𝓦𝓱𝓸 𝓐𝓻𝓮 𝓨𝓸𝓾? - 𝓡𝓮𝓷𝓱𝔂𝓾𝓬𝓴

二十四 (Twenty-Four)

About an hour later, the sound of a door opening was heard. Haechan and his siblings jumped up immediately, making Renjun smile. Cute.

"Appa!" screamed Haeyoung, dashing down the hall.

"No running, Haeyoung!" yelled Mrs. Lee tiredly, although she wore a small smile.

At the end of the hallway stood Mr. Lee, still in his work suit. He was a tall man, with his black hair slicked back. The bags under his eyes and the wrinkles from stress made him look much older than he actually was.

Haechan stood back as Haeyoung practically ran straight into their father, hugging him so tightly it seemed unlikely she would ever let go.

"I didn't know you missed me that much, I would've come home sooner." grinned Mr. Lee.

Haeyoung finally stepped away a minute later, allowing Haemin and Haejun a turn. Then, it was Haechan's turn.

He took a deep breath and stepped towards his father. "It's been a long time, Appa."

"I know." said Mr. Lee, patting his son on the shoulder. "A lot has happened, hasn't it? Has Renjun..."

"Yes, he woke up on his birthday." said Haechan. He knew Mr. Lee favored Renjun over him. "He's actually here right now. Renjunnie!"

Renjun walked down the hall shyly, bowing politely at Mr. Lee. "Hello."

"Don't be so formal, son, I've told you this before." said Mr. Lee, a warm smile on his face.

"He lost his memory." said Haechan quickly, noticing Renjun's discomfort.

"I see." frowned Mr. Lee. "Do you remember my son?"

"N-not entirely, sir." said Renjun. Suddenly, he was afraid of this man. "All I remember is the crash."

"But you're still here?"

Renjun looked at the ground awkwardly. Haechan desperately wanted to assure Renjun that Mr. Lee wasn't belittling him - he adored him too much for that.

"Yes, sir." said Renjun after a moment. "I don't remember Haechan, but I want to be with him through everything."

"That's my boy." grinned Mr. Lee, clapping him on the shoulder. Renjun flinched.

"Be careful, Appa." said Haechan, grabbing Renjun's arm. "His coma took a toll on his body. I don't want him getting hurt."

"Of course." nodded Mr. Lee. "Where's your mother? I want to see her."

Mrs. Lee walked towards them at that moment, smiling. "I missed you, Haejin."

"And I missed you too." said Mr. Lee.

"We should go, before we become third wheels." whispered Haeyoung, nudging Haechan in the ribs.

"Good idea." said Haechan, putting an arm around Renjun. "Let's go check on the food."

***

"So Haechan, what's happened since we last saw each other?"

Haechan gulped. It'd been a year since he last saw his father.

"I've spent most of my time in the hospital with Renjun." he answered. "And since then, I've spent as much time with him as possible. We started physically going to school today."

At the head of the table, Mr. Lee set his glass of water down, staring directly at his eldest son. "Anything else?"

Haechan racked his brains for something to say. He figured there was something he should tell everyone while he had the chance. "I... I realized I was gay."

The whole table went silent. Haechan thought he actually heard a pin drop.

"I see." said Mr. Lee, the expression on his face unreadable. "And how did you discover this?"

"I fell for a boy." replied Haechan hesitantly. "This boy is the one I want to spend my whole li-"

"Thank you, Haechan." said Mr. Lee shortly, holding up a hand to stop him. "What about you, Haemin?"

From across the table, Mark made eye contact with Haechan. The younger looked absolutely terrified, his rather tan skin pale. Renjun looked up at him with a worried expression in his eyes. He had a feeling he knew what was happening.

***

After dinner, Mr. Lee walked up to Haechan while he was washing the dishes. "Come with me, son."

"Me?" asked Haechan, puzzled. "Why?"

"Don't question your father." said Mr. Lee. "Just come."

Haechan set the plate he was holding down and followed his father to the basement. Suddenly, his father turned around and cornered him against a wall.

"A-Appa?" asked Haechan, confused.

"Shut up. You don't get to speak." said Mr. Lee. "I have better things to do than listen to pathetic gay boys."

Haechan's eyes widened. "Appa-"

"Do you know what shut up means? It means shut up." snapped Mr. Lee, grabbing a spare belt nearby.

"Why is that down here?" asked Haechan, confused.

"I always had a feeling you were gay, Haechan." said Mr. Lee. "Now stop asking questions."

Suddenly, he hit Haechan with the belt, the latter bending over in pain. Mr. Lee used the opportunity to hit him over the head.

"Appa, stop! I'm sorry!"

"Saying sorry won't get you out of this." said Mr. Lee. "Stand up, I haven't gotten to your face yet."

"Appa! Someone help!"

"They won't hear you. Remember that this basement is soundproof." said Mr. Lee. He swung the belt at Haechan's face. Haechan's nose started bleeding for the second time that day.

"Please stop, it hurts!" screamed Haechan, tears spilling from his eyes. "Please!"

He made eye contact with his father and winced. Mr. Lee was smiling.

"I suppose that's enough for now. But I'll be here till Sunday, so we're not done yet." said Mr. Lee, setting the belt down. "And remember, this is between the two of us. Tell anyone, and I'll kill you. Understand?"

He was so close, Haechan could feel his breath on his face. He nodded shakily, trying his best to hold in his tears.

"Y-yes, Appa."

"Good." grinned Mr. Lee. "And trust me, if you tell anyone at all, I will know. Good night, son."

"G-good night, Appa."

The words stuck on his tongue. His whole body was shaking. He'd never felt this... vulnerable.

He walked up the stairs, holding the door for his father, just the way he was taught to. He assumed the household rules still applied.

Renjun was standing in the kitchen, almost done with the dishes. "I would've done it." said Haechan, smiling as if nothing was wrong.

"It's fine, I'm almost done anyway." said Renjun. "Is your nose bleeding again?"

Haechan quickly wiped the blood with his sleeve. "It's nothing. It's probably just a relapse of this morning."

"Oh." said Renjun, also he was still skeptical. "What did your dad want?"

"He just wanted my help with something. No big deal." said Haechan.

But Renjun raised an eyebrow. "Lee Haechan, don't lie to me."

Haechan sighed. "Fine. But he told me not to tell you..."

"I won't tell him you told me." said Renjun. "If your dad caused that nosebleed..."

Haechan opened his mouth to speak, then suddenly burst into tears. Renjun quickly wrapped his arms around him, letting Haechan cry into his shoulder.

"I'm sorry, Haechan, I really am. Come outside with me."