They would get back to her.
That was just another way of dismissing her. She obviously wasn't going to get the job. She was disappointed to say the least. She felt terrible about the situation, but when she went down the elevator to the waiting room and saw Eun-hyeok with an expectant smile on his face, she had to smile too.
That was during the day. It was evening already and Ji-eon would be coming with Do-won any minute. She had made spicy dakdoritang (spicy Korean chicken stew ), mandu (Korean dumplings) and stuffed hotteok pancakes on the side. She had also gone to the market to buy some oranges to make freshly squeezed orange juice.
Eun-hyeok had helped her with the cooking, of course, and was now sitting at the table, watching her set the food on the table. She felt a bit groggy. She'd been feeling like that for most of the day, but she brushed it off, not thinking much about it.
Outside the house, Ji-eon's husband, Do-won, pushed the button for the doorbell. Ji-eon stood beside him with a proud smile on her face, waiting for Lisa to open the door. From outside, she could already smell the aroma of food from inside the house.
Lisa opened the door with a pleasant but formal smile on her face.
"Ji-eon eonnie, Do-won. You're here already" she said out of routine with a slight bow for each of them. She knew they would come by at this time. They had been for years already. She had just gotten so used to repeating the same sentence over and over again.
"Oh, Lisa, nice to see you again"
Do-won answered this time, his smile genuine and pure. Do-won was nice. Very nice. At least to Lisa.
"Here. I bought some things for Eun-hyeok and Dad" Lisa held out her hand which held a shopping bag. Lisa took the bag from her, and she shoved her way into the house.
"Eun-hyeok! It's been such a long time" Ji-eon went to hug her brother while Lisa kept the bag aside.
"Oh, Ji-eon, you say that like we don't see each other every month"
"Still not enough. You don't know how I've missed you and dad. Where is he anyway?"
"He thought he should shower before you arrived" Lisa spoke up in reply because she knew Eun-hyeok didn't know about that.
Ji-eon threw a glance at Lisa, her expression scornful. "I didn't ask you"
She turned back to her brother.
"How's your job? You must be so stressed out from work. I remember, when you were a kid, you never did anything in the house. The work will definitely be stressful for you" Ji-eon spoke as if she had even ever done anything in the house. The only thing she actually did all day was criticize the work Lisa had done.
"Ohh, it's really fine. The students are great too"
"You're just saying that. You've lost a lot of weight" she fussed, exaggerating. Eun-hyeok hadn't lost any weight. In actuality, the only thing that changed was that his features had become more defined and his face was more sculpted. Other than that, he hadn't changed much.
Lisa walked towards her father's room as Eun-hyeok and Do-won exchanged pleasantries and knocked thrice on the door. "Ji-eon is here" she announced, then went back to the living room without waiting for his reply. She knew he heard her since he was expecting them already.
Her father followed soon after and his eyes lit up on seeing his eldest daughter and son-in-law. Lisa smiled too, feeling somewhat happy that her sister was home.
Going into the kitchen, she opened the top cupboard to take the glasses she would use for the orange juice. Walking out back to the living room, she could hear Ji-eon haughtily mentioning that Do-won had bought a new car. Pride was evident in Mr. Kim's face as he listened to his daughter talk about all the things her husband had accomplished and the awards he had won.
The dinner went on like that, with Ji-eon droning on and on about her family. Soon enough though, the topic switched to Eun-hyeok's love life.
"Did you meet any girl you like?"
Eun-hyeok laughed. Eun-hyeok had never been in a relationship before. In high school, he said he liked someone, but he'd never acted on it. None of them knew who it was though. He refused to tell anyone, not even Lisa.
Eun-hyeok chuckled. "Oh, I'm not into girls"
The table went quiet as everyone stared at Eun-hyeok, who also had a puzzled expression on his face. The only sound was the sound of Ji-eon dropping her chopsticks into the ceramic bowl. Glances were exchanged between everyone at the table, and Lisa surreptitiously observed their father to hear what he would say.
