She blinked once. Twice. Multiple times.      She frantically shook her head. Opened her fatigued eyes.      But…the tiny fingers wrapped around her index finger wouldn’t disappear. The child’s presence was exerting intensity. Her eyes felt pain from trying to escape reality. Her reality was difficult to digest.      Her older sister’s funeral just concluded. The little girl clenching her hand was left in her care.      Her feet were frozen outside the funeral home unable to process what to do next. Her parents were already heading back to her small hometown in the countryside much in disappointment.      After years of their eldest daughter not visiting home, the first news they heard was she passed due to a tragic traffic accident. Not worst enough, when they arrived in the unfamiliar bustling city of Seoul, one tiny little being ran into their arms calling them grandma and grandpa. Unable to comprehend with the shocking news, they returned home as soon as the funeral ended. Being the lucky family member, she was left to bare all the responsibilities of the elders.        She was named Oh Youngni, nineteen years old, moved to Seoul a year ago when life as a college student began. Both sisters had no intention to share a common space nor intervene with the other’s personal affairs. They only enjoyed each other’s company once in a while. So, all she knew at the moment: her older sister was named Oh Chaeyeon and the kid holding her hand was named Kim Taeguk, 4 years old.      The father must have been from a family surname of Kim. Unless there was a plot twist somewhere. Another fact for sure: her name was Oh Youngni, the lucky guardian of Kim Taeguk. She had no clue what merit she did in the world to earn such an adorable trophy. Calling Taeguk adorable didn’t mean she acknowledged Chaeyeon as someone endearing. Just at that thought she wanted to vomit the omelet she ate in the morning.      It must have been the father who Taeguk took after. The father? Father? At this point all Youngni could picture was an alien from outer planet. He was unheard of, so that described him just right. Must have been one heck of a cute alien.        Life as a substitute mother was tremendously tiring. She applauded all mothers. Taeguk cried nonstop for the first few days she’d been under Youngni’s care. She constantly looked for her mother and father. Sometimes, Youngni heard Uncles. She was just pitiful. Her eyes were swollen. She held Taeguk crying herself to sleep countless times. The words, Auntie I want to see my Mommy. Auntie, I want to see my Daddy, were engraved inside her. The big tears escaping Taeguk’s eyes were planted beneath her eyelids. She couldn’t escape even when she closed her eyes. Her heart clamped unbreathable when she imagined herself in Taeguk’s shoe.         Youngni would like to describe her life as one with no stops. Constant waves crashing. Gigantic ones. When her parents arrived at the hospital Chaeyeon’s cold body laid, they were greeted by their granddaughter. Someone apparently left the kid outside the hospital with legal document that Kim Taeguk was under temporary care of Oh Youngni until the father returned. Somebody was able to complete these documents amidst this tragedy. There were many things that remained a mystery.      Her parents weren’t the only two in the dark, in shock. So, was she. Throughout the funeral, her parents didn’t say much, and she didn’t have much to share either. As much as she tried to think and imagine, she couldn’t cut and paste a story line that would explain Chaeyeon’s situation. She took a mental note to adopt a new hobby.      Youngni was handed some allowance to care for Taeguk, before her parents went back to Boseong. That wasn’t what Youngni needed. Chaeyeon’s insurance covered more than that. What she needed was how to care for a child. No advice was given on how to survive with a toddler.        Reality resumed when she felt a tug on her finger. The most pitiful kid staring straight at her. Taeguk finally was able to crack a smile after a month of weeping. She cried during her mother’s funeral but she was rather clueless. Her mother would never return. Her sister would never return. Their daughter would never return. Someone’s wife? woman? would never return. There was no going back. Youngni knew that.      Taeguk was now her responsibility. A responsibility too heavy for her to bare.        “I want to go home.” The word ‘home’ echoed in You