A warm breeze welcomed Yongsun as soon as the automatic door of the store opened. The coolness lingered on her clothes, but did not last long as the rays were beaming down. It was already past five in the afternoon; however, the sun was still brilliant in cornflower-blue sky.

Summer was her favorite season – when days were longer and the sun’s rays dissolved all shadows. No hiding, no darkness. Summer was a time of light, joviality, expression, and wholehearted action. Under the summer sun, she could feel the warmth of those brilliant rays, of light granting new vibrant colors, softly brushing smiles upon faces and hearts.

Yongsun would be willing to stay longer to enjoy the sunshine if there was not a feeling of something freezing cold pressing on her thigh. She looked down, a small gasp escaped as she remembered her original intention. Yongsun finally moved her feet. The hot sidewalk made her steps a little quicker.   

It did not take long for Yongsun to reach her destination – a place that was more familiar to her than her own house. The main door flew open before she pressed the bell, following by an amusing voice.

“Wow, you look great unnie!”

Yongsun smiled at the enormous compliment.

“You look great too, Byul-ah.”

Byulyi shook her head, protesting what she said with a grumble. “I’m fat.”

“No, you are not.” Yongsun chuckled. Even though it was already the second time, she could still not get used to the younger woman’s over-dramatism and sentimental attitude.

“Do you know how much weight I have put on in just one week?” Byulyi kept complaining on the way to the living room. “It’s annoying that I’m always hungry.”

“I swear I won’t put anything into my mouth until dinner time!” The younger woman declared with a determined look.

“But I’ve bought your favorite ice cream.”

Yongsun covered with her free hand, her shoulders vibrating as she was trying her best to suppress her laughter. A giggle slipped out despite her effort. Yongsun quickly cleared . Luckily, the opposite person seemed not to pay attention to her weird behavior. 

“Is it that good?”

Byulyi replied with a hum, the small spoon was still in . “Do you want to try this flavor unnie?”

Before Yongsun could have a chance to respond, a spoonful of ice cream was brought near her lips. Her eyes met Byulyi’s expectant ones when she let the younger woman feed her. The ice cream melt, as well as her heart, when she watched Byulyi the remaining on the spoon happily.

Ice cream was definitely the sweetest thing in the world.

“So Minhee is staying in Bucheon for a week?”

Byulyi nodded. Her hands were still working diligently, scooping one spoon after another.

“Seulgi is staying at home on her holiday and Yesol is on her summer vacation. She hasn’t looked for me once.”

Yongsun laughed at the sulkiness in the younger woman’s voice.

“She’s having a good time with her aunties. You should enjoy yours.”

“What to enjoy when I’m trapped by these four walls?” Byulyi let out a dramatic sigh and continued. “I wish I could travel here and there, play under the sunshine and get tanned like you.”

“How can you get tanned when you always cover yourself from top to toe?” She teased and Byulyi pouted. “And you’ve already reached the second trimester, isn’t it safe to go out sometime?”

“It’s hot. I don’t want to step out of the house.”

Yongsun could only laugh awkwardly. It was impossible for her to understand how the mind of a pregnant woman functioned.

“When did you get home unnie?” Byulyi asked, her attention had gone back to the ice cream. Yongsun could already see the bottom of her cup.

“An hour ago.”

“Aren’t you tired? Why didn’t you take a rest?” The younger woman looked at her with concerned eyes.

“It was only a one-hour flight. Jeju is not that far.” Yongsun reassured her. “And I miss Minhee. I haven’t seen her for a week.”

“Minhee only?” Byulyi asked jokingly.

Yongsun just smiled.

The two then stayed silent. Byulyi was focusing on eating and Yongsun was watching her. It was not until she saw Byulyi put her empty cup of ice cream and reach out for another one that Yongsun finally broke the silence.

“Byul-ah, let’s save them to eat later.” Yongsun said in a hurry. All the cups she bought were in large size. “It’s not good to eat too much at once.” She used her softest voice to persuade the younger woman. The incident associating with ice cream during Byulyi’s previous pregnancy still haunted her until now.

 Byulyi froze her movement, which made Yongsun think that the younger woman obediently listened to her words. She was wrong. A nervous gulp stuck in when her eyes met Byulyi’s.

