By Zephyria 
No matter whеn hе saw them, thе high walls seеmеd twiсе аs imрosing on rаinу dаys. Thе ceasеless rаin soаked thе dark briсks, lеаving streaks bеhind. Thе black watеr stains felt like а reflectiоn of Wоо-yeon’s inner heаrt.
“Get inside safеlу.”
Аs sооn as Woо-yеоn hung up the рhоne, Do-hyun pеrsonаllу drove him hоmе. Не didn’t fоrget tо рlaсe the birthday gifts Woo-уeon hаd recеived into a сleаn shopрing bаg and prеss them into his hаnd. Woо-уeоn stоod bеfоre thе mаin gаte with a misеrаble ехрrеssion, looking like livestock being led to slaughter.
“I don’t want to go in…”
It wasn’t as if he wouldn’t see him again for the rest of his life, yet the parting felt excessively regrettable. The feeling that he would be alone again once he passed through these gates played a part. He wasn’t being imprisoned, so he could leave whenever he set his mind to it, but the thought of walking back in of his own volition was unpleasant.
“We can just see each other again tomorrow.”
Do-hyun softened his voice and gently caressed Woo-yeon’s cheek. He seemed to be trying to cheer him up, but it only amplified the longing.
“I’ll leave after I see you go inside.”
Eventually, Woo-yeon let out a sigh and turned around. He was about to enter the passcode, but before his hand even touched the keypad, a mechanical beep sounded. Beep, the security system deactivated, and the gate opened with a heavy thud.
Creak, through the gap of the opening door, a person dressed entirely in black appeared. With hair neatly swept back and wearing a black suit, he would have looked like a Grim Reaper if seen at night. Had Driver Yoon not been holding an umbrella over him, one might have believed he was a ghost.
“Where have you been that you’re only now…”
Soo-hyang spoke in a low voice, his face etched with fatigue. He always seemed sensitive, but today he felt particularly sharp. His pheromones were so thick that it felt suffocating even from several paces away.
“…Welcome back.”
Woo-yeon spoke the words Soo-hyang was about to say. Although Woo-yeon was the one who had returned, strictly speaking, Soo-hyang had been away from the house longer. Soo-hyang looked back and forth between Woo-yeon and Do-hyun, then pressed his fingers against his eyes as if exhausted.
“You’re late.”
It wasn’t particularly late. Thanks to the longer days, it was still bright outside. Moreover, it was a time when most people wouldn’t have had dinner yet.
“On a day like today, you should have stayed home. Do I have to go as far as calling to find you?”
Woo-yeon bit his lip hard and took a step inside the gate.
A day like today. That day surely didn’t mean his birthday. Perhaps it was the anniversary of the death of the Omega Mother whom Soo-hyang loved and whose face Woo-yeon couldn’t even remember.
“I just went out for a bit.”
“I heard you’ve been gone since yesterday. Stop it if you’re going to lie.”
Soo-hyang took the umbrella from Driver Yoon and gestured toward Woo-yeon. Driver Yoon approached Woo-yeon with practiced ease and opened the umbrella for him. Woo-yeon glanced back at Do-hyun and spoke in a voice barely audible.
“Thank you for driving me.”
Once the gate closed, today’s happiness would end here. In a house where all the employees had gone home, he would eat cold seaweed soup and open gifts sent by people whose faces he didn’t even know. Just as he did every year, without hearing a single human voice.
“…”
Do-hyun watched Soo-hyang and Woo-yeon with an expressionless face. Though Woo-yeon moved away, Do-hyun remained standing there, not turning back. He looked like a man who had something to say.
“You should be going too.”
Soo-hyang said this and turned his back without hesitation. That characteristic cold voice was as freezing as frost. As he walked away, Soo-hyang added like a sigh:
“I’ll assume you came this far because you didn’t know what day today is.”
Those words made Woo-yeon surge with emotion. The feelings he had been suppressing suddenly came crashing down. With his head bowed low, Woo-yeon spoke self-deprecatingly.
“That damn ‘today’…”
The voice uttering those words was so small it was nearly buried by the sound of the rain. Had the rain not weakened just then, no one would have heard him. However, Soo-hyang heard him perfectly and spoke coldly.
“Seon Woo-yeon.”
Just three syllables, but his entire body reacted. As always, the words he intended to say vanished down his throat.
“Don’t be childish. Not today.”
As if it was ever okay. That thought occurred to him. When had his words ever been heard? Why speak as if it’s only because it’s today that it’s not allowed?
“…”
Woo-yeon bit his lower lip firmly and raised his head. It was still raining, and Driver Yoon held the umbrella without moving a muscle. Looking at Soo-hyang’s face, covered in fatigue and stress, Woo-yeon clenched his fists tight.
“Ah…”
It felt as if everything had turned into a mud pit. The more enjoyable last night had been, the more of a mess today felt. His good mood collapsed miserably, and his fluttering heart was hacked to pieces by something sharp.
“I really hate this now.”
With those words, Woo-yeon moved his feet. Not toward the house, but toward the gate where Do-hyun was standing.
“Seon Woo-yeon!”
Despite Soo-hyang’s thunderous shout, Woo-yeon did not stop. He didn’t even see the robot-like Driver Yoon wearing a bewildered expression. He walked straight toward Do-hyun and abruptly grabbed his arm, pulling him.
“Let’s go. I’m not going into that house.”
“What do you think you’re doing!”
Soo-hyang strode toward Woo-yeon with an angry face. The umbrella he had been holding had fallen to the ground at some point. The moment he tried to snatch Woo-yeon’s arm, Do-hyun stepped between Soo-hyang and Woo-yeon.
“Chairman, please wait a moment.”
“Move.”
“Chairman.”
“Can’t you hear me telling you to move?”
Just as he had passed his genes to Woo-yeon, Soo-hyang was a dominant who was rarely seen. The pheromones pouring out of him were stinging even over his shoulders. Despite this, Do-hyun calmly hid Woo-yeon behind his back.
“Please calm down.”
His low voice was calmer than ever. Do-hyun completely blocked Soo-hyang’s pheromones and gripped Woo-yeon’s hand tightly. The warmth touching his palm made his heart feel a little more at ease.
“Don’t overstep your bounds and move. This is a matter for me and Woo-yeon to resolve.”
Soo-hyang pressed his eyes and glared fiercely at Do-hyun. In those eyes, like those of a predator, there was a lack of composure today. From the moment he opened the gate, he had exuded nothing but a sensitive and anxious impression.
“I’ll move, so just for a—”
“Kim Do-hyun.”
It was a single word loaded with pheromones. Do-hyun reflexively shut his mouth. Then, Soo-hyang spoke in a flat voice.
“I have nothing to say to someone who doesn’t even know what parents are.”
“Mom!”
It was a cruel thing to say. Even Woo-yeon, who had been listening quietly, was hurt, but Do-hyun answered without blinking an eye.
“Why wouldn’t I know? While others only have two, I’ve had four.”
Soo-hyang fell silent with an unreadable expression. It was likely just a feeling, but he looked as if he had realized a mistake. Turning his head and letting out a sigh, Do-hyun spoke in a polite tone.
“Don’t say it today; say it tomorrow.”
“…”
“In a situation like this, we can’t even have a proper conversation.”
This time, Soo-hyang couldn’t refute immediately. He only spoke slowly, clenching his teeth.
“Not any other day, but today…”
“Today is Woo-yeon’s birthday.”
Soo-hyang wasn’t the only one who stopped moving. Woo-yeon also flinched at the sudden mention of his name. A calm voice, as usual, flowed from Do-hyun’s lips.
“It’s the Chairman’s son’s birthday today.”
He didn’t know why his suppressed emotions came out at that moment. He didn’t know why the tears, which had been fine until then, felt as if they would burst forth at any second.
“While the Chairman was away, Woo-yeon was alone in the house. This small child spent the whole day just watching the rain in that vast house.”
“…”
“It is the wondrous day the Chairman’s son was born. Even if you can’t congratulate him, he shouldn’t be made to feel that he shouldn’t have been born.”
Soo-hyang’s lips parted silently. His unfocused, shaking eyes looked somehow shocked. Woo-yeon gripped Do-hyun’s collar and leaned his forehead against his back.
“…That’s enough now.”
The rain, growing heavy again, roared noisily between them. Thump, thump, Do-hyun’s heartbeat was vivid to Woo-yeon. Tears didn’t flow, but the accumulated lump of emotion finally burst.
“Stop it, Teacher.”
It was a plea mixed with sobbing. As soon as Do-hyun heard those words, he turned his head. The way he covered his eyes with one hand suggested that he, too, was quite agitated. Woo-yeon stood there for a long time before raising his head to look at Soo-hyang.
“You should have…”
“…”
“You should have just taken me to Mother’s grave too.”
No answer came back. The three people, now drenched in rain, each maintained their own silence. Woo-yeon pulled Do-hyun’s arm and walked outside the gate.
* * *
Nothing collapses as easily as a tower built without care. A balance maintained by unknown means is bound to be destroyed by a single, insignificant foreign object. The relationship between Woo-yeon and Soo-hyang was nothing more than a precarious tightrope walk that could snap at any moment.
A day where nothing remained but wounds. Even after that day passed, the rainy season continued for a long time.
Woo-yeon stayed at Do-hyun’s house, and no contact came from Soo-hyang. Was he the kind of person to give up over something like this? It was a hollow conclusion, enough to make him think so.
“Who do you think I am among these?”
“Uh… this person?”
“Wow, you knew right away.”
Woo-yeon woke up in the early afternoon and looked through a graduation album with Do-hyun. He had promised to show it to him someday, but it had ended up being this late.
“The school uniform really suits you.”
Even among the students in uniforms, Do-hyun’s head stood tall. Because he had grown so quickly, he said he always sat in the very back seat at school. Thinking that he wanted to see him in a uniform someday, Woo-yeon took in the youthful Do-hyun in the photo.
It was several days later that a call came to Woo-yeon. He was having a late dinner with Do-hyun, and the topic of conversation was how the rainy season had lasted too long. Woo-yeon checked his phone, which had been lying face down on the table, and his expression froze.
“What’s wrong?”
It was a call from none other than Soo-hyang. ‘Mom’—the caller ID that popped up felt so foreign it made his mind go blank. He had always been contacted through Driver Yoon; this was the first time a call came directly.
“The call…”
Woo-yeon stood dazed, unable to even think about answering. Whether he should pick up or not. While he was thinking, the call disconnected. However, before long, the phone began to ring again.
“Aren’t you going to answer?”
Do-hyun asked lightly, but Woo-yeon couldn’t respond easily. It was just one phone call, yet his throat felt parched.
The reason Woo-yeon eventually answered the phone was because of a single sentence from Do-hyun.
“Something might have happened.”