RSL Ch 17

We walked along the path following the tourists and came to a place selling tickets. Since it was nearing closing time, most people were coming down from the ranch. We bought tickets and continued up the path.

The size of the ranch was smaller than I had expected. Sheep were grazing sparsely between the grass. Some of them approached the fence, wetting their bodies against it and approaching people. A man held a baby’s hand and petted a sheep. The sheep and the baby looked at each other curiously.

“How cute.”

There was no subject, whether it was the baby or the sheep. But regardless of what it was, there was no shortage of adding ‘cute,’ so I responded, “Yeah, they are.”

We walked further along the road. Everywhere that was fenced off was packed with tourists, so we kept our distance and walked on the dirt road. It looked like the sun was going to set after another lap. The receding sun was dyeing the sky, and the sheep behind us were crying, as if saying goodbye.

As we were a few hours behind schedule, we quickly entered the highway. After about four hours of driving, we finally returned home and were quite exhausted.

I hadn’t washed properly in two days, so I took a long, hot shower. I got dressed in my room and went out to the living room. Seeing the furniture in place made me feel like I was finally home. I blow-dried my hair and sat down on the couch, my bare feet touching the fluffy carpet. I felt very content to settle in.

Han Jae-yi emerged from the bathroom off the living room. Water dripped from his hair, which was wrapped in a towel around his waist, and he seemed to walk straight into the room. His body still looked strong and healthy.

I went to the kitchen and poured a glass of wine. I filled the clean glass halfway. Pouring alcohol onto my relaxed body from the shower made me feel even better.

“I’ll have some too.”

Han Jae-yi, who I thought had gone to bed, came out of the room again. I took out another glass and handed it to him. The sound of pouring wine was always pleasant to hear. The rich aroma of red wine filled the living room.

“You’ll have to work tomorrow.”

“Yeah. You can rest.”

“Camping was really nice. Even better than I expected.”

“Were your expectations low?”

“It was a 100 out of 1000.”

Han Jae-yi laughed and clinked his glass against mine. Truth be told, anything would have been more than I expected. As long as it was with him.

We quickly finished the wine and got up from the sofa. As he turned his back, saying goodnight and lying down, I suddenly found the courage to speak up.

“Sleeping on the floor must be tough. Sleep in my room, just until you get a bed.”

Han Jae-yi slowly turned around and looked at me, his eyes holding no doubt. A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth and he thanked me. I left the door open for him to enter. A year ago, this favor would have been nothing between us.

I lay down first, turning towards the wall. Perhaps it was the alcohol, I felt like I was about to fall asleep. I heard him entering the room. The scent of the same shampoo filled the air. With an awkward silence prevailing, I had to pretend to sleep. I hoped tonight wouldn’t wake him with nightmares.

In my dream, a sheep cried. The shepherd was already walking down the ridge, followed by thirty-six other sheep. The lost sheep refused to move. I picked it up and ran after the shepherd.

“What is that?”

He asked me, as if seeing something impure.

“It’s a sheep.”

His gaze landed on my arm. I was holding a viper. It bit my neck.

I heard a ringing in my ears. It wasn’t until I woke up from my sleep that I realized it was the sound of a vibrating phone. Han Jae-yi’s phone, which had been on the living room table, was ringing. It must have been 3 a.m.

I tried to escape from the sound without opening my eyes. The persistent ringing of the phone stopped after about twenty attempts. I couldn’t tell if he was awake. I wandered through my dream with my eyes open.

* * *

I woke up to the familiar German language long after morning had passed. It was filled with all sorts of legal jargon, and while I linguistically understood it, I couldn’t grasp its meaning.

Han Jae-yi had already been pacing around the living room, engrossed in a phone conference. By this point, I couldn’t help but wonder if he was actually sleeping at all. It suddenly occurred to me that Han Jae-yi might be using an Android phone, even though I was the one who had dreamt of sheep last night.

I got up and opened the door. He briefly turned his head from the meeting and greeted me with a glance. I decided to make coffee for him. I threw away the cheap tea bags and took out the grinder to grind the coffee beans. I soaked the coffee cup in hot water to adjust the temperature. After pouring the ground coffee through a strainer, I slowly poured hot water over it. The aroma of the coffee wafted through the air.

I handed him the coffee cup as he looked out the balcony. At just the right moment, I heard him say, “I like it.” Of course, it was meant for the person on the other end of the phone call, but since he looked at me and raised his tone, it was also directed at me.

