The heartbeats of Seoha and Taekyung resonated in harmony.

As Seoha slowly raised her head, her eyes met with Taekyung looking down at her.

No matter how hard she tried to push him away, he wouldn’t budge.

“Can’t do it today?”

“Yes. I need to order parts, so it’s difficult to fix right now. I’ll order them from the headquarters and repair it as soon as they arrive. I’m really sorry.”

Seoha looked extremely troubled. The repairman, equally embarrassed, apologized, leaving Seoha unable to be angry.

The boiler repairman came on the promised day, but the old boiler had part issues.

Moreover, the landlord had changed, and the real estate office called to rewrite the lease agreement.

Seoha touched her throbbing forehead and sighed.

Her life seemed never to have an easy part, just sighs.

“Can’t help it.”

“I’m really sorry. I’ll repair it as quickly as possible.”

“Yes, please do that.”
Seoha bowed to the repairman, who returned the gesture formally before leaving the house.

Left alone, she looked around the empty house. She didn’t want to, but it seemed she would have to stay at Taekyung’s house for a few more days.

[I’m sorry, but the repair is going to take longer.]

After contemplating, Seoha sent the message and received a reply from Taekyung in less than five minutes.

[It’s okay. Stay as long as you need. I’ll be in Seoul for a while. Don’t worry about anything and just make sure Minjun doesn’t catch a cold.] [Thank you.]

Although she had Taekyung’s permission, Seoha felt uneasy.

Whether it was fortunate or not, Taekyung would commute from Seoul the next day.

After that night, it was awkward for Seoha to see Taekyung’s face.

The Taekyung who spoke to her so passionately had disappeared, and his indifferent behavior now irritated her.

‘Did I get carried away for no reason? Was it just a momentary impulse?’

She couldn’t hold Taekyung and ask, nor could she show her petulance.

Seoha was suffering inside, unintentionally.

“Ugh, what are you thinking, Kim Seoha.”

She rebuked herself and gathered Minjun’s and her clothes from the frozen-like house.

Even though Taekyung said she could use the house as she liked, Seoha didn’t want to be indebted and felt like she should at least handle the groceries, so she stopped at the mart.

After buying side dishes that Minjun liked, she was about to leave when Taekyung kept coming to her mind.

It seemed like Taekyung hadn’t been eating properly while living alone.

She was concerned because most of the food in the refrigerator were semi-prepared items.

If Taekyung came to Yangpyeong, she wanted to prepare him a warm meal, so she bought ingredients for his favorite doenjang jjigae and ssam bap and headed to Taekyung’s house.

“I should prepare some side dishes too. It’s only right since I’m borrowing his house.”

Seoha thought she should push him away, but then she would find herself caring for him, struggling to handle her fickle heart.

Worried that Minjun and Myunghoon would be waiting, she hurried her steps.

As Seoha was about to enter the communal entrance of Taekyung’s villa, a large shadow fell in front of her.

Looking up, she saw Taekyung standing beside her.

“Why do you have so much luggage? Should’ve just moved in.”

“Well, I got clothes and some groceries.”

“Don’t show off strength you don’t have. Tell me when I come down to Yangpyeong.”

Taekyung spoke less than before, but the tension between them had softened.

Seoha responded more boldly out of embarrassment.

“I can manage on my own.”

“That’s what you think. What if you get hurt? Who will take care of Minjun?”

Taekyung clicked his tongue and took the luggage from her hands.

Seoha let Taekyung take her luggage without resistance, then awkwardly hid her empty hands behind her.

Taekyung casually changed the topic to Minjun’s well-being.

“Minjun must be at home.”

“Yes, he’s with dad. But when did you come?”

“Just now. There’s kindergarten tomorrow.”

“Ah…….”

Seoha nodded at Taekyung’s response.

“It’s heavy. I can carry it.”

“Take advantage when I offer to be your porter.”

Taekyung spoke sharply, but his actions were kind.

Seoha couldn’t refuse and followed Taekyung, who was leading the way.
The elevator doors opened, and they entered awkwardly. Alone inside, the air felt heavier.

Seoha wanted to get home quickly, but contrary to her wishes, the elevator seemed slower today.

Just as she noticed the elevator doors closing more slowly than usual, they stopped about 2 cm short.

“Why isn’t it closing?”

“Try pressing the door open button again.”

Taekyung calmly instructed the panicking Seoha.

Seoha pressed the door open button, but the elevator didn’t budge. After a moment, the doors opened and then closed again.

Anxious breaths slipped through Seoha’s teeth.

The elevator moved with an unusual clunking sound, heightening Seoha’s anxiety.

She bit her lip and fidgeted with her hands.

The elevator stopped abruptly again after going up a bit.

“Uh-oh! Ah!”

To make matters worse, the lights in the elevator went out, followed by Seoha’s scream.

Seoha dropped the luggage she was carrying. Her body trembled violently. She was gasping for air. It felt agonizing, as if someone was covering her nose and mouth.

Trapped in the darkness, Seoha was sucked into her past traumas.

In the darkness, a child, pale with fear, cries as if having a seizure.

“Mom! Please save me! Mom! Mom!”