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If Kang Sae-byeok could be anywhere right now, she could be in Jeju island, sipping on a mojito listening to the waves crash unto the shore with a certain girl by her side.
Instead, she has to spend her afternoon following her adoptive father around the marketplace, figuring out what pack of beef to buy for their New Year’s Eve party.
She watches as Sang-woo switches his attention to both packed beef in his hand, obviously confused on which type to choose from. Sae-byeok almost couldn’t stop herself from scoffing in annoyance. She and Gi-hun both knew that the man couldn’t cook for the life of him, resorting to instant ramens or the 5-star restaurants they usually attend to during his turn of cooking dinner. When he finally picked up another brand, she took pity on him and places her forefinger on the beef Gi-hun cooks often.
“This is what you’re looking for,” she says, fond exasperation filling her tone as he puts the rest of the meat down on the shelf.
“I knew that” He lies, though his facial expression shows nothing and his tone is calm Sae-byeok sees through his lies and rolls her eyes, knowing full well he could see it. “I was just making extra precaution” he says
They both wander the marketplace, with Sae-byeok correcting and reminding Sang-woo of all the ingredients he missed,
---
“You remind me so much of Sang-woo when he was younger”, Gi-hun smiles at Sae-byeok. The sun has set hours ago and the sound of the television hums in front of them. Her brother resting his head on her lap as she gently strokes his hair.
“Ah, what an insult” she deadpans, but the sound of the man’s laughter was so bright that she couldn’t help but smile as well. She wonders where the other man is, most likely in his office signing paper works she could never understand.
“I'm not kidding,” Gi-hun says when the laughter died down, “you're both… how shall I say this?”
She waits as he chooses his words, looking at the glass walls of their apartment. Remembering a time when she roamed the streets, and her brother living in a children’s home. She remembers the first time she met Gi-hun. She remembers pickpocketing him out of his money. She remembers seeing him again with his husband in anything but papers, pleading her not to let it out that he was out gambling again, telling her she can forget the stolen money if she does. She did anyway and got him in trouble.
“You're both serious,” Gi-hun starts, and Sae-byeok snaps her head back out of her memories. “And you're both so determined, and so smart. Like, the world could fall apart around you, yet you’ll still stand strong. Holding your hand out towards what you want.”
---
“What do you want?”
“Hm?” Sae-byeok looks down at the groceries, making sure they had everything for tomorrow’s new year’s party. You know, taking extra precautions.
“I mean as a new year’s gift, is there anything you want?”
Sae-byeok pretends to ponder for a moment, “haven’t you already given me a Christmas gift just a few days ago?”
Sang-woo scoffs, fumbling with his phone to call for a ride, “It isn’t like money’s a problem.”
“What if I don’t want anything?”
The man shrugs, putting his phone back into his pocket. “I was just suggesting, your brother gave me a 50 item list. Which included a private plane and an ice cream machine”
Sae-byeok didn’t try to think what he would want a plane for. Instead, she hums,
“What If I want a vacation trip to Jeju island with mojitos in hand?”
Sang-woo turns to look at the younger girl, “How about just mojitos instead?”
A smooth, sleek car slows down in front of them. Sae-byeok reaches for the car handle first and gives the bags of groceries to her, dare she say it, father figure before sitting inside. It was just a few minutes of traveling when Sae-byeok turns to him, “It was Gi-hun who suggested the gift, didn’t he?”
Sang-woo hums but didn’t deny it.
Sae-byeok rests her head on the window.
---
She should have realized earlier that people thought she and Sang-woo were related. Which bothers her more than she admits.
At first it was the waiters in those 5-star restaurants, referring to her as his daughter. She remembers Gi-hun trying to hide his smile. Then it was Sang-woo’s coworkers, asking him how he hid his 19-year-old daughter and asking her questions about following in his footsteps. For that she took each one of their wallets.
Heck, even Ali mistook her for his kid, and he knows he haven’t been with anyone except for Gi-hun.
“Hey, it could be the way you guys look at people with dead, lifeless fisheyes!” ji-yeong laughs next to her on one of their hangouts, away from Gi-hun and her so called ‘dad’
They sat around in a nice, homely café; The air around them smelling like crisp coffee and bread. Despite it’s relaxing ambiance, her irritation causes her a slight headache.
