Chapter 15 – The Stars Seen from the Lighthouse

News about Ryu-il came only a few days after she saw Lee Min-hee’s SNS. She had just finished tutoring and returned home after receiving a text from her mother telling her to come quickly. Her mother hesitated, then handed her a small shopping bag.

“Um, Hee-won…”

She blinked and took the shopping bag from her mother. Inside the luxurious bag was a wrapped box.

“This arrived at Ryu Gil-jae this morning, and Mr. Choi received it. It’s for Young Master Ryu-il, so could you deliver it to him?”

“…Huh?”

Her dazed face made her mother look away, embarrassed.

“You know Young Master Ryu-il is away on a business trip in the provinces. He won’t get it for a while, but what if it’s urgent…”

She bit her lower lip in silence.

It was a flimsy excuse. Whatever was in the shopping bag, if it were truly urgent, they would have sent it by courier. Or a staff member involved in company affairs would have handled it.

For her, just a housekeeper’s daughter, to take a train and deliver it was absurd. At the same time, it was obvious this present wasn’t urgent at all, which was why her mother could ask her to do it.

It was simply a way to create an excuse for her and Ryu-il to be together, since there were no other chances. And she was the one who had to explain the excuse to Ryu-il.

“…It’s a shame.”

Her mother spoke quietly, looking at her.

“It’s not like you never got started at all. You’ve come this far…”

Yes, she’d come this far. She nodded silently.

What hurt the most was that, even now, the thought of going to the provinces to see him made her excited.

Only then did she realize she wanted to see him. She’d suppressed it, but she missed him. She wanted to be held by him again, to feel his warm touch. She wanted to hear his low voice say ‘Hee-won’ just once more. Even though those memories kept hurting her, she still felt that way.

“Here…”

Her mother carefully handed her a note with an address. It was a small hotel in the provinces, three hours from Seoul by KTX.

She resented her mother for pushing her with such a flimsy excuse, but she also resented her own helpless heart. She took the note, shoulders slumping. She felt like an old scientist who, knowing his eyesight was failing, still stood before the telescope, unable to help but want to see something beautiful.

***

That night, when she finally met him at the P Hotel, she felt like she could just die.

She told the front desk she was from Ryu Gil-jae and needed to deliver something to Senior Executive Director Ryu-il, so the hotelier called Ryu-il and personally escorted her. It wasn’t a huge hotel, being somewhat remote, but it was nice enough for Ryu-il to stay there, so everything was luxurious. The hotelier pressed the button for the highest floor in the elevator, and she suddenly remembered Se-hee’s words.

“Teacher, don’t you like looking at tall, cool things?”

Ryu-il was the kind of man who naturally belonged at the highest place in any hotel, while she had never even set foot in a hotel before. She felt intimidated by the hotelier’s high heels and neat clothes. She followed her like a criminal, waiting for her to knock, and Ryu-il opened the door.

His hair was wet, as if he’d just showered, and he wore comfortable clothes. He looked at her quietly, without greeting her. His gaze was cold, as if to ask what she was doing here. It must have seemed ridiculous and unpleasant to him. Suppressing all her thoughts, she spoke, lips trembling.

“A package arrived at Ryu Gil-jae for you, Senior Executive Director…”

Even as she said it, she knew it was a laughable, pathetic excuse. She was embarrassed by the hotelier holding the door, her ears burning.

“My mom sent me, just in case it was urgent…”

She thought it might hurt but also be easier if he just told her to hand it over and leave for Seoul. But after quietly looking at her, Ryu-il let out a faint sigh and said something unexpected.

“Dinner.”

“Excuse me?”

“Did you eat dinner?”

“Ah…”

She hesitated, and Ryu-il clicked his tongue knowingly. Then he addressed the hotelier.

“You have room service, right? Send up something hot with broth, as soon as possible.”

“Yes, Sir.”

“You, come in.”

The hotelier kept smiling politely and even closed the door for her. She gripped her backpack tightly and carefully entered the room.

The stunning view from the windows, the luxurious furniture, and the spacious room—all were too nice. She felt like the only thing that didn’t belong. She opened her backpack and pulled out the shopping bag.

“This is it. It arrived at Ryu Gil-jae today.”

