“Soon-young, when did you get married?” 

“What?” 

While we were eating dinner, Grandma, who had been quietly watching Woo-jin and me, suddenly asked this strange question. 

“Oh my, when did you get married and bring your husband here?” 

“Grandma!” 

I was so shocked and stunned that my face turned bright red. I knew that Grandma’s memory had been a little hazy lately, but to say something so outrageous!

Without thinking, I looked at Woo-jin. He seemed just as startled, coughing in the middle of the meal and reaching for water to help him recover. 

“H-Grandma! What are you talking about? This is Brother Jong Hyun, Aunt Yoon-seo’s son, Brother Jong Hyun!”

I tried desperately to clear up the misunderstanding. 

“Listen to this girl!” Grandma shouted. “Do you think I wouldn’t recognise Jong Hyun’s face? This man is completely different. He’s your husband! What’s wrong with you?” 

This was bad. For her to say something so absurd… I brushed it off and quickly cleared the table to avoid embarrassment.

 It was early in the evening, so I thought things would settle down after a while. The medicine we got this time didn’t seem to help at all. I’d have to go to Dr Park right away and ask for my money back. There was no sign of improvement – it seemed to be getting worse! 

Without saying much, Woo-jin finished his meal and quietly went into the next room. He seemed to be reading a book, as usual. 

After I finished the dishes and tidied up, I checked the courtyard and prepared to go to the bedroom. But the door wouldn’t open. 

I shook the door as hard as I could, but it wouldn’t budge. Frightened, I called out for Gradma.

“Grandma, why did you lock the door?” 

“Oh, you sleep with your husband.” 

“What?” 

What the…! I was so stunned I couldn’t even form words. What’s got into Grandma today? 

“Stop saying such ridiculous things… I’m not married, Grandma! Please, just open the door!” 

“What are you talking about? He’s your husband! You must be out of your mind now that you are an adult.” 

Wow, I’m really going to lose it. 

“What’s going on?” 

The door to the next room creaked open and Woo-jin looked out. 

“Uh, no, it’s… nothing.” 

Totally confused, I shook my head and grabbed the door behind me, rattling it in frustration.

I would have preferred it if Grandma had been angry with me for something like the last time, accusing me of stealing her gold ring or scolding me for not giving her food. But marriage? What kind of disaster is this?

“Grandma, let’s talk after you open the door, OK? All my clothes are in my room. I need my clothes if I’m going to sleep tonight.” 

I tried every excuse and coaxed her gently, but it was no use. Grandma had locked the door and wouldn’t budge. 

After working all day and coming home exhausted, all I wanted to do was sleep. But now it looked like I’d end up holding onto the doorknob and sleeping on the floor.

“What’s going on?”

Woo-jin asked as he came closer. 

I was at a loss and rolled my eyes in frustration. 

“Does she still think I’m your husband?”

He seemed to find the situation amusing, his voice tinged with laughter. I looked at him. 

“Is this funny to you?” 

“Yeah, it’s pretty funny.” 

“Grandma! Please open the door!” 

“Go sleep with your husband!” 

Oh dear. Grandma, why are you doing this to me? 

Unable to even turn my head, I pressed my face against the door, and from beside me I heard Woo-jin suppressing his laughter, still with that amused smile on his face.

“Soon-young, does that mean you have to sleep with me tonight?” 

“Be quiet.” 

“Oh, I’m scared.” 

Woo-jin chuckled and then stood up. 

“Well, I’ll give you a blanket and you can sleep on the living room floor.” 

“How can I sleep on the living room floor?” 

“It’s a summer night… you can handle it.”

He laughed softly and went into his room, taking out his bedding and spreading it out on the floor for me.

Ugh, what is this anyway! I squirmed in frustration, overwhelmed by despair.

On that bright July night, the only sound in the air was the peaceful buzzing of insects. I tried one last time to tempt Grandma with some fresh corn, but it was no use. 

Reluctantly, I sat next to Woo-jin on the veranda and ate the corn. 

“I didn’t have a grandmother…” 

Woo-jin said suddenly, looking at the moon. 

“You don’t have a grandmother?” 

“She died when I was young, so I didn’t have one.” 

“Well, then you didn’t lose her, you just never met her.” 

“Maybe. Anyway, Soon-young, your grandma is nice. She’s fun.” 

“Oh, twice as much fun and I’d die.”

“My grandmother used to be a deep sea diver. The leader of all the Haenyeo. She could hold her breath longer than anyone and was amazing at diving. People said she was the daughter of the Dragon King.”

Back then, Grandma was truly magnificent. Her sun-kissed, wrinkled face was full of life and energy. Underwater, she was truly like a mermaid. 

The Dragon King’s daughter. Beautiful, strong and a warrior who lived her life without depending on anyone. 

“She was a mermaid princess.” 

“Mermaid?” 

My eyes widened at the word I had never heard before. 

“You don’t know what a mermaid princess is?”

He asked, looking at me with gentle eyes. 

I didn’t know. I had never seen a book of fairy tales. 

When I shook my head, he laughed and teased me. 

“Oh dear, I think I need to buy you a fairy tale book, Soon-young.” 

He ruffled my hair. 

“Hey! Stop messing around!” 

Even when I got annoyed, he kept smiling. Then he started telling me the story of the mermaid princess. 

“Once upon a time, long, long ago…” 

A fairy tale! Without realising it, I rested my chin on my hands, my eyes shining with excitement. 

“The Sea Dragon King had many daughters, and the youngest daughter was the most beautiful.” 

It seems that the youngest are always born the prettiest. 

“On their birthdays, the mermaid princesses could rise to the surface of the sea. The youngest princess was curious and eagerly awaited her birthday. Finally, on her birthday, she was able to rise to the surface. There she saw a handsome prince giving a big banquet on a big ship.”

Huh? 

Suddenly, a strange feeling came over me. The first time I met Woo-jin, he was sitting on a fishing boat. The wind was blowing through his hair and the collar of his white shirt was fluttering. At that moment, he really did look like a prince from a starry world. 

“But the prince was human, and the mermaid princess had a fish’s tail.” 

Could that be my story? Snap out of it. A haenyeo doesn’t have a fish’s tail, right? 

“So the princess went to find the sea witch because she wanted to be with the prince she had fallen in love with.”