“There’s me.”

Yongguk smiles to himself as he recalls the quiet words he heard from Zelo last night.

He pushes his bicycle home, walking under the gentle sunlight. The warmth casts on his skin and one side of his face. He smiles at the sun that just rose from behind the buildings. They took the earliest train, the both of them tired from a short nap they accidentally fell into while they were lying on the sand, enjoying the silence between them. Yongguk drags his feet on the pavement as he looks up to the window of his room. He still feels traces of sand on his skin.

His father should have already left for work. It’s good that he doesn’t have to see him right after their fight. Yongguk’s face turns glum as he pushes his bicycle across his front yard. How many times must he do this? He feels a sudden surge of fatigue burdening his limbs. He rests his bicycle against the brick wall of his house and opens the door.

Kicking off his shoes, Yongguk scans the house. He jumps a little when he hears the sounds of plates. Yongguk scolds himself for being frightened. He isn’t scared of his father, he keeps telling himself. But why does he feel guilty for running away?

“Yongguk.” Maria stands in the kitchen, hands on her hips as she speaks to him.

“What’s up?”

“Don’t ‘what’s up’ me. Sir told me you didn’t come home last night!”

“How does he even know.” Yongguk looks away. “He doesn’t even come home.”

Maria sighs and presses her lips together.

“Go and take a bath. You look so haggard.”

Yongguk says nothing and drags his tired body up the long spiral staircase. Why is every step so tiring? Maybe it’s the sudden jump of mood. His thoughts linger at the beach where he and Zelo spent the night like thoughtless and homeless teenagers. He stares at the wood of the steps. He used to think this flight of stairs is cursed because everytime somebody flees from this goddamn house— his mom, him and sometimes his dad— they run down this spiraling staircase, turning in a circle like they will never get out of where they are now but just turning and turning… getting nowhere.

Yongguk drags out a long breath when he opens his bedroom door, grateful to see his bed again and falls face flat into his pillow while sleep engulfs him.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> 

“Mr Bang, you should rest.”

“No, I need to finish this.”

“Let me do it.”

“No, this is very important in order to clinch that contract— ”

“Mr Bang!”

“I’m alright.” The director clutches his stomach and stubbornly stares at the monitor, refusing to pause his work.

“Director!” He finally concedes defeat as the pain took over while his secretary gives out a firm warning.

“Take a rest!” The female secretary holds onto her superior and helps him to the black velvet sofa in his spacious office. The director lies down on the sofa, forehead covered with beads of sweat and his face pale as a sheet of white paper. The secretary hands the sickly man a glass of water before excusing herself out of the room, sighing inwardly.

Mr Bang places the glass down on the carpeted floor, his eyes shut tightly because of the pain eroding his stomach. He clutches onto his stomach again as the pain returns with greater force like a fatal punch in his gut. This has been going on for so long he forgot when it started.

He guesses that it must have been all the skipped meals and long working hours that gave him these gastric pains. The pain subsides a little and he slowly opens his eyes and swallows dryly. His headache throbs in his skull and he momentarily forgets the sting in his abdomen. He sighs as he rubs his temple.

Tears well up in his eyes as he lets go for a moment. He wonders if his son is back home yet. He checks his phone which reads 8:08AM. He has been working for 4 hours straight but his mind was always on something else—his boy. His lips press together as he recalls the fight he had last night with his son. He shouldn’t have been so harsh. Bitterness fills his heart when he thinks of his son’s angered expression. It shredded him up.

He places a hand over his eyes and closes them. ‘What to do? I don’t know what to do.’

>>>>>>>>>>>>>> 

“Mr Bang, here’s your schedule for this afternoon.”

“Oh thank you.” The director receives his iPad from his secretary who gave him a smile and left the room. He quirks an eyebrow at the suspicious grin. Scrolling through his timetable for the afternoon, he realizes the reason behind that smile.

6:10PM Appointment at Elizabeth Hospital

>>>>>>>>>>>> 

Despite his reluctance to show up for the appointment his secretary booked without his consent, the middle-aged director still found himself surrounded by the white walls of the hospital shortly after his meeting with his subordinates. Sometimes he wonders if he’s the one bossing or being bossed.

“Mr Bang?”

“Ah yes.” He acknowledges absentmindedly before placing his phone back into his pocket after checking his schedule.

“I’m afraid…”

He stares at the doctor who placed both of his hands on the table together, a bad feeling in his stoma