WEHP 01

Chapter 01

Hyunseo buried her mother and her daughter on the same day.
And on that day, she died too.

“I’m sorry, Mom. I’m so, so sorry to you….”

Each day passed without her knowing what she was living for.
The only thing left in her heart was the desire to punish her in-laws.

On the table, side by side, were photographs of her mother Hyesu and her daughter Seoha—just as affectionate as they had been in life.

“Mom… my daughter… our Seoha is doing well, right?”

Their smiles in the photos were pure and untainted.

Was it because they were no longer part of this world?
They smiled as if free of all worldly burdens, vivid yet unbearably distant.

“Baby, stay well with Grandma until Mommy comes to see you. I’ll be there soon.”

Hyunseo clutched her chest as she stroked her daughter’s photograph, feeling as if she might suffocate.

The chubby cheeks she used to kiss, the bright smile that bloomed in response.
That small body—soft and warm—whenever she held her close.

The fact that she would never see that smile again, never hold that body again, was something she simply could not accept.

Not for a single day.

And so those days piled up—days of refusal to accept reality—until a year had passed.

“Mom… they say when a child dies, you bury them in your heart. I feel that truth so painfully every single day.”

She still refused to accept that her daughter was gone.

“Please take good care of your granddaughter, Mom. Make sure she never suffers or is treated unfairly like she was here. Until we meet again, I’ll trust you with everything.”

With tears welling in her eyes, she murmured as if her mother were standing right in front of her.

“I’ll make them pay. I promise. Until then, please wait for me. I love you. I love you, Mom. I love you, my baby.”

The quiet memorial park—
a place once prepared to house her father, and later her mother—now held Hyesu and Seoha side by side.

The landscaping, meant perhaps for the dead or for the living, displayed the desolate beauty of autumn.
Red leaves fell sadly to the ground.

Flowers left by visitors stood quietly, bearing witness to grief.

Hyunseo slowly stepped away from the smiling faces in the photographs.

It was time to leave.

She had to return to that house again—
to live another day pretending to know nothing, like a fool,
just as she had until now.

“Big sister-in-law, I’m here.”

“We haven’t eaten lunch yet,” her mother-in-law Han Youngsook called sharply as she entered with the younger sister-in-law, Hyemi.
“The second one’s hungry. She said she wanted the clam noodle soup you make, so I brought her home.”

“She must be starving since we’re late, so hurry up.”

Hyunseo swallowed the words You could have at least called first.

Behind them, the driver, Mr. Kim, followed in with department store shopping bags in both hands.

“Mr. Kim, those are mine. The others are Mother’s.”

He hurriedly divided the bags as instructed. As he turned to leave, he noticed Hyunseo and gave an awkward smile with a small bow.

“Mr. Kim, wait a moment.”

Hyunseo quickly disappeared into the kitchen and returned with a tray holding a glass of juice.

“You worked hard. Please have some juice before you go.”

“Thank you, Madam.”

Mr. Kim glanced nervously at Youngsook before downing the juice in one go. He must have been exhausted.

“Why are you fussing over pointless things instead of cooking?” Youngsook snapped.
“The second one’s hungry!”

“She’s pregnant, you know. You have to feed her well so she can give birth to a healthy son.”

“I’m fine, Mother,” Hyemi said softly.
“I was hungry earlier, but time passed…”

“I told you I’d buy you something tasty,” Youngsook replied sweetly—
then shot Hyunseo a venomous look.

“She insisted on your noodle soup, that’s why we came home…”

“I’m sorry, Mother,” Hyemi said, pretending to rise.
“It’s my fault. Big sister-in-law seems uncomfortable. Let’s just eat out.”

“No, it’s fine,” Hyunseo quickly said, raising her hands.
“I already prepared the clams. I’ll make it quickly.”

But as soon as she turned toward the kitchen, she heard their whispers.

“She’s so slow. Not a single thing she does properly.”

“I feel bad… she doesn’t seem to want to cook today.”

“She must be jealous since you’re the one carrying a son.”

“Oh, no. Pregnancy isn’t something to brag about.”

“If she can’t even manage this, what good is she?”

Hyunseo nearly stopped walking, but forced herself to shut her ears.

She clenched her lips and hurried into the kitchen.

When the fragrant noodles were ready, she placed them neatly on the table.

“Auntie, please tell Mother and my sister-in-law that the meal is ready.”

“Yes, Madam.”

“I’ll go to my room. Please clean up afterward.”

She tossed off her apron and stepped outside.

Her chest felt unbearably tight.
If she stayed any longer, she felt she might scream at them.

She needed air—anything—to regain control.

The feeling was always worse after visiting her mother and daughter.

As she flung the door open, a large white Samoyed bounded toward her, tail wagging wildly.

“Button… I went to see Seoha today. You miss her too, don’t you?”

She hugged the dog and whispered softly.

“When Seoha first came here, she said your eyes looked just like the black buttons on her dress… that’s why she named you Button.”

“I don’t want to live like this, like an idiot. I want to repay them someday… no matter how long it takes.”

Button whimpered as if he understood.

Hyunseo stroked his fur and rested her face against his back, remembering how Seoha used to love dogs.

She would ride on Button’s back, laughing, hugging him tightly.

Her mother-in-law used to scold her, saying it was unlucky for a girl to ride a dog.

She should have realized then—
how cruel that woman truly was to her granddaughter.

As Hyunseo pounded her chest in anger, a low, cold voice spoke.

“Hyunseo.”

She looked up.

It was her husband, Cha Doha.

“Why are you sitting out here like this?”

It had been months since she’d seen him—since he left for the overseas branch.

He stopped in the garden.

“Did you go see Seoha?”

“You weren’t supposed to be back for a few more days.”

“I moved my schedule up. You didn’t answer your phone.”

“I… didn’t notice.”

“Today is Seoha’s death anniversary.”

He remembered.

Still dressed impeccably in his suit, just as flawless as ever.

He was always like that—perfect, unmoving.

She felt even more small in comparison.

Doha extended his hand.

“Let’s go inside.”

Hyunseo stared at it… then turned away.

After a moment of awkward silence, he withdrew his hand.

“It gets cold after sunset. Don’t stay out too long.”

She didn’t answer.

Inside, Hyemi and Youngsook were admiring their shopping.

“Brother-in-law! You’re back already?”

“Yes.”

“Why didn’t your wife tell me?” Youngsook snapped.

“I couldn’t reach her.”

“Why not?”

“Today is… a difficult day.”

“What day?”

He sighed.

“Why is she still moping around like that?” Youngsook complained.
“It’s been a year already.”

“Mother,” Doha said sharply.
“That’s not something you should say.”

“It’s only been a year.”

As he walked upstairs, Youngsook muttered again.

“She won’t even prepare dinner when her sister-in-law is pregnant. Just sulking outside. She’s jealous.”

Hyemi glanced upstairs.

“Will brother-in-law eat dinner with us?”

“I don’t know,” Youngsook replied flatly.

Hyemi, who had been secretly infatuated with Doha since before her marriage, felt her heart sink.

Why did all the good genes go to him?

Why wasn’t she the one married to him?

As she moved to go upstairs—

“Don’t worry, sister-in-law. I’ll go.”

Hyunseo was standing there.

“You shouldn’t strain yourself while pregnant. You said earlier even drinking water was hard.”

“…Ah.”

“Climbing stairs must be even harder, right?”