Younger brother Hyun Jun was currently twenty years old, a first-year college student.

He was a poor child born into a world without a father, but fortunately, he grew up healthy.

Every time she saw Hyun Jun smiling as a newborn, Mother shed tears thinking of Father, but for her young daughter’s sake, she had to face reality.

Mother found a job as soon as Hyun Jun turned one year old, placing him in daycare.

Despite her frail body, she searched for work she could do and worked hard to raise her two children.

Unlike the introverted So Eun, Hyun Jun was a bright and affectionate child.

Despite the absence of his father, he was always cheerful and lively, expressing affection by kissing Mother and elder sister every day.

Whenever Mother and So Eun received Hyun Jun’s shower of kisses, they were reminded of their deceased father.

They thought about how much Father would have loved the adorable Hyun Jun if he were alive.

Hyun Jun went through his school years without causing any trouble and studied well.

Although his grades were good enough to enter a university in Seoul, he chose to enter a university in Daejeon with a scholarship.

He didn’t want to leave Mother’s side when she was alone.

So Eun always felt grateful and affectionate towards her kind-hearted younger brother.

* * *

Before long, the bus entered Daejeon Terminal.

As soon as she got off with her bag and shopping bag, Hyun Jun received So Eun’s luggage with a broad smile.

“Elder sister. You’re here?”

“Yes.”

So Eun replied with a smile.

And as usual, she was about to head to the taxi stand when Hyun Jun pulled her arm.

“Elder sister, not there, this way.”

“Huh?”

When So Eun made a puzzled expression, Hyun Jun held her arm and headed towards the parking lot.

“Huh? This is the parking lot, isn’t it?”

“Just a moment.”

After walking a bit further, Hyun Jun stopped in front of a white compact car and pressed the car key.

Then, with a beep sound, the car doors unlocked.

“Huh?”

As So Eun looked at the car with bewildered eyes, Hyun Jun grinned and said.

“Surprised? It’s my car!”

“Your car?”

When So Eun asked with surprised eyes, Hyun Jun nodded.

“Yes. I bought a used car with the money I saved and some help from Mother. What do you think? Isn’t my car pretty?”

So Eun looked at the car with round eyes and then turned to look at Hyun Jun.

“Why didn’t you tell elder sister if you needed a car? I could have easily bought you a compact car.”

“Come on, why are you like this? I’m an adult now. With all the allowance I’ve received from you over the years… I can handle this much on my own.”

As So Eun still looked at him with a pitying gaze, Hyun Jun quickly opened the passenger door and practically pushed her in.

“Just get in quickly. Come on.”

At her brother’s insistence, So Eun reluctantly got into the passenger seat.

Though it was a used car, the interior was so clean it looked brand new.

“I bought it from a friend, it’s accident-free and not that old. Since he’s a close friend, I got it for a really good price.”

Hyun Jun said, lifting his head with a boastful tone.

So Eun looked at Hyun Jun and smiled, lightly patting his back.

“Alright. My brother is really impressive. When did you grow up to buy a car with your own savings… You’re really amazing, my brother.”

“Hey, I’ve been taller than you since middle school, remember?”

So Eun chuckled.

“Right. You’re so great. Let’s get going. I want to see your driving skills.”

“Okey-dokey!”

Hyun Jun started the car with a confident expression.

“Was this the surprise you mentioned yesterday?”

So Eun asked Hyun Jun after the car started moving.

During last night’s phone call, Hyun Jun had made a fuss about having a surprise when So Eun came to Daejeon.

“Well, this is kind of a surprise, but… the real surprise is later this evening.”

So Eun tilted her head.

“What is it?”

“If I tell you in advance, it won’t be a surprise!”

Seeing Hyun Jun’s mischievous expression, So Eun chuckled and said she understood, then turned her head towards the car window.

* * *

After about twenty minutes of driving, Hyun Jun’s car stopped in front of a detached house.

It was the house So Eun had lived in since she was 5 years old, where every corner of the house, including the small vegetable garden in the yard, bore Father’s touch.

As time passed, relatives urged Mother to move to an apartment, but Mother couldn’t sell this house where Father’s traces remained intact.

So Eun also loved this house filled with memories of Father, and younger brother Hyun Jun had also added to the corner of memories since he started toddling in the yard.

Mother was carefully preserving the house, repairing it when necessary and gradually changing the interior. As So Eun opened the car door and got out, Mother came out opening the front gate.

“You’re here? My daughter?”

As Mother extended her hand with a bright smile, So Eun took her hand and smiled.

“Yes, Mother.”

The two entered the house hand in hand.

A moment later, So Eun washed her hands and came out, handing Mother the shopping bag.

“What’s all this?”

