They spent quite a long time exploring the zoo, taking photos, watching the animals and strolling hand in hand under the clear blue sky.

It was the kind of day where simply being together made everything feel lighter and more joyful.

Before they knew it, the morning had slipped away and it was lunchtime.

By then, most of the picnic spots had been taken, so finding an empty space wasn’t easy.

Eventually, the four of them found a small spot off to the side where they spread out their mat and began their slightly late lunch.

While Gyeong-hye wiped Ji-an’s hands with a wet tissue, she quickly picked up a piece of gimbap and popped it into her mouth.

“Mm! It’s yummy.”

She said, munching diligently and giving a proud thumbs-up. Ji-an was smaller than most kids her age, and with her usually tiny appetite, she rarely ate much. But whenever it was her mom’s homemade gimbap, she could finish off two whole rolls with no trouble.
That’s why Gyeong-hye had gotten up at the crack of dawn to make plenty.

“Chew slowly, sweetheart. You’ll get an upset stomach if you don’t.”

Gyeong-hye said as she twisted open Ji-an’s favorite Pororo strawberry juice.

“You eat some too, Mommy.”

Ji-an said, offering her a piece of gimbap and gently pushing it toward her lips.

“I want some too.”

In-hwan said with a playful tone as he watched them from the side. Without a word, Jung-ho, who had been quietly eating next to him, picked up a piece of gimbap and offered it to his dad.

They were sweet and thoughtful children who always remembered to share their food with their Mom and Dad.

“Thanks, buddy.”

In-hwan gave his son a little pat on the back and smiled, his eyes crinkling warmly. Looking at their two beautiful children, who were so precious that they could almost be held in one’s arms without causing pain, In-hwan and Gyeong-hye couldn’t help but smile with contentment.

“Don’t just feed the kids. Eat something too.”

In-hwan said, tearing a pair of wooden chopsticks in half and handing one to his wife. Then he stood up.

“Where are you going?”

“Just eat for now. I’ll go and get some instant noodles.”

“But we already packed plenty of food. There’s no need to buy more.”

“Still, nothing beats gimbap with hot ramyeon.”

“I want some too, Daddy!”
“Me too!”

Both Ji-an and Jung-ho quickly raised their hands, eyes wide with excitement. Since they were used to eating non-spicy white broth ramyeon from time to time, In-hwan nodded in understanding.

“Alright, alright. Everyone eat slowly, okay?”
“Okay~!”

Ji-an replied cheerfully, her face lighting up with a smile. Fortunately, the snack bar was nearby and many families were already returning with steaming cups of ramyeon. In-hwan hurried off, and Gyeong-hye finally started eating her gimbap.

“Mom.”
“Hm?”

Ji-an’s cheeks were adorably puffed out, like a squirrel storing acorns, each side stuffed full of gimbap.
They looked so plump and cute that it made Gyeong-hye want to poke them with her finger.

“When our Kkomul is born… we’ll come back here again, right?”

Their unborn baby’s nickname was Kkomul.

Although Ji-an already had an older brother, what she had truly longed for as a child was a baby sibling who would play with her.

Her brother had always preferred being alone, spending most of his time with robots or toy cars, never inviting her to join, and never wanting to be part of her world.

But now, it felt like that old wish was finally coming true—because one day, Kkomul would be there to play with her, too.

Ever since they found out her mother was pregnant, Ji-an talked every single day about all the things she wanted to do with her little sibling.

Even today, just being at the park made her think of the baby again.

“Of course, once Kkomul gets a little bigger, we’ll come back together.”

“In a stroller?”

“Of course.”

She was probably talking about the new stroller by the front door. Gyeong-hye had recently received it from a friend.

The old one they had used for Jung-ho and Ji-an had been given away years ago—they never expected to have more than two children.

But one day, out of the blue, their third child came into their lives—several years apart from Ji-an. At first, it had been overwhelming. But watching Ji-an long for a sibling every day, it had started to feel like fate.

Raising three children wouldn’t be easy. Nevertheless, Gyeong-hye believed it would make her happy.

“Dad’s back! Let’s eat together.”

“Wow~!”

A short while later, In-hwan returned carrying two cups of ramyeon, and the family of four shared a warm, joyful lunch, even enjoying the dessert they’d brought along.

***

“Dad, I’m gonna go look at the lions over there!”

“I’m coming too!”

Having finished her food first, Ji-an jumped to her feet. Right after her, Jung-ho also stood, ready to follow.

“You two can’t go alone.”

