“I’m home.”

Hae-in, who had taken off her shoes and entered the house, took a few steps before stopping. A familiar scene had entered her view.

A familiar scene, but one she hadn’t seen in a very long time.

A small, cozy living room, an old but comfortable sofa, and her mother’s back as she stood in the kitchen that was directly connected to the living room.

‘Ah, is this a dream?’

Hae-in cautiously took a step forward, then stopped again. There was a sound coming from the room right next to the living room. It was Jung-in’s room.

Jung-in’s room door was slightly open. Someone moving could be seen through the gap. Hae-in’s gaze, drawn into the space between the doors, wouldn’t easily leave.

Just as her hand reached for the doorknob, her mother called her from behind.

“Hae-in-ah, you’re home? You’re off work early today.”

“Yeah. It doesn’t look like I’ll have to work late like last week for a while.”

Without thinking, Hae-in blurted out the words and looked down at the bag she was carrying. The bag, packed tightly with documents, was quite heavy.

She placed the bag on the sofa and took out the documents inside. At the bottom of the paper, “Taesung Corporation” was written. And above that was her name.

<Division 2 - Assistant Manager Yoon Hae-in>

Seeing her name with her job title printed on it, Hae-in let out a light “ha.” It’s a dream, it must be a dream. A life she had never lived, the life she had always dreamed of.

Then...

Hae-in’s face turned back to the gap in the door. Her trembling hand grabbed the doorknob. And she flung the door open.

There was no one in the room.

She had clearly heard a sound, had she misheard? As she stood there awkwardly, something wriggled at the edge of the bed, and a puppy peeked its head out.

“Ah?”

In the moment of surprise, the puppy noticed Hae-in, quickly jumped up, scratched at Hae-in’s leg, and wagged its tail. Her body moved on its own, and she effortlessly picked up the puppy.

The puppy with snow-white fur was plump and soft. Even though she was sure she was seeing it for the first time, it nestled perfectly in her arms as if it had always been there.

Did we raise a puppy at our house?

Standing there holding the puppy with a dazed expression, Hae-in’s mother called her in a puzzled voice.

“Hae-in-ah, what are you doing? Come and help out.”

“Uh-huh. Okay.”

She went into the bathroom to wash her hands and put on the apron her mother handed her. Just then, the front door opened.

It was Jung-in.

“Unnie, you’re home early today.”

Jung-in, who had just come into the house, was wearing her department jacket.

The name of the university Hae-in had graduated from was written in large embroidered letters. Her youthful face was exactly that of a freshman, so Hae-in could tell without asking that Jung-in had become a university student.

Jung-in threw off the sneakers she was wearing and entered the house, her arms full of assignments.

“Hmm, smells good. Mom, did you fry pancakes? Can I have a bite?”

Jung-in, who had rushed to the kitchen past Hae-in and raised a finger, had the back of her hand lightly slapped by Hae-in’s mother.

“You?! Go wash your hands first. Your sister just got home from work and hasn’t even tasted it yet.”

“Where’s Dad?”

“He’ll be here soon. He said he had an important meeting today, so he might be a bit late.”

No sooner had she finished speaking than the front door opened again, and Hae-in’s father entered.

“Hae-in’s mom, I’m home.”

While her father changed his clothes, a pot of bubbling kimchi stew was placed on the table.

“What’s the occasion today? There’s so much food.”

Hae-in’s father was about to put his hand on a nicely browned pancake just before sitting down, but inevitably, the back of his hand was slapped by Hae-in’s mother.

“Aigo, just wait a moment. We’ll eat when everyone sits down.”

“Goodness, don’t you know you have to taste one before sitting down?”

Amidst their light bickering, Jung-in chimed in as she sat down in her chair.

“That’s right, Mom. You know how delicious it is to grab something with your hand before picking up your chopsticks. Pre-meal tasting is the rule, don’t you know?”

“Aigoo, if only you wouldn’t talk back.”

Her mother, who had even taken out well-fermented kimchi, pulled out a chair and looked at Hae-in, who was standing blankly to one side.

“Hae-in-ah. Come and sit down. What are you doing?”

Hae-in, watching her mother beckon her, slowly walked over and sat down in the remaining chair.

A simple dinner table, but one where her mother’s touch could be felt in every dish. And Jung-in, sitting in one corner, eating her rice deliciously with a spoon.

Even if it was a dream, it was good. So good that she wanted to dream such dreams often, so much that it brought tears to her eyes.

But, aren’t Jun-woo and Soo-hyun in this dream?

Hae-in, who had picked up her spoon, put it down again, feeling a lump in her throat. If there was a choice in life, would she have given up Soo-hyun and chosen this life?

While she was thinking, her phone rang in her bag.

[Soo-hyun - I’m leaving now. I think I’ll arrive in an hour.]

Oh, what is this?

Hae-in was blankly looking at her phone when her mother asked from behind.

“Hae-in-ah, when did Jung’s husband say he would arrive?”

“Huh?”

Turning around with a flustered expression at her mother’s words, Hae-in’s mother looked back at her with an even more puzzled face.

