Home Is You [Ryeji]

CH. 7

The trip to the airport was a short one, thanks to Yeji's genius idea of beating rush hour traffic, and the girls passed through the ever glamorous Ronald Reagan National Airport security with ease, checking their bags as they made their way to the terminal with time to kill.

"Aren't Jisu and Chaeryeong supposed to be here by now?" Ryujin asked, frowning as she and Yeji took seats at the largely empty terminal seating area.

Voices and alerts filled the speakers above every now and then, and endless hordes of people would pass by, but none of them gave any hint to Jisu or Chaeryeong's presence.

"No." Yeji glanced at her watch. "We're early by an hour and a half."

Ryujin's eyes widened as she buried her head in her hands. "Oh my god, traveling with you is so over the top."

Yeji narrowed her eyes. "Punctuality is a key to business success."

"I guess this is a business transaction for you." Ryujin grumbled. Yeji opened her mouth to protest, paused, and then went on once more. "Ryujin, no- That's not what I meant."

Ryujin glanced up, gaze unreadable. "No, it's fine. Really." She shrugged, reaching for a magazine she'd yanked off a stand.

Yeji knew she'd screwed up there, so she scrunched her face in thought of how to repair it.

"Do you want something to eat?" She offered quietly. "Nope." Ryujin's response was bored as she turned the pages absently.

"I can get you some chocolate?" Yeji offered again.

"Pass, thanks." Ryujin's response was, yet again, dry.

"We could go over some more questions?" Yeji tried.

"I think we're pretty solid." Ryujin shrugged, standing. "I think I'm going to go buy some water."

Yeji frowned. She'd had water up until they made her dump it at the security check. "I'll come."

"No, you watch your laptop and the other stuff." Ryujin decided, her voice even. "I'll be back."

Yeji bit her lip, watching Ryujin leave.

Had she done something wrong? It was a business transaction after all, wasn't it?

Yeji watched a few planes roll by outside the grand window before her, wishing she'd thought of a better way to verbalize it. She hadn't meant it that way. Ryujin was just teasing her and she'd gone and made it a serious ordeal again.

Dammit, Yeji.

No one wanted to be with someone so unpleasantly cold, and calculating.

The person she'd become to succeed.

This was why she didn't do relationships, fake or real.

She simply wasn't cut from the same cloth as Shin Ryujin.

Yeji eyed the clock, leaning back into her chair with a sigh, as she knew her best friend would likely drag it out and take a lot longer than the five minutes she needed to get water.

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"Yej." Jisu, clad in sweats and a tight sweater, touched her shoulder, causing her to nearly jump out of her seat. Yeji glanced up from all the business emails she'd been reading off her phone.

How long had it been since Ryujin left?

She glanced at her phone once more, this time, eyes flying to the digital clock.

Half an hour.

Ryujin had been gone for half an hour, and Yeji had buried herself into her work affairs, as usual.