It was almost lunchtime on Thursday and Yewon had come home from the office early, and as she walked into her empty apartment, the loneliness hit her again. She hovered just inside the doorway of her apartment before she stepped back out into the hallway and grabbed her phone out of her pocket.

“Kim,” she said as soon as Sojung picked up the phone. “I need your help.”

“With what?” Sojung asked, her tone serious for once.

“I need you to take me to an animal shelter,” Yewon told her, smiling at the muffled shout of enthusiasm on the other end. Sojung promised she would be there as soon as possible before hanging up, and Yewon walked downstairs to wait for her outside.

~

~

“Okay, so what kind of dog are we talking about?” Sojung asked as they walked into the animal shelter.

“I don’t know. A small one?” Yewon said, unsure as she spoke. “Like a lapdog? One that’s like a companion.”

“For ’s sake, Kim. You’re not getting some posh girl dog. You’re not Paris Hilton,” Sojung said, rolling her eyes.

“I mean, technically I’m richer than her, but whatever,” Yewon smirked at Sojung, who rolled her eyes.

They were greeted by a staff member and spent a few moments answering some questions about Yewon’s situation to help find out what kind of dog would be suitable for her. After filling out some details, they were taken back to the rows and rows of cages full of different dogs, and Yewon’s heart sank at the sight of so many abandoned animals.

“How am I supposed to just pick one?” Yewon said to Sojung, frowning slightly.

“That is also one of the reasons whyEunha never let Eunbi and I come here,” Sojung laughed. “We would probably come home with five each and Eunha would probably kill us and dump our bodies down by the docks or something.”

“You know, sometimes I’m not sure if you’re joking or not,” Yewon murmured, and Sojung laughed as she peered into the first cage.

What about a corgi?” Sojung asked, “They’re not too small but they're also not like...the lamest dogs ever.”

“Who am I? The queen of England?” Yewon said, rolling her eyes.

They spent the better part of two hours debating the pros and cons of each dog until Yewon finally found one and Sojung gave her approval. They ended up stuffing Sojung’s car with Yewon’s new dog and a thousand toys and products for the dog.

~

~

“Hi!” Yewon smiled widely as Eunbi’s face appeared on the screen on Yewon’s tablet.

“Uh oh, what happened?” Eunbi replied, smiling as she took in Yewon’s wide smile.

“So...um...it’s completely Sojung’s fault. You know how it’s always her fault, right? So anyway, I might have taken her advice and….adopted a dog.” Yewon said, trying to look innocent.

“You got a dog?” Eunbi repeated, her eyebrows shooting up in surprise. “You got a dog? I thought you were joking when you said you were going to get one.”

“Mhm, I didn’t really think I would do it. Do you want to see her?” Yewon asked, her eyes lighting up with excitement.

“Um- is that a trick question? Of course, I do! I love dogs!” Eunbi smiled, finding Yewon’s excitement contagious, even through the screen. Not that she needed any help. Considering the fact the Eunbi was a walking ball of sunshine, practically bursting with excitement. Yewon flipped the camera around and focused it on the dog laying in the basket.

“Yewon, that’s not a dog. That’s a stuffed toy,” Eunbi laughed, as she looked at the small dog chewing on a toy bone.

“I know,” Yewon said, wrinkling her nose slightly as she flipped the camera back around to herself. “I told Sojung I wanted a small lapdog and then I saw her and I couldn’t help myself...and Sojung agreed...so, again...her fault not mine.”

Eunbi laughed, clapping a hand over . “I’m shocked. I didn’t expect this kind of spontaneity from you.”

“Sorry, maybe I should've asked you first. Are you okay with having a dog? Like, when we move in together...is it going to be a problem?” Yewon asked, her forehead furrowing with worry.

“No! Of course not!” Eunbi assured her. “I love dogs! I’m sure I’ll love her when I meet her. I know you wouldn’t get a dog unless you were sure it was the right fit. What’s her name?”

“Oh! Her name is Angkko!” Yewon said excitedly.

“Angkko?” Eunbi echoed.

“Yeah! I can’t really explain it, but she just looks like an Angkko. The name just fits her,” Yewon tried to explain but still smiled widely at Eunbi.

“It sounds like she was made exactly for us,” Eunbi said, her eyes crinkling at the corners as she smiled at Yewon.

“Right!” Yewon agreed enthusiastically.

Eunbi laughed softly at her enthusiasm. “I’ve never seen you this excited before. I like it.”

“I guess we can cross ‘Yewon’s first dog’ off your list,” she told Eunbi with a smile.

“I’m not going to come home and find out you’ve turned your apartment into an animal shelter, am I? Eunbi asked, arching an eyebrow.

Yewon let out a short laugh. “No, I think one dog is more than enough. I might have to up Solar’s pay to get her to take Angkko on walks for me. I figured that when you get home you can take her with you on your jogs.”

“Sounds perfect,” Eunbi agreed.

“So, how was your day?” Yewon asked, taking in the dark circles under Eunbi’s eyes. She looked tired and Yewon was concerned.

“Yeah, it was good. Nothing too exciting today,” Eunbi told her though. Have you been sleeping okay?”

“I’m fine. It’s nothing,” Eunbi said, trying to reassure Yewon. It didn’t work though. Yewon saw straight through her fake optimism, knowing what Eunbi’s real smile looked like.

“What’s wrong?” Yewon asked, a feeling of panic growing inside her as her mind thought about every possible bad thing that could have happened.

“Really it’s nothing, just some trouble with the soldiers. It’s not as easy as it seems in training when you get out here with dozens of people under your command. I swear I’ve never yelled so much in my life. Obviously with the guys they don’t like being bossed around by a woman, so a lot of them think they can get away with disobeying orders.”

