I'm okay with spoilers.. What is tht mistake?
Im too sleep deprived to summarize the whole thing so ill just copy it lol. Btw its a nothingburger issue i just hate whiny adults
Side story:
“Good evening. We will now begin the joint briefing for KN791. I’m
Captain Kwon Saheon, in charge of today’s flight.”
Applause broke out. After Saheon hyung and the first officer finished their
introductions, the briefing quickly got to the main point. Saheon hyung, in a
businesslike but low and resonant good voice, began reading from his
phone.
“There’s a lot of fog in Bangkok city today, so we’re not sure if we’ll get
immediate clearance from the control tower. It looks like there might be a
slight delay, but it shouldn’t be too significant. From what we’ve checked,
there will be some turbulence midway, so please be mindful of safety
during service.”
Hyung always looked cool when working professionally, using the
“desu/masu” form. Saheon hyung, who had been reciting calmly, paused
briefly when our eyes met, raising one corner of his mouth almost
imperceptibly. It was a small signal only I could notice.
“…The ETA (Estimated Time of Arrival) is 04:30 the next day. Purser, do
you have anything to add?”
“I have a few things I’d like to check with Cheongmyeong, who didn’t
participate in the cabin briefing.”
It was a nightingale-like voice. I turned my gaze towards the purser. My
hand gripping my phone with prepared answers tensed up, ready to respond
at any moment.
“The zone you’re in charge of today. Do you know the door handling
method for this aircraft type?”
Fortunately, it was an easy question. I held my phone below my chest,
maintaining a steady gaze as I began to answer.
“Ah, yes. Today’s aircraft, the B-747 8i…”
“Wait, Cheongmyeong.”
The purser interrupted me. I looked at the purser with a slightly puzzled
expression. The purser asked with a gentle smile:
“You didn’t write this by hand for the briefing?”
I was taken aback by this unexpected point of criticism. It was something I
had never been called out on before. After opening and closing my mouth a
few times, I mumbled a response.
“…Before… the purser used a phone…”
“Never mind that. I’m asking if you prepared handwritten notes or not?”
“…I’m sorry. I’ll make sure this doesn’t happen again.”
“Again? This? Cheongmyeong, you’re joining us today but you’re not a
regular member of our team. When do you think we’ll see each other again
to say such things? So, did you prepare for today or not?”
The atmosphere suddenly turned hostile. I swallowed dryly and quietly
observed the situation. A flight attendant standing behind the purser had an
expression that seemed to say, ‘Here we go again.’
“I’m sorry.”
Having nothing else to say, I had to apologize once more. However, the
purser continued to nitpick as if irritated.
“Is saying sorry all you can do? Is this how you prepare, Cheongmyeong?”
“…I’m sorry my preparation was inadequate. From now on, I’ll take
handwritten notes as you suggested, Purser. I’m sorry.”
I felt like cold sweat was about to break out. Two voices called out to me as
I floundered.
“No, Cheongmyeong.”
“Lee Cheongmyeong.”
The purser’s call and Saheon hyung’s voice collided simultaneously. When
the captain, the highest-ranking person on the plane, called my name, the
purser fell silent like a mute who had eaten honey.
Saheon hyung usually had an expressionless face when flying. My heart
sank. Hyung continued speaking with the same expression he used with
other crew members.
“Do your job properly.”
His voice, devoid of any kindness, was chillingly cold. In the wake of
Saheon hyung’s attempt to control the situation, only a frigid silence
remained.
A feeling of hurt welled up like a flood. More than the purser’s strange
nitpicking, Saheon hyung’s single sentence hurt more. Feeling heat rush to
my eyes as if I might cry, I muttered in a small voice with my gaze lowered.
“I’m sorry… I’m sorry, Captain. I’m sorry, Purser.”
I mumbled while bowing my head repeatedly towards both of them. With
Saheon hyung, the highest-ranking person on the plane, ending the situation
as the captain, the purser seemed unable to say anything more, and the
matter was roughly settled. Hyung’s cool voice continued.
