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# Chapter 52: A Father’s Silence
8:43 PM. Sae-ah was still sitting in front of her suitcase.
Her phone screen kept flickering on and off. Three missed calls from Ha-neul. A KakaoTalk from Do-hyun: “Noona, what are you doing? Academy’s done. What should we eat?” And the most recent one was from her mother. When Sae-ah didn’t answer, a text came through: “I’ll call again at 10 PM. Make sure you eat dinner.”
Sae-ah kept touching and releasing the screen. Her hands were trembling. Like Kang Ri-woo’s. No—it was a different kind of tremor. Ri-woo’s hands trembled from trauma. Sae-ah’s hands trembled from fear.
Her phone rang.
It was Kang Ri-woo. His name appeared on the screen with nothing else. Sae-ah pressed the answer button with a sense of desperation.
“Yeah.”
That was all she could manage. Her voice wouldn’t come. It was as if her throat were locked.
Ri-woo was silent for a few seconds too. In that silence, Sae-ah heard background noise. The sound of a car. Or maybe a building corridor. Sharp footsteps echoed. Ri-woo was moving somewhere.
“I talked to my father.”
Ri-woo’s voice came through. It wasn’t soft like usual. It was tense, as if someone were squeezing his throat.
“Yeah.”
Sae-ah spoke again.
“I’m leaving the company. It’s being announced officially tomorrow morning. I’m signing the contract right now. Right this second.”
Sae-ah couldn’t tell where Ri-woo was. But she could infer it from his voice. A place that was cold, formal, and reeked of legality. The JYA headquarters. Or a lawyer’s office.
“You’re really—”
Sae-ah started speaking but couldn’t finish.
“I know I’m crazy. But there’s something even crazier.”
Ri-woo continued. “The way my father is approaching you has completely changed. At first, he was trying to target you directly. Now he’s taking a different approach. A more dangerous one.”
Sae-ah’s heart dropped. A more dangerous approach. She didn’t know exactly what that phrase meant, but the implication alone was terrifying enough.
“What do you mean?”
“I want to tell you directly, but… it’s risky over the phone. So we’ll do this differently. Go to Jeju. Right now.”
“Right now?”
“Yeah. Go to the airport. I bought you a ticket. In your name. At Incheon. Leave immediately.”
Sae-ah looked at the suitcase on her bed. Half-packed. As if she’d anticipated this would happen.
“What about you?”
“I’ll leave tomorrow morning. Once I finish things with my father.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. Really.”
There was something wavering in Ri-woo’s voice. As if his decision weren’t certain. But Sae-ah knew it wasn’t uncertainty—it was anger. Quiet anger. Controlled anger. That made it even more terrifying.
“What time is the flight?”
“10:20 PM. Incheon to Jeju. I’ll send you the ticket number by text. You have about an hour and a half before check-in, so leave right now.”
“What about Do-hyun?”
Sae-ah asked.
“I looked into it. Do-hyun said he’s doing homework at a friend’s place after academy. So it’s fine if you leave now. I’ll call him. Tell him you’re going to Jeju.”
“What?”
“He’ll find out eventually anyway. Better late than early. And you call Do-hyun later. From Jeju. Tell him everything’s okay. That everything’s fine.”
“Ri-woo, what’s—”
“Don’t ask now. Leave now. Go to Jeju. Wait there until I find you.”
Ri-woo hung up. No goodbye. As if he’d said everything he needed to say and had nothing left.
Sae-ah kept picking up and putting down her phone. Her hands wouldn’t stop trembling.
8:52 PM. Sae-ah started packing frantically. Mindlessly. Automatically. As if someone were controlling her nerves remotely. Clothes, toiletries, charger, ID. She didn’t consider what to take or what to leave. She just grabbed whatever her hands touched.
Jang-pan, her cat, watched her. The cat’s eyes were still very intelligent. As if it knew its owner was making some terrible mistake right now.
“I’m sorry, Pan. I won’t see you tomorrow.”
Sae-ah murmured. She refilled the cat’s food and water. She took out leftover food from the fridge. Enough for the cat to survive a day or two. She hoped the grandmother in the next room would check on Pan. The old woman was kind. Quiet, but quick to act.
9:08 PM. A KakaoTalk came to Sae-ah’s phone. It was from Ri-woo.
“Flight number: KE1847. You can get your boarding pass on your phone. Incheon Airport Terminal 2. Departure: 22:20.”
A few seconds later, another message came.
“I’m sorry. Really. All of this is my fault. Once it’s all over, let’s start again. Properly.”
Sae-ah didn’t reply. She didn’t know what to say. “Don’t be sorry,” “It’s not your fault,” “It’s okay”—all of it felt like lies.
Sae-ah picked up her suitcase. It was heavier than expected. But that heaviness felt real. Like proof that her decision actually existed.
9:23 PM. Sae-ah left her goshiwon.
The nighttime streets of Hapjeong-dong were quiet. During the day, they were busy, but at night they felt like a different world. Only a few people walked around, and the convenience store lights became the only illumination. Sae-ah walked avoiding those lights.
She went out to a main road to catch a taxi. It was past 9:30 PM, but there were plenty of taxis. Seoul was a city that woke up at night.
“Incheon Airport Terminal 2.”
Sae-ah told the taxi driver. He didn’t ask anything. He just nodded and pulled away.
The drive to Incheon Airport was long. They crossed the Han River following the overpass. The Han River at night was completely different from the Han River in the day. Nothing was visible. Just a black surface. Like a giant mouth. Sae-ah felt afraid it would swallow her.
