courage dear heart | Yuki Ishikawa

59

Sitting on the couch in my father's office, I still felt shaken by everything that had just been happened.

The images, the comments, the weight of expectations... it all pressed down on me like a boulder.

My father tried to reassure me, but inside, my mind was a whirlwind that I couldn't calm.

I was staring at the floor when I heard a soft knock on the door.

I looked up and saw Hanbin standing in the doorway with his usual calm expression, as if he knew I needed a break.

"Nabi, someone's waiting for you outside," he said, his voice steady.

I got up slowly, still feeling disoriented. "Who?" I asked quietly, though a part of me already had an idea.

"Come out and see," Hanbin replied with a faint smile, motioning for me to follow.

I took a deep breath and walked behind him, trying to gather my scattered thoughts.

As I stepped outside, the sun hit my face, and there, parked in front of me, was a blue Mercedes, gleaming under the sunlight.

Leaning against the driver's side door was Yuki, his hands tucked into his jeans pockets, his expression relaxed but with a hint of concern in his eyes.

The moment he saw me, his face lit up, and he pushed off the car to come towards me. My heart skipped a beat.

"Yuki?" I said, a little surprised.

"I came to get you," he said, giving me a reassuring smile. "Thought you might need some air... and someone to talk to."

I stopped in front of him, my breath still a little shaky from the overwhelming emotions.

He looked at me with those eyes that always seemed to understand everything without needing too many words.

"Wanna go for a drive?" he added, nodding toward the car.

For a moment, everything that had happened in my father's office felt far away.

I nodded without overthinking, feeling a strange sense of calm wash over me at the thought of being with him.

Yuki opened the door for me, and as I climbed into the car.

Yuki drove in silence, his hands steady on the wheel as the city blurred by outside the windows.

I sat quietly, watching the passing streets, feeling the hum of the car beneath me. Even though we weren't talking, I could feel his presence—strong, calm, and reassuring.

Every now and then, out of the corner of my eye, I noticed him glancing at me, as if checking to make sure I was okay, but he didn't say anything. He just let me be.

After what felt like an hour but was probably less, we pulled off the main road and onto a quiet street lined with tall trees.

Yuki turned into a parking lot near the edge of a park I had never seen before. The car came to a gentle stop, and he switched off the engine, the sudden stillness almost deafening after the soft hum of the ride.

I looked out the window at the park in front of us—wide open, peaceful, with tall grass swaying gently in the breeze and a small lake glistening in the distance.

It was beautiful, and yet unfamiliar, as if this hidden corner of the city existed in a world of its own.

"I used to come here when I needed space," Yuki said quietly, breaking the silence for the first time since we'd left.

He didn't look at me, his gaze focused out in front of him, but I could hear the meaning behind his words. He'd brought me here for that same reason—to give me space, yet still be close by.