Eccedentesiast || Bang Chan

07

"So they're not at home?!" I paced back and forth inside my room talking on the phone with my brother's homeroom teacher.

Apparently my dad us unreachable, my siblings aren't home and now I am worrying like hell that's why I decided to skip all my afternoon classes.

"They're not here... Their shoes aren't here too and their slippers are neatly tucked away... Did they go somewhere?" I could also feel the concern in Mrs Jung's voice. She was a nice old lady and was also my homeroom teacher when I was in sixth grade. She always gave me snacks and lunch when my mother couldn't... She was like family to us.

"Maybe they went to the market? Jihoon knows how to." I added a suggestion. "Should we tell the police?"

My nerves were getting to me and I was becoming anxious as different scenarios popped into my head. I wouldn't be able to sleep until I know they are somewhere safe and sound. "I will call Jihoon's friends for now and ask around the neighborhood... Honey, don't worry too much alright?" Her voice was as smooth as honey and soothing as well. It didn't help ease my worries but at least I knew someone cares.

"Alright, Mrs Jung. I'll try calling dad for now. Call me when you got word." With that, I ended the call which has been going on for at least an hour and a half.

I sat on my bed and repeatedly dialed my dad's and my mom's phone number. I was getting desperate and worried like hell. But even though an hour or more passed, none of them picked up. But instead I was surprised by the sudden doorbell ringing.

As I got closer to the door, I heard the voice of my kind landlady. "So you traveled all the way to Seoul to see your sister?"

The moment I opened it, my smiling landlady as well as two kids stood on my doorway. I felt my knees buckle and lose some strength when relief washed over me. I fell to the floor, my hands trembling way too much.

"Sis!" Jihoon exclaimed, seeing me drop to the floor. He immediately went over to me and helped me up. "Are you okay?!"

My first instinct as their older sister is to envelope them in a hug. So I pulled my two baby siblings while I was on my knees, embracing them tightly. "Oh thank God you're alright!" I felt my eyes well up in tears.

"Oh my, I'll leave you to have your family reunion... I'll come back with some dinner later." My landlady smiled, shutting the door.

Well that was the sweet part of this reunion. What came next was a lot of scolding coming from me. "Why are you here?!" I asked, a frown on my face. "You had me and Mrs Jung worried!"

"We missed you!" My eight year old sister, Jiho said, a grin on her face as she dropped her backpack and her thick jacket on the ground.

"We came to live with you." Jihoon stated.

Well according to my siblings, dad ran away in the guise of doing work far away. Our dad is a construction worker and projects would usually send him to varrying places for indefinite periods of time. I didn't think he's the type to run away but they weren't different.

"He ran away, took half of the money you sent and disappeared... The half of the money you sent wasn't enough and there's nothing left for us back there so we came here!" Jihoon explained while he sat on my bed.

"You... You should have called me." The nerves which were at its peak earlier slowly melted away and I was left with the tiredness and relief of finally seeing my siblings safe. "How did you even get here?!" I asked, finally getting my mind back on track.

"We rode the train for four hours... Then we walked a lot...I heard taxi in Seoul os very expensive, we didn't want to waste the remaining money.." Jihoon explained and I actually felt proud of him for managing himself and our young sister as well as the remaining money they had.

"How are you sure your dad ran away?" We were siblings but we didn't have the same dad. My mom had me with some guy, I don't know and she remarried and had these two... But after she gave birth to Suah, she ran away with a new boyfriend, leaving me and my siblings with my stepdad. It was me and my stepfather who earned money for my siblings. I did every pet time job I could while still in highschool. I halved my paychecks for my siblings and for my college funds... Right after high school graduation, I moved to Seoul and started working in convenience stores and cafes while still on vacation. When college started, I worked less and studied more but the small paychecks I got, I still sent half to them... But who knew he was going to run away with it?

"He left a note... A few weeks ago telling us to live with you. I even asked his buddies where he was, but they said they didn't know." He recalled. Jihoon is mature for his age and I felt guilty he had to take care of our youngest sibling leaving him no time to play with his friends. I also felt sorry he had to worry about not having something to eat for the next weeks to follow. I was like that too. We're just poor kids with unfortunate parents.

"... You will live here with me for the time being until we find either mom or dad." I said. I stood up and took the comforter from the cabinet and lay it flat on the ground beside my bed. "You two can take the bed-" but just as I was saying that, a pair of stomachs growled in hunger. I turned to look at Suah and Jihoon sitting on the floor beside each other. They've become thinner than the last time I saw them.

"Sorry, we haven't been able to eat since yesterday..." Jihoon laughed and Suah followed.

My heart clenched at that. Without much fuss, I stood up to make rice and ramyun for the two.