Ji-eon inhaled loudly, prepping herself to comment on the new revelation.
"I mean, it's okay if you like men. I do support you, but it's a sin, you know. But, if it's something you want to try out, you can. Everyone has their own sexual orientation"
Eun-hyeok and Ji-eon locked eyes as realisation dawned on him. It must have sounded like he was interested in other men. Suddenly, he burst out laughing, creating a tensed atmosphere as everyone else was unsure of what was going on.
"I didn't mean it like that...I just meant I'm not into relationships. I'm not interested in a relationship" he laughed a bit more as everyone at the table seemed to understand what he had said.
"You made it sound like you were into men instead" Ji-eon laughed. Their father also laughed. Everyone at the table laughed.
When the table had quietened, Ji-eon spoke up again.
"I don't think you're not interested in relationships. I just think you haven't found the right girl. Actually, a colleague of mine saw your picture on my phone and she's quite interested in you. I told her I would talk to you about it"
It wasn't the first time Ji-eon had tried to play matchmaker with Eun-hyeok. He always spurned the offer, saying he was too busy for that. But Ji-eon was never fazed, and she never stopped trying.
"Noona, I don't know why you bother trying" he responded, before taking another bite of his dinner. He chased the spicy meal with a sip of the orange juice.
"Dad! Tell him he's not getting any younger! I think he'd better start seeing someone. He's never had a girlfriend before and he's already twenty-three"
"But I'm still very young. And besides, I don't have the interest"
"Your sister is right, Eun-hyeok. When I was your age, I was already engaged" their father chimed in.
Eun-hyeok was silently chewing his food, very much aware that they were both ganging up against him. It wasn't the first time, anyway. He was used to it by then.
"Honey, tell Eun-hyeok that I'm right"
"Eun-hyeok, she's right" Do-won said around a mouthful of stuffed hotteok. The dirty look Ji-eon gave him was hilarious. Actually, Do-won had said it as if he was a robot, programmed to repeat exactly what he was told to. Knowing how much of a control freak Ji-eon was, Lisa snorted while trying to control her laughter.
Ji-eon turned her gaze to Lisa, her brows raised. "What?"
Lisa raised her eyes and made eye contact with Ji-eon, something she immediately rejected, because the scowl on her face was spine-chilling.
"Oh, nothing..."
"What's funny, Lisa?" She asked, her voice sugary and a fake smile of encouragement on her face. Lisa lowered her gaze back to her food, scolding herself for laughing. She'd known laughing would attract Ji-eon's anger.
"Forget about that, I'm not going to see the woman" Eun-hyeok interrupted, dragging his sister's attention back to himself. "I mean, you were the one who introduced Su-hyeok and Lisa, and look how that worked out"
Yes, Su-hyeok was Ji-eon's colleague, and it was because of that fact that Lisa had met him in the first place. It was actually a long time ago, when Ji-eon and Do-won were still engaged. They had gone out with her co-workers for drinks, and Lisa had chanced on them when she was coming home from her part-time job at the fast food restaurant. That day, she hadn't even noticed Su-hyeok, and it was when Ji-eon told her to go on a date with him that she actually started knowing him. They had only ever gone on three dates during their five-month relationship, when he suddenly decided he wanted to get married to her.
"Don't blame her inadequacy on me" Ji-eon defended herself. Then her eyes lit up as if she had just remembered something important. "Lisa, aren't you looking for a job?"
The change of topic was sudden, and everyone at the table was surprised. Lisa nodded cautiously.
"That's wonderful. There's an opening at the hospital, and I think you'd be perfect for the job"
"At the hospital? I don't think I'm qualified to work there"
Ji-eon placed her hand atop her sister's, her sweet smile hiding an insincerity Lisa failed to notice.
"I'm sure you're very much qualified for this job, Lisa dear" she urged.
Eun-hyeok was quiet, staring at his sister and Lisa. Lisa was oblivious to Ji-eon's true intentions, but he wasn't. He knew she was up to something, but he didn't know what it was. And he was going to find out.