“Then we’ll conclude the joint briefing here.”
“Thank you for your hard work!”
“Thank you for your hard work!”
Greetings of appreciation erupted from all around. I pretended to follow
along, mouthing the words. It was the worst.
My mood didn’t just sink, it burrowed underground. I trudged along,
following the aisle inside. I felt a sharp gaze on my back. It was probably
either Saheon hyung or the purser, but whichever it was, both were equally
terrible, so I didn’t look back.
The senior colleague working in the same zone as me whispered in a low
voice as she moved to the back to place her carrier:
“Don’t worry too much. That purser is known to be a strange person. There
are widespread rumors about it. All the team members couldn’t stand it and
quit, so everyone on this team is from other teams.”
“I see…”
Rather than being upset about the purser’s nitpicking, I was more hurt by
something else. I responded in a gloomy voice.
“Still, it’s fortunate that the captain ended it there. If he hadn’t spoken up,
this commotion would have continued until the plane took off.”
I knew that too. That Saheon hyung’s intervention had resolved the
situation. That if he had told the purser to stop in that situation, there would
have been more backlash after it ended. But understanding with your head
and understanding with your heart were different things.
The senior colleague patted my arm lightly and smiled gently as if to cheer
me up. I smiled back mechanically, but my mood didn’t improve
throughout the flight.
The joy I had felt about having a schedule with Saheon hyung now seemed
like a distant memory. Even after the plane arrived in Incheon, the purser
held us for another hour, saying we needed to debrief.
By the time we finally got out, dawn was already breaking. I felt completely
exhausted. The other flight attendants I had worked with seemed to share
the same sentiment, as there was no conversation beyond telling each other
to get home safely.
As I exited the arrival hall, I found Saheon hyung sitting on a bench
prepared in front of it. Saheon hyung, who had been using his phone while
listening to music with wireless earphones, looked up to check when the
group of flight attendants came out.
When he noticed I was among them, expression returned to Saheon hyung’s
face. Now it was the face of the hyung I knew. However, as I faced Saheon
hyung, the hurt feelings I had momentarily suppressed took over
completely, without giving me a chance to control them.
Saheon hyung approached me, pulling his carrier. I lowered my gaze
sulkily. Saheon hyung took out his wireless earphones, roughly organizing
them, and asked cheerfully:
“Why are you so late? The debriefing took really long.”
I didn’t say anything. My lips jutted out in a pout. As I pulled my carrier
and walked towards the escalator to take the airport bus, Saheon hyung
matched his steps to follow me.
“We have about 30 minutes until our bus, want to buy a coffee and go in?”
“…No, Captain. I’m fine.”
Before I could stop it, the hurt feelings escaped my lips. Saheon hyung’s
face turned sour. But the moment I voiced my emotions, the disappointment
that had already filled me doubled in size.
“Cheongmyeong?”
“Yes, Captain.”
“Why are you suddenly like this?”
“It’s nothing. Have a safe trip home.”
A sharp attitude that I would never have shown normally kept bursting out.
My heart was stinging, but the sulky feeling was even stronger. I bowed slightly and started walking. Saheon hyung, who had been staring at me
blankly for a moment, hurriedly followed and whispered:
“Wait, wait. Baby.”
“Why are you calling me baby?”
I looked at hyung with cold eyes. Saheon hyung couldn’t hide his
bewildered emotions.
I clenched my fist tightly on the carrier handle, causing veins to pop up. A
cold wind blew between us as I turned my body away from hyung and
walked away with firm steps.
I felt Saheon hyung’s dumbfounded gaze, surprised by this unexpected
situation, on my back. I quickened my pace a bit more.
“…Baby, Cheongmyeong!”
The sound of Saheon hyung’s shoe heels and the rolling of his carrier
followed quickly and noisily. An arm wrapped in a black uniform jacket
was caught by Saheon hyung’s hand. I turned to look at hyung with cold
eyes. Saheon hyung couldn’t hide his bewildered expression.
