A/N: Usual rules apply, flashbacks are in italic, single lines for short time skip, double for long periods of time. There is some cursing here and there. Good read.

A cup of orange juice was placed in front of her by the owner of the diner, Nako giving her a smile as she waited for her to pick it up and drink – Chaewon only sighed in annoyance, looking at the drink with a grimace. "I asked for your strongest drink and you give me ing orange juice?" She complained to the woman who was a longtime friend of hers.

"You just left the hospital, and this is a diner not a bar. You need to take it easy." Nako replied, pushing the cup in her direction once more. "Go ahead and drink it. You can have as many beers as you want once you no longer need a cane to go around the block."

Chaewon glared at her but the shorter woman didn't mind her, going back to the kitchen to get some stuff done instead. Kim sighed again, as she took a sip of the juice and winced – clearly it didn’t have any sugar. Just another ty thing to her new ty life.

She looked around the restaurant that was nearly empty of people but full of memories. It still looked like it used to, the same leather seats and old walls painted blue, the same smell of fried chicken and Nako's special cheese sticks. However, nothing else in that town was the same – looks were surely deceiving.

The cane she left beside her seat was proof of it, the long stick made out of wood that she now used to help her rest her weight on when her legs failed her – what still happened an annoying number of times regardless of her stubbornness in abandoning it. The doctors said she wouldn't need it for long if she kept up with the physical therapy and had a proper diet to regain her body mass; she didn't feel especially patient though.

Being out of the hospital for a few days didn't make her feel better as expected, it was almost the opposite as she realized she didn't fit in at all in the city that used to be her home. But where else could she go? After five years, she was completely lost.

Kim Chaewon's first words in five years was a strong, quiet but yet full of feeling sentence: ", my head is killing me!"

Such words didn't surprise anyone – the fact that a girl who was supposed to be in a coma spoke, did. Especially when said girl had been in a coma for over five years now.

She was barely conscious, vision blurry and head spinning as she tried and failed to sit down on her own. She could hear the quick steps around her, the people shouting and the beeping of machines, but she couldn't understand what was happening. All she knew, as a blurry figure dressed in white approached, was that something was really wrong.

Her final words that day were: "What the hell!"

Moments like this would happen with frequency for the next few days as Kim Chaewon slowly slipped back into reality.

No one knew exactly why she woke up, doctors had done their best for such a long time, yet she only returned when no one expected her to – the papers over the desk, very importanting papers her sisters had been reading and rereading for so many times to try to decide her fate, were disposed before any of them could sign it.

It was a miracle, as simple as that. Yet, Chaewon didn't feel very blessed – she felt half dead actually; and so, so incredibly confused.

The doctors poked her with needles, nurses kept on checking on her, her sisters would come and give her bone-crushing hugs but would say very little. Her hair, that was once long and reddish-brown, was now mid-lenght and back to the original black color. The skin of her arms was sickly pale, with purple spots marking all the times she received an injection – there were many; those same arms that looked so thin right now, just like the rest of her body seemed to be. There was also a new addiction, the deformed skin of her left forearm, the white lines of the scars almost camouflaged by her pale skin – scars she didn’t remember ever getting. No one gave her a mirror, but she had the impression she wouldn’t like what she would see once she could finally find one; not that she bothered trying to do so for a while.

She was tired, so tired she could barely stay awake for more than a couple of minutes at time. It was like she was a baby once again, where even the smallest tasks took so much of her – bringing herself to sit, holding the spoon to eat, swallowing the food and choking halfway through, struggling to articulate words that could be heard...After having a meal all she wanted to do was to sleep, so much that she couldn’t even annoy her sisters with questions – or almost.

She still had one question that she couldn’t forget, something that even in her fragile state, was big and bright in her mind as if she couldn’t ever allow herself to forget.

“Where is Minjoo?”

Her question wasn’t met by straight answers, but with worried looks and heavy sighs.

“She is busy with work.. She will come when she can….But you should sleep now, you need to rest first.” Was what they usually said, Eunbi and Yena stumbling upon their own words as they spoke.

Chaewon wasn’t satisfied with their words, but with the help of the strong medicine the nurses kept on giving her, she wasn’t able to hold a thought for too long and all the questions ended up buried in the depths of her mind as she drifted off to sleep over and over again.

It took her a week to be able to actually start taking control of her body again and to be able to hold a proper conversation with anyone – she almost wished she couldn’t after she received the news.

She was sitting on her bed with a pretty female doctor – the neurologist who had been looking after her for the last five years, the one Yena introduced to her as Arin – at her right and Eunbi and her tall wife, Sian, at her left, all of them carrying heavy expressions and stiff smiles.

"Can you just tell me what happened? You know, I have a wedding to attend...My wedding." She finally said after the three women had been bothering her with silly questions about what she remembers and how she felt, for the last half an hour. She was getting restless, being locked in that room for days, and when she finally woke up properly, no one would tell her anything.

Her mind couldn't help but worry, Minjoo's face always in her thoughts, even though the woman was never really there. Minjoo wasn't the type that would simply forget about her at the hospital in favor of work – what type of work could she be doing outside of the town to begin with? Minjoo worked at her family's shop.

"Chaewon, the wedding is not happening anymore." Eunbi finally said with a grave expression, she looked almost sad as she continued. "It was supposed to happen a long time ago, you were sleeping and it was cancelled." She gave her an apologetic look as she sat beside her, hands holding onto hers for comfort.

Chaewon blinked in confusion, feeling her chest growing heavy just like a numb feeling started to dominate her body. It made no sense and she didn’t like that feeling at all.

"What do you mean by a long time ago?" She managed to say, her voice strained as horror started to climb inside of her. "I was gone for a week to check the project site, just one week!"

"You went to a construction site to inspect a new project. There was a power failure at the building you were at and...there was a fire." Eunbi started, looking over at the Sian for support, as if she couldn’t do it on her own – and she probably couldn’t, ruining her sister’s hopes and dreams wasn’t a pleasant task.

“There was a fire and everyone tried to leave the building but the structure started to collapse. A pillar fell over you and you passed out…They were able to rescue you before it was too late, but you had several injuries and they had to put you in an induced coma to help you heal. You did, but you didn't wake up as expected.” The doctor informed, her brown eyes heavy as she spoke. She was a pediatrician, therefore she could only follow the case from a distance, but she did all she could to help back then.

"We aren't sure about the reason why but coma patients are unpredictable, and your case was a special one." The other doctor present intervened, her expression well composed as she tried to explain it to Chaewon without causing more distress. “We tried everything we could, but there is only so much we can do without risking your wellbeing. So we had to wait until you were ready to wake up on your own.”

“We didn’t know if you would wake up or even survive. It took so long until we could transfer you back here and…" Eunbi spoke again, her hands grabbing tightly to Chaewon's cold ones. “You have no idea how happy we were when we heard you woke up!”

Blinking in confusion, Chae felt her head pound as if their words were hitting her hard – and they were, destroying the reality she thought she knew, to present a much worse one. “Minjoo?” Was all Chaewon could ask – all she could think of. If she never came back home, what happened to her fiancée? Why wasn’t she there? What happened to her?

The three women exchanged looks, an uncomfortable silence taking over as Chaewon looked at them for answers. Eunbi made a face, heaving a sigh. “She is fine, but she is not here now. She…” Pursing her lips into a line, she averted her gaze, making it obvious she was about to deliver bad news. "Chaewon, you have been sleeping for five years and things changed. We all had to move on."

“Five years?! But I...I…, this can’t be real.” Chaewon felt the air leaving her lungs as she held onto tightly to her chest – it was no longer heavy, but now felt empty, as if she had lost everything; She had. “She isn’t coming, is she?” She risked it in a small voice, afraid of the answer she already knew.

Eunbi shook her head in a negative, squeezing her hand to try and comfort her. “We told her it would be better if she didn’t, at least for now.”

"You are still in a delicate state. The tests haven't shown anything worrying, but your mental health is also important." Arin completed as if to excuse her sister's actions. "Your CT scan showed that your brain activity is normal, but you should talk to our psychologist first and…"

Chaewon didn't bother listening to them anymore. All she could think about was how Minjoo had moved on – without her, from her. How everything seemed to have progressed while she was stuck in the past, as if she no longer existed at all. “She left me. We never even got the chance of getting married and she already left me." She muttered more to herself than anyone, but still Eunbi involved her in a hug that Chae couldn’t return.

“It’s not so simple. Believe me, Minjoo wouldn't leave you so easily." The older woman reassured, her voice unstable as she hugged her tightly. For everyone, the past five years had been a long and complicated time, and no one was left unscratched – Chaewon would learn it eventually. "Please, rest a lot. I will explain things better later."

She sunk into her seat, drinking the sour juice as she recalled the even sour memories. She used to come here to eat with Minjoo every week, now she couldn't even see her – she didn't want to. Or at least she told herself so. It was a small town and she knew she would, eventually, bump into her – and she was curious about what she would see.

She just didn't expect to see her right now.

The sound of shoes hitting the floor as the door opened and closed quickly told her someone was coming in, but she didn't pay them any mind until her eyes spotted the blue-ish black hue of someone's hair, the woman had her back turned to her but it was a back she knew all too well.

Her heart clenched inside of her chest, making it hard to breathe as she tried to calm herself down. It was just Minjoo – but Minjoo was never 'just' someone to her.

She felt her body tensing up as she watched the woman talk to Nako at the counter, her voice still as pleasant as always as she spoke with the same gentle tone that Chaewon always associated with her.

Chae observed her simple clothes, jeans and a t-shirt with a grey hoodie on top of it. She had some old boots on her feet, explaining the heavy steps. She couldn't see her face, but she knew there was a smile on it – she could see Nako's face though, and it had tension all over it as she looked over Minjoo's shoulder to meet Chaewon's gaze.

Shaking her head slightly, Chaewon stood up to leave, albeit she couldn't do it quickly due to that damn cane hitting so heavily against the wooden floor. She needed to leave before Minjoo could come up to her, but her cover was blown thanks to that noise.

Struggling to stand on her feet properly, she felt more than saw the moment Minjoo's eyes fell over her like daggers. The familiar chocolate eyes looked like black pools when Chaewon dared to look in their direction, noticing the way Minjoo's face grew pale as she clenched to the small plastic bag she had in hands.

For a moment no one did anything, Chaewon feeling her legs weak for a reason other than the lack of use – a mix of hurt, anger, frustration and so much heartache taking over her. She could feel her eyes burning and she hated herself for being so fragile now, almost breaking in front of the woman she should hate now.

"Chaewon." Minjoo finally said, her voice hoarse as she gave her an awkward nod before storming out of the place, leaving a shocked Nako behind.

Chaewon fell again on her seat, cursing her stupid weak legs and her even stupider heart.

It was all her fault, wasn't it? She was the one that set them up for failure.

Eunbi did explain things – many times and in many ways, with Yena's help. How the accident was covered by the insurance company and they were paying for her treatment even now, how Yena and her had been taking care of everything for all this time, how the doctors had told them that the chance of Chaewon waking up was the same as of winning the lottery, how as the time passed Chae had a few near death moments that made her sisters have to consider stopping her suffering...They even told her how Minjoo had been there for the first few years and how it had crashed her spirit, how they had to pretty much ban her from coming as often to make sure the girl would be able to move on.

They told her that even now Minjoo still visited, but maybe it was for the best that she didn't come now.

They told her about everything that happened since her ‘sleep’ – about how things were going in the architecture company Chaewon was a partner of, the changes in the town and in their own lives, like Eunbi and Sian welcoming a second baby, or Yena getting married not to her highschool sweetheart, but to the doctor that was taking care of Chaewon, or even about her having a new niece...Yet, they didn't tell her what happened to Minjoo during all those years alone, they didn’t mention a single thing about her except that she missed her a lot.

But Chaewon could imagine what happened, and she didn't like all the possibilities.

"Yena, do me a favor." She had asked one day after listening to Yena’s excited ramble about her baby daughter. Those were her first words that evening and the coldness in her voice made it clear it wasn’t something silly.

"Yeah, sure! Do you want me to bring anything or…" Yena offered, distracted with the infinite pictures on her phone – she had shown them to Chaewon so many times that they both already memorized it, and even if Chaeeown was happy for her, she couldn’t focus on it today.

"Just tell Minjoo to not come to see me. Not now or ever." Chaewon's request was said in a quiet voice, deep and heavy – like she felt on the inside, heavy with feelings she hated but couldn’t fight, heavy with the frustration of everything that happened and she couldn’t do anything about. "I don't want anyone else to come. I think I need some time alone."

Yena opened to protest but she just ended up nodding in reply, silently agreeing.

Chaewon wanted, desperately needed to see Minjoo – but she wanted her Minjoo, the school friend turned into a lover that had always been her safe haven, the one she loved and who loved her back just as much; but she was afraid that this version of Minjoo no longer existed.

For the next few weeks, she learned about how everything she loved and worked hard to construct didn't exist anymore. Her projects and job were gone, her apartment and even her fiancée didn't belong to her anymore. Even her own body felt like someone else's now – looking into the mirror showed a pale, weak and skinny version of herself. Her eyes were deep and painted grey, her lips thin and hair messy. The scars on her back hidden by the clothes, far away from sight but still there to remind her nothing was like it used to be.

Chaewon just did as she was told by her sisters, it wasn't like she had much of a choice. She needed to go to therapy – physical and mental, work hard every day so they would allow her to leave the hospital. She wasn't sure of the reason why she wanted to leave, but anything seemed better than staying there.

She was clearly wrong.

As the door closed, Nako sighing heavily was the only sound in the quiet diner. Chaewon lowered her head, feeling her shoulders heavy as if she was carrying the weight of the world. Why was she even feeling so bad? It wasn’t like she was in the wrong here, right? Still, she could feel Nako’s piercing gaze on her.

“You know, she may not be your wife, but she is still Minjoo.” Yabuki said, only loud enough for Chaewon to hear. The small woman taking a seat in front of her at the booth, her dimples deep as she pressed her lips into a thin line – judgmental. “It’s not like her life has been a walk in the park ever since you left.”

Chaewon refused to meet her gaze, fidgeting with her own fingers. “But I didn’t leave, I was there all along.” She answered bitterly, her feelings making it hard to see anything but the fact that at the end of the day, Minjoo had ultimately given up on her. “I didn’t get a choice.”

The younger woman scoffed, shaking her head in disapproval. “And you really, truly, believe she had one? In this hell of a town, with you half-dead and no one to rely on?” Her voice was dry, the usual chirp tone nowhere to be found as she spit her words – of course, Nako was one of Minjoo’s best friends and she wouldn’t simply let Chaewon mistreat her and ignore the reality of what happened. “Instead of staying here the whole day mourning for what you think you’ve lost, maybe you should see for yourself what happened.”

Nako stood up to leave, but not before giving Chaewon another glare. “Maybe you will realize that she did what she could, all that she could do, to keep herself afloat…something I don’t think applies to you.”

Chaewon’s hands were closed into fists now, but she didn’t reply – maybe because she knew Nako had a point. The thing was that she had to rely on this anger, this feeling of loss and disappointment, the frustration, because the idea of accepting everything was just too hard. She wasn’t ready to see Minjoo moving on, she wasn’t ready to fake a smile and be understanding. She wasn’t ready to face the truth.

She was too selfish to do so.

Minjoo closed the door behind her just a moment before she could feel her knees giving up. Her hands covered as she tried her best to contain a sob, her eyes burning with tears she couldn’t control. Her heart, more than anything, hurt right now – it hurt as badly as the day five years ago when she received the news that Chaewon wouldn’t come back for their wedding, that maybe Chaewon wouldn’t come back at all.

“Minjoo? Are you free right now?” Yena had asked in an unusually sober tone, her husky voice sounding deeper than ever before – Minjoo just something was off.

Looking around to check if no one was coming in, she took a seat behind the counter before answering. “I can talk now. Is something wrong, Yena? Do you need help with anything?”

She didn’t get a reply right away, instead she could hear a sniff on the other side of the line before the older girl spoke. “Minjoo...It’s about Chaewon…S-She…” A sob could be heard, Yena’s voice fading as she failed to speak.

Minjoo held onto the phone a little tighter, feeling her head light all of sudden as her body grew colder. What about Chaewon? Her fiancée was supposed to be outside of the town overlooking a project, she would come back in a few days just before the wedding…Wouldn’t she? Minjoo held her breath, trying to stay calm.

“Yena, what about Chae? She is fine, right?” She couldn’t think about the worst. Chaewon was fine, of course she was, it was Chaewon and she was as healthy as it gets. “She is coming home, right?” Chaewon had promised she would come back in time for the wedding rehearsal and she always kept her promises.

“Minjoo, I…Sorry.” Yena started, her voice being cut off by sobs as she tried to speak. “There was a fire and this thing fell over her and now she is at the hospital…I’m so sorry, Minjoo.” Yena kept talking, trying her best to explain albeit clearly the pain was getting the best out of her.

It didn’t matter, Minjoo’s brain failed to register anything after she heard Chaewon was at the hospital, her head spinning at the realization that maybe Chae wouldn’t come to the wedding, that maybe she wouldn’t come back ever again, that maybe she had said her last goodbye to her without even knowing it…

“Minjoo, can you hear me? Minjoo??”

Minjoo never replied to Yena that day, her body failing her as her vision went grey and then black as she fell on the floor and the cellphone crashed against it, the call ending abruptly like Minjoo’s conscience shut down.

Chaewon was her everything and she might have just lost her forever.

And she did lose Chaewon, one way or another.

The person who she met today didn’t look at her like Chaewon used to, there was no warmth, nor fondness in the chestnut eyes. The Chaewon she had seen today looked a lot like the woman she was supposed to marry once, and seeing her was almost too much to handle; yet, Chaewon looked at Minjoo like she wasn’t anything but hateful.

She wondered how much the older woman knew, how much she was told and what she presumed – surely nothing good, nothing that Chaewon could consider as good at least.

Life without her fiancée has been hard, harder than anything she has ever experienced after losing her parents as a teenager – and even then, she still had Chaewon to rely on, she had her as her source of hope and strength. But when she lost Chaewon, she had nothing. Nothing at all. Her friends were good, but they all had their own lives and they couldn’t fill the hole Chaewon’s absence left.

Back then, every day she would pray for her fiancee to wake up, she would sit beside her bed for hours and cry her eyes out – but nothing ever happened.

She was forced to cancel all their plans, to see the years of dreams slowly collapse. She was forced to understand that maybe Chaewon would eventually vanish too – a thought she fought so hard and for so long.

The days become weeks, and weeks turned into months, and months into years and nothing changed.

As time passed, Chaewon looked more and more weak, her skin so pale and the burning wounds turning into scars without the woman ever moving. A year and half into it, Minjoo’s days had become just a routine of marching to the hospital to stay by her side, hold onto her hand and talk to her for hours and hours – to no reply–, and then march back home to tend to the store – she found herself in a similar shape as Chaewon: her body becoming thinner, her skin lifeless and her voice dying down just like the spark of hope inside of her…When people talk about being love sick, it was never so literal.

Her sisters-in-law, alongside her friends, started scolding her about how unhealthy it was, and even blocked her from seeing Chaewon so often and for so long. They told her to take care of herself and that it would be what Chaewon would have wanted too –, but she was sure Chaewon would want her to stay beside her. Nonetheless, she was given no choice but to let it go and eventually, she did...to some extent.

Eunbi confessed that Chaewon already had a cardiac arrest and the doctors told her the chances were that she would have it again, that her heart and the rest of her body was losing strength and time wouldn’t be kind – Eunbi told her that it would be to prepare for the worst and that she needed to start moving on.

Minjoo didn’t want to, but what else could she do? Dying inside while her body was still alive wasn’t something she wished to do.

