Chapter Text
“Dobby…”
Operation Copy & Paste - Day 10
Mina hadn’t slept a single second. By the time the clock hit 5 AM, she was still wide awake, tangled in her sheets, heart pounding with the anxiety of her discovery. Could it be true? Was his name really ‘Dobby’? The thought electrified her, buzzing around her head like static. Should she tell Momo everything, the past ten days of lies, failed espionage, and humiliating near-misses? Her hand shot to her phone on the nightstand. The group chat would know what to do.
“I MADE A DISCOVERY LAST NIGHT”
“ANYONE AWAKE”
“JEONGYEON, I KNOW YOU GO TO THE GYM EARLY. DON’T LEAVE ME HANGING.”
A beat later, “Mina, what the fuck? Jeongyeon’s here today.” Nayeon replied. “You woke ME up!!!!”
“Where’s the fire?” Jihyo joined. “Sana’s staring at me because of the notifications.”
“DOBBY!” Mina typed.
“?”
“You woke me up because of Harry Potter ??” Nayeon wrote.
“NO.”
“THE DOG’S NAME.”
“IT’S DOBBY.”
There was a pause. Then…
“WHAT???” Chaeyoung suddenly appeared. “HOW DO YOU KNOW??”
“I WAS DUSTING THE SHELVES.” Mina typed furiously. “I LOOKED STRAIGHT INTO THE BOOKS. IT JUST… CAME TO ME. LIKE MAGIC.”
“No pun intended tho.”
“Did you test it yet?” Jihyo asked. “You could still be wrong.”
Mina clutched the phone to her chest, glaring at the screen like it had personally betrayed her.
“Shut up.” she muttered, and typed the same thing back.
The living room felt like a stage, and Mina stood at its center, trembling. The lighter dog, now known as Dobby , lounged carelessly on the rug, chewing a squeaky plush donut as though he didn’t think he was about to face an identity trial. Boo was nearby, lying down like an unimpressed spectator.
Mina swallowed hard. Her throat was dry. She raised her hand like a prophet delivering a revelation and spoke the word that had haunted her all night.
“Dobby…”
The air shifted. The lighter dog froze. Literally froze. The squeaky donut fell from his mouth in slow motion, tumbling onto the rug without a single sound. His ears shot up like tiny antennae picking up a forbidden signal. He turned to her with impossible slowness, eyes wide, pupils dilated, as though she had just whispered the ultimate secret of the universe. His whole body stiffened. A paw hovered midair, trembling slightly before lowering with reverence.
“D… Dobby…” Mina repeated, barely breathing.
The dog gasped . It wasn’t a sound she had ever heard a dog make before. A sharp little intake of breath, chest puffing, mouth opening as if he couldn’t believe she had just spoken his true name aloud. He took two steps toward her, cautious, almost reverent, then stopped and stared, unblinking, overwhelmed, shaken to his very core.
Mina’s heart raced. Oh my god. This is it. He knows.
The dog blinked once. Twice. Then, in a shocking burst of energy, he spun in a perfect circle, bounded across the rug, and landed right at Mina’s feet, looking up at her with shining eyes. His tail whipped so fast it was a blur. He barked once, sharply, almost indignantly, as though scolding her: ‘You finally said it. What took you so long?’
Mina gasped, clutching her chest. “It’s… it’s true.”
Boo, from his position, groaned loudly like an old man watching a soap opera, clearly displeased that Mina might have actually solved the mystery.
Her phone buzzed violently on the coffee table. The group chat was waiting.
“I TESTED IT.” Mina typed with shaking hands. “RESULTS: SHOCK. CONFIRMATION. HE LOOKED INTO MY SOUL. HE BARKED.”
“WAIT. HE BARKED???” Chaeyoung replied. “LIKE A YES BARK OR A NO BARK???”
“It was a YES bark.” Mina insisted. “He knows . ”
“Don’t get cocky.” Nayeon wrote. “Maybe he just wants breakfast.”
Mina ignored her. She was practically vibrating with triumph. After ten days of despair, of tricks and traps, of humiliation, she had cracked it.
