WWBU - Extra 11

“Don’t be too upset. Mom was like that too. I guess my heart resembles hers.”

Hyun-soo’s face was reflected in the well-polished protective glass. Hyun-soo looked at her own face for a moment before the urn, then shifted her gaze to the photo. A family photo of the four of them. In the corner of the photo taken in the yard, the detached house was peeking out. Seeing it, Guk inevitably came to mind.

“They say everyone thinks they’re the main character of the world when they’re young. But I never felt that way. I just felt like the ugly duckling.”

Hyun-soo’s hand was already caressing the corner of the photo.

“Thinking about it now, I wonder how I endured those times, those lonely times...”

In the past, whenever Hyun-soo was mistreated by her mother and cried at her father’s indifference, she would always open the window and sob quietly. It didn’t matter if it was night or dawn. She always did that when things were tough.

Every time, there was always a light on in one part of the detached house. Guk had always kept the light on late, no matter what he was doing.

Thanks to that, Guk’s habit was like a lighthouse on the sea for Hyun-soo in those days. In those lonely moments, it was as if it was shouting that she wasn’t the only one awake. Just the presence of that light felt like someone was holding her lonely hand.

“I understand now. I think I understand only after coming here, Mom.”

She was terribly bad at studying, and a disaster at sports. The only person who had looked at her as she was from the beginning, without looking for any good qualities, was one person.

“The only person who loved me unconditionally from the start was one person.”

The person who hugged her and held her hand. The person who said that despite all those things, he had no regrets about gaining her.

It was Yoon Guk. Hyun-soo missed him.

Hyun-soo could no longer bear the longing that surged like a storm in an instant. She even felt an urge to run to him and be held in his arms right away. But she held back. She had to say goodbye to her mother. A final goodbye.

“I won’t come back again, Mom.”

Her still calm voice rang out resolutely.

“I probably can’t come back. Because... I’m going to choose that person.”

Her childhood, spent in neglect, discrimination, and contempt, flashed before her eyes like a panorama. And at the end of that film was Yoon Guk, standing with his arms open to her. Very clearly and distinctly.

“Goodbye. Goodbye, Mom.”

It wasn’t simple, but Hyun-soo had picked up one answer. Now, that answer would be the only map on the course of her destiny.

While driving down the open road, Hyun-soo turned down the volume of the radio that was playing music. There was no other reason. It was to call Guk once more.

Trrrr. Trrrrrr.

But just like before, she couldn’t reach him again this time. It didn’t seem like his phone was completely off, but the call that ended after a long ringing tone strangely didn’t let her hear his voice.

“He’s not avoiding me, is he...”

The thought that came to her mind out of a sense of possibility soon weighed heavily on her heart. Just as she had distanced herself from Guk, he could do the same to her. Hyun-soo was well aware that there was no absolute and eternal superiority in a relationship. So, she could only hope that his heart had remained whole during that time.

“Yes. I arrived a little while ago, but I’ll come to pick him up tomorrow.”

Driving while lost in various thoughts, she was already in Seoul. Soon after arriving home, Hyun-soo got out of the car, feeling tired, and contacted the housekeeper.

-Alright. Wan is eating well and playing well, so don’t worry.

“Thank you. Oh, please don’t forget to give him his medicine.”

-Yes, I will.

Hyun-soo, having hung up after thanking her, went straight into the house. With Guk gone and Wan not there either, even the air felt frozen and cold.

Slipping on her indoor slippers, Hyun-soo trudged along and collapsed onto the living room sofa. She hadn’t walked much. Perhaps it was from the long drive, but her legs ached. Still, she didn’t have the energy to rub them, so she just stared blankly at the empty air.

Rrrrr. Rrrrrr...

The phone rang, cutting through the quiet atmosphere. Hyun-soo quickly checked the caller ID as if she had been waiting for it.

“Hello?”

-It’s me. Is something wrong?

It was the answer she had been waiting for so desperately. The other person was Yoon Guk, whom she had prayed so hard to reach. It had been so long that his familiar voice even sounded a little strange.

“Something wrong? Nothing’s wrong.”

-But why so many calls...?

“Were you surprised that I called?”

-I was surprised because there were so many missed call alerts. I thought something had happened to you.

‘Surprised. I thought something had happened to you.’ For some reason, those words made her heart melt. If it was him saying that because he was worried about her, was it just wishful thinking?

“Were you worried?”

-What?

“I asked if you were worried that something might have happened to me.”

There was silence on the other end at Hyun-soo’s direct question. They both held their phones in silence for a moment. Then Guk spoke.

-Yeah. I was.

Hyun-soo felt joy and relief spreading quickly through her whole body.

“Actually, the reason I called was...”

Hyun-soo smiled softly and quietly whispered into the phone.

“Because I missed you.”

-......

“I did it because I missed you.”

She had thought she would sound calm, but somehow her voice was trembling ever so slightly. Enough for the other person to notice.