Chaewon was sleeping for over two years when Minjoo started to go on dates and force herself to try and look for happiness somewhere else – anywhere.

Somehow it had worked out, but not like that. Never like it was with Chaewon.

Holding onto her knees, she let her gaze travel to the picture of the two of them she still had, right beside a picture of the person that was the one thing she now had in her life as her one source of happiness and hope –, the very own reason Chaewon probably hated her now.

Lowering her head, she allowed herself to cry all the tears that filled her heart. Losing Chaewon once was terrible, twice might crash her spirit forever.

Chaewon gritted her teeth as she pushed the weight up with her legs, bids of sweat covering her forehead as she struggled to exercise. Her therapist said she needed to make her legs stronger and Yena was there to cheer her on, but she was particularly annoyed that day.

It’s been days since she came across Minjoo at the diner and she became persona non grata at the place. That town was way too small and now she couldn’t even get a drink at her favorite place.

“Did you go to the office? What did they say?” Yena asked, she was sitting beside her on a chair, comfortably playing with the baby on her knees – the niece Chaewon only met a month ago, Yena’s first kid with her wife, after years of breaking up and getting back together with her ex it only took her a few months to get married to a new girl – life is all about being in the right place and time, and clearly Yena had got something positive out of her prolonged stay at the hospital.

Chae always thought she would be the one to get married and have kids first – just another bitter fact to her life. Her niece was adorable nonetheless.

She stopped for a moment to give the baby a half smile that was met by the toothless smile of Hyewon, her eyes bright as she chewed on some candy Yena had given her.

“I did. I asked them to get my position back, but they are hesitant. I had to remind them I’m also a partner in that damn office.” She sighed in annoyance before giving Yena an apologetic look. “Sorry, Hyewonnie!"

“No problem, you have your reasons to be stressed. But try to mind your words, Hye is learning to talk and Arin doesn’t find it funny at all when she says something like that.” Making a face, Yena hugged the kid to her chest. Chaewon wasn't the only one to blame for Hyewon's growing vocabulary. “You shouldn’t get back to work so soon anyway. Going back to the office to check how things are now? yeah! But take it easy, alright?”

“I have been taking it easy for 5 years, I’m sick and tired of taking it easy.” Shaking her head, she slowly pushed the weights up again, breathing in and out. She felt the urge of doing something, as if her head would explode from overthinking so much. “My body is still healing, but my brain is just fine. I can work, I need to. I can’t camp in your guest room forever.”

Yena nodded, resting her chin on top of Hyewon’s little head. “I understand. But don’t overwork yourself. I don’t mind having two kids at home, you could play the big sis for once.” She added in a lighter tone and Chaewon rolled her eyes at her.

She was grateful for her sister for taking her in and being so supportive, Yena not only let her stay at her house, but she also helped her to go to physical therapy, and tried her best to make sure she always felt comfortable as if she was at home. Her sister-in-law Arin and Hye were also very welcoming and nice. Eunbi had also said she could stay over her place if she wanted.

Chaewon was glad to have such a nice family, but she still needed her own space.

“Thanks, but I don’t like the feeling of being the middle-aged kid who still lives in her parents’ basement.” Giving Yena a yellow smile, she gave up working on her rehab, getting her towel to clean up the sweat of her forehead. “Duckie, can I ask you something?”

“Yes, I can get you Minjoo’s address.” Yena tried right away with her usual annoying smile – Chaewon threw the towel at her.

“I know where she lives.” Of course, she used to think about that place as her second home and they even considered living there together before. Chaewon had been avoiding going near that street ever since she left the hospital. “But yes, it’s about her. What exactly happened to her after I…you know.”

Yena’s eyes grew wide as she hugged the baby carefully, her duck lips pressed together in concentration as she thought about how to answer. Chaewon could imagine her sister thinking of ways to avoid the topic since Yena wasn’t the best at giving bad news.

“You could have asked Eunbi, you know?”

“She is great at lying, you are not.” She put it simply, she knew well how her older sisters were and their weaknesses. Thankfully, some things never change.

“Damn.” Yena said – she was careful to cover Hyewon’s ears before saying anything. “Okay, I’m not good with words so, are you sure you want to know?” She asked one last time and Chaewon only nodded in reply, waiting for her to speak. “Minjoo…She had a hard time, you know? She was a bit obsessed for a while, glued to your bed and all, but it was making her sick and weird.” The grimace on Yena’s face revealed her concern. “We told her to let go, to live her life…Sorry, Chae it was the best for her.”

The younger Kim just nodded, she wasn’t very happy with the idea of her sister encouraging her fiancée to date other people, but she had to commend their efforts of looking after Minjoo when she couldn’t. However, the feeling of betrayal was something hard to shake off, even though she didn’t have the right to feel this way.

“And then what? She found someone else?” She asked bluntly, putting her feelings aside to allow her curiosity to guide her.

“She got married to some guy she met back in middle school, he had moved in recently... That’s what happened.” Yena’s equally blunt reply took her aback, she wasn’t ready to hear such words.

She thought Minjoo could be dating someone, maybe even engaged, but married? They were together for pretty much her whole life and they never got to marry, yet Minjoo had married someone else so quickly…More than jealous, she felt hurt. It was like getting shot even if there was no visible wound.

“But the marriage-” Yena tried to continue, but she raised a hand to stop her.

“Don’t. Please don’t.” Chaewon asked, closing her eyes as she tried to accept this new truth – it wasn’t easy, her mind playing all scenarios over and over and she hated all of them. She hated the idea of Minnoo having a life with someone else. “I think I have heard enough. More than enough.”

Yena gave her a small smile, apologetic. “You need to talk to her, Chae. Don’t you think you are being too cruel? I’m not saying to go and try to get back with her, just-”

“I wouldn’t be able to get back with her even if I wanted to!” She cut her off again, standing up and stealing Hye from Yena’s arms before she could protest. The kid happily came into her arms, hugging her by the neck as if she had known her aunt her whole life. “I will talk to her…eventually. But now I would like some dinner.”

Yena just shook her head in disapproval, standing up as well to follow her sister outside the room. “Let’s make dinner first, that’s what you mean. Arin has a late-night shift so you better remember your cooking skills because mine are not that great.”

Minjoo was trying her best to focus on work, but it wasn’t an easy task today.

Ever since the news about Chaewon waking up reached her – alongside Eunbi’s polite, yet cold, request for her to not go there – her days had been particularly hard. After meeting the older Kim that day at the restaurant, everything just became worse.

Was it even fair to feel so burdened and guilty? Was it fair for her to not hate someone who clearly just wanted her gone? Her silly naïve feelings from her old self were clashing with the skeptical and cynical person life had taught her to be now. She didn’t need Chaewon in her life anymore, she had survived for five years without her and maybe it was for the best – it had to be, or otherwise those feelings would eat her alive.

With a sigh, she heard the front door bells ringing and she forced herself to smile and get ready to welcome the first customer of the day – the smile didn’t last long once she noticed the shoulder-length black hair and the small face it could barely hide, big chestnut eyes looking at her with seriousness and something else. Minjoo felt her breath shallow and her hands grabbed onto the counter, afraid she might faint – seeing Chaewon walking through those doors was like a dream and a nightmare at once.

“You don’t have to look at me like I’m freaking a ghost. Fortunately, or not, I’m still pretty alive.” Chaewon said as a greeting, her words were dry, but her tone wasn’t harsh. She was approaching slowly, fidgeting with the cane – she was nervous, unable to hide behind that cold façade. “Kim Minjoo, hi. Missed much?” She said with a hint of irony, but there was genuine curiosity on it.

Minjoo had to swallow her words and tears – stupid tears born from the fact that her silly heart still skipped a beat to hear Chaewon calling her name again, to hear the words she thought she would never hear again; for a single moment, the woman in front of her was her fiancée and the love of her life once more, and all she wanted was to hold her tightly and never let go.

Yet, this moment went by as fast as it came and she didn’t manage to greet her back, a loud noise at the back of the store attracting her attention as concern filled her up. “Hyunjin!”

Chaewon could be all she had once, but now there was someone else in her life and she had her priorities clear as she left the woman behind to run and check on Hyunjin.

Chaewon was left speechless at the front of the store as Minjoo simply left before dramatically calling someone’s name – someone she didn’t know; probably the guy she had married while Chae wasn’t around. Clearly, she was truly devoted to whoever it was.

It wasn’t right, but she felt the hot rage of jealousy climbing inside up her body as she tried her best to keep a straight face. Coming here already took so much of her, she didn’t expect to have to witness some lovey-dovey scene to ruin the rest of her year – actually, she was second guessing her decision of coming here. Damn time she heard Yeah stupid advice!

Everyone, all those annoying friends and relatives, seemed to be pressuring her to talk things out with Minjoo, as if talking would magically make them friends once more and vanish with the bitter feeling that was all Chaewon could think about now. She thought it was bull, of course, but she still came here – not because she thought it could fix everything, but because she couldn’t help but feel a sick curiosity about her ex-lover, the curiosity that eating her up and making her want to come and check for herself what Minjoo’s life had become.

Maybe, deep down, she just hoped for the girl to be living a not-so-happy marriage as some sort of punishment for leaving her – she felt guilty for harboring such a feeling, but the part of her that wished for Minjoo to be happy was also there. It wasn’t simple, her feelings were a mess and this situation made her restless; but she still tried her best to not give in to her feelings and run away.

Even if only for this once, she would talk to Minjoo properly and get some sort of closure – if not for herself, at least to shut up her nosy sisters.

“How welcoming.” She muttered to herself after several minutes passed and Minjoo didn’t come back, wondering if the other woman was just doing this to get rid of her – Minjoo wasn’t the bravest person, but she had never been the sneaky kind though. Therefore, Chaewon decided to take matters into her own hands.

Making the familiar way to the back of the store, she shielded her heart from the imminent pain she was about to face. Minjoo’s parents had died early and the girl was in charge of their shop, what meant most of their early years together were spent in this very own place where Chaewon would help Minjoo to keep it tidy and nice – it was fun because she was with Minjoo and even working didn’t seem so bad, they would sneak in to the back room by lunchtime and eat there the food Chaewon’s mom would prepare for them or share the food Minjoo tried to make at home; The memory was nice, the feeling of their shoulders touching as they sighed happily after a good meal and just lazy around for a bit before going back to work, the stolen kisses and all the plans they shared during those days...She grimaced, sweet memories had a bitter taste now.

She wasn’t very excited about the idea of ruining such memories now, but it wasn’t like she could hold onto it forever. Just like her former fiancée did, she should let go of their love as well.

Cleaning , she made herself known as she walked into the room and prepared herself for a sight she wouldn’t like to see – the sight in front of her was indeed surprising, however, it was not in the way she expected it to be.

Minjoo had someone in her arms, holding them dearly and looking at them with loving eyes – yet it wasn’t a grown man, not even a man. Minjoo was holding a baby that looked a lot like her.

Hyunjin wasn’t her husband, but her child.

“What the !” Chaewon found herself cursing again as she blinked one too many times to make sure she was seeing things right.

She rested her body on the doorframe, eyes wide and mouth agape as she tried to get used to the idea of Minjoo not only marrying someone else, but also having a child. The doctors had said she was healthy now, yet she could feel her heart beating fast and her head light as she just looked at the mother and daughter as if they were the most shocking thing she had ever seen.

“This is a staff only section, please leave.” Minjoo didn’t expect to see Chaewon there ever again, she didn’t expect her to follow and see Hyunjin in such a moment. She felt vulnerable and uncomfortable, as if Chaewon’s heavy judgment made her sick.

Minjoo held the child closer to her chest, keeping her daughter safe inside her arms as she avoided Chaewon’s piercing gaze. There was an unpleasant feeling growing inside her body, something that resembled shame, albeit she knew that she shouldn’t feel this way – she may not take pride in many things in life, but Hyunjin was the solo thing she was so glad to have in her life; even if it was yet another reason for Chaewon’s hate for her to grow.

“That’s your kid, right? Of course, it is, you didn’t even wait for me to die…Hell, they really set me up telling me to talk to you!” Chaewon was talking more to herself than to Minjoo, the chestnut of her eyes growing dark with anger as she stood there, ignoring the younger woman’s request.

“Chaewon, I asked you to leave. Please, we can talk another time.” She insisted, one of her legs bouncing slightly to keep Hyunjin calm – and to relieve all the stress that was dominating her.

Chaewon looked at her for a long moment, her gaze falling onto the kid before she could nod in agreement. “It was a mistake coming here anyway.”

With a short, stiff nod, she her heels and left the duo behind. Minjoo held onto Hyunjin a little tighter as the kid whined softly, her heart beating so loud on her ears that she couldn’t even be sure she heard the door closing after Chaewon left.

All she knew was that things wouldn’t get better anytime soon.

That night Chaewon had both of her elder sisters on a headlock – one at time of course, not that they could do much about it considering how angry she was and the facts that their wives didn’t even bat an eye at the altercation; Sian even laughed, while Arin only rolled her eyes at them.

The family dinner that was supposed to be a happy occasion, was marked by Chaewon’s snarky remarks and glares, until the others couldn’t take it any longer and they all met at the youngest Kim bedroom.

“A child. A freaking child! A creature that carries her damn DNA!” She said after finally giving up on suffocating her duck-like sister – Yena tried to reiterate that she had tried to inform her, but Chaewon didn’t listen.

“And so what? You should’ve known it was a possibility. Minjoo always loved kids and she needed a family.” Eunbi said after fixing her messy hair and assuming again the reliable oldest sibling pose.

“I tried to tell you, but you didn’t let me say anything!” Yena complained, kicking Chaewon’s side in revenge – of course, sisters will always be sisters, no matter if they were all in their 30’s already.

Chaewon kicked Yena back, before taking a place near the wall so she could rest her back as she looked at her sisters who stared back at her. Yena wasn’t wrong, it was her fault for not listening that one time, but it wasn’t like they didn’t have the chance of saying it before. It wasn’t a small detail she could overlook – or forget.

Eunbi sighed, shaking her head in disapproval. “You keep acting before you try to see the big picture. I told you before, it is complicated.”

It didn’t seem so complicated under her eyes, but she knew better than to defy a serious Eunbi.

“Minjoo’s luck hasn’t been that great. So much to the point that sometimes I wonder if you were cursing her from above.” The older woman continued, an unpleasant look in her eyes as she spoke, not giving margin to Chaewon say anything. “Her marriage was awful, that good-for-nothing of a husband she got only ruined her life.”

Narrowing her eyes, Chaewon leaned closer to listen. “What do you mean?”

“She means that the was a lazy folk who tried to leech off of her and the shop, and once the baby was born, he ran away in no time. Left her with the money he could get and didn't even bother signing the kid's birth certificate.” Yena completed, her usual smile nowhere to be seen as she spoke, clearly bitter at the memory of such a man.

Chaewon furrowed her eyebrows, moving in her seat as her body tensed up. The guy had just left Minjoo? With a newborn kid? What kind of trash her ex-fiancée had found to end up in such an awful situation. She tried to shake off the anger that was starting to build up inside her and focus on the more practical aspects. “Why would he do that? It is his kid too.”

Her sisters exchanged a look before they both sighed, Eunbi being the one to talk.

“The kid was sick, she was born with all sorts of complications and Minjoo was running low on money paying for all that. He didn’t want to deal with it all and just went away. I heard he left the divorce papers signed and fled before she could even protest.”

Chaewon closed her hands tightly around each other, her right one into a fist as she imagined how nice it would feel to beat up such a pathetic creature like that man was. She should feel glad, maybe even happy, that Minjoo’s marriage fell through so easily, but the idea of Minjoo suffering this much in the hands of anyone made her blood boil – not only it, that bastard was coward enough to leave behind his own kid.

“Min kept all the money from your wedding safe, she refused to spend it even after so many years and even handed it back to us, claiming you were the one that paid for most of the stuff.” Yena started, giving her a small smile as if she knew it would placate some of her anger. “We gave it back to her so she could take care of Hyunjin, but she only accepted it as a last resort. She has tried to pay it back ever since.”

“She even said you might need it now so she would try to give it back quickly. I told her to not worry about it, you may have some anger issues, but you are not petty.” Eunbi added with a not-so-subtle criticism to her tone, one that the younger girl ignored.

“Of course, I don’t want that money back! She has a kid to raise and I…” Chaewon’s voice disappeared, needless to finish the sentence. She had nothing, nothing to worry about or care. The money she was getting from her shares at the office was more than enough, beside she had her sisters’ help. Minjoo was indeed having a much tougher time when it comes to finances – and maybe not only that.

Silence fell over them as her sisters patiently gave her the time to digest the news – she would need quite a lot of time to do so. Sighing, she closed her eyes. “Why did I even wake up now?”

She felt Yena patting her back lightly, her sister’s chubby hands gentle. “Maybe you saw she needed you and decided it was time to come back.”

Chaewon opened her eyes only to glare at her and the older only gave her a smile, as Eunbi took a seat beside Chaewon as well.

“Nothing is the same, but it doesn’t mean everything is lost.” The oldest of them said wisely, hugging Chaewon by the shoulders. “We are glad you are back, maybe you should start feeling like this too.”

Chaewon wondered if she would ever feel glad for being so late to live her own life.

Taking a deep breath, Minjoo once more asked herself if coming here was a good idea – she already knew the answer: it wasn’t a good idea, but her heart wouldn’t let her miss the chance of seeing Chaewon again. Last time everything went terribly and she couldn’t shake off this feeling that was like a dark clown following her all day. She wouldn’t be at ease until they talked and were on good terms.

If Chaewon would even listen to her, of course.

With a sigh, she gently pushed the glass door to enter the diner she knew like the back of her hand. Nako’s place was decorated for the small event it would be holding today, some balloons and even a huge banner congratulating Chaewon on her recovery. The group of people was also relatively small, around twenty or thirty people, most of them around Minjoo’s age, old schoolmates and friends, a few nosy neighbors that stopped by just to get the new gossip…The people Minjoo knew very well and with who she had to deal with ever since Chaewon’s accident.

By now she had learned to ignore the stares and inappropriate questions, she had to develop resistance to keep going, to become patient enough to not ruin relationships that could affect her work and the shop – life, sometimes, was a big game of pretending and it was a tiring one.

Today she was trying to just keep to herself, giving some nods and smiles, but not stopping to talk until she found a place at a table at the corner. Hitomi was there and her friend was always a calming, welcoming presence. “Good afternoon, Hiichan! How are you?” She tried to give her a bright smile but of course her friend could easily read her – Hii just passed her the small basket of bread and patted her back.

“Stay strong, Minguri. If she dares to be rude to you, walking stick in hand or not, I will kick her out of here.” Hitomi had her chubby cheeks high as she smiled, but her eyes were fierce and Minjoo knew her friend wasn’t one to be messed with – as expected, it made her let out a soft chuckle and hug the shorter woman as a thank you.

Just like that, her nerves subsided for a while, as she chatted with Hitomi over the usual things and almost forgot what was the purpose of that event. Those nerves, however, came back once she noticed a familiar presence near their table, a few minutes later.

Chaewon had arrived at the diner half an hour ago, but thanks to everyone who demanded her attention, she could barely move. Honestly, she would rather to be home right now, the idea of a welcoming party didn’t sound that nice at all and she was still struggling with this ‘feeling grateful for being alive’ thing – the physical therapist said she would need to use the walking stick for a few more weeks and she wasn’t exactly pleased about it, particularly now after Yena glued a few duck stickers on it.

But Eunbi was very insistent about the importance of socializing and seeing the people who ‘were worried to death about her’, and Chaewon didn’t have the strength to go against her stubborn elder sister. Part of her also knew she needed to get back out there if she wanted to become independent again someday, this included seeing people and trying her best to be polite.

