INEVITABLE

Chapter 10

Jisu's body jerks when Ryujin suddenly appears out of nowhere, sliding down the chair across the table.

"Hey."

"Hey."

"I'm sorry. Did I startle you?" Ryujin asks.

"A bit." Jisu closes her laptop. "I didn't hear you coming."

"Hah. Well, I kind of prowl my way here." Ryujin removes her coat, draping it over her chair's back.

And Jisu didn't miss how Ryujin's toned arm showed on the sleeve of her white shirt.

She remembers Yuri saying something about her wife going to the gym regularly.

"You look busy." Ryujin nods her head towards Jisu's laptop. "I plan to announce my arrival through tugging, but you seem to be concentrating. Your eyes are glued to your laptop. You were still for the whole two minutes I thought you weren't real."

"Ah?" Jisu raises an eyebrow. "Are you saying you were just standing over there staring at me for two good minutes?"

"Well. yeah. I kind of did that." Ryujin grins. Jisu pretends not to melt by rolling her eyes. "What were you doing?"

"I was reviewing the market index for one of my client's portfolios to see if their return is at par, or even more. they expressed their intent to short-sell some of their stocks."

Ryujin nods eagerly, and then stops. "Maybe try speaking normally?"

Jisu chuckles. "I was waiting for someone to come. I got bored, so I thought maybe I could do some work while waiting."

"That I can comprehend." Ryujin leans back, giving a thumbs up. "I'm sorry for getting here late. There was a sudden adjustment in Yuri's schedule. I waited longer with her in the airport."

"It's okay." Jisu sets aside her laptop. "I remember I used to believe flight attendants weren't allowed to get married. Now I know I was wrong."

"Well, for the inexperienced ones, they are highly required to be single. But the experienced ones are allowed to be married," Ryujin says. "Yuri's been in the industry for five years now, been doing it since she was nineteen. we got married when she was twenty-two--actually, going twenty-three."

"And you guys are married for three years now, right?" Jisu asks, counting with her fingers. "How old are you again?"

"I'm twenty-five. you?"

"I'm twenty-seven."

"Oh. Should I call you unnie then?"

"Yah!"

Ryujin laughs. "That would be weird, right?"

"Totally." Jisu shakes her head. "So, um, how have you been since..." she gestures her hand in the air. "You know."

"Good." Ryujin props her elbows on the table. "A little crazy. It's weird. We've only met once and talked for like an hour over breakfast, but I can't stop thinking about you after. I've dreamt of you so many times it's crazy." she stops and thinks. "Is it okay for me to admit those things to you?"

"Yes, of course," Jisu encourages with a smile. "don't worry. It's the same thing for me. The past three years have been crazy. it was a bad move for us to ignore each other just like that."

"That's a relief." Ryujin eyes Jisu's hand. "I can see you're still not married, huh?"

Jisu glances at her hand too. "Remember I had a date that time we met? She and I broke up a year after that. I haven't gotten myself into any relationships since then."