A woman with long straight hair who was looking at a book with a young girl was startled when she noticed Han Byeol.

They had first met and grown close through a doctor-pharmacist relationship…

And 7 years ago, she was the woman who had said goodbye to him via text message on Baengnyeong Island.

There was no reason to avoid her.

Han Byeol approached her and stared at her daughter, who looked about 4 years old, and said:

“It’s been a long time.”

“It really has been a long time.”

“Your daughter is pretty.”

“……”

The woman he met after 7 years was wearing a luxury coat that exuded class, and was carrying a luxury bag from brand C.

With an expression that seemed to say her choice was right, she looked at Han Byeol, and her face was overflowing with confidence, as if satisfied with her own life.

“I’m glad you look happy.”

“Han Byeol, you’re married now too, right? You must be working as a specialist at a hospital now?”

“I’m not married yet. I did become a specialist, and opened a small private clinic.”

“……”

He was about to say he hadn’t been able to get married yet, but feeling somewhat wounded pride, he just said he hadn’t done it.

Han Byeol patted the head of the daughter who resembled her once, and bid farewell to the woman.

“Live well, and stay happy.”

7 years ago, Han Byeol had been so dumbfounded after receiving the breakup notice via text message that he hadn’t been able to properly say goodbye to her.

Perhaps feeling guilty about Han Byeol’s farewell wishes, she made her child hold hands and bow to me like she would to a daycare teacher.

Then she gave me a slight nod and left.

Though she wasn’t So Hee whom he had been desperately waiting for for months, Han Byeol felt the lingering unpleasantness that had existed in his life like old grime being cleanly washed away after only parting via text message.

He realized that breakups are best done face to face. Especially in relationships between lovers who were once in love…

He missed So Hee even more.

Though two months had passed since seeing So Hee at the infant health checkup in early March, she seemed to have vanished into thin air.

There were still 3 months left until the third infant health checkup, and 8 months left in the year, but an inexplicable sense of impatience came over Han Byeol.

He felt foolish, as if he had tied himself to his own New Year’s resolution.

He could go straight to So Hee and express his interest, but it didn’t seem right to unilaterally show affection to a newborn’s mother who came to his clinic.

He also thought the neighborhood people would all point fingers if they found out.

Running a private clinic, rumors were the scariest thing, and in a small neighborhood even minor gossip spread quickly.

Han Byeol decided to have peace of mind and believe in the power of positivity.

*****

As the baby passed 6 months, white baby teeth like a rabbit’s appeared on its upper gums.

We started weaning foods and as it began crawling, its range of activity expanded.

If I sat the baby on a blanket, it would sit there for a while looking around.

Mom seemed to find it cute how Han Byeol imitated things, so when she came home from work, she would sit in front of the child and make “peek-a-boo” sounds to her grandchild, or gesture for the baby to try imitating.

Though it couldn’t pronounce “mama” yet, it vaguely said the word “ma”, which made Mom excited that it meant “mama”.

“So Hee, I’m telling you Han Byeol definitely said ‘mama’.”

“Mom……”

Mom and I would argue several times a day about the authenticity of the pronunciation.

From 7 months old, the child would struggle not to leave my arms, and would cry and be shy around strangers like the gas meter reader.

“Mom, I’m worried because Han Byeol is feeling separation anxiety, and we have to put her in daycare in 2 months.”

“I know. She’s fine otherwise, but lately she cries and looks for you as soon as you disappear from sight.”

Just imagining it made me feel a pain like my heart was being torn apart.

In a situation where I had to return to work at the hospital after only 6 months of parental leave for financial reasons, the day was approaching when I would have to leave Han Byeol at daycare in the morning as she tried not to separate.

I learned ways to alleviate separation anxiety through internet searches.

I tried to build social skills early through play, and often hugged and patted her to make her feel loved enough. When I came home after going to the mart, I would play happily with Han Byeol.

May passed like that, and June flowed by.

As July began, Han Byeol finally went to the infant daycare in the neighborhood.

I could apply for extended care until 7:30 PM with government support, but I felt too sorry for the child.

I told the daycare director I could come by 7 PM after rushing over after work, but hospital life wasn’t that simple so I couldn’t be certain.

The day Han Byeol finally went to daycare for the first time…

Though we had practiced building the child’s social skills for two months, the real thing went completely contrary to my expectations.

From the moment we entered the unfamiliar daycare, Han Byeol seemed scared and burrowed deeper into my arms.

The daycare teacher professionally tried to ease the child’s tension by showing noisy toys and the other children at the daycare, but when I tried to hand her over to the teacher, Han Byeol tightly grasped my hand with her tiny fingers.

Holding back tears, I detached the child’s adorable little fingers and handed Han Byeol to the teacher.

Then, the child began to cry sorrowfully with the loudest voice I had ever heard.

“Waah… Waah… Waah.”