It wasn’t so bad, if she ignored the old people and their intrusive questions – why were old people always so nosy? –, it was pretty okay. It was good seeing some of her former classmates and coworkers, some of them seemed genuinely happy to see her as well, which was surprisingly relieving. As for her friends, it was a little more complicated. Although she had seen a few of them, like Chaeyeon and Sakura that visited her at the hospital, the others were in a difficult position since they were also friends with Minjoo and apparently the cold war between her and her ex-fiancée was a well-known fact by the whole town.

Nako and Hitomi were both giving her the cold shoulder, while Yuri was nowhere to be seen – which was no surprise, considering she now lived in a bigger city to chase her dreams of becoming a singer. She didn’t mind it that much, with time they would go back to normal…at least she hoped so.

The same couldn’t be said to the girl she spotted at the corner of the room sitting beside Hitomi, she had a smile on her face and looked more relaxed than Chaewon had seen her in a while, as pretty as ever inside her clothes that were elegant and simple at the same time – just like it had always been, Chaewon’s eyes couldn’t help but stare at her, ignoring her sisters and their partners that were keeping her company.

No wonder Yena didn’t hesitate before pushing her to go ahead and talk to the girl – of course, it was like that day in high school, the first day of a life together.

“Hey.” She said the awkward greeting as she stepped into Minjoo’s line of vision and she could notice the way the woman tensed up.

“Hey you.” Minjoo forced a small smile, nervous and unsure. The same memory plaguing her thoughts, bringing her back to a much easier time in their lives, a time where everything was possible and the future seemed so bright for the two of them.

Giggles could be heard from Minjoo’s group of friends as the girls watched someone approach them – this someone was a girl from the year above, someone who had her beautiful chestnut eyes always fixed on Minjoo ever since the start of the year and it didn’t go unnoticed by her noisy friends. Minjoo, however, had to hold her breath as the nerves took over her.

The older girl greeted them with a bow and a nice smile that made her cheeks look extra fluffy, she threw a nervous look over her shoulder – Minjoo could see the girl’s group of friends watching them with playful smiles and she just knew what was about to happen; she just didn’t know if she was ready for it.

“Hi!” The girl finally said, her smile that was so bright had a hint of hesitation that was quickly pushed away as she lifted a hand to give a friendly wave – not very ‘senior like’ but it somehow made Minjoo feel a little more comfortable.

“Hello.” She replied with a shy smile of her own, returning the bow to make sure she wasn’t being rude. “Can I help you with anything, sunbae?” It was awkward and she didn’t know what else to say, so she just tried to treat this situation naturally – as if her rosy cheeks and bright eyes weren’t enough to show she was anything but relaxed now.

The older girl nodded, making her long brown hair wave over her shoulders. “Can we talk for a moment?” She pointed to a spot a few meters away, far away enough to allow them to talk alone, but not enough to make it a really private place – they were by the school’s gate anyway, it wasn’t like there was much privacy. It wasn’t the spot people usually picked for confessions – it would be behind the old school building – and it made Minjoo second guess her supposition that the senior was there to ask her out.

Therefore, she nodded, agreeing to follow the older girl without uttering a word.

Now, her young mind was busy creating theories on the reason why the cute senior would want to talk to her out of all people, if it wasn’t to confess – she felt a little silly and too full of herself for thinking it was the case to begin with. Trying to not grimace, she was reminded that aside from a few words, meaningless small talk when the two of them were in line to get their food at the cafeteria, they had never even talked and that girl definitely didn’t have a reason to like her.

Minjoo blamed her friends for keeping making jokes about her and that senior, making her think about such ridiculous stuff and delude herself.

The other girl was, luckily, unaware of her conflicted thoughts. “I’m Kim Chaewon.” She introduced herself, pointing to the name tag that showed a name that matched very well the pretty face of the girl. “From year two, class B. We have lunchtime together.”

Chaewon’s voice took Minjoo out of her thoughts and she was quick to give the older girl a flustered smile. “Oh, yeah…I mean, I know.” She almost kicked herself for saying that, showing that she indeed paid attention to the other woman – and by the way Chaewon smiled she had noticed it. Averting her eyes to her own hands, she introduced herself. “I’m Kim Minjoo, year one, class A.”

The older Kim nodded, her smile not wavering as she stared at the girl for a moment – Minjoo couldn’t possibly know what was going through her mind right now, but anyone who knew Chaewon a little, would know that she was as much of a nervous flustered mess as the younger brunette. She had noticed Minjoo since the first week of classes that year, her eyes drawn to the dark-haired beauty that resembled a cute fox when she laughed, but looked a bit like a frog when she was surprised – Chaewon found both versions adorable and her eyes couldn’t help but follow the junior whenever she saw her at the cafeteria. She even tried talking to her a few times, pushing away her shyness, to blurt out some silly lines about how the school’s food was bad or how glad she was for making it in time to get the good stuff…Every single time Yena would laugh and nag her for failing to get the girl’s number.

Coming up to Minjoo today had taken a lot of courage from her and now she was mal-functioning a bit. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to stare. It’s just…” Chae finally realized how dumb she must be looking right now, only staring at the other girl while Minjoo waited for her to speak. She let out an airy chuckle, taking a hand to her nape, scratching it nervously.

“I will cut the small talk and just say it.” Taking a deep breath, the slightly older girl mustered all her courage to say. “I saw you, I mean, I see you every day. We even talked a few times when we were in line for lunch, but I don’t think you remember that…The thing is, I can’t help but notice you always.” Her smile was hesitant now, shy as she glanced at Minjoo’s face, taking in every delicate feature that looked so pretty to her – from the big eyes to the fluffy cheeks that made her look so young, Minjoo was just too cute for her heart to handle and it was making her forget about everything she was supposed to say. “I don’t want to sound like a creep or make you feel uncomfortable, I just want to know if you wouldn’t mind eating together sometimes? Or maybe I could walk you home? It sounds tacky, but I would really like to get to know you better.”

Min blinked, happily surprised. It wasn’t a confession, but maybe it was better – Minjoo had received confessions before and it never made her feel happy, just awkward. Chaewon asking to get to know her better meant she cared about who she was and not just her appearance; it meant that she didn’t just want to ask her out because of her looks or because she was feeling bored like so many people did.

Feeling relieved and assured, Minjoo shook her head. “I am not feeling uncomfortable, really! A-Actually, I think it’s the same for me. I mean, I have noticed you.” More than that, if Chaewon was always looking her way, she was doing the same and every day her heart grew a little fonder of the older girl just by watching her talk and play with her friends – she just knew this feeling would only grow stronger from now on. “I would like to get to know you too.”

A grin made its way to Chaewon’s face, red ears visible as she nodded with enthusiasm. “I will make sure you don’t regret it!”

And as Minjoo would learn over time, Chaewon wasn’t the type who breaks her promises.

But today wasn’t like that day, the nerves were not born from the excitement of puppy love, but from the pain of a lost one. The awkward atmosphere was thick and hard to ignore, like an invisible wall that none of them was brave enough to break.

Chaewon was trying though, and maybe that was all they could do for now. “Thanks for coming.” She said as she took a hand to her nape, the familiar gesture showing her nervousness. The rage and resentment from before were no longer inside her eyes, instead, Minjoo could only see a hint of guilt now. “I know that after that day things are…So, thank you for coming, really.”

“Your sisters asked me to stop by.” Eunbi had actually been quite insistent with her texts, saying that Chaewon regretted her previous behavior and that they could use another chance of talking – knowing Eunbi, she didn’t doubt that the woman scolded her baby sister and this was the result of it. She didn’t know if she was glad or a little sad that Chaewon actually needed someone to slap some sense into her, just so she would give Minjoo a fair treatment. “But I can’t stay long, I asked Kkura to watch over Hyunjin.” She purposely mentioned it and as expected she could notice Chaewon’s smile becoming a little stiffer at the mention of the name.

The wounds didn’t heal yet, maybe they never would.

“Yes, sure.” Nodding, Chae tried to keep her smile, albeit Hitomi’s piercing gaze was making her uncomfortable – Minjoo’s dark eyes didn’t give away anything, but facing them was even harder.

“So, yeah, I will help Nako with the food. Have a good talk, you two.” Hiichan said, not bothering to pretend her intention wasn’t just to leave the duo alone, leaving the table before any of them could protest.

After a moment of – even more – awkwardness, the older Kim moved to take a seat opposite to Minjoo. However, none of them talked for a while, studying each other’s expressions instead.

Chaewon noticed the details about Minjoo, the small changes and everything that was so familiar. Her hair had a different haircut now, slightly shorter; she had lost a bit of weight and her cheeks weren’t as full as before, making her face more angulated and serious; her eyes were like mirrors now, instead of warm pools of chocolate with all her feelings always on display…But there were also some familiar things.

Minjoo’s habit of biting down on her bottom lip ever so slightly whenever she was nervous, the way she would cast down her eyes when she and use her right hand to fix her hair; she even ordered the same coffee that Chaewon always said tasted weird, but would still steal a sip or two.

Regardless of the changes, this Minjoo was still the one she had met and loved, she still felt like her Minjoo – even if she wasn’t hers anymore. Her heart shrunk inside her chest, pained by the realization that she indeed missed her, so much. Chaewon felt the urge to do something, to reach out and hold her hand like she used to and just…Sighing, she retracted her hands, keeping them on her lap to avoid doing something she shouldn’t.

“I’m sorry about the last time. It was just…I was too much.” Lowering her head, she apologized, surrendering to the guilty feeling that followed her for the past few days ever since she had talked to her sisters. She didn’t like the person she had become ever since she woke up, but it was hard to control it at times and recalling her own actions was the hardest. “It’s been five years for you, but only a few weeks for me.” And for most of it, she felt nothing but confusion and betrayal, like her whole world had been crashing on top of her.

Minjoo nodded, of course, she could understand it – it didn’t hurt any less though.

“I know. I don’t blame you.” However, for her, this feeling was something very familiar now, a curse she had to deal with for years – miserable years where every ray of sunshine turned into just another sparkle to the fire that burned her present and tried to destroy her future. “But those weeks for you, were some long, terrible years for me. Years without you.”

Silence fell over them again, and suddenly Minjoo couldn’t help but feel the pain of this moment. The Chaewon in front of her was trying her best, yet it wasn’t enough for her heart – it would never be enough, because Chaewon would never look at her the same way she used to, and anything less would just hurt her. Hurt so much that she felt like her chest was heavy, compressing her heart and making it hard to breathe.

Standing up a little too quickly, she collected her things to leave. “Sorry, I need to get going.” The excuse was weak and they both knew it, but it didn’t matter now, she just wanted to go back home, like the coward she had become after being beat up by life so many times.

Chaewon opened her eyes wider, surprised by Minjoo’s sudden action. She tried to emulate her, but her leg failed her and she struggled to reach for her cane so she could try and follow her – ignoring the fact that they were about to leave her own party behind. “Wait up! I’m not very fast with this.”

“What are you doing?” Minjoo asked as soon as she noticed Chaewon behind her, near the diner’s exit.

The older one shrugged her shoulders, the answer clear on her face – she had no idea, just the feeling of Minjoo leaving her made her uneasy and she couldn’t stop herself from following her. “I always walk you home.”

“Yes, you always do.” Minjoo agreed with a sigh, bittersweet memories coming to mind. Chaewon had always been there for her and she learned to rely on her, so much that the day she left, Minjoo found herself lost. She didn’t want it to happen again. “Are you okay now?” She gestured Chaewon’s legs, a concern that was so natural to her.

The older brunette let out a small laugh, shaking her head as she rested her weight on the walking stick. “I feel like I should be the one asking, but I don’t know if I’m ready to hear it yet.” Chae admitted, her smile becoming smaller as she glanced at the younger Kim who was so close, yet so far now. In other times, she would just throw herself in Minjoo’s arms without hesitation, finding safety inside her loving embrace, yet now she couldn’t even risk coming too close. “It’s funny how everything looks the same, but at the same time it’s all different.”

Minjoo averted her gaze, fidgeting with her own fingers. “I know what you may be thinking. I also know that you have good reason to doubt it, still…” Mustering her courage, she looked up to meet the chestnut of Chaewon’s eyes, finding solace in seeing the light back to them. Regardless of what happened, Chae was there and it was enough. “I’m glad you are back. There wasn’t a day I didn’t miss you.” It didn’t matter if Chaewon wouldn’t believe her, right now, she needed to say it – say the words she had said so many times before to a nearly lifeless body who couldn’t listen to her prayers.

Chaewon’s breath hitched, a knot forming inside . She knew Minjoo was being honest, she could see it in her face, hear it in her voice. Still, it only made it hurt more. “Then why didn't you wait for me?” The question was spoken in a quiet voice, it was said more to herself than to Minjoo, a frustrated thought she couldn’t forget just yet.

“This question is as fair as asking you why you left me.” The younger Kim sighed once more, the heavy feeling never leaving her chest as she turned her back to Chaewon. Maybe they needed time – a lot of time; maybe more than they had.

As Minjoo walked towards the door to leave and Chaewon could only see her back, she let herself fall in one of the chairs, defeated.

“I missed you too.” The whisper said to empty ears, was as useless as she had been for the last five years.

It was raining when Chaewon made her way down the row of stairs, her careful steps slow as she struggled to keep her balance while holding onto the handrail with one hand and supporting herself with the walking stick with the other – most of the time she cursed the piece of wood, but she had to admit that her body wasn’t ready to do everything on its own just yet and she couldn’t ditch the cane until then. It was fine though, she wasn’t in a hurry, if anything she was lost in her own thoughts.

She had come to visit the office she had worked for years at, the small company she worked hard to become a partner of and the one place she used to call her third home – the second used to be Minjoo’s apartment. The company was doing pretty well, the building was taller now and it had more employees, yet it was lacking the warmth she used to associate with her workplace. Maybe it had something to do with the way her much older coworkers didn’t seem very thrilled with having her around again – Of course, she could name several reasons why they weren’t happy to see her, from having to share the money and clients, to not wanting her questioning their decisions and checking their work…Chae could only sigh, recalling the talk she just had with Park Junhwe, the founder of the company.

He hadn’t said with all the words that she wasn’t welcomed back, but made all sorts of excuses to make sure she wouldn’t come back just yet. “You need to rest, my darling! Worry not, we will take care of everything as always.” He tried to sound nice and caring but she was no fool. With a lot of back and forth, she managed to get her point across – she would be back, whether he liked it or not, she was also part of the company and she wouldn’t give up her right to work there. But for now, she would work on getting familiar with the new legislation and look over their latest projects before coming back for good. If the man wasn’t happy about it, Kim didn’t give him space to argue as she only asked him to send her the files requested and left with a mechanic smile that showed how fake her mild temper was.

Now, as she reached the bottom floor and headed to the exit doors, she sighed once more – tired from both the mental and physical battles she had endured today. Maybe she would ask them to build an elevator soon, it would be an extravagance her years of unused paychecks could afford.

The rain wasn’t heavy, but it would definitely make a mess of her if she risked going outside, therefore she decided to just sit down for a while and wait for it to pass. The reception was empty as the old woman who worked as a receptionist was busy in the backroom fixing some stuff, giving Chaewon the chance to just relax and lose herself in thoughts.

She used to really love rainy days, now she isn't so sure about it.

The sun was still shining over the calm streets when the first few drops of rain fell from the sky, steady and intense, it quickly turned the pavement black and slippery. Chaewon gave Minjoo’s hand a light squeeze before letting go of it to grab onto her jacket, pulling it over their heads to provide a little protection from the sudden downpour.

The jacket was small and it was a little hard to run and avoid the rain, but honestly, none of them really minded if they were getting soaked by the storm. It was oddly nice – in that surprising, yet so natural and unique way that could only happen when you are with someone you really like. The afternoon was still hot and running under the rain was fun when they could exchange smiles and use it as an excuse to press their shoulders together, making their date last just a little longer.

As they stopped by Minjoo’s place, a small shop with glass windows – her grandma’s store, their apartment was located on the second floor –, making use of the short cover provided by the white awning, they were giggling like children and Chaewon could finally put down her now soaked jacket. The store was closed since it was the weekend and the streets were almost empty due to the rain; with no one to stare at the young couple, they could be at ease and just prolong this moment for as long as they could.

Chae dusted off her jacket before draping it over her shoulders, she turned to look at Minjoo and an involuntary smile made its way to her face – Yena liked to say that she had a special smile to Minjoo, a very silly one, but Chaewon didn’t mind looking silly for Minjoo. They were unofficially dating for a while now – having a few dates after weeks of growing closer by spending time together at school and outside of it. It was all simple, shy hand holding and pecks on the cheek, small compliments and loving stares…it was slow and nice, just like young love was supposed to be.

The older Kim was over the moon, of course. If before she thought she might have a crush on Minjoo, getting to know her and everything that made her such a special person, only made Chae surer that she was indeed smitten. Even now, as the younger brunette tried to fix her damp hair by running her hands through the brown locks, looking so effortlessly beautiful, Chaewon could feel her chest growing warmer and heavier with a fondness that was too big to hold in.

“Minjoo?” She called quietly, her voice full of a sweetness that she couldn’t help but let it show.

“Yes?” Minjoo turned to face her and broke into a smile, her hands coming to meet Chaewon’s brown hair. “Your hair is a mess!” Minjoo chuckled as she tried to fix Chaewon’s damp bangs, fingers gently brushing it to the side to showcase the girl’s face.

Chae closed her eyes, enjoying the contact and let out a happy sigh. Maybe her sister was right, she had become a lovestruck fool, but she was surely a happy one. Opening the bright chestnut of her eyes to meet the warm chocolate of Minjoo’s, she confessed: “I think I’m love with you.”

Minjoo’s fingers stopped moving for a second, before she let them slide down the older girl’s face, gently drawing Chaewon’s features, stopping at her cheek to cup it. She wasn’t surprised, if anything, their time together made her grow confident and glad for her good luck – words weren’t needed when she could feel Chaewon’s affection with each look. “You just think?”

“No, I know I am.” Shaking her head slightly, Chaewon placed her hand on top of Minjoo’s, leaning into her touch. It was about time to do it properly. “Kim Minjoo, I’m sorry for taking so long, but I’m confessing to you now. Will you accept me?”

The younger brunette only stared at her with fondness, slowly nodding. It wasn’t a confession like the others she had received before, it wasn’t a surprise, but it only made it better – there were no nerves, no awkwardness, just the warm feeling filling up her body. She felt content and ready, as if she had been waiting for this moment all her life – maybe she was just a romantic, however, right now, nothing but this moment mattered. “I’ve been in love with you for the longest time, Kim Chaewon.”

As Chaewon stepped closer and Minjoo did the same, all that they could hear was the throbbing of their hearts in sync, a silent language that would guide them to each other forever. Chaewon hugged her by the waist and Minjoo pulled her closer, lips meeting gently in the sweetest of the kisses, calm and innocent.

It was only their first kiss, but it would change everything.

“Miss Kim? Oh, I’m sorry for keeping you waiting!” The old lady, secretary Ahn, apologized with a smile and her voice was enough to take Chaewon out of her thoughts. The younger woman gave the other a smile, waving her hand to show it wasn’t a problem.

“No worries, Mrs. Ahn. I’m already done here, just waiting for the rain to stop so I can head out.” She explained, reassuring the woman with a smile of her own. The old lady had always been kind to her and she had no complaints about her work, if anything, she would probably ask for her assistance once she was back to work. “Please don’t mind me, I don’t want to interrupt your work.”

The woman shook her head of grey-ish hair. “It can wait. But I can’t leave you there waiting the whole morning!” Clicking her tongue in that usual maternal way old ladies always seem to have, she leaned in to search for something behind the desk and a minute later she came back with a black umbrella. “Here, sweetie. You can use it and there is no need to give it back. People always forget stuff here and we have a bunch of those!”

