Family

“I’ve been thinking.”

In-ho turned around from the couch and saw his husband looking at him. Gi-hun looked serious, and In-ho got scared of what could possibly Gi-hun have been thinking about. He had always been insecure, especially while dating Gi-hun. His husband was the nicest soul ever, always kind to people and even animals. He, on the other side, had always thought there was something wrong with him. He knows he’s polite, but he doesn’t have the sweetness Gi-hun has, and thought it was just luck he hadn’t realized how different the two of them were.

That wasn’t true, of course. Gi-hun had noticed, and he didn’t really care about the differences between them, he still loved In-ho no matter what. They had been married for 20 years, and never once had he doubted his love for who he considered his soulmate.

“What is it, Gi-hun?” In-ho asked. “What have you been thinking about?”

Gi-hun sat down next to him.

“I want to adopt a child.”

That was definitely not something In-ho was expecting. Adopt a child? For what? They already had seven wonderful cats who Gi-hun paid enough attention to. What did he need this child for?

“And before you say no, just think about it. You know, when we went to Ali and Sang-woo’s apartment, I felt the happiest I had ever felt besides when we got married. I loved spending time with their little son,” he continued. “I would love to be a dad. And I know, with some time, you would too. You didn’t have a bad time yourself while playing with him.”

In-ho wanted to tell him that was just because it was a one-time thing. He would hate the idea of having a kid playing and bothering them all day. But he knew how happy that would make Gi-hun. His husband was so good with children, it was somehow cute. As much as he wanted to decline, he knew he couldn’t. Not when his husband was staring at him with those eyes, silently begging for him to accept.

“Okay,” he said, finally. “No girls, I don’t want to deal with period drama. And definitely not a 2-year-old.”

In-ho couldn’t remember when he had last seen Gi-hun smile like he was doing after his answer.

Little did they both know, only one of In-ho’s wishes came true.

—

Sae-byeok was a 10-year-old orphan girl who had once believed she had everything she ever wanted.

She had become an orphan when she was only 8 months old, and she had never really cared about finding a family, not even when she was little; she was already happy living with Ji-yeong at the orphanage. The only time she wished she would finally get adopted was when her best friend found a family, and she had begged them to let her come with her. Of course, they hadn’t accepted. She was left alone.

Two years had passed since she last saw Ji-yeong, and not a day had gone by that she hadn’t missed her. They had been friends ever since they could speak; they would always play together in the playground, they were always near each other, and loved the company the other girl gave them. It hurt, seeing the girl she grew up with being able to leave her behind and finding a family who loved her and wanted her.

No one ever wanted Sae-byeok, though. No one had been interested. Not that she did care, to be honest. But she couldn’t help but wonder, was she really that unloveable?

She didn’t speak to anyone, she didn’t have any friends at the orphanage, and couldn’t wait until she turned 18 so she could finally start a life by herself and move to Jeju island alone.

She had been informed a same-sex couple would come visit the orphanage today.

“If you really want to leave this place, then act kind and don’t hide like you always do,” the social worker had told her.

Of course, she didn’t listen.

By the time the couple arrived, she was already hiding under the bed, reading her favourite comic.

She was distracted enough she was sure no one would bother her.

It wasn’t until she arrived in the tenth chapter, she felt the presence of a man.

“Is there someone there? Are you ok? Do you need help?” the stranger said, worried. “Can you breathe?”

Her first thought was to avoid him. But, she had never been found under her bed before, and was afraid this man would reveal her secret to the workers.

So, she slowly came out of her spot, and saw a 40-year-old looking man staring at her. One of the visitors, she assumed.

“Oh, god. Are you ok? Are you hurt?” he said, in a worried tone.

“Please don’t tell anyone.”

“Tell someone? About what?”

“This is my secret. I hide under the bed so no one will find me. I don’t like the people here, and I especially don’t like the visitors. You’d be surprised of the amount of creepy old men and rude women I’ve seen come in here trying to get advantage of us,” she said, remembering that one time a grown man tried flirting with her.

The stranger looked at her like he understood, like he actually wanted to listen. He looked like a kind man, Sae-byeok thought.

“I promise I won’t tell anyone. It will be our little secret,” he said, grinning. “How long have you been here for?”

“I was brought here when I was 8 months old. My parents and siblings died in a car accident.”

The man continued listening to her, nodding.

“What’s your name?”

Sae-byeok sighed. She really didn’t feel like interacting with this stranger, but he had promised he would keep her secret, so he had to repay him somehow.

“Sae-byeok. Kang Sae-byeok.”

“Pretty name,” he said. “It doesn’t suit you, though.”

“Thanks?”

“No, don’t get me wrong,” he said, and chuckled at how he had accidentally insulted her. “You are a very pretty girl, but Sae-byeok just doesn’t feel like your name. It doesn’t have your vibes, if you know what I mean.”

Sae-byeok didn’t know what he meant, but she just nodded.

“Well, Sae-byeok, my name is Gi-hun. Seong Gi-hun. I’m here with my husband, looking to adopt a kid. Tell me, how old are you?”

“I’m 10 years old.”

Gi-hun smiled. He had thought she was a bit older. He wondered how In-ho would feel if he told him he wanted to adopt a 10-year-old girl.

“Unfortunately, we don’t have much time left. How would you feel if I came to visit you again in a few days?”

Sae-byeok didn’t know if she had heard correctly. Visit her? For what? Had he not been enchanted by one of the other orphans?

“Why?” she finally asked. “Why me?”

Gi-hun grinned.

“Why not? You’ve said you don’t like the people here. And I don’t think I’m as bad, right?” he said, jokingly, and without waiting for her reply, he continued. “I think you’re a very strong young woman, being here all by herself with no company. But I don’t think being on your own is the kind of path I want a kid to follow. I know you don’t trust me yet, but-”

“I don’t trust anyone,” she interrupted.

Gi-hun nodded, and smiled softly.

“I want to change that,” he said. “Would you please let me come visit you next week? It would only be us. Well, and my husband, since he’s a part of this too.”

Why had this stranger taken an interest in her? She wasn’t exactly nice, she hadn’t even smiled.

She found it suspicious. But, again, she didn’t really trust anyone, and she would think the same about any person who tried interacting with her.

What could she lose? This man would probably visit her once or twice and would get tired of her eventually. It was only a matter of time.

So, she accepted.

“Yes, you can.”