KTS 39

“Daddy!”

“Angie, my angel!”

The two embraced each other with all their might as soon as they met. Although it was a miracle that Yu-jin had even made it this far, he couldn’t let go of the child in his arms.

“I’m sorry, Angie. Were you lonely?”

He asked, rubbing his cheek against the child’s cheek, and Angela bravely shook her head, saying no.

“Kane read me fairy tales and gave me delicious snacks. I wasn’t lonely at all.”

Yu-jin barely managed to lift his head, and Angela said in a confident voice.

“I didn’t think Daddy would abandon me. I believed you would come back.”

Hehe, the child smiled and hugged Yu-jin again.

“See, you came.”

Hearing his daughter’s words, tears welled up in Yu-jin’s eyes. How anxious must she have been all this time? The thought of her waiting for Yu-jin alone in this large house made him feel like he was going crazy with pity.

“That’s right, Angie. Daddy will never leave Angie’s side.”

Yu-jin said firmly, looking into Angela’s face and forcing a smile.

“Thank you for believing me, Angie. My pretty daughter.”

As he gently brushed her bangs aside, the child’s face, which had been full of confidence until then, gradually crumpled. Seeing his daughter shedding large tears, Yu-jin realized that the child had been holding on with all her might until now.

Of course. What would a mere three-year-old child know?

“I’m sorry, Angie. For leaving you alone.”

As he apologized sincerely, Angela burst into tears, wailing. Yu-jin hugged the child, who was burrowing into his arms, tightly, and tried not to cry, but he couldn’t stop the tears from flowing down his cheeks.

He had done something foolish. What good would come of doing such a thing?

Quickly wiping his eyes with the back of his hand, he was filled with remorse. He belatedly realized what he had done the previous day.

If something happens to me, Angie will be all alone.

It doesn’t matter what Winston calls Yu-jin. Yu-jin will leave this place anyway and never see him again.

Why was he so angry and hurt by that?

He had experienced even worse things.

Vowing never to do such impulsive things again, Yu-jin lay down on the bed with the child. His whole body ached, and he was so exhausted that he felt like he was going to die, but he couldn’t die. Instead, he hugged Angela and gently rubbed his cheek against hers.

“Angie, Daddy is very sleepy right now, so can I sleep for a bit? Will you stay by my side until I fall asleep?”

“Yes, of course. I’ll put you to sleep, go to sleep quickly.”

The child sniffled and patted Yu-jin’s arm.

“Twinkle, twinkle, little star…”

While listening to the lullaby that Angela sang, carefully enunciating each note, Yu-jin quickly fell asleep. Seeing Daddy, who was soon breathing softly, Angela patted Yu-jin’s arm until the song was over, then snuggled into his arms and fell asleep together.

* * *

What on earth is that kid?

Even after returning to the mansion, Winston kept seeing the same face. He was late and made his tutor angry, but he didn’t care at all. His mind was filled with thoughts of Yu-jin.

“What on earth is wrong with you? Being late for your appointment, such behavior is impolite.”

After the tutor left, Winston simply apologized to his mother’s scolding. Mrs. Campbell was puzzled by her son’s unusual behavior, but he excused himself by saying he was going to practice the piano.

Yu-jin, Yu-jin.

He searched the internet for his name, which the angel had told him. There was no angel named Yu-jin. Hesitating, he also searched for the names of demons, but it was the same there as well.

No way, how can someone so pretty be human?

Even after going to bed, Winston couldn’t stop thinking about that child. He couldn’t stop thinking about him. In the end, he came up with a plan the next day.

“You have a cold.”

As Dr. Gerber, the family doctor, made his diagnosis, his mother sighed in a louder voice than usual.

“A cold, then what should we do? Should he be hospitalized?”

As always, she was overly worried. The doctor shook his head and said nonchalantly.

“It’s not serious, so he’ll get better if he rests for a day or so. I’ll leave some medicine. Try to get some sleep. There’s no better medicine than sleep.”

Dr. Gerber gave Winston, who had pulled the thick blanket up to his neck and was breathing heavily, a light reminder before getting up. Mrs. Campbell reluctantly nodded.

“I’ll cancel all your schedules for today. Get some rest.”

“I’m sorry, Mother.”

Deliberately coughing, his mother gave him a pitiful look and kissed him on the forehead.

“It’s okay, go to sleep quickly. Don’t think about anything.”

She gave him one more affectionate look before leaving the room with the doctor. She instructed the servant to draw the blackout curtains to block all the sunlight coming in through the window so that Winston could sleep soundly. The servant did as he was told, drawing the curtains and turning off all the lights in the room. Thanks to this, Winston was left alone in complete darkness.

Good.

After waiting for some time, when he was sure that there was no one in the hallway, Winston got out of bed. He carefully opened the door and looked around, and as expected, the wide hallway was empty.

The rest was easy. Hiding from the occasional passersby, he barely managed to escape the mansion and headed straight for the stables. The manager, who was cleaning, was startled by his sudden appearance, but Winston remained calm and said calmly.

“I need Lancelot. Prepare him immediately.”

The manager was bewildered but followed his request. Winston, who had quickly mounted the horse, took out the prepared bills and handed them to him, making one request.

“This is a secret, this is for your silence.”

The manager, who received the money, was surprised but couldn’t hide his happy expression. Leaving him behind with a smile, saying not to worry, Winston quickly spurred his horse and galloped away.

He wanted to see Yu-jin soon. As he rode towards the face he had wanted to see all night, only one thing remained in his mind.

Yu-jin, will he be there again today?

Will he be waiting for me?

…Maybe he’s gone back to heaven?

Imagining anxiously, Winston was finally panting heavily, his shoulders shaking, when he reached the detached house.

Huh?

Yu-jin, who was sitting at the tea table by the window reading a book, suddenly felt a strange presence and looked out the window, startled. The handsome boy he had seen yesterday was riding a horse, just like the day before. It was an incredible event. He had always thought it would be another similar, boring day, but what was going on?Startled, Yu-jin hurriedly tried to run out, but stopped at the door and rushed back to the window. He could still see the child there. After rubbing his eyes and confirming it was real, Yu-jin repeated the same actions twice more before he could finally leave the house.

The tinkling sound of the wind chimes echoed softly on the breeze. Winston stood there for a moment, lost in thought. Not a single soul lingered around the detached house. Maybe they were inside. There was a small bell next to the door of the detached house. Would Yu-jin come out if he rang it? Surely it wasn’t empty.

If it was, then his imagination of Yu-jin as an angel would become reality.

He hoped it wasn’t true.

Winston thought inwardly. He wanted to see him again. If Yu-jin became an angel and ascended to heaven, he would never see him again. Unless he died.

So, would he only be able to meet him when he became a grandfather…?

“Ugh, no way.”

Winston muttered aloud to himself. He’d gone to the trouble of faking an illness to sneak out, and here he was, sitting on a horse, indulging in pointless fantasies. It was truly pathetic. First, he should check if he was even in the detached house. He could think about it later.

Having made up his mind, Winston dismounted. Just as he stepped onto the clover field, the door of the detached house suddenly opened. Beyond the wide-open door, he saw the figure of an angel. A look of surprise flashed across his face, gradually replaced by a welcoming smile.

“Winston!”

The angel, his cheeks flushed red, called out his name with a bright smile. And then, the angel ran with all his might and embraced Winston.