Puppy eyes,

Pouty lips,

Whiny noise,

A sniff.

“I got it, I got it.” Yongsun stood up in a rush, grabbed an unopened cup of ice cream and placed it in front of Byulyi. “You can eat, but only a half of it okay?”

Byulyi’s face lightened up in the blink an eye. The younger woman nodded her head, her eyes sparkling like a child getting treats. Yongsun smiled helplessly at the pure happiness on her face when Byulyi the remaining ice cream on the lid.

Both of them were gonna get in trouble with Junghoon later, she knew it well.

“What’s wrong?” Yongsun asked in surprise when Byulyi suddenly stopped eating after a few spoons. 

 Byulyi put her spoon down. The younger woman sat still and said nothing for a while, sometimes stealing a glance at her with wary eyes. Yongsun found her behavior adorable, it was like a child tried to confess after having accidentally broken her mom’s favorite vase.

“You can tell me Byul-ah.” Yongsun said with a gentle smile to encourage her.

“Unnie.” Byulyi finally spoke up. “Mom called me two days ago.”

“Your mom?”

Byulyi shook her head. “Your mom.”

Yongsun gave her a questioning look.  

“Yah! Did you forget I’m the Kim’s youngest daughter?”

Yongsun burst out laughing while the younger woman was glaring at her sulkily.

“Why did my mom call you?” She asked with a teasing grin on her face, somewhat to annoy Byulyi a little longer.

“She asked about me and the kids. She also asked about you.” The younger woman replied with a nervous look on her face. Her voice got smaller and smaller as she continued. “Mom said she was worried about you.”

“Me?” Yongsun tilted her head in curiosity. The grin on her face had already been taken back as it seemed not to suit the current atmosphere.

“Unnie, I know you don’t like me asking you these kinds of questions.” Byulyi sent her an apologetic look.

She could sense it was coming.  

“Are you still alone unnie?”

“Mom told me to introduce someone to you, but-” The younger woman said timidly while avoiding her gaze.

“I’m in love.”

Byulyi looked at her with wide-opened eyes.

“I have a lover.” Yongsun said with a bright smile.

----------------------------------------------------

“Yong-mommy!!”

The door was barely opened when Yongsun saw a small figure dash to her. She bent down out of habit, just in time to catch the toddler. Yongsun then stood up with ease, wrapping her arms securely around the small body while the little one was showering her face with welcoming kisses.

"You were not that happy when we picked you up yesterday."

Her eyes shifted to where the voice came from, to see Byulyi standing at the entrance of the kitchen, “jealousy” written obviously on her face.

“Yong-mommy, there’s something Minhee want to show you!” The little one said in excitement before slipping off her hold. Minhee’s tiny hand caught her wrist and dragged her somewhere else, leaving her Byul-mommy alone.

“Is she sleeping?”

A voice soft as a whisper from behind made Yongsun look up. She simply nodded and resumed staring at the sleeping toddler on her lap lovingly. Just ten minutes ago, Minhee was still energetic and jumping up and down on the trampoline with her.

“That’s understandable.” Byulyi walked into the living room with some snacks for them on her hands. “She woke up at half-past six today, to prepare and wait for you to come.”

Yongsun let out a small chuckle at that cute fact. She could not help but feeling heart-warmed.

“I will tuck her in bed.” Byulyi put the plates on the table and approached them.

“Let me.” Yongsun scooped Minhee into her arms and got up carefully. “Sit down and take a rest. You must be tired too.”

The toddler stirred as soon as she put her down on the bed in her room. Yongsun was not panic. She started humming a soft and low melody while her hand was patting the little one gently. It did not take long until she found Minhee stay quiet again, small chest heaved up and down in rhythm. Yongsun smiled proudly, it always worked.

The corner of her lips unconsciously went up as she looked at the little one’s peaceful sleeping face. Yongsun touched her pocket. A sigh escaped her lung as she realized her phone was not there, she must have left it in the living room. It was such a waste – Yongsun thought. She would ask Byulyi to send her some photos of sleeping Minhee later.