Chaewon blinked for a second before cracking a smile, a light chuckle leaving her lips as she stood up to accept the offer. “Thank you, Mrs. Ahn! I will use it well.” Taking the umbrella in her hands, she received a kind smile and a gentle pat on her shoulder.

“Take care, Chaewon. We missed you a lot, please be safe.” Mrs. Ahn's words seemed like the only genuine ones she heard that day and it somehow put her at ease, reminding her that she wouldn’t be alone once she came back there.

Returning the smile, she nodded and thanked the woman once more before heading out.

Juggling the umbrella and the cane at once was a little weird, but she was doing a good job as she took small steps through the quiet streets of the town.

Her smile slowly faded as her shoes hit the damp pavement, eyes wandering around as she took in the familiar streets with little unfamiliar things. It was still her town and on days like this, she still felt at home, but it wasn’t quite right. Yena’s house wasn’t far, Eunbi’s neither – nothing was really that far in such a small town, still she found herself walking aimlessly, haunted by the memories.

The Chaewon from back then was so intense and lively, so young and full of confidence in herself and trust in the future, so sure that Minjoo would be part of it…That Chaewon hadn’t been wrong, mostly she got it right. Her high school sweetheart also turned out to be the love of her life and they were together for so many years, through the bad and good times, enduring the distance when Chaewon went to college and the pains of adulthood – Minjoo’s grandma death and Chaewon’s parents passing away in a car crash; they faced it all together and still managed to come out stronger.

She was so in love with Minjoo back then and for a good reason. If anything, as time went by, the puppy love they once had bloomed into something much deeper and real, a genuine affection that most people could only dream of.

Maybe the accident and everything that happened after it was life’s way of telling her that no one is allowed to have such perfect happiness so easily.

Her steps led her to the small street across the park, the yellow front of a small store was still the same, the name of the place written in big letters and the windows covered in stickers with the latest promotions displayed – the same old.

Chaewon just stopped in front of the shop, her eyes examining the display before going further to see the inside of the place, looking for it’s owner – sometimes rainy days were good for the business, people popping out of nowhere to buy umbrellas and raincoats; Minjoo was of course, busy talking to customers and giving them a polite smile.

It wasn’t really her usual smile though; it was a much more tired and fake one. One she probably learned through years in the business.

Frowning, the older Kim let her eyes travel through the shop, observing with more attention to the little details – some boxes out of place, displays incomplete and not properly arranged, items with no price tag…Minjoo still had a lot to do and Chaewon could bet she had little time to do so; the administrative work was much harder even if it couldn’t be as easily seen.

Involuntarily, she felt contracting as her face formed a grimace. Eunbi’s words resonated inside her mind, making her think about things she tried so hard to ignore – she was in pain, yet, she also had to acknowledge Min’s feelings and what she had been through.

She could only imagine how she felt, how it all was. If for her the past five years were nothing but empty space, like life had stolen time from her. For Minjoo, all those years must have gone by very slowly. Chaewon closed her eyes, picturing her former fiancée waiting by her bedside, days turning into weeks and then months, the frustration and despair as nothing changed and she was forced to accept a bitter truth.

Closing her hands tightly, almost crushing the poor objects she was holding, Chaewon felt her eyes burning as she opened them to search for Minjoo once more. Could she really blame Minjoo for what happened? For having chosen to move on or at least try to? If she was in her place, would she even have been strong enough to keep going for so long? She didn’t think so.

Shaking her head, she took in a deep breath, before putting down her umbrella and closing it so she could enter the shop.

Minjoo took a deep breath, using her hand to push back her hair and the thin layer of sweat on her brows. The days at the store were usually slow with few clients coming and going, however today had been erratic – old ladies coming in groups to buy all sort of stuff for their weekend bingo meetings and deciding to buy extra “cute” items they happened to like; and then the rain started and she had even more customers fighting for the umbrellas she still had left like little kids. Of course, rationally she was glad for all the clients and the money they were bringing, but it was hard to not listen to her aching body, tired from a whole day giving polite smiles and running from side to side to tend to clients while fixing the mess they made. Her feet were killing her and there was a headache trying to make itself known. When her part-timer quit last summer to go to college, she didn’t expect to struggle so much to find a new employee.

Right now, she just wanted some rest before it was time to pick Hyunjin up at the daycare.

Of course, life had other plans for her.

She heard the bells announcing another customer coming in, yet she couldn’t look to see who it was as the two women in front of her we’re keeping her busy asking all the prices of the little animal sculptures on sale. As a good saleswoman, Minjoo had to keep her smile and be as nice as she could while convincing the duo to take all the things in exchange for a little discount in the final price.

She had almost forgotten about the mysterious customer when the ladies finally left, Minjoo took a seat and sighed. She was tempted to take off her shoes or even close early, but the sound of someone moving boxes in the back of the store made her stir from her sleepiness. The sounds were quiet, but clear, and as she furrowed her eyebrows, she could tell they were coming from the right corner where she had left some stuff to be properly organized once she had enough time.

Pursing her lips into a thin line, she wondered if naughty kids were there to mess around or even a clumsy thief was trying to pickpocket some stuff with little success – it wasn’t a common occurrence, but she had to deal with a few of them before. Sighing once more, she ran her hands through her hair and stood up, ready to confront whoever was the cause of the noise.

The shop wasn’t very big and with a few dozens of steps and turning into one of the narrow corridors, she was able to identify the culprit. It was impossible to not sigh, but this time for a very different reason – it wasn’t a thief, nor a kid, but a figure she had seen in this position so many times before and the memories of it made her heart heavy.

“Chaewon, what are you doing there?” She asked in her most calm and collected voice, trying to not sound annoyed or worse, emotional. Right after her grandma passed away, Chaewon would always come over to help her with the store and seeing the girl carefully piling up boxes and organizing it, made her feel like they were back to that time.

The older woman lifted her gaze, giving her a small smile as she continued her work. “You looked like you needed some help and I’m currently free so…” Shrugging her shoulders, she made sure to glue a few more price tags to the products before continuing. “Don’t question, I’m bored and you could use the help.” She gestured to the boxes as if it was obvious – it was, but not entirely.

Minjoo could use some help indeed, but long gone were the times she could count on Chaewon to be this help. Yet, now the chestnut-eyed woman looked very determined to fulfill such a mundane task, so stubborn to offer help when she hadn’t asked for any – Chaewon always had her own way to do things, even apologizing.

With a hesitant smile, the younger Kim slowly approached her, reaching out to grab one of the small red boxes with a digital clock – like most things in the store, it was cheap, but cute and useful. Chaewon must have recalled the way she organized everything because she was placing it in the proper shelf.

“Why now?” She asked tentatively, returning the box to its place to not ruin the work Chaewon was doing. She resisted the urge of looking at the woman, pretending to inspect her work instead. Chaewon was confusing her again and once more she debated whether or not she should allow the girl back in her life.

Sitting back, Chaewon left aside the boxes to focus her gaze on Minjoo, noticing her stiff posture and the way the heat had made her hair slightly messy – she was a joke for still finding this sight attractive, but she knew better than argue with her emotions by now. “Because I couldn’t help you for five years and I thought I should make it up for the time.” It was an honest answer, albeit she doubted that such a mundane task could really help to fix anything. Minjoo probably needed her in many ways during the past years and organizing boxes wasn’t one of them.

Still, it was all she could do now.

It was hard to not sigh, and she felt like a silly teenager for it, so Minjoo just shook her head slowly. She was grateful for Chaewon’s willingness to help, even if it still felt too superficial to really be able to mend their old wounds, it was a start and she shouldn’t be greedy. “But you don’t have to. You are still recovering.”

It was the older Kim’s turn to shake her head, aver.

“You know, I thought about it…It all, a lot.” About her own feelings and Minjoo’s, about what happened to them and how she should deal with it, how she could make things better or worse. She wasn’t sure if she had found a perfect solution for her inner debates, but she knew she had to do something to combat them before it got out of hand. “I realized hating everything and throwing a fit wouldn’t really make a difference now.” Being mad at life, Minjoo or even her sisters wouldn’t make things go back to what they were before. Being angry and bitter would only take a toll on her even more. So, just like she would have to start over to get back her place at work, she would have to start over in many ways, to get her life back – whichever way it would be now. “Maybe trying to get back to my normal self would be a good first step. Coming here seemed like a good way to start.”

Silence filled the room for a second as Min took in her words, pondering over them. Trying, that was what Chaewon was doing – trying the best she could for herself and maybe even for them both. It wasn’t like her dreams where Chaewon would wake up and just welcome her back with open arms and nothing else would matter – reality was never as simple and she couldn’t ask for more.

“I guess I can understand.” Nodding weakly, she decided to comply. No, things wouldn’t go back to what they were before just like this, but maybe having Chaewon around for a bit, even if only as an estranged friend, would be enough to put her heart at ease. “But you are pricing it all wrong, those are the tags for the other box.” She gently pointed out with a small smile, gesturing to the right boxes.

As expected, her simple sentence was enough to make the tense atmosphere go away, as Chaewon once more focused on the boxes and her eyes grew wide in horror.

“Holy cra-“ She tried to contain a curse, remembering they were in a public place and she didn’t want to scandalize the old people of the town with her foul mouth. “Aish!”

As Chaewon frowned and Minjoo couldn’t help but let out a shy chuckle, they were forced to join efforts to fix Chae’s mistake and put all the focus on working – for the first time since Chaewon woke up from her five years of sleep, the young duo spent some time together without arguments or resentments.

It was a very shaky start, but it was definitely one.

Turns out, it was a good start – although Minjoo wasn’t quite sure she could really name what was happening now.

In part, it was almost as if they went back in time, and a foolish part of herself just loved it so much – who would blame her though? Chaewon was coming to the shop a few times a week, and just like nothing bad ever happened, she would go around the place helping with anything Minjoo needed as they chatted about meaningless things. The conversations were never heavy, Chaewon would focus on talking about the projects she was studying so she could go back to the office soon, while Minjoo would talk about work and eventually tell her about their friends' antics as a neutral topic. They would even eat together once in a while, sharing meals they picked without even asking the other because both just knew so well each other’s taste.

Still, there was also the other part that wasn’t as nice.

Sometimes the awkwardness would take over and none of them knew how to deal with it, or even predict when it would happen – it only took one of them standing a little too close, or accidentally touching the other’s hand, even something as simple as mentioning something from their past together by accident…It was like an open wound that was slowly healing, but that still stinks if you ever so slightly touch it.

She wondered if that’s how couples who break up feel like – she couldn’t even call them ‘exes’ when they had never officially broken up. In fact, even thinking about it made her feel guilty, no matter how much her rational side reminded her that she did her best under the circumstances back then.

Therefore, Minjoo decided to try not to be cunning. To accept this little gift life was giving her in the form of Chaewon’s presence. Just having her around again, being able to see her face greet her with that charming smile and the bright eyes, and hear her humming songs to herself as she worked, even drinking some hot chocolate together during their break…It wasn’t much, but it was enough for her.

She had thought she had said her goodbye to Chaewon over five years ago and back then she couldn’t have known what was about to happen, the happy memory becoming a bitter one as she realized that had she known what would happen, she could’ve have saved Chaewon – saved both of them, from a cruel future.

Fingers intertwined, hands swinging back and forth slowly as they walked, the city lights illuminating the two of them just like the moonlight, the passerby greeting them with smiles and gentle words…It was a perfect end of night for what had been a perfect evening, right in the heart of the small town they grew up in and were planning to live their whole lives at.

They had had so many dates just like this one, so many times they would walk around the city and eat at their favorite restaurant, stop by for ice cream at a nearby shop and then just stroll through the small park with the green fireflies everywhere – it wasn’t fancy, it was even a bit boring to some people, but for Minjoo and Chaewon it was just right.

Today, in particular, was a special day for them – their last date before the wedding in two weeks, the last evening they would be together before Chaewon’s business trip and Minjoo’s crazy week planning the ceremony’s last details.

They stopped in front of Minjoo’s house, the white door that would lead to the stairs and take to the second floor where she lived – right above the shop her family ran for decades and the woman took care of now.

As usual, Chaewon clung to Minjoo’s hand, delaying the goodbyes that were unavoidable – it as a habit she had ever since they started dating, insisting in pulling the girl back for extra goodnight kisses and to whisper cheesy love remarks to her; Minjoo’s granny used to nag them for that, but now they were adults and Minjoo didn’t have anyone but Chaewon to rely on.

Chae caressed the back of the brunette’s hand with her thumb, gently pulling her close so she could lean in for a peck, using this chance to hug her by the waist. Minjoo, of course, didn’t mind it, naturally coming to her arms and hugging her by the neck with one arm while her other hand was busy cupping Chaewon’s jawline.

For a moment they just stared at each other, small smiles on their faces as they memorized the features that were already immortalized in their hearts. Minjoo moved to leave a kiss on Chaewon’s lips, her thumb caressing the soft cheek like the older Kim’s love involved her in warmth.

Only two weeks and it would be their forever.

Breaking the kiss, she rested her forehead on Chaewon’s, watching the chestnut eyes glow in the dim light – she saw her reflection in them, just like she saw love and safety, like she always did. “Are you sure you can make it back in time for the wedding rehearsal?” She asked what had been bothering her for a while now, she didn’t want to rush Chaewon since she would be busy doing inspections and writing reports about the construction of a new project, but they couldn’t postpone anything either – none of them were rich and the wedding took a lot of their money, changing dates was an expense they couldn’t afford.

“You have my word.” Chaewon was, however, relaxed as she spoke. Chae had always been confident and today was no exception, she had everything planned for the trip and although she was careful to not say too much to Minjoo and give her false hopes, she was expecting to be home a few days before the wedding rehearsal so she could be there to help with the planning. She hugged the girl closer, kissing her cheek before winking at her playfully. “I don’t plan on being late to my own bachelorette party!”

As expected, she received a cold glare in return as Minjoo slapped her shoulder. “Say something like that again, and you may miss me at the wedding.”

Chae just laughed, knowing she had managed to break the tension and make Minjoo forget about her worries with her teasing – they both knew her bachelorette party would happen, but it would be a mess with all her noisy sisters and friends reminding her of every embarrassing moment of her teenage years or something like that; Minjoo would probably experience something similar. What else would you expect from high-school sweethearts from a small town?

“You know I would just sit at your doorstep forever, no rings or papers needed. As if I would ever let you get away.” Shaking her head slightly, she kissed Minjoo’s cheeks, the cute dimples and even the tip of her nose, until the glare turned into a smile. Her own lips curved to form a smile as she nuzzled against Minjoo’s neck, breathing in her familiar scent and drowning herself in the feeling of having her girl inside her arms – she would never get tired of it. Planting a kiss on the soft skin of her neck, she asked: “Can I stay the night?”

Minjoo closed her eyes instinctively, her smile becoming small as she caressed Chaewon’s brown hair. “When have I ever said no to you?” Even if she wanted to, she would never be able to do so, not when her heart melted at the simple thought of being close to Chaewon. Yet, her mind insisted on reminding her of less pleasant things. “But you have an early flight tomorrow, the airport is forty minutes away and you still need to get your luggage at your apartment before going there.”

Chaewon almost grimaced at her words, but instead she just snuggled up even more into Minjoo, deciding to use her own techniques to get things her way – it wasn’t like Min was really protesting as she kissed her neck again and again, reaching her ear. “I can wake up early and annoy Yena to drive me there, she drives like a crazy woman so I will be there in fifteen minutes.” She told the plan she had just made up, ignoring the fact that she would have to wake her sister up at ungodly hours just for that and the Duckie wouldn’t be happy about it. Leaving a final kiss on her earlobe, she backed away slowly to look into Minjoo’s dark chocolate eyes. “I won’t see you for two weeks, you can’t blame me for wanting to be close to you as much as I can now.”

It would be a lie to say Minjoo wasn’t very much sold right now, clinging to Chaewon and feeling her body warm regardless of the cold night breeze. Chaewon knew just the way to convince her, still she wasn’t so out of reality just yet. “I will miss you too, a lot! But this trip is important for you and I know you will come back to me as soon as you can.” She gave her a sweet kiss on the lips, pecking her bottom lip in the way she knew Chaewon liked, before pulling back. “Two weeks is nothing when we have a lifetime.”

“You are right. We have a lifetime.” Chaewon’s smile became softer as she thought about the idea, but it soon turned into a grin as she grabbed Minjoo by the waist and precariously tried to carry her inside. “But I’m still camping here tonight!”

Minjoo only laughed at Chaewon’s antics, hugging her better as they made their way inside with difficulty, stumbling upon the doors and stairs, flubbing with the keys as Chaewon stole kisses and Minjoo focused on returning them.

Chaewon’s hands were cold on her skin, but every shiver was a pleasant one as she helped the girl out of her jacket and brought her back to her arms to kiss her the way she couldn’t do earlier. Their hands were all over each other, lips kissing and mouthing sweet nothings, breathes heavy, and only the moonlight to guide their steps through the apartment – they still found the way just fine, just like so many times before/ and like so many times before Minjoo never regretted allowing Chaewon to stay over.

She let out a heavy sigh, thinking about that last morning she couldn’t even say goodbye to Chaewon because she had been too sleepy to properly send her off and Chae ended up just leaving her a note:

‘Yena is hella mad, so I need to run! I will call you once I’ve arrived. Love you!’

Such a simple message was, for a long time, the last words she thought she would have from Chaewon and she kept the note safely inside a box, to be admired whenever she needed some comfort. Now it was different, she could hear Chaewon’s sweet and warm voice almost everyday and with each time, it felt more and more natural, giving her a feeling of comfort. However, she still kept the note – not only because it meant so much for her once, but also because it could be the last evidence of Chaewon’s love for her.

She wouldn’t be greedy and accept their new relationship, but it didn’t stop her from holding onto their old memories dearly. Chaewon was, after all and maybe because of it all, the love of her life.

“Minjoo! Where do I place these…things? What is that even?” Chaewon called her over from the other side of the store, her eyebrows furrowed as she went through a box of kitchen equipment she clearly had no idea what they were for. Seeing her looking so adorably confused, made Minjoo contain a light chuckle, her heavy chest growing lighter.

“In the last corridor, close to the other kitchen items. Wait, I will help you with it.” No, she didn’t really need to help Chaewon with such an easy task and she probably should focus on a more important issue like organizing the bills, yet she jumped from her seat behind the counter to go to the older Kim’s meeting.

Maybe she was still a little greedy for Chaewon’s company.

“I will take it from here.” She said as she gently placed her hand on top of Minjoo’s, taking from her hands the heavy box to continue carrying it – she noticed the way Min’s eyes grew bigger and her face slightly pink at her actions, but Chaewon only smiled at her and kept walking; inside, she was a much bigger mess, but she couldn’t help but crave for these stolen moments once in a while.

According to Eunbi, Yena and her sisters-in-law, who were a tad bit too honest, Chaewon was a whole mess when it comes to Kim Minjoo – she couldn’t even protest, because that was a pretty accurate description of her in the last few months.

The fact that she would come to visit Minjoo so often and actually work there, instead of staying home and playing games with Yena or anything else she could do to enjoy herself, was already pretty telling. Honestly, she would rather not even think about her reasons to do it, just following her heart’s wish of pretending things haven’t changed much and she was still visiting her girlfriend at work and enjoying a calm day beside her – very pathetic, as Yena said.

Chaewon didn’t really mind her sisters’ opinions – if she did, she would be married to Minjoo by now as the others just told her to ‘get to the point already’ –, doing things her own way. Her heart always brings her back to Minjoo, but the feeling wasn’t always one of happiness. The bittersweetness of their whole situation was hard to ignore, and hard to move on from.