Just then, Momo padded into the room, hoodie hanging off her shoulder, yawning. “Why are you yelling at the dogs so early?” she asked, rubbing her eyes.
Mina whipped around, nearly dropping her phone. “Uh…I wasn’t yelling! I was just… uh… affirming them. Positive reinforcement training!”
Momo blinked. “At five in the morning?”
“Yes! That’s the most effective hour.” Mina said desperately.
Momo shrugged, too sleepy to care, and shuffled to the kitchen.
Mina turned back, pulse still hammering. The lighter dog hadn’t moved. He was still at her feet, still staring at her with those wide, shining, shocked eyes. He gave the tiniest huff, a sound halfway between awe and relief.
Mina knelt down slowly, almost afraid to break the spell. She whispered again, barely audible.
“ …Dobby ?”
The dog’s tail thumped once, firm and decisive, like a royal decree.
Mina nearly cried.
She sat back on her heels, staring at the dog in front of her like he had just revealed himself to be some kind of oracle instead of a fluffy animal. Her chest hurt from how hard her heart was hammering. She had him. She finally had him. Dobby.
Her fingers trembled as she grabbed her phone again, typing like her life depended on it.
“HE RESPONDED TO DOBBY AGAIN.”
“TAIL THUMP. CONFIRMATION ROUND TWO.”
The chat lit up immediately.
“Holy shit.” Chaeyoung said. “You cracked it.”
“Finally.” Jeongyeon added. “Now I can sleep in peace again.”
“You guys are absolutely insane.” Nayeon wrote. “It’s almost 6 a.m. I hate all of you.”
“Don’t even try muting us.” Jihyo warned.
Mina almost laughed, dizzy from relief. She pressed her forehead against her knees, phone clutched in her hand. The lighter dog, no, Dobby, was still gazing at her like she had just lifted some curse off him. His tail brushed the floor in a steady rhythm.
For the first time in ten days, Mina felt right. Whole.
And then…
“Dobby?”
The word wasn’t hers.
Mina froze.
Momo had shuffled back into the living room, a steaming mug in hand, her hoodie slipping off one shoulder. Her voice was groggy but unmistakable. She glanced down at the dog still glued to Mina’s side and repeated it. “Dobby, what are you doing? Why are you acting so dramatic?”
The world stopped.
Mina’s knees buckled. Her lungs forgot how to breathe.
She wasn’t imagining it. She hadn’t just invented this. Momo had said it, out loud, casual, with no hesitation. Clear as day.
Dobby.
The name detonated inside Mina’s chest like fireworks.
The dog barked again, this time at Momo, spinning in a fast, giddy circle before collapsing at her feet. Momo crouched to ruffle his ears, giggling softly. “You’re so hyper for no reason. Did Mina finally give you breakfast or something?”
Mina’s jaw dropped so far she almost swallowed the floor. Ten days of paranoia, humiliation, sleepless nights, failed espionage, near-death embarrassment, and now, just like that, confirmation.
She scrambled for her phone, nearly dropping it. Her fingers flew across the screen.
“CONFIRMATION CONFIRMATION CONFIRMATION”
“MOMO JUST SAID IT. IT’S DOBBY. IT’S REAL. I WON. I SURVIVED.”
The replies came like bullets.
“LMAOOOOOO.” Nayeon spammed, followed by rows of crying emojis. “I can’t believe this actually happened.”
“I knew it!!!” Chaeyoung shouted in caps. “Mina the investigator prevails!!”
“Finally.” Jeongyeon wrote. “We can put this case to bed.”
“Congratulations.” Jihyo added. “Now maybe you’ll stop tormenting us.”
Then .
“lol.”
The message came from Tzuyu.
Mina squinted. “what lol”
“I knew it was Dobby the whole time.”
The chat went still before erupting.
“WHAT???” Mina typed.
“NO WAY.” Jeongyeon said.
“STOP LYING.” Nayeon’s voice could be heard from the text.
“ARE YOU SERIOUS??” Chaeyoung added.
