Although summer vacation for Taeyang has yet to be finished, he is coming back home to his mother after two and a half week stay at the countryside. His father had explained to the Byun that Taeyang has been chosen to become his younger brother’s promotional logo for his business, so Taeyang has to return to the city.

Taeyang has promised the elderly couple that he’ll try to finish as soon as possible, and if there is still time left before summer break ends, he will come back to visit.

His father, Kris, also promises the same because he feels guilty that Taeyang has to cut his stay.

As Kris packs his luggage for the leave, Mr. Byun knocks on his door.

“Kris, may we have a talk?”

“Sure.” He drops what he is doing and follows the elderly man to the fields. “Is there something you’d like for me to do in the city?”

“Oh, nothing business-related. Well, it can be.”

“Please, Mr. Byun,” says an earnest Kris, “don’t refrain yourself in front of me.”

“Well, if you don’t mind. I’d like for you to help me with a family problem.”

For a moment, Kris thought he will lose everything he knows at the moment, and he almost cannot breathe due to fear. “W-what can I do?”

*

Hana has arrived home from work and enters her bedroom to see a sleeping Luhan on her bed.

For two weeks straight, he has slept over at her place and because she knows he won’t listen, she doesn’t bother to waste time and energy to tell him to sleep in Kris and Taeyang’s room. She does make sure that he promises to not jump her though.

He does do what he promises, but she lets him get away with “goodnight kisses”. These goodnight kisses of his are nowhere near a quick peck on the cheeks like she does to Taeyang when she tucks him in. It did start off that way, however, and it gradually become more than what it was supposed to be.

On the first night, she explicitly gave him permission to kiss her on the cheek after he had annoyingly and relentlessly begged her.

On the third night, he asked for a quick peck on the lips instead and for them to cuddle to sleep.

Fourth night—laughter, humor, and some tickling was involved.

Seventh night—they shared a shy and soft kiss.

Ninth night—Hana was kissing him back, and a lot of tickling happened.

Eleventh night—Luhan succeeds with taking off his shirt, her shorts, caressing every inch of her body, finding her sensitive spots, and their breathing were passionately in sync.

Unbeknown to Luhan, however, Hana was mentally, emotionally, and physically ready to give herself to the man on top of her as she was swept along with the mood of the night.

What stopped the could-have-been a passionate night was when she was only in her lingerie and he was about to remove his boxers. His hands grazed against his bulge and he finally realized that although he would like to continue to embrace her, he did not want their first night to happen before marriage.

At the same time, he did not want to abruptly stop what they were doing and ruin the mood, so he controlled the pace of their bodily interactions by passionately kissing her and slowing their movement as he also softened their kiss. When the both of them are not breathing as heavily anymore, he—on top of her—looked down at his flushed, pink friend with moist eyes.

“Sorry, Hana…” He closes his eyes and kisses her forehead. “I don’t want us to do it this way.”

She smiles at him while a hand cups his cheek.

He kisses the tip of her nose. “I really love you.”

Her smile shows him that she’s never tired of hearing him say the same thing he has said for the last eleven nights without a miss.

He sees her smile, and he falls in love with her all over again before pressing his warm lips against hers. When he pulls away from her, he makes sure to wrap his arms tightly around her body to hug her in his chest. “But can we still sleep like this?”

“Yeah,” she says, biting her lower lip in embarrassment now. She hides her face in his chest. She cannot believe that she almost did something she had been negatively firm about with Luhan. She is worried that he will no longer believe that she doesn’t see them having a relationship together.

He finds her acting embarrassed and shy to be of a cute manner, so he squeezes her tighter. He whispers to her ear. “No need to be embarrassed. The more we do it, you’ll get used to it.”

With her face still burrowed, she playfully hits his chest for his teasing. “Pabo!”

The two continue their little word of play, and Hana doesn’t hear the notification sound from her phone that had fallen to the ground when the two were still “active” on the bed.

Kris: mom this is Taeyang. Im coming home tomorrow and guess what. Uncle baek coming to. sent at 01:16 a.m.

*

“Mom!”

Hana looks up and around the area around while placing a glass of water nearby the plate of Kris. “Yes?”

Kris and Taeyang had arrived and entered Hana’s house late early this morning upon their arrival from the countryside, but because she was asleep and Kris didn’t want to bother her, he, as usual, slept in his bedroom with Taeyang. It was only in the morning when he and Hana met up in the kitchen when she woke up to make breakfast.

