CHAPTER 19 [Time has changed, but do feelings stay the same?]

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Jeonghan took a deep breath as his eyes scanned his surroundings. Nothing had changed, really. Just a few new commercial establishments here and there, then everything was still how he remembered them to be. The chilly temperature of December still made him shiver, and the smell of mixed Korean dishes and street foods from the nearby stalls made him mutter, “I’m really home.”

After his parents’ visit and their surprising news a week ago, he decided to secretly book a flight to Seoul to make the most important decision of his life. He told no one—except from Jun who came with him together with the twins—that he was coming back to Seoul. They were coming back.

It wasn’t for good, of course!

The decision was not easy. It took him sleepless nights and insane mental arguments before he finally made a decision that would not only possibly change just his life, but of all the people closest to his heart. Despite of the years that passed, the terrible experiences associated with it, and the painful process of recovering himself along with his shattered heart and confidence, Jeonghan concluded that he could not really avoid things that were bound to happen anytime soon. Despite of the endless prayers and bargaining, the inevitable would still happen.

He was strolling alone because Jun and the kids were too tired from the travel. They took off from the plane exactly one hour ago, and because he was already restless and anxious, he decided to take a short tour and tire himself out. It was okay with him, since he honestly wanted to be alone so he could do the first step of his plans. He wanted to inform the elder Chois of their grandchildren’s existence as soon as possible.

When he decided to finally reveal his secret, he wanted the elders to know about it first. He didn’t really know why, but his gut feeling was telling him that the elders wouldn’t be as mad as how Seungcheol would be. Although he’s not an inch afraid of meeting him again, the thing he was afraid of was not how his heart would react after seeing him, but of what Seungcheol could do to them. Would he demand sole custody, or would he be okay with just visiting the twins? He didn’t want to put their conflict to court, because it would just confuse the children. And he didn’t want that to happen. He wanted the best for them, and he didn’t want them to be exposed to pain at a very early age.

Jeonghan sighed heavily and decided to temporary forget his worries and just enjoy this short time of quietude for a while. He continued to stroll with no specific place to go to, with both his hands inside the pockets of his jacket, thanks to his rusty memory that forgot to remind him to pack his mittens.

He was finally busy rummaging his hands through the clothes rack of a popular shop when his phone rang. His lips curved a smile when he saw the name of the caller. It was Jun, but he knew who it really was.

“Hey, sweetheart. I miss you already…”

“Where did you go, appa?” Seulgi’s sleepy voice asked from the other line. He could clearly picture her droopy eyes and yawning cute little mouth in his mind.

“I just went out, sweetie. Would you like me to buy you something?”

“Mmm! Uncle Jun said that odeng tastes really good, appa! Can Deulgi get some, pwease?”

Jeonghan chuckled and brushed his hair with his free hand, not noticing the number of girls and guys who were looking at his direction with adoration in their eyes. “Sure. Is that all? Tell me if—oof!”

He was unable to finish his words when he felt his back bump into something hard. Or rather, someone.

“I’m so sorry. I wasn’t looking,” a man apologetically said, his back still facing him. But despite of not seeing his face, his voice alone and the way his body reacted to their closeness already gave him an idea who he was. He closed his eyes and prayed that he was just mistaken. Although he already told himself a million times that meeting him again wouldn’t scare him, deep inside him, he knew that was not true. He felt his breath quicken and cold drops of sweat started forming on his forehead. He didn’t know what to do, or what to say, or even how to react. He knew that they’d be meeting soon, but not this soon.

“Are you okay? Did you get hurt somewhere?” the man asked when he did not even flinch a little. He bit his lip and felt his whole body tremble.

What should he do? Must he run? Must he pretend that nothing happened and just continue walking away? Or should he just—

“Jeonghan? T-That’s you, right? Yoon Jeong…han…”

Jeonghan closed his eyes and tried to compose himself. When he was sure that he looked normal again, he turned around and there he confirmed that his intuition was right. It was him, all in the flesh. What a coincidence, huh?

“Oh. Hi, Seungcheol,” he calmly said, as if just greeting a high school classmate after years of not seein