Guk didn’t reply to her words, ‘I miss you.’ Then, at the sound of his breath, which burst out like a sigh, Hyun-soo’s heart ached.

“I miss you. I miss you so much, Guk-ah.”

Unable to bear it any longer, the words she let slip elicited a sound from the other end of the line. It sounded like he was breathing, or maybe he let out a dry laugh... Since she couldn’t see, she couldn’t be sure.

-Kim Hyun-soo.

Just then, Guk called Hyun-soo’s name unexpectedly.

-Where are you?

She couldn’t help but notice the raw emotion in his short words.

“Home. I’m home.”

-Wait for me. I’m coming now.

The call ended just like that. Soon after, a text message arrived. It said he was on his way from another region, so even if he was a little late, to wait for him. To please wait for him.

He must have been busy with his business trip. That’s why he couldn’t answer the phone right away. As she belatedly understood the situation, a smile spread across Hyun-soo’s face. She felt the anxiety and fear that had been unknowingly pressing down on her heart melt away.

Hyun-soo checked the time on her phone. He said he would arrive around 8:30 PM, so she had a little less than two hours left.

Hyun-soo immediately got up and headed to the kitchen. She figured he probably hadn’t had a proper meal due to the time, so she intended to eat with him when he arrived.

Opening the refrigerator, she saw that there weren’t many side dishes, as she hadn’t been eating properly herself and had only been focusing on Wan’s meals. The aunt was taking a few days off, so there was no stew or soup either.

In the end, Hyun-soo took out all sorts of ingredients and hurriedly started cooking. Even though her legs had clearly ached from the long drive, she didn’t feel anything now. She even felt excited.

“There’s still some time left.”

Even though she was clumsy at everything else, Hyun-soo was quick when it came to cooking. Having prepared the food earlier than expected, Hyun-soo saw that there was still time before he arrived.

Hyun-soo went to the living room, where the faint smell of food lingered, and sat on the sofa to wait for him. Famous celebrities appeared on the TV in front of her, making all sorts of funny comments, but her mind was filled with thoughts of only one person. Only Yoon Guk.

Ding-dong. Ding-dong, ding-dong.

How much time had passed? Just as the program she was watching ended and she was flipping through channels, the doorbell finally rang. For some reason, her usually steady heartbeat started pounding wildly.

“I’ll get it. Just a moment.”

Hyun-soo, having confirmed it was Guk through the intercom, pressed the gate button. Soon, the intercom screen went blank, and a fleeting moment was given. Her heart was still beating loudly.

A moment later, as if he had been waiting for it, the front door was hastily flung open. Guk, who appeared before her through the door, was breathing a little heavily.

“You couldn’t even wait a moment and ran?”

Yoon Guk looked even more handsome and had a deeper aura than she remembered.

“I almost fell.”

Hyun-soo burst into laughter at Guk’s words. Guk looked at Hyun-soo’s smiling face as if he couldn’t believe it.

“Come in. But why do you look like that?”

“No, it’s you who looks a bit...”

“Did you think I was crazy? I’m in my right mind, so don’t worry.”

He said it to reassure her, but instead, Guk looked even more serious and bewildered at those words. Seeing his serious expression, Hyun-soo soon burst into laughter.

“Why are you...”

Just as Guk, still confused, was about to say something, Hyun-soo, who had been quietly watching him, strode up to Guk and kissed him.

“......Kim Hyun-soo.”

Guk looked at Hyun-soo, who had briefly kissed him and stepped back, with eyes that seemed to ask what this meant. Instead of answering, Hyun-soo hugged Guk and buried her face in his chest. She could hear his pounding heartbeat.

Thump, thump, thump. Her heart pounded so strongly, and it was all for her. Hyun-soo was unbelievably happy. She even thought how wonderful it would be if Guk could feel and understand her overwhelming emotions just as they were.

But right now, the only words Hyun-soo could say to him were these.

“I missed you, Guk-ah.”

“......”

“Would you believe me if I said I’ve been thinking of you the whole time?”

Guk was a quick-witted and intelligent man. He couldn’t possibly not know what Hyun-soo’s words meant now.

Guk looked at Hyun-soo with trembling eyes before suddenly lifting her up in his arms. He couldn’t bear to do otherwise. It was the moment Hyun-soo had overcome all the ‘despite everything’ situations and conditions and had reached out to him first.

As if trying to savor this moment, Hyun-soo caressed his cheek. Then his chin and neck, and finally even his shoulder. Then she whispered to him.

“Welcome home, Guk-ah.”

Guk looked up at her as if time had stopped.

“Welcome to ‘our home’.”

Really welcome. As Hyun-soo hugged his neck while saying that, Guk held her tightly, as if he would crush her.

It was the moment when their first love from the summer of their eighteen years finally leaped back into each other’s hearts after fifteen years. This was clearly love.

<The End>