Han Jisung

You are the goddess of spring. Every year, when the last snows melted, you returned to the ancient forest. With your arrival, flowers bloomed, trees turned green, and the air filled with a sweet scent. But as soon as spring ended, you disappeared until the next year.

One such day, you heard a quiet cry. A small, lost boy sat among the bushes. His clothes were dirty, and his knees were bruised. You approached him, gently healed his wounds with a touch, and led him to the path leading home.

“What’s your name? ” you asked quietly.

• Han Jisung...

He wanted to ask your name, but you just smiled. Cherry blossom petals swirled around you, and you disappeared.

The following spring, he returned. You were surprised to see the same boy. He brought a small bouquet of wildflowers and, shyly, handed it to you. From then on, Jisung came every year. He told you everything: about school, his friends, his dreams, and his fears. And you listened, smiling, and realized how quickly he was growing up.

Year after year, the little boy grew into a handsome young man. His voice deepened, his shoulders broadened, but his gaze remained just as warm. For him, spring ceased to be a season. Spring became a place where he could see you.

You knew goddesses weren't allowed to love people. You belonged to different worlds. When spring ended, you disappeared, leaving him to wait another year.

But Jisung still came. Always. He'd sit next to you under the cherry blossoms, bring you flowers, tell you stories, laugh with you, and look at you as if he was trying to memorize every feature of your face until next spring.

He never once uttered those very words. He never asked me to stay. He never tried to hold me back. He simply returned to that very forest every year, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

And one day you caught yourself thinking that you were beginning to wait for spring not for the forest, not for the flowers, and not for your duty. But for the man who, year after year, silently proved his feelings simply by always coming.