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Chapter 57 - Heart to Heart

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Sungmin whines as he paces in front of his father's mini office. The older man invited Kyuhyun to talk inside his room, and when he was about to go in as well, his father immediately closed and locked the door, and unfortunately, his forehead and nose hit the door.

"Damn that old man," Sungmin mutters under his breath as he carresses his forehead. "I think I'll have a bump or something on my forehead!"

"Sungmin," his mother calls him with a scolding voice. "He's your dad and he's not just an old man."

"I know!" Sungmin stops facing and turns to his mother who is sitting on the couch across the mini room. "And I am also his son so he shouldn't have closed the door all of a sudden that I bumped into it!"

His mother giggles. "Stop whining. Just serve them some wine. I guess they have a lot of things to discuss."

"No fair! I wasn't allowed to drink wine even if it's not really alcoholic, why can Kyuhyun drink it? Unfair!" Sungmin pouts and crosses his arms over his chest as he starts pacing again.

"It doesn't mean Kyuhyun would drink it," his mother tells Sungmin to comfort his whining son. "Come here and sit. Stop pacing there. If you don't want to serve them wine then sit here."

Sungmin sighs. He walks towards the couch and sits in it. "I don't know, but I feel nervous."

"Seriously, Sungmin Lee. Are you somehow attracted to Kyuhyun?"

Sungmin's eyes grow wide in an instant as he looks at his mother and he immediately shakes his head while saying, "No! What makes you think that!? I am not attracted to him! He's not that handsome to be honest - well, he is, but he's certainly not my type. I don't like that kind of guy and I am certainly not a girl! What am I saying," he looks away and laughs awkwardly then he continues. "Wait a minute, what am I, a girl? I don't know! I should have not-"

Mrs. Lee laughs loudly that Sungmin frowns.

"What!?"

"I only asked if you're sort of attracted to him, you got a lot of answer. You're weird," His mother gives him a skeptic look. "As your mother, I know who you are, what you think about, why you are acting like that and how you are able to cope. And as your mother, I think I know what you feel."

"Damn, it's just a crush, alright!?" He finally admits, giving up as he blows some air. "I hate when people are pushing me too hard."

Mrs. Lee giggles. "No cursing! But, yeah. I knew it."

"You're fine with it?" Sungmin asks. "Hey since when is 'damn' a curse word?"

His mother stands and turns to Sungmin who is looking at her. "I am fine with it."

"How about having a grandchild? Or-"

"Brat, it's just a crush," Mrs. Lee says. "Unless you want to be with him forever, you want to be together, you want to make-"

"Geez, Mom!" Sungmin gets annoyed that he ruffles his hair with both hands. Good thing, he tries to stop his mom from saying another word or he'll never get comfortable around Kyuhyun anymore. "I don't like Kyuhyun that way! I don't want to be in a relationship with him, because it's not that I love him that way..." He trails off as he looks away. Do I really not? Well, of course, I don't... or am I just saying this because I don't want to entertain these thoughts about me and him, especially because Kyuhyun was, Kyuhyun is, and Kyuhyun will surely not love me!

Mrs. Lee sighs and holds Sungmin's shoulder as she smiles. "Yet. You don't love him yet."

Sungmin just stares at his mother who winks at him. She straightens up. "You need a lot of time to know if you love the person. Love is a continuous process. It's not one time, big time. When you say you love him or her yet you're still having side doubts, even the smallest possible doubts, chances are, he or she is not the one for you. As I said, love is a continuous process that you need to clear those doubts to prove that you love him. Once the doubts are gone, then it's the time when you say 'he's the one.'"

Sungmin bows and stares at his interlocked hands. "So," he looks back at his mother again. "When did you start saying that Dad is the one for you?"

His mother replies, "I said 'yes' to him when he told me that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with me and he asked me to marry him. I had doubts and what-ifs then, but I still said yes. However, when we got married and I gave birth to you and then Sungjin, that's the time I thought he's the one. All doubts were cleared and I knew I loved him and I would love him forever," After a minute of silence, Mrs. Lee gasps and breaks it, "Oh, I need to go because I have duties tonight. Tell me what happens!"

