The House of Three Chapter 7.2

“Why, are you offended? Being utterly ignored by someone your own age?”

“……”

“Well, what can you do, the world is unfair. You should have been born to better parents. Your parents were in the gutter, so isn’t that why you’re living a gutter life, too?”

Then he finally crossed the line. He had spouted words that should never have been said.

Heeyoung stopped enduring, just as he had wanted.

He was also a person who knew how to feel offended when ignored. He had never done anything so wrong as to deserve being insulted for no reason.

At this point, he thought he could understand why Lee Seowon was so hell-bent on devouring him.

“…All I remember is working hard as a domestic worker, doing what I was told, so I don’t know why you’re doing this, Young Boss. Could it be because of the Boss?”

It was from this moment that Lee Seowon’s perennially relaxed expression contorted viciously.

As expected, my guess was right. It was something he had suspected for a long time, and only now, after saying it out loud, could he be certain. The fact that the vile bullying stemmed from petty jealousy.

It was not as if he couldn’t understand Lee Seowon’s desire to find fault with trivial things and torment him.

Cha Gyojin and Lee Seowon. They were supposedly in a relationship, but a cold wind always blew between them. Lee Seowon must have been quite hurt inside as well.

Especially when Gyojin approached him without hesitation and showed meaningful signs of favor, he must have felt a sense of wretchedness.

In this regard, Heeyoung deserved to be the sinner. Since it was as if he had usurped Lee Seowon’s position.

To be honest, he had also felt a strange flutter of excitement towards Cha Gyojin, who kept being so kind to him. It meant that he had harbored impure feelings, time and again, for someone who had already promised his future to Lee Seowon.

If he was suffering this humiliation as a price for that, he had nothing to say. This sense of guilt also played a part in why he had silently endured the bullying until now.

But perhaps because he was human too, as the level of bullying grew progressively worse, his heart went astray in a wicked way. The guilt disappeared, and only spite remained. Just as Lee Seowon had poked at his sore spots, he wanted to return the favor in kind.

Provoking the on-the-verge-of-exploding Lee Seowon was a purely impulsive act.

“If by any chance you’re jealous, please don’t misunderstand. It wasn’t me who approached him first, it was the Boss who—Ugh!”

However, before he could finish his sentence, a violent kick flew at him. Lee Seowon, enraged to the core, could not contain his surging anger and kicked Heeyoung square in the solar plexus.

Letting out a grunt, Heeyoung was sent flying and clutched his stomach, gasping for air. The kick had been so hard that it felt as if all the organs in his abdomen were throbbing.

Cough, keugh, every time a cough burst out, his solar plexus ached. It was agonizing.

As he was groaning and breaking out in a cold sweat from the unspeakable pain. Suddenly, a chilling sound of footsteps grew closer.

Lee Seowon, having lost his reason, was approaching, panting heavily. As if kicking him in the solar plexus was not enough to quell his anger, he continued the violence without hesitation.

“Who the hell do you think you are, to dare, to ignore me. Jealousy? Why would I be jealous of someone like you. Fuck, whether it’s this house, or Cha Gyojin, it’ll all come into my hands eventually anyway.”

“Ugh, ha-euk!”

Every time his words were cut off, his body was mercilessly stomped on and kicked. Curling his upper body into a ball and covering his head was useless.

Lee Seowon, who inflicted pain by kicking him indiscriminately on his back, his waist, even the back of his head, only stopped his fierce assault when Heeyoung could no longer even let out a moan.

Haa, ha, ragged breaths burst from his mouth. Even after beating someone up like that, he seemed unsatisfied, as he swept back his hair and prodded at Heeyoung’s wretched, prone body.

“A bastard like you who used to sell his body like a whore in a brothel, could you ever covet my place? You have to be on the same level to feel jealousy.”

“……”

“Seems like getting a little attention from Cha Gyojin has sparked some pathetic pity in you. No? You’re not in a position to pity me. I, fuck, have never once felt a sense of crisis over your mere existence.”

Lee Seowon, who had been spouting cold words, viciously grabbed Heeyoung by the hair and pulled him up. Heeyoung, feeling a pain as if his scalp was being torn off, lifted his head and looked up at him, quietly holding his breath.

To think that the guilt he had felt, the pity he had impulsively spat out, meant nothing to Lee Seowon. He was despairing, realizing his own still-insignificant place along with a sense of futility.

But now, Lee Seowon standing before him was telling the truth.

That in fact, it was all a lie. That it was beyond jealousy, to the point where he was now hounded by a sense of crisis and would stop at nothing. His unsteadily trembling pupils and the abnormally rapid rise and fall of his chest clearly revealed his desperate inner state.

“Want me to say more? You’ll obviously just be used and thrown away. That attention you’re getting now, it won’t last long. Cha Gyojin is originally that kind of person. He takes what he wants as he pleases, and throws it away without a second thought. In the end, he’ll make the choice that benefits him.”

“……”

“Even if you’re uneducated, you understand this much, right? The one who is beneficial isn’t you, who grew up without parents, but me.”

There was force in the finger that tapped Heeyoung’s temple. Heeyoung, lying still and taking the blows, did not get any more agitated. Instead, he retorted coldly.

