Episode 55. In the Name of Sisters (2)
It had been three months since Kang Yebin moved to the United States.
For the first month, the fact that Kang Yebin wasn’t at home… no, wasn’t in Seoul, didn’t really sink in for the family.
But as days turned into two, and two turned into four, time flowed on, and Kang Yebin’s absence began to be felt more and more profoundly.
From Kang Dae-oh’s perspective, it seemed especially the children among the family felt this fact more strongly.
Kang Yeyoung, who had returned to the living room after finishing video editing in her room, lay sprawled on the sofa and spoke.
“It’s boring without my second unnie.”
Kang Dae-oh, who was pre-tasting a new coffee soon to be released by Amare, chuckled softly upon hearing Kang Yeyoung’s words.
At her appa’s reaction, Kang Yeyoung tilted her head.
“Why, appa?”
She wondered why Kang Dae-oh was suddenly laughing.
Even though she hadn’t said anything particularly funny.
Kang Dae-oh put down his cup for a moment and clarified what Kang Yeyoung was curious about.
“Your unnie said the exact same thing earlier.”
“Yera unnie?”
“Yeah.”
Every time he saw these scenes, Kang Dae-oh thought.
Sisters are indeed sisters.
Kang Yebin was known among the sisters for being the quietest and lacking in reactions.
Of course, it might just seem that way relatively because Kang Yera and Kang Yeyoung are exceptionally high-strung.
If not in front of the camera, Kang Yebin had mostly been quiet since she was little.
So Kang Dae-oh even found it strange.
“I thought you said it was boring when you were alone with Yebin.”
Now that she was looking for Kang Yebin, Kang Dae-oh wondered if his second daughter had some hidden charm he didn’t know about.
Then Kang Yeyoung spoke about Kang Yebin.
“Yebin unnie isn’t as talkative as Yera unnie, but she listens well to what others say. Yera unnie and I, when we’re together, we’re busy telling our own stories. But Yebin unnie listens to everything.”
“Indeed. Yebin does have that side to her.”
Perhaps that’s why.
Since childhood, Kang Yebin had often been told by her friends and their parents that she was very mature.
In fact, she was often told she was more mature than her older sister, Kang Yera.
Sometimes it was confusing who the older sister was.
Just as Kang Yeyoung and Kang Dae-oh were deep in conversation, Kang Yera, who had briefly left, reappeared in the living room.
As soon as she saw Kang Yeyoung, she spoke with an expression that implied perfect timing.
“Are you busy tomorrow?”
“Me?”
“Yeah. You know that Chinese restaurant we said we’d go to last time? I was thinking of going there.”
“I have a shoot tomorrow.”
“Ah, why!”
“Why? It was scheduled a month ago, so I can’t help it.”
“Tsk. If it were Yebin, even if she had a schedule, she’d have tried to work around it and suggested we go for dinner or lunch.”
“That’s Yebin unnie’s story. I’m Kang Yeyoung, your younger sister.”
Watching this, Kang Dae-oh couldn’t help but think that Kang Yebin really listened well to her older and younger sisters.
“Now that I think about it, I met Jiyoon at a cafe.”
“Jiyoon unnie?”
“Yeah. You know who she is, right?”
Kang Dae-oh asked his two daughters about Yang Jiyoon, just in case.
Both Kang Yera and Kang Yeyoung nodded.
“Of course we know her.”
“She’s Yebin unnie’s first friend, after all.”
The shy girl, Yang Jiyoon, had maintained her irreplaceable friendship with Kang Yebin until recently, strengthening their bond.
“She said she’s going to study abroad in the US next month, and that it’s good timing because Yebin is already there.”
“Appa, how did you get in touch with Jiyoon unnie?”
“I met her by chance at a cafe. I thought I saw someone familiar sitting there… and it turned out to be Jiyoon. It’s been almost… five years since we last met, I think.”
Despite that, Yang Jiyoon still seemed unchanged.
Her personality had changed a lot. She wasn’t the kindergartner who always hid behind Kang Yebin when they were little.
As she went through middle and high school, her personality gradually became more outgoing, so Kang Dae-oh felt a little disoriented when he first met Yang Jiyoon again.
Even though her personality had changed, her being Kang Yebin’s irreplaceable friend remained the same.
Kang Yeyoung said, as if relieved.
“That’s good. Yebin unnie must have been really bored.”
However, Kang Yera asserted that her thoughts differed from Kang Yeyoung’s.
“Well, I don’t know. I’ve never seen her say she’s bored.”
“Now that you mention it, I haven’t seen Yebin unnie fussing about being bored like us.”
“That’s what I said. She’s a kid who doesn’t feel emotions like ‘bored’ or ‘lonely.’ Even if she’s alone, I don’t think she’d feel particularly bored.”
“Really? What do you think, appa?”
The direction of the conversation suddenly shifted towards Kang Dae-oh.
Kang Dae-oh, who had been deep in thought for a moment, offered an opinion contrary to Kang Yera’s.
“Yebin is human too. Won’t she get bored if she’s alone in a foreign country?”
Whose words were right?
Only Kang Yebin herself would know that.
After a long period of filming, Kang Yebin, who finally had a day off, muttered to herself as soon as she returned to her accommodation.
