When Park Sohee is forced to leave behind her childhood home, the familiar comforts of family, and all the memories she's spent years building, she's faced with the overwhelming challenge of starting fresh. With her younger brother Jisung by her sid...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Sohee had spent the next few days in a daze, a mix of determination and exhaustion clouding her thoughts. The reality of their situation had settled in like a heavy weight on her shoulders. Their mother's actions had disrupted everything, and now, more than ever, Sohee felt responsible for getting herself and Jisung out of this mess. She couldn't rely on her mom, not now, and maybe not ever again. So, she made a decision: she was going to get a job.
Each day after school, Sohee would dive into job applications, scouring websites, submitting resumes, and attending interviews whenever she could. The hours would pass in a blur as she tried to balance schoolwork, job hunting, and her life at home. Every rejection email, every missed call, only made her more determined to keep going. She couldn't afford to stop. Not for herself, and definitely not for Jisung.
Fortunately, Sunwoo stepped up in ways Sohee hadn't expected. He offered to pick up Jisung from soccer practice, wanting to make sure he wasn't alone while she was out job hunting or dealing with everything at home. At first, Sohee had been hesitant, not wanting to impose on him any more than she already had. But Sunwoo was persistent, always assuring her that it wasn't a problem. And it wasn't like she had anyone else to turn to.
So, every afternoon, Sunwoo would drive to Jisung's soccer practice and take him to grab a snack or just hang out, giving him a space to unwind before heading back to the chaotic house. Sohee was grateful for it. It gave her a small break from worrying about Jisung, and she knew he appreciated the time spent with someone who treated him like a friend rather than just a kid to be looked after.
One afternoon, as she sat in a small coffee shop, fingers typing out yet another cover letter, her phone buzzed with a message from Sunwoo.
Sunwoo: "Jisung's getting better at soccer. He says you need to come to his next game."
Sohee smiled softly at the message, her fingers pausing on the keyboard for a moment. It was nice, knowing Jisung had someone to look out for him. She replied quickly.
Sohee: "That's good to hear. I'll try to make it, I promise."
She put the phone down and looked back at the list of job openings in front of her. She was so close, she could feel it. One of the interviews she'd gone to earlier in the week had gone well, and she was cautiously optimistic. She just needed something stable, something that would give them both a chance at a better life.
The day continued like most others—endless job applications, a few interviews that seemed promising, and some that ended with the familiar sting of rejection. By the time Sohee was done for the day, she was exhausted but still determined. She had to keep going. For Jisung. For herself.
Every night, as Sohee lay in bed, she couldn't shake the gnawing fear in her chest. The thought of waking up to the sound of her mom and Chen's voices echoing through the house haunted her. She dreaded the idea of it becoming their new reality—her mom's new life clashing with hers and Jisung's. The uncertainty of what that would mean for them kept her awake, her mind racing with worst-case scenarios.
