Page 56 of Damian & Jun, Episodes 13-16
They paced the neighborhood twice, and both of them made phone calls. Then they went back to the house.
Jun spoke first once they were back in the living room, not even sitting down. “What if there was a way for you to stay near your girls and not go home?”
A flicker of hope went through her eyes.
Jun braced himself. “I’m willing to liquidate this house. We could send Kali and Lana to boarding school in Canada or the UK, Australia, even. If you took a visa out yourself, either with your family’s help, or on work-study of your own, you could still see them. You would be their family-in country and their point of contact. If you need me to handle the finances because of your family, I can have my accountant do that, or I can give you the funds from selling the house.”
“The house belongs to you.”
“There’s more to ownership than legal papers,” Jun said. He looked to Damian.
Damian took over. “You’ve cared for this place, Mrs. Bak. Sakyuk only made as much off some of his investments because of your labor. You held the dinner parties, the events. You’ve been his social facilitator for years. Consider this the value added from your unpaid labor. If he’d actually made the money and kept everything under his name, you’d be entitled to more in a divorce.”
“I’m not going to make money off of unpaid labor,” Jun said. “I’ve gone unpaid enough. We’re not going to continue that. Any proceeds from this house go towards the girl’s education and care. It should be enough to at least get them started in college.”
Tears ran down Mrs. Bak’s face.
“I always wanted to study in Ireland,” she said. “But I don’t know if I can get a visa before the school year starts.”
“We’ll find the girls a school and start the process. They can leave first while you sort your paperwork.”
“Please call me Sia,” she said. “I’m changing my name. I’d like to change the girl’s last name to yours.”
“They’re welcome to it.” Jun extended his hand
“May I share it with them?”
Jun swallowed and blinked, hard. “It comes from my mother, a strong woman who raised a child on her own. I know she’d be honored to share it with a woman who nearly made the same choice she had to, once.”
Jun
Customs into South Korea was just up ahead. Jun grimaced, looking at Damian. This is where they had to separate. Even though he now had a U.S. passport, he had to use his Korean passport to enter South Korea. Damian had to go through the line for foreigners. “See you on the other side.”
“Yun is waiting for us, in case anything happens. Richard just checked in. Holden is waiting for you as well, if Thomas and Jamal aren’t through with me yet.”
“Holden has eyes on the exit, sir,” Thomas put in. “We’re completely connected. I’ll hang back and join the line only once Holden says he’s made contact.”
Jun nodded and brushed his knuckles against Damian’s arm one more time. It would be better if he could be more demonstrative, but he was back in South Korea. Old habits and concerns were circling.
“See you on the other side.” He gave Damian a nod and strode towards the line.
The lady at the desk gave him a quick, wide-eyed look, but professionally said nothing. She passed him onward without fuss. Jun went through the door to the other side. For a few brief moments, he was alone in a swirl of strangers, and then Holden fell in step beside him. “We got you, sir. So far, no fans are set up to waylay us on our way out.”
“So just luggage.” Jun kept his eyes fixed ahead.
“Thomas says the three of them will be a few minutes behind you. We can meet at baggage claim. Our driver is on standby.”
Jun led the way to the baggage claim, familiar with the airport. Holden stayed at his back, on alert. Jun opened and closed his hand, working the stress down his arm and out his fingers. Just because he’d been kidnapped the last time he was in this country didn’t mean he couldn’t be safe here. His eyes caught on any form of uniform, from airport security to pilots. Somehow he’d finally managed to handle the few police that came around in Chicago, but he hadn’t worked through the panic that came with seeing them here.
The baggage arrived. It was only a few things, since he and Damian had sent most of it with Richard to avoid dealing with it on the stop in California. He had it on a trolley waiting before Damian, Thomas, and Jamal were through. A few passersby recognized him. One brave girl made her way over shyly and asked for a photo. “I have tickets to the first concert,” she said, eyes shining.
“I hope we do well for you,” Jun told her. He gave her an air hug and smiled at her phone camera.
She squealed and danced in place, looking at the snapped photo. “Oh, I’m going to tell everyone. I’ve seen all your latest videos. They’re so real. Was that actual fire l in that one a month ago?”
Jun waggled his eyebrows, then relented. “We had to be very careful.”
“Oh, so dangerous.” She put a hand over her mouth. “And you were dancing!”
