“Kyungsoo...why are you crying?” the little boy questions with wide eyes as he slowly approaches the crying boy, who’s huddled behind a stone bench in the garden. The little boy, with furrowed brows, reaches out a small hand to wipe away the tears on his friend’s pale cheeks.

The crying boy looks up, his lashes wet and eyes red from all the crying, and chokes on an incoming sob as he feels his friend’s arms wrap around his trembling frame. The boy immediately clutches on his friend’s shirt, eyes squeezing shut as he searches for comfort. “Jun-Junmyeon, I’m scared. M-Mom and dad…”

Junmyeon, with his small hands, begins to rub the crying boy’s back. “Did they fight again, Kyung?”

He feels the smaller boy’s head nod against his shoulder.

“I want - I want them gone! Why - why do they have to fight all the time?” Kyungsoo wails, his small form shaking uncontrollably as another sob rake through his heaving chest. Flashes of memories come through his mind; he hears his mother’s yell, his father’s anger, and the crashing of vases on the ground. His hands are trembling as he clutches onto Junmyeon even tighter, wanting everything that torments him to disappear.

The older of the two frowns. “You don’t mean that… They love you a lot.”

Just before Kyungsoo can reply, flashes of lights shine upon them and the concerned voice of his mother reaches his ears. The crying boy struggles to bury his tiny form into his friend’s embrace, but Junmyeon seems to disagree with his decision for he detaches himself from the boy and turns his head to the direction of the voice. Junmyeon sees his own mother in the crowd of searchers, following her friend along with a bunch of maids and butlers from the house. Smiling, he looks down at his friend and wipes away the new stream of tears. “Your mother’s here, Kyung.”

“Oh Junmyeon, you found Kyungsoo!” Sookhee heaves in relief as she bends down to check on her son. The little boy smiles a toothy smile in return and brings his arms around her neck. She chuckles softly and lifts him up in her embrace before turning her attention to her friend.

Kyungsoo sniffles as his mother brings him into her arms, her hands holding onto him tightly. “Mommy is so sorry. Mommy didn’t want to scare you; daddy didn’t either.” Her eyes show regret and worry, hands busily wiping away the snot and tears from her son’s face. “Kyungsoo, please forgive me.” The mother then brings her son back into her arms and holds back a sob.

The little boy, only wanting comfort and reassurance from the start, sniffles quietly and buries his head into the crook of her neck, “Don’t fight…” he whispers with his trembling voice.

His mother instantly shakes her head, the burden being released from her shoulders. “We won’t fight anymore, my lovely Kyungsoo.” She promises him, her voice soft and slightly uncertain due to her unstable relationship with her spouse, but she would do anything to make her son happy.

Sookhee glances at the two with a warm smile. “Mirae, let’s go back inside now and get little Kyungsoo all cleaned up so Junmyeon can play with him.” Junmyeon beams cutely at her words before he struggles out of her arms to help his accompany his friend back into the house.

Kyungsoo runs through the endless rows of bookshelves, giggling to himself as he hides away from his friend’s watchful eyes. Not watching his steps, the boy suddenly trips over a pile of books on the carpeted floor and lands on his little hands and knees. He lets out a small yelp of pain, eyes narrowing in frustration as he glares back at the cause of his discomfort. The little boy huffs, standing up and plans to kick the pile of books when he hears his name being called. Startled, the boy looks ahead and finds Junmyeon running up to him.

“Who left these here? It made me fall!” Kyungsoo angrily states as he points to his enemy.

Junmyeon sheepishly looks away. “I - I forgot to put them back last night.”

“You?!” his friend gasps in shock.

“They’re really good! Come on, I’ll show you.” Junmyeon hurries and grabs his friend’s soft hand, forcing the stubborn boy to sit next to him as he opens up one of the picture books.

Kyungsoo crinkles his nose and crosses his arms in front of his chest, “But they hurt me!”

“I’ll apologize in their place.” Junmyeon cheekily replies before pointing to something within the book. His friend’s frown deepens and to show his immense displeasure, Kyungsoo ignores the what the boy wants to show him. Fighting back the urge to see what Junmyeon wanted to show him, the young Kyungsoo turns his gaze to the one of the large windows within the library and juts his lower lip out in a pout.

“Stupid Junmyeon,” the young boy sulks.

Junmyeon, noticing his friend’s little tantrum, laughs. “You’re nine and you act like you’re five.”

“Do not!”

“Then listen to me.”

“I…-” Feeling lost for words, the younger of the two slumps his shoulders and continue to ignore his friend.

“And the boy looks up to his mom, eyes shining and heart bursting with happiness.” Junmyeon’s index finger trails along with the words printed on the page as he reads them aloud for his friend to hear. “You can become what you want to be. As long as you hold onto your dreams, it will not get lost, my child.” He recites his favorite line from the story, eyes beginning to shine with wonder just like the little boy in the picture above the words.

Along the way, Kyungsoo, no longer able to resist temptation, sneakily glances at the book in Junmyeon’s hand and scoots closer to him. “A-And?” Although he was little, Kyungsoo still had so much pride.

His friend laughs, “Don’t you have a dream?”

“. . .Not yet. You?”

“I…” Junmyeon releases a content sigh, the corner of his lips tugging upwards into a grin. “I do.”