“This just looks like you’re taking your anger out on me.”

It was a statement that made the rampaging Lee Seowon seem ridiculous in an instant. However, he didn’t make excuses and coolly admitted it.

“Didn’t you mouth off knowing I’d take my anger out on you? Just endure it like an idiot today, too. I can’t exactly grab that noisy brat instead of you and take my anger out on him, can I?”

He had thought Seowon would continue to react emotionally, but that was a huge miscalculation. Lee Seowon cleverly used his wiles and dragged Cheonghyun into it. He must have used it knowing it was a threat that would be absolutely effective against Heeyoung.

Heeyoung shut his mouth, as it seemed Seowon would really grab the child and harm him if he challenged him further. That did not mean, however, that he tucked his tail between his legs as if he had never challenged him.

The sight of Lee Seowon threatening to beat an innocent and powerless child, using him as bait, was so vile. Heeyoung gritted his teeth and glared at him. As he stared as if his eyeballs would fall out, Lee Seowon snorted, saying who the hell are you glaring at so insolently.

He, who had lost his composure just moments ago, unable to overcome his anger, quickly regained his nonchalance.

“Let’s live within our means. If you don’t want your already gutter-level life to really hit rock bottom.”

The warning ended there. After shoving the chilling voice into his ear, he nonchalantly stood up from his crouched position.

…Is he going to leave the room just like that? Lying there in a daze, he waited for the sound of footsteps to fade, but no movement could be felt.

The incident happened in an unexpected moment, very suddenly.

Lee Seowon, his brow furrowed venomously, snatched the picture frame from Heeyoung’s hand. The startled Heeyoung desperately reached out, but it was already too late.

Crash!

The frame, now in Lee Seowon’s hand, was thrown to the floor. The glass, subjected to the sudden impact, shattered with a sharp, cracking sound.

Shards of broken glass scattered chaotically over the picture of his mother and brother. Heeyoung could only watch the scene helplessly. It felt as if his blood ran cold.

It was a picture he himself had stroked so very carefully, with trepidation, afraid it would wear out quickly. But that precious picture was now under the feet of the person he loathed.

Lee Seowon clicked his tongue, tsk, as if he had stepped on something unpleasant, and ordered.

“What are you doing, clean it up.”

He left only those words and nonchalantly exited the room.

Drip, drip. Sorrowful tears flowed from the eyes of Heeyoung, who was left alone. The fingertips that picked up the photo lying scattered on the floor also trembled. He didn’t want to cry, if only for his pride, but tears kept leaking out against his will.

My life is already in the gutter, and he said to live within my means if I don’t want it to hit rock bottom…?

If this was not rock bottom, then what was? His reflection in the broken glass shards was utterly wretched. Pitiful and pathetic.

In the photo, his mother’s smiling face looked sad today. A face that was quietly worrying as she watched her son’s miserable life. Russet-brown eyes that pitied him to their heart’s content.

As he met his mother’s eyes, which were like an illusion, a wave of sorrow surged and his throat stung. Ashamed of his state, Heeyoung bit his lip hard and endured. The tingling sensation that hit the tip of his nose was just unpleasant.

Why do I have to be treated like this? What, what did I do so wrong?

As he sat silently and picked up the glass shards, his hands kept slipping. It felt like his chest was tightening from the sense of humiliation that covered his entire body.

Normally, he would have foolishly thought, I have to endure it, and tried hard to calm his heart with patience.

But today, his heart was not easily tamed. He wanted to stretch out his legs and sit there, beating his chest with his fists and wailing. He wanted to pour out all the frustration in his heart.

“Haa-euh….”

All that escaped against his will was a small sob.

Idiot. Moron.

The more he endured by biting the tender flesh inside his mouth, the faster his breathing became.

He was pressing down the quietly leaking sorrow under his tongue, his whole body trembling precariously, focusing only on picking up the glass, when it happened.

He faintly heard the sound of the front door closing from downstairs. Not long after, Gyojin’s low voice followed.

In that moment, the mountain of emotions that had swollen to a painful, precarious point, came crashing down.

Clatter!

The glass shards he was holding spilled at Heeyoung’s feet. Teardrops flowed down his flushed, hot cheeks, creating paths.

“Haa, heu-eu, euk….”

He had only just registered that Gyojin was home, but the sorrow he had forcibly held back burst out.

Before he could even think, Heeyoung got up. His foot slipped as he moved hastily, but he moved forward without a moment to be surprised.

He threw open the door, crossed the hallway, and as he went down one step, then another, his steps grew faster and faster.

By the time he spotted Gyojin, who had just passed the entryway and was entering the living room, he was practically running down the stairs.

“Boss…!”

His voice, calling out to him, was desperate. He didn’t know how he had run all the way to Gyojin.

Heeyoung, panting for breath, with large teardrops clinging to his lashes, blindly grabbed onto whatever he could see. He felt the stiff material of clothing on his palm and saw that he was tightly gripping the hem of a coat.

Gyojin’s face, when he quickly looked up, was extremely bewildered. He was momentarily surprised by Heeyoung’s sudden action, then his expression contorted upon seeing his tear-streaked face.