Mrs. Lee almost rushes to the door and finally leaves. Sungmin is left, now staring at the door.

Will I ever say that he's the one?

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Kyuhyun sits on a one-seater couch near the door. His heart, for the first or second time, is beating so fast because he is very nervous. He can feel the weird and cold atmosphere in that room even if it's summer. He knows that he's going to be in the hot seat that time.

Mr. Lee has is back facing Kyuhyun. The latter is sure that Sungmin's father arranging some files on the table.

He let Sungmin see that he's not nervous at all - that he's alright. He doesn't want him to think it's affecting him big time.

"Do you like wine?" His father asks in a low voice. Kyuhyun gulps silently.

"I haven't drunk any wine before, but I heard it's sweet, so I think that probably, I won't like it because I don't like sweet things," Kyuhyun answers, trying to compose himself. Sungmin's father doesn't speak, so he continues, "But since I was not able to taste it yet... I might like it as well."

"You know, Sungmin likes wine, even if he never tasted it yet," Mr. Lee says.

Why are we talking about wines? Kyuhyun asks himself, and he gulps again when Mr. Lee finally faces him, now holding two folders.

"He knows what he wants and doesn't want even if he never tries or experiences it," Mr. Lee tells him matter-of-factly. He then tosses the folders to Kyuhyun and Kyuhyun catches them. "We are talking about wines because I need you to read this."

He opens the first folder and it contains a case of a murdered wine businessman. Kyuhyun reads it. "This is an unsolved case, right? My guardian was watching television when I first saw this."

"It's the first case I was not able to close so I was forced to give it to another lawyer," Mr. Lee says, and Kyuhyun looks at him. "Back then, Sungmin was seven, and he had an idea about the case and I never heard that idea because I thought he's just playing around. He, as a normal kid, didn't talk to me for at least two weeks. Then when I finally decided to hear his idea, he marvelously concluded it rightly. He had the idea which I never thought of. The lawyer, to whom I gave the case, had the same idea as Sungmin had, and he won the case. I never expected Sungmin would be that good even if he was just seven years old. I felt guilty, because, if I was able to hear his thoughts then I would... I would be able to win that case."

Kyuhyun remains silent. The lawyer speaks again.

"So I took him to every crime scene and from then on, I started to hear his ideas. I thought that he would be a great lawyer, and I found out that he wanted to become a lawyer just like me," Mr. Lee says, then he orders Kyuhyun to open the second folder.

Kyuhyun blinks twice as he opens the second folder. He sees a short bond paper inside it, and written in it was 'I want to be a lawyer when I get older. I want to be like my father." There are also some doodles in it. Kyuhyun looks at Sungmin's father who is looking at the paper. 

"That is what Sungmin wrote and drew back when he was a young child. He was in middle school when he showed that to me," Sungmin's father narrates. "He said that he wanted to become a lawyer. I was overjoyed, at the same time, I was scared, because becoming a lawyer means sacrificing a lot. Family, friends, time, and even love."

Kyuhyun does not speak but he continues to look at the bond paper. He doesn't know what Sungmin's father is trying to tell him, but he knows how Mr. Lee cares about his son so much.

"That time, I don't know what I would tell him. Should I encourage him? Should I stop him? And I ended up encouraging him to become a lawyer, since he liked to be one and he had a talent to be one anyway. It was also the first time he ever convinced me about something he liked. But all of a sudden, after one case, after he became a high school student, he stopped saying that he wanted to become a lawyer. I never knew why. I thought it was my fault, because maybe I pushed him a little too hard, but I knew that there was something wrong. I knew that my wife knew something, but she just told me to let Sungmin be. It's very hard for me though, because I wanted him to continue my legacy," Mr. Lee narrated. "And because it was him who helped me achieve the things I have right now."

"Sungmin," Kyuhyun finally speaks, his voice a bit flat. "He still has the passion to become a lawyer, but something is stopping him."

"What is it?" Mr. Lee curiously asks.

