For a while, Seo Yeon, who had been sobbing while holding her husband’s belongings with his touch, looked at the screen of her phone showing missed calls.

Her elder brother, mother, and in-laws had alternately made missed calls to Seo Yeon. And they even sent lengthy messages.

They openly showed interest in the massive inheritance Seo Yeon would receive.

On the surface, their tone was cultured and kind, but considering how they usually treated her with disdain, their polite attitude only made their intentions more transparent. Seo Yeon muttered inadvertently.

“Really, just as Seong Jun said…”

However, ironically, thanks to that massive inheritance, she gained the power to protect herself. That too was as Seong Jun had predicted.

The last message came from Seong Jun’s secretary. Seo Yeon slowly read the message.

−Madam, please refrain from calls or meetings with Han Kyung family members until the inheritance issue is resolved. We don’t know what they might do, so please be cautious. Where are you? The lawyer and I will come to where you are.

While he himself was also a Han Kyung Group person.

This person was Seong Jun’s friend before being a Han Kyung Group person, and was like family. So this man’s kindness came from Seong Jun. Thinking about that made her heart heavy once again.

−I’ll come there.

Seo Yeon tightly gripped the ultrasound photo with her slightly trembling hand, held it preciously to her chest, and then carefully packed it in her bag.

She left the house to go to the meeting place. However, her hands were shaking too much to drive.

She had no choice but to use public transportation.

As she waited for the bus, painful thoughts kept coming even though she wanted to stop thinking.

The despair and guilt she felt after losing the precious child she had been carrying.

Resentment towards her husband who coldheartedly told her to quickly forget the lost child as it was unavoidable.

And his true feelings that she belatedly realized.

If only she had known a little sooner, she wouldn’t have lived blaming her husband all along. She might have at least tried to change their terrible married life.

The more she thought about it, the more confused her mind became. And as the realization of belated regret dawned on her, her eyes welled up with tears once again.

“Haah…”

It was when Seo Yeon placed her hand on her chest and exhaled a quick breath. She felt someone’s gaze from nearby.

Seo Yeon turned her head.

A student who looked no older than a high school student was staring intently at Seo Yeon. Finding it strange, she stared back, and he hurriedly turned his head straight ahead.

Then he started walking towards the road where cars were speeding by dangerously, even though the signal hadn’t changed yet. Startled, Seo Yeon reflexively reached out and grabbed the male student.

“Be careful!”

The man grabbed by Seo Yeon froze in place. Then he turned his head, looked at Seo Yeon with widened eyes, and slightly moved his dry lips.

“Uh… Were you crying?”

At the male student’s bewildering response, Seo Yeon said with a choke in her voice.

“Is whether I was crying or not important right now? You should have been careful! You could have been in big trouble!”

Seo Yeon, who had shouted in anger, sighed as she watched the male student’s actions, who was flustered and didn’t know what to do.

Just a few days ago, her husband died in a traffic accident.

He was the healthiest and strongest-looking man among the people Seo Yeon knew.

Maybe that’s why. There was no need for it, but she unknowingly reacted sensitively.

Even if it was someone she had never met before, she didn’t want to see an accident happen in front of her.

But even so, she had no right to get angry at this student. Soon she felt uncomfortable.

After sorting out her complicated emotions, Seo Yeon spoke in a calm voice.

“I’m sorry. For getting angry suddenly. I was worried that an accident might happen.”

The male student, who had been looking at her as if surprised by Seo Yeon’s words, waved his arms widely.

“You don’t need to apologize. I’m rather grateful that you worried about me. Really.”

Then he smiled brightly as if trying to express his sincerity. That smile was as bright as the sun. Even if just for a moment, it made her forget her desperate and sad feelings. Why did she feel this way?

As she pondered, the male student asked curiously.

“But sister. Why were you crying earlier? Did something happen?”

Seo Yeon looked at the traffic light that had already changed.

Earlier he was trying to cross when the light hadn’t changed, but now that it was green, he didn’t seem to have any intention of crossing.

He was staring intently at Seo Yeon just like he did at first. As if he really wanted to hear an answer.

Even though he was clearly someone she was seeing for the first time, why did he feel so familiar?

Could it be that I’ve seen him before but forgot?

While Seo Yeon was lost in thought, the nosy male student urged her again.

“If you tell me, I might be able to find a solution.”

Seo Yeon was now convinced that the male student in front of her was quite a peculiar person.

But she didn’t think he was an unpleasant person.

As she hesitated, the male student again urged her to share her worries.

She wasn’t the talkative type, nor did she enjoy talking about herself.

But was it because of his smile as bright as the sun? Or because she was too tired?

Seo Yeon ended up blurting out her innermost thoughts.

“There’s something I regret.”

“Something you regret? What is it?”

Seo Yeon was lost in thought for a moment before answering candidly.

