Yoon Seri posts an inquiry about the mysterious piano song she heard in Iseltwald on an Internet forum and an anon commenter picks it up.
A Crash Landing on You AU fiction. #serihawky
Illustration by @chummychurri (Twitter)
Cover design by @edelweir...
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November 7, 2020, 8:00 A.M. Naejangsan National Park - Seoraebong Trail
"Good morning, and how are we doing today?"
Truth be told no one was in the right physical, mental and emotional constitution for a mountain hike, save maybe for Alberto. But Seo Dan did not know the word defeat and insisted that they continue what they have already started. Seri was running purely on caffeine but could already see herself knocked out the whole of Sunday. Jeong-hyeok...well nobody knew what the pilot was thinking.
But nature was in itself, restorative. The brilliant sight of fiery maple trees lining both sides of the road to Naejangsan National Park was already worth the journey.
In the minivan, Jeong-hyeok sat on the passenger seat beside Alberto while Seo Dan and Seri remained in their original positions.
In another life, Jeong-hyeok would have been snapping away with his trusted Leica camera, the one his brother bestowed on his 25th birthday but had broken shortly before he left Switzerland. The camera, among his other belongings, was collecting dust in the family home.
They arrived at Naejangsa Temple, which was the gateway to multiple hiking trails. The group headed north.
Jeong-hyeok led the trail with his phone as GPS. Seo Dan took his side by default.
That wasn't the first time he and Seo Dan hiked together, they did this in various countries. They were a pair of quiet travelers, sometimes Seo Dan would point at something remarkable and Jeong-hyeok would smile and acknowledge. Before his brother died, he was a bit more proactive, sometimes even sharing a story or two.
Jeong-hyeok had no stories to tell right then, but apparently Alberto had lots. He was sharing them all with Seri behind them and Seri was even laughing at some...Jeong-hyeok did not find them very funny.
When they reached a grove with dense canopies of red maples, Seri asked to stop so she could take a picture. Alberto readily volunteered to take hers but she refused even as he insisted.
"This is to be our last trip together. Don't you find it a bit sad?"
Jeong-hyeok faced Seo Dan who hadn't spoken a word until then. Her arms were folded, "Surely I can't be the only one mourning this."
"I won't regret a single time we've been together." Jeong-hyeok replied, "They are memorable to me, too."
"In what way?" Seo Dan asked. She never demanded so many answers but now that they were potentially ending their association, she was hungry for them.
Jeong-hyeok sighed, "I can tell you each place we've been to and everything we've done together and they won't be the words you want to hear."
Seo Dan glowered at him, "You could be a little less apathetic."
"I'm never going to stop for photos" Seri muttered at Alberto, "We all need to survive this hike."