“Cheongmyeong. Baby. My love. What’s wrong?”
“Captain, why are you doing this to me?”
I shook off the wrist that Saheon hyung had grabbed, applying a little force.
But hyung held on stubbornly and wouldn’t let go. I furrowed my brow
slightly.
“I’m going home. Let go.”
“Cheongmyeong, you mean our home, right? Right?”
“I’m going to the Yongin house. And why are you speaking informally to
me? Call me Lee Cheongmyeong-ssi like before.”
The spiteful words came out smoothly without a chance to stop them. I
realized for the first time in my life that I could say such things to hyung.
Saheon hyung briefly wet his lower lip with his tongue, seeming anxious.
“Is it because of that purser from earlier?”
“No. Let this go.”
I put more force into shaking off the arm Saheon hyung was holding. This
time, it came off easily. After quickly glaring at Saheon hyung, I turned my
body and started walking towards the escalator.
“Cheongmyeong. Cheongmyeong. Look at hyung. Okay?”
Saheon hyung whispered desperately while matching his steps to follow
me. I tried my best not to look in hyung’s direction and walked silently,
staring at the ground.
The airport, caught between dawn and morning, was relatively quiet,
perhaps because all the early morning flights had landed and the purser had
held us back for debriefing. With my lips jutting out in a pout, I fixed my
gaze on the floor and deliberately ignored hyung.
“Honey. Baby. Hmm? Please look at hyung’s face. Hyung is sorry.”
Saheon hyung bent his waist slightly, trying to meet my eyes. I turned my
head away even more. Saheon hyung whispered a lengthy explanation.
“Did hyung speak too harshly? I’m sorry. Hyung is sorry.”
“…Isn’t that what you should do as a captain? I’m fine.”
“Ahhh, Cheongmyeong.”
Saheon hyung called my name as if whining. Usually, I would have melted
like cotton candy touching water, smiling at hyung’s cute aegyo, but my
thoroughly upset heart showed no signs of softening.
I glared at hyung. We had already reached the end of the escalator. I pulled
my carrier with a bit more force and turned left, walking towards the airport
bus ticket booth.
Saheon hyung, with his legs as long as his height, quickly caught up with
my pace. Hyung’s desperate whispering continued all the way to the ticket
booth.
“Honey. I’m sorry. I quietly called the purser after you left and said
something…”
“Then date the purser.”
“Ah, that’s not what I meant, Cheongmyeong. You know I only love you.”
Even though Saheon hyung was uttering all sorts of sweet words, my
thoroughly twisted heart showed no signs of softening. I naturally took out
the wallet I had put in my carrier pocket and stood in front of the ticketing
machine.
“I’ll do it. I will. Please, let me do it.”
Saheon hyung panicked when he saw my finger selecting a bus to
Gyeonggi-do and hurriedly pushed me aside. Pushed aside without
resistance, I glared at hyung with sulky eyes.
Hyung’s fingers frantically searched for a bus to Seoul. Watching him try to
book two seats on a bus heading to Magok, I rebelled timidly.
“I’m going to Yongin.”
“I love you. Hyung was wrong.”
In fact, saying I was going to the house in Yongin was half a gamble. It was
a complex feeling that I didn’t understand myself – really wanting to go, not
wanting to go, wanting to go to our home in Magok, not wanting to go – but
seeing Saheon hyung block it from the start somehow made my anger boil.
“I said I’m going!”
I ended up shouting. Being dawn, the few gazes around focused on me. I
belatedly remembered the company rule that we should restrain ourselves
from getting angry while in uniform, which I had learned during training.
---
Anyway, it went on for a bit and they made up after he got coaxed.
Oohhh thank you so much for this! I appreciate it. Makes me think to just read the novel now.
The novel's sidestory showing MC's 'mistake' annoyed the shit out of me.