Sky High

Reverse Enola

Yoon Se Ri

I guessed I finally did something right with my life after a while. My decision to stay with my parents proved to be the change that I needed. After long few months feeling trapped by the painful memory, I felt free to move. To do whatever I wanted to do. It helped when you had every day to yourself and not expected to think about anything else besides yourself.

First order of business once I was back in Hongseong was to delve into my business again. When I was pregnant, well, you knew my story, I could barely move around. I took a step back from my event planner business. Only my assistants taking in home events.

I called them up to open the office and to inform our clients that we'd go back full scale. Given the stellar reputation of my firm, it wasn't strange that we got ourselves clients by the end of the day.

It was an annual charity gala for a hospital in Hongseong and I gladly took it. We had two weeks to prepare for this event. I met with the associate director of the hospital, Dr. Ji Sun Woo, and I had to say I was very impressed and taken with how graceful the host was.

Dr. Ji was about 20 years my senior, very beautiful and very articulate. She told me about the event in general and what message she would want to give out to the attendees. She gave me so much idea to work on, it was a blast.

I'm officially back to work! Got amazing events to plan. I almost texted Jeong Hyeok about this out of reflex. But rolled my eyes upon remembering that he was gone.

Our firm took on a smaller event, too. A family gathering for a tight knit neighborhood. They formerly lived in Ssangmundong, a neighborhood in Seoul before they left their place and moved away. Years later, they gathered again in Hongseong. From what I heard, one of the son of the resident was also in Air Force. Wonder if he knew the Ri brothers. Or Ri family, if you counted my father in law.

So I worked. And worked. And worked some more. More works, more things occupying my mind, I could barely think about anything else. And that was good.

I could distract myself from this feeling of missing someone, even though I couldn't point exactly who I was missing. My heart just continued to constrict without any sign of letting loose. Probably because I worried about the Ri brothers all the time.

It's been two weeks since they flew out for their mission. After saying good bye to my husband, the initial plan was to watch them until they departed. I wanted to see them in their pride and glory, the flight suit, the boots, the helmet, the aviator shades, all of it. I wanted to catch glimpse of them before they went away.

Although Jeong Hyeok and I had said our pieces the night before, I actually wanted to wave him good bye. But he was busy with the pretty doctor. So... I thought I just left. I almost left the airbase and not seeing it through, but I changed my mind at the last minute.

Three months. I wouldn't be able to see their faces for three months. If this was the last time for a long while, then I wanted the chance.

So I stood behind the waiting room door, watching them from afar, their backs moving closer to their jets. My eyes searched for Mu Hyeok as he went straight to his jet. From what he knew, I went home, so no need to wave or something.

He stood before his jet - the first time I saw him with his beloved jet - and looked up and pointed his index finger towards the sky like a prayer then disappeared before my eyes into the cockpit. The last frame of him reminded me so much of the man I loved. Tall, determined, and very sure of himself.

Unlike the version of him I saw the last few months which I realized I helped created. My stubbornness to push him out, to keep everything to myself instead of grieving with him together... I sighed. Although my action was probably justified, I...