The house was quieter these days, in the good kind of way.
The kind where everyone had somewhere to be, but still found their way back to each other by evening.
Lila hummed softly in the kitchen, tying her apron as she prepared to leave. "I still can't believe I traded Michelin stars for bubble tea."
Re-ha, sketching at the table, smirked. "You traded chaos for calm. Korea should thank you."
Lila grinned, slipping on her gloves. "Calm? Wait till you see me with tapioca pearls stuck in the blender."
Their laughter echoed down the hall just as Agani came out, fixing her coat. "Okay, you two, try not to burn anything or redesign the kitchen while I'm gone."
Re-ha raised her pencil. "No promises."
The three exchanged smiles—the kind that said they had built something real out of their chance meeting.
---
At Agani's Office
The travel company's office overlooked the busy streets of Seoul. Posters of destinations covered the walls—Bali, Jeju, Paris, and the tagline: "Find the place that calls you."
Agani was sorting travel itineraries when someone knocked on her cubicle wall.
"New country, same chaos?"
She turned to see Kim Ij, the new marketing lead. He was around her age, sharp suit but soft eyes, with that kind of smile that made you forget your next sentence.
"You must be Agani," he said, setting a coffee cup on her desk. "The boss said you're the one who actually gets things done around here."
She raised an eyebrow. "Flattery before introductions? Bold strategy."
He chuckled. "Then let me correct myself. I'm Kim Ij. New guy. Probably going to annoy you with too many questions."
Agani smiled despite herself. "Well, at least you warned me."
---
Later that morning, they worked together on a new project—an upcoming campaign about "rediscovering yourself through travel."
Ij leaned on the desk beside her, reading her draft. "You write like someone who's actually been lost before."
She looked up. "That's an odd compliment."
He shrugged lightly. "Honest one, though."
There was something about his tone—gentle, understanding without being intrusive. It caught her off guard.
"I guess travel does that," she said after a pause. "You keep moving until you find a place that feels like home."
Ij smiled faintly. "Or a person."
Their eyes met for a brief moment—too long for strangers, too short for anything more.
Then the office phone rang, breaking the silence. Agani answered quickly, her cheeks a little warmer than before.
When she hung up, Ij was still smiling. "Coffee again tomorrow?"
She nodded, trying not to return the smile too easily. "We'll see how annoying you are by then."
---
Nira at DCK University
Across the city, Nira adjusted her glasses as she walked through the gates of DCK University. The air smelled of ink and rain-soaked books—familiar, comforting.
Her first class was World Literature and Emotion. The students were young, eager, their eyes full of curiosity.
She wrote a quote on the board:
> "Words are the bridges between hearts that don't yet understand each other."
The room fell quiet. For the first time in years, Nira felt a spark of peace.
During lunch, her colleague Professor Eunji joined her in the courtyard. "You seem at home here already."
Nira smiled softly. "Maybe because I stopped running from words and started listening to them again."
Eunji raised an eyebrow. "That sounds like a poet's answer."
"Or someone who finally found a story worth staying for."
---
Lila's New Beginning
The Bubble Coffee Café was small but bright, filled with laughter and the soft sound of milk frothing.
Lila was behind the counter, playfully juggling cups for two curious students. "You break it, you buy it," she warned them, smiling.
One of them laughed. "You're way too energetic for a rainy day."
"I'm solar-powered," she replied. "But caffeine helps."
Her boss, a kind older woman named Mrs. Han, shook her head affectionately. "Lila, you make even coffee sound like performance art."
"I call it emotional customer service," Lila said, tapping her chest dramatically.
But when the rush ended, she leaned against the counter, eyes wandering to the window. She missed New York sometimes—the noise, the competition, the endless rush. But here, in this cozy café where people remembered her name, she felt something simpler: belonging.
She smiled to herself and whispered, "Yeah… maybe calm isn't so bad."
---
Evening at Home
By evening, all four women returned one by one.
Re-ha was sketching dresses for a client, fabric samples spread across the couch. Nira entered quietly, placing a small notebook on the table. "First day survived."
Lila clapped. "How were the students? Any future poets?"
"Plenty of talkers," Nira said with a smile. "But I think I found my rhythm."
Agani entered last, setting her bag down. She looked unusually thoughtful.
Lila noticed instantly. "Someone looks like they had a long day—or an interesting one?"
Agani hesitated, then smiled. "Both. We have a new coworker. Kim Ij."
Re-ha raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Tell us more."
"He's… helpful," Agani said carefully, pouring herself tea. "And talks too much."
Lila grinned. "Which means you liked him."
"I didn't say that."
"You didn't deny it either," Re-ha added, smirking.
Agani tried to glare, but the corners of her mouth betrayed her. "You all need hobbies."
"Watching your love life unfold is our hobby," Lila said proudly.
The laughter that followed filled the house again—gentle, familiar, real.
---
Nightfall
Later, as the lights dimmed and rain started again outside, Agani sat by her window, sipping tea.
She thought of Ij's words—You write like someone who's been lost before.
She smiled faintly, glancing at her travel journal. Maybe, she thought, she wasn't as lost anymore. Maybe, without realizing it, she was starting to find the place—and the people—that felt like home.
Down the hallway, Lila's soft humming filled the air again. Nira's light was still on, and Re-ha's sewing machine whirred quietly.
The city outside pulsed with life, but inside, their world was small, calm, and perfect in its imperfection.
And somewhere between laughter and quiet, something gentle began to grow.