“What’s wrong with your face. I told you so emphatically to stay at the cafe, why are you in this damn house like this.”

A moment later, two large hands cupped his cheeks. His gaze, which turned Heeyoung’s head this way and that, silently checking if there were any scratches, was somehow frightening.

Is he angry? Because I wasn’t quietly at the cafe? Because I became a complete mess in that short time?

Heeyoung felt a little regret. Right, I should have waited there quietly as the Boss told me to. Then I wouldn’t have run into Lee Seowon.

He blamed himself for making things worse, but when he met Gyojin’s worried face, he thought that it was actually for the better.

It was a thought that came to him instinctively, so what exactly was for the better, remained a question…….

“Tell me. What happened. Did you get hit somewhere.”

“Boss, heu, Boss….”

“Yes, for fuck’s sake. The Boss is right here. Don’t cry. No, forget it. You go inside. Where is Lee Seowon?”

Childishly, he was so relieved by Gyojin’s reaction that his sorrow doubled. Heeyoung swallowed down the sobs that rose to his throat.

He wanted to report every single detail of the humiliation he suffered at the hands of Lee Seowon, but these damned tears kept leaking out, choking him up.

When a proper conversation couldn’t continue, Gyojin immediately looked for Lee Seowon. As if he could tell without being told, he patted his back while he was too grief-stricken to know what to do, and his eyes fiercely scanned the house.

The hand that carefully swept and patted his shoulders and back was so reassuring and warm. Far from calming down, Heeyoung lost his reason and sobbed. He felt just like a small child. Who holds it together just fine, but bursts into tears, waah, only when a grown-up comes to comfort them.

“It’s not like I, did anyth, anything wrong, but he brought up my parents, and just, insulted me, huh, heu-euh….”

Had he ever cried so sorrowfully in his life? It was the first time he had grown up and sobbed to the point of not being able to speak properly. He wanted to stop for the sake of his pride and rationally explain what had happened today, but he couldn’t do it as he wished.

“First, come here and sit. You’re going to hyperventilate. I’ll listen to everything, so tell me slowly.”

Fortunately, Gyojin did not hastily soothe or rush Heeyoung. He effortlessly lifted Heeyoung, who was clinging to his chest like a cicada, and set him down on the living room sofa.

After patting his back several times, telling him to catch his breath, he brought a cup of cold water from the kitchen and placed it in his hand.

Heeyoung gulped down the cold water. His stomach certainly calmed down, but his head was still blank. He came to his senses around the time he heard a buzzing sound, bzz, bzz.

Looking closely, he saw Gyojin’s phone was ringing. But he rejected the call without even checking the caller ID. He put the phone back in his inner pocket and swept back Heeyoung’s soaking wet hair.

“The crying has stopped, but why aren’t your eyes coming back. Should we go to the hospital?”

“……”

“Huh? Lee Heeyoung.”

Becoming genuinely serious, he snapped his fingers in front of Heeyoung’s eyes. His pupils were dead black, a sign that he was completely out of it.

What did he do to the kid to get him in this state? Gyojin, who had been barely suppressing his temper to soothe Heeyoung, shot up from the sofa.

“This won’t do. You stay here for a bit. This is my responsibility. I started this. I’ll solve everything.”

“……!”

He was about to barge into Lee Seowon’s room. Gyojin, who had just taken a step, had to stop without moving any further. The same went for Heeyoung, who was hastily getting up to follow him.

In an instant, both their gazes shot to the same place.

Lee Seowon had come out of his room at some point and had reached the living room.

Heeyoung, who had been clinging to Gyojin’s coat hem and sobbing his eyes out just moments ago, was at a loss for words from the sudden shock.

“Why. Do you think I did something wrong? So, are you going to kick me out?”

Lee Seowon’s expression… was so pitiful it could be considered wretched. It was a genuinely hurt expression.

Only then did Heeyoung feel his reason returning. He felt that he had acted on a momentary emotion and done something rash, that everything had been too hasty.

That is to say, whether their relationship was good or bad, Lee Seowon was currently Cha Gyojin’s lover. It felt as if he had needlessly gotten in between them and caused a rift. No, he had indeed caused a rift. While it was true that what Lee Seowon had done to him was severe, he shouldn’t have tattled to Cha Gyojin like this.

He had ended up crying just now because his sorrow was unbearably overwhelming… but no matter how sorrowful and frustrated he was, why did he act like a thoughtless child? It was a moment of regret.

“You brought it up at a good time. Go pack your things. Let’s talk about what we need to talk about outside, okay?”

“Why should I pack my things? Even if I leave, I will leave formally, on the day our contract ends. If you want to end it before then, you should go and get the Chairman’s permission. But, this feels a bit unfair. It feels like I’ve been toyed with. I genuinely like you, Gyojin-ssi, but to think you were cultivating other feelings behind my back.”

It was a voice filled with emptiness. With every word Lee Seowon uttered, Heeyoung’s conscience pricked him to the point he couldn’t bear it. He felt like a sinner. He felt like a vicious criminal who, not content with stealing someone else’s property, was now pretending to be the victim.

