“Everything started from the moment I first saw you.”

From secretly stealing glances at her in the lecture hall to helping her with her scholarship, even watching over her from behind so she wouldn’t get involved with that strange guy.

At Soo-hyun’s confession, Hae-in’s eyes welled up with tears.

Repeating the word “sorry” countless times, she pressed her lips to Soo-hyun’s.

Hot breath escaped between their softly parted lips. Soo-hyun, who had deeply bitten her lower lip with a soft smacking sound, pushed up Hae-in’s upper lip and slipped his tongue inside.

Their wet tongues intertwined, pulling and tangling with each other. The quickening breaths between their tender lips were completely transferred into Soo-hyun’s mouth.

Soo-hyun, securing the back of Hae-in’s head with his hand, lightly bit her earlobe.

“Ah.”

A tingling sensation pierced through her body, awakening all her senses. Hae-in couldn’t help but arch her back in that instant, pressing her body tightly against Soo-hyun’s.

Soo-hyun wrapped his arms around Hae-in’s waist, which was pressing against him, and pulled her closer with more force. As if he would never let her go again.

Their tongues tangled, their lips were bitten, and their closed eyes fluttered.

Hae-in’s slender arms embraced Soo-hyun’s body. Soo-hyun’s back, radiating heat, was already damp. Hae-in tightly hugged Soo-hyun’s back, which she couldn’t fully encircle with both arms.

“Hae-in-ah.”

The man who had been endlessly devouring her called Hae-in’s name. When Soo-hyun briefly pulled his face away, Hae-in exhaled the breath she had been holding for a long time.

“Aren’t you tired?”

Soo-hyun casually asked about Hae-in’s feelings. His eyes, filled with tenderness, gazed at Hae-in. It was such a sweet gaze, as if he would listen to anything she had to say.

“I’m okay. But Jun-woo...”

“Ah, Jun-woo.”

Remembering that it hadn’t been long since Hae-in had laid Jun-woo down, Soo-hyun slightly loosened the arm that was holding Hae-in.

As always, Hae-in wasn’t good at saying no to Soo-hyun. It was Soo-hyun’s responsibility to quickly notice.

So, Soo-hyun always checked with Hae-in. If she was okay now, if she wasn’t too exhausted because of the baby.

“...If he hasn’t woken up yet.”

At Hae-in’s words, both of their faces naturally turned towards Jun-woo’s room. In the quiet atmosphere, Soo-hyun and Hae-in briefly listened to see if there was any sound coming from the room where Jun-woo was sleeping.

If he had cried even a little, the loud sound of his crying would have immediately been heard from the monitoring device installed in the living room, but thankfully, there was no sound.

While Soo-hyun paused, listening intently to see if there was any sound from the room, Hae-in smiled faintly and tugged at Soo-hyun’s clothes.

“...Jun-woo will probably sleep soundly.”

Then, she lightly kissed Soo-hyun’s chest and slowly raised her head to gently kiss his neck as well.

“Then...”

Receiving the kiss of permission, Soo-hyun’s eyes sparkled.

No matter how much he held her, he was always yearning. Soo-hyun’s heart always felt that way when he held Hae-in. Looking at Hae-in in his arms reminded him of the moment he had given up on life in the fire.

How could I have done that, leaving you behind?

Soo-hyun suddenly picked up Hae-in and headed to the bedroom.

“I really like that this house has so many rooms.”

Soo-hyun whispered as he gently placed his wife on the bed.

After demolishing Park Yoon-hwa’s house, the space was wider than he had thought, and there were quite a few rooms. While decorating, they ended up making a guest room as well.

It wasn’t their intention when they initially designed it, but after Jun-woo was born, the guest room became their secret space.

“Hae-in-ah.”

Soo-hyun called out to Hae-in, who was lying on the bed looking up at him, and kissed her round shoulder. Soon after, his large hand gripped Hae-in’s body and slowly moved upwards.

His long fingers grasped her breast. As he varied the pressure of his fingers while stimulating her, the breath that had been held in Hae-in’s mouth burst out again.

The sensuous moans that erupted further stimulated Soo-hyun.

However, slowly and gently, Soo-hyun touched his wife’s body, controlling his strength. It had only been a hundred days since she had given birth.

Hae-in had always been thin. Her usually gaunt body looked even better after childbirth, as she hadn’t completely lost all the weight. And that frequently stimulated Soo-hyun’s desires.

His hand, trying its best to be restrained so as not to strain her body that hadn’t yet returned to its original state, slowly roamed over her. Each time his fingertips brushed over her skin, Hae-in’s body twitched and trembled.

“Sunbae. Ahh.”

Unable to bear it any longer, Hae-in wrapped her arms around Soo-hyun’s neck and pressed her upper body against him. As if he had been waiting, Soo-hyun pressed his body against Hae-in’s, already at his limit.

Soo-hyun’s heart pounded heavily as it pressed against Hae-in’s body. The places where their bodies touched were enveloped in heat, and their seamlessly intertwined flesh pressed closer to accept each other.

His panting heart beat as if it would burst, unable to withstand the stimulating sensations.

Soo-hyun wrapped his arms around Hae-in’s head, supporting it, and cupped her cheeks. With her cheeks flushed red, Hae-in gazed at him with her eyes half-open.