“Didn’t Jung’s husband say he was coming to pick you up?”

At her mother’s words, Hae-in scrolled through all the messages she had exchanged with Soo-hyun.

Looking at the affectionately exchanged messages, it seemed that Soo-hyun and Hae-in worked in different affiliates and were engaged.

“Hurry up and eat. We need to clean up and put out some nice fruit before Jung’s husband arrives.”

“Uh-huh.”

Hae-in, who had returned to her seat and picked up her spoon, listened as her parents resumed their interrupted conversation.

“Who would have thought our Hae-in would really marry into Taesung?”

Hae-in’s father said, sounding deeply moved. Her mother, who was listening beside him, chimed in.

“They dated all through university, so I did think it was a long-lasting relationship. Jung’s husband is amazing. After settling things with his family, he proposed to Hae-in, so Hae-in had nothing to say. Right, Hae-in-ah?”

Hae-in’s mother said, putting a piece of short rib on Hae-in’s rice, and Jung-in quickly interjected.

“That’s right. My seniors still say they were an amazing campus couple.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. They competed for the top two spots throughout the semester. Though, I guess that’s how Unnie caught his parents’ eyes.”

At Jung-in’s words, Hae-in’s father nodded and replied.

“Come to think of it, both Soo-hyun and Hae-in went through a lot of hardship persuading both sets of parents. I never dreamed that Chairman Jung would call me directly to ask for my blessing.”

“Aigoo, Dad, aren’t you underestimating our Unnie too much? Anyone would see that Unnie is a desirable bride.”

“Jung-in, to you, Unnie is the best, right?”

“Of course, our Unnie is the best.”

Listening to her family’s conversation, Hae-in quietly ate her rice. A faint smile lingered on her lips. Was this the kind of life Soo-hyun had once talked about? If we had met normally, would we have lived like this?

She remembered a conversation she had with Soo-hyun sitting on the university campus.

‘So maybe you also fell for me at first sight.’

‘What unfounded confidence is that?’

‘Just, I wish it were true. It would be nice if we fell for each other at first sight and loved each other without wasting unnecessary time.’

I’m really full.

After cleaning her rice bowl, Hae-in felt a sense of fullness rising from deep within her for the first time in a very long time.

She helped clear the table and was washing her hands for the last time when Jung-in followed her.

“Unnie.”

“Yeah?”

“How is it?”

“How is what?”

At Hae-in’s question, Jung-in’s eyes curved beautifully, and she gave a pretty eye smile. Jung-in was holding the puppy she had seen earlier in her arms.

“This life isn’t bad either, right? I wanted to show it to you once.”

“Ah.”

“No matter what life it was, Unnie would have lived well and had a happy ending.”

As soon as Jung-in finished speaking, everything shone and sparkled. And then, it flashed brightly again and began to disappear without form.

“Ah, no. Jung-in-ah. Don’t go.”

Hae-in waved her hand, watching Jung-in scatter and disappear like a mirage before her eyes.

“Unnie, I’ll always be by your side. Don’t forget.”

Like a whirlwind, everything, including Jung-in, instantly evaporated, and only a small white puppy remained in that spot.

“Ah.”

The end of her heart felt a little desolate. As she stood there frozen, the puppy, who had been sitting quietly watching Hae-in, barked, “Woof!” as if telling her not to forget it.

And when Hae-in looked at it, it barked again and ran towards Hae-in. It was a very small and cute white puppy.

________________________________________

Hae-in, who had woken up in the middle of the night, blinked and got out of bed.

Soo-hyun was asleep beside her. The sound of Jun-woo’s soft breathing came from the baby monitor installed next to the bed.

Hae-in got out of bed and went to Jun-woo’s room.

Jun-woo, with his chubby cheeks, was sound asleep. Hae-in gently placed her index finger on Jun-woo’s cheek and stroked it once. His soft, fine skin yielded to her touch.

“...Even if it was a dream, it was nice.”

It would have been so nice if Jung-in were alive and her relationship with Soo-hyun hadn’t been as painful as the past she had lived through.

Hae-in no longer felt difficult or painful even when she had similar dreams. It was because she believed that in any case, the people who were with Hae-in now would have stayed by her side until the end.

After checking on Jun-woo, Hae-in returned to the bed and gently lay down beside Soo-hyun.

She closed her eyes to try to sleep, but a small puppy that had jumped at her flickered before her eyes.

Everything she had seen in the dream was familiar, but the puppy was an exception. As far as Hae-in could remember, her family had never raised a puppy.

Suddenly, she felt nauseous, and a lump rose in her chest.

“Ugh, why does my stomach feel so bad all of a sudden?”

Hae-in deliberately closed her eyes and tried to sleep.

For the past few days, she had been feeling inexplicably nauseous. Thanks to Jun-woo, there were times when she ate quickly, so maybe it was indigestion.

While trying to figure out the cause, Hae-in tried to remember when her last period was and then suddenly opened her eyes wide.

Something was definitely wrong.