“We aren’t supposed to stay here for long,” Sae-byeok mutters, the look on Ji-yeong’s face makes her backtracks
“I mean, with them.” She explains, and ji-yeong gives an understanding ‘oh’
“The plan always was bring back mom from no- china” her eyes flicker around for anyone listening in and when nothing seems out of the ordinary she continues on, “we weren’t supposed to have any help. I get money, use that money to get mom out of there and that’s it.”
Ji-yeong nods sympathetically, “Hey, I get it. I love my mom too, I don’t know what I’d do without her” she takes a long sip of her coffee, “how is it anyway? Your plan on getting your mom out?”
Sae-byeoks tense shoulders and furrowed eyebrows said it well enough and ji-yeong mentally kicks herself for saying anything.
“you can always ask them, you know?”
Sae-byeok hums, “…who?”
“Them, Mister Gi-hun and Sang-woo”
The other girl shakes her head, there in no way. Not even Gi-hun is compassionate (or dimwitted) enough. It’s too risky.
Ji-yeong smiles sadly, reaching over the table to put her palm on top of the taller girl’s hand,
“You have any other ideas?”
---
“I got one”
Sang-woo turns his head to look at her, raising one eyebrow as if to ask, ‘what?’
“My gift,” she says, “For new year’s?”
Sang-woo nods, “What is it?”
“A knife”
Sang-woo spares a glance at the driver, before moving a bit closer to Sae-byeok.
“A… knife?” Sang-woo says, “Like, the one you had before? When you pickpocketed Gi-hun?”
Sae-byeok nods, “A pocketknife. A sharp one, high quality and useful” she pauses for a second before continuing, “Not those swiss army knives either, but if you buy that too I won’t be mad”
Sang-woo nods, pulling his phone out to most likely write it down in the notes before pausing, he looks at her with a face she knows he uses on Gi-hun when he’s trying to make the other man not make a fool of himself.
“You’re not going to swindle my co-workers again”
Sae-byeok huffs, “Is that all?”
Sang-woo narrows his eyes, “And don’t try stabbing anyone either”
She hums, “You think I do?”
Sang-woo scoffs, “I won’t be surprised”
Sae-byeok grins slyly, she doesn’t stab people per se but that doesn’t mean she doesn’t do other stuff like throw hot water on someone’s face. “What if I stabbed you?”
Sang-woo shakes his head, “You wouldn’t,” he pauses, “Hm, wait no, you probably would.”
Sae-byeok smiles at him, “Would you stab me?”
It isn’t obvious, but she sees the subtle wince on his face as he thinks it over, and she almost feels fond. He shakes his head, firmer and more confident this time.
“Gi-hun would beat the crap out of me if I do”
Sae-byeok outright grins this time.
A nervous cough interrupts their conversation and Sang-woo mentally reminds himself to tip him more than he should. For precaution.
“What if the knife isn’t as high of quality as I like?” Sae-byeok asks, and she briefly wonders if Gi-hun, or her brother Cheol, would approve of her getting another pocketknife,
“Hm, where did you get your old one?”
Sae-byeok looks to her left, it was from a muscular man, with longish hair and a snake tattoo that curls just above his jaw and wraps underneath his ear till it disappears under his hair.
“I stole it,” she says,
Sang-woo gives off an exasperated sigh, and she smirks.
The man told her to give the knife to him, and she does. Watching as he pictures the weapon and hands it back as he waited, Sae-byeok tries not to lean over to see whom he’s sending it to.
“Hm, how about something of this?”
Sang-woo hands his cell to her and she leans over to see a black sleek pocketknife design that looks somewhat similar to hers but better, more improved. She nods in satisfaction.
“If you want there’s a bigger one as well.”
Sae-byeok thought it through. Any bigger and it might be more difficult to hide in her clothes. No, this is perfect.
Sae-byeok shakes her head and Sang-woo nods understandably. Before he could move to put his phone away a message notification popped on his phone. Sae-byeok read it.