“My wife.”

Soo-hyun whispered as he pushed himself inside Hae-in’s body. Hae-in’s eyelids, which had been looking at him, fluttered closed and then slowly rose again. Long shadows fell beneath her long eyelashes.

“Yoon Hae-in.”

Soo-hyun called Hae-in’s name repeatedly.

“Eueung, Sunbae.” Hae-in barely replied, her breath catching in her throat. Soo-hyun bit Hae-in’s neck and, as if stamping a seal, slowly raised his lips to whisper again in Hae-in’s ear.

“My wife, Hae-in. Yoon Hae-in.”

“Aah. Sunbae.”

Is it right that I’m here? Is the woman I’m holding my wife Hae-in? Is this Yoon Hae-in who loves me?

As if trying to resolve the doubts within him, Soo-hyun called Hae-in’s name several more times. And Hae-in, as if knowing all of Soo-hyun’s feelings, nodded her head each time while tightly embracing Soo-hyun.

As Soo-hyun’s body, which had been pushed in, slowly began to pick up speed, Hae-in’s voice, which had been responding, gradually rose, eventually bursting out into a sharp moan.

Don’t be anxious.

The man pushed into her as if splitting her body in two. Hae-in fully accepted Soo-hyun and met the gaze of Soo-hyun, who was looking at her.

Nights with Soo-hyun were always this intense, as if her original self was being shattered. Hae-in gasped for breath, frantically embracing Soo-hyun, who was rushing towards the peak.

“Ah, Hae-in-ah. Hae-in-ah.”

She whispered into Soo-hyun’s ear as he called her name desperately.

I’m always here. Husband.

At Hae-in’s words, Soo-hyun’s movements became even more intense. As if in reply to Hae-in’s words, he delved deeper inside her.

Even as her whole body trembled and everything in her vision shook, Hae-in also held onto Soo-hyun’s body tightly, not loosening her arms.

Even if the world were to collapse, don’t worry, I won’t let go of this embrace now.

With the hope that Soo-hyun would understand her heart.

As Hae-in, holding onto Soo-hyun tightly, squeezed his arms with all her might, Soo-hyun also tightly embraced his wife. And at that moment, everything stopped at once, as if the ground beneath them had disappeared.

It was the moment of climax where they held each other tightly.

________________________________________

Some time after Jun-woo rolled over, Kang Yeon-hee’s death anniversary arrived.

Having succeeded in rolling over once, Jun-woo was now rolling over several times a day and straining to crawl.

Today, Soo-hyun visited Yeon-hee’s grave for the first time with Hae-in and Jun-woo. Coming to a place he had always visited alone with his child, the way to the grave wasn’t as quiet as usual.

The car was quite noisy with the baby’s cries and Hae-in’s soothing voice. Amidst the noise, Soo-hyun realized that he was actually smiling.

Today’s visit was made possible thanks to Hae-in, who wanted to personally visit and greet Soo-hyun’s mother.

Getting out of the car, Soo-hyun suddenly felt the spring breeze brushing his forehead was quite warm.

He had always thought that the columbarium in the middle of the forest was always cooler than other areas outside, but it was a strange feeling. His body didn’t feel chilly as usual, nor did he frown for no reason.

Was it all a matter of the heart? Soo-hyun opened the back door and helped Hae-in get out, smiling faintly.

“We have to walk a bit, are you okay?”

“There are so many trees here, I think it will be nice to walk. You’ve laid her to rest in a good place.”

“So many trees, so it’s nice to walk...”

Soo-hyun took Jun-woo from Hae-in and slowly began to walk.

He had never felt that this path was nice to walk.

For Soo-hyun, who had walked this path every May, which was depressing and utterly cruel, it was a path he wanted to escape from as quickly as possible, even by running.

It was a path he walked to mourn his own sorrow, to resent those who had left first.

So, whenever the car entered the forest where the columbarium was located, he used to feel that this dense forest was eerie. In the silence and stillness, he would often sink into the thought that his life was always alone.

“I think I probably called you around here.”

“When was that?”

“You said you were in the hospital, but I just wanted to hear your voice. I probably wanted to erase the feeling of being alone.”

“Ah, I think I know when.”

Hae-in, who had nodded with an “aha,” looked up at Soo-hyun with a meaningful expression.

“That day was a bit strange. I was surprised when you suddenly called saying you just wanted to hear my voice.”

“Did it show?”

“That’s why I went home earlier than usual that day. I had a feeling about something.”

“Was that so.”

The night he sat alone in a darkened room, being dragged into the darkness. The moment Hae-in’s quietly approaching hand touched Soo-hyun’s back, Soo-hyun was able to escape the depression that had been pulling him in.

And even now.

While talking to Jun-woo, who was making baby noises, and Hae-in, who was standing beside him, they had reached the end of the path before he knew it.

“I thought we had to walk a long way, but the path is shorter than I thought.”

Hae-in said, looking back after arriving in front of the columbarium. At Hae-in’s words, Soo-hyun also felt the passage of time anew. Because it had been such a tedious path for him.

“Let’s go in.”

Soo-hyun once again felt grateful for Hae-in’s presence and stepped inside.