“Yes.” Tzuyu wrote. “I just didn’t feel like telling you.”
Mina’s soul left her body. “YOU LET ME SUFFER??”
“It was funny.” Tzuyu replied, completely unfazed.
“FUNNY??” Mina’s hands were shaking so badly she could barely type.
And just when she thought her heart couldn’t take more…
“Oh… yeah, me too,” Dahyun suddenly chimed in.
The chat exploded again.
“YOU TOO???” Mina screamed in caps.
“WHAT THE HELL??” Jeongyeon typed.
“EXPLAIN YOURSELF.” Sana was wide awake and now demanding.
“I literally asked Momo last week.” Dahyun wrote. “I was curious because sometimes she calls them so many different nicknames, I couldn’t tell which ones were their actual names. And also, I couldn’t wait anymore, so I just asked.”
Mina stopped breathing. “YOU ASKED?? AND SHE JUST… TOLD YOU??”
“Yeah.” Dahyun replied. “Momo was super chill about it. She laughed and said she does that all the time, that she rarely calls them by their real names anyway. I didn’t mention you didn’t know tho”
Mina’s vision tunneled.
Tzuyu
knew.
Dahyun
knew.
The whole time.
Meanwhile, she had been crawling through psychological warfare, interrogating bookshelves, begging the universe for mercy, while her friends were sitting pretty on secret intel.
“I want to die.” Mina typed.
“Don’t be dramatic.” Dahyun said. “It’s just a name.”
“JUST A NAME??” Mina nearly threw her phone.
Nayeon sent twenty laughing emojis. Chaeyoung screamed in all caps again. Jeongyeon declared she would never trust anyone in this group ever again. Boo, stretched out on the rug, groaned like an old man tired of hearing the same soap opera rerun, and Mina dropped back against the couch, covering her face with both hands, half sobbing, half laughing hysterically. Ten days. TEN DAYS. And not one, but TWO of them had known all along.
The betrayal was biblical.
But still, beneath the chaos, beneath the sting, something bloomed. Relief, b ecause it was over.
Dobby. His name was Dobby.
And Mina could finally, finally breathe.
Operation Copy & Paste: Mission complete.
Momo’s acknowledgment: Who cares?
Judas: Dahyun and Tzuyu
Mood: 100% relief.
7 months later. Wedding Venue.
Mina stopped there, waiting for her turn to walk the path toward her bride, who in just a few minutes would become her wife. Civil marriage between same-sex couples is not permitted in South Korea, but they would still have the ceremony they had always dreamed of, a symbolic one, and finally, the moment had arrived.
The music played, an instrumental guitar version of Taylor Swift’s Invisible String , as Mina walked down the aisle. Momo was there, standing, waiting for the woman she would spend the rest of her life with, a smile on her lips and tears forming in her eyes.
When the music ended and Mina faced Momo, the ceremony began and continued until the moment they exchanged their vows. The officiant handed Momo the microphone so she could be the first, and Mina could hardly hold back her tears.
“Mina, I don’t always say things the right way, but loving you has never been confusing. From the very start, I knew it would be you. Loving you was always something that I didn’t need to figure out, because it just made so much sense to me. You’re the person who makes the world softer without even trying, and I still can’t believe I get to be the one standing here with you.
I knew from the moment I met you that my life would be forever changed. I remember all the details of that sweet girl Nayeon introduced me to years ago, and from that day on, I couldn’t do anything else but fall in love with you, and I knew from that very start that if I got the chance of being yours, even for just a blink of an eye, I’d be the happiest woman alive. When I held your hand for the first time, I knew they fit perfectly, and when you kissed me for the first time, I knew I wouldn’t want to kiss anyone else.
After so many years and so many things we’ve been through together, I’m glad I’ll be the one who’ll hold your hand for the rest of our lives. I promise to be someone you’re proud of, and I’ll keep choosing you every single day. I promise to give you patience when things get hard, to laugh with you when they’re easy, and to always make space for the silence you need. I promise to walk beside you through everything, not ahead, not behind, but always with you.
