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The weekend was exactly what Donghyuck wanted and more.
All he wanted was a brief getaway from his sad reality, but the weekend in Busan gave him so much more. More than he could ask for. Being in a city he'd never visited, especially when welcomed with such open arms, provided the sense of healing he never knew he badly needed.
Though Donghyuck had knowingly followed the Park siblings back home for their grandparents' memorial ceremony, he thought it would just be the five of them since Mr. Park was an only child; as it turned out, the ceremony also included some of their relatives to make up a mini family reunion. Donghyuck had insisted he wouldn't want to intrude by joining the ceremony—despite willingly helping out with all the preparations—but Mr. Park had asked him, "Why would a family member be intruding?"
The Park siblings' parents then spent the rest of the ceremony introducing Donghyuck as their new son. Not a single relative made him feel out of place. Donghyuck felt so accepted and loved, like he found a new family, that he was holding back tears while eating and it didn't go unnoticed by Jiseol right next to him.
"Why the hell are you crying?" Jiseol whispered to him. They were naturally sitting together at the same table, across from Jisung who was on his third serving of food.
"I have something in my eye," Donghyuck lied. Jiseol let him be and patted his back, letting him know that the tremble in his voice was far from convincing.
That evening, once all the relatives had left and the house was cleaned up, Jiseol drove the boys to the beach while their parents stayed back to nap and watch dramas. Since it was a Saturday, the beach was full of people but Donghyuck liked it. The busier the atmosphere, the better his mood.
The weather was great, people seemed happy and for the first time in a long time, he didn't have to think about all the drama going on in his life.
After going to the deepest end of the water that he could reach, Donghyuck swam back to shore, enjoying both the adrenaline rush and the salty splash of water against his tan skin. He stepped out of the water looking like he was on Baywatch, running his fingers through his wet hair and smirking as he noticed people staring. Girls and guys alike.
But there was a certain girl and a certain guy who didn't stare; both laying down on beach chairs, shadowed by a large umbrella, too indifferent to Donghyuck's superficiality.
Donghyuck stood with his hands on his waist in front of the siblings. They were both wearing big hats and sunglasses, Jiseol in a beach robe while reading a book and Jisung in a big T-shirt and board shorts playing games on his phone.
"Is this how you plan on spending a lovely evening at the beach?" Donghyuck asked them with a scowl.
"Yes," the two of them answered at the same time, neither looking up to look at him.
