Dangers of a Saint || Ryeji

48

Ryujin had always been fascinated with video games ever since she was a kid. She loved having her own virtual adventures with Chaeryeong and she wouldn't mind spending an entire day solely playing with her as they locked themselves away in her room to keep anyone from interrupting their game. Growing up, she promised herself that she would hold onto her passion for gaming and eventually, she managed to build her own company with it.

Perhaps it was the power that came with the ability to create her own world, wherein she had control over literally everything, where she had endless options on how she would pursue her goals, and a place where she could write her own ending exactly how she wanted it to.

This idea was criticized more than once when she was still in the university. Multiple times, people told her that it was almost an obsession with being in control, that it was the total opposite of what reality was. Ryujin kept her mouth shut by then but in all honesty, she was already laughing in her head at how stupid they were.

Video games were made to serve as an escape from reality. It was never supposed to possess parallelism with the lives people lived every single day. Did they seriously think that players being able to relate to the characters in the game was what hooked them in? People loved playing because being able to live through the life of a character that was premade and completely opposite from the life they were experiencing brought a room for them to breathe, a whole new dimension for them to be someone capable of doing the things they couldn't do in real life. It was the idea of being competent and powerful and different that usually had them playing video games for hours.

With her talent and determination, Ryujin brought games to life not only to offer an escape but to provide comfort she was never given living under the roof of her father.

But it was a gift to see through the illusion once the controller was down, to never forget the life that she actually had, to remember that she would never be in total control of her own life. However, despite attaining this perception, no one prepared her for the anxiety that flowed through her fingertips while waiting for Yeji's reply. The sweating of her palm and the thrashing of her heart against her ribcage made her wish that her life was her own game, that she could come up with their own script for Yeji to follow. Ryujin had always been a collected person. It was hilarious how nervous she felt around the cat-eyed woman, as if she didn't spend mornings waking up next to her and making breakfast for the both of them. For some reason, it almost felt like she wasn't looking at her Yeddeong.

Perhaps she wasn't anymore.

"I've had my shortcomings and I'm aware of how terribly they affected you," Ryujin began, finding her voice again before her nerves completely took over her. "I don't know how much I hurt you but I am willing to sacrifice everything that I have to make it right. I will always remember the pain that I've caused you but I will not stop until you forgive me."

Yeji stared at her for what felt like an eternity. Ryujin could feel her heart about to leap out of her chest yet the cat-eyed woman's face was as graceful as the setting sun bidding them goodbye. The billionaire couldn't distinguish what was running in her head and it made her hold her breath, it almost made her want to dive headfirst into the sea instead of hearing the architect's answer.

That was until Yeji chuckled.

"You've spent years neglecting the idea of celebrating a birthday because you feel awful over an incident you believed you were accountable for, and now that you're finally moving on from that, you're more worried about this?"

Ryujin felt her mouth dry up as she remained unsure of Yeji's approach to the situation. The tiny smirk plastered on her catlike face was teasing, almost taunting.