That’s why, for now, she was trying to go slowly. Trying to understand her feelings, which ones to embrace and which ones she should ignore. Trying to decide the right decision to make.

It didn’t hurt that being able to see Minjoo every day brought a stupid grin to her face.

As she sat down on the floor, taking out the items from the box and slowly organizing them on the shelves, she would peek at what Minjoo was doing once in a while. Chae could see the brunette talking on the phone, her plump lips forming a small pout as she heard the person on the other side of the line, hair falling over her shoulders and moving gently as she paced back and forth, her beautiful features serious as she worked diligently. Chae was way too distracted with the way Minjoo had just broken into a smile, fox-like eyes crinkling at the corners, that she accidentally let one of the objects fall – right into her poor feet; those damned dog statues old ladies like so much, she has just got rid of her cane and she might need a new one because of it.

She covered to avoid letting out a curse, but her cry of pain was still heard as Minjoo looked over her direction with worried eyes and quickly ran to her side. “Chaewon! Are you okay? Oh my god, I should’ve helped you.” The younger Kim reached out to help her stand up, eyes on Chaewon’s foot that was only covered by the indoor slipper, showing the red spot where it was hit. “I will just hang up and go get you something-”

Chaewon shook her head in a negative, feeling a little flustered not only for having done such an embarrassing thing, but also for having the other woman so close to her. “I’m fine, Min. Really! It hurts, but it’s not like I need a doctor. Just stay here and watch over the shop.” Giving Minjoo a small smile, she straightened herself to show that she could stand just fine – even if it was still hurting like hell, Minjoo’s gentle touch on her arm was making her feel much better already. “Can I go upstairs and get some ice, though? Or a pain relief patch, if you have it.”

Minjoo bit down on her bottom lip, as if she was wondering what to do next and Chae almost told her that she would be okay even without it, but the younger woman spoke first. “Sure. I have a few patches in my bathroom’s cabinet, you know where I leave them, right? You can take anything you need. Also, please rest for a while, I don't want you to get hurt.” Minjoo held onto the phone a little tighter as she stepped back. “I will be done with this soon and find you.”

Her voice was so full of care that Chaewon couldn’t refuse the offer, only nodding before she gently pushed Minjoo back to work so she could climb up the stairs to her house.

Making sure to keep a straight face as she made her way to Minjoo’s apartment, the path she knew so well, she tried to not limp too much – damned stairs, she almost missed her walking stick. Of course, it was just a minor thing, but she was never good at dealing with pain and she would surely take her time once she could get ahold of those pain relief patches.

It took her about five minutes to get to Minjoo’s room, find the patches and take several deep breaths until the pain subdued and her hate for dog statues was back to the normal level – she concluded she might as well just stay away from it.

Resting her weight on her palms, she sat on Minjoo’s bed and looked around the room, trying to notice any changes. It’s been years and she didn’t expect it to remain the same, but surprisingly, little had changed. Minjoo still liked to keep the space clean and organized, white was the dominating color with fluff blankets and a few frog plushies over the bed, picture frames with photos of her family and friends by the nightstand, she could even spot herself in one of them…There was also a new picture that made Chaewon sigh.

Of course, she wasn’t foolish enough to believe she wouldn’t find any evidence of Minjoo’s current life there, particularly such a big part of her life. Minjoo looked pretty, but a little too pale and slightly disheveled in the photo, but she sported a genuine smile as she held the baby inside her arms – as expected, she was a good mother and this was a part of her life that Chaewon had been trying really hard to not acknowledge.

It was petty and useless, but feelings often were.

She always tried to avoid meeting Minjoo when she was with the child, purposely showing up only when she knew the baby would be at the daycare, and leaving before it was time for Minjoo to go pick her up. It wasn’t like she hated the kid, she wasn’t that heartless, it was just too hard to not associate her with things she would rather not think about – being bothered by her ex-fiancée failed relationships was as foolish as it gets and she was aware of it, but the origin of the kid wasn’t the only issue. The child also reminded her of the passage of time, of how everything had continued while she stopped. It reminded her that if the accident didn’t happen, that baby could’ve been their kid and brought her infinite happiness, instead of regret.

“You have become such a coward, Kim Chae.” She muttered to herself, standing up to have a look around the house before going back to work – she was too curious to not do so.

Curiosity had its price surely.

As she peeked inside the room that Minjoo used to keep as a guest room, she found all shades of yellow – from cat plushies, to walls and even a crib. Intelligent cat-like eyes stared back at her with calm, the baby sitting on the crib looked just like a tiny version of Minjoo, and one that was surely curious about the stranger woman that just showed up.

“Oh! Sorry. I mean, hey! Hello…You baby?” Chaewon stuttered, as if she had just trespassed the border of another country and not just stepped into the room of a baby. It took her a moment to realize how silly she sounded and shake her head in disapproval to her own behavior. “I really at this ‘baby talk’ thing.”

She had half of the mind of just leaving, but considering the child was now wide-awake, she felt like it would’ve been irresponsible of her to just leave the baby on her own. “Why are you here alone? I thought you were at school.” Chaewon was talking to the child, but of course it was like the kid could give her a proper reply – she wasn’t even sure of how old the baby was, but she was definitely not old enough to have a chat. “Why did your mom not take you with her downstairs? You have a nice room there as well.” She continued, slowly approaching the child to give her a stiff smile. She knew Minjoo had an extra crib she kept in the back room of the shop, so she could be near the baby at all times, so it seemed weird that she would rather leave the kid all alone here.

The realization of what may be the reason made her frown.

“Was it because of me? Fu…Fudge.” She corrected herself just in time, remembering to keep a nice expression to the baby. Letting out a small sigh, she rested her arms on top of the crib’s short walls and looked at the baby directly. She tried so hard to ignore this aspect of Minjoo’s life, only to end up there – the irony was striking. “Sorry, little one. I haven’t been the politest guest, have I? It’s just a little…very awkward for me. It’s a long story, but I always dreamed that someday we would have a baby just like you, and when you arrived, I wasn’t here. It hurts a little bit.”

Tentatively, she reached out to touch the baby’s black hair, patting it lightly as the kid responded with a confused smile typical of babies. “Your name is Hyunjin, right? Bet your mom picked it to annoy me because she knew it was on my ‘no’ list.” Chuckling softly. She stared at the child, wondering if she was missing her mother and would like to see her, maybe she should bring Hyunjin to Minjoo. Surprisingly, the baby seemed to have read her thoughts, raising her little arms to ask Chaewon to hold her and the woman felt her heart growing softer as she noticed how much the baby reminded her of a young Minjoo. “My name is Chaewon, pleased to meet you, kitten. I’m not that used to picking children up, but I will try to-”

“I didn’t pick that name to annoy you, but you are right about choosing one that wasn’t in your list of favorites.” Minjoo’s feminine voice took her by surprise and she turned a little too fast to face her, Hyunjin letting out a giggle as she noticed her mother’s presence and extended her arms to be picked up by her instead – the favoritism was evident. “Hello, darling. Did you sleep well?” She brought the baby into her arms, giving her a gentle kiss on the forehead that left Chaewon feeling extra awkward and her heart a little tender.

“Oh, I see. Thank you for that.” Minjoo had always been the considerate type, even if back then she probably thought Chaewon would never be able to meet her child, moreover to feel hurt by her choice of names. “How did you know she was awake? I’m sorry if I made too much noise.”

Min shook her head. “You didn’t, she always wakes up around this time. Also, I’ve an electronic babysitter so I can keep track of what’s happening with her.” She pointed to the little device that was placed by the crib, picking up all the noise and video. Everything.

Chaewon was doomed.

Nodding, Chaewon forced a smile. “So, you’ve heard it all.” Nodding and crossing her arms in front of herself, she looked anywhere but Minjoo. She felt embarrassed, it wasn’t like Minjoo didn’t know about their former dreams, still, admitting her feelings wasn’t something she intended on doing.

Minjoo mirrored her actions, nodding as well. “Yes, I did. But I think you got it wrong, I left her here because it’s too noisy in the shop and she was feeling a little sick earlier, so I wanted her to rest as much as she could.” Holding the baby against her chest, she patted her back gently, albeit her dark eyes were still on Chaewon. “I can understand, you know? I can. And maybe that’s why I feel so…” She stopped mid-way, giving her a yellow smile as she averted her eyes. “But she is not a mistake, Chae. She is the only family I have now and the only thing that helped me to keep me going when you were away.”

The sudden confession took Chaewon by surprise, making her finally look at Minjoo just to notice the woman’s eyes were red now, her expression serious as she spoke – of course, if it hurt her, it would hurt Minjoo too, and she had been too blind to consider it. She wanted to kick herself for ruining things between them again with her silly rant.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to make you feel-” She started, trying to find the words to apologize and make things okay again.

“Chae, these are happy tears.” Minjoo chuckled, albeit a stubborn tear rolled her face. Her pretty face was bright now, her voice showing sincerity as she continued. “I’m happy because you are here again and it doesn’t matter if we are not together, as long as you are here and you are fine.” Using one hand to clumsily wipe away her tears, she gave Chaewon a tentative smile. “I know we lost a lot, that things will never be the same. But you are back and now I have Hyunjin too. I’m just glad you both are healthy and here, that’s enough for me.”

Chaewon was speechless, she opened and closed a few times before giving Minjoo a clumsy smile. “I’m glad to be back.” She finally said, braving up to step closer to the mother and daughter duo. “And I’m glad I could meet you.” She patted the baby’s head once more, chuckling when Hyunjin hugged her finger with her small hand. “Both of you.” Glancing at Minjoo, she repeated the gesture by gently patting her head.

Closing her eyes, Minjoo only enjoyed that brief moment, feeling as if it was the end of a long and painful phase in her life and maybe the start of a better one. Opening her eyes to be faced by two pairs of feline orbs, the lighter ones shining with a hint of a fondness Minjoo missed a lot, made her chest lighter. Even though Chaewon stepped back, it didn’t feel like the wall between them was there anymore.

“You can hold her while I take a look at your foot, just to make sure you won’t sue me for being wounded while at work.” She tried to joke, switching the topic for something else so they could slip back to their daily routine and forget about the pains from the past.

A little hesitating, her gestures careful, Chaewon extended her arms to take Hyunjin into them – thankfully, the young baby accepted the offer easily, snuggling up to Chaewon as if she had done it her whole life. The little body was warm, making her feel a little warmer on the inside as well. “I will accept your care, Minguri. To be honest, as the sister of a lawyer,” She said, referring to Eunbi and her infinite pile of paperwork; her tone was light and playful as she continued, “I hardly ever miss the chance of suing people but we haven’t signed a contract yet so it would be bothersome.”

Her joke was met by Minjoo’s laughter, and just like that she knew that they had successfully survived another tough, yet much needed, conversation.

That afternoon, as Chaewon played with Hyunjin and learned a lot about the baby and how to make her smile and respond to her, Minjoo made sure her foot was perfectly fine even though she refused to allow Chaewon back to work. They all eventually went downstairs to take care of the store and if more than one customer gave them weird looks, Chaewon pretended to not notice them – self proclaiming herself as “Kitten’s best aunt” as she helped to keep Hyunjin safe and happy while her mother worked.

Truth be told, once she met the baby and saw Minjoo with her, it was much easier to see Hyunjin as a lovely child and not just a mark of their complicated past. Yes, they didn’t have the chance of fulfilling their dream together and having kids, but Hyunjin was still a blessing in Minjoo’s life and Chae was willing to try to see her in this way as well.

Besides, it wasn’t like she could change the past. And as for the future…it was something she still needed to work on.

For now, maybe Minjoo was right and just being there was enough.

Working for a better future wasn’t an easy task.

As Chae slowly found her place in the present, going back to a mundane life of work and eventual visits to Minjoo’s store, family reunions and therapy sessions at hospital, life was becoming normal after a few months – although she wasn’t sure if it was a good thing.

While Minjoo continued with her life, Chaewon was trying to compensate for the wasted time. What meant seeing more people, talking to more people and the thing she dreaded the most, trying to date other people. It wasn’t like she was dying to get back at the game, but as her sisters not-so-subtly pointed out, since she had reached an agreement with Minjoo that they would stay in each other lives in a platonic way – not with these exact words, Eunbi was a little dramatic –, she should try going on a few dates to see how she felt and maybe move on.

Chaewon didn’t find a way to decline the suggestion without saying anything that would ruin all the progress she had made so far – or at least that she liked to claim she did.

Therefore, now her agenda was busier than ever as the weekends would become the time to meet and hopefully date someone new. If Minjoo didn’t support the idea, she didn’t give any hints when Chaewon told her about it, only saying that she didn’t need to come to the shop on the weekends and she should have fun instead – Chae was more than just a little disappointed. She was secretly hoping the younger woman would help her to run away from her dates, but the bitter irony was here again.

“Let me hold her, she looks so fluffy today!” Chaewon heard Nako’s voice loud and clear as she entered the small diner run by the younger woman, her eyes easily finding the friends sitting at a table by the corner. Hitomi and Nako were sitting opposite Minjoo who was holding Hyunjin in her arms, the shorter woman extending her arms to get the kid.

“Just don’t make her cry again.” Hitomi’s ever so savage self spoke next and Chaewon had to hold in a chuckle, approaching them with small steps.

Nako huffed in reply to Hiichan’s words, taking Hyunjin in her arms and carefully sitting her on her lap. “I didn’t make her cry, she likes me!”

“Yes, you did.” It was Minjoo’s turn to speak, albeit her voice was much gentler and nicer, it still carried a hint of mischief as she continued. “But it wasn’t your fault exactly, she just disliked your bird headband, and we can’t really blame her for that.”

“See?” Hitomi said before Nako could even protest and this time Chaewon had to cover to not laugh. Some things never change and she loved it.

“Ignore them, Hyunjinnie.” Nako spoke to the baby, hugging her dearly as Hyunjin didn’t seem to mind the whole conversation going on, too distracted with playing with Nako’s hair. “I know Aunt Nako is your favorite aunt!”

“No. That would be me!” Chaewon was quick to disagree, finally coming closer to greet her friends. She waved at them and gave Minjoo a smile, before turning to pat Hyunjin’s head lightly, holding her tiny hand. “Hey there, kitten!” And to everyone’s – or almost – surprise, not only the baby actually smiled at her but also tried to come to her arms instead. Nako wasn’t having that great of a day.

The group watched in awe as Chaewon held Hyunjin in her arms and the baby snuggled up to her – at least Nako and Hitomi were in awe, Minjoo just smiled, averting her gaze to the table. During the last few weeks, Chaewon had grown close to the baby and it was always a sight that warmed her heart, even if it broke her a little to know Chae would never be more than just one of the many ‘aunts’ Hyunjin had.

“That is new.” Hitomi stated as a matter of fact, leaning closer to Minjoo to ask in a quiet voice. “What the hell is going on here?”

Minjoo just shrugged her shoulders, she didn’t want her friends to have the wrong impression, but there wasn’t much to say. “I told you she has been helping me with the shop, and I guess they just get along well.”

The woman with fluffy cheeks and sharp words looked at her with skepticism, a smirk appearing on her face as she said with a hint of mischief. “Oh really?”

“Did you miss me? I will bring you more bread next time, so don’t worry I’m keeping my word.” Chaewon was too busy with Hyunjin to pay the other women any mind, smiling as the kid rested her palm on her face. Getting attached to this kid wasn’t a good idea, but she couldn’t help but grow fond of the baby that was so much like Minjoo but had such a unique personality already – she was a strong candidate for the ‘favorite baby’ title in her heart, although she loved her nieces so much. “If your mom is okay with it, of course.” She glanced at Minjoo to make sure, receiving a nod in reply.

“Just a piece this time, though.” Minjoo raised her index finger, to make her point clearer. “You spoil her too much…all of you.” She gestured to her friends that were equally to blame as they loved offering Hyunjin all sorts of treats – she could only imagine how spoiled her daughter would be as she grew old enough to visit them alone.

Chuckling softly, Chaewon jokily saluted her. “Roger that, Minguri. Promise we will keep the bread count low…at least, we will try.” Chae shamelessly winked, making Hyunjin giggle and Minjoo shake her head in disapproval albeit there was a smile on her face.

Their friends just watched the short exchange with curious eyes, exchanging knowing looks as they observed the very familiar smiles on the former couple's faces – these two had never been the subtle kind.

Clearing , Nako was the one to interrupt the moment. “So, what brings you here, Chaewon? Are you having lunch with Yena again?” The restaurant owner asked, glancing at the door as if to see if the duck-like older Kim was there as well, but she was nowhere in sight.

“Oh, no. Yena is home with Arin. Actually…” Shaking her head in a negative, Chaewon's smile became stiffer, less natural as she continued with a hint of hesitation. “Hm, I kind of…I am meeting someone.”

“A client?” Hitomi seemed curious, finding Chaewon’s shy demeanor odd. “I heard you are back to work.”

“No, it’s Saturday and I would rather not see them after work hours, you know?” Making a face, she shook her head once more. Containing a sigh, she braced herself for the reaction she would probably get – awkwardness was becoming a constant in her life. “I am meeting a girl for a date.” She only didn’t expect to meet Minjoo there by chance, damned be Yena for picking the diner as the meeting spot and only informing her way too late. “I mean, sort of, it’s more like we are just hanging out to see if we can get along.”

“Oh.” Was the reaction she got from every single person on the table, the Japanese couple seemed disappointed while Minjoo’s expression didn’t reveal much as she gave Chaewon a stiff smile – of course, awkwardness was plaguing her as well.

“That’s very nice!” As expected from Min, she was able to give Chaewon an encouraging smile and her words sounded sincere, if not exactly happy. Of course, she wanted the older Kim to be happy and Chaewon hadn’t tried to hide from her, her plans to go on a date. She knew something like this would eventually happen, so there was no point being petty. “You should try meeting new people and having fun. I wish you good luck.”

Nako let out a quiet exclamation of incredulity, Hitomi gave her a warning look although she was as incredulous as her girlfriend. Minjoo and Chaewon were a thing for as long as they could remember and after everything that happened, everyone just expected them to eventually get back together – not for Minjoo to become Chaewon’s love counselor or whatever it was going on now.

Even Chaewon herself didn’t know how to properly react to that – or maybe it just didn’t feel right. “Yeah, that’s what people keep telling me…” She gave them an awkward smile that was both, embarrassed and a little disappointed. She made sure to try to look more enthusiastic before they could notice her emotions – having Eunbi and Yena nagging her was enough. “I will try my best, but you know how charming I can be, so who knows?” She tried joking, but Minjoo shook her head in reply.

“You are very charming, so just be confident.” Raising her fist, she gently cheered her on, as if they were back at school during one of the sportive events – by now even Hitomi had given up hiding her expression; as for Chaewon, she was growing a little red.

“Thank you.” The older Kim said with a smile that was a little too fond, her red ears indicating she was still as easily flattered as when they were teenagers; she looked cute like that though, an adorably charming Chaewon was Minjoo’s favorite. “I should get going, I think she just arrived…” The sound of the door opening and closing alerted her, albeit she didn’t turn to look at the door, focusing on giving Hyunjin a quick kiss on the head before handing her back to Nako. “Bye bye, kitten! I will see you guys later, enjoy your food.”

The group watched as Chaewon moved to greet an unknown woman – most of the group, Minjoo just pretended to be busy with what was left of her melon juice.

“Well, well…” Hiichan started a questioning look on her face as she turned her attention back to Minjoo.

“You don’t have to say anything, I know.” With a sigh, she put her empty glass aside, finally glancing at Chaewon’s direction who was now sitting in a booth with the stranger, yet attractive, woman. “It’s just that that woman would be a fool to not give her a chance. I want Chaewon to be happy.”