I love you, Mina. More than I can ever put into words. And I’ll spend the rest of my life showing you that, in every way I can.”
Mina stood frozen, her bouquet trembling slightly in her hands. She had prepared herself for this moment, but nothing, not even her imagination, could have braced her for this. As soon as Momo began, Mina felt her breath catch. The first sentence was enough to unravel her completely. She wanted to laugh, because of course Momo would start like that, self-conscious about her words, when she was delivering the most beautiful ones Mina had ever heard.
Her vision blurred. She blinked quickly, but the tears were already spilling. Each memory Momo brought up played in Mina’s mind like a movie she watched countless times alone, but hearing Momo say it now made it feel new, like she was living it all over again.
Mina inhaled shakily, her throat thick with emotion. She couldn’t stop the small laugh that escaped between her tears, the kind of laugh that comes when your heart is so full you don’t know what else to do. “You…” Her voice cracked, and she shook her head, smiling through the tears. “You think you’re not good with words, but I’ve never heard anything more perfect than what you just said.”
Momo’s lips curved into a small, shy smile, her shoulders relaxing, as though every promise had been worth the weight of carrying until now. She didn’t care that everyone was watching, or that her makeup was probably ruined. Mina leaned closer, whispering just loud enough for Momo to hear:
“I love you too. More than I’ll ever be able to say.”
And for the first time that day, she wasn’t nervous about her own vows. Because whatever she said next, Momo would already know.
The officiant handed Mina the microphone, and for a second, she just stared at it, her fingers trembling around the cold metal. Her cheeks were wet with tears, her lips parted, but no words came. She could still feel Momo’s hand in hers, grounding her. Mina let out a shaky laugh. “I… I thought I would be calmer.” she admitted softly, her voice trembling but clear enough for everyone to hear. “I spent so much time trying to prepare the perfect words. But the truth is, nothing I wrote down feels like enough, not after what you just said.” She turned to Momo, her eyes shining. “Not compared to how I feel standing here with you.”
She paused, closing her eyes briefly as if to gather every ounce of courage, then continued.
“Momo, I used to think love was something loud, something dramatic, something that swept you away, but you showed me it can also be peaceful. It can live in the spaces in between, in the way you save me the last bite of your favorite food, or how you hold my hand when I get nervous without saying anything, or how you make even silence feel safe. You taught me that love doesn’t have to shout to be real. Sometimes it just has to stay. And you’ve stayed, every single day.”
Her voice cracked, and Mina blinked hard, fighting through it.
“I don’t think I believed, before you, that someone could look at me the way you do. Like I’m worth it. Like I’m enough, exactly as I am. And because of you, I’ve learned to believe that too. That’s something I’ll never stop being grateful for. You taught me to love in the best ways, and I don’t think that I’ll ever thank the cosmos enough for all the days you stood by me for all those years.
Momo, I love the way you make jokes even funnier, because all I hear after is your beautiful laugh. I love how you make up lyrics for the songs you don’t know well, and I love the way you take care of Boo and Dobby, even after a tiring day. I hope you don’t ever get tired of me, because I know we’re destined to find each other in every other universe, and I’ll be glad to fall in love with you over and over again.
I promise to walk beside you, even when the road feels impossible. I promise to protect the joy we’ve built together, to laugh with you when life is silly, and to be patient when it’s not. I promise to never take your kindness for granted. And most of all, I promise to keep choosing you, in the ordinary mornings, in the restless nights, in every year we get to share this life together. You’ll always be the choice I make.”
She lowered the microphone slightly, her voice dropping softer, more intimate, almost like a secret meant only for Momo.
“You are my best friend. My home, my love. And today, in front of everyone, I want you to know that you’ve made me the happiest woman alive.”
The officiant smiled, letting the room take in the weight of Mina’s final words before speaking again.
“With these promises, with these vows spoken from your hearts, you have chosen each other. And even though today is symbolic, love like this doesn’t need laws to be real. So, in the presence of everyone gathered here, I now pronounce you… wife and wife.” A hush fell, broken a heartbeat later when the officiant added gently, “Mina, Momo, you may seal it with a kiss.”