“Is something the matter, Taeyang?” Kris asks, turning to the side of the direction where Taeyang’s excited voice was from.

Taeyang arrives at the entrance of the kitchen and points to the direction of the hallway. “Mom, how come—”

“—morning, Taeyang.”

Hana hears the voice that belongs to the person she had completely forgotten that had been sleeping with her for the entire week. Before she can run over to where her son is, the person pats Taeyang on the head with his disheveled hair and bare chest.

Kris drops his fork and surprisingly stands up in shock. His mouth can’t close and his eyes stare at his younger brother in disbelief. Lu-Luhan?

Luhan shrugs off his brother’s presence and instead, lazily waves a “hi” to him and walks over to Hana, who is standing stiffly at her place.

Her hand hasn’t leave the cup that she had placed down.

He dares to graze a hand around her waist when he knows that his brother’s eyes are following him to ensure his eyesight of seeing his younger brother waking up in Hana’s house.

And topless.

Innocent Taeyang enters the trio’s quietness and asks the question Kris wants to ask but has not yet come to a realization. “Uncle, how come you and Mommy slept together?”

Hearing this, Kris almost choked on his own breath.

Hana awkwardly hands Kris his drink while avoiding eye contact. She says to her son, “Taeyang, go-go brush up and um, go take a shower.”

“Shower?” Taeyang’s about to whine.

While Luhan doesn’t give a care about what’s happening, Kris continues to stand up looking at his brother, and Hana desperately tries get her son out of the room before she can clear things up.

“Taeyang,” Hana hastily says, “remember you have the summer play you’re supposed to rehearse?” She goes to her son. “You wash up first and I’ll wash up after I eat. Then we’ll leave.”

“Okay.” Taeyang says and then he pouts and walks away to his room.

“Aw,” Luhan finally says something, “I wanted to have breakfast with him.”

Hana clears and ignores Luhan. She needs to clear up any kind of misunderstanding Luhan’s half- appearance has caused. “Kris, it’s not what you think.”

Well, it is exactly what he is thinking, but nothing much really happened.

Luhan scoffs and disappointedly puts his spoon in his plate, which was supposed to be Hana’s. “Oi, what do you mean it’s not what he thinks?” He moves an index finger back and forth between him and her. “It is what my brother thinks—we slept together. That’s how I’m here.”

Of course, he knows that “slept together” has a metaphorical definition to it, and although he and his friend did sleep and didn’t manage to hit a homerun, he wants to tease his brother.

She throws him a glare. She wants to divert the subject of why they were sleeping together to how Luhan is here. “His house was infested, so I allowed him to sleepover until the quarantine was over.”

This catches Kris’s attention, and Kris puts out his palm forward. “S-sorry, what?”

Luhan’s about to speak, but Hana’s hand swiftly covers his mouth to answer instead. “A few nights ago,” she adds a smile, “this pabo had some insect infestation, so he had called for professionals to do an entire house insecticide.” She uses her free hand to point to herself. “I-I was being nice, so I housed him until today only.”

Any other truths is what she likes to avoid spilling.

Luhan doesn’t like that Hana is bothered about Kris seeing them together because to him, it implies that Kris’s of some sort of importance higher than him. And he doesn’t like it one bit. To show off his anger, he the hand covering his mouth and she pulls it back away. He mugs her for his small victory.

Kris lets out a sigh and light chuckle. He slowly eases into his seat and smiles. “Th-that’s a relief.”

“Eh?” Both Hana and Luhan are a bit shocked and confused at the older man’s honest comment.

To Hana, she’s curious as to why it’d be a relief, and to Luhan, he sees the comment as a sign of romantic rivalry.

Kris shakes his head. “No, I mean, I thought Luhan had forced himself on you or something.”

The comment makes Hana laugh awkwardly; Luhan laughs mockingly; and Kris smiles in relief.

Luhan says to his brother, “Don’t worry. I rather ‘attack’ when she’s willing. Besides, she can’t resist me.”

She laughs it off. With one finger, she pushes his head back. “Why would I ever find a freak like you irresistible?”

Having been called “freak,” he is reminded of the new nickname he had found for her. He turns around and says to his brother, “Hyungi, do you want to know Hana’s secret?”

Kris smiles. “What is it?”

Hana hears and becomes curious. She momentarily stops what she’s doing to pay attention to what her friend has to stupidly say.

Luhan meekly and subtly points back at Hana and whispers loud enough for the three of them to hear. “She’s a secret ert!”

