Chapter 80
“Ellie, food might splatter on the doll, so why don’t you set it down somewhere before you eat?”
“Huh? Well... couldn’t I just be a little careful..?”
“Mom’s right, Ellie. Put the doll somewhere else before you eat.”
Eloise was about to eat while clutching my gift, only to be stopped by her mom and dad. Seeing that, Eloise has a surprisingly childish side too. Ahem, I really am the more mature one.
Being tall isn’t everything, you know.
After I gave her the doll, it felt like the way Eloise’s family looked at me changed a little. I’m not sure how to put it, but it seems to have shifted in a good direction, so that’s a relief.
It’s not like they looked at me badly before, but it feels more like they look up to me a little more? Wow, that’s embarrassing! I may be pretty amazing, but still.
By the time the meal was almost over, it was already time for me to head back. It takes quite a while to get from Hampstead to Heathrow Airport, so we had to leave now if we wanted to get there an hour before the plane took off.
“I’m sad to see you go. Why don’t you stay one night and leave tomorrow? I’ll buy you a plane ticket.”
“Um.... There are some complicated circumstances and all that....”
Actually, I don’t really know what those complicated circumstances are, but sudden changes to an overseas schedule probably wouldn’t be good. A visa? Didn’t I need something like that? Anyway.
“Then Eloise, should we take a photo together?”
“A photo? Just the two of us?”
“The two of us is fine, and it’d be nice to take one with everyone too..?”
“Okay! Then let’s take two shots. I’ll call everyone over, so wait a moment!”
Eloise dashed around the spacious house, eagerly rounding up the family members who had finished their hearty meal. She even brought over her grandparents, who had been half-lounging on the sofa, and Saffron too, and everyone gathered in the kitchen to take a photo.
“I’ll take it with my phone. I’ll send you the photo, Eve, okay?”
“Okay! Got it!”
ㅡGrrrrrr..!!!
ㅡBip-bip..!! Bip-bip-bip..!!!
Saffron and Dangdang still weren’t getting along at all. Don’t people usually get a little sluggish when they’re full?
“Hurry, hurry! Get into position! It’s a 10-second timer!”
“Eloise! Over here!”
“Okay!”
Eloise ran over after setting the phone with the timer a little ways away. I sat right in the center with Eloise, Ophelia behind me, and Eloise’s parents behind Eloise.
The grandparents stood at the far left and right, and Saffron in the grandmother’s arms and Dangdang in my arms, diagonally behind me, kept growling at each other all day.
ㅡClick!
That’s how everyone gathered in front of the kitchen table, which still hadn’t been cleared, and took a photo. I liked how the messy table in the background gave it a more homey feel. It looked like we were rushing off right after eating, but we were guests to begin with.
Besides, most of the cooking had been done by Ophelia, so Eloise’s mom quickly apologized and shooed us out the door.
“Then we’ll get going. Eloise, that was fun!”
“Mm-hm, Eve. Come by anytime. And the gift.... Thank you so much.”
“Hehe, I’m glad you like it. See you next time! I’ll DM you!”
* * * * *
I don’t remember much of the trip to Heathrow Airport. According to Ophelia, I fell asleep the moment I got in the car, and Minyum and Suri had already taken care of the luggage back at the hotel.
She said there was no need to go back up to the fifth floor of Claridge’s after checking out and heading back downstairs.
I don’t really know whether it was business or first class, but thanks to the good seats, Minyum and Suri didn’t have to go into the cargo hold either. Minyum had already been shrunk down into an ultra-mini Minyum the size of a tiny Gundam figure, even smaller than the version that normally reaches my sternum, so that was fine, and I had no idea Suri could shrink down to sparrow size too.
“Suri!! This is too cute!!!!”
ㅡChirp....
The little white, round thing looked just like a white-headed titmouse. Dangdang was on top of my head, Minyum was on top of that, and Suri was on top of Minyum. There was practically a whole Bremen Town Musicians lineup going on.
I woke up for a bit while they were going through security at the airport and all that, but once I got on the plane I think I fell asleep again.
From Heathrow Airport to Incheon Airport, it was about 11 hours and 30 minutes. More like 7 hours? I woke up a little over halfway through. I’d slept for about an hour in the car, woken up briefly during airport security, then slept for about 7 more hours... so I’d basically slept the whole night away on the plane.
The aftereffects of that hearty dinner still hadn’t worn off in my stomach. When I barely managed to lift my heavy body and eyelids, the inside of the plane was dark and tinged with a faint purple.
ㅡClick
The glass was strangely not the kind that opens and closes like a window; instead, the glass itself darkened. Beyond the window, where the view faded and returned, was northern Mongolia.
“Wow....”
In the middle of winter, northern Mongolia was blanketed in pure white snow, to the point where you couldn’t see what was underneath. The world looked like a flat sheet of paper, making it hard to tell whether things were high or low.
ㅡClick!
“I should show this to Eloise. Hehe.”
Half-opening my eyes, I took a picture of the sunrise over the white, paper-like ground outside the window. I turned on my phone to send a DM, but come to think of it, maybe Eloise was asleep right now.
“Dangdang, Dangdang?”
Dangdang seemed to be asleep too.
“Ophelia..! Are you awake..?”
On top of that, even Ophelia looked like she was asleep. I’ve never seen Ophelia asleep before.
“Wow.... Ophelia’s asleep.”
I got up from my seat for a moment and stared at Ophelia. Then I poked her cheek a few times and even blew in her ear.
