Eternity [ryeji]

Chapter 53

The man sips his coffee quietly, listening to the voice that's coming through the phone pressed against his ear. He'd smile every now and then but waits until the other person has finished talking before he speaks.

"I understand, Ryujin. You don't have to feel too guilty about it. People make bad judgments all the time. At least you tried your best to fix your mistake." He pauses and looks at his daughter that's been eyeing him from the other side of the room. "She said that I couldn't tell you where she is so unfortunately-... Of course she's okay. No, her classes haven't started yet. It's not a bachelor's degree so she'd be back in two years, more or less."

Yeji glares at her father who only grins at her.

"Yes, of course. No problem, Ryujin. Good luck. Okay. Bye." He hangs up and shakes his head. "Poor girl. You should've at least told her how long you'd be gone."

"She didn't tell me so why should I tell her?" retorts Yeji.

"I thought this wasn't about revenge?"

"It's not but I desperately need a break so it's best if she doesn't contact me at all or wait for me. It'd be too distracting."

"I'm sure she wouldn't do anything crazy. She admitted that it was her fault and she said she'd wait. She respects your decision."

Yeji sighs and leans back, resuming watching TV.

She has enrolled in a school on the other side of the country but term won't start until spring next year so in the mean time, she decides to go back to the city where she grew up in and stay with her father. Her contract with her agency in Seoul had ended a few months ago so it was the perfect timing for her to get a break and try to do something new.

She spends most of her time with her father, helping him with his business. Sometimes she'd meet up with an old childhood friend or two when she's bored but since she doesn't want to raise suspicions about her looks, she chooses not to contact too many people.

Ryujin has sent her emails from time to time, asking about how she's doing and telling her about her job search. Yeji never replies. She only talks to Jisu who has sworn to never give her new phone number to Ryujin. Even Yuna and Chaeryeong don't know where Yeji is or what her phone number is.

In one of her emails, Ryujin has told Yeji about the job she got in Seoul at an up and coming animation company. She also told her that it's not what she's really aiming for. She wants to work at well-known companies in the States or in Japan.

This year's holiday season is a quiet one. Yeji and her father celebrate Christmas and New Year at home, having dinner and watching TV.

She's been having dreams about Ryujin lately, seeing her at the park or at home, painting. She knows that Ryujin misses her and sometimes she'd feel guilty about leaving but she realizes that this is something that she has to do.

Yeji comes downstairs to see her father in the living room holding a large brown envelope in his hands.

"This came for you," he tells her while waving the envelope. "Found it among my mail."

Yeji takes the envelope, sees the sender's name and quickly tips it over. A DVD case falls out and she looks at her father, raising her eyebrows questioningly.

"The note says that I should forward it to you," says the man. "I don't know what's in it."

"I'll go take a look then," Yeji tells him as she takes the DVD up to her room. She plays it in her computer, involuntarily smiling when she sees the face greeting her on the screen.

"Hi." Ryujin waves at the camera then laughs awkwardly. "This is awkward." She clears her throat then says, "I thought sending you a physical disc is better than uploading the video somewhere. More secure. Anyway, here's a live action movie of that bad animation I made for you."