“I’m bored.”
It was the first word that announced Kang Dae-oh’s victory in the bet with his daughters.
However, Kang Yebin had no idea at the time that her family in Korea was talking about her.
Right now, Kang Yebin was simply tired, and bored. These thoughts were just complexly filling her mind.
That’s when it happened.
A light briefly flashed on her smartphone screen.
Confirming that a text message had arrived, Kang Yebin lifted her heavy hand to check her smartphone.
“…Jiyoon must have arrived in the US.”
She had received a call from Yang Jiyoon a while ago.
That she would also be coming to the US soon.
However, due to the considerable distance from the city where Kang Yebin was currently staying, they couldn’t see each other as often as they did when they were in Korea.
They could only meet if one of them picked a day and traveled to the other’s area.
Kang Yebin suddenly made up her mind.
Anyway, she had no filming for 5 days.
She called Yang Jiyoon.
―Hello?
“Are you at the airport now?”
―Yeah. I’m about to take a taxi to a relative’s house I know. Why?
“Could I possibly stay there with you for a few days?”
―At my relative’s house?
“Yeah. If it’s not a bother.”
Yang Jiyoon chuckled and said.
―It’s fine. My imo has often said she’s your fan and really wants to see you. If you come and stay, she’ll be thrilled! But are you really coming all the way here?
“Anyway, I have nothing to do.”
As soon as she finished speaking, laughter spilled from Yang Jiyoon’s lips.
―You must really be bored, huh?
“How did you know?”
―Because it feels like this is the first time I’ve heard you say you have nothing to do. When you had free time, you used to study acting by watching movies or dramas, or do script readings, right?
Kang Yebin, who usually invested her spare time in self-care or honing her acting skills.
But now, perhaps due to being too bored, she couldn’t bring herself to allocate time for self-care.
Some drastic measure was needed.
The drastic measure Kang Yebin thought of was to meet and hang out with a friend.
Yang Jiyoon was secretly pleased by her friend’s changed appearance, as she had always seemed like just a model student.
―Anyway, okay. So where should we meet?
“I’ll head to the airport now, so please wait a bit there. It’ll take about… 30 minutes? Around that.”
―Okay, I’ll wait. Oh, but don’t drive recklessly, okay? Got it?
“Don’t worry. I’m different from mom.”
The two, who knew Min Seung-yeon’s driving skills well, burst into laughter simultaneously.
Upon arriving at the airport, Kang Yebin immediately picked up Yang Jiyoon and headed to her relative’s house.
Yang Jiyoon’s imo greeted Kang Yebin enthusiastically as soon as she saw her.
“Oh my! You’re even prettier in person! Make yourself at home and be comfortable.”
“Thank you, imonim.”
“I should be more grateful! To have such a famous actress staying at our house. It still feels like a dream.”
While Kang Yebin’s recognition wasn’t very high among Americans, to Koreans, Kang Yebin was truly a top actress herself.
Koreans residing in the US were no exception.
This was because they also watched most of the popular dramas and movies from Korea.
Perhaps that’s why many reacted with wonder at seeing Kang Yebin with their own eyes, someone they had only seen on screen before.
Fortunately, it was a house with many rooms, so Kang Yebin could stay there without much burden.
Having lived alone in a hotel room for so long, coming to such a lively family home, Kang Yebin suddenly thought of her family more intensely.
Yang Jiyoon, who had just roughly put her luggage in the room and came back out, immediately caught Kang Yebin’s true feelings as soon as she saw her face.
“Is it because you miss your family?”
“……”
“You’ve been here alone for a long time. It’s perfectly understandable.”
Although managers and company officials were also staying with Kang Yebin in the US.
In the end, they were just colleagues. They weren’t someone with whom she could comfortably have private conversations like she could with Yang Jiyoon.
Because of that, sometimes she even felt a negative sensation, as if she were isolated alone in a solitary room.
Even though it was a path she chose herself to pursue her dream, sometimes regret washed over her, wondering why she had chosen to board the plane to the US.
At the same time, Kang Yebin could be certain.
That for her, her family had become beings of greater value than her own dreams.
That’s why she didn’t want to complain to her family about being lonely or having a hard time.
Yang Jiyoon didn’t understand Kang Yebin’s attitude.
“You just have to be honest.”
“What?”
“That you miss them.”
“……No. If I say something like that, I’ll just make appa, mom, unnie, and Yeyoung worry.”
“What does that matter? They’re family. Aren’t you supposed to be honest with family?”
“……”
“I also always speak honestly to my mom and appa if I’m upset about something or if I’m having a hard time. Even if they’re family, there are things they won’t know unless I tell them directly. So, instead of hoping they’ll notice first, it might be better for you to speak up first.”
“Really?”
Yang Jiyoon nodded vigorously and stated firmly.
“Yeah. And I… if I were in your ajeossi’s position, I’d actually be happy if my daughter told me honestly that she was bored and having a hard time.”
“You can be happy about something like that? Not worried?”
“You’d feel worried, but also happy. Because you’d know that she trusts and relies on ajeossi enough to confide her honest feelings.”
Her friend’s advice greatly stirred Kang Yebin’s heart today.