“It’s gi-hun,” she clarifies, and Sang-woo nods, a slight smile gracing his features, “He said to buy more chocolate milk because we ran out.”
Another notification popped up,
“And strawberry milk for Cheol”
Sang-woo looks at his phone briefly, before shaking his head fondly and leaning forward to tell the driver to stop to the nearest convenience store. Sae-byeok understands with greatness his exasperated but fond tone.
---
They agreed.
Sae-byeok felt anticipation trace through her lungs, excitement coursing through her like electricity. She tries hard not to let her tears spill.
Not now. Not yet.
She knows he couldn’t have agreed without the help of Gi-hun. And she shows her gratefulness by cooking him breakfast the next day, but for now? She waits.
Instead of spending all her days roaming around places trying to pickpocket people she now spends more time spending it with her friends and brother. Knowing she doesn’t need thousands of won to smuggle her out.
She spends more time with Ji-yeong, even finally asking her out on a date (she said yes!) and spend more of her other time texting with her. She helps Gi-hun with his househusband activities and spent the night watching his favorite drama with Cheol and sometimes even with Sang-woo, who often criticizes the character's choice of action.
She even tries making money the honest way and babysits Ali’s son for him and his wife during their date nights.
“Keep this up and you might decide to go to college!” Gi-hun laughs brightly during their evening dinners. Tonight, he cooked barbeque and dumplings. The smell of them filling Sae-byeok’s lungs with a happy feeling. seeing the people around her now, with their joyful faces makes her feel hope, happiness, something she never felt long term before.
“Stop eating too fast, Cheol” Sang-woo advises, “You’ll get a stomachache,”
Cheol pouts, which looks adorable with his cheeks puffed up with food. Sae-byeok stifles her laughter.
Gi-hun didn’t do the same, laughing freely, throwing his head up slightly as he reach over to pinch the ten-year-old on the cheeks, the kid unsuccessfully slapping him away.
She tries to imagine her mother there, with them. Perhaps during a livelier celebration with Ali and Ji-yeong with their family.
“You never know, maybe I might even work as an intern at his company,” Sae-byeok says with a smirk. Pointing her chopsticks at Sang-woo, who shakes his head in disgust at her manners. “I do need to make money for my family instead of loafing out of you, guys”
“Don’t point with your utensils,” he says “and if you do work as an intern, I won't treat you any different than the others.”
Gi-hun gasps in fake shock, looking at Sae-byeok with a silly mocking expression on his face, “you won’t get special treatment, poor Sae-byeok!”
Sang-woo shakes his head, picking up more dumplings for his plate, “she would have scared them off anyway, maybe even rob them on their way out”
Cheol reaches for the last dumpling, Gi hun picks it up first and lends it to him. “Or she could be as great as you”
His husband glares at him, resisting the urge to point his chopsticks at him, “don’t…”
Gi-hun’s mocking face turns more slightly genuine as if he still sees his husband as someone to be awed over but that still didn’t keep out the teasing out of his breath
“Cho Sang-wo,…”
---
“The pride of Ssangmun-dong, the genius of SNU”
They had just finished paying for the flavored milk and were just walking out the door when two men in business suits approached them, one holding a lit cigarette in his hand and the other holding a bag filled with beer. Sae-byeok watches Sang-woo’s expression. Slight discomfort, mostly annoyance.
Sang-woo unclenches his jaw, “Gentlemen,” he nods to the both of them, though his feet are plastered firmly on the ground, facing away from them and towards their ride home. Sae-byeok thinks about how easy it would be to just ignore them.
“What is Cho Sang-woo doing in a place like this?” One laughed, throwing his hands around himself as his cigarette throws around more dust. “Want to experience what’s it like with low lives like us?”
The other points towards the bag of milk with his free hand,
“Milk? What’s a person like you drinking strawberry milk for?” He snickers and the smell hits them both heavily, they’ve both been drinking. “shouldn’t you drink beer like us real men?”
Smoker grins, side-eyeing Sang-woo like he knew something others don’t. “But he isn’t a real man,” he sneered, “in fact, doesn’t he have another guy in his house right now?”
