It was September again.

Jisoo wouldn’t have noticed if it weren’t for the opened window above her, the cool, autumn breeze wafting in and the edges of the pages of the notebook she was writing on. Ink on parchment, the scratches filled the noise of what would’ve been the electric buzz of cicadas of the countryside. Has the summer gone by that quickly?

In the outskirts of Seoul — a land of greenery that stretched far and wide to the horizon with some hills and a winding cobble path — was their cottage. Foreseeably, JYP didn’t hire Jisoo. Nonetheless, the city of Seoul wasn’t for them; getting a house for a good price was hard, and it was too close to the devil’s abode. Thus, they settled in the countryside miles away from any city.

Just as she was writing the last word of the paragraph, a sharp pain contracted in the center of her palm and the pen clattered onto the wooden desk. She massaged it — slow, small circles to ease the tension and shaking — and released an unsteady breath. The side of her hand was stained black. A lot of progress on her novel must’ve been made today. The green had turned golden from the setting sun, the rays washing the living room and glistening the black ink in its glow.

Jennie should come home soon.

Jisoo smiled when the front door clicked open, swiveling around on her wooden chair to Jennie folding up a stroller as she stumbled into their small home, kicking off her shoes in the process. A brown, fluffy Pomeranian waddled in from between her legs, making his way toward the water bowl at the foot of the kitchen table.

“Hey,” Jisoo greeted, crossing her arms on the chair’s backing and resting her chin on them.

“Hey!” Jennie chirped, unwrapping her scarf and tossing it onto the hooks beside the entrance. “Hold on, let me get the groceries from outside.”

While Jennie zipped out the door, Jisoo chuckled and carefully stood up, using the table and chair for support until her feet were firm and stable on the floorboards. On the way to the kitchen table — a square one, fit for two people and nothing more — she the dog’s fur before taking a seat, his tail wagging enthusiastically as he lapped the water.

“When will you walk Dalkuma like a normal dog instead of pushing him around like a baby?” Jisoo quipped when Jennie returned with tote bags in each arm and a stack of paper under her armpit.

“He likes it,” Jennie pouted, heaving the bags onto the counter and dropping the papers on the table. “Don’t you, Dalkuma?” she cooed, scratching his fur. He, with his tongue out, simply panted, reveling in his mother’s coddles.

“He has to walk someday. What if he gets spoiled and never wants to walk? We’d have to carry him around everywhere.”

“Don’t worry, he does walk! I take him out to the rice field and he chases squirrels.” Jennie stood up and nudged her chin toward the pile of mail. “Chaeyoung sent the month’s royalties.”

“Great.” Jisoo sifted through the envelopes to find a white one with the said girl’s neat handwriting on the front. “Maybe we can buy a radio with this.”

“Have you eaten anything yet?” Jennie queried, the sleeves of her sweater rolled up to her elbows as she unpacked the groceries.

“Not yet.”

“Good. I learned a new recipe from the grandma next door and I want to cook it. Also!” The girl bounced from the ticking stove with a paper in her hand. With a wide gummy smile, she unfolded it, revealing a flyer for a job. “The grocery store is looking to hire. The cashier was super nice and he said he would refer me to his manager. I think I should take the opportunity, don’t you think? This area is so small; it’s hard to find jobs.”

“That’s amazing!” Jisoo exclaimed and Jennie’s face brightened tenfold. “I do think so.”

“Okay, I’ll apply.” Jennie slammed the flyer on the table and puffed her chest, two hands on her hips. “I’ll work hard to do my part in our home, and save up for a camera.”

“Let me just buy it for you.” Jisoo rolled her eyes, the statement said for what seemed like the thousandth time. “We have the money.”

Jennie shook her head and wiggled her finger. “No, I’ll buy it with my own money. The royalties should go to you and the essentials. Oops! I left the stove on —”

For dinner, Jennie made stir-fried noodles; a big bowl of it, and they sat with two smaller plates and ate their fill. Jennie looked a lot more comfortable eating, and Jisoo found it hard to focus on swirling the noodles between her chopsticks in front of the girl’s elation as she talked about her day; crescent eyes, gummy smile, animated hands, and all.

“Some kids were playing soccer nearby and almost kicked the ball at a potted plant… The sky was beautiful today. It’s so clear compared to the city… I found a beautiful area on the way back — it has a lake and everything. We should go sometime…”

All the while Jisoo listened silently and intently, chin propped on her palm, until her cheeks hurt and the last of the noodles were eaten by Jennie. Some beef was given to Dalkuma lurking by their feet.

Afterward, Jennie went to shower and Jisoo returned to her workspace. What used to be the sun rays was now moonlight that illuminated the room and desk, the notebook laid closed at the center. Jisoo sighed upon sitting down, placing the royalties to the side, and opened the drawer to pull out the familiar worn-leather journal.

“You’re still working?” Jennie’s gentle voice was accompanied by the fresh scent of lavender shampoo.

“Thinking about it,” Jisoo said, leaning her head back on Jennie’s stomach when her soft arms wrapped around her shoulders. The girl’s skin was cool from the water’s residue. “My brain is still running.”

“Come to bed,” Jennie whined with a tiny pout, Jisoo’s fringe. “I want to sleep.”

“You can’t sleep without me?”

“I can. It’s just that you stay up late at night and we don’t fall asleep together.”

“Sorry, I’m a night owl.”

“I know, so come to bed right now. At least lay with me until I sleep.”

“Okay, I’ll be there in a bit. I need to finish something up first.”

“You better,” Jennie teased, planting a chaste kiss on Jisoo’s forehead that had a hint of a smile.

When all was silent — save for Jennie bidding Dalkuma goodnight — Jisoo caressed the journal’s cover before flipping to the first page. Her finger traced over the ancient ink long embedded into the parchment. She uncapped her fountain pen and wrote underneath the founding words of the odyssey.

Jennie loves Jisoo because she’s so cool. Jisoo loves Jennie because she’s so cool, too. They marry each other and run away to a cottage in the woods. They lived happily ever after. The end <3