Yongsun could not remember how many photos and footage of Minhee she had saved on her phone.

Photos and footage since Minhee was a newborn,

The first time Minhee rolled from her tummy to her back,

The first time Minhee sat on her own,

The first time Minhee crawled,

The first time Minhee stood up without any help,

Minhee’s first three steps before she fell on her ,

The first time Minhee called her “Yong-mommy,”

And a lot of other “the first time.”

Some were taken by her, some were sent by Byulyi.

Yongsun saved everything. Even when her phone was out of memory space, she did not delete one.

Yongsun saved everything, so at the end of tiring days she could look at them and got healed.

Sometimes Yongsun scrolled down through the special folder she had created for only Minhee, to get startled by how fast time flew. When Junghoon first placed Minhee into her arms on the day the little one was born, she could cradle her tiny form with ease. But one year, two years, three years, gradually, she felt her embrace get smaller and smaller. Yongsun had a ridiculous fear that one day Minhee would not fit in her arms anymore.

There was night Yongsun laid on her bed and imagined. She imagined the day Minhee started going to school, the day Minhee was hit by puberty and became headstrong, the day Minhee got in university, the day Minhee got her first work… Her tears suddenly broke as she imagined the day Minhee got married. Yongsun then spent the rest of the night crying emotionally, pressing her face on the pillow to suppress her sobs but soon found it hard to breathe. Byulyi asked her about her swollen eyes when she came to their house the next day, too shy to say the truth, she lied that she had watched a very moving film.

Yongsun did not know since when her bond with the little one had become so strong. Maybe since the day Minhee first called her name, or maybe since the day Byulyi asked her to become Minhee’s godmother, or even… since the day Minhee recognized her voice and replied her with a kick when the little one was still in Byulyi’s belly. Yongsun did not really care about since when it started, she only wanted that it would last forever.

She wanted to be there on Minhee’s first school day.

She wanted to be there on Minhee’s graduation ceremony.

She wanted to be there on Minhee’s wedding day.

She wanted to be there and capture all milestones in Minhee’s life.

Because Minhee was her daughter.

“Unnie.” Byulyi’s voice dragged her out of her thought. The younger woman must have felt bored of being alone and searched for her. “Would you like a cup of tea?”

“I’d love to.” Yongsun replied without hesitation.

She got off the bed once she saw Byulyi leaving the room, not forget to put a light kiss on the little one’s chubby cheek. A photo on the bedside table caught her eyes when she was about to leave. It was the one taken at Minhee's 3-year-old birthday party. In that photo, there were Byulyi, Junghoon, Minhee, and her.

Her lips curved up. She did not know Byulyi had printed it out and put into a photo frame.

-----

Yongsun inhaled deeply, trying to fill her lung with that spicy yet sweet aroma while waiting for Byulyi to pour tea into two cups. She had used to find its fragrance displeasing, scrunching her nose when the younger woman first drank it in front of her. But days after days, she got used to it, even became curious about its taste as Byulyi would always drink it each time she came.

One day, the younger woman seemed to have read her mind, offering her to give it a try. Yongsun received the teacup in nervousness, sniffing it a few times until Byulyi laughed at her, telling her it was not a poison, and urged her to try. She then brought the cup to her lips reluctantly and took a sip with her closed eyes. Yongsun opened her eyes in surprise as the hot liquid went down . She was dumbfounded a bit, before taking another sip. It was not the taste she had expected.

 It was spicy, but not that fiery spiciness that made her annoyed, only tingly. It was hot, but not the hotness that burned , just mild. Its taste was not savory but more herbal in flavor, like a somewhat grassy tea without the bitterness. Yongsun felt warm entirely her body, a comfy and relaxing warmness as if she was embraced. From that moment, she knew she had found her favorite tea.

Yongsun received the teacup from Byulyi and took a sip without hesitation. The younger woman always served it lukewarm as in the past, there were times Yongsun forgot to blow and ended up burning her tongue with hot coffee. She hummed at the taste, warm and sweet. Byulyi always added an extra teaspoon of honey in her cup while teasing that her taste was so childish. Yongsun would never argue back. She did not feel there was a need to argue with someone who fought with her daughter over a