The both of them tenses, fists tightening as Sae-byeok tries hard not to clobber them where they stand. She knows both aren’t out yet, she knows that it’s difficult for them to be even when half of the world is okay with it, she knows how both would love to see the day where they can publicly call each other theirs. And she wants it too, for the both of them. But Sang-woo puts a calm hand on her shoulder.
No, it isn’t calm. It's trembling.
Sae-byeok turns her head to see Sang-woo angrier than she’s ever seen him. It’s subtle but’s clear.
She must get themselves out of here before a fight breaks out.
She puts her palm on top of his and nods.
“Hey! Why are you leaving?” Yells one man, who? Sae-byeok didn’t know, they both are the same.
“Don’t, friend, we shouldn’t talk to a faggot like him”
Sae-byeok whips herself around faster than Sang-woo could stop her, she grabbed for the man who said the slur and kicked the shin of his other buddy and stomped his upper back when he went down, keeping him stuck in his position. She held his tie with one hand and reached for her pocketknife with the other. Making him see the disgusted face she has for him.
“Hey,” she says, slow and powerful like a jaguar waiting to pounce, “What did you say?”
Both men whimpered, so she ground her feet harder on his back and tightened her hold on the other.
“I said what did you say?”
“Sae-byeok.”’
Sae-byeok turns her head slightly, seeing Sang-woo pat the space next to him in the vehicle. Seeing him now, he looks older than he should, the wrinkles in his face get a little more pronounced, and the exhaustion in his eyes grow more apparent. “Let’s go home”
---
It was late in the afternoon when it happened. Gi-hun talking about how Sang-woo didn’t have to hire a personal driver when he had been a chauffeur for ten years, nor can he only use an app as their choice of transportation.
Sae-byeok agreed, mostly for him to stop talking but also since she doesn’t trust anyone to pick up Cheol from school if it wasn’t Gi-hun or Sang-woo. Speaking of which…
She turns to face the clock, almost 30 minutes for Sang-woo to pick up Cheol from school. What she didn’t expect is Sang-woo himself walking into the kitchen after she thought of it.
“Why are you here? Shouldn’t you pick up Cheol?” Sae-Byeok asks, beating Gi-hun to the punch. Sang-woo glances at her for a second before turning to direct his attention to Gi-hun.
“Can I talk to you for a second?” Sang-woo asks, and the other man nods and gives Sae-byeok a pacifying look and a comforting pat to the shoulder. It does nothing when she knows that there’s something wrong.
“Should I go and pick up him myself?” Asks Sae-Byeok but Sang-woo shook his head.
“Wait here, this… will be quick.”
It wasn’t, whatever they were saying there took 10 minutes as Sae-byeok finishes the dishes herself. 5 minutes of her trying to focus on tv and the remaining 10 minutes talking to Ji-Yeong.
The door of their shared bedroom blasted open and Gi-hun runs towards the front door. “Good luck!” he throws over his shoulder as he rushes to pick up his jacket and shoes. Not a moment later, he was gone.
Sae-byeok keeps her eyes on Sang-woo. Her eyes steel as he slowly walks towards her, he doesn’t look at her face.
“What’s going on?”
The older man pauses, before sighing, “Gi-hun will fetch Cheol from school.”
Sae-byeok resists the urge to slam a plate on his face, “I’m not stupid, Sang-Woo”
Sang-woo’s lips tensed as he clenched his jaw. He looks at the window and Sae-byeok waits.
“You’re- you. I-” Sang-woo starts. But nothing comes out
Sae-byeok waits a little longer.
“She’s gone. She’s… dead”
Sang-woo now looks at her now, staring eye to eye at each other. Sae-byeok rattles her brain to figure out who he’s talking about. Who could be important to her that they-
No.
“She isn’t” Sae-byeok whispers, and for once her strength isn’t there, she could feel her heartbeat in her ears. Could feel her hands grasp around nothing. All her days, her months, her years of wandering the streets of South Korea for her family- her whole family, could taste freedom and-
She’s too late.
…
She’s too late.
“Hypothermia…” Sang-woo says, hands raising briefly, but thought against it as it limps to his side, “It was a power outage. That’s what they told me”
Shit, and what was she doing? While her mother was fighting off the cold harsh climates of her country and she was-
“Right.” She says, pushing off thoughts of crying, denying her feelings of sadness as she stares directly into Sang-woo’s eyes.
