Grandmother's Letter

The lively music drifted from afar. "Havana ooh na-na ay, Half of my heart is in Havana ooh-na-na ay ay~" I poured out my recent worries amid the cheerful sounds.

"What's your goal?"

"Me? I just want the villagers to live long, healthy, and happy lives."

"Then what's there to worry about? Look over there—they're shouting, dancing, and laughing. That's it, isn't it?"

Far away, Miju was dancing with all her heart. She looked beautiful. How had she found time to learn when she barely had any for studying? Life really was unfair—the rich get richer. Not only was she pretty, but she could dance too.

"Have a drink."

Like Caribbean pirates, the leader hyung and I downed the harsh rum straight. That was the last thing I remembered.

"Oppa, wake up!"

Miju's voice called me from beside the bed.

"Hmm?"

My head felt like it was splitting open. The conversation with leader hyung from last night came flooding back, along with all the alcohol I'd consumed.

"They said Grandmother passed away... What do we do?"

"What?"

I asked again, my mind still foggy. Grandmother? I shot up from the bed.

"What happened?"

Miju, who had been so lively the night before, had simply gone back to the lodging and fallen asleep. When she ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠woke up in the morning and called Korea, her mother answered in tears. From what she gathered, Grandmother had passed away. When she asked what happened, her mother explained the morning's events.

Mother had gone upstairs to wake Grandmother for breakfast and offer her morning greetings, but there was no answer. She opened the door and stepped inside to find Grandmother sitting quietly, clutching a family photo. When Mother approached, Grandmother didn't move at all. She called out, but Grandmother didn't respond or even blink. Thinking she was asleep, Mother shook her shoulder—only for Grandmother to collapse sideways.

Startled, Mother called 119. The paramedics said she'd already passed by the time they arrived; she hadn't been breathing for quite some time, and revival would be difficult. They rushed her to the emergency room, but the doctors found no trauma or unusual medical history beyond routine care for her age. The police who responded ruled it as natural causes due to old age.

After hearing that, I knew I couldn't stay here any longer. I told Miju, "Let's head back to Korea right away."

"Can you handle the luggage?"

I hurried to the village hall and explained that something had come up and we needed to return to Korea. When leader hyung asked what happened, I told him Miju's grandmother had passed. He asked me to wait a moment, then stepped aside to call Gonzales.

"GB, Gonzales is checking flight options right now. He'll handle what we talked about yesterday. He'll get you a car—head out quickly."

I didn't fully understand what he meant, but I thanked him for arranging the flight and returned to the lodging to pack. Thirty minutes later, without even showering, we were on our way to Cancún Airport.

Maybe thirty minutes had passed since we left. A message from Gonzales arrived.

According to the navigation, we had about thirty minutes to spare.

'Si' (Yes) -GB(38.1)

"Oppa, I'm sorry."

Miju apologized tearfully beside me. No matter how I looked at it, she must have been more shocked than I was, yet she was worrying about me first. It was impressive.

"It's fine. Don't worry."

I comforted her gently. The real reason I was rushing was because I suspected Grandmother's death was my fault. Her sharp final words to me still pierced my chest.

The road conditions were better than last time, but still ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠nowhere near Korea's standards. I drove as fast as I could. When we reached the airport and checked in, I found I'd arrived before Gonzales. There was still an hour left. Ten minutes later, Gonzales showed up. He handed me two plane tickets and told us to check in. Miju and I rushed through the process and came back to say goodbye, but Gonzales asked for a moment. The clock showed we still had time, so I told Miju to wait and stepped outside the airport with him.

As we walked, Gonzales spoke.

"GB, I was actually planning to tell you today, but things moved faster than expected."

??

Leader hyung had mentioned something earlier—was this it?

"I'll send you the details later. If the local network is bad, find someone named Kim Miyoung. Make sure to bring out her black suitcase."

A faint announcement calling for boarding passengers echoed in the distance. I didn't have time to ask more questions. I grabbed Miju's hand and headed for the gate.

It was a rough trip. Because it was booked so hastily, we were stuck in economy with a layover. It felt like the fastest possible flight, the shortest route. We had no choice.

For eighteen hours, Miju cried beside me. How could I complain? I had to endure it.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we are now approaching Incheon International Airport. Please return to your seats and prepare for landing."

Twenty minutes after the landing announcement, we disembarked at Incheon. As soon as our phones connected, message alerts chimed around us. I checked mine and found a long message from Gonzales.

This guy couldn't just send it all at once. Why break it into pieces and ruin the readability? So there had been an operation in progress. They were looking for someone to handle it, thought of me, but held off because they weren't sure I'd agree and didn't trust me. Once I said yes, they moved forward. The great Gonzales, of all people, sure had a long-winded way of explaining things.

After landing at Incheon, I went to collect the luggage. I had one suitcase, Miju had two, and there was Miyoung's one. To my relief, Miyoung's suitcase came out right behind ours. Black suitcase, mi young Kim. Without even checking, I grabbed the suitcase and rushed out of the airport to hail a taxi. Destination: the funeral hall.

An hour later, we arrived at the funeral hall of a large hospital in Sinchon. The traffic had been terrible. And I couldn't go in. Why? Because I was wearing a Hawaiian shirt. Fortunately, there was a suit shop nearby. I quickly bought one and went to pay my respects.

Miju, who had been in colorful clothes moments ago, had already changed into mourning attire and was greeting visitors. When she saw me, she brought her mother and father over. They thanked me, saying I had almost missed seeing Grandmother off for the last time. They offered me food, but I explained I had urgent business and needed to leave. They asked me to wait a moment.

Father handed me a letter from his bag. While preparing the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠funeral hall after Grandmother's passing, they had sorted through her belongings together. They found this and thought it was meant for me.

??

The envelope was addressed: "To my grandson-in-law."

I returned to my house in Noryangjin and took out the letter. It wasn't long, but my intuition had been right.

The last character... what had Grandmother wanted to protect so desperately? Overcome with guilt, I couldn't sleep that night.