"He... he never had friends because everyone was scared of what he was capable to do and of where he came from. He is a son of a great lawyer and a great police woman, that is why a lot of people avoid him. All he wanted was to have friends that, as I knew, so he tried saving a lot of people, but he was misunderstood. People told him that he was a black sheep even if he was not. He was alone that even if he wanted to have friends, he was frequently rejected. Then Ryeowook came. He became a friend to him regardless of who he was. He was the only person who understood him. He was the only person who didn't avoid him that time, even if his parents didn't like him as Ryeowook's friend. All of those things, including the one when he wanted to put the law into his hands, were because he wanted to have friends. Donghae and I got to know him, and as we got closer, I realized - no, I was more convinced - that he wasn't the one people thought he was. He saved my life. And I was grateful to him."

Mr. Lee just remained quiet as he stared at Kyuhyun, so Kyuhyun continued.

"I was in ruins when I first met him, in the park, where all I wanted to do was to cry. As I child, I was vulnerable. I was easily hurt. But then, he came and saved me. He brought smile back to my face and even if he didn't know it, I was thankful to him. I will admit that I insulted him a lot of times, that was because I... I didn't know how to make him notice me. I wanted to make him realize that I was that one person whom he saved, that I wanted to become his friend."

Sungmin's father sits on his swivel chair and turns it facing Kyuhyun. "You know when was the last time Sungmin told me that he believed in one person?"

Kyuhyun shook his head.

"When he told me that you were not a bad person, that you took care of him when you were in the Philippines," Mr. Lee answers. "I've never seen Sungmin that desperate to prove that you are someone good. I know that you are, but as a father, I have the right to care, right? But then, I know and it is proven. He believes in you so much."

Kyuhyun smiles. "I believe in him too. More than he ever knows. Sir, I am apologizing for what I've done to your son. I promise you that I won't ever hurt him again."

"You know to whom you need to apologize, and that is not me, I believe," Sungmin's father taps his shoulder. "Sungmin is old now. I won't dictate him what he needs to do. And with you, Ryeowook and Donghae as a friend, I know that he is in good hands."

Kyuhyun thanks Sungmin's father. "Thank you, Mr. Lee."

"But tell me Kyuhyun. I know that it isn't just because he saved your life but... why do you believe in my son so much?"

Kyuhyun turns serious and looks at Sungmin's father. "I believe in Sungmin because I love him. I love your son, Mr. Lee. You might hate me for this, but I really do love your son so much."

Sungmin's father nods and smiles. "Then, I believe we still have a lot of things to talk about. And that includes my rules."

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"What did he say to you? Did he punch you or something?" Sungmin immediately asks Kyuhyun as he exits the room. "But I guess not. I don't see any bruise on your face."

"Calm down, we just talked about random things," Kyuhyun walks passing by Sungmin who follows him.

"What kind of random things? I can't sleep if you don't tell me," Sungmin shakes Kyuhyun's arm. "Ugh! Did he tell you to stop being my friend?"

"You're overthinking," Kyuhyun turns to Sungmin and hits his head softly. Sungmin closes his eyes and angrily stares at Kyuhyun. "He asked me who were our friends, where did we meet, what were you as a person, what I wanted to become when I finish high school-"

"So what did you say? What did he say?"

"I told him that I want to become a lawyer like him," he smiles as he remembers what really happened.

"I want to become a lawyer someday, Mr. Lee. I would like to go to Harvard if I would be given an opportunity," Kyuhyun told Mr. Lee. "I've always dreamed to become a lawyer. I was inspired by Sungmin when we were kids."

Mr. Lee laughs. "I would see that, or else, I would not approve of you for my son."

"He told me that it's good for me. Your father is a cool dad, you know?" Kyuhyun grins. "Oh, well, I will go home now. We are still early tomorrow, right?"

"Wait!" Sungmin pulls Kyuhyun's shirt. "Are you sure he didn't-"

Kyuhyun pulls him into a hug. "He didn't, whatever that was. But he told me that I owed you an apology, so I would do it now. I am sorry for everything that I've done to you. It won't happen again."

"Hey! What are you doing!? Why are you hugging me here!? This is our house!" Sungmin tries to break free from the hug. "My Dad might see us and he might think this is awkward and he might kill you for real."

"Don't worry," Kyuhyun hugs him tighter. "I'm sure, even if he sees us, he won't mind."

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