He was looking at the floor, unable to lift his head. A brazen and shameless reply suddenly shot out from Gyojin.

“Is that a problem? Get your head on straight and answer me, Lee Seowon. What kind of great feelings existed between you and me that you’d attach pathetic words like ‘toyed with’ or whatever, for fuck’s sake.”

It was a reply so cold that even Heeyoung, who had been listening quietly, was startled. But he couldn’t even begin to imagine how Lee Seowon, who had taken that verbal blow directly, must have felt.

Weren’t they… a loving couple? I thought it was a little strange before, but. Don’t tell me, did the Boss’s side fall out of love first?

His heart ached at the thought of Lee Seowon, who must have been clinging to a dying relationship all by himself. And sure enough. When he stole a glance, Lee Seowon’s complexion was deathly pale.

“Do you have to, go that far? I, how much I’ve liked you, Cha Gyojin, since I was young. You, who were an orphan, who would have lived your whole life as a back-alley gangster, how did my uncle and I treat you…? If we made you live like a human, you should naturally repay us this much. I didn’t even ask for anything difficult. Just, to love me a little.”

His trembling voice was pitiful, but Gyojin was not moved in the slightest. On the contrary, he seemed to be feeling displeasure.

He let out a scoff as if he was dumbfounded. Made you live like a human? A repayment you should naturally make? Right now, Lee Seowon was gravely mistaken about something. The person who had saved Gyojin from the bottom was Chairman Baek, not Lee Seowon.

The young Lee Seowon had clung to Chairman Baek’s side and always followed Gyojin around, but that was as far as it went.
Just a kid who followed him around annoyingly.

He had ended up granting an unreasonable request because he was the nephew Chairman Baek cherished, and the result was quite a spectacle. Just as you’d expect from an omega who was pampered and raised in a rich family, he was selfish and rude beyond measure.

If he were truly desperate for affection, genuinely acting out of love, Gyojin, given his personality, would have shown him out politely. From the beginning, it was largely his own fault for accepting the promise Chairman Baek had proposed.

But what was Lee Seowon’s tone like now? It was beyond insolent, treating a person like a mere object with no manners. Like a child throwing a tantrum because he couldn’t have the doll he wanted.

Moreover, because of that one rotten sense of possession, the innocent Lee Heeyoung had also been harmed.

Should I just kill him?

Swallowing his murderous intent, he retorted as if he didn’t want to hear any more.

“Stop showing your ugly side and get out on your own two feet.”

“Don’t you even feel sorry for me?”

“Would a bastard who knows the meaning of pity bully an innocent employee? It would be to your advantage to leave quietly before I dig up every single thing you’ve done in this house and hold you responsible. You want me to drag you out myself?”

A taut tension lingered after the chilly warning. Lee Seowon, who had tried to hold on with his eyebrows drooped pitifully, stopped pretending to be pitiful when the situation did not unfold as he expected. Kkadeuk. The sound of grinding teeth was heard chillingly.

While the two were confronting each other, Heeyoung was on pins and needles, not knowing what to do. It was awkward to intervene. He was just cautiously watching the mood, feeling the terrifying atmosphere.

Bzz. Bzz. An unexpected vibration broke the ice-like atmosphere and rang out. It was the second call Gyojin had received.

Annoyed by the untimely call, Gyojin pressed the reject button again. Call or whatever, right now, kicking Lee Seowon out of the house was the priority. He was determined to finally grab and drag out the man who was standing there out of stubbornness.

Just as he was reaching out his hand to grab Lee Seowon by the scruff of his neck, the phone started ringing again.

Bzz. Bzz. Bzz. It rang without knowing how to give up, so Gyojin had no choice but to accept the call. He shot a threatening glare at Lee Seowon and brought the phone to his ear.

“What.”

Gyojin, who had glanced at the caller ID, asked for the business without any pleasantries, and a moment later, the other person’s voice leaked faintly from over the phone.

—Executive Director-nim…! Y-You need to come over here quickly. Cheonghyun got into a car accident on his way home from school, and he’s in the emergency room right now.

“…What?”

It was a voice one could only hear by pricking up their ears and concentrating hard. But Heeyoung heard it clearly. Dongjae’s dumbfounded voice, saying that Cheonghyun had gotten into a car accident.

“Which hospital. How badly is he hurt.”

Everyone’s movements stopped. The agitated atmosphere subsided as if doused with cold water.

It was Gyojin who forcibly ended this chaotic situation. With his child hurt, his precious son hurt, where was the time to deal with Lee Seowon?

It wasn’t just news that he had fallen while playing, but a car accident of all things. His face drained of color, Gyojin asked questions over the phone and hurriedly moved his feet.

Thud!

He brushed past Lee Seowon’s shoulder, who was standing awkwardly. Lee Seowon, who had been keenly observing the flow of the situation and feeling relieved, was meekly pushed aside. Then, he spat out a feigned concern at Gyojin’s back as he headed for the entrance.

“Is the child hurt? How did it happen?”

However, Gyojin didn’t even pretend to hear his voice. He just hurriedly grabbed his car keys, slipped on his shoes, and continued the phone call.