It was Nako's turn to sigh, as she hugged Hyunjin to her chest. “What should we do with your mom, Hyunjinnie?”

“Mommy?” Hyun repeated, looking at Minjoo’s direction with a smile.

“I guess I will have to save her.” Hitomi was the one to answer – Hyunjin, fortunately, was still too young to understand adult problems. “Minguri, should we just go for a walk while Nako-chan works?” She offered with a playful smile, already predicting her girlfriend’s reaction.

“Aish! So, I have to stay here and third-wheel them?” The shorter girl protested, a disappointed sigh leaving her lips as Hitomi stole Hyunjin from her arms.

“You are the diner’s owner, work.” Shrugging her shoulders, Hiichan adjusted the baby in her hold to make sure she was comfortable before standing up. “Just ruin their date and join us later.” The suggestion made Nako grin and Minjoo frown.

“Sounds good, the walk, not the idea of ruining other people’s date.” Minjoo gave the couple a disapproving look, making sure her mischievous friends wouldn’t give in to the temptation. Putting her stuff away, she stood up to leave – all along doing her best to not look at Chaewon’s direction. “Nako, we will bring you some ice-cream next time, promise.”

As the women left, leaving Nako behind to finish her mint-choco cake and watch over the customers, Chaewon’s gaze couldn’t help but travel all the way across the diner. Her eyes were attracted by Minjoo’s presence, always were, and even though she should be giving her new date attention, she couldn’t control herself.

The door closed behind the girls and Chaewon was forced to go back to her reality – only to be faced by a very unamused look on her date’s face. Oh yeah, it would surely go well. “So,” She cleaned . “Should we order something now?”

She had a hunch that no matter how good Nako’s food was, it was a little too late to save the date. She just hoped the woman wouldn’t throw it at her face.

Minjoo had to contain a yawn as she made her way down stairs to check who could be knocking on her door so late – it was a small town, no one would go around bothering others after 9pm, therefore it made her a little uneasy to have someone so insistently hitting the wooden door when it was past 10.

Looking through the peep-hole, she frowned to herself as she recognized the figure dressed in an elegant beige jacket and long dark pants, the woman with shoulder-length black hair and a nervous look on her face.

“Chaewon? What are you doing here?” She asked as soon as she opened the door, not bothering with the usual greetings. Chaewon wouldn’t just show up at her doorstep if it wasn’t something important – at least, not since she had come back and their relationship was still on thin ice.

“I tried going on a date. Again.” The older woman replied with a grimace, she had gone on a few dates in the last couple of weeks and it went as well as expected – Eunbi was facepalming her by now. It explained her fancy clothes, she had dressed up to look presentable to her date, a pretty girl who was friends with Yena’s wife. She had travelled all the way to a neighboring city so they could have dinner together, yet here she was now. “It didn’t go well.”

Trying to keep a frown out of her face, Minjoo nodded as her hands remained on the half-open door. She had no idea why Chaewon was there now, but it couldn’t be anything good – especially if it was about her dating life. “I see…”

Chaewon didn’t seem to notice her discomfort, continuing her rant. “She was pretty, funny, and had a nice smile. She was smart too. Just my type.” She gestured with her hands a little too much, nervous energy emanating from her body. Her mind was running a million miles an hour, thoughts confused but always reaching the same conclusion over and over again. Taking in a deep breath, she looked up to meet Minjoo’s eyes – coming here wasn’t easy, but as she stared at the warm brown of the younger girl’s eyes, she knew she couldn’t be anywhere else. “Should’ve been my type.”

Crossing her arms, Min averted her eyes to her own feet, biting on her bottom lip. It shouldn’t, but it still hurt – Chaewon was nothing but an acquaintance for her now, she couldn’t even call them friends yet; still knowing she was trying to find love with someone new, hurt. “But?” She forced herself to ask.

“But I didn’t feel anything. Nothing at all. Not even when I kissed her.” Shaking her head, she remembered how it just felt wrong and weird, as if she was never meant to be there. It wasn’t like she had planned – nothing was. A pretty girl and a nice date should be easy enough, moving on should be easy. But it wasn’t and she had the feeling it would never be, if it was even possible. “Do you understand? It was like…Like nothing.” Chaewon sighed, taking a hand to her nape, nervously scratching it.

Inhaling sharply, Minjoo bit down on her bottom lip even harder. She didn’t want to hear about it, she wanted to go back inside and pretend she never heard about any of it. However, she couldn’t bring herself to do so. “Chaewon, why did you come here?”

The older Kim didn’t answer right away, instead she took a step closer so she could ask in what was almost a whisper, “Can I, just this once, ask you something unreasonable?” There was vulnerability and hesitation, knowing that she was about to say something that maybe she shouldn’t. Coming here was already something unreasonable and she was about to ask something that could take it to another level. “I promise it’s just this once.”

Closing her eyes, the brunette took in Chaewon’s odd request – once more her rational side told her to cut it off while she still could, yet her heart told her to stay. So, she just nodded weakly as she opened her eyes to face her former fiancée.

“Can I kiss you?” Chae’s voice was light and low, the request made without hesitation, yet with full awareness of how risky it was. She didn’t move, only waited patiently as she stared at Minjoo with her vulnerabilities visible on her face. She was aware it was crazy, that coming here and asking this simple question could break the very fragile relationship they had built. Yet, she didn’t take her words back. She was tired – tired of pursuing illusions, to try and fool herself when she knew there was only an answer to her questions.

Minjoo felt like she had stopped breathing. Chaewon’s light chestnut eyes were bright and heavy under the dim street light, her gaze so intense that it would be impossible to avoid it – she didn’t really want to. She could see everything in her eyes – she always did –, the urgency, the frustration and even the glint of hope and want.

She closed her hands into fists, knowing that slamming the door on the older woman’s face would be the best thing she could do, to shut Chaewon out of her life before she could break her even further. Minjoo couldn’t afford succumbing to her weak heart’s wishes and risking everything again…was even anything to risk now?

A broken heart – hers had been broken way too many times already.

As Chaewon kept her eyes on hers, her lips pressed together with tension and feet glued to the floor, she looked young and stubborn – just like when they were still teenagers and the older Kim decided to pursue her, ignoring her friends’ teasing and Minjoo shy self. She hadn’t changed much and the memories of it brought a new pain to Min’s heart.

Maybe that’s why she decided to be a little reckless tonight, to put aside the façade she tried so hard to keep and push aside her fear to tend to something much deeper – the same fluttering, hot and so alive feeling inside her chest; the one feeling that would always pull her back to Kim Chaewon.

Opening the door wide with more rush than grace, she reached out to grab Chaewon by the collar – the beige jacket kneading underneath her fingers as she pulled its owner closer. Minjoo’s dark orbs were full of the same mix of emotions Chaewon felt, a gaze so heavy that could make one melt, and the older girl didn’t need any words to know what it meant.

Minjoo kissed her, plump lips meeting hers and pressing hard as Chaewon closed her eyes to return the kiss. It was supposed to be a peck, only long enough for the both of them to figure out where things stand now, if the feelings were still there or it was nothing more than a sense of nostalgia and despair created by the years apart.

As the burning hot feeling was spread from their lips to their whole bodies, the blinding white light exploding behind their eyes as if a supernova was born inside of them, the doubts were erased. Chaewon’s heart was beating ridiculously fast, yet she couldn’t bother acknowledging it, her hands and lips too busy looking for Minjoo to even allow her to think of anything at all.

Chaewon hugged the younger woman by the waist, bringing her even closer, refusing to break the kiss. She was running after that feeling, the sensation that made her body and soul full, the one that made her head spin and filled her whole universe with nothing but Minjoo – the one feeling that would never allow her to forget where she belonged.

Biting her lips gently, but a little too quickly, she deepened the kiss and a moan left as she marveled at the very familiar and inebriant flavor that greeted her. Minjoo let out a happy sigh in response, hugging her by the neck, hands meeting her hair and nape, as the kiss found just the right rhythm.

It wasn’t clear whether it was Chaewon or Minjoo who led the way, but soon they found themselves inside the younger Kim’s house and Chaewon had closed the door with a kick, struggling to go up the stairs as they refused to break contact – and when they did, brown orbs facing the chestnut ones, there was nothing but need and want in their eyes and words weren’t needed as they naturally connected their lips again.

The kisses were deep, yet full of care and affection, just like every touch. The chemistry that was always there, shining as the couple let go of their inhibitions and fears to embrace each other just like their honest emotions – even if only for tonight.

As Chaewon’s lips met her skin with hot breaths, finding the way to her neck and her hands held onto her even tighter, Min closed her eyes and a smile was on her face as hugged her Chaewon closer, cupping her face and capturing her lips for a long kiss as she pushed her jacket out of the way – leaving behind the symbol of her failed date on the floor, forgotten just like the girl Chaewon never intended on loving.

Now, it was just like before for the two of them, just like when they were still college kids full of hormones taking every opportunity they had, like the many times Chae asked to stay and she never rejected her request – only that this time it really felt like it could be their last one.

Or the first of many.

Warmth.

She could feel warmth surrounding her – the gentle sunlight of the morning, the familiar comfort of the blankets, the warmth of being in the safety of her home…but she could also feel something new, yet so very familiar. Chaewon’s presence surrounded her just like her warm, arms hugging her closer, a leg over hers and her chin resting on top of her shoulder, so close that she could probably feel each breath Minjoo took – not that she could breathe much now.

The warmth was inside of her as well, filling her body and heart, making it impossible to ignore. Warm enough to make her wounded heart feel way too light, for her breath to hitch and remind her of what happened last night, and for her to close her eyes again wishing for this feeling – this moment – to never go away.

“Morning, Min.” She felt more than heard the greeting, hot breath hitting her ear sending the sound vibrating through her mind as if it was just another one of her dreams – the lips kissing her neck were very real though, just like the shivers it provoked.

Opening her eyes, she took a deep breath and was dragged deeper into the trap of comfort and happiness as her lungs were filled with Chaewon’s familiar scent, her heart embraced by the fondness in her husky voice. It was all too familiar, yet new – and she wasn’t sure how she should deal with it.

Therefore, she only replied in a quiet voice, hoping she wouldn’t break this dream-like moment and wake up all by herself once again – it wouldn’t be the first time that her memories and her heart’s silly desires would fill her with useless hope. “Good morning, Chaewon.”

Reality can’t be broken as easily as her dreams, and she was reminded of how real it was as she felt Chaewon’s smile against her face as the woman hugged her a little tighter – Chaewon was always the affectionate type, always there to remind her that she loved her regardless of time.

“I will take a shower first, while you check on Hyun, okay?” The older Kim suggested, sitting up to leave the bed. She looked very comfortable in her oversized white shirt and eyes heavy with sleep, the messy black hair on her shoulders giving her a youthful look that matched the smile she was giving the younger woman now – bright and warm, just like that morning. It was enough for Minjoo to want to keep this image in her mind forever. “Everything is still where it used to be, right?”

Minjoo could only nod, her mind still spinning from all the information it received – realizing that today was real, meant last night also was, and it could only mean… “Yes. You left some of your clothes here, they are in the last drawer.” Over five years ago, and Minjoo had diligently washed and folded them again and again, keeping it safe just in case Chaewon ever came back for them – it used to be just another way to deal with her loss, but her faith seemed to have paid off.

Chaewon’s smile grew bigger at her words, pleased with what she heard and she grinned at Minjoo before leaning in to give her a kiss – this time on the lips, as if they were back to that morning so long ago and nothing else mattered but each other.

The kiss didn’t last long, Chae going to the bathroom and leaving Minjoo behind to put back all the pieces of her confused mind and create an image that she didn’t know if she wanted to have – the naive, yet so full of hope heart Minjoo she once was, the one that wasn’t wary of fate because she had Chaewon to rely on and it was enough for her.

Sighing, she stood up to change into decent clothes and check on her daughter, reminding herself that even if Chaewon was there, time had not stopped. It never does.

“Bread!” Hyunjin asked for the third time and Chaewon scratched her head, wondering how much bread is too much bread for a baby who could barely speak. She concluded that a small piece wouldn’t hurt, so she gave the kid the food alongside more milk – Hyunjin’s smile showed it was the right choice.

“How come you only speak when you want something?” Chuckling to herself, Chaewon patted the baby’s head lightly, before taking a seat beside her tall chair so she could organize the rest of the food on the table – it wasn’t much, considering her limited cooking skills and the fact that she didn’t have much time.

Time.

As she heard the footsteps coming closer, she looked down with a smile on her face. In many ways, today felt like she was back to a very different time – and Hyunjin’s presence only made her have the silly thought of what life could’ve been if her time hadn’t stopped for five years.

She was back where it all started – back to Minjoo and all the feelings that she couldn’t ignore, back to the house she used to consider a second home, back to where she shouldn’t have left to begin with. She had tried to move on, but it only made it more obvious how much she wanted to stay.

Yena and Eunbi would surely enjoy teasing her about it – but it was a small price to pay for the chance of being with the dark-haired beauty who was walking towards her now with a surprised expression on her face.

“What’s with the face? I’m not as good as you, but I know how to make some sandwiches and scrambled eggs.” Chaewon said with a playful smile, trying to sound as natural as she could – part of her wanted to close the small distance between the two of them and greet her with a kiss – but they were now in front of Hyunjin and outside the dream like atmosphere from early, therefore she could feel a hint of awkwardness. “She is a fan!” She continued, enlisting Hyunjin’s help – luckily for her, the baby was happy to babble about bread again.

Minjoo hesitated for a moment, before taking a seat by the table. She had asked Chaewon to check on Hyunjin for a few minutes so she could take a proper shower – she originally planned on biding Chaewon goodbye much earlier, she didn’t expect the woman to be there smiling at her so widely and looking like she had no plans of leaving; she expected even less to share breakfast with Chae and Hyunjin, as if they were a big family and not in a very complicated situation right now.

“It’s just…” She shook her head slightly – it just didn’t feel real, having Chaewon there as if she had never left didn’t feel real. Minjoo couldn’t count the number of times she hoped for a day like this, but now that she had it, she struggled to believe her good luck. “Thanks. You always made the best sandwiches anyway.”

As she took a seat as well, they exchanged a look and tentative smiles – it was weird, but it felt good, like coming back home after a long trip.

“I have to meet a client today so I can’t stay too long. You know, I only have casual clothes here.” Chaewon informed after a few moments of comfortable silence only broken by Hyunjin’s eventual baby-noises. She didn’t really want to go back to the office on a Saturday but she was still getting back on her feet at work and she couldn’t waste a chance of getting a good project – hopefully she would be able to come back soon…If Minjoo still wanted her presence there. “It feels like nothing changed.” She gestured to her grey hood and comfortable jeans she had got from Minjoo’s room, just like she had left them.

The younger Kim nodded, biting on the inside of her cheek as she glanced at Chaewon who looked so comfortable there – just like she belonged there. Still, even if things looked the same on the outside, they both knew it wasn’t quite like this and Minjoo didn’t want to harbor vain hopes.

“I couldn’t throw it away.” She was referring to the clothes, but it was the same for pretty much everything related to Chaewon – in a box she kept every single picture and gift, too attached to consider getting rid of the things that were so precious to them. Needless to say, it was a pretty big signal of the fact that she had never managed to move on, and one of the reasons why she couldn’t push all the blame for her divorce on the other part – it was never going to work out from the beginning and allowing herself to feel pressed by the need to move on only led her to failure. “You can go once you are done eating, I will clean up here and open the shop.” She gave Chaewon a reassuring smile, making sure Chae knew that she was okay with her leaving if she had to.

Chaewon blinked, the smile on her face faltering after hearing Minjoo’s last words – she wasn’t sure how to understand it. Was it Minjoo’s way of telling her to go? Or maybe she was just embarrassed and wanted to be left alone for a while? Or maybe she was even regretting yesterday and…Taking in a deep breath, Chae made sure to shut up all the voices in her head and focus her gaze on Minjoo instead. She knew that woman like the back of her hand and she couldn’t allow the fear of rejection to blind her to what was in front of her eyes – yesterday it was, for the both of them, a very important moment and Chaewon knew it wasn’t something that could easily be pushed aside.

Minjoo wouldn’t look at her with such nervous, yet fond, eyes if she was regretting allowing her to stay last night.

She reached out for the brunette’s hand, squeezing it lightly. “I will help you with the dishes since I’m the one who did all the mess, so you can go ahead and take care of our kitten, and then we can open the shop.” Chaewon suggested with confidence, determined to not let this morning become just a ‘walk of shame’ when there was nothing for any of them to be embarrassed about. “My meeting is only at ten, I have time.”

Staring at their jointed hands, Minjoo averted her eyes from the food to Chaewon, finding a very familiar warmth in the chestnut eyes. If yesterday was all about impulsiveness, today all their words were careful and planed, showing more than their needs, but also their consideration for each other – the fact that Chaewon seemed so adamant about making it as natural as possible made her heart grow a little fonder, filled with a hope that she couldn’t help but hold onto.

“Chae…” She started, giving up on beating around the bush and deciding to be more direct – even if she wanted to hold onto the nice feeling of pretending it was just their daily life and everything would be fine from here on, she didn’t want to fool herself. “About last night…”

Chaewon’s reply was to smile at her and intertwine their fingers, a thumb caressing the back of her hand. “I know, Min. I know coming here was a little…it was impulsive, but I don’t regret it.” Her smile became smaller, eyes more serious as she brought their hands together to rest on her lap. “I don’t think I could ever feel this way about anyone else.”

Minjoo almost sighed out of relief, grateful for Chaewon’s words – it reminded her of how they used to be, how they used to talk about everything and even during the hardest times, they still managed to survive it together because there was nothing stronger than their bond – maybe that was still the case. “I don’t regret it either.” Even if it was just a one-time thing, she still wouldn’t regret – not when it gave her the chance of sharing one more night with Chaewon and give them this moment that was as precious as their feelings for each other. “But…” She tried, but her voice was cut off by the sound of a phone ringing.

“This damn phone is so fu…Excuse me a moment.” Chaewon cursed, stopping midway to give her an apologetic look before picking up the call.

Minjoo let out the air she had been holding, going back to her food as she allowed Chaewon some privacy – the question, however, remained on her mind. But where do they stand now?

She didn’t get the chance to ask. Chaewon needed to answer the call and apparently her meeting was scheduled earlier, therefore she only had enough time to help Minjoo with organizing stuff in the kitchen, before they both head downstairs. The older Kim still had to walk home to change into formal clothes and the younger had to tend to the shop, leaving them no time for complex talks.

The woman with shoulder length hair and bright chestnut eyes said her goodbyes once they reached the door, giving Minjoo a grin as if she liked what she was seeing – just Minjoo holding Hyunjin as the baby waved at Chaewon with a toothless smile.

“I will come over later and we can have dinner and talk.” Chaewon promised, leaning in to leave a kiss on Hyunjin’s head and another on Minjoo’s forehead, this one a little longer. “Don’t overthink, it’s just me.” She said it in a lower voice, her eyes full of warmth as she gently stepped back and turned around to leave.

She was trying to reassure her, to make her feel relaxed and good about them. But it was exactly because it was Chaewon that Minjoo couldn’t stop her mind from running, she couldn’t stop herself from worrying that fate might ruin everything for them once more.

That day, she could barely pay attention to work as Chaewon was all on her mind.

Minjoo poked her cheek with her tongue, her expression serious as she tried to concentrate on calculating the number of items she would need to order by next week and the profit she would be make out of it – she also had to decide which products to order and which ones she would have to try and trade for other types since not everything was as popular. It was boring and she was used to it.

But she wasn’t as good at concentrating on her work today.

