𝐃𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡 𝐈𝐬 𝐍𝐨𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐎𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐏𝐞𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐲 ―𝐝.𝐨.𝐝

Chapter 61

[ Cho Seungmin's POV ]

It was now June 8th, ten days before our official debut.

I sat silently on my bike in the parking lot of the apartment's parking lot.

Ring...

Ring...

Ring...

Click.

"Hello?" I muttered.

The voice on the other side of the line was faint.

"...Son."

I chuckled slowly.

"You must need something from me," I smiled small.

"Why do you think that?"

"Because you're calling me son."

There was a frustrated sigh.

"Yes," Mother groaned, "you're right. Can't you at least let a mom ask a son for a favor?"

"That's why I returned your call."

"...Right. Well, Minso knows that you're debuting. You're all over the news, so it was impossible to hide. I told him not to tell anyone you were related, but he's too excited now. Once you officially debut, can he tell people?"

"If you want him to die, then sure."

"Shotaro!"

"Mother*," I said, closing my eyes, "I debuted as 'Seungmin,' not 'Shotaro.' I don't have a brother."

*a/n: there IS a casual way of calling mom in korean, like "mom" vs "mother" in English. it's also normal in Korea for people to call their parents formally when they hit around mid 30s, but definitely not at seungmin's age, which goes to show how bad their relationship is

"Can't you make an exception to that stupid rule once? Your brother-"

"I don't have a brother."

"You, are you going to keep up with this attitude?" Mother shouted angrily. "He's so proud of you! He wants to brag about you! Can't you ever think about him?"

"My situation doesn't allow for it. I don't have a sibling as 'Cho Seungmin.' It would be strange if someone suddenly claims to be my sibling."

There was silence, so I continued.

"People will look into it. If they find my residency status somehow, they'll see that 'Cho Seungmin' is an only child. He will be called a liar."

"But he wants to tell all his friends..."

She couldn't understand my words. I decided on another approach.

"What right does he have to tell people about me?" I asked calmly.

"He's your brother!"

I brushed a hand through my hair.

"...You don't see me as your son. I don't see why I have to see him as my brother."

"I gave birth to y-"

"You threw me away."

My voice was low and clear, but I was frustrated inside.

"You threw me away," I repeated coldly. "You sent me away to Jeju Island to live with gangsters until I grew up because you didn't want to see me. We agreed that we wanted nothing to do with each other. So how do you have any right to reach out to me as a Mother to ask for any more favors?"

There was a long silence.

"...You're a selfish monster."

The call ended.