“…Right?” he asks, brows raising up to his hairline as he watches her walk around him. “Are you not- are you okay?”
Sae-byeok isn’t okay, she wanted to scream. She wanted to throw her stupid phone into their stupid floor to roof window out of their hundredth story penthouse, she wanted to crash the tv and claw at the sofa until everything looks like what she feels inside- she-
She-
“There’s nothing I can do now,” she says, and she knows she’s right. All she can do is make sure her little brother lives a good life knowing that she failed to keep her promise.
The promise she gave to the both of them.
To herself.
---
“You didn’t have to do that”
Sae-byeok says nothing, leaning her head on the window frame watching buildings go by.
“I’m serious, you didn’t have to”
Sae-byeok turns her head around to face him, “You didn’t have to, I don’t walk around lowering my head to people who call me names, I make them stand by what they say, and I make them regret it.”
Sang-woo clenches his jaw, but relaxes, “I know you want to fight back, but you can’t fight all of them.”
He sighs, “You have to choose your battles sometimes,”
Sae-byeok scoffs, “I do.”
The car slowed to a stop, and Sae-byeok sees the familiar modern house they moved into just a few months ago. It almost looks like it could be featured in a magazine somewhere, and for all that she knows of, it could be.
“Help me get the groceries,” Sang-woo says, and together they were able to make it through in one trip.
Gi-hun opens the door, his smile almost lifting their spirits if only a little.
“I was starting to worry about you two,” He joked, but his tone showed sincerity. “Be quiet, Cheol is sleeping”
They removed their hats and jackets and silently put the groceries away for tomorrow. And despite it, Sae-byeok slept soundly.
---
Sae-byeok sits in the corner, legs tucked underneath her as she hugs herself tight, watching the cars lights below her move around patterns, the people covered head to toe in warm clothing bundling themselves safe from the snow.
It was five days ago when Sang-woo told her the news, three days ago when the air around them grew colder. And when she tucked her brother to bed last night snowflakes fell from the sky so beautifully, and she forgot how harsh the cold could be.
She doesn’t know what to do, Cheol is so angry. For the past week, he refused to go to school, choosing to stay in his room making a ruckus until it looked like a storm hit it. It was only until Sae-byeok convinces him to, he opened the door slightly, but could only allow Sae-byeok and, ironically, Sang-woo inside.
“I think it’s because I told him he thinks I could have changed it,” Gi-hun says one night to Sang-woo. Voice tired and sad.
Sang-woo smiles but there’s nothing there, putting down two cups of coffee in front of him and Gi-hun “Hm, blaming the messenger, I see.” He says, putting his hand on the others and interlocking it. “It isn’t your fault."
Gi-hun says nothing, but his lip trembles. Sae-byeok knows that’s his expression for guilt, he hides it so transparently. Putting his emotions there for the world to see.
She can’t do that.
Right now though, no one is here, the husbands themselves have retired for the night early, which is rare for the businessman but who is Sae-byeok to judge? Not now when it is benefiting for nicely.
She knocks, once then twice then she drums her fingers one by one on the door frame and waits. Tiny sounds of footprints, then the door opens.
“Are you ready?” Sae-byeok asks her hand tightening on her duffel bag. she stares at the younger boy as he says nothing. His face pinches and her heart races. But then he slumps and nods.
“Let’s go,” and she took his hand and they walked through the living room, walked through their perfectly placed shoes right next to each other, and passed through the umbrellas, taking one slowly to not make a ruckus.
She glances back at the house one last time, and to her brother’s face. He still has the same unsure look on his face. And she still feels the tightness of her chest surrounding her heart in a tight embrace not letting go.
Is she doing the right thing?
Sae-byeok pulls open the door, waiting for Cheol to cross the frame but.
“I don’t want to go.”
Sae-byeok looks at him, showing no expression on her face. Her uncertainty dies in her chest and what replaces it is red-fueled anger.