Mina didn’t wait. She leaned in, her hand finding Momo’s cheek, and kissed her with the certainty of someone who had already chosen this love a thousand times before. Momo let out a soft laugh against her lips, a tear slipping free, before she kissed Mina back, enough to make the bridesmaids squeal and the guests break into delighted whistles.
Applause erupted all around them. Nayeon, dressed in her bridesmaid gown, clutched a handkerchief to her face, crying so dramatically that Jeongyeon had to loop an arm around her shoulders, though her own eyes shimmered with tears she couldn’t quite hold back. Sana, radiant and loud, clapped her hands together and shouted, 'Finally!' sending a ripple of laughter across the room. Jihyo’s smile was proud, hands clasped as if she were holding the moment still, her expression glowing with the kind of joy that came from seeing two of her best friends getting married.
Tzuyu, standing near the aisle with her old handycam, caught every second with precision. Behind her, Chaeyoung and Dahyun fumbled with their baskets, tossing petals with more enthusiasm than coordination.
When Mina and Momo pulled apart, foreheads still touching, the officiant’s voice traveled through the applauses. “Now, walk forward as the beginning of your forever.”
They turned together, hand in hand. The crowd rose to their feet, clapping as the two walked down the aisle, Boo and Dobby wagging their tails and prancing alongside, little guardians wrapped in ribbons.
The venue was filled with flower petals, some drifting gently, others hurled with childlike energy by Chaeyoung and Dahyun, and by the time Mina and Momo reached the end of the aisle, the weight of vows had transformed into something lighter.
The bridesmaids moved quickly to greet guests, herding friends and family toward their seats, adjusting decorations, and offering Mina and Momo playful congratulatory nudges. Nayeon couldn’t resist tugging Mina close for a quick hug, whispering, “You look too good, I can’t stop crying!” while Jihyo rolled her eyes fondly. Sana and Jeongyeon bounced along, checking on drinks.
Mina and Momo finally stepped into the center of the room, hands still entwined. “Welcome to the start of our forever.” Momo called, whispering to Mina over the chatter.
Then the music softened, shifting to a slow, gentle melody. Momo pulled Mina close for their first dance. Mina’s heart was racing as they swayed together, eyes locked, the world narrowing down to the two of them.
Momo leaned in, her lips brushing Mina’s ear. “You know...” she whispered, voice low but playful, “I knew about your little mission.”
Mina froze mid-step, her cheeks heating instantly. “Wait, what mission?” she stammered, almost losing her balance.
Momo chuckled softly, resting her forehead against Mina’s. “The one where you were trying to figure out the dogs’ names. I found out on maybe day three… you left your notebook open on the page where you were writing everything down, and well… let’s just say I got the full report.”
Mina’s eyes went wide, and she buried her face in Momo’s shoulder, laughing nervously while dancing. “Oh no… You knew ?”
“I did.” Momo said, smirking. “But it’s okay. I thought it was adorable. You were so serious, so determined… I couldn’t help but watch a little. Honestly, it was kind of impressive.”
Mina peeked up at her, half embarrassed, half relieved. “You watched me take notes?”
“Every note. Every scribble. And yes.” Momo said, spinning them once gently before pulling her close again, “I might have even quietly moved a tag or two just to see if you’d notice. Don’t worry, you were very thorough.”
Mina laughed, hiding her face again, warm and flustered. “I can’t believe you didn’t tell me…”
Momo kissed her temple. “Because watching you care that much… it was the sweetest thing I’d ever seen. And now, here we are.”
They swayed together in perfect rhythm, Mina laughing into Momo’s shoulder, the embarrassment fading into joy. Around them, the crowd watched, some wiping tears, some smiling, but no one could touch the bubble of warmth and laughter surrounding the couple.
As the music played, Mina felt her heart settle completely. No more secrets, no more missions, just the two of them, dancing into the rest of their lives.
Operation Getting Married To The Love Of My Life: Complete.