She becomes embarrassed, so she hops onto Luhan’s back to physically stop him from saying anything more that may expose her of the nights before.

While Kris laughs at the two young adult’s bickering and playful hitting, the scene of the young couple in front of him now reminds him of the couple they were back then. Even as a virtual couple back then, there was always this sense of realism to it. To their laughs. To their smiles. To their touch for one another.

Even to the entire virtual aspect of the family they were for a year.

Unbeknown to him, as he recalls those happy thoughts of seeing the two best friends playing cheerfully and laughing joyfully, he unintentionally and innocently says, “You guys really do match one another.”

Right after his comment, the two friends pause. Hana is off of Luhan’s back but her hands stayed headlocked on Luhan as she tiptoes to reach him. One of Luhan’s hands is around her waist and his other hand is at the crown of her head, trying to mess with her hair. The two friends caught the accidental underlying meaning that also made them involuntarily reminisced about their virtual relationship.

Kris sees the frozen scene and he, too, then catches onto his remark. He guiltily winces and looks down. “Sorry.” He tries to look at them. “I-I didn’t mean to…”

Hana’s the first to let Luhan go. She turns around and fixes her attire.

Luhan stands at his spot, exhaling a loud sigh to express his mixed emotions. He gives a good, quick thought about his next action, but he hesitates on whether or not it’s the right time; however, his decision hastens when Hana walks passed him without bothering to look at him. He quickly halts her by the wrist, and it receives her attention along with Kris’s.

He locks eyes with Hana and with a stern tone, he blurts out, “With my brother as a witness again, let’s get married. For real this time.”

*

With Luhan’s presence gone—and taking the tension with him—it is just the second generation of the Lu virtual family: Hana, Taeyang, and Kris. Taeyang is currently in his bed, rummaging around to find his rehearsal equipment before his mother takes him to school for the play’s practice. It’s a summer practice for the summer festival happening at the beginning of next month. He’ll be performing it at school and then at the shrine at the festival, both events will be done with his class and teacher.

“I hear that you’ll be very busy this month,” Kris speaks, finally finding the time—and probably the only good time. “I guess that makes the both of us busy, then.”

Hana, trying to act calm after the abrupt proposal that miraculously came to a halt due to Taeyang’s interruption regarding his clothes, asks back, “Oh, does it have something to do with a friend you brought back? Taeyang texted me with your phone last night. I only saw the message this morning when I came across you in the hallway.”

“Yes,” he lightly chuckles. “Sorry for giving you a fright then. I was going to call to ask if I can sleep over for the night to make up for last time that I missed, but I figured that you’d be asleep at three in the morning.”

Her eyes widen. “You guys arrived back that late?”

“Usually, I’d be back home around one, but because we had my friend whom I brought with us, there were a few things that we had to take care of.”

“Is he the uncle that Taeyang dearly adores?”

Kris nods. “Yes. He may be young, but he’s very, very mature, even though he still thinks he needs to work on himself.” He breaks eye contact with Hana and solemnly looks away. “I had been wanting to take him back to the city, but he had his reasons of staying in the countryside.”

This isn’t the real reason, however, for Kris bringing in his friend. He wants to gradually include his friend further into the personal life of Taeyang before the truth gets found out; however, before he can focus on his friend’s comfortability, he needs to tackle the problem at hand. “He may be younger than us, but he’s very mature and he has a lot of experience.”

Hana silently nods.

“And speaking of mature, I want to discuss something with you before we don’t have the time to.”

“Sure.” She perks up.

“A-about your proposal…”

Hana, having mistaken about which proposal Kris is referring to, puts a hand out anxiously. “You don’t have to think much about it. He-he’s just out of his mind, that’s all.”

Kris raises a brow. “He?”

“About what Luhan said earlier.” Her thumb points to the back of her, implying the scene that happened in the kitchen.

He laughs, having realized about the mistake he made. “Uh, not about that proposal.”

Her eyes bat. There is another proposal that she had received? But the only men—man—in her life—romantic life—that she knows is none other than the idiot, Luhan.

Kris bashfully pinpoints about the proposal she had texted to him a few weeks ago.

Her complexion and expression subtly changes.

He stiffens up and she painfully glances away.

While she stays frozen in her seat, thinking back and replaying the time when she fondled with her cell phone in her hand, thinking of whether or not the idea of her and Kris marrying would be the best and only option for Taeyang’s and Luhan’s protection in the case that something bad happens and she can’t avoid it.