“She really is asleep....”
Ophelia being asleep felt kind of amazing. In the end, I turned on my phone and searched for the current time in the UK.
“Mm, so it’s about 4 a.m.”
Then Eloise, being a child, would naturally be asleep too. Too bad, I’d have to send the photos later.
“Oh, photos.”
But it looked like Eloise had already sent photos while I was asleep. There were 10 notifications in my DMs.
-Eloise_Official : (photo)
-Eloise_Official : (photo)
-Eloise_Official : Are you asleep, Eve?
-Eloise_Official : I sent the photos that came out well.
-Eloise_Official : I really had a great time today! I hope we can meet again sometime.
-Eloise_Official : Thank you so much for the doll too—I put it in my room.
-Eloise_Official : (photo)
-Eloise_Official : It’s the center seat. Cool, right?
-Eloise_Official : Come visit England again sometime. Or I can go to Korea too.
-Eloise_Official : Good night.
“That’s kind of touching.”
The dark plane was so quiet that moving around felt a little awkward. I put the blanket Ophelia had draped over me—which I’d apparently thrown onto the floor—back over her, then quietly turned on my phone.
It’s 1 p.m. in Korea right now, so everyone should be either working hard or resting. It had been a while since I’d opened the gallery.
[LifeIsNotRuined : I’ve Arrived in Korea
Coming soon]
-Anon : Where’d you go?
ㄴ LifeIsNotRuined : England hehe
-Anon : What’d you go there for?
ㄴ LifeIsNotRuined : That’s top secret
-Anon : Was the London Eye terror attack really you?
ㄴ LifeIsNotRuined : Why are you suddenly making me out to be a terrorist
ㄴ Anon : No lol, the one where you stopped the terror attack
ㄴ LifeIsNotRuined : It’s classified, hehe
-Gyahong : Princessㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ I miss youㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
ㄴ LifeIsNotRuined : If anyone saw this, they’d think you really met me, huh?
ㄴ Gyahong : We’re connected by color
ㄴ LifeIsNotRuined : What’s color?
ㄴ Gyahong : The princess is really an elementary school kid
ㄴ LifeIsNotRuined : ????
-Doshoongjwak : Got any gifts?
ㄴ LifeIsNotRuined : Gasp
“Right..! I was supposed to buy gifts..!”
I was so startled that I gasped, and Ophelia, who was sitting next to me, woke up.
“Princess, is something the matter?”
“Ah, Ophelia. You’re awake? I was supposed to buy gifts for Dohi and Chaea and stuff..!”
“I already purchased suitable gifts.”
“Ah, thank goodness.”
As expected, Ophelia, with maxed-out social skills, had taken care of what I forgot. If Ophelia hadn’t been there, what would I have done? She handled the plane ticket to England and my passport and everything else too.
“Hehe, thank you. You’re the best, Ophelia.”
“You’re welcome.”
After that, I turned on my phone, played some mobile games for a bit, and looked through the gallery for a while. Eventually I got bored, closed my eyes a little, and fell asleep again.
* * * * *
“Woohoo! Korea!”
Chatting in Korean! So many Koreans! So many Korean signs!
The air was somehow grimy and smoky, but also familiar and oddly refreshing at the same time. We had arrived in Korea. I’d worried I might lose my passport, get lost in England, or for some reason be unable to come back.
“You’re back!”
“That’s right.”
“Hehe. It’s all thanks to Ophelia.”
I’d gotten to take my first overseas trip I never thought I’d have any connection to, make good friends, and make lots of memories. Ah, England was nice.
At this rate, I might catch England fever, but home really is more comfortable. The ride home in the Rolls-Royce from the long-term parking lot felt oddly strange. The steering wheel on the left?? That’s definitely wrong.
“Roast chicken sandwich.... Claridge’s.... I’m no longer the London Eye.”
“Do you miss England?”
“Hehe, I was joking. I like home.”
Claridge’s was a comfortable, nice hotel, but because it wasn’t home it felt a little awkward. How could there be people in a house lobby? The security guard felt a little different too.
“Oh, right. We moved.”
“That’s right.”
Since I’d gone to England not long after moving, I’d been thinking of the old house. The old place is still a little more familiar, after all.
We left around 5:30 p.m. and took another hour and a half to get home. By the time we arrived at our apartment in Songpa District, it was a little before 7.
Looking at the streets of England made Korea’s streets—somehow funny-looking and futuristic—feel really fascinating. Even while I was staring out the window, I never got bored, because everyone was dressed exactly the same.
The house we returned to after that long, long trip to England was packed with furniture Minyum and Suri had arranged for us. As the slightly bare house got more and more additions, the TV came in too, along with all sorts of neat things.
“Oh, a giant idiot box.”
Honestly, I’d been wondering why we even needed one when I mostly just look at my phone and Ophelia can watch TV in her head. But if you invite guests over, a TV is probably the strangest piece of furniture not to have.
Come to think of it, yeah, that would be kind of weird. How can a house not have a TV? It’s not like this was a one-room apartment like my old place.
“What’s in this room?”
And, as I’d said before, one of the small rooms was...
“Huh.”
“It’s a studio.”
In the very center, something like a small white round stage had been installed, almost like a figure display pedestal. It even sparkled brightly.
“Oh.... So we really are taking photos.”
Well, no helping it. If I have to do it anyway, I’ll take the most awesome photo in the world!!