After things began to settle, Wheein and Hyejin were able to show Byulyi, Yongsun, and Sunhee around Jeonju. At times Byulyi would also remember the places they visited and even showed some secret hideaways that not even Wheein and Hyejin knew about.

During their trip around the town, Hyejin and Byulyi looked like best friends. It reminded Wheein of before they were dating except there wasn’t anything weird between them. Obviously, the doctor would flirt from time to time but the soldier could see that they were genuinely taking things slow and remaining platonic. 

Not only were things going great between the two exes but Wheein was happily enjoying her new relationship with Yongsun. The two were very lovey-dovey and sometimes Byulyi and Hyejin would find themselves gagging at the sight. Even Sunhee would scold her mother to stop acting weird.

In the afternoons, Wheein’s mother began showing Yongsun some of her recipes, and Wheein would try and follow along. Although she failed a couple of times, she was slowly getting the hang of it. 

Ever since the photo shoot, the little girl has also been getting into photography, so Wheein quickly bought her a camera and they would constantly take photos. Byulyi showed her more of the basics while Wheein helped set up scenes or suggest lighting. 

At nights, the two love-birds would read Sunhee’s bedtime stories or watch cartoons together. Wheein’s mother would join them from time to time and at one point she began showing the blonde’s baby photos. 

“Mom! You’re not allowed to show this!!!” Wheein yelled trying to cover up a photo of her as a baby, in a bathtub.

“Aw, Wheein, you’re so cute! Look at your chubby cheeks,” Yongsun exclaimed, pushing the soldier away so she could look more closely at the photo. 

“Yeah Wheein unnie, you look as adorable as me,” Sunhee also added and the blonde pouted.

“Mom, look what you did.” Wheein’s mother just laughed at her daughter and Wheein just let out a defeated huff. “Ugh, I’m going to get a snack that way I don’t have to see this.”

Everyone ignored Wheein’s remark and continued to look at more photos. At one point, a photo of a young Wheein with her father showed up and Yongsun carefully observed the photo. 

“She looks like him, doesn’t she?” The elder woman whispered and Yongsun looked up in surprise before giving a timid smile.

“Yes, they look very alike.”

“Who is that, mommy?” Sunhee asked after looking at the photo and Wheein’s mother frowned a bit.

“That’s my dad, kid.” The two women turned their heads to find Wheein looking over the little girl’s shoulder with a sad look.

“Where is he?” The innocent question made the room darken and Wheein’s mother tried to hide her intense frown. 

“I’m not sure… He left a long time ago,” the soldier answered honestly and Sunhee nodded her head before looking down. 

“Oh… I don’t know where my dad is either…” the little girl’s voice broke a bit and Yongsun quickly went and held her daughter, trying to hold back her tears. 

Wheein went over and sat next to Sunhee and gestured to Yongsun if she could hold her and she agreed. Sunhee quickly shifted from her mother to Wheein and held the blonde tight, crying softly in her chest. 

“Hey, don’t be sad. You know we’re lucky right?” The little girl lifted her head confused with tears in her eyes. “We have our mothers to be there for us. They love us even more and always will and we’re lucky to have them.” The two mothers smiled at the woman’s words.

“You’re right Wheein unnie. We are lucky,” Sunhee agreed as she sniffled back some tears and went to hug both her mother and Wheein. 

Yongsun looked over to her girlfriend and when they made eye contact she mouthed a small thank you and the blonde just smiled in response. Even though there was a somber look behind Wheein’s eyes, she remained brave. 

That night, Yongsun, Wheein, and Sunhee decided to all sleep on the couch together with the little girl in between the two women. They held each other close and before Wheein’s mother went to sleep she secretly took a photo and smiled at the sight.

“I’m as lucky as you…” the mother whispered as she looked at her daughter before turning off the lights and heading to bed. 

Their trip was slowly coming to an end and everyone was trying their best to enjoy the time they had left. However, the second to last day before they had to leave was not as joyful since it was the anniversary of Hyejin’s father’s death.

Around 4 A.M., Wheein got a phone call that woke up both her and Yongsun. The soldier quickly answered and was only met with labored breathing. 

“Hyejin?” Wheein asked worriedly and Yongsun gave her a sleepy and confused look. “Are you outside?” When she heard a small yes, the blonde quickly got out of bed and told her girlfriend to just stay put. 