“You want to stay here?” she growls out, and she wasn’t supposed to, she wasn’t supposed to be angry at him. It wasn’t his fault
“I- I don’t-” Cheol stutters out, unknowing what to do, and despite everything she waits. She wants a reason not to go, to stay.
But she knows she can’t. “No, you have no reason. We can’t stay here; we don’t belong here.”
Sae-byeok stops herself from saying more, this isn’t like her, she always was silent, cunning, mysterious. She isn’t supposed to fall apart. She’s supposed to stand strong even when the world around her falls apart.
“We do!” Cheol snaps back, tears falling down his face heavily. His sobs rack his small body, “We were so happy here!”
Sae-byeok goes down on her knees, helping her little brother dry the tears on his face but they didn’t stop coming, she shushes his sobs and cries reminding him of their neighbors.
“I know, but we weren’t supposed to stay for long.” She whispers, putting his face on her hands and wiping away his tears.
“I know… but-” he sniffles eyes blurry and face all covered in snot. It was gross, Sae-byeok thinks, but she still removes her jacket anyway to wipe it all off. “I don’t want to leave.”
The girl pauses, she does that a lot these times. Feeling in her heart that she doesn’t want to leave too. She doesn’t even know where to go if they left. But-
“Arent you angry at me? I promised you I’ll get our mother back for us. I promised we’ll have our family back.”
Cheol says nothing, choosing to grip his hands in Sae-byeok’s. They stay still for a moment until.
“I’m thirsty” mutters Cheol, and Sae-byeok nods,
“Let’s get some water.”
They head back, despite themselves. With Cheol sitting on the stools of the kitchen island and Sae-byeok rummaging around for a glass of water. It’s peaceful, sort of bittersweet, that perhaps this will be the last time they will stay around.
Sae-byeok stares at the glass walls, watching the stars glimmer and twinkle,
“The stars shine brighter than this back in North Korea,” she says, voice solemn and tired. Turning her body around to face the pitch-black sky.
“The lights and pollution are too strong here, back there where there isn’t much electricity you could see almost every star in the sky.” She takes a step forward before thinking better of it. She takes a step back. “It was… pretty.”
Cheol sniffles, trying to hide deeper into Sae-byeok's jacket as he grasps the glass with his hands.
“It was so sad there though,” and she nods remembering how different her life was then and now. Where there was no freedom, there was no sense of hope. She worries every day and every night when the lights go off and adults go their ways without many smiles on their faces. So much it might have gone to their children as well. “So little food and the lights were never on.”
“Are you sad now?” Sae-byeok asks, staring at the younger boy, she turns her body around to face him, “Do you feel, upset? Angry?”
Cheol sniffs, “Yeah,” he wipes his tears and snot away with his sleeve but Sae-byeok moves to clean him with herself. “But I think she is happy for us”
Sae-byeok doesn’t say anything, if she says anything she doesn’t think she can stop herself from crying. “She is?”
Cheol smiles, nodding softly, looking like he’s ready to fall asleep. “yea, you always looked super mad” “And now you’re super happy”
Sae-byeok smiles back, A tear falling down her face silently like she doesn’t know it was there. “I promised I would bring her back”
“I know,” he says, and she doesn’t understand how he could be so calm, how he could fall asleep so easily and not think of what he could have done, not feel the guilt of how she could have been alive. “You also promised you would give us a family.”
“And you did”
---
Their house was decorated beautifully, a bit on the tacky side thanks to Gi-hun and Ji-yeong who arrived way too earlier than she should have, not that Sae-byeok minded.
“Where do you think this goes Mr. Cho?” Says Ji-yeong, and Gi-hun puts his hand in his chin in thought. By his side Sang-woo grimaces, putting his forefinger on the giant “HAPPY NEW YEAR” poster to lower it down
“That-” he says tapping the comedically large poster, “Is not allowed in my house.”
Ji-yeong pouts for a second then grins happily,
“You’re right, I’ll put this outside for the world to see!”
Sang-woo blanches as Gi-hun, the traitor, Throws his head back in a thunderous laugh.
Sae-byeok smiles, heading to the kitchen to check on Cheol and their two grandmothers. She hears Sang-woo’s irritated yell “He’s older than me!” behind her. She Chuckling to herself.