Her gaze fell over her phone, glancing at the message Chaewon had sent her a few hours ago to inform she would be stuck in the office and wouldn’t be able to come over for lunch – it was sent along several stickers that were supposed to show how annoyed she was, but only made it cuter. Chaewon hadn’t changed much – nor did her reactions to her.

Maybe she should just relax and enjoy this feeling, pretend they were back to five years ago and it was just another day for them – this kind of day dream didn’t fit her life as an adult and a mother though. Even if she wanted to, her mind insisted on overthinking and making her thoughts a mess.

Sighing to herself, she pushed aside the papers and decided that it would be better to focus on organizing the shelves as it wouldn’t take much brain power and she didn’t need to worry about going bankrupt for messing up an order.

“Minjoo!” A voice called before she could move, making her raise her head and smile at the familiar face of one of her longtime friends.

“Hiichan!” She waved at the shorter woman, welcoming her as Hitomi approached the counter. “Do you need something?”

Nodding, the Japanese woman used her thumb to point out something over her shoulder – the shelves with cooking equipment that were so popular with the cooking lovers of the town. “Nako wants more of those things to peel potatoes super fast. I don’t know how she keeps buying so many and breaking them as quickly.”

Letting out a chuckle, it was Min’s turn to nod. Of course, Nako was one of her best clients and Hitomi often helped her. “I will get you some new ones we received last week. Maybe she will like it better.” Getting out from behind the counter and heading to the shelves, she was stopped by Hitomi’s touch on her shoulder.

“Wait a minute, Minjoo.” Her friend had a concentrated expression on her face as she watched Minjoo’s face with attention. “This…very suspicious.” Hiichan murmured to herself, one finger coming to poke Minjoo’s face and make her extra confused – maybe she forgot to wash her face properly after brushing her teeth earlier? “Yeah, this! I know this look!” Hitomi let go of her to clap happily, looking proud of herself.

Blinking, the taller brunette could only stare at her in confusion. “Huh?”

“This whole look.” Hitomi used her hand to gesture to Kim, pointing out every single detail as she continued. “The bright eyes, the way your cheeks are going up and you are kind of flustered…The turtle neck to hide from the judgmental old ladies.” Minjoo instinctively brought a hand to her neck and Hitomi laughed, clapping once more. “I knew it! So, where is the one responsible for it?”

“I…I don’t know what you are talking about.” Looking down, Kim avoided her quick-witted friend’s gaze, going to look for the equipment on the shelves instead – of course, Hitomi was right behind her, determined to torture her friend a little more with her teasing.

“Seriously, Kim Minjoo?” With a light chuckle, Hiichan pinched her cheek playfully. “You are screaming ‘Kim Chaewon effect’! I know it, because I was forced to see this adorably disgusting I’m-so-in-love look on your face for like ten years.” Clicking her tongue, she let go of Minjoo to cross her arms in front of her body and give Min a knowing look. “And don’t try to deny it, you didn’t become like this with that you decided to date, so I know for sure this is Chaewon’s doing.”

“It’s not a so-in-love look! It’s just…” Making a face, Minjoo sighed in defeat – she was never good at lying and Hitomi was never easy to fool. She would be doomed once Nako learned about it, but it wasn’t like she hadn’t dealt with the two of them making fun of her before; if anything, it was just like the old times. “She is at work.”

Hitomi nodded in approval of her sincerity, helping Minjoo to select a few boxes of the things Nako had asked her, before continuing to talk. “Mind explaining how it escalated so quickly? Last time you told me you were only friendly, not even friends yet.” Side glancing at Minjoo as they walked to the counter, so the taller woman could check out the stuff, Hitomi leaned on the furniture to study her friend’s face with a mischievous grin. “Well, I guess the part about not being friends is true.”

Heaving another sigh, Minjoo accepted Hitomi’s card to process the payment, taking her time to answer. “Honestly? I don’t even know. It just happened.” She decided to open up a bit, after all Hitomi was her friend and she knew well how complicated things were for her and Chaewon. “I can’t say no to her. I don’t want to. Chaewon is just…”

“The love of your life? I know. Everyone does, including her.” Hitomi completed before she had the chance, her mischievous smile becoming more genuine as she reached out to gently tap Minjoo’s hand. “And it’s the same for her, so I wouldn’t worry about it.”

Minjoo returned her smile with a smaller one. Hiichan wasn’t wrong, the whole town knew about her relationship with Chaewon and for so long, it was almost as it was meant to be. However, she wasn’t so sure anymore, not after everything that happened and kept them apart. “But things changed. I changed.” She replied after handing Hitomi the products, taking a seat behind the counter once more. “It’s not like we can just go back to what we used to be.”

“Then don’t try going back to the past, but embrace the future.” The other woman said simply, in the direct way that was so characteristic to her. Her expression was serious, albeit her eyes were understanding. “If she came back here, for you, I think she is willing to try. What about you?”

The answer came easily to her, just like the spark of hope: “I don’t think I have ever stopped trying.”

“Then I wish you the best!” Hitomi gave her the thumbs up, making her laugh as the usually serious woman showed her more playful side. “I missed having someone to tease.”

“Eunbi has kidnapped me and I don’t think she will release me anytime soon

Send help!”

Was the text that Chaewon sent to Minjoo once she realized that her sisters wouldn’t allow her to go anywhere tonight – Eunbi had pretty much dragged her out of the office, nagging about how “inconsiderate” she was for not informing Yena she would spend the night out, thus worrying the whole family. Chaewon was considering it as her oldest sister’s way of dragging her to another family dinner where she would be third-wheeling her siblings.

“Stop texting your friend and give us some attention!” The said sister, Eunbi, interrupted her, finding Chaewon sitting in the corner of the living room where she had been hiding to try and text Minjoo – she didn’t feel good ghosting the younger Kim after what happened last night, she didn’t want to give Min the wrong impression but she didn’t have much of a choice.

Making sure to pocket her phone before her nosy sister could get ahold of it – no matter how old they were, her sisters hadn’t changed much when it comes to snooping around her love life. “You are just asking for attention now because Sian is busy having her nerd doctor moment with Arin.” She said as she gestured to her sisters-in-law who were busy talking about whatever doctors talk when they are off duty, while her three nieces were busy playing – better saying, Eunbi’s kid, Joohyun and Chaeyeon, were fawning over their baby cousin Hyewon. “How you two ended up marrying smart people is a true mystery.” She directed her words at Yena as well, as her other sister had approached her.

As expected, she received the young sibling treatment – a double smack on the head for her belligerence.

“Ouch!” Her complaint fell on deaf ears, obviously.

“If you weren’t such a jerk maybe you would have married one as well.” Yena said, shaking her head and crossing her arms as if to show how much of a responsible adult she was now – Chaewon rolled her eyes at her antics. “Arin told me you gave her friend the cold shoulder yesterday.”

Eunbi clicked her tongue in disapproval, assuming a similar posture as Chaewon sighed, bracing herself for the scolding she was about to get. “You sabotaged your own date. Again.”

“And then disappeared for the night. I thought a car might have run over your skinny !” Another head smack, this time coming from Yena, who also seemed to enjoy scolding her lately – that’s what you get for living in your older sister’s spare room.

Giving Yena the nasty eye, she rubbed the back of her head before trying to explain herself – again, living in her sister’s house . “I am an adult too, you know? I was at…”

“Minjoo’s house.”

“Minjoo’s place.”

Her sisters said at the same time and Chaewon had to contain a grimace, knowing where this conversation was heading.

“If you knew it, you didn’t have to worry.” She pointed out the obvious, which was of no use as she was the one in the wrong here – technically she was supposed to call and let someone know she didn’t accidentally fall on a coma again; basic manners.

“I did, because you didn’t even bother informing me!” Yena complained, her lips protruding to show her disapproval. Chaewon almost felt bad for worrying her sister – almost because her head was still hurting from her sister’s demonstration of ‘love’. “You are the maknae, behave like one.”

Eunbi nodded in support of Yena's words, showing her mother-like expression as she honored her oldest sister's duty. “Yena is right. Have you already forgotten we almost lost you? Do you think it was easy for us to wait for you to wake up, every single day?” Her argument was compelling and definitely successful in making Chaewon regret being so reckless.

Losing five years of her life was hard, but she couldn’t even imagine how hard it should have been for her siblings to wait for her and be burdened with the responsibility of making difficult decisions whenever something happened to her in her sleep. There was no way she could thank them enough for that – therefore not being a brat was the least she could do.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t think it would worry you guys so much…Sorry.” Giving Eunbi an apologetic smile, she side hugged her older, yet shorter, sister to make sure she wasn’t mad at her anymore. She also smiled at Yena, but not as apologetically. “You got married to my doctor while I was in a coma, so don’t even say anything. I already helped you out a lot!”

Yena only grinned in reply, a proud look on her face. “That’s my good karma, nothing to do with you!”

Eunbi only rolled her eyes at her younger siblings’ exchange, ignoring it in order to focus on what she really wanted to know. “Now, explain what happened.”

Chaewon’s smile almost turned into a frown, knowing well they wouldn’t be content with another joke.

“I went there after the date.” The other woman gave her an impatient look at such an obvious statement – no time to beat around the bush. “I just realized I couldn’t keep going with those dates, pretending I was really trying when my mind was always on her.” Chaewon decided to make it short and honest. Of course, it took her a lot more time debating about it, but her sisters didn’t need to know about her mental conflicts. “But you guys already knew it, didn’t you? You set me up.” Now it was her turn to look at them with accusatory eyes, noticing their suspiciously innocent smiles.

The older Kim duo exchanged looks before shamelessly grinning, as if they had been waiting for this moment for a while – they were.

“We just thought you needed a little help to realize that the grumpy Chaewon of today isn’t that different from our teddy bear Chaewon of five years ago. We wanted to help you see it.” Eunbi said with an easy smile, patting Chaewon’s head lightly – an old habit that never changed even when the younger girl became the taller out of the three sisters. Eunbi had always been there for her, even more after their parents passed away. “You fell for her from the moment you saw her and it never changed. I always thought it was the case, but seeing how you couldn’t resist staying away from her proved my point.”

“Most high school sweethearts break up after school, because well, life and it’s hard to deal with the distance and adulting…” Yena spoke from experience, her own first love failing to reach its happy ending as life took them to different paths. “But you, you are the most stubborn love struck fool I have ever seen!” She completed, an annoying grin on her face as she recalled a much younger Chaewon who was so willing to do everything she could to see her girlfriend even if it meant missing a few nights of sleep. Yena knew it better than anyone, as she was the one Chaewon would enlist for help. “Even when you went to college, you would come back home every weekend, dropping out everything just to see her for a few hours and then call me during the rest of the week to complain about how much you missed her. I swear, you looked happier for being able to come back to her than for graduating.”

“I still think she graduated with good grades not because she loved studying, but because she was afraid of failing and having to stay there for the summer.” Eunbi laughed, clearly she also had a few good memories of those times. Her older sister had helped her during her first semesters as a college student, although she could only admire Chae’s resilience as she never had to struggle with a long distance relationship – luckily, she met her own wife on campus and they were together ever since.

“Do you remember how determined she was? Saying that ‘Now we can get married so I need to make money fast’, and stalking Mr. Park until he gave her a job at the company.” Eunbi and Yena laughed, while Chaewon tried to hide her face with a hand – when they put it that way she sounded a lot more foolish than she remembered. “You did it though! Even became a partner when you were only there for three years. You did the most and all because you loved Minjoo so much.” Eunbi patted her head once more, as to show how proud she was but it only made Chae cheeks grow red.

“I did it for myself too! I wanted to be successful and I liked my job.” Trying to get rid of her blushing, she defended herself – useless when her sisters were staring at her like she was a silly kid; which she was, for them. “I wanted to give us a nice life and keep my promise...but in the end, I did not.” She finished with a sigh and it was enough to take the grins out of her sisters’ faces.

Eunbi hugged her by the shoulders, her eyes serious as she spoke: “It was beyond your control. Beyond everyone’s control.” The gentle reminder was welcome, albeit Chaewon wouldn’t ever completely forgive herself, be it her fault or not, the accident had changed everyone’s life so much and ruined so many plans. “But now, you have a new chance.”

“We are telling you to not waste it!” Yena came to hug her from the other side, the sisters squeezing her in the middle like a human sandwich – good old fraternal love never changes, no matter how much she complains about her cheeks getting squished. “We want to see you happy, you know?”

“But only if you are sure you can accept her as she is now. All of her.” Eunbi added as Yena rubbed her cheek against Chaewon’s as if they were babies again – and the younger fought a smile, because she indeed felt like a beloved child in the moment, even though she tried so hard to show the others that she was all grown up now.

“You don’t have to tell me.” She managed to answer, pushing Yena away so she could look a little more presentable as she stood up to get rid of her clingy sisters. “I already made my decision. So, if you excuse me, I have a place to be!”

“You never told me what happened to her.” Chaewon said as she held Hyunjin against her shoulder, rocking back and forth to help her sleep as she caressed her small back – she was becoming a pro at it, what was as pleasant as it was surprising. “I know she was sick, but nothing else.”

Minjoo didn’t reply right away, taking her time as she organized stuff around the room. Chaewon had arrived a little past Hyunjin’s bath time and she had been preparing her for bed when the doorbell rang. Therefore, Chaewon had naturally joined her on the task of making the baby fall asleep, giving Min the chance of fixing the room a little bit.

It wasn’t the most romantic way of meeting each other after what happened, but it seem oddly fit for them, as if it was something they had done so many times before – the comfortable feeling of being like a family was very tempting, but also dangerous and Minjoo knew better than reading too much into it.

“She was born premature. I was very stressed at the time, and she was born a few weeks earlier than expected, because of it she had to stay a while at the hospital. Her lungs weren’t fully functional yet and it required that she had assistance 24/7, which was pretty complicated and cost quite a lot of money.” She explained as she finished her task and stepped closer to caress Hyunjin’s head – the baby seemed very comfortable in Chaewon’s arms, as usual. “She is fine now. She still has a minor heart condition, but her doctor thinks it will heal with time and it won’t affect her life quality.” A smile made its way to her face as she remembered the first time she was able to bring the baby home and how relieved she felt knowing that the worst had passed – since then, it was just her and Hyunjin, just like now.

“That’s good, she deserves a happy life.” Chaewon nodded to herself, giving Minjoo a smile as she glanced at her. “You are a great mother, you know? You did the right thing back then, for her. I would've been really disappointed if you had hesitated to use our money when Hyunjin’s life was on the line.” It was something that she meant to say for a long time, to make sure Minjoo didn’t feel burdened by something that Chaewon would never hold against her. “I wouldn’t be able to meet our kitten if you hadn’t, so thank you for that.”

Her words surprised Minjoo in a positive way – she knew Chaewon wouldn’t hold a grudge because of money, but she didn’t expect her to thank her for saving Hyunjin; in fact, it was hard to believe how close Chae had got to her daughter in just a few weeks…like her little personal gift from above, a compensation for everything she had been put through. “I guess even sleeping you were always my best supporter.” Just like she had done to Hyunjin, she reached out to caress Chaewon’s dark locks.

“Of course, I’m Kim Chaewon.” The older Kim playful bragged, but she leaned into Minjoo’s touch with a soft smile – Eunbi would be offended if she had seen how well Chaewon react to Minjoo patting her in comparison to her sisters; of course, there was no way Chaewon would let her know. “Is this the reason why she doesn’t talk as much as other children?”

“No.” Min shook her head with a small chuckle as she noticed Hyunjin’s intelligent eyes on her, very much awake regardless of the hour. “Actually, according to Dr. Sian, she is just quiet. It’s part of her personality, she prefers to watch rather than talk. I try encouraging her to talk but she always keeps it short.”

Nodding, the slightly shorter brunette looked from Minjoo to the baby in her arms – Hyunjin, as usual, gave her a smile as she tried to touch her face with her fluffy hands. “Kitten, listen.” Chae asked her, making sure the baby was paying her attention, adjusting Hyunjin in her arms so she could be a little distant from her body and face to face with her. “Say Kim Chae Woooon!” She raised the baby to throw her in the air – very briefly or else Minjoo might have a heart attack, only enough to make Hyunjin laugh like a happy kitten. “Chaaaae Woooon!” She repeated and the kid laughed once more, echoing “Wooon” as if she liked the sound.

Chae repeated the action a few times, managing to make Hyunjin say her name, even if in a fragmented way. “I think we got it covered.” She winked at Minjoo who only watched the little moment between her two favorite people in awe. Chaewon’s methods were weird but oddly effective.

Minjoo let Chaewon play with Hyunijn for a little longer, preparing her bedroom for the night by placing her favorite cat plushie on her crib, as well as making sure the electronic babysitter was working. Truth be told, it was way past Hyun’s bed time and usually Minjoo would be pretty strict about it, but she didn’t have the heart to interrupt the adorable interaction between those two – how could she? Seeing Chaewon treating Hyunjin like her own daughter was a sight that warmed her heart, the kind of thing she imagined many times before as part of her silly dreams, yet somehow became reality.

If she could see moments like this every night, she wouldn’t mind letting Hyunjin sleep a little later.

“She finally gave up fighting the sleep.” Chae announced, passing Hyunjin to Minjoo’s arms so the woman could give her a goodnight kiss and put her to bed properly – and Min did, giving her a soft thank you before focusing on her motherly duties.

They watched the kid sleep peacefully for a moment, making sure she was comfortable before slowly backing away and leaving the room with light steps – just like parents always do to avoid waking up their energetic infant.

“She is very cute. Like you.” Chaewon said once they were far enough to talk without risking waking Hyun up. She back hugged Minjoo and left feather-like kisses on her neck, light but insistently, making it hard for Minjoo to not melt against her.

It was sudden, but very welcomed and Minjoo didn’t think before turning around to hold onto Chaewon’s shoulders and pull her in for a long kiss. Their lips fit in just right, sweet and warm, the kiss getting deeper as she hugged her better and her hands run through her back and shoulders, only stopping when she felt the prominent scar at the junction of Chaewon’s neck and shoulder, the skin rough against her fingers, so different from the natural smooth skin of her back.

Chaewon noticed it too, breaking the kiss to look at her. “I hate it too, all of them.” She said referring to the scars on her back that she couldn’t really see, only felt with the tip of her fingers – a constant reminder that even if she was feeling better now, her luck had not always been so good. “But I guess it’s a small price to pay for not getting my scalp burnt instead.”

“No, it’s not it…I don’t hate it.” Minjoo explained as she shook her head and her right hand gently touched the scar once more, before bringing Chaewon in for a tighter hug. “The first time I saw you back then, I could barely see your torso because it was all covered in bandages, and we were so scared you wouldn’t recover…it reminds me that you are here and you are safe now.” Leaving a kiss on the crook of her neck, where the scar started, she closed her eyes and for a moment just enjoyed Chaewon’s presence.

With a small smile, the older woman hugged her back for a long moment.

She couldn’t even recall the pain she felt, for her it was just like she woke up one day with these scars underneath her shirt and another one in her arm, but like everything else, recovering from her wounds was just another experience she completely missed. “I’m sorry for worrying you. It seems like I do it more than I should.” She apologized, remembering her sisters’ words earlier that evening – for Minjoo, it was probably as hard as for them, and she could only feel sorry for the suffering she put her through.

“Chae?” Minjoo called softly.

“Yes, love?” Chaewon replied naturally, not even bothering to overthink her words.

“Can we talk?” There was a hint of something in Minjoo’s voice, a mix of fear, nerves and hope that was hard to miss – Chaewon knew her too well to ignore it.

Breaking the hug slowly, she gave her a smile before nodding. “Sure.”