10:05 PM. The taxi arrived at Incheon Airport.
Sae-ah paid the fare. She grabbed her suitcase and walked into the terminal. It was past 10 PM, but the airport was still crowded. Business travelers, tourists, people seeing others off. Everyone was moving toward their destination.
Sae-ah stood in front of an electronic kiosk. Just like Ri-woo said, she could get her boarding pass on her phone. KE1847. Incheon to Jeju. Departure 22:20.
The check-in counter wasn’t busy. Sae-ah checked in her luggage. The process was mechanical. Present passport, load luggage, receive boarding pass. Everything was already predetermined.
After passing security, Sae-ah entered the departure lounge.
Gate B23. That’s where she needed to be. She still had thirty minutes. Sae-ah sat down. People around her were on their phones, reading newspapers, or sleeping. Only Sae-ah did nothing. Just sat there. As if only her body was here and her soul had flown somewhere else.
10:18 PM. Sae-ah’s phone rang.
It was Do-hyun. Sae-ah answered.
“Noona?”
Do-hyun’s voice was confused. “Hyung called. He said you’re going to Jeju? Is something wrong?”
Sae-ah didn’t answer. She didn’t know what to say.
“Noona, what’s going on? Really. Your voice sounds weird.”
“I’m fine. Really. Mom asked me to come to Jeju. So I’m going.”
It was a lie. But it didn’t sound like a lie. Because Mom really had asked her to come to Jeju. Only the reason was different.
“How long will you be gone?”
“About three days? Maybe a week?”
Sae-ah didn’t know exactly. Ri-woo said “until I find you,” but she had no idea how long that would take.
“What about school?”
“I’m skipping.”
“What? You can do that?”
“Yeah. It’s fine.”
Do-hyun was quiet. Then, a few seconds later, he spoke.
“Noona, are you really okay? Hyung sounded weird too. His voice was shaking.”
“Yeah. I’m really okay. You go home after academy. Get food from the convenience store. And call Mom tomorrow morning.”
“What do I tell her?”
“Just tell her I went to Jeju. Mom probably already knows.”
Another lie. Mother wouldn’t know. But Sae-ah wanted to believe she would. Somehow.
After the call ended, Sae-ah put down her phone.
10:47 PM. Boarding time was approaching.
Sae-ah headed toward the gate. The line wasn’t long. Sae-ah presented her boarding pass. It was scanned. She walked down the jet bridge.
The cabin was bright. Fluorescent lights illuminated everything. Like the convenience store lights Ri-woo had mentioned. Sae-ah found her seat. A window seat. She could see out the window.
Outside the window was only black night sky. No stars were visible. Whether because of clouds or the airport lights, Sae-ah couldn’t tell.
10:52 PM. The plane door closed.
Flight attendants explained safety procedures. Sae-ah didn’t listen. It was as if her ears had closed too.
11:03 PM. The plane moved toward the runway.
And at 11:21 PM. The plane took off.
Sae-ah looked out the window. Seoul was getting smaller. Lights scattered like dots. As if someone had turned them on and was waiting. But Sae-ah knew those lights weren’t for her. They were for someone else.
Seoul grew more distant. And finally, only black night sky remained.
The cabin lights eventually went off. It was time to dim the lighting. Everyone started closing their eyes in their seats. But Sae-ah kept her eyes open. Just watching the black sky outside the window.
Alone in the black sky.
The plane arrived over Jeju in the middle of the night. The exact time was 12:47 AM.
Sae-ah was still looking out the window. Now instead of black sky, lights appeared. Jeju’s lights. Unfamiliar, bittersweet, and somehow feeling like home.
The plane descended slowly. The impact of landing. That impact shook Sae-ah’s body. As if signaling that she’d finally returned to reality.
Sae-ah collected her luggage. She walked out of the airport.
The night air of Jeju hit her face. It was warm. A different kind of warmth from Seoul’s air. There was a salt smell mixed in. The smell of the beach. The smell of her mother.
Sae-ah turned on her phone.
There was a message from Ri-woo. The time was 12:32 AM. Probably sent just before the plane landed.
“Did you arrive in Jeju? Exit through the airport exit. There will be a red car out front. A driver will be waiting for you. Follow him. I can’t tell you the address. Not yet. For safety.”
And below that, another message.
“My father will try to find you. Don’t give him any information. Understand?”
Sae-ah read that message. Read it again and again. As if the sentences might change meaning.
Sae-ah walked out through the airport exit.
It was the middle of the night, but the area in front of the airport was still crowded with people. Taxi drivers, people waiting for taxis, travelers with luggage. Sae-ah looked for the red car among them.
There was a red car. And beside it stood a middle-aged man. He had the expression of someone waiting for something.
Sae-ah approached him.
“Na Sae-ah?”
The man asked.
Sae-ah nodded.
“Let’s go. It will take some time.”
The man said. He took her suitcase and put it in the trunk.
Sae-ah got in the car. In the back seat. There was only the driver in the front. Ri-woo wasn’t there.
The car pulled away. Following Jeju’s night roads. Toward its destination.
Sae-ah looked out the window. Jeju’s lights were passing by. As if the world was moving, not her.
And Sae-ah thought.
What happens now. Where is Ri-woo. What will Ri-woo’s father do. And me.
Sae-ah raised her hand. It was trembling.
Like Ri-woo’s hands.