A Dream Left Behind
"Honey! Come here for a second!"
Having just finished his shower, Dojin headed to the living room at the sound of his wife's voice.
His wife, Dohee, was sitting at the dining table, waiting for him.
"What is it?"
"Honey, have you seen this? We should try making content like this later."
She held out her smartphone, where a video was playing.
The video showed a young man running around boisterously in an empty, abandoned school.
Dojin recognized the YouTuber immediately.
"Oh? That's him. Sushi Ramen."
"Huh? You know him too, Honey?"
"He's pretty famous. Especially among science geeks and people who like bizarre humor. He's practically a celebrity to them."
Though he was just a science geek who genuinely loved experiments, he was famous for the sheer madness of buying an entire abandoned school just to conduct them.
"But why this YouTuber all of a sudden?"
"Well, I just thought it would be cool if you did something like this when you return to YouTube later."
Dojin gave a bitter smile at Dohee's words.
He was grateful that his wife was thinking of him, but realistically, it was close to impossible.
"How could I go back? Right now, I barely have time to sleep after getting home from the factory."
"You say that, but you still upload videos every now and then."
"Those are just like a family album. I keep the account private anyway."
"Hmm... But you used to be a pretty successful YouTuber..."
"How long ago was that? And 'successful'? I didn't even get a Silver Play Button."
"So what? Even if you didn't hit a hundred thousand subscribers, you had several videos with over a hundred thousand views. Don't be like that, you should definitely make a comeback later."
Watching his wife try to persuade him like Porori from Bonobono, Dojin couldn't help but chuckle.
"Pfft, alright. Let's think about it once our situation gets a bit better and the kids we'll have in the future grow up a little."
Hugging his wife close, Dojin genuinely hoped that such a day would come.
If only for Dohee, who stayed by his side and cheered him on despite his many shortcomings.
But in the end, that day never came.
"Let's break up."
"What? Dohee, what are you talking about?"
Her voice was cold, completely unlike her usual self.
Hearing his wife's words over the phone, Dojin felt a shock as if he had been hit by a car.
If this was a nightmare, he wanted to wake up quickly and hold his wife, who should have been right beside him.
Unfortunately, this was no dream.
"I'm... serious. If we keep going like this, everyone will just end up miserable."
"No, it's not. I'll... I'll do better. We've done so well until now, haven't we? Just trust me a little longer..."
"No, you've done more than enough, Honey. This is just... just something we can't do anything about."
"Do—Dohee!"
"I've already packed all my things. Thank you for always loving someone like me. I guess it's a relief we never registered our marriage. No wonder I couldn't bring myself to do it..."
"Wait! Dohee!"
That was the last time they ever spoke.
Dojin called his wife over and over, but Dohee never picked up, as if she had blocked him entirely.
Years passed after his wife vanished like smoke.
Just as the wound in Dojin's heart was beginning to heal, he received terrible news.
At the news from his wife's one and only best friend, Dojin rushed straight to the funeral home.
Dragging his body, which felt on the verge of collapsing, toward the funeral home, Dojin had only one hope.
"No... It can't be... Dohee, Dohee!"
Something had to be wrong.
It had to be someone with a similar name, or some sick joke.
But the moment he stepped into the funeral hall, the portrait of his wife shattered all his hopes to pieces.
"Ah... Ah..."
*Thud.*
The strength drained from Dojin's legs, and he collapsed right there.
He had run there like his life depended on it, but now he couldn't take a single step forward.
He felt that if he walked any closer, he would truly have to let Dohee go.
Yet, even so, Dojin knew.
The woman who was more beautiful than anyone,
and wiser than anyone,
was no longer in this world.