“Daaad, pleaaase!”
Ji-an clung to In-hwan’s arm, pleading sweetly. Jung-ho chimed in, just as eager to go, but In-hwan remained firm.

“It’s right there. We can see it clearly from here. Don’t you think they’ll be OK for a minute?”

From where they were seated, the lion enclosure was clearly visible. And since Jung-ho said he’d go too, Gyeong-hye tried to gently persuade him.

“It only takes a second to lose track of a child. Let’s go after Mom finishes eating.”

“I already finished.”

She hadn’t, not really. But seeing how excited the children were, she smiled and lied.

In-hwan shot her a playful, exaggerated glare, then sighed and stood up.

“I’ll go. You just finish your food slowly. Come on, let’s go with Daddy.”

Holding a child in each hand, he led them towards the lion enclosure. Watching them walk away, Gyeong-hye smiled warmly.

“Wow, the lion looks sleepy.”

Ji-an stood at the front, wide-eyed, staring at the lion as if mesmerised.

Sure enough, the lion blinked slowly, barely opening its heavy eyelids.

“It was napping a little while ago.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. Just a few minutes ago, it was lying down asleep.”

Then suddenly, Ji-an turned her head sharply, sensing something was… off.

She had assumed Jung-ho was standing right beside her, but when she looked, it wasn’t him at all. Instead, there was a different boy standing next to her.

Taller by at least two heads, the boy was neatly dressed, clearly older than Ji-an. She stared at him with round eyes, caught off guard.

“Where’s my brother?”
Ji-an turned her head in the opposite direction and spotted Jung-ho a few steps away, standing with her father, In-hwan. Relieved, she shifted her gaze back to the boy she had unknowingly been speaking to.

“Oppa.”
Since he looked older than her brother, Ji-an instinctively called him oppa—big brother.

The boy, Se-hyeon, realized she was speaking to him and turned to look at her.

“What?”
He replied in a dry, indifferent tone. Ji-an smiled brightly.

“Do you want a bite?”

She held her cotton candy a little higher towards him — the same one that she had begged In-hwan to buy on the way there.

Ji-an never usually shared her snacks, not even with Jung-ho. But for some reason, she wanted to give him some.

She didn’t know why. Perhaps it was because she had seen him staring at it earlier.

However, Se-hyeon then said something completely unexpected.

“I don’t like sweet things.”

Se-hyeon said, shaking his head with clear disinterest.

“What? But it’s so yummy!”
Ji-an’s eyes widened in disbelief. Not liking sweets? She couldn’t get her head around it.

“It’s sticky. It gets all over your hands… and your mouth, too.”

Well, that part was true. Her hands were already sticky with melted candyfloss.

At his accurate remark, Ji-an glanced down at her hands and pouted, her expression turning sulky.

“Fine, don’t eat any. I’ll eat it all by myself.”

“Go ahead. You like it, so have as much as you want.”

Hmph!

Ji-an puffed out her lips, clearly annoyed.

Se-hyeon let out a small laugh as he watched her sulk; she was too cute not to find funny.

While Ji-an turned her attention back to the dozing lion and began nibbling her candy floss again, Se-hyeon, standing beside her, kept glancing at her rather than at the animals.

Her hair was tied neatly into twin pigtails that framed her round forehead. She wore a headband with cute animal ears on top, and a yellow dress with white tights.

She looked about five or six years old. Definitely younger than him.

But there was something so irresistibly cute about her that he couldn’t help but keep looking.

Then, without saying a word, Se-hyeon stepped away from the spot and disappeared in another direction.

Ji-an finished her candyfloss while watching the sleepy lion blink lazily in the sun. Then she turned her head towards where Se-hyeon had been standing.

“He’s gone…”

She was sure he’d been standing there just a moment ago. But no matter how much she looked around, he was nowhere to be seen.

Feeling a bit disappointed for reasons she couldn’t explain, Ji-an stuck out her lower lip again.

“Ugh, it’s all sticky…”

She opened her hand to find it coated in sugar syrup. Making a fist and then opening it again in frustration, Ji-an was just about to wipe it on her dress when—

“Wait a sec.”

A sudden voice stopped her in her tracks, and she looked up quickly. There he was—Se-hyeon, standing in front of her once again.

“You can’t wipe it on your dress. It’ll ruin your pretty clothes.”

He scolded gently, not unkindly. Then, reaching for her left wrist, Se-hyeon began wiping her sticky little hand with the wet wipes he’d gone to get.