After school, the excited child had apparently run out in a hurry and fallen. And that, while colliding with a car. He was only eight years old, having just entered elementary school, and his body was small. Though he was a little bigger than his peers, he was still a very small body.

Heeyoung, who had been eavesdropping on Gyojin’s phone call in a daze, hurriedly chased after him. He ran without heeding Lee Seowon, who glared as if to say, Who do you think you are to follow along?

Why Cheonghyun, why on earth did the child who should have been leaving school with a bright smile have to get into a car accident?

“I, I’ll, I’ll go with you…!”

He was trying to leave the hallway, putting strength into his trembling leg muscles, when someone snatched his wrist. It was Lee Seowon.

“Are you his dad or something? Where are you trying to butt in?”

It was contemptible that he was spouting such nonsense in such an urgent situation. It was when the irritated Heeyoung was twisting his caught wrist to pull it away.

Gyojin, who had hung up the phone and approached, easily pulled his tightly held arm free.

“Let go. And don’t think this situation is an opportunity for you.”

“……”

“You shouldn’t be setting foot here anymore.”

“To me, right now—!”

“There’s no time, Lee Seowon. Crawl out on your own.”

Heeyoung didn’t even realize his wrist was red as he hastily moved his feet. Lee Seowon’s shouting voice could be heard ringing out, but he ignored such noise.

He put on whatever shoes were at the entrance and rushed out of the house. Gyojin also ran, crossing the garden with his long legs. He said he would bring the car around and to wait at the main gate, then disappeared.

Heeyoung, who ran frantically and exited the garden a beat behind Gyojin, immediately pushed the main gate.

Screeeech!

As the thick, heavy lump of iron moved, making a bloodcurdling sound, Heeyoung desperately covered his ears with all his might.

It wasn’t the sound of the gate, it was like the sound of a car braking suddenly.

Just hearing it gave him goosebumps on the back of his neck and made his hair stand on end. His heart plummeted, and it felt like his soul, trapped in his body, was completely draining away.

What came after the auditory hallucination was a terrifying visual one. In an instant, his vision blurred to black, and a scene he never wanted to see again replayed.

The dawn before sunrise. A car crushed beyond recognition and a dump truck with its wheels turned at an unnatural angle.

His younger brother’s small arm, limply sticking out from the wretchedly crumpled and smashed car door. Followed by a huge explosion and the lumps of iron starting to blaze fiercely. The dark red blood that flowed out, soaking the toe of his sneakers, before he even had a chance to stop it.

“Heu-eup…!”

Heeyoung hastily covered his mouth. His stomach churned violently, and he felt nauseous. Not only was there a throbbing headache at his temples, but his vision was also shaking violently.

His body was a mess. His mind was not sound either. He was so confused that he couldn’t even think about what had just happened with Lee Seowon.

But even in that state, he couldn’t stay still as Cheonghyun’s face came to mind. Heeyoung reached out his hand and pushed the gate again. That alone didn’t provide enough force, so he had to open the gate with his whole body.

He didn’t know how he got out of the garden, or how he was moving his feet. Heeyoung muttered to himself like a madman, waiting for Gyojin’s car to stop in front of him.

“Ah, our Heemin, Heemin was like that too. Cheonghyun-ah. Cheonghyun-ah. Y-You can’t end up like our Heemin, you really can’t….”

A cold sweat drenched his back. The cold wind hitting him in that state made his whole body tremble. It wasn’t because he was cold.

Just then, an SUV approached and stopped roughly in front of Heeyoung. Heeyoung, as if being chased, opened the passenger door and got in.

Cheonghyun-ah, Cheonghyun-ah. He groaned, repeatedly uttering the child’s name through his clenched teeth. He didn’t even realize the warning beep, ding, ding, was sounding because he hadn’t fastened his seatbelt. He sobbed 불안하게, calling for Cheonghyun, and for Heemin, who was no longer in this world.

Gyojin, who was receiving a report on Cheonghyun’s condition over the phone, ended the call before fully pressing the accelerator. Afterwards, he briefly pulled over to the side of the road and turned his head to take in Heeyoung’s appearance.

“Lee Heeyoung. Look at me.”

“Boss, what if Cheonghyun is badly hurt, what if he doesn’t wake up…! Qui, quick, let’s go.”

“I told you the kid isn’t seriously hurt, so calm down. Huh?”

“It was a car accident, if he was hit, it’s se-serious….”

Even after relaying the news he heard from Dongjae, his extreme anxiety did not subside. In the end, Gyojin gave up on further conversation, fastened Heeyoung’s seatbelt for him, and then started driving again.

If he had been driving alone, he would have been weaving through lanes, tearing up the road. He would have pushed forward, honking his horn incessantly, as if reaching the destination was his only goal.

But Gyojin did not drive recklessly. Though he was the type to go faster when in a hurry, and to create a path even if it meant breaking the law when there was none, he desperately held onto the reins of his reason and maintained a proper speed.

Heeyoung, shocked by the words “car accident,” was right beside him. Engulfed in anxiety, with a face pale as a sheet, he was whimpering, not knowing what to do with his trembling body. For fear that something might have happened to the child. Even with the assurance that he wasn’t seriously hurt, he couldn’t be at ease and endlessly muttered to himself.