She arrives just in time when Mrs. Seong slaps Cheol’s hand away from the dumpling plate. “You greedy boy, you’re supposed to be helping us, not eating half the dishes on the table!”
Cheol holds his hand close to his chest as if the old woman 7 decades his senior have hurt him. “I did though! Remember! I helped you mix and the ingredients together!” he puts his hands on his hips, “Don’t I get a reward grandma?”
Mrs. Seong looks at Mrs. Cho with an annoyed look on her face, ignoring the way Cheol tugs on her shirt calling her again and again, “I swear, he is worse than Gi-hun was at this age.”
Mrs. Cho smiles, “shush, sometimes I wish Sang-woo kept his childhood wonder sometimes, so serious!”
Sae-byeok quickly stole two dumplings from the tray while they were distracted, holding both in front of Cheol’s face with a large grin before booking it out of there, watching Cheol’s face turn from annoyance from being ignored to outraged shock.
“Grandmas! Grandmas! Sae-byeok, she-!”
Sae-byeok hears the doorbell ring and ran towards it for an excuse not to face her consequences.
She opens the door to find Ali, his wife, and son waiting on the front porch, behind them she sees Gi-hun’s ex-wife and husband with Ga-yeong between them.
“Hello Mr. and Mrs. Abdul, Mr. and Mrs. Lee” she moves to the side, a small smile on her face as she ushers them inside, “Please come in,”
Ali smiles, grinning at her as he passes by, “It’s so nice to see you again Sae-byeok,” he moves to the side beside her for small talk. And for some reason- she’ll blame it on the festive spirits- she doesn’t mind… that much. “How is college?”
Sae-byeok waves her hand, “Ah, you know how it is, papers, grades, all those nice stuff.”
Ali nods understandably, Sae-byeok hands him one of the dumplings which he accepts with thanks,
“How’s your internship at that company you’re working in?” Sae-byeok asks, moving to take them both to the living room where the rest of the people has gone, Sang-woo spoke to both Mr. and Mrs. Lee while Gi-hun attended to his daughter; Ji-Yeong was in the middle of telling Mrs. Abdul one of her stories when she meets Sae-byeok’s eyes and waves. She directs her attention back to her after.
“Ah, it's going well! Better than where I last worked that’s for sure,” He says, plopping himself down “It’s so nice for Sang-woo to invite me as an intern in his company!”
Sae-byeok rolls her eyes, “He can pull a lot of strings, doesn’t he?”
Ali’s eyes turn into crescents, patting his leg twice as he laughs out, “That’s what you expect from the genius of SNU!”
“Everyone! It’s time for dinner!” Mrs. Cho says, patting her hands on Gi-hun’s arm as a thank you for setting the table as she went to move her guests into the dining room.
“Sae-byeok!” Mrs. Seong shout-whispers and the girl turns to find her adoptive grandmother making her disappointed face at her, “Cheol told me you stole two dumplings.”
Ali, who was passing by pales and stares in Sae-byeok in confused shock, as if he was horrified of being an accomplice of a dumpling heist.
“How do you know Cheol wasn’t lying?” Sae-byeok says, face passive. Mrs. Seong taps her feet,
“Because he was tugging my shirt behind me the entire time you were in the kitchen,” she says, her face amused but her tone fond, “to make up for it, you must be the first to give thanks”
The older woman held her wrist and pulls, Sae-byeok follows behind her, “Come on, they’re waiting.”
They both walk into the dining room, the table big enough to hold all the guests as they sat around the rectangle table. Sae-byeok sat herself down across Ji-yeong; the girl grinning when she sees her, pausing her still going on conversation with Mrs. Abdul beside her. On her left was Cheol who talks to Ga-yeong Mrs. Seong takes a seat between them, joining in on their conversation fluently.
On her right was Gi-hun, who smiles warmly at her when she takes her seat, holding her shoulder in assurance as he turns to direct his attention to his husband Sang-woo, who nods to her. She nods back.
“Sae-byeok? Care to do the honors?”
Sae-byeok breathes in, wrapping her hands around Gi-hun’s and Cheol as she gives thanks
“Thank you…”