I made another cup of coffee and brought it to my room. I chose and downloaded a book to read on my tablet. Thanks to technology, Han Jae-yi’s father’s study had become obsolete. Now I could easily find books in Korean without having to go there.

When I was deeply immersed in reading, Han Jae-yi knocked on the door. Since he was already inside the room, it was clear that he knocked to get my attention.

“Do you want to eat?”

“Yeah. Shall we go out?”

“I’ll cook.”

I thought about it for a moment. Maybe Han Jae-yi was a good cook; the food I’d eaten at his apartment over the years had been pretty good. Whatever it was, he was clearly better at it than I was.

“Don’t worry, I’ll make goulash.”

Oh my goodness. I missed European food so much. As soon as I heard the menu, I nodded eagerly. He smiled as if he had expected my reaction and headed out the front door. He said he’d go buy the meat. The thought of beef stew with tender meat made my hunger grow.

Han Jae-yi didn’t come home until more than half an hour later. I was excited because he had bought all kinds of vegetables and meat, and none of them looked fresh. I wanted to help, but I was afraid of being too intrusive.

“Could you please move aside a bit?”

After hearing such words, I couldn’t help it. I turned on the TV and watched some shows, and then I lay on the sofa staring at the ceiling. An hour passed as he chopped bell peppers and poured red wine. Finally, he gestured towards me, and I wished I had a tail to wag.

“Is it too bland?”

He dipped his finger into the sauce and fed it to me. I eagerly bit into Han Jae-yi’s finger, which had come in so invitingly. The taste was so delightful that I moaned in pleasure. I sucked on Han Jae-yi’s finger, swirling my tongue around it, until I noticed his bewildered expression and realized what I was doing.

“…It’s delicious.”

His face finally relaxed upon hearing the compliment. Feeling embarrassed, I sat quietly at the dining table, waiting for my punishment. I defended myself that it was just because I was hungry. The kind-hearted lawyer Han Jae-yi served a bowl of goulash and sat across from me. As I held the spoon, the verdict of innocence was pronounced.

* * *

The flight to Paris proceeded without any major events. There was a minor disturbance due to a passenger with the same name, but both were resolved by upgrading them.

The co-pilot who sat with me today was a foreigner. We exchanged opinions about the treatment of pilots in Arab countries, expressing some slight dissatisfaction with the contract terms of our company.

The team that took over the controls later on were both Korean pilots, discussing what to do and see in Paris. There’s plenty to do if you’re staying in Paris. I already had plans made a week ago.

“Maxi, why have you lost so much weight!”

Alain came running out of the cafe with a look of disbelief on his face and hugged me. We kissed lightly on the cheeks, and then he raised his palms in the air once more, asking, “Why have you lost so much weight?” I asked.

“I went to Korea, and I’ve got a lot of stuff to take care of, so I lost a bit of weight.”

“Korea? Suddenly?”

I didn’t have the confidence to explain all this in French, so I had to switch to English halfway through. My French skills were still lacking.

Alain was the owner of the apartment where Han Jae-yi had stayed when he applied for the exchange semester in Paris. He had rented out one of the student apartments his parents had bought, and since I had just finished my first flight training, I ended up staying with them as well, and the three of us became friends.

We got along so well that we spent all our time hanging out. Thanks to us, Han Jae-yi’s grades for the summer semester were a disaster. We had to be grateful that he didn’t get kicked out of school.

Our usual activities as a trio included drinking, reenacting scenes from favorite movies, and other pretentious games. Once a week, we smoked marijuana and walked along the stinky Seine riverbank, or joined protests like the ones against President Sarkozy. We slept in the morning and filled our stomachs with cheap hamburgers at night.

“So, how was Korea?”

“Better than I expected. Oh, Jae-yi sends his regards.”

“I heard that rascal is getting married.”

“Yeah.”

“I can’t believe it’s Giselle Weber. He’s one lucky guy, taking all the luck from the world.”

“She was famous here too?”

“She used to be a model. Quite well-known.”

Giselle used to model. Now she had started her own women’s underwear brand and no longer walked the runway. Even in school, she wore chiffon dresses and walked around in heels. “Beauty” was an understatement for her, and I guess if you said she had an aura, it would suit her. I didn’t know she liked Han Jae-yi.

I thought they were just friends who saw each other at family events because of their parents. Still, the fact that they kept in touch even after graduating meant that one of them was still pulling that string. Honestly, what guy wouldn’t be into her? Alain was right.