Yewon listened sympathetically while Eunbi ranted for the next ten minutes about the soldiers in her company, and how insufferable they were. She only stopped

talking when they were interrupted by a soldier barging in.

“Lieutenant,” the man said hesitantly.

“Out!” Eunbi barked, not even turning around, and Yewon’s eyes widened at her tone. She had never heard Eunbi shout before, not seriously and definitely not in this tone.

“Lieutenant! Ma’am-” the man said again, causing Eunbi to whirl around.

“Private! Do I have to repeat myself?” Eunbi yelled. “Outside! Or I’ll make sure you’re running laps around camp all night instead of sleeping! Have I made-”

She was cut off by a loud booming sound that caused the camera on her tablet to shake. Eunbi snapped into action, whirling back around to the camera as she picked up her rifle. Her face had gone pale, and her eyes widened as she looked at Yewon.

“Eunbi, what was that?” Yewon asked, her own face turning white as all the blood drained out of it in fear.

“Yewon, I have to go. I’m sorry, I’ll call you as soon as possible. I love you,” Eunbi rushed out, a flicker of panic crossing her face.

“Wha- I love you too,” Yewon said quickly, realizing there wasn’t much time to say anything else. The call was cut off without another word, and Yewon sat there frozen for a moment. She stared down at the dark screen of her tablet, as terror overtook her and she let out a choked-up sob. Her panic got the better of her, and she sat there breathing rapidly as she tried to calm herself down.

Her first thought went to Eunha.

Eunha would know what to do. She just had to go and see Eunha and she would calm her down. It would be okay.

She stood up quickly, causing Angkko to prick her ears as she stood to attention, Yewon rushed around the apartment, pulling on a coat over PJs and slipping on some shoes. She picked up the leash she had dropped on the counter and whistled for Angkko to come over.

They were downstairs a few moments later, and Yewon slid into the driver’s seat. She rarely used her own car, but right now, she had to get to Eunha’s apartment as soon as possible.

~

~

Yewon banged on the door to Eunha’s apartment, and when there wasn’t an immediate answer, she banged again, not stopping until Eunha yanked the door open with an irritated look on her face.

“Oh, it’s you,” Eunha said with surprise. “It’s the middle of the day, what are you wearing? Whose dog is that?”

“Something happened,” Yewon said breathlessly, on the verge of tears, as she walked inside with Angkko. “I was talking to Eunbi and t-there were these loud noises. Like bombs. She said she had to go. I don’t know what’s happening.”

Her eyes filled with tears that Yewon willed not to fall, and her hand shook as she ran it through her hair.

“. , Oh God,” Eunha said, looking as if she had just been kicked in the stomach. She took a few deep breaths as she paced back and forth. “No. No. No, no. She’s fine. This had happened before. It’s going to be okay.”

Yewon nodded as she stood there silently, trying to calm herself down too. “Right. Yeah, she's fine. She’ll probably call back soon, right?” Yewon asked, looking at Eunha with a hopeful look on her face. To her surprise, Eunha broke down crying, collapsing onto her couch as she put her head in her hands. Yewon stood there in shock, not knowing how to react. The tears in her eyes welled over, as she told herself it must be bad if Eunha was crying.

She jumped as Eunha let out an angry yell. “! I told her! I told her not to go back! I’m going to kill her when she comes home, I swear to god.”

Eunha’s shout tore Yewon out of her dazed state, and she quickly dropped the dog leash and sat down next to Eunha. For the first time, Yewon realized how hard this was for her. Eunha had been trying to keep it together, for Yewon’s sake, and for the sake of keeping up appearances. She was always the tough sister in the family.

Last time, Yewon and Eunha had both pretended to ignore the other’s crying, knowing that neither of them wanted to make a fuss about it. But this time, Yewon wrapped one of her arms around Eunha, pulling her in closer. She half expected Eunha to resist, and was surprised when she let Yewon pull her into her arms without fighting.

Yewon held her close until she stopped crying, stamping down her own fear and panic for the time being. If she fell to pieces too it wouldn’t help either of them. Right now, she just had to try and stay calm, and wait for Eunbi to call her back. Eunha pushed herself upright, and Yewon kept one arm around her shoulder as they sat there side by side.

“I’m sorry,” Eunha said hoarsely, looking embarrassed at breaking down. “I think that it’ll get easier the more times she goes, but I just spent the entire time panicking, you know? I meant it when I said she’ll be okay. I’m just- I’m stressed. Ignore me.”

“Don’t apologize. I know you’ve been trying to be strong, but it’s okay to not be. You love your sister, of course, you’re worried. You’ve had to deal with this longer than I have and I’m barely keeping it together myself,” Yewon said quietly, rubbing her eyes with the sleeve of her coat.

“I’m sorry if I shouldn’t have come over, I just- I didn’t know what to do. You’re the only person I can come to with this, and I thought you would want to know, but maybe I should’ve just waited it out,” Yewon mumbled.

“No,” Eunha firmly tells her. “No, you were right. If anything ever happens to her we tell each other, okay? Don’t wait to find out if she’s okay first.”

Yewon nodded, pausing slightly before continuing. “Should y-you call your mom?”

Eunha sighed, running one hand through her hair. “Yeah. I’ll call her in a minute.”

“I’ll...um..make some coffee I guess,'' Yewon said, standing up and pulling her coat off before she walked into the kitchen. She busied herself with the coffee, listening to the quiet conversation Eunha was having with Jessica on the phone. Her tone was calm and reassuring, a huge contrast to how she had been only a few minutes earlier.

Yewon walked over with two cups, handing one off to Eunha as she hung up the phone. She mumbled her thanks and sipped the coffee. “My mom is going to come and stay for a few days,” Eunha told her, and Yewon nodded. Of course, Jessica would come to stay with Eunha. Yewon couldn’t help but think about how awful it wou