujin for a change.
“Well, make yourself at home. Let’s go, Unnie,” Yuna says to Jisu. “We better not keep Chaeryeong unnie waiting.”
After careful consideration, Yuna has decided to introduce Chaeryeong to Jisu. She wants her to remember how wonderful friendship is and that befriending a mortal is not always a bad thing.
Jisu agreed and they’re going to meet Chaeryeong for coffee today.
The two leave the house a moment later while Yeji stays behind to wait for Ryujin and keeps herself busy by playing with the puppy.
She’s watching TV with the dog on her lap about an hour later when her phone signals an incoming message. It’s from Ryujin.
“Hey, what are you doing?”
Yeji turns off the TV and replies, “Nothing much. Why? Have you finished working?”
“For now. Sorry to have neglected you.”
“That’s okay. You’ve warned me ahead of time so it’s all good. What are you doing?”
Somewhere in the house, Yeji hears the distant sound of a door closing.
“I’m going to take a shower now. Wanna have dinner with me?”
“Sure.” Yeji carefully sets the dog on the carpet and stands up.
“Great. I’ll pick you up. Just give me two hours.”
“Take your time.”
“Alright. See you later.”
“Okay.”
She pockets her phone and tiptoes towards the stairs, listening to the sounds Ryujin’s making upstairs. When she’s sure that Ryujin has gone inside her room, she makes her way up and carefully presses her ear to the closed bedroom door.
She can hear faint sounds of water running and assumes that Ryujin’s in the bathroom so she quickly, and quietly, sneaks inside the room.
She sits down on the bed, facing the bathroom door, and waits.
Minutes later, the sounds from the shower stop and Yeji can hear Ryujin going about the bathroom, brushing her teeth. She grins, excited to see her reaction when she finds her there.
Ryujin walks out of the bathroom with a towel around her head and another one around her body.
She gasps and jumps when she sees Yeji on her bed, waiting for her.
“Surprise!” exclaims Yeji as she jumps up to her feet, laughing.
“What the-… How did you-…”
“I teleported here,” jokes Yeji.
“…”
Yeji approaches the stunned Ryujin. “I missed you so I decided to come by and see you.” She kisses her cheek and hugs her.
“How did you know that I would be done working today?” asks Ryujin, wrapping her arms around the other woman. She has missed her too and now that she has stopped being so immersed in her work, the feeling has quadrupled and she finds herself holding Yeji tighter than usual.
“I didn’t. Yuna wanted Jisu to meet Chaeryeong so I tagged along. I wanted to see Dubu too.” Yeji nuzzles her face against Ryujin’s neck and inhales. “God I missed you so much,” she mumbles as she gently presses her lips against the cool skin.
Ryujin chuckles, letting go of Yeji. “It’s only been days, you know.”
Yeji doesn’t reply. Instead, she tilts her head, kisses Ryujin softly on the lips and pulls her towards the bed.