Walking down the short hallway, I wanted to look back countless times and run back to hug Han Byeol, but I bit my lip and walked out without turning around.

As I tried to take out my shoes from the shoe rack, tears blurred my vision and I couldn’t even put on my own shoes as I cried. The daycare director came out and patted my back.

“Mom, you did well. The first week is a battle every day. But you have to endure and leave without looking back. If you go back and hug the child, it becomes harder for them to adjust.”

When registering for daycare, the director had explained the rules of conduct and things to be careful about on the first day and first week.

On the first day, never look back when leaving after dropping off the child.

If you look back, it’s harder for both the child and the mother.

I couldn’t stop crying the whole way walking to the subway station.

Even walking up the subway stairs, I couldn’t control my flowing tears and couldn’t come to my senses.

A man coming up the stairs seemed to call out “So Hee!” and he looked like the pediatrician, but I didn’t have the presence of mind to greet him.

Did Hyun Woo feel like this when he turned away from me on Baengnyeong Island?

As I cried, I wondered if his heart had also been this painful and torn when he left for America.

*****

July in Boston was welcoming an energetic summer again with Independence Day.

The experiments were progressing smoothly, and Ha Yeon and Hyun Woo safely finished their spring semester final exams.

Though not as first author, they were permitted to publish as third authors in Cell, the world’s top science journal.

The advisor patted Hyun Woo’s back at the lab meeting, saying if they verified the mechanism in more detail and reinforced the clinical data by the end of the year, he could publish as first author in Cell.

With the possibility of a CNS paper, which was not easy even for postdocs, Hyun Woo received the professor’s favor after barely finishing his first year as a PhD student. There was some jealousy in the lab, but he didn’t mind.

Hyun Woo had endured workplace bullying during milk delivery, convenience store part-time jobs, restaurant work, and gas station work.

Physical bullying or ostracism was nothing to him, let alone jealousy or envy.

Ha Yeon officially invited Hyun Woo on a 3-day family vacation to Cape Cod starting July 20th.

She said she had received approval from her father as well.

Though Ha Yeon didn’t say exactly, it seemed the chairman’s heart had opened after she, with the cooperation of her younger sister Do Yeon and mother, strongly requested Hyun Woo’s invitation from her father.

On July 4th, Ha Yeon and Hyun Woo went to the American Independence Day festival held by the Charles River.

Like a year ago, Ha Yeon prepared wine and cheese, and laid out a blanket to enjoy the atmospheric summer night festival.

“Oppa, I’m excited thinking about listening to the Boston Symphony performance and enjoying the fireworks festival here on a summer night after a year.”

“A whole year has really flown by.”

The Boston Harborfest summer festival for Independence Day lasts all week, but the highlight is the free concert by the Boston Symphony Orchestra and 30-minute fireworks display on the Charles River.

It was a summer festival enjoyed again after a year.

Listening to live music and seeing the romantic atmosphere of couples at the festival stimulated Hyun Woo, but looking back, he wondered where he got the courage to kiss Ha Yeon.

Of course, she had initiated the kiss first, and couples around them kissed without hesitation, but Hyun Woo’s first kiss with Ha Yeon was somewhat unexpected behavior for him.

Fortunately, Ha Yeon accepted him, so they naturally progressed further as a couple after that, and were able to spend their first night together for 2 days last winter.

Coming to that place after a year, looking at the stars in the night sky with Ha Yeon while drinking wine and listening to live music felt like heaven.

Ha Yeon playfully suggested lying down with an arm pillow like that day a year ago, and nestled in Hyun Woo’s arms to kiss his cheek again.

Hyun Woo turned his head as if reenacting that day and found her lips for a deep, deep kiss.

Hyun Woo’s arms held her, and his hand moved like an orchestra conductor’s to touch her hair and feel her. His lips moved on hers as if following tempo and dynamics markings on sheet music.

‘[adagio… allegro… rubato… piano…]’

The awkwardness of the kiss from a year ago was gone, and the year had transformed Hyun Woo and Ha Yeon into the image of a complete couple.

Throughout the music performance, the two drank wine, lay on the blanket looking at the stars in the sky, and when tired of stargazing, sought each other’s lips.

Fireworks burst brilliantly over the Charles River as if celebrating their love.

“Oppa, I’m so happy. Every day can’t be as perfect as today, but I really like having you by my side.”

“I’m happy too.”

Ha Yeon was enjoying everything about the festival as if it were preparation time for the upcoming family vacation in Cape Cod.

She said she knew what wine her father really liked, and suggested preparing wine as a gift for her father before going.

Ha Yeon said an attendant would drive directly from Boston Logan International Airport to the villa, so she and Hyun Woo could go straight to the Cape Cod villa themselves.

Ha Yeon looked into my eyes and spoke like a magician revealing a secret in advance.

.

.

.

“Oppa……”