I’m Ran, and I live with my husband, Kota. Just the two of us—no kids. My dad lives alone back at my childhood home. Since it’s always been just the two of us holding things down, I’ve made sure to check in on him as often as I can, even after getting married. I was told my mother had an affair and walked out on us when I was only four. But thanks to the support of my dad and the people around me, I’ve managed to get by. I hear she’s still alive somewhere, but I have zero desire to see her. I figured this was just how my life would always be… at least, that’s what I thought.
I never gave my mother a second thought. She was that irrelevant to me; my life with my dad and grandparents was what truly mattered. Even after meeting Kota and getting married, the happy days just kept coming. But for some reason, I couldn’t bring myself to want children of my own. I claimed I never thought about her, yet here I was, terrified that I’d end up like her—abandoning my own child and walking out. I couldn’t make sense of the contradiction in my own heart. And then, out of nowhere, I got a phone call from someone claiming to be my “brother.”