Chapter 59
In the days that followed, everything seemed back to normal.
The rain had stopped so suddenly and completely, one wouldn’t even know a freak tropical storm had blown through the area.
Except for the few buildings that retained minimal damage and the Weather Channel reports on the mystery of the storm system.
When Yuhwa had shown up on her doorstep, the two girls had silently embraced.
Yuhwa didn’t speak about where she’d been the last few days, and Grace didn’t ask.
She knew the goddess had needed to grieve the loss of her father alone.
Since then, Yuhwa had been out almost every night, searching for any signs of the sonnimne.
But they were gone, burnt away by Hae’s attack.
And everyone was back at school, wearing tank tops and shorts now that the weather had returned to its normal balmy eighty degrees.
“It’s like nothing happened,” Grace told Yuhwa as they sat on the couch in the pool house. Haechi’s head was lying on Yuhwa’s lap as she scratched behind his ears. Grace’s dad hadn’t even put up any protests against her keeping a giant “rescue dog.”
“That’s because, for all anyone else knows, nothing did happen.” Yuhwa shoved a handful of chips into her mouth. Haechi lapped up any crumbs she dropped. “That’s a good thing. The less the public knows, the better.”
“Yeah, I guess about the monstrous smallpox demigods and rogue water god. But they should remember Hae.” Grace swiped her stylus over the tablet until his face formed.
“What is he doing today?” Yuhwa asked. She’d taken to asking about it like it was really Hae’s day and not a webtoon.
“Just hanging out with us at a diner,” Grace said, zooming the frame out to show Haemosu, Yuhwa, and Sena—the self-insert character that looked like a cute cartoon version of Grace.
“Has Sena figured it out yet?” Yuhwa asked.
Grace shook her head. “Not yet. I have to keep some drama, or my readers will get really pissed.”
“He’ll love this. He’s not alone.” Yuhwa wrapped her arm around Grace’s shoulder, giving her a half hug. “And he knows it’s because of you.”
Grace took a beat to compose herself. She knew Yuhwa meant well, but she still couldn’t let herself admit anything out loud when it came to Hae.
That she hoped he saw these memories. That she hoped he wasn’t lonely.
That she hoped he might even come back if she believed in him enough. And made others continue believing.
Grace shook an ache out of her arm and went back to work.
“You should take a break.”
“I’m almost done with this. I want to start posting twice a week.” More moments to share with Hae.
“You can’t just commit your entire life to this,” Yuhwa said. “A mortal’s lifespan is finite. It shouldn’t be wasted.”
“I guess that’s something you’re thinking about a lot, now that…” Grace trailed off. She still wasn’t sure if she was allowed to discuss Yuhwa’s choice. To stay and become mortal. Like Cheonjiwang had.
The door flew open, and Zoe spun into the room.
They were wearing a long lace coverall, the kind worn over a bathing suit.
Except under theirs they wore a ripped-up pair of jean shorts and what looked like an old graphic tee from some band tour in the sixties.
Probably pilfered from their mother’s collection.
“Okay, friends! It’s a beautiful sunny day, which means no moping inside, being a tortured artist.”
They plucked the stylus out of Grace’s hand.
“Hey!” She tried to grab it back, but Yuhwa stood up too, linking arms with Zoe in solidarity.
“Did you two plan this together?”
Zoe nodded. “Yup, we’re kidnapping you. We are all going to the beach.”
“I don’t want to go to the beach.” Grace pouted, slouching into the pillows and half wishing they were bigger so they could swallow her up and hide her.
“Come on, Grace, I haven’t been to the modern beaches yet,” Yuhwa said.
“Yeah, Gracie, shouldn’t we grant a goddess’s wish?”
It was still weird to see Yuhwa and Zoe together. But Grace supposed now that Yuhwa was mortal, she didn’t really have any good reason to protest. Except that it made her think of what-ifs. What if Hae had had a chance to make the same choice Yuhwa had? Would he?
“One day at the beach won’t get in the way of your webtoon schedule,” Zoe promised, pulling on Grace’s arm. Haechi let out a bark, jumping up and down around them. “You want to go to the beach, don’t you, boy?”
Haechi gave another happy bark and turned to Grace with his tongue lolling out. Looked like it was actually three against one.
“Oh come on, Gracie,” Zoe said. “All you do these days is work on it. I can’t believe I’m saying it, but give it a break with the webtoon already.”
“I thought you always wanted to know what came next,” Grace said.
“I do. And I love the new slice-of-life aesthetic you’re trying out.”
“At least one of you does,” Grace muttered. She tried not to let the critical comments get to her. Some even theorized that she’d given the comic away and that someone new was writing it, because now Hae mostly just went on picnics and to the movies.
All things a normal human could do. Good memories.
“Well, you can’t write happy moments unless you live them yourself, right? Consider this beach trip research,” Zoe said. “What do you say?”
They held out their hand, and Grace gave in. She let Zoe pull her off the couch.
They were right. And so was Yuhwa. Grace shouldn’t waste this life. One given to her by her mother. By her halmeoni. And, in a way, by Hae. So she’d make as many happy memories as she could.
And when she got home, she’d share them all with him.