Chapter 1 (2/2)

Minutes after leaving the airport building an oriental woman appeared in the front lobby. Among the many tourists pouring in the front of the gate, the oriental woman visibly stood out. Her porcelain white skin gave off the feeling of coolness. She wore a long skirt that reached below her knees, pale red cardigan, and a rose colored suitcase. She looked like a tourist but she did not look like everyone else. She walked out of the premise, pulled out her phone to call someone. The oriental woman looked up and saw the taxi sign hanging overhead. She began to walk towards the sign, dragging the suitcase with her.

“Dad? Yes, I just arrived at the airport…”

“Ouch!”

“….”

The woman turned her head and saw a man looking down at her. She opened her eyes wide, looking up at the man and the suitcase she was dragging. It seemed that as she turned her body to change direction, proceeding towards the sign, the wheels pa.s.sed over the man’s foot. Facing each other face to face, the eyebrows of the man, his face covered with sungla.s.ses, were collected in the middle.

“Sorry…” She leaned towards the him, head bowed slightly and spoke in j.a.panese. The man’s thick eyebrows rose up in curiosity.

“Are you j.a.panese?”

When fluent j.a.panese flowed out from his mouth, the woman shook her head.

“No, sorry.”

She apologized once more and started to walk down the streets opposite of his destination. As Ryu Hwan watched her walk away, he stroked off his sungla.s.ses and gazed at her features. Although unsure, he seemed to have heard her speak Korean in close proximity.

“Her back resembles Jae Hee…”

Ryu Hwan watched her figure disappear until it could no be longer seen. He laughed bitterly and began to walk the opposite side.

Ryu Hwan checked into a hotel. It was plain and lacking in decorum, moreover, the room was small but regardless, it had a bed and bathroom for his basic necessities.

Ryu Hwan took a cold shower, cleaning of the dirt collected throughout the day. Thereafter, he laid on the bed and found himself unable to sleep as his body had yet to adjust to the timezone.

He turned on his phone and entered Hanul’s fan site. Articles after articles of Jae Hee and Hanul poured out endlessly. Photos of the recent articles showed two figures departing from the airport. Jae Hee was wearing rimless sungla.s.ses and one would find great difficulty attempting to figure out the expression she wore. She held her hands close as if afraid to lose it.

“This guy Hanul, I don’t like him.”

Looking at the photos of Jae Hee, he thought of the porcelain skinned woman he saw at the airport. Her back resembled Jae Hee. He burst into laughter recalling the woman who wanted nothing more than to flee from his sights.

“Sorry.”

Although short, her voice held a pure tone. Ryu Hwan dropped his phone to the side and closed his eyes, his mind vaguely recalling the woman from the airport and slept peacefully for the first time after being discharged from the military.

The next morning he arrived at the train station and rode the train for four straight hours before arriving in Venice, the small city water. Thinking he would be able to find Jae Hee by visiting famous landmarks and famous places, his countenance became a lot better. Ryu Hwan walked the streets of Venice at a snail’s pace, unlike a hunter who came to catch his prey.

In a city surrounded by gorges of water, the landscape looked like a pretty postcard. Ryu Hwan looked like a lost puppy with an interesting facial expression. The streets were filled with people donned in medieval clothing and masks on their faces. It was one of Venice’s biggest festivals held for a week each year.

Ryu Hwan walked in front of the shop in the alley and saw diverse sets of masks with vivid colorful decorations on display. He entered the shop with an appealing idea emerging from his mind. He would disguise himself so Jae Hee would be unable to recognize him.

Moments later, Ryu Hwan walked out with a golden mask covering half of his face. Now his mission to look for Jae Hee began.

“To San Marco Square.”

He stepped forward vigorously, crying out loud. San Marco Square, a landmark most visited by tourists when visiting Venice was his first destination. Ryu Hwan who was on a water bus heading to San Marco Square, slipped his head out, enjoying the cool breeze and admiring the old fas.h.i.+oned landscapes.

Venice, the city of water resulted in Ryu Hwan’s heartbeat rising exponentially. For the first time, he felt a pang of regret not being able to share his experiences with.

“That’s the bridge Casanova and Galileo crossed.”

After a while, Ryu Hwan arrived at San Marco Square, stepped off the water boat and looked back at The Bridge of Sighs. Prisoners who crossed The Bridge of Sighs to be imprisoned would have been craving of freedom through the small windows.

Looking back at The Bridge of Sighs, Ryu Hwan remembered the old saying “the bridge is not coming back” in the Joint Security Area (JSA) in Korea. Perhaps it would have been similar to not being able to come back once crossing it. The word Korean War, armistice, and division of labor were words the younger generation lack the ability to comprehend and sympathize with.

Little gondolas were pa.s.sing under the bridge. Ryu Hwan looked at the gondolas flowing between his eyes. Suddenly, his eyes, gazing into the sights, peered back at the gondolas. His eyes shone brightly.

“Hahaha! I found you! Did you think I would not be able to find you by refusing to answer the phone? Huh?”

Ryu Hwan wrapped his arm around the woman’s neck tightly. He smiled happily and whispered in a low voice as if threatening her. Caught in the joy of finding her, he did not notice the absence of Hanul whom she was always near with. She, who was caught in his arms attempted to pull herself out of his bosom.

“Funny, what are you doing?”

She continued to untie herself from him. Ryu Hwan’s mood grew sour seeing his sister continuing to rebel so adamantly. Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain on the side of his ribs.

“Ouch! Hey!”

Ryu Hwan grimaced in pain.

“Hey, you…”

The woman, out of Ryu Hwan’s bosom, quickly turned around and glared at him with a blazing eye. Although he was unable to see her face due to the mask covering her features; but one thing was for certain, this woman was not Jae Hee.

“d.a.m.n it.”

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