Heemin-ah. Cheonghyun-ah.

Heeyoung called out for Cheonghyun desperately, along with a name he didn’t know. His voice was so mournful. Gyojin watched Heeyoung from time to time, keeping an eye on him.

Because Lee Heeyoung was acting like a parent who had lost a child. Because he looked so precarious, as if he would lose his mind at any moment.

He just couldn’t take his eyes off him.

The car that had slid into the hospital parking lot came to a sudden stop.

As soon as the engine was turned off, Heeyoung moved frantically. Perhaps because his heart was racing, the seatbelt wouldn’t unbuckle easily. Click. Clack. As he fumbled, pressing somewhere other than the button, Gyojin came right up to him.

His eyebrows furrowed, he showed a worried emotion and called out to Heeyoung, “You.” But there was no way that voice could properly register in Heeyoung’s ears. Gyojin saw Heeyoung’s dazed face and closed his mouth.

Soon, he unbuckled the seatbelt for him. As the belt that had been constricting his chest was gone, Heeyoung quickly opened the door and ran out. Given the situation, Gyojin also half-ran, looking for the emergency room entrance.

Heeyoung, who entered the emergency room before him, wandered around, unable to find the direction he needed to go. Despite it being daytime, the emergency room was crowded with people. Guardians loitering in the hallways, critical patients being wheeled in, and nurses running around busy. It was chaos itself.

“Cheonghyun, can someone please, Cheonghyun, ah….”

As Heeyoung started talking to the empty air, the people sitting around glanced his way. Someone looked at him with a very pitiful gaze, while another, as if looking at a madman, subtly moved away.

As he was taking in all those burdensome gazes and looking for Cheonghyun, Gyojin, who had followed him, firmly wrapped an arm around Heeyoung’s shoulder and stopped a passing nurse.

“The child here, where is the patient Cha Cheonghyun?”

When he got straight to the point, the nurse, who had been quickly racking her memory, opened her eyes wide and gave directions.

“Ah! The elementary school boy! Go that way.”

Heeyoung took off as soon as the nurse finished her answer. He even shook off Gyojin’s arm that was around his shoulder and ran with all his might towards where the beds were gathered.

Cheonghyun was the child who had reopened his world. He was a grateful child who had swept away the dark clouds that he didn’t know when would clear, and had even led him to a place where the sun shone.

Though their personalities and appearances were different, when he looked at Cheonghyun, his late younger brother came to mind. If Heemin were alive, he would have attended elementary school like Cheonghyun, exchanged letters, and even built a snowman together. With such thoughts, he would retrace and retrace his brother’s fading face in his memory.

It was all thanks to Cheonghyun. That he could continue to not forget his brother, that he could fill his empty heart. That was why he cared for him and gave him affection with all his heart.

But the thought that he might lose even Cheonghyun made his world feel like it was collapsing. The fear that the tragedy of the past would repeat itself, a terror he couldn’t possibly handle, overcame him, and tears burst out.

“Heu-eu, euk, Cheonghyun-ah, no….”

His cheeks, smeared with tears, were wet. Heeyoung stopped dead in front of the bed with the curtain drawn.

He had to pull this curtain open soon. Only then could he see Cheonghyun. But he was too scared to check the child’s condition, and his hands were just trembling.

“Cha Cheonghyun!”

Gyojin, who had strode over, pulled back the curtain without hesitation.

Heeyoung flinched and closed his eyes. At the same time, his breath stopped. His limbs became rigid and wouldn’t move.

Thump. Thump.

The fear intensified with his slow-beating heart.

“Dad?”

At the innocent voice that followed, his stiffened body melted.

Heeyoung slowly lifted his eyelids. Where his gaze landed, Cheonghyun was sitting. And with a perfectly fine face at that…….

The child, sitting with a pillow behind his back, was sucking on a candy he seemed to have received from the doctor. Judging by the large foam dressings on his knees and elbows, it seemed he had only sustained injuries without any broken bones.

Only then did Heeyoung, relieved, let out the breath he had been holding. Haa, ha. As his breath burst out, his chest swelled and deflated greatly.

Could he be hurt somewhere else? While stabilizing his breathing, he scanned the child’s body here and there with his eyes.

At that moment, Cheonghyun, who had belatedly discovered Heeyoung, waved his hand with a bright face.

“Hyeong!”

He pushed the candy to one cheek and smiled, revealing teeth smaller than corn kernels, hee.

The child was welcoming him like that, smiling in a safe state without any serious injuries, yet he couldn’t react right away and smile back. He was too surprised, and also too relieved.

In the meantime, Gyojin meticulously checked his son’s body and rattled off a worried nagging.

“Cha Cheonghyun, are you okay? Do you know how worried your dad was? I told you to be careful because there are cars in front of the school, did I or did I not? You want to never see your dad again?”

“I waaas, just excited. But why would I never see Dad again?”

“You little brat……. Dad will die with you if anything happens to you. Got it? Keep that in mind. Your dad’s life is on the line with you, so be careful everywhere. Huh? Listen to me, and please, just don’t do things I tell you not to.”