“These are the cosmetics I bought for you, and this is what Ji Ye bought for your birthday.”

“Oh my, really… Why does Ji Ye send gifts every year? It makes me feel sorry.”

“I tell her not to, but she still buys and sends them.”

“Oh my, I feel so sorry… I’ll pack some side dishes for you to take back.”

“Okay. I got it.”

Mother’s eyes widened when she saw the cosmetics So Eun had bought.

“Oh my, but isn’t this an extremely expensive brand? My daughter, didn’t you overdo it?”

“No, I didn’t. Can’t your daughter buy you this much?”

“Still, it makes me feel sorry.”

“There’s nothing to feel sorry about to your daughter.”

So Eun smiled and took out the hand cream from the cosmetics set, applying it to Mother’s hand.

“Mother, you should always apply hand cream since your hands often get dry. Okay?”

“Alright. I understand. Thank you, daughter.”

As Mother smiled, her phone rang.

Mother checked the number and answered with a bright smile.

“Yes. Elder sister. What? Yes. That’s right. You can come there. Okay. See you later.”

After Mother hung up, So Eun tilted her head and said to Mother.

“Mother, you know we have a reservation at the Korean restaurant at 1 o’clock, right? But who are you meeting?”

“Ah. Well, So Eun. You see. You Young…”

“Mother!”

As Mother was speaking, Hyun Jun quickly cut off her words.

As Mother and So Eun looked at Hyun Jun simultaneously, Hyun Jun put his finger to his lips, shushing Mother.

“I told elder sister it’s a surprise. Tell her to see for herself later.”

“A surprise?”

“Yes.”

Mother chuckled at Hyun Jun’s words, and So Eun looked at them with a puzzled expression.

“Mother, what exactly is this surprise?”

Then Mother, like Hyun Jun, put her finger to her lips and said, “It’s a surprise, so you’ll see later.”

So Eun narrowed her eyes, and Mother smiled as she headed to her room.

* * *

An hour later, the three of them, ready to go out, headed to the Korean restaurant.

Before So Eun got a job, they always went to a family restaurant for Mother’s birthday, but after she started working, she made reservations at an upscale Korean restaurant.

Mother strongly refused, saying it was too expensive, but she had to give in to So Eun’s firm attitude of wanting to play the role of the eldest daughter.

Mother felt sorry about the high price every time, but younger brother Hyun Jun always ate heartily, saying they might as well enjoy the expensive food.

After parking, when So Eun gave her name at the desk, the staff guided them to a room.

However, as they were being guided to a larger room than the one they had originally reserved, So Eun was about to speak to the staff with a puzzled look when the door of the room opened.

And,

“So Eun!”

Someone inside the room stood up abruptly, calling So Eun’s name cheerfully.

Looking inside, there stood Aunt Young Sook.

As So Eun’s surprised eyes widened, Young Sook approached and hugged her tightly.

“Oh my, our So Eun. How long has it been, huh?”

Young Sook’s voice, asking while hugging So Eun, was choked with emotion.

So Eun also felt a sudden surge of emotion.

Aunt Young Sook was the aunt who moved in next door the year So Eun became a sixth-grader in elementary school.

Aunt Young Sook, with her civil servant husband and only son, had a friendly smiling face, and the day after moving in, she came to So Eun’s house to distribute rice cakes, saw young So Eun and Hyun Jun, and chatted for a long time with Mother Mi Sook, saying how pretty they were.

Aunt Young Sook, two years older than Mother, felt sorry for So Eun’s mother Mi Sook, who was struggling to raise two children alone.

So whenever Mi Sook, who ran a side dish shop, worked late or had urgent matters, she would look after So Eun and Hyun Jun without hesitation.

Although they were not related by blood, the two cared for and looked after each other like real sisters.

Even their names, Young Sook and Mi Sook, made the neighbors wonder if they were real sisters.

Then, when So Eun was in her second year of middle school, Aunt Young Sook’s family emigrated to the United States.

The image of Aunt Young Sook and Mother holding hands and crying endlessly at the airport on the day they left was still vivid.

“Oh my, our So Eun, how did you grow up to be so pretty? You were as white and pretty as Snow White when you were young, but now you’re even prettier?”

Young Sook’s eyes were moist as she gazed intently at So Eun’s face after releasing the hug.

So Eun’s eyes also moistened as she looked at Young Sook.

“Aunt, how… When did you come to Korea?”

“Well, I arrived last Saturday.”

As the aunt answered, the door of the room opened again and someone else entered.

So Eun’s eyes widened once more as she turned to look.

It was elder brother Seung Woo, Aunt Young Sook’s only son.

“…Huh?”

So Eun’s mouth opened slightly in surprise.