Fiction Academy: CAS' Never Ending Story 2022

|60| Clandestine in the Woods

Clandestine in the Woods
by Aezelle H. Ulan

The bustling street of Seattle's nightlife somehow eases Jiah's mind from the work duties she had to perform all day.

The flashes of the vehicle lights, and the continuous sea of people wandering around with their business is what she was used to witnessing every single day, and what also calms her anxious mind.

It was also the last day of her work at Seattle Grace Hospital. As she packed her things, she received a message from her lover who had been waiting in the parking lot for several minutes now.

As she was about to leave the place, she was enveloped with loud cheers and cries from her colleagues, saying their gratitude and bidding goodbyes. After that, she left to meet with her husband Jiro, a well-known lawyer in Korea, who filed a vacation leave to help her pack her things as they were about to leave Seattle and stay in Korea for good.

Jiah hugs her husband, and he gives her a chaste kiss on her forehead.

They went to a fine dining restaurant that serves one of the best steaks in the city and eventually went home to pack her remaining stuff before they leave in 3 days.

Before they got married, they had agreed with the same decision of staying in Korea since it was Jiah's native home too, and for them to live together instead of the travels they had to make to pay a visit. She has been transferred to the city hospital in Jeju-do, which is Jiro's hometown. It is a mix of emotions of joy, longings, and nervousness leaving her home for several years of her life and to engage herself again with the place she was born.

After almost 17 hours of the flight, they had safely landed at the Jeju-do airport and were welcomed by Jiro's family.

Aside from that, a loud squeal was heard from a distance, which happened to be from Jiah's close friend, Yumi, who is dressed in black with a mask, glasses, and cap to prevent her from getting attention from random individuals.

They shared their welcoming embrace and decided to eat out before letting the couple go home for a rest.

The first months of their life in Korea were indeed great and refreshing...

Even with their busy schedules, both Jiah and Jiro were able to make time to visit different places on the island. They even had a 3-day vacation, and Jiro brought Jiah to Seoul to visit more different places. They met Yumi in Busan after her concerts.

After that, they went back to Jeju and had to work again to catch up with the days they missed. Both couples were busy and overloaded with work when Jiro approached Jiah to inform her about the changes in his work schedule.

Unfortunately, he had to spend the week in Busan to collaborate with the firm who handled the case of a political individual.

Jiro mentioned that he was recommended by their firm to participate in the controversial case as it will benefit him and their firm's credentials. This makes Jiah downhearted; however, she understands how important this is to her husband, and she also values their career.

After a day of preparation, she sent off her husband to the airport and went to the hospital for work. Despite the busy schedule, Jiro was still able to send messages and update his wife about his whereabouts in Busan. These events went on, and the case took longer than expected, which caused Jiro to only have a day or two to go back to Jeju-do and immediately travel again to Busan for his work.