“There was a very important person in my life, but I couldn’t express my feelings to him at all.”

“If he was an important person, why couldn’t you express your feelings?”

Why indeed. Seo Yeon lowered her gaze and moved her lips.

“He was such a busy person that it was hard to even see his face usually. He had enough reasons to dislike me.”

“…”

“I thought he disliked me.”

“…Was it a misunderstanding?”

“I don’t know. I clearly thought he disliked me… I thought he resented me… Now I don’t know what the truth is. So I want to meet him and ask, but I can’t.”

“Why not?”

“Because he’s dead.”

“…”

“He was a person who lived so diligently, with many things he wanted to do and many ambitions… He wasn’t someone who should go like this… He shouldn’t have gone… It seems so unfair. I wish I had died instead.”

At Seo Yeon’s words, the male student frowned as if he had heard something terrible.

“What? Why, why are you saying such scary things!”

Seo Yeon realized that she had blurted out something terribly burdensome to someone she had just met today. As she was about to open her mouth to correct her mistake, the man’s response was faster.

“Sister, you’re still young and have many opportunities! Forget about the people who have left and start anew! Happily! Joyfully!”

The man spoke in a strong tone as if he really wanted Seo Yeon to make a new start.

Forget everything and be happy?

A man she could never get close to all her life, a difficult husband with whom she often quarreled when in the same space. Maybe she could escape from sadness if she forgot everything and lived as the man said. But Seo Yeon shook her head. And spoke in a calm tone.

“I don’t think I’ll ever be able to forget.”

“…”

The man looked at Seo Yeon with a dejected expression. And after a while, he smiled brightly as if he couldn’t help it.

“Actually, I knew you would say that.”

And after seemingly examining Seo Yeon’s face for a moment, the man said.

“Then how about going back to the beginning and starting completely over?”

It was at that moment. As if the world had stopped, people’s movements slowed down and eventually came to a complete halt.

The blinking traffic light, the people crossing the street, even the movement of clouds slowly drifting overhead.

Seo Yeon thought it was a momentary illusion, unable to believe the incredible situation now. But no matter how much time passed, the stopped world did not move again.

Am I dreaming right now?

Or have I collapsed from exhaustion without realizing it, having cried too much?

Where does the dream end and reality begin?

As Seo Yeon was in confusion, the man who had been staring at her tightly grasped her hand.

“This time, you’re going to be happy.”

“What do you…”

Seo Yeon’s eyes widened. A white light seemed to envelop Seo Yeon, and soon darkness fell. And the man who had been holding her hand tightly right in front of her disappeared in an instant. Is this really a dream?

Seo Yeon closed her eyes, hoping to wake up from the dream.

It was at that moment. A strange voice was heard in Seo Yeon’s ear.

“Han Seo Yeon.”

A voice too familiar. But a voice that should never be heard. Seo Yeon opened her eyes with difficulty and confirmed the owner of the voice.

“Seong Jun?”

It shouldn’t be possible. But her husband was in front of her. The man who had always considered her a cumbersome burden on his shoulders throughout his life. A person who always prioritized work over family. But right before he died, he worried about her safety more than anyone else, her husband, Tae Seong Jun.

“Are you conscious?”

Seo Yeon didn’t answer. No. She missed the timing to answer.

In the meantime, Seong Jun frowned and touched Seo Yeon’s forehead. His sharp eyes narrowed a bit more, as if something was unsatisfactory. Seo Yeon, finding it fascinating to see her husband who hadn’t even appeared in her dreams, examined each of his expressions.

“I told you to go to the hospital, but you’re just making your illness worse. There are many ways to make people tired.”

“Why are you here?”

“I’m in my own house. Who else would be here?”

“That’s not what I mean…”

“What do you mean then?”

“…You died.”

“What?”

“…We even held your funeral.”

At Seo Yeon’s words, the expression disappeared from Seong Jun’s face. He stared at Seo Yeon for a moment and then sighed. And with an expression as if telling her to come to her senses, he said.

“Did you dream?”

“…”

“Right. It was a dream.”

A dream? Is that all? At Seong Jun’s words, Seo Yeon thought for a moment if it really was, but there was no way the things she had experienced could have been a dream.

Seo Yeon, who had been wearing a troubled expression in a situation she couldn’t understand at all, pressed her lips tightly. Seong Jun hesitated for a moment at her expression.

“I came out for a short while, so I need to go soon. I’ll take you to the hospital, so just lie down and don’t move.”

But soon he spoke with Seong Jun’s characteristic cold face.

Seo Yeon tightly grasped her slightly trembling hand.

Is she really dreaming right now? Where does the dream end and where does reality begin? It was so confusing.

Then suddenly her gaze turned to her finger. There was the wedding ring she had lost years ago, which had upset her for a long time.