Ryu-il didn’t seem interested in the shopping bag. He was busy at his laptop, sitting at his desk. Embarrassed, she placed the shopping bag on the corner of his desk. He ignored the bag, but glanced into her backpack.

“What’s in there?”

“Ah… My textbooks.”

She was embarrassed by her old backpack and quickly zipped it up.

“I brought them to read on the train…”

She was still tutoring, and it was her graduation semester, so she never had enough time to study. An awkward silence fell until there was a knock.

Room service had arrived. Ryu-il’s request for “as soon as possible” had worked; it was incredibly fast.

“Eat.”

The hotelier even set the meal on the table. Clear beef soup, glossy white rice, and neat side dishes were presented in white ceramic bowls. It looked like something from Ryu Gil-jae’s kitchen. She’d always watched such food being served, but never eaten it herself. Hesitating, she picked up her spoon, and Ryu-il frowned.

“You used to refuse to eat without hot soup.”

“Ah…”

She smiled slightly. As a child, she really was like that. She’d always complained that rice was too dry without soup. Her mother would call her fussy, but always brought plenty of soup from the kitchen. She was surprised and happy that Ryu-il remembered those days.

“I still like soup and stews. Thank you for the meal.”

Surprisingly, seeing the clear beef soup made her hungry. It was the first time in a long while she’d felt hungry. While he sat at his desk, focused on his laptop, she ate the side dishes one by one. As she put down her last spoonful, his voice pierced her ear.

“If you’re done, wash up.”

“Excuse me?”

“Didn’t you come here to sleep with me?”

The food that had warmed her stomach suddenly felt like it was coming back up. She couldn’t say anything, just breathed heavily, and he spoke coldly.

“If not, go back.”

The shopping bag she’d brought was still unopened. Ryu-il didn’t seem to care about it at all. At this point, she felt she should be grateful just to have been fed.

In the end, she hesitantly walked toward the bathroom. She couldn’t tell if it was good or bad that Ryu-il’s indifferent gaze didn’t follow her all the way.

The bathroom was bigger than her entire house. Ryu-il had clearly just showered, but there were new toothbrush sets, a fresh robe, and neatly folded towels. Looking at herself in the mirror, she let out a hollow laugh. After tutoring in Seoul and stopping by home before taking the train, she looked a mess.

She undressed, thinking she really looked like someone who just needed a meal. But seeing the large bathtub, her eyes lit up. If she filled it with water, she could finally take a bath—her house didn’t have a bathtub.

Just five more minutes, five more. She ended up soaking for too long. Worried he’d think she was indulging herself, she hurriedly finished and put on the robe. No matter how tightly she wrapped it, it looked lacking, but her pajamas were in her backpack. She was so flustered, she hadn’t even thought to bring her underwear and pajamas into the bathroom. Taking a deep breath, she resolutely opened the bathroom door.

The table had been tidied up. Ryu-il obviously hadn’t done it himself; he’d called someone. She blushed, wondering what they’d think of her showering while they cleaned. It even affected Ryu-il’s reputation, but he really didn’t seem to care.

There were two wine glasses on the table. Ryu-il was still focused on his laptop, and spoke indifferently.

“Drink if you want.”

“Ah… Yes. What about you, Senior Executive Director?”

“I don’t really like alcohol.”

She didn’t really like alcohol either, but with nothing else to do, she took a sip of wine. She didn’t know if it was good or bad, but since it was prepared for Ryu-il, it must be good. She finished the glass, rolled her eyes, and spoke cautiously.

“I’m sorry for disturbing you when you’re busy.”

“You are disturbing me.”

Ryu-il clicked his mouse irritably.

“I’m busy.”

“…Sorry… But about the package…”

“If you’re curious, open it yourself. I don’t know what it is.”

“Is it okay for me to open it? What if it’s confidential or important?”

“If it was, whoever sent it to Ryu Gil-jae is crazy.”

With no hesitation in his answer, she quickly walked to the desk. She carefully took out the box from the shopping bag. Ryu-il, now closer, was still focused on his laptop. She glanced at him, then unwrapped the package.

A card fell out with a soft thud. Her heart dropped with it.

[Lee Min-hee]