September reached the train station by bus. She used the bathroom to change clothes and then boarded the train. A four-hour journey, September pulled the baseball cap over her eyes and slept.

“We are now arriving at the final stop in this one-way trip…please take all your belongings.” September woke when the announcement came on. Had she really slept the whole way – without a thought for what was happening around her.

“Please exit the train. This is the final stop.”

September reached overhead for her luggage and walked off the train. It was early evening and surprisingly pleasant for this time of year. Even though she’d missed the festival by a couple of months, it was still cool walk down the famous railway stretch. Maybe this was just what she needed. She could pretend she was just a normal girl, maybe like one of the college students returning home for the weekend.

“Imagine,” the game they used to play at the school. “Imagine you’re a princess. Imagine you’re a secretary with a job in a big company. Imagine you have your own room.” Mae used to say, “One day Isa, we won’t have to imagine.”

September breathed in the evening air. Just for this weekend, she would be a normal girl with no past and no job and no scary future. Just a plain old 25-year-old with a backpack and some hard-earned cash in her back pocket.

***

Sehun finished dressing and put on his dress watch. He ran his hands through his hair one last time as he skipped down the stairs, “I’ll need a driver,” he told Ren.

“Enjoy dinner,” Ren nodded at the footman to send for Sehun’s driver.

Sehun sent Chanyeol a message saying he’d leave the estate in the next ten minutes. He looked up, down the passage and then outside - What was it? He felt uneasy. “Where’s halmeoni?” he rubbed his chest. 

“The Chairlady is having pre-dinner drinks with Baek and Arran.” Sehun heard the chatter coming from outside. Everyone looked well. Baekhyun seemed a bit better after visiting Hyeran’s film set.

Sehun greeted his grandmother, kissing her cheek, “I’m leaving to meet Chanyeol. Let’s have breakfast together tomorrow. All of us,” he smiled at each of them and each returned his smile. He saw relief in their eyes, peace even, “Also, I was thinking we should go over for Sunday Lunch.”

“You mean to appa and omma?” Baek and Arran