Bamboo Forest Manager

Visitation

A few days later.

The day I promised Yunji had finally arrived.

I had finally removed the cast from my right foot and was free, yet my heart felt no lighter at all.

“Did you come?”

“Yeah, get in quickly.”

It was only Yunji who had a car, so she had come to pick me up. The red sports car, unchanged as ever, felt like an obvious testament to how she saw me, and every time I looked at it, my feelings were complicated.

Anyway.

As I got into the passenger seat and buckled my seatbelt, the car smoothly moved forward.

I was contemplating what to talk about.

Surprisingly, Yunji spoke up first.

“Did you tell the kids?”

Though she said “kids,” it was clear who she was referring to.

“No, I didn’t say anything.”

And I hadn’t mentioned it to anyone else either.

Not just the three of them, but I hadn’t breathed a word to anyone about where I was going with Yunji today.

It seemed like the right thing to do.

For Yoon-ji, it was the thing she wanted to hide the most, and wasn’t it like spreading rumors if I went around talking about it?

And the only person she could trust, even a little, was probably me, which is why she asked me to come along.

“Are you okay?”

Yoon-ji glanced at me.

It was a question about whether the others would dislike knowing that I was out with my ex-girlfriend like this.

They probably wouldn’t be too thrilled about it.

“I’m fine.”

But that didn’t mean they would understand my situation right now.

“I should at least say something.”

“Well, then you’d have to tell me where you’re going and who you’re meeting.”

“…….”

“It’s fine, let’s go. Just focus on what you’re going to say and don’t worry about anything else.”

“Got it.”

After that, there wasn’t much conversation.

I thought about turning on the radio or some music, but Oh Yoon-ji didn’t do that either.

I considered just walking in silence, but I remembered what Choi Yi-seo had said last time, so I brought it up.

“Are you feeling any better?”

“Better? Out of the blue?”

“I heard you were feeling unwell last time. You suddenly seemed dazed.”

“Ah….”

She trailed off.

I could tell she didn’t want to talk about it.

And I understood why.

She probably didn’t want to worry me.

She didn’t want to evoke unnecessary sympathy.

That’s the kind of person I knew Oh Yoon-ji to be.

“Just tell me.”

But I had no intention of simply blocking my eyes and ears out of consideration for her.

I needed to hear what I needed to hear.

“Haah, I’ve had a tendency like that for a long time. It’s like everything goes dark in front of me and my thoughts freeze, as if a switch has been turned off. A bit… it feels like I’m experiencing a blackout.”

“What?!”

I twist my body unconsciously and look at Oh Yoon-ji. I’ve never heard such words from Choi Yi-seo.

“Have you been to the hospital? Who knows about this! No, if you have something like that, you should say it!”

“Don’t make a fuss. I went to the hospital, but they said I’m not physically ill. They think it might be a psychological factor. And no one knows except for you.”

Has she been suffering alone while hiding something like that until now?

My chest tightens for no reason.

A sense of guilt washed over me, realizing that I had become one of the harshnesses that burdened a child who had already endured so much.

“But these days, it’s gotten a bit better.”

“It’s gotten better?”

“Yeah, for a while, someone presumed to be a victim’s family sent letters to the company.”

“……!”

“Seeing those made it a bit worse, and the intervals became shorter. But recently, they stopped sending them. Since I’ve seen less of that, I’m doing somewhat better.”

From noble mtl dot com

“Well, that’s a relief.”

“I’m not sure if it’s a relief or not.”

I was concerned about that person who had suddenly appeared, but if it’s no longer the case, then that’s good.

“Have you had lunch?”

“No, not yet.”

“Let’s eat something since we have to wait a bit.”

“What are we going to eat?”

“Just tell me if you want something while we go.”

Thus began our rather special day.

* * *

In the middle of the city.

A man wearing a hat walks silently between similar buildings, entering a building.

There were no signs, but this was the office building of [Star Studio], run by Oh Yoon-ji and Kim Woon.

In his arms was a letter envelope.

For him, it had become a daily routine to drop it in the mailbox.

But today felt a bit different.

“Excuse me.”

A man, startled by the voice of a woman calling him, lifts his head.

Choi I-seo, dressed in navy athletic wear, glares at him with her arms crossed.

“You’re the one who sends letters every day, right?”

For a while, it had been Choi I-seo herself who had been receiving letters, not Oh Yoon-ji.

In her hands are the resentful letters she had received addressed to Oh Yoon-ji.

