The Second Time: The Moment Everything Changed

by Mel C. Steel

*"We're okay. We're making it."*For three years, twenty-two-year-old Ji-Young Kim has repeated this daily affirmation while raising her daughter Soo-Min alone in Seoul. After her first unplanned pregnancy shattered her university dreams and nearly severed her relationship with her traditional parents, she has painstakingly rebuilt her life—working at an education center while pursuing online courses and gradually regaining her family's conditional approval.

Now, just as this careful balance has begun to stabilize, with a supportive boyfriend and slowly healing family ties, Ji-Young faces the a second pregnancy that threatens to destroy everything she has struggled to reconstruct.

As morning sickness mingles with panic attacks, Ji-Young must navigate impossible choices. Will her boyfriend Min-ho stay, unlike Soo-Min's father who vanished at the first mention of pregnancy? Will her parents, whose acceptance has been so hard-won, reject her completely this time? And how will she provide for two children when she's barely managing with one?

Set against the backdrop of contemporary Seoul, where traditional family expectations clash with modern realities, this poignant story explores how lightning can strike twice in the same place—and how sometimes our greatest strength emerges when we're forced to begin again.

176 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 17, 2025