Opening the door, she found her best friend sitting at the entrance with a bottle of wine in her hands and dried tears on her face. 

“Hyejinie, let’s get you inside,” Wheein said calmly before reaching over and effortlessly helping the woman up and into the house. She placed the woman on her couch and quickly got a bunch of blankets to warm the shivering girl. 

When the soldier sat down, Hyejin instantly held the woman’s waist, burying her face in her lap. Wheein just held the girl tight while running her fingers through her hair. 

“I- I miss him…” the brunette let out in a small, broken voice. 

“I know.”

“Why did he have to leave?” The question broke Wheein’s heart because she had no answer. 

“I don’t know, Hyejinie…”

“Promise to never leave me.” The soldier had to stop herself from crying when she heard the absolute heartbreak behind Hyejin’s words.

“I promise I will never leave you.”

“Can-can I stay w-with you tonight.” The blonde woman just held her best friend tighter.

“Of course you can.”

Eventually, the woman passed out from exhaustion and Wheein was going to fall asleep as well but a small knock on the door woke up her senses. When the door opened, the soldier was about to grab the nearest thing to attack the intruder but when she turned around she saw Byulyi standing there with a concerned look.

“I fell asleep and when I woke up she wasn’t there. I assumed she came here,” the doctor explained, sitting down next to Hyejin. 

“She called me and was outside my door drunk. I’m glad she didn’t try and go to his grave.” 

“Has she done that before?” 

“The first year of his death. She walked all the way to his grave in the rain. She ended up having a cold for almost a month.” Byulyi frowned and continued watching the sleeping woman.

“Do you want to head back to bed? I’ll stay with her,” the doctor suggested but Wheein just shook her head.

“It’s fine unnie. I promised to not leave her side.” Byulyi nodded and tried to make herself more comfortable on the couch. The two held the brunette the best they could before slowly drifting back to sleep.

When Wheein woke up, she found her friend still sleeping on her lap. The pain on her hip was burning more than usual but she didn’t want to wake Hyejin. Looking around with squinted eyes, she saw Yongsun sitting where Byulyi was and she gave a small smile.

“Good morning, unnie,” the blonde whispered.

“Morning. Byulyi went back to change and take a shower. She should be back soon.” Wheein nodded and looked down at her friend again. “Do you want to get ready? I’ll stay with her.”

“No, it’s okay. I want to be here when she wakes up,” the soldier answered softly even though she was still uncomfortable.

“Wheein-ah just go,” Hyejin grumbled with her eyes still closed and Wheein looked at the brunette in surprise.

“You sure?” 

“Yeah, we need to leave soon anyway,” the woman finally opened her eyes and slowly got off the couch as though everything was fine.

“Alright, let me know when you’re ready.” Hyejin nodded before stretching and then hugging her best friend tight.

“Thank you for last night,” the brunette whispered and Wheein patted the woman on the back.

“I promised, didn’t I?” 

After Hyejin left, Wheein went to go get ready for the day. They were going to visit Hyejin’s father’s grave and then have dinner all together prepared by Wheein’s and Hyejin’s mothers. 

While she was changing her bandage, she saw that the inflammation was getting bad again but she assumed it was because of Hyejin sleeping on it throughout the night. She winced while putting on some medicine before quickly putting everything away when she heard her girlfriend knock on the door. 

Yongsun got ready with her girlfriend not noticing the slight pain the blonde was in before helping her daughter change into something more appropriate. The mother had to explain what was happening and the little girl listened intently, not asking any questions. 

When everyone was finished getting ready, Wheein got a call from Byulyi telling her that they were headed to Hyejin’s father’s grave. Wheein took their own car and drove to the grave. The car ride was subdued due to the situation but Yongsun held the soldier’s hand the entire drive, calming her a bit. 

When they arrived, they found the three women already cleaning the grave and they began helping. After they cleaned the grave, they began offering food and praying. 

The entire time, Wheein was right beside Hyejin while Byulyi was on the other side. The brunette didn’t cry at all but both of her friends knew she was just trying to remain strong. Hyejin’s mother, on the other hand, was more emotional. Since she was in front of Hyejin, her daughter tried her best to console her mom. 

Eventually, their ritual was coming to an end but Hyejin didn’t want to leave right away. The two oldest women understood and said they would head back to start dinner. 

“Oh, ajummas, I can help,” Yongsun offered, getting up to follow the two women but Wheein’s mother stopped her. 

“It’s