Upon hearing the other’s confession, Kyungsoo’s eyes widen in curiosity. “What is it?”

“Don’t tell anyone!” His friend replies, the sparkle never once leaving his eyes, “I want to write.”

Kyungsoo glances at his childhood friend from where he stands, feeling a tug of sorrow pulling at the corner of his heart. Dressed in their formal black attires, the Do family came to give their condolences to the Kim Group’s late President. After giving a respectful bow to the dead, Kyungsoo carefully approaches the teen and gets on his knees. No words are exchanged, but Junmyeon does glance at his childhood friend to show his gratitude.

A small smile forms on Kyungsoo’s plump lips, as if he wants to tell the teen that everything will be alright, because Junmyeon still has him and so many others by his side. The two friends stay by each other’s side until dark, when the all the guests are gone except for the mourning family and the Do family.

Later that night, when Junmyeon arrives home, his mother pulls him into a tight embrace in the dark room. She sinks to her knees with him, and her sobs echo throughout the empty halls of the mansion. Her son holds onto her, hoping she would find comfort in him for the night. He feels tears welling up in his eyes and instantly glances up at the tall ceiling so that they won’t fall.

Junmyeon closes his eyes and brings his mother closer in his arms, “Don’t cry…”

“Your father is gone, what am I going to do?” Sookhee continues to cry.

“I’m here, mother. I won’t leave you.” He whispers in the dark, his tears finally escaping from his eyes as he finally realizes his father won’t be around anymore. His father, the man who has guided him throughout his childhood, will no longer be by his side. The man who has inspired him and brought him up with wise words will no longer walk the earth. Junmyeon’s father is...gone. “We’ll be fine, the two of us will be fine.” Junmyeon struggles to say these words, but he has to find a way to comfort his hurting mother.

“My son will take over the Kim Group and become CEO of Enchantment when he is of age.”

Junmyeon’s heartbeat stops as soon as he hears his mother’s stern voice from behind the door. He drops his hand from the doorknob and slowly backs away, shaking his head in denial. Breathing almost becomes hard for him now as he tries to process her words. “No…” his voice is soft but it holds determination and frustration. He stare at the door with wide eyes, “I can’t.”

His mother’s words shoot through him like a bullet, tearing his dream apart and leaving him with nothing left but despair. The teen feel tears welling up in his eyes. This isn’t happening, he tells himself, Mother wouldn’t do that to me. Shaky breaths of air leaves his parted lips in a frantic manner.

How could she decide his future for him?

Didn’t she know what his dream was?

Why?

No longer wanting to see her, the soles of his feet turn a different direction and he runs down the hallway. He doesn’t know how long he’s been running, doesn’t care if his legs are beginning to hurt, doesn’t care if his butler calls out to him in panic. All Junmyeon wants at this point is to get away, get away from his responsibilities and away from his mother’s expectations.

Kim Junmyeon doesn’t want to take over

Hell, he doesn’t want the responsibilities put on him as the only heir of the Kim Group.

He wants freedom.

He wants to do things without restrictions.

Junmyeon wants to become a writer, not a CEO.

Before he knows it, he’s in front of the Do family’s mansion. Slowing down his steps, the heir of the Kim Group places his hands on his knees and engulfs large amounts of air to relieve his aching chest. Walking up to the golden gates and wincing at every step he takes, Junmyeon’s about to shake the gates open when he hears his name being called from behind. Immediately, he turns around and sees Kyungsoo coming out of the black car and running up to him.

“What happened to you? And why are your feet bleeding?” his friend questions with wide eyes.

The very moment Kyungsoo is in front of him, Junmyeon lets his guard down and engulfs the smaller one into a tight hug. Securing his arms around his childhood friend’s narrow shoulders, the teen forces a sob down his throat and buries his face into the crook of Kyungsoo’s neck. “I can’t do this anymore.” His plead for help is full of desperation and pain. “Please, Kyungsoo, tell me what I have to do to stop this.”

Lost for words, said teen blinks in confusion and slowly brings his hands up to touch Junmyeon’s slightly trembling shoulders. “Jun, what - what happened?”

“I don’t want to take over, help me Kyungsoo.” Junmyeon begs once more.

Feeling droplet of tears hitting his skin, Kyungsoo’s heart drops as he realizes his childhood friend is sobbing in his arms. It only takes one sentence for him to know the root of Junmyeon’s despair: his mother. Not knowing what to do, Kyungsoo draws in a small breath of air and tries to lighten up the mood. “If it makes you feel better, my parents are fighting again.” Although he tries to sound cheerful, tries to show that Junmyeon isn’t in it alone, he fails when his voice becomes shaky.

“Stupid, that’s not something to joke about…” Junmyeon huffs, but ends up smiling a little.

“Now you’re finding my situation funny. I hate you.” Kyungsoo retorts with a pout.

“You know that’s not true.” It is now Junmyeon who is comforting his friend.

The shorter of the two rolls his eyes and manages a reassuring smile. “I’m sure if you tell her what you really want, she won’t force you anymore.”

“You think so?” there’s a slight hint of hope in his friend’s voice.

Kyungsoo nods his head, “I hope so.”

His mother stares at him in an incredulous manner, her eyebrows furrow in confusion and lips parted despite despite feeling speechless.

“Junmyeon, what did you just say?” Her tone is full of doubt and denial as she tries to process his words