off-white | wlw

the old lady

The plane's loud engines ringed in the girl's ears as it finally took flight into Korean skies. The plane was headed towards America, the place young Delilah would never expect to want to stay, after all, she was dreading going.

She had lived in Korea with her mother, her grandparents, and her siblings. She had become fluent in the language, the culture, and the way of life in the always moving cities around where she lived. She knew America was different, and not only that but she would be different. Despite the fact her father was American, she took after her mother more, so she looked different, and though she knew English well enough to understand and speak it, she knew she would have a strong accent.

Though none of that mattered to her, as it was summer, which meant no school, and no talking to anyone. She would probably shut herself off to doodle, or practice her guitar.

She looked out the plane's small window, as the large aircraft climbed through the towers of fluffy clouds, and the sun over the rocky terrain of Korea slowly fading out of view. She felt her body relax. She stopped thinking about America, about her father, about living on a farm for a summer. All that she cared about was rest. Eventually, the soothing scenes of the landscape around them sang her to a long, much-needed rest.

Ryn was at the large farm, as usual talking to the old lady that lived there with her son, who owned the farm. She found comfort in the lady. Maybe it was because of the way she seemed at peace with the world, like she was ready to die, which as she thought more about it, wasn't a bad thing. Right now the old lady was talking about her granddaughter-in-law that would be staying at the farm.

"Oh I hope you two become friends, I'd love for my two favorite people to get along well!"

The old lady smiled brightly. Her smile always lit up Ryn, the old lady had told her about her many instances where her smile got her out of trouble. They had always made Ryn smile herself. She had always wished she had a beautiful smile too, but instead, she was left with a head full of orange hair with tints of brown, and curls more intense than many have ever seen. Freckles dotted her skin, and her hands, always dirty from the work the old lady made her do around the large farm.

Ryn lived a few houses down in a small house, that was clearly pained white many years ago, but the color had faded, giving it an off-white color to it. She lived with her parents alone her entire life, in that same house. The same house her many generations before her had lived in.

The feeling that she was trapped in the small town had never been this bad. She had always wanted to move away, to a city, where she would meet someone, fall in love and live life like the rest. But her parents depended on her, and she was only 16, almost 17. So for now she was stuck. Stuck with the never-ending feeling of dread that had settled comfortably at the pit of her stomach.

Ryn nodded lightly, responding to the old lady's conversation. Though she didn't want to meet anyone new. The old lady was always pressing her to get friends, to meet someone, but she was too focused on her studies.

On her short walk home, the sun was setting already, and the small houses, cottages, stores, and shops slowly shut off as the always quiet town quieted down another level. The only sound is the whisper of the sweet summer sun shining its final rays down on the rows of houses. Her long hair flowed peacefully in the hot summer wind as she reached her small home. Her parents were probably out in the town, doing business with friends and clients.

She grabbed her notebook and spun the old records she had found in the attic of the old lady's house, on an outdated record player. She dances her way to the small couch in the corner near the kitchen and began drawing the old lady. She had been trying to capture her smile for years now, but the peaceful tints and charisma that came with it were too hard to put into the grey lines of her pencil, yet she always tried. She took a short shower and lay in her bed, the record player playing quietly in the kitchen, and the quiet winds flowing into her window slowly cradled her to sleep.

Delilah woke up to her mother speaking to her, telling her to get up or something like that, she could barely hear as her ears were just now adjusting to the quietness that couldn't be heard while flying. It had been a while on the plane, and she was tired of sitting down and wished she could be petting her kitten, so she eagerly climbed through the waves of people excited to be home to their families.

She rubbed her calloused fingertips as the two cruised through the crowded airport to the baggage claim. Her mother told her to wait for their bags while she went to go get Icarus, her kitten. She watched lazily as the bags flowed through the conveyer belt, and the people grabbed what was theirs and walked back to their own lives. Eventually, She saw her bag, and the guitar reaches her end, and she rushed over to grab them. Her mother came back with the cat, and she swung her bag and guitar over her shoulders and picked up the cat bag and they began walking back silently out of the airport, where a car would be waiting for them.

The car drive was long, and the scenery was odd for Delilah. She was used to tightly packed together houses and big cities, but everything here was so spread out, so peaceful, and so quiet. She wasn't tired, she didn't want to sleep but the pure quietness of it all made her tired. The way the moon trailed after the car. Like no matter where Delilah went, the moon was there. The stillness of the old fences and barns comforted her. She twiddled with her long black hair as the farms passed. Eventually putting in her earplugs and closing her eyes as indistinct music played in her head.

She allowed herself to drift away, feeling calm. She could hear her mother snoring despite the music playing in her ears. The man driving the car drove slowly and steadily, so the already long drive seemed longer.

Eventually, the oddly familiar farm appeared in the dim moonlight. She shook her mother a bit, saying something indistinct in Korean and she grabbed the cat bag and walked out of the small car.

It had taken a lot of convincing to her mother to bring the cat with her, as her mother was going home after a day and wanted to have something that reminded her of Delilah, but eventually, her mother gave in, which left Delilah a little more relaxed.

There were only a few lights on in the dim, creaking house, with small chips of green paint peeling. They walked up to the door and quietly knocked, for fear of waking up people in the house.

Delilah's father opened the door quickly and smiled brightly when he saw her. She grinned and hugged him. Her parents had been divorced for a while now, and this was the first time she had seen him since the divorce. He brought her into the house, and eagerly took her bags and set them down.

"How are you? Is this a guitar, Oh my goodness you'll have to show me!"

He said in an excited whisper. She nodded and they talked for a bit longer. Her dad brought her up to the room painted in an off-white color, with a large window, a bookshelf, and a closet full of old clothes. Her dad hugged her and told her goodnight, and she collapsed into the comfiness of the old rickety bed.

The window whistled at the winds outside. Delilah opened the window and breathed in the fresh air. The air was so much more breathable there, for once she could comfortably take a breath. The old house whispered around her and the only sounds that could be heard were the faint snore of her father upstairs. She closed her eyes, even though she didn't feel like sleeping, it was too peaceful not to.