A picture of Chaewon’s high school graduation ceremony showing the happy faces of a young version of the couple, seemed to be watching over them now – as if to remind them how far they have come and how many memories they shared; to remind them that it was time to decide whether or not they should hold onto these memories and move on, or build new ones.

As the two women sat on the living room’s couch, enjoying the silence of night and the comfort of each other’s presence, they held hands lightly but firm enough to show the purpose. It took Minjoo a moment before she mustered the courage to speak and break the invisible glass that encapsulated the truth about their feelings.

“This, me and you here…I’m trying really hard to not hold onto this and delude myself because I don’t know where we stand now…” She squeezed Chaewon’s hand a little tighter, capturing the chestnut gaze as the brunette turned to face her. Minjoo kept her eyes on Chae’s as she continued, although it was hard to do so when her insecure side tried to come out. “I can’t demand anything of you, or blame you for feeling or not feeling a certain way…but I can’t help but wish that we were back to what we used to be.” She didn’t want to burden Chaewon with her feelings, or rush things, still she couldn’t allow herself to fall deeper when she already knew the pain of losing her – she wouldn’t be able to handle it happening again. “I understand if you need time to think, but I need to know how you feel.”

Resting her left hand over their joint hands, Chaewon gently pulled Minjoo a little closer. Of course, she knew this conversation was unavoidable and it was actually a good thing – it wasn’t like there was a lot to be said, words weren’t as important as making sure her feelings were clear. “There are many ways to put it. Many things I thought over and over and I…” She stopped, trying to organize her thoughts. When she woke up and Minjoo wasn’t there, her feelings were as messy as her thoughts, but time made her understand it better and make peace with herself as well. “At first I think I even hated you a little...and then I hated myself because it was my fault, it was me who failed you and put us through this hell.” Pressing her lips into a tight line, she felt the bitter taste of her words – the resentment and frustration were things that she struggled to get rid of, and maybe she wouldn’t ever be completely free of these emotions; it would haunt her like the five years of blank space in her memories.

Yet, she refused to give in to it.

“Then I realized that I shouldn’t be looking for anyone to blame, but life itself. And honestly, it for being such a to us!” Maybe she wasn’t completely over her grumpy phase – but cursing life seemed like a much healthier way of dealing with it than blaming herself and Minjoo for things they couldn’t control; Min seemed to understand it, giving her a sad smile in response as she nodded and waited for Chaewon to continue. “You said it well, I can’t blame you for anything you have done while I was away. I can’t demand an apology or feel entitled to judge your actions. Back then, I think no one thought I would make it back, not even my own body...” Sighing, she shook her head slowly. Five years for her were like a long night, a long dream that was just a blur in her mind now, half empty memories that meant nothing, yet stole so much time from her. “In fact, it was like I had fallen so deep I would never come back. I don’t even understand why I did, I don’t think I ever will.”

The older Kim’s words brought Minjoo some comfort, making the burden of guilt a little lighter – knowing Chaewon could understand her actions and her reasons to do what she did was all she could ask from her. It wasn’t easy for any of them, however they were in very different positions and understanding each other’s pain and frustration was as important as forgiving themselves.

“I visited you every day for over two years. Every day I prayed and hoped, I talked to you and held onto you so tightly that sometimes I felt like I was losing myself too.” Minjoo averted her gaze to their joint hands, Chae’s fingers enlacing hers were full of warmth and so very different from the lifeless hands she used to hold back at the hospital, as if she could bring Chaewon back with her presence – these hands were the same, but now the touch brought her hope instead of sadness. “But your body was growing weak and the doctors were skeptical, everyone told me it was time to let go and learn to live my life…without you.” The last words came out like a whisper, pained and guilty – the night she bid Chaewon goodbye would forever haunt her, standing beside her bed and begging her to come back only to receive no reply but the cold beeping of the machines that still kept her former fiancée alive…she realized she couldn’t continue holding onto Chaewon when she was no longer there for her.

“I tried so, so hard to move on…but it never worked, as if it was never meant to.” The truth was that she couldn’t move on, her heart was never on it no matter how hard she tried to give herself and others a chance – dating again and putting on a smile was hard enough, but as time passed and she felt more and more lonely, taking the next step felt like the only thing she could do to save herself. “When my marriage ended and I was left on my own with Hyunjin, I couldn’t even do anything other than pray for her to get better…I felt as if I was being punished for leaving you. I thought that it was life repeating itself and I might lose her too.”

Until a few months ago, she still thought like this – even with Hyunjin getting better, the fear of something bad happening never left her mind completely. For many times she even considered leaving that town for good to try and get rid of all painful memories; however, she couldn’t. Her weak heart still insisted on making her stay and hold onto her dear memories, just like she held on the very thin line that still connected her to Chaewon – and eventually, she was rewarded for her patience.

“But you didn’t.” Chaewon added softly, bringing the brunette back from her memories, gifting her with a genuine smile that was better than any words she could ever say– Chaewon’s presence there was her own little miracle. “Just like you didn’t lose me.” Cupping Min’s cheek with a hand, she used her thumb to wipe an insistent tear escaping the pretty chocolate eyes. From now on, she would make sure Minjoo wouldn’t cry over her – except for happy tears. “Kim Minjoo, I stand here with you. I will always stand beside you, for as long as I can. That’s my decision.”

It took her a while, but every path always led her back to Minjoo and fighting it was useless when all she ever wanted was to be with her. Tonight, as she held onto Min’s hand and listened to her, it made her even more sure that this was the place she should be. “I loved you from the first time I saw you and I love you now. I know, it’s kind of pathetic and very cliché, but it’s the truth.” She let out a light chuckle, trying to ease the mood although her words were completely sincere – no matter how much time passed, she was sure it would never change. “I’m learning to love Hyunjin too. She is a part of you and there’s nothing about you that I do not love.” Reassuring Minjoo was easy, the baby was already dear to her and she was sure that loving Hyunjin would come as naturally as her love for Minjoo did. “I am not leaving you again, Min. It may have taken a while, but I always keep my promises, you know?”

Minjoo trapped her in a bear hug, words unable to leave as she tried to contain the tears – happy ones, as she embraced Chaewon tightly, as if like this she could make up for all the years lost. Chaewon didn’t seem to mind, hugging her back and finding her favorite place on the crook of her neck where she could feel her scent and feel the beats of her heart. They held onto each other without any words needed, just enjoying this precious moment that meant so much.

“I was very happy when I heard you woke up, so happy that you were back even if you were no longer mine.” Min finally said after a while, breathing in Chaewon’s calming scent and melting into her warmth that reminded her what truly felt to be at home. Backing off only enough to be able to see Chaewon’s face, her lips going up to form a smile as she spotted the familiar glint of affection in Chae’s eyes. “But I am glad you came back to me.”

As to confirm her words, she placed a gentle kiss on Chaewon’s lips, putting all her love and affection in the soft gesture. Resting her forehead against hers, Chae’s eyes curved into a smile as she stole another quick kiss.

“Min, can ask you something?” Chaewon asked in the softest voice, lips still so close that it was easy for Minjoo to grant her wish with a kiss instead of a verbal answer. “Marry me.” The older Kim proposed without hesitation, prompted by the confidence of the love she could feel right now, with every kiss and touch – they were right back where they belonged.

These words were familiar, as Chae had uttered them once before in a much more elaborate proposal – the effect those words had over Minjoo was still the same regardless, the warm feeling invading her chest, the happy beats of her heart and the smile that was impossible to hide. Back then she wanted to spend the rest of her life with Chaewon, and now it wasn’t any different, if anything, she wanted it even more. “Yes, of course it’s a yes!” The answer was followed by a tight hug, her lips finding Chaewon’s fluffy cheek to cover it with kisses. “But I also have something to ask.”

Not bothering to fight the silly grin that made its way to her face, Chaewon turned her face to steal a glance at her girl. “What is it?”

“Let’s do it as soon as possible. I don’t care if it’s a simple ceremony or a big one, I just want us to be together.” Minjoo’s simple request reflected Chaewon’s very own wishes, and she was quick to nod in agreement.

“Of course! This time I won’t give life enough time to screw us over.”

Epilogue

“Don’t worry, she is probably having a blast playing with Chaeyeon and Joohyun.” Chaewon reassured Minjoo, referring to their ‘kitten’ who was spending a nice evening with her sister Eunbi, her wife Sian and their daughters that were only a few years older than Hyunjin.

Her sisters were pretty happy with the news of their upcoming wedding – in fact, they seemed to be preparing for it for the longest time considering how quick Yena was to try to kick her out of the house so she could move in with Minjoo, even offering to help planning the wedding; Eunbi wasn’t any better, actually she bombarded Chaewon with dozens of messages about it, saying she was always ‘up’ for babysitting and she knew a few officers who could make her union official.

She liked to think her sisters were just happy for her and not just tired of having her as a third-wheel for their happy marriages – it was probably both, she was a little too old to be single according to Eunbi.

It was a good thing though, their help made it possible for her to continue with a little plan of hers for the last few months.

“I know. She likes them a lot. Maybe I’m becoming an owl mother.” Minjoo chuckled to herself, knowing Chaewon was right and Hyunjin would be completely safe and enjoy herself playing with her cousins. Ever since Hyun was born, alongside with Hitomi and Nako, Chae’s sisters were there for her her and they often offered their help to look after the baby and make sure she could have some time for herself – Hyewon, Yena’s kid, was Hyunjin’s best buddy at the daycare. Still, she felt a little bad for leaving Hyun in Eunbi’s care during a weekend night; it wasn’t her decision though, Chaewon had pretty much dragged her out of the house. “Where exactly are we again?”

She trusted Chaewon whole-heartedly, but after several minutes in the car just to a stop in what looked like the middle of nowhere, was making her curious side come to life. It didn’t help that Chaewon insisted on coming to this place during the middle of a dark evening and she could barely see anything through the car’s window – and what she saw confused her even more; was it a river? Or the town’s lake they used to visit when they were teenagers?

Chaewon seemed glad to answer, her lips curving to form a grin just like her eyes turned into half-moons – she looked a little too excited for just another date night. “Our wedding venue!”

Minjoo blinked in confusion, watching her fiancée escape the car swiftly before she could ask anything.

They had been planning the wedding for the last four months, what took a little longer than both of them wished – even for a simple ceremony, there were still many things to plan; they also had to make sure they were on the same page about their plans for the future and even adjust their work schedules to accommodate each other and Hyunjin’s needs. In the last four months Chaewon had moved in and slowly integrated herself into Minjoo’s life once more, finding the perfect balance in their relationship and family – Hyunjin seemed to be pretty content in having another mom to play with her, and the feeling seemed to be mutual.

According to the plans, the wedding would take place on the next weekend – at a nice hotel in the city nearby, followed by a small reception for their friends and family at Nako’s diner; none of it included an outside venue close to the lake.

The car’s door opened, revealing a hyped Chaewon who offered a hand to help Minjoo to climb down the car and be involved by the evening breeze. She held onto the older girl’s hand, looking around as her eyes adjusted to the dim moonlight. Indeed, it was the pretty lake by the edge of town, the moon making its calm waters glow silver; however, what caught her attention was the dark structure located a dozen of meters away, standing tall and intimidating, it was hard to tell what it was but Minjoo surely didn’t remember seeing anything like that before.

“A cabin? A summer house?” She tried, squinting her eyes to see what it was. There were a few summer houses by the lake, most were small and occupied either by old people or tourists for a few weeks a year. That thing seemed far too big to fit the description – it also didn’t seem fit for a wedding venue, unless… “Kim Chaewon!”

Letting out a giggle that made her look like a mischievous kid, Chaewon didn’t answer her questions, instead she pulled her closer to the construction. It was still too dark to see it in detail, but it didn’t take a genius to understand what was happening – so very typical of Chaewon.

“It’s also my special gift for us.” She explained, fishing her phone from her pocket to give the final touch to the surprise she had been preparing for the last few months. And just like magic, the lights were switched on, revealing not only the pretty house painted in white and green – Minjoo’s favorite colors –, but also the beautiful garden that was previously hidden by the darkness.

She glanced at Minjoo’s face, a hint of nervousness as she tried to decipher her reaction – it went away fast, Min was never good at hiding her emotions and the way her eyes grew so big made it clear she was impressed. “I bought the land many years ago and the plan was to build the house once we had enough money…Turns out sleeping for five years makes it much easier to save money, and of course, the bank interest really helped.”

“Chae this is…it’s beautiful!” Minjoo managed to say as her eyes marveled at Chaewon’s creation – a home for them. The garden was beautifully green and pink – cherry-blossoms decorating the grass –, integrating with the natural vegetation of the lake side, as if it was meant to be there. The house itself wasn’t like anything she had seen before, the modern straight lines that mixed glass and the strong walls of concrete in an elegant way, the illumination giving it a warm tone and emphasizing the large windows, allowing her to see a little bit of the equally impressive interior. She always thought someday Chaewon would build them a beautiful house, she only didn’t expect it to be so soon. “It is perfect.”

Minjoo clung to the older Kim’s arm, an infectious smile on her face as she couldn’t hide her excitement – now she understood how Chaewon was feeling. “Is that the project you have been working extra hours for?”

Nodding, Chae pulled Minjoo towards the house so she could see the interior of it. “I wanted to make it a surprise, but I didn’t want to finish it all without having your opinion. So, as you can see there is still a lot to do inside, and you can change anything you want!” She gestured to the bare walls and floor, the large living room still devoid of any furniture – only the kitchen was already equipped according to her design, but everything still lacked decoration to make it look like a home. “I had the blueprint ready for a couple of years, but I made some changes to make sure our kitten will be able to play around without hurting herself.” She gestured to the open plan that allowed more free movement, and the biomorphic shape of the kitchen island, the lack of corners was perfect for a clumsy kid starting to walk.

Going a little further, they would be able to find the bedrooms, including the master bedroom with glass walls giving a nice view of the lake; at the other side there was a special playroom for Hyunjin to spend the time with her friends in the makeshift fort Chaewon installed with soft, yet resistant yellow and purple fabric and many cushions. The house was beautiful, but Minjoo found the sweetness in Chaewon’s considerate actions and thoughts much more meaningful.

That’s why she engulfed her in a tight hug, interrupting their house tour to show how grateful and happy she truly felt – finally, it felt like the life they dreamed of was becoming a reality. “I feel like I can see our future here, it will be our forever home.” Leaning back to give Chaewon a gentle kiss, she made sure that her words showed the feelings that were clear in her eyes. “I love it already and I will love it even more once we give it our touch.”

Relief and glee flowed through Chaewon’s body as she heard Min’s words.

It was hard to overview the team constructing the house while handling her other projects and making sure to keep it a secret from Minjoo – she had to enlist the help of their friends to help covering for her whenever she needed to run to the construction site to solve a problem, and even more lately when the wedding was getting closer and Minjoo became more curious about all her extra hours at work. Still, hugging her girl now made it all seem small in comparison to the happiness she felt. “I waited for this for a long time, but this moment makes it all worth it.”

“It’s even better than what I wished for.” If once, even thinking about a moment like this felt like reaching for the impossible, today all her senses made sure to tell her that it was all real – the warm lights on them, the nice scent coming from Chaewon, her arms around Minjoo and the lips that now touched her cheek ever so softly…yes, waiting for this moment was worth it all. “Thank you for coming back, my love.” Hugging her closer, she brought their lips together for a long moment – the kiss making her heart race in the best way, her chest light with the certainty that this moment would last forever.

Chaewon smiled through the kiss, holding tightly onto Minjoo to lift her off the floor, making the two of them laugh as she tried to keep her balance – she would do it again once they entered the house as a married couple, starting their life as it should be, happy and full of hope.

Her plans may have been delayed, but the conclusion was still the one she always wished for: Minjoo inside her arms, in the house she built for them and where they would live for the rest of their lives. “Of course, I would never leave my life partner behind!”

For the two of them, life hadn’t been easy, but it felt as if finally, they could reach the dreams they built together over the years.

A week after that evening, after coming back several times to prepare the house and gardens for the celebration of their wedding, they took their first step inside the house as a married couple.

The ceremony was held under the gentle sun of the early morning, by the blue waters of the lake and the gardens that were adorned with the pink flowers of spring, white and green in the tents raised to protect the guests and allow the couple to celebrate for all day long. There, surrounded by their friends and loved ones, they experienced the first of many good days to come. With several funny and emotional speeches, good food and cake for days, tight hugs and pats on the back, the sound of children playing as Hyunjin joined her new family, it truly felt like it was the start of a great future.

That day Chaewon kept her promise once more, joined by Hyunjin, as the three of them laughed their hearts out as she precariously spun them around until they fell over the soft carpet, too tired to do anything other than cuddle together and sleep soundly.

Now they were safe and happy. They were home.

Bonus scene (for crack purposes)

The doorbell rang during one of the calm evening where Chaewon was busy entertaining Hyunjin and their newly adopted cat, while Minjoo cooked them dinner – she kicked them out of the kitchen after Chaewon tried to teach Hyun how to make eggs and burned it instead; it was a little too harsh, but she accepted the punishment.

“I will take it.” She announced, standing up to check on who it was. Her expression turned dark once she saw a male figure through the digital panel by the door. “Hyunjinnie, why don’t you go to the kitchen and eat some of that bread Hitomi gave you? Tell mommy I said it’s okay.” She said gently to her daughter, waiting for the kid to be out of sight before stepping outside.

“Where is Minjoo? I want to talk to…” The man started, but she raised a hand to gesture for him to shut up.

“No, you do not. Now listen up, you little .” She started, using the words she usually avoided to not contaminate Hyunjin with her love for cursing – of course, now was a special occasion and she made an exception to the rule. In fact, she was ready to make an exception to the ‘don’t use violence’ rule as well, if needed. “You will walk away and never come back. Got it?”

The man stepped back, surprised by her rude behavior. “I…I have the right to see my daughter!” He asked, albeit the trembling voice didn’t make it very intimidating. Chaewon was half a head shorter, but she was several times more filled with rage, and he was aware of it.

“Nope. You do not have a daughter, legally speaking you gave up on having one the moment you refused to acknowledge her existence, like the you are.” Chae made it clear, not giving him a chance to question as she continued to speak – she had no time to deal with that good-for-nothing man. “Now, she is my daughter and I do not allow you near her. My sister runs a law firm, if you even think about stepping near this house, my wife or my daughter again, you will get your loser sued, if I don’t find a way to dump you in the woods first. Got it?”

“W-Who do you think you are?” He tried to stand up for himself once more, only to receive a look of disgust.

“Kim Chaewon.” The man went pale, as if he was seeing a ghost – and perhaps he thought he was, for Chaewon’s amusement. “And you are ing off right now before I call the cops on you for stalking!”

Turning her back, she closed the door on his face before he could say anything. There was no way she would miss dinner because of that .

“Who was it, honey?” Minjoo asked once Chaewon joined the rest of the family in the kitchen.

“Those damn religious people trying to scam me into buying their stuff. Argh, it gives me shivers when they start to sing!” Chaewon made a face, but it was hard to hide her smirk and Minjoo caught her lie easily.

With a smile of her own, Minjoo asked: “Did you send them away?”

“Surely, for good.” Chaewon confirmed, reaching out to pull Minjoo closer so she could sit on her lap. “My family already has everything it needs.”

Hugging her by the neck, Minjoo kissed her lightly – and she could hear Hyunjin giggling at the sight of her parents being lovey-dovey. “Yes, we definitely do.”

A/N: Hello there! I hope you’ve enjoyed this mess, it was only made for fun but I tried to still give it a decent story-line. 

Also, I’m not an architect (I’m not that talented), however, luckily I had the help of an actual talented person, aka @gimletrue to help me plan the house that Chaewon built here, so it's all Jin’s doing. Blame it on her if you didn't like it!

That’s it, thanks for reading.