Contrary to his rough way of speaking, he gently stroked his son’s cheek, showing his affection. Whether the child knew his father’s startled heart or not, he puffed out his chest and answered.

“Uh-huh, but I’m okay! I didn’t crash into the car, I just fell in front of it, you know? I wasn’t running that fast! But you know what, Dad. Since I’m hurt, can I not go to school tomorrow?”

The way he spoke like a mischievous boy was just like his usual self.

Realizing that the child was safe, Heeyoung felt all the strength drain from his body and collapsed onto his knees.

“Haa, what a relief….”

“Hyeong, what’s wrong all of a sudden?”

And when Cheonghyun, who had poked his face out from the bed, tilted his head, he spread his arms wide and hugged the child’s body preciously. The child, caught in an unexpected hug, just blinked blankly.

A tiny finger poked his shoulder. It seemed that one insignificant gesture held many meanings. Hyeong, what’s wrong? Are you sad? Did you miss me that much? Were you worried? it said.

Heeyoung leaned his upper body sharply towards the bed and hugged the child even tighter. The warm body heat felt in his embrace, the child’s unique breathing sound seeping into his ears, brought him a sense of stability.

Cheonghyun is really alive. He’s not badly hurt, he’s alive and fidgeting, bless his heart. He was so grateful for that.

“It’s really a relief, Cheonghyun-ah. Hyeong thought something happened to you, really, really, heu-eu….”

As he sobbed, rubbing his head against the child’s shoulder, Cheonghyun, who had been sitting up bravely until now, also burst into tears. Waaah. He opened his mouth, still holding the candy, in a circle, and cried sorrowfully as if to make it known how scared he had been.

“Hyeooong, why are you cryiiing! Actually, my knee hurts so muuuuch, heu-eo-eong!”

The emergency room instantly turned into a sea of tears. Dongjae, who was standing beside them like a stone statue, fidgeted, not knowing how to handle the situation, while Gyojin soothed the child with a short sigh.

“Acting all tough saying you’re fine, honestly.”

No matter how simple and cheerful an elementary school student he was, a child was still a child. He must have been quite scared after falling in front of a car, and he had even been brought to the emergency room without his dad. Even if he acted like he was fine, he must have been scared inside.

Gyojin patted his son’s bottom, who was buried in Heeyoung’s embrace, albeit clumsily. Seeing his face, crying like a baby for the first time in a long while, he felt ashamed as a father.

Yes, what fault would an unknowing child have? It’s the fault of the guardian who didn’t instill safety education more firmly.

He apologized in his own way.

“Son, stop crying. What did you say you wanted last time? Dad will buy it all for you.”

“Heo-eong, heuk-keuk, weally?”

“Yes, yes. It’s real, of course. It’s wrong for a father to lie. When my son is hurt, I have to do everything for him.”

The effect was immediate. Cheonghyun, who had been crying and burrowing into his embrace like a baby, popped his head out. The way he sounded nasally from crying so much was ridiculously cute.

Cheonghyun, having stopped crying, subtly wiped his nose on Heeyoung’s clothes. He wiped his tears neatly with his clenched fist and immediately began to happily ponder. What should he ask his dad to buy? A mischievous smile appeared on his face, which was red from the traces of crying.

The child quickly regained his spirits. But one side was a problem. Perhaps because the tears, once they started, wouldn’t stop easily, Heeyoung was sniffling while holding the giggling Cheonghyun.

The injured child was fine, but the grown adult was wailing, so everyone glanced over this way once as they passed, wondering what was going on.

Heeyoung cried, having forgotten the feeling of shame, and Gyojin looked down blankly at the limply collapsed Heeyoung.

Now that he looked, he had run here even more urgently than him, the father. Though spring was just around the corner, the weather was still chilly, yet he hadn’t worn a coat, as if he didn’t know the fear of the cold. All that was on Heeyoung’s upper body was a thin shirt.

Was that all? He seemed to have put on his shoes at the entrance, but on his left foot was a slipper, not a sneaker. His face, always pale and neat, was also a mess. The area around his eyes and his nose were all reddish.

The child who had been crying with him was now giggling, but Heeyoung was taking in Cheonghyun’s unharmed appearance again and again with his tear-soaked eyes, feeling relieved.

At the expression that genuinely worried for and cherished the child, Gyojin felt his heart clench.

He pulled out tissues from the small tray and wiped his son’s face first. He made him blow his nose, honk, and wiped away the welling tears in one go. Next, he pulled out a tissue for Heeyoung, but unfortunately, he couldn’t hand it to him.

Instead, Gyojin carefully reached out his hand towards Heeyoung. A palm large enough to hold a basketball with one hand gently enveloped the back of Heeyoung’s head. He began to slowly stroke the small head, as if to comfort his startled heart.

If the subject had been his son, he would have ruffled his hair until it was all messed up, but strangely, with Heeyoung, his touch became endlessly gentle.

As he circled his wrist and gently rubbed the back of his head, thin strands of hair brushed between his fingers. It was an excessively soft texture. When he stroked with a little more force, he could also feel a warm body heat.