“Who are you?”

The man, initially flustered, shoves his hands deep into his pockets and glares back as if questioning her.

“I’m an employee here. And Yoon-ji’s friend.”

“Friend? Ha, damn.”

“Watch your language.”

“What’s so strange about cursing at a damn b*tch? Do you really not know what her father did?”

“I know. But… Yoon-ji has never properly met her father.”

That side is ultimately a victim too.

Thus, Choi I-seo knows she needs to choose her words carefully, softening them as much as possible.

“Who knows that? How much money did that b*tch’s father take? Is this fair? We haven’t been able to sleep properly because of that incident back then. And she’s living large, starting a company like this with that money.”

“Ugh, Yoon-ji hasn’t received anything from her father. She built everything herself.”

“Stop talking nonsense. That b*stard has money stashed away, and the rumors are everywhere, you know? If you search Yoon-ji’s house, that money will definitely come out.”

“I understand that you’re hurting. It’s a sad situation. But you’re blaming the wrong person.”

She knows that no one can stop or dissuade resentment.

But Oh Yoon-ji was a child who had no reason to be the target of that blame.

“I heard that with her pretty face, she managed to catch some chaebol’s son. It’s true that money talks, right?”

“Please, calm down.”

“Enough, you said you were an employee and a friend, right? Enjoy it while it lasts. It’s only until today.”

“Excuse me!”

“Just know that she’s ultimately from the same bloodline as that crazy psycho murderer!”

Desperately, Choi I-seo tried to grab him, but the man had already turned and fled.

“Ha.”

Looking down at the letters in her hands, Choi I-seo let out a sigh.

She thought today would be a chance to talk directly to the person involved, since Yoon-ji had a day off and would leave the letters behind.

But the person in question was still unable to forget her sorrow, not even considering the thought of listening.

In the midst of a complicated situation, Choi I-seon found herself repeatedly haunted by the man’s words from earlier.

‘Until today?’

That phrase lodged uncomfortably in her heart, almost oddly so.

Even if she wanted to find out something, there was nothing she could do.

* * *

“Hmmm, it feels like it’s been ages since I had gukbap.”

Entering the gukbap restaurant, she felt more excited than she expected. The food from her family home was, of course, delicious, but there had been many times she wanted to eat out like this.

Especially since this place was known for its ox head soup, which was also her favorite type of gukbap.

“You still like gukbap, huh?”

“I love rice. Koreans thrive on rice, right?”

“True, I used to love rice.”

As if recalling something, Yoon-ji gently lifted the corners of her mouth and asked.

“Do you remember when we tried making potato rice back then?”

“Oh, the one where we burned everything? Surprisingly, the outside was crispy and tasty. Was it really cooked that way in China?”

“It was soaked in oil, so it was potato oil rice.”

“Right, the next day I bought shaved ice because my stomach felt all weird.”

Surprisingly, there was no resistance in talking about old times.

No, it was even somewhat enjoyable, and it seemed Yoon-ji was having similar thoughts.

As they continued their conversation, the gukbap arrived.

“Is there no chili oil on the side?”

When Yoon-ji cautiously asked, the staff brought over some chili oil.

Then Yoon-ji subtly offered it to me.

“You always put it in without fail.”

“That’s right.”

There was no need to mention that she remembered. She knew it wouldn’t mean anything.

The side dishes were self-served, and they only took the radish kimchi, leaving the napa cabbage kimchi behind.

That was because they preferred to eat only the radish kimchi with their gukbap.

Surprisingly.

‘…….’

In a landscape that hadn’t changed at all from those days.

The spoon paused for a moment.

Watching Yoon-ji eat diligently, I felt an illusion that we had truly returned to that time.

‘The last date…’

The words Yoon-ji had said about today came to mind.

The weight of those words felt strangely heavy, and even though I hadn’t eaten much of the soup, I felt oddly bloated.

After finishing the soup.

We headed to the prison.

As we compared the restaurant we just ate at with the soup place we often visited, time flew by.

In front of the prison.

Yoon-ji, having parked the car in the lot, checked her appearance in a handheld mirror.

Just in case, she gargled, sprayed some perfume, and tidied herself up.

Watching her, I thought she might want to show her father that she was doing well.

After all, he was a father she disliked and resented.

Still, he was her father.

Having felt a similar mixed emotion myself, I kept my mouth shut and waited for her.

After a while.

We entered the visiting room, where we could meet Yoon-ji’s father.