“Mama…” the baby cooed at Minzy. Jongin’s heart clenched at the sight of the happy baby whose parents have been killed by a tragic car accident. Minzy forced a smile and bounced the baby on her lap. Her eyes were red and swollen, still mourning for the loss of her cousin Soojung and her Taemin oppa.

It had been less than a week since they buried Taemin and Soojung’s bodies and three days since they were called upon by the married couple’s lawyer for the reading of their Will and Testament.

Jongin couldn’t wrap his head around the fact that Taemin and Soojung granted joint custody of the baby to him and Minzy. He was mad at Taemin because he knew that this is mainly his idea and Soojung just probably went with it.

Taemin had always wanted to fix the rift that grew between Jongin and Minzy. He may not know what caused it, but he knew for a fact that it was so serious that it made Jongin quit dancing. Taemin never gave up asking what happened…he never gave up fixing things…he never gave up on Jongin…no matter how distant and isolated Jongin became, Taemin didn’t give up reaching out to him.

“You love dancing. Why give up something you love so much?”

Taemin asked him one night over soju at Jongin’s favorite restaurant.

After Minzy finally gave up on him, Jongin detached himself from the world he once knew. He cut all ties with everyone he knew from dancing and went back to uni to get a degree. He’s now a budding Stockbroker at Seoul Stock Exchange Commission.

Jongin preferred being alone. He focused all his energy on his work as if his it was the only thing that kept him breathing. He closed off from all emotions and avoided any personal relations with anyone. He lived like a robot.

But no matter how Jongin detached himself from everyone, Taemin always found a way to reach out. Taemin always showed up whenever Jongin goes to his favorite restaurant to drink his sorrows away.

“I don’t know what happened with you and Minzy…but you have to stop punishing yourself Jongin…you can’t live like this…please…”

Taemin pleaded seriously to a silent Jongin.

“Ahjumma, can I have another bottle of soju please.”

Jongin called out the restaurant owner, completely ignoring Taemin. He never responded whenever Taemin asked personal questions. All exchanges they shared were about random things but never about what happened.

Taemin, as hard headed as he is, never got tired of sharing stories about Minzy’s life. He would always mention snippets about Minzy. Although Jongin never reacted to any of them, he just lets Taemin tell him about Minzy. He may deny it, but Taemin could see it in his eyes that he craved to hear stories about Minzy. Taemin knew the stories about Minzy kept the humanity in Jongin.

“Minzy went out on a date with Yunho sunbae again. I think it’s serious. Yunho sunbae seems to really like Minzy.”

Jongin clenched his fist under the table and looked away. Although it was but a split second, Taemin saw the anguish in Jongin’s face the moment he heard the news.

“Let’s stop meeting like this Taemin. I don’t know why you’re doing this but please leave me alone.”

Jongin stood up and left a shocked Taemin. That was the last time he saw Taemin before he died.

“Oh, you’re here.” Minzy uttered upon seeing Jongin leaning on the door frame, lost in his thoughts, eyes on Daehan, Taemin and Soojung’s two-year-old baby.

“Sorry, got held up by my boss. I brought Chinese. You should eat before you go to the dance studio.” Jongin stepped inside Taemin and Soojung’s living room. Minzy understood the meaningful look he gave her. It was time to talk about how they should start to move on.

They both decided to stay in the married couple’s house until they could find a better arrangement for Daehan. They didn’t want to disrupt his routine. The tension between Minzy and Taemin was so strong that even Daehan started feeling uneasy.

“Here, take Daehan. I’ll just go prepare the table so we can eat.” Minzy handed the baby and grabbed the Chinese Takeout from Jongin.

“Has he been fed yet?” Jongin asked, his eyes looking tenderly at the innocent Daehan.

“Yes. He just needs a bath and he’ll be ready for bed time.”  Minzy answered, her eyes glued on him. She couldn’t explain the clenching feeling in her heart every time she sees him with Daehan.

“All right little monkey. Let’s get you a nice warm bath then.” Jongin cooed.

In the week that they had been together, Minzy and Jongin’s conversation only centered on the baby. They never talked about anything personal nor did they share their grief for the loss of the two people close to them.

They sat across each other on the dining table. Minzy’s heart warmed because after all these years, Jongin still remembered her favorite Chinese Restaurant and her favorite food. She paused and looked at him as he automatically placed his dumplings on her plate. Jongin didn’t like eating dumplings and whenever they ate together, he always gave her his dumplings. She looked at his face and wanted to see a trace of emotion but she couldn’t find any.

Jongin cleared his throat upon realizing what he just did. He avoided Minzy’s eyes and started eating his food.

“Is it okay if you take care of Daehan this coming Saturday morning? My boss asked me to work half-day. If you have a dance session, I can just pick him up in the dance studio as soon as I get off work.” Minzy shook her head.

“It’s okay. I don’t really have a schedule until the late afternoon. I’ll probably just take him out to the park.” Minzy answered softly.

“I’ll message you if I finish early maybe I can catch up with you and Daehan.” Jongin answered somberly. Pregnant silence enveloped the dining room as they held each other’s gazes.

“I spoke with Taemin and Soojung’s lawyer. We can’t put this house in the market yet. Taemin’s dad may still oppose the Will & Testament. In the meantime, we’d need to decide on our permanent living arrangement. I can’t stay in this house…”

“It’s suffocating…it feels heavy…” Minzy continued trying to fight back her tears, her voice clipped. “Everything reminds me of them…” Jongin reached out and squeezed her hand.

“If you want, we can start looking for a new place this Saturday. I can get the deposit from the place I’m renting and I still have money saved.  We can get a bigger place than our apartments. I’ll contact a real estate agent tomorrow…” Jongin comforted.

The warmth of Jongin’s hand squeezing hers made her cry out, as if asking more comfort from the man who knew Taemin and Soojung as well as she did. She didn’t realize how much she missed Jongin until he held her hand…she held her breath b