Soft, and warm. That was Lee Heeyoung as a person. Round and smooth like the back of his own head, without a single sharp edge. He was affectionate, and kind to the point of being foolish. He always treated people with sincerity. To Cha Gyojin, and to Cha Cheonghyun.

These points, which might be nothing to others, couldn’t seem more special to Gyojin.

Heeyoung only stopped crying after a long while. When he lifted his head and grasped the surrounding atmosphere, he seemed to become embarrassed and wiped his face with a pale, awkward smile. The cheekbones and cheeks that rose with a smile were lovely.

He had been certain before, but today’s incident made him completely sure.

I want to have Lee Heeyoung. I want to embrace all the warmth that Lee Heeyoung blooms like a flower.

Even if things had to be given up, he wanted to rightly shake them off and hold only Lee Heeyoung’s hand.

Only me. Only Cha Gyojin.

🌿

Cheonghyun was to be hospitalized for a day just in case. It was after he had just managed to soothe the child, who was throwing a fit about getting an IV in his arm, and sent him into the hospital room.

Heeyoung leaned against the empty hospital corridor and caught his breath. Fortunately, the worst thing he had imagined had not happened, but his head was still ringing.

As he was spending time alone like this, the past events that he had tried to bury began to surface, as if telling him they should never be forgotten.

Heeyoung, who had gently closed his eyes, did not try to dispel the scenes floating in his mind. The memories flowed, going against time. To the distant past, around the time when Heeyoung, who had just graduated from kindergarten, was now Cheonghyun’s age.

Heeyoung, who was slower in development than his peers, was a small but determined and brave child. The adults around him, whenever they saw Heeyoung, would offer praise like, “The child is mature beyond his years, perhaps because he grew up early,” as if out of pity.

He started hearing such things when his mother was diagnosed with cancer.

His mother, who had to be hospitalized, leaving her young son behind, suffered more from guilt than from the despair of contracting a serious illness at a young age. This sickness is also a terrible thing to do to my child. She always blamed herself, even though it wasn’t a crime to suddenly fall ill.

Even while in pain, she was only worried about her son. She always watched anxiously, wondering if Heeyoung was sleeping well, eating well, if it was really okay for that tiny child to take on the household chores with hands smaller and more delicate than maple leaves.

At first, he thought it would end with simple worry, but it soon built up into a sickness of the heart. Her condition was so serious that even her young son could see that his mother was withering away.

From then on, Heeyoung started to act as if everything was fine, no matter what happened. He thought that if he could just lessen his mother’s worries this way, she might be able to shake off her illness and get up soon.

At that time, his father rarely came home, citing his busy work as the reason. Because of that, Heeyoung would get small burns while cooking alone, or had to handle things himself even when the school gave homework or notices that often required a mother’s help.

Of course, there were days when he wanted to whine and act childishly. Why don’t I have a mother or a father by my side? Other friends’ parents help them with their picture diaries and make kimbap for their field trips. He wanted to throw a tantrum, saying he needed care too.

But when he stood in front of the hospital room and secretly watched his mother suffer, he could never whine. On the day of the field trip, it was very upsetting to get on the bus with an empty bag, but he could still attend school with a healthy body. It wasn’t harder than for his mother, who was trapped in a hospital room, just waiting for the day she would die.

The phrase ‘I’m okay’ quickly became a habit.

When his mother asked, ‘My son, are you bored without your mom? Are you sad?’ Heeyoung would shake his head without a second’s hesitation.

‘No. Heeyoung is okay. I’m good on my own. I’m mature.’

He would deliberately shrug his shoulders as if he was fine without his mother’s help, and smile foolishly, hehe. Then his mother, if only for that moment, would let go of her guilt and worry and smile with him. Praising him, saying, Our Heeyoung is so mature. Our son is a genius.

Looking at his mother’s face, Heeyoung harbored a simple hope, like any innocent child. The treatment is going well. Even if Mom suffers when she’s alone, she smiles when she sees me. She’ll get better soon, he thought.

However, his mother passed away before she could even continue with proper treatment. It was the day Heeyoung wrote a letter saying, ‘Mom, get well soon so we can go on a picnic together.’

His father, who made a brief appearance at his mother’s funeral and then disappeared, went into hiding, abandoning his young son. He reappeared a few years later, when Heeyoung had entered his teenage years.

His father had created a half-brother somewhere and brought him along. He seemed to have remarried, but whether he was kicked out by that wife, he showed up with a shabby appearance.

He settled back into the semi-basement house that Heeyoung had kept alone and lonely. It wasn’t a particularly special reunion where they hugged each other, saying, Why did you come to find me only now? I’m sorry, son. If you think about it, it was his father who had left home, suddenly barging in like a robber and taking away his sanctuary.

But he couldn’t just tell him to leave. Besides, there was a baby he had never seen before by his father’s side.

Naturally, raising his younger brother, Heemin, became Heeyoung’s responsibility. The child, who couldn’t even speak and had just started to walk, was unexpectedly entrusted to Heeyoung, who raised him with all his heart. It was a somewhat bewildering turn of events, but he couldn’t do anything about the brother he already had. Looking at that small child, he would sometimes think that it was nice to have a family.