The idea of marrying Kris is not an abrupt one, however. On Taeyang’s second birthday, a year after she had moved away from Luhan to live with Taeyang alone, she found out about something related to Taeyang and it was then that she knew she may have to marry Kris if there is ever a need to.

Kris tries to speak up with a unbashful tone and attitude. “A-about it, I-I don’t know what to say…”

Hana hastily looks up. “I can’t, and I won’t force you into it.” She gently bites her lower lip. “But I figured it’s the best choice.”

The room becomes silent and she hesitates to say the next line, because she knows it’s the reality Kris has not yet come to accept. But time isn’t going to wait for them to spill anything.

She has to say it. “Besides, you’re already a father he accepts.”

A wave of guilt and agony heavily falls down on Kris as her comment goes in one ear and stays there. It repeats and echoes in his mind, body, and soul. And a face only he can recognize paints in his mind, a smile that he had seen only twice. Despite the responsibility he is supposed to repent for, he can’t chain down Hana any further and take away his younger brother’s sole happiness that he had patiently waited for six years.

Kris looks at Hana. “I—” He takes in a deep breath. “What about Luhan?” He purposely brings in the party that isn’t involved. Or at least, directly involved.

A thorn pierces her entire body, but she brushes it aside. She forces herself to say, “What about him?”

“I know he loves you. And,” he quickly glances back to the kitchen, which she catches. “I know he means it—the proposal.” He deeply inhales through his nose. “Yeah, it was probably out of haste and my comment before must’ve triggered it, but I know he wants you and Taeyang in his life.” And he’ll be a much better father than I can ever be for Taeyang.

The silence presumes. This time, the sounds from Hana’s bedroom, where Taeyang is in, can be heard. It strikes them that Taeyang is the one whom they need to focus on and that he’s really their upmost priority who needs and will need their protection.

Hana heaves a sigh. “I know…” she holds back the tears, because if she doesn’t, she knows Kris won’t find his resolve to take up the chance and offer she has handed to him. “…but, he and I, it won’t happen.” I won’t let it happen. “He and I, aren’t meant to be together.” Eunji’s a sweeter, and better choice. She’s the perfect match for him. “And like I said before,” she gulps the words down and musters courage to say the next comment, “we can’t go back to being what we once were.” One year of virtual love is good enough.

Unfortunately, no matter how hard she tried, her emotions win. She locks eye contact with Kris, and at the same time, tears stream down her cheeks. Yet, she still keeps a firm—and fake—smile. “I’m satisfied with the virtual life we had.”

*

Luhan enters his office with two plastic bags in his hand while beaming a glistening smile at the little boy. “Hi, Taeyang!”

Taeyang responds back with the same amount of happiness. “Hi, Uncle!”

Hana tries to not look annoy, though. She and her son have arrived at Luhan’s office about fifteen minutes ago, right after Taeyang’s rehearsal was finished. The point for today’s meeting is because Taeyang’s photoshoot begins today and Taeyang, the star of photoshoot, has to be prepped. Although she could’ve sent Taeyang to the set herself, Luhan never gave her the address and has forbidden his secretary on giving Hana any other information besides the date of the photoshoot, therefore, Hana has to meet up with Luhan and inevitably leave with him.

While she is immersed in her thoughts, she feels the space next to her changed. She turns to look and sees Luhan sitting beside her.

He is chewing his food—the things he brought upon his arrival—and one of his hands in front of her holds the chopsticks with a ball of takoyaki covered in subtle soy sauce. “Eat.”

“I’m not hungry.”

“The shooting’s going to take long, and we’ll miss dinner, so eat.”

“I already—”

He cheekily smooches her cheek. “If you don’t, I’ll do more than this.”

She clears . “Where’s my chopstick?”

He victoriously smiles and then with his free hand, he points to himself. “Me!”

“I’m serious.” She gives him an annoyed look. Behind Luhan, she sees her son happily enjoying his food and thankfully, not looking back at them. “If you want me to eat, I need my chopsticks.”

He also seriously says, “I am your chopsticks.”

“Luhan.”

“Hana.”

She hates it when he affectionately calls her. It drowns everything out, making her see only him. And it's time like this where she can't help but smile. She opens , waiting for him to feed her.

He surprisingly raises his brows. “You-you’re going to let me feed you?”

She rolls her eyes due to embarrassment. “Are you going to feed me or not?” She closes and looks away. “Your loss.”

He speedily holds her hand to