Continuously thinking about Haeyeon made her crave the kimbap she made. During her senior year, when she was immersed in the swamp of studying as a high school senior, Haeyeon made kimbap for Dohui once or twice a week.

‘Our new sister, work hard, work.’

Dohui endured it because she didn’t want to bother someone working at a job. There were more days ahead.

“By the way, what should I do with the remaining time?”

Doha and Haeyeon could be met in a few hours, and it was a moment when Dohui, who didn’t want to go home, thought about calling a friend.

“Oh? Is it Jua Unni?”
Dohui’s face lit up as she checked the sender.

Right after answering the phone, Jua, who skipped pleasantries, asked straightforwardly.

[Chadohui, you’re in Korea?]

“Yeah, that’s right. Did you hear from Haeyeon unnie?”

[Yeah. What if Haeyeon didn’t tell me!]

With Jua’s loud voice, Dohui smiled brightly.

Introduced as Haeyeon’s only friend, Jua had a friendly and cheerful personality, making her feel like a close friend.

“Oops, sorry.”

[Ah, forget it. Are you at the airport now?]

“Yeah, why?”

[Come to our company. Let’s have a meal together. You’re probably wandering around with nowhere to go.]

Although she said that, it was consideration for Dohui, who didn’t have a place to go after coming to Korea.

Thinking about her friends at university at this hour, Dohui readily accepted.

When they arrived at the meeting place, Jua stood in front of the road, waving her arms exaggeratedly, and warmly greeted Dohui.

In response to her lively welcome, Dohui ran towards her excitedly.

“It’s been so long!”

“Yeah, unnie!”

The two embraced each other as if they hadn’t seen each other for years.

When Dohui decided to stay in the United States for a long time, Jua was considerate of her, who had nowhere to go.

“Let’s go in quickly; I’m hungry.”

Jua had reserved a famous Korean restaurant.

“Good choice, huh? I thought you might have been eating greasy stuff all the time.”

“Yeah, you did well. As expected, there’s no one like Jua unnie.”

As Dohui began to eat in earnest, Jua narrowed her eyes.

“Hey, Haeyeon would be disappointed if she knew. The person who raised you is Min Haeyeon.”

“Of course, I know.”

Again, a cheerful conversation flowed, and the set dishes arrived.

Having missed Korean food after eating foreign food for some time, Jua eagerly devoured the dishes.

Jua looked at Dohui, who was eating diligently, with a satisfied smile.

Amid tasting this and that and enjoying a pleasant conversation, dusk fell.

“For dessert, ice cream?”

“Okay!”

Jua chuckled at Dohui’s innocent answer, like a child.

As they each grabbed their coats and came out into the hallway, it was noisy with people’s voices.

Walking through the sliding door with frosted glass that indicated it was a Korean restaurant, Dohui suddenly stopped in the middle of the hallway.

“Suren unnie?”

Inside, there was a tired-looking Suren.

Dohui, who had become happier meeting familiar people in Korea after being in the United States, approached quickly.

“Hello? Dohui. You came to Korea.”

Unlike usual, Suren’s voice seemed subtly subdued, and Dohui thought she must be tired.

“How do we meet again here, Suren unnie?”

“Yeah. Have you had a meal?”

“Yeah. The food here is really delicious.”

To anyone observing, the two seemed like people who had known each other for a long time.

As laughter blossomed in each other’s eyes, Jua’s face watching them from the hallway gradually stiffened.

“You also have company. That person is…”

Only now did Suren, who had been standing behind Dohui all along, consciously mention Jua.
Dohui also sighed at the thought that she had come with Jua only now.

“Ah! Jua unnie! So, Suren unnie, this is Jua unnie…”

“No, Dohui. We’ve met before.”

Cutting off Dohui’s attempt to introduce Jua, Suren glanced at her.

While Jua, who had been frozen throughout, loosened her expression and responded with a completely different smile.

Feeling the awkward atmosphere, Dohui looked at them with a doubtful expression.

“It’s been a while, Seol Jua Jeonmu.”

“That’s right, Isurin Director.”

After exchanging formal greetings based on their positions, Jua turned her head to Dohui, who was standing awkwardly.

“Dohui, I have something to discuss with Director Isurin. Can you wait in the car for a moment?”

“Huh? Oh. Sure.”

Although it was a suggestion, in the face of an irresistible force, Dohui opened her mouth and, having received the car key from Jua, obediently went back to the car.

As they stepped outside, the temperature dropped rapidly, and the air that embraced the body felt colder than during the day.

Waiting in the car with the heater on, Dohui felt that the atmosphere was strangely familiar.

“I thought you wouldn’t know…”

No matter how people around her embraced her like a cherished child, Dohui was not an ignorant child.

She knew the atmosphere that prevailed before going to the United States.

Judging by the situation, the atmospheres of Haeyeon and Suren were unusual, and it was truly fatal for Dohui to be the only one missing in their friendly relationships.

Dohui had already become an adult and had been living alone abroad since last fall.

“Let’s secretly check this out just once.”

Although pricked by the conscience that had lived as a well-behaved and kind child, Dohui decided to ignore it this time and opened the car door.

Returning to the place she came from, Jua and Suren were not in their seats. Did they perhaps go out? Dohui wondered, but she walked through the hallway.

“…Are you going to intervene in this?”

It was Jua’s voice. Although it seemed to come from the front, Dohui moved towards the source of the indistinct sound.

“…Why you… I don’t understand.”

“Are you saying… that?”

Unconsciously muffling her footsteps, Dohui, as the room became closer, heard Jua’s enraged voice and Suren’s tired voice.

As the voices became clearer, Dohui stopped and faltered.

“You hit Haeyeon a few days ago.”

“So what? What’s that got to do with anything?”

Jua’s voice accusing Suren of hitting Haeyeon, and Suren not denying that fact.

Dohui, unknowingly gripping her fist tightly, felt her face darken with a restless state.

When the voices finally became clear, Dohui stopped and fell silent.

“You hit Haeyeon with a car a few days ago.”

“So? What’s that got to do with anything? It’s not something to dwell on, is it? That incident?”

“Thanks to that, Min Haeyeon woke up. It’s not a good thing for you, Seol Jua. Miss Seol Jua, you don’t have to work as a caregiver anymore, and your friend, who treats you so preciously, has returned.”

With a slightly sarcastic tone, Suren’s words were sharp and aggressive.
It didn’t suit Suren, who disliked actions that sought attention like a celestial nymph swaying under the influence of emotions.

“Ha! You told a child who lost her memory about inheritance and infertility, and if the result is good, everything’s fine? From the beginning, what you did… wishing for Haeyeon to have a seizure…”

Juah’s words, poured out in anger, came to a halt.

The reason was the figure of Dohui standing pale, looking faint.

“Dohui…”

Only then did Suren notice Dohui’s presence and turned abruptly. In Suren’s eyes, which confirmed Dohui’s pale face, a sense of defeat emerged.

“What are you two talking about now… Suren unnie?”

Unable to believe whether what she heard was true, Dohui looked at Suren with a trembling voice. Dohui realized it by looking at her defeated demeanor.

“Dohui!”

Whether it was Suren calling or Juah calling, it didn’t matter. Overwhelmed by the surging emotions, Dohui rushed out without thinking.