Memories || Wonu ff

one

Ji Young

"Dad?" I call out as I search around the house "Daa~ad?"

I'm met with no response as I try listening for any sounds that could tell me where he is. While walking back towards the kitchen, I hear the sound of shuffling papers and sigh when I realized where he was- I don't know why I didn't choose to look there first.

He's been working all night in his study again.

His study is like his home inside of our home; he basically lives in there and only leaves when he has book signings or I practically drag him out of there. All he does is work and write, not really socializing except for spending time with me. Although it concerns family and friends, it's how he works. I'm so used to it that it feels out-of-character when he's away from his study for longer than a day. Dad likes his space, the least I can do is give him time to work and focus on his drafts.

Opening the door as quietly as I can, I pop my head in to see him asleep at his desk with his laptop open and papers scattered everywhere around him. Walking up behind him, I pat his shoulders.

"Hey, dad." I say in a hushed voice as I continue to pat his shoulders "Dad, wake up. Today's the class field trip and you promised to chaperone."

Slowly stirring, he groans as he stretches out his arms and yawns loudly. I felt bad for waking him knowing that he probably was only asleep for a few hours, so I immediately head to the kitchen and pour him a cup of coffee before returning to see him just sitting in his chair, shoulders slump and eyes blinking before settling into a blank stare. He only zones back in when I hand him his coffee. Taking a sip, he mumbles a quiet 'thank you' before continuing to drink it.

"Writing all night again, dad?" I ask while carefully leaning against his work desk, trying not to ruin any papers "The doctor did tell you to try and get more sleep without melatonin for once."

He sheepishly shrugs "I couldn't help myself, sweet pea. I got hit with inspiration for writing after being stumped for so long- I had to take advantage of it while the spark was still there. Would you like to see my rough draft?"

I nod reluctantly and he wakes up his laptop screen; opening his draft document before turning his laptop so I can read it. Reading through his draft, I point out several odd phrases and spelling mistakes as he wrote it down in his notes while continuing to drink his coffee.

Stuff like this was normal in our household. Dad has had a passion for writing since his college days, and slowly he gained a following over the years. His most popular series is one called Withered--set in a time period that's a combination of modern and medieval society, the story is about a florist and how her life changes when she falls in love with the town hero: the alchemist. The series goes on about how the alchemist shows the florist a new meaning to life after her being so used to one that's so dull and monotonous, how they both use their knowledge to work together and face obstacles thrown their way, and slowly building a bond together that leads to something deeper and meaningful as they work together to take down the main villain: the wicked queen.

He's currently working on the fifth and final book to wrap up the series, however he's struggling to write this one. He says that the series will have a sad ending, but one with closure as well. Creative block isn't uncommon among those who create things by their own hands, but there is an unspoken pressure when you have an audience waiting on bated breathe for your next piece. And for a man like my dad, Jeon Wonu, that pressure does quite a lot to him.

I can tell it's taking quite a toll on him, too. That's why he needs to come on this field trip, he needs some fresh air and sunlight ever now and then.

Skimming through the blurb he wrote, I gave him some feedback  "Aside from the few errors, this is pretty good." I then reminded him of why he needed to be awake today "Anyway, you need to get ready so that you can come along for my class trip. We have to be at the school by 8."

"Do I have to?" He whines, the dread not even trying to be subtle in his voice.

"Dad, you've been cooped up in here for days. You need to be outside every now and again!" I scold him "Besides, I know for a fact that you've been getting more and more stressed about wrapping up the series. A day off can go a long way to ease some of that pressure off your mind, and that pressure is there only because you're not ready to face the end of that story."

My motivational speech made him go quiet for a moment- a normal occurrence, but something about his demeanor felt... off after hearing me say that. After a moment, he nodded and quietly thanked me for the coffee before leaving me alone in his study to get ready.

That's... new. Did I say something to upset him? 

I stood there and recalled my actions and words, but nothing stood out to make him upset. Am I overthinking it? Unsure of whatever it was, I chose to excuse it by concluding that his head is still foggy from a lack of sleep. I still feel bad though, he's never reacted like that before- at least not with me.

Pushing that thought to the back of my mind and having nothing else to do, I began to looking around his study, browsing his works as I wait for him to be ready.

Scanning the scattered mess all over his desk, I take a closer look at all his papers ripped from a spiral notebook as well as sticky notes with ideas scribbled all over; a lot of them contain notes about story beats, plot points and lore about his characters. Wanting to help out with organizing a bit, I began gently putting all the papers into organized stacks. However when I picked up one of the pages, I found something I've never seen before underneath: a black leather bound book as well as a scrapbook that was decorated with cute little stickers.

I was about to open them out of curiosity, but before I could even pick up the book, I hear him call out behind me "Ji Young, let's go and get this over with!"

"Coming dad!" I call back to him as I put the paper stack on top of the notebook before leaving the room. I then remind myself to keep note of those two books as we head out the door.

I've never seen that notebook before, does it just have more notes of his story in there?

Maybe I should check it out when I have the chance.