The sea at dawn is a marvelous place. Albeit it’s only spring and the weather isn’t very warm, so bathing is not yet possible, but the water blending with the sky is as brilliant as it could be.

Jongmin had yearned to visit the sea and spend a day in a camp on the beach for quite a while, ever since watching a documentary a couple of months ago. And it is him indeed, who asked Taemin, earlier in the day, to bring him to the specific location. The man thought that maybe this will be the opportunity for them to bond. Jongmin has just spent a day with his biological father, but wants to go to the sea with Taemin. Isn’t that a good sign?

Supposedly, yes.

The little boy with the bowl cut has his eyes widened as he concentrates on the horizon, trying to catch a glimpse of the sun rising from the East Sea. He’s tired, but he won’t let that show, not when Taemin has driven the whole night without a proper rest, stopping for only ten minutes or so.

Jongmin is not that selfish.

The man glances over to the boy, with a warm smile on his face, practically melting on the inside. Whatever’s happening between these two, whatever the reason behind Jongmin’s sudden request, it means that maybe, just maybe, the boy will acknowledge him as his mother’s future husband.

Taemin feels happy, because he won’t be completely shut out.

“Say, Jongmin-ah, do you dislike me?” The man asks with slight hurt in his voice, needing an answer to the question which has pained him for a while.

The boy turns to his left to look up to him with a slight frown. “No. Why would I dislike you, ahjussi?”

There it goes again, that invisible wall between them. Whenever Jongmin calls him ‘ahjussi’, Taemin is drifting apart.

“No reason.” He replies with a shrug, trying to sound casual. But he has a hunch that Jongmin doesn’t buy it.       

“I was afraid of you.” The boy then begins, much to Taemin’s surprise.

Jongmin has his legs pulled to his chest, his arms around them and a blanket covering his back. The sky begins to shift from the navy blue to a lighter shade.

“When Mommy first introduced you, I thought that you want to steal Daddy’s place, to stick around in our lives.” His words are spoken in a silent manner, nearly brushed away by the waves. “You were always good to me, ahjussi, and you truly love Mommy and us. I’m sorry I never believed you.”

Taemin shakes his head in guilt. That was never his intention. Taking a mother away from her child? That’s unspeakable of!

“What changed, Jongmin?” He was about to call him ‘Minnie’, like Taehee does, but maybe that is too personal. He’s not that close yet…

“Daddy came home.” And Taemin’s heart breaks. “Daddy is not perfect, and even if I can’t forgive him for hurting Mommy, he’s still the other half. I wanted to get to know him, to see who he truly is. He’s trying, really trying to become a father.” That’s when he stops for a moment, to inhale fresh air.

The first rays of the sun make place through the dark sea. Nature comes back to life. Sirens can be heard in the far distance.

“So I thought, if I gave him a chance to be with me, why wouldn’t I try to become your son? You love Mommy and she…” He trails off, noticing the sun. A bright expression welcomes his face.

Taemin tries to shake away those hurtful thoughts about Taehee not loving him, and looks at the sun instead. Indeed, it’s so picturesque and breathtakingly beautiful. Jongmin is the one enjoying the view the most. The man feels happy, to be the one to share this memory with.

“So, do you mean that you’d try to be my son?” Taemin asks with the most courage he’d ever need.

However, the boy’s reply is silenced by the loud sirens, and the following second, a few police cars pull to the beach, with policemen walking out, not taking out their guns yet.

Alarmed, Taemin jumps to his feet, and steps in front of a scared Jongmin.

“Up with your hands!” A man shouts and Taemin frowns.

What’s going on?

The policemen close on them, and Jongmin is more filled with fear than ever. Taemin is confused, but the only thing he can think of is to keep Jongmin safe.

“What is–” He begins to ask, but the advancing men for