By Zephyria 
Waking up the next day feeling refreshed, Yeon-rok felt a slight sense of embarrassment.
“I acted too immaturely.”
It wasn’t the act of getting angry itself that he felt ashamed of. He simply regretted acting too much like a child. But on second thought, the other three hadn’t exactly been mature either, so he wondered why he specifically had to be. Rationalizing it this way, Yeon-rok headed down to the first floor for breakfast.
“Mrs. Park, good morn—”
Yeon-rok’s greeting trailed off. Three people were sitting at the dining table. It was the first time he had seen this sight since moving into the house. Come to think of it, had fifteen days already passed? Moon Gyeon-woo spoke to him with a very warm and tender smile.
“Yeon-rok-ah, did you sleep well?”
“Are you still very angry?”
Not to be outdone, Choi Hwan spoke up as well. Narrowing his eyes, Yeon-rok sat down without giving any answer. Moon Gyeon-woo’s face turned pale at being openly ignored. Yeom Cheon-ho observed Yeon-rok’s expression intently, and Choi Hwan walked on eggshells around him.
“Our young master. Did you sleep well? I seasoned some vegetables this morning, but I’m not sure how they taste.”
“Whose cooking could it be that it wouldn’t taste good?”
The only person at the table Yeon-rok didn’t ignore was Mrs. Park. With an expression that suggested she had known this day would come, Mrs. Park placed food in front of Yeon-rok. A table was also set for Moon Gyeon-woo, who usually didn’t eat breakfast. However, instead of refusing, Moon Gyeon-woo quietly picked up his utensils. Because Yeon-rok, who would normally chatter about this and that, remained silent, only the clinking of cutlery could be heard for a while.
“Thank you for the meal.”
Yeom Cheon-ho, who had been waiting for Yeon-rok to finish eating, spoke in a voice that sounded quite sincere.
“Yeon-rok-ssi, I would like to apologize for yesterday. I failed to control my emotions for a moment and put you in an uncomfortable situation. I will be careful to ensure such a thing does not happen again. I am sorry.”
At that, Yeon-rok responded for the first time without ignoring him.
“It’s fine. Everyone just do whatever you want. Whether you fight or not is no longer my concern. As for the contact, you three can figure it out among yourselves.”
“…!”
Leaving the three of them frozen in an instant, Yeon-rok left the table without even looking back. After that, he behaved as usual. He washed his ever-sleek sports car, Yeonji, worked out with the bodyguards, enjoyed his hobbies, and then went to bed.
That night, someone knocked politely. Yeon-rok, who had been healing his soul by watching cute puppy and kitten videos on the internet, stood up. Opening the door with a feeling of apprehension, he found Yeom Cheon-ho standing there.
“I apologize for the late hour, Yeon-rok-ssi. I hope I am not disturbing your rest.”
“What is this about?”
Despite his cold response, Yeon-rok was actually worried about Yeom Cheon-ho inwardly. He was still in a suit, perhaps because he hadn’t been home long after work. Since he was someone who always overworked himself, Yeon-rok briefly wondered if he should hold his hand once before letting him go.
“I came because I have something to give you as an apology gift.”
When Yeon-rok’s eyes turned skeptical, as he still had no intention of letting go of his anger, Yeom Cheon-ho shook his head slightly.
“It is not specifically meant as a plea for forgiveness, so please accept it without feeling burdened. Well then, I wish you a good night.”
Handing over a well-wrapped gift, Yeom Cheon-ho left the room without saying another word. After closing the door, Yeon-rok sat on the bed and tore open the luxurious wrapping paper. It was quite heavy, making him suspect it might be a gold gift, but unexpectedly, what came out was a small photo album.
Upon opening it, he found plenty of childhood photos of himself, Choi Hwan, and Moon Gyeon-woo from when they were at the orphanage under the Heavenly Truth Ming Cult. Yeon-rok realized that this would become his most precious possession. It was a gift that targeted Yeon-rok’s weakness with almost cunning precision.
“There are hardly any photos of CEO Yeom Cheon-ho, though.”
Yeon-rok muttered as he looked through the photos one by one. Considering Yeom Cheon-ho’s circumstances at the time, it was only natural, but it was still a shame. Since there was still plenty of room left in the album, he figured he could fill it up gradually from now on. Yeon-rok fell asleep feeling slightly cheered up.
And another day later, Moon Gyeon-woo visited.
“Yeon-rok-ah, do you have a moment?”
Even as he saw Yeon-rok idling in the indoor garden with nothing to do, Moon Gyeon-woo asked in an infinitely tender voice.
“What is it?”
His voice was still chilly, but the mere fact that Yeon-rok responded without ignoring him brought a visible glow to Moon Gyeon-woo’s face.
“I’m sorry. You told us not to fight, but I didn’t keep that promise.”
Yeon-rok snorted. How grateful would he have been if Moon Gyeon-woo had thought of that back then? Watching Yeon-rok’s reaction, Moon Gyeon-woo made a tentative suggestion.
“Should we go to that village and apologize?”
“Apologize?”
Yeon-rok doubted his ears. It was unbelievable that these words came from Moon Gyeon-woo, who was prideful and hated everything related to the Hwamyeong Cult. As Yeon-rok stared with wide eyes, Moon Gyeon-woo continued in a very sincere voice.
“Thinking about it carefully, you like socializing with people. But because you suddenly got three name partners overnight, you haven’t been able to. Of course, I still don’t like those cultists, but I overlooked the fact that it’s a place where you, Yeon-rok, can at least feel at ease and get along.”
It was exactly as Moon Gyeon-woo said. By becoming name partners with these three, Yeon-rok had effectively lost almost all of his previous social connections. Of course, he knew it was inevitable given his situation. That was why he had been enduring it well, but seeing the three of them cause a scene in the Hwamyeong Cult village had made him explode.
“I’m even willing to go there and hang out with you.”
No matter how he looked at it, Moon Gyeon-woo—who was an introvert—seemed to have decided to exert all his social skills solely for Yeon-rok’s sake. Yeon-rok asked suspiciously.
“Are you serious?”
“Of course. As long as I’m with you, anything we do together will be fun.”
Since Moon Gyeon-woo was humbling himself this much, Yeon-rok’s heart softened a bit. However, trying his best not to let his true feelings show, Yeon-rok replied.
“Fine. I’ll think about it. You can go now. I want to be alone.”
After kicking Moon Gyeon-woo out with those words, Yeon-rok fell into deep thought.
In truth, he wasn’t that angry anymore. He wasn’t the type to hold grudges, so after a night’s sleep, the soaring anger had subsided significantly. However, he intentionally acted angry because he feared that if he showed his anger vanished easily, a similar incident might happen again before long.
How could he stay angry at these three for long? What if he lost their affection? Yeon-rok was a person who had desperately craved the affection of others his entire life. He had hoped that someone would truly love him, and that he could return that love. He felt that the more affection he received, the better it would be.
However, there was something he hadn’t considered: the emotion of love is accompanied by an equal amount of anguish. And if that affection was for three people, the anguish was tripled.
“Ugh…”
Yeon-rok groaned softly, feeling a headache coming on. Lately, his heart was truly complicated and confused. He couldn’t return as much love as he received. No, that was a secondary issue. The problem was that the three of them were wonderful in their own different ways, and the fact that he couldn’t see a resolution to those feelings was also a problem. They like each other, but they can’t date?
Why is this trial befalling me? Though Yeon-rok was non-religious, he found himself shouting this in his heart.
‘I asked for just one person, when did I ever ask for three! And why did you make me like all three of them? What am I supposed to do, what on earth am I supposed to do…’
Above all, he felt that a situation where even one of them stopped giving him their heart would be equally agonizing now. He needed Yeom Cheon-ho, who had come to love him; he needed Moon Gyeon-woo, who gave him overflowing affection; and he had to keep Choi Hwan by his side, who regarded only him as family.
But how could he ever voice such selfish greed? And he realized anew. Ah, I will never be able to erase the names on my body. Amidst such agony and realization, the next day arrived, and finally, Choi Hwan visited.
Unlike Yeom Cheon-ho or Moon Gyeon-woo, Choi Hwan couldn’t bring himself to give a gift or even start a conversation. He simply hovered around Yeon-rok, constantly reading his mood. He wasn’t doing anything in particular. He just stared with sad, pitiful eyes, looking as if he were terrified that Yeon-rok might abandon him.
Seeing one of Korea’s top handsome men acting like that, Yeon-rok’s heart began to melt. Sensing this shift like a ghost, Choi Hwan asked cautiously.
“Are you still angry?”
“I don’t know.”
When Yeon-rok replied in a deliberately cold voice, Choi Hwan’s expression slumped, looking crestfallen. Yeon-rok glanced at him from the corner of his eye. How long had it been since they couldn’t have contact? He still seemed to be in good condition.
‘I’ll just stay like this for a few more days.’
What else could he do? They were family, they were as good as family, and they were people who would become family. Wasn’t fighting and reconciling like this part of the process of becoming a family? He didn’t know about the other three, but at least Yeon-rok thought so.