By Zephyria 
“Grayson genuinely wants to apologize. It’s Chase who isn’t meeting him.”
To Dane’s words, Joshua replied coldly.
-That’s the position of the one who did wrong, and whether to accept it or not is for us to decide.
“Yes, you’re right.”
In the end, Dane threw up his hands.
“I’ll think about what to gift. Just give me some advice, please.”
It was the first time he had ever pleaded with someone for something like this. Dane wasn’t attached to anything, nor did he obsess. Because of that, he never had to ask anyone for favors or beg. But for now, this was the only way.
Joshua knew that too, so he was momentarily flustered upon hearing those words. For a mere gift, he’s going this far? Dane Striker?
If it weren’t something he had experienced himself, he would have thought it was a lie. But in reality, he couldn’t believe it even after hearing it directly. Was the person I’m talking to on the phone right now really Dane Striker? Joshua even started to wonder if it was a phishing scam.
-…Advice?
Joshua asked again, as if to confirm. Dane, as if he had been waiting, said, “Yes.” This too was hard to believe. When he first mentioned dating, Joshua had actually caught on, but he dismissed it, thinking, “No way.” The other person was Dane Striker. A man with whom one could have sex, but never a lover. For Joshua, who had known him for over ten years, it was impossible to think otherwise.
But they were dating? And the other person was Grayson Miller?
-You’re serious, right?
To Joshua, who asked again, Dane gave the same answer this time.
“Yes.”
He could no longer deny it. He had repeated the same question and answer several times, yet Dane didn’t get annoyed. The image of Grayson, desperately digging the ground with his bare hands, crying out to save him, vividly returned.
…My head hurts.
Joshua felt a migraine coming on and pressed his temple with one hand. Suddenly, everything felt like too much trouble. Thinking he needed to end the call quickly, he blurted out a solution.
-Think back to what happened between the two of you.
“What?”
At Joshua’s words, Dane asked back in confusion. It was natural that he didn’t understand easily. He was, in essence, a ‘dating novice’ asking what kind of gift to give someone he was dating. Joshua calmly added an explanation.
-Think back to what happened between you and that kid. You must have special memories, so prepare a gift that will bring them back. That’s how you do it.
And then Joshua hung up without a word of farewell. Dane looked down at the silent mobile phone, his brow furrowed, and tried to recall his memories. Joshua’s words were quite plausible. Reflect on memories. Yes, not bad. He leaned his neck against the sofa back, tilted his head back, and closed his eyes. He slowly retraced his memories, like a client meeting a hypnotist. From the first time they met, to everything that happened afterward…
Chest, chest.
Dane furrowed his brow and shook his head. Again. How did we meet in the first place…?
Venus, Venus.
Dane’s brow furrowed even deeper. This time, he shook his head even more vigorously. Again, again! From the beginning!
Virginia, Virginia.
“Damn it!”
Finally, Dane let out a shout and shot up from his seat. Plausible memories, damn it, as if there would be any! What kind of memories could I possibly have with that pervert…
…Ah.
Dane, who had been breathing heavily in his anger, stopped short at a fleeting memory. In an instant, all other memories vanished, and only one image filled his mind. The dazzlingly bright sky, Grayson’s face looking at him, the words he spoke, all vivid.
…Right, that’s it.
Only then did Dane truly grasp Joshua’s words. And what he needed to do.
The sky had always been bright, but today it seemed particularly blue. Perhaps it was just his mood. A person’s mood can sometimes make even a hurricane feel like a refreshing breeze.
Today was exactly like that. It had been a long time since the weather felt so good. Grayson sat in the passenger seat of the car Dane was driving, humming a tune and tapping his thigh in rhythm. When Dane stopped the car at a red light, Grayson, as if waiting, tapped Dane’s chest, but while the car was moving, he dutifully substituted his thigh for Venus. Of course, he wouldn’t miss an opportunity if one arose, but Dane let him be without any particular objection.
“Disneyland, I love it!”
Grayson shouted excitedly. As he had mentioned once before, it was his favorite place. When he was very young, he had gone there with his whole family. Unfortunately, Ashley had a hellish time trying to control the children who wandered off on their own. His other siblings, including Chase, were too young to remember that day, so the memory of visiting an amusement park like this remained only with Grayson, Nathaniel, and Stacy. And that was the last time they went to an amusement park together. Amidst the chaos, they had almost lost Larien.
After that, Ashley created an amusement park within their home. He installed all the rides the children wanted, thinking this would suffice. It was a safe way for the children to enjoy themselves without fear of kidnapping or abduction.
Nevertheless, there were children who were not satisfied with this and had to be taken out. One, or two, at most three was the limit they could go out together, and since only Grayson, Stacy, and Larien wanted to do so, Ashley could manage to fulfill the children’s requests. In any case, Grayson always enjoyed this fantasy land and always returned with good memories.
Except for one time.
Recalling that moment, his elated mood sank again. It couldn’t be helped. It was the first time he had experienced such immense despair in his life.
…But.
Grayson glanced at Dane in the next seat. His expressionless face, focused on driving, made it hard to tell what he was thinking, but one thing was certain. He had decided to go to Disneyland solely for Grayson right now.
\ \ *
“What? Disneyland?”
When Dane suddenly brought it up, Grayson’s eyes widened in surprise. It was the first time they had discussed such a topic during dinner. Grayson, who had forgotten he was tearing bread, stopped his movements. Dane, putting a large piece of meat into his mouth, mumbled,
“Yes, you said you liked it.”
“Well, yes…”
Grayson blinked, bewildered. Blood dripped from the lightly cooked meat, but Dane didn’t seem to mind and brought the flesh to his mouth. Grayson watched him with hearts filling his eyes. He’s so wild, so cool.
Despite feeling the burdensome gaze, Dane continued as casually as possible.
“So, let’s go. There’s nothing else to do, really.”
He downed the wine as if it were beer and set the glass down.
“We have to do something.”
That statement was half-sincere. Dane, who had always said his dream was to play and do nothing his whole life, had even bought and scratched lottery tickets multiple times. Always a loss, though.
Now he had a lot to do. More precisely, a lot to enjoy. He had plans for cruises and skiing. Of course, Grayson was expected to be a clingy tag-along. At the very beginning of that glamorous schedule was Disneyland.
“We have to overwrite bad memories with good ones.”
Dane said that to Grayson, who was still bewildered. At that moment, Grayson’s heart began to pound like crazy. His cheeks flushed, and his eyes felt watery. What was this? As Grayson placed his hands on his chest and breathed heavily, Dane said indifferently,
“It’s touching.”
“Huh?”
As Grayson blinked and asked, Dane, who had swallowed the meat along with the wine, looked at him.
“It’s touching, what you’re feeling right now.”
“Ah…”
Only then did Grayson exclaim in understanding. Seeing that, Dane tilted his eyes and gave a faint smile.
“How are you feeling now?”
Grayson blinked at his mischievous face and replied,
“My heart is racing.”
Dane let out a short laugh. At the clear sound, Grayson was mesmerized, and he said arrogantly,
“It’s because I’m cool.”
Though he thought it was absurd, Grayson’s heart continued to pound like crazy. Maybe he was right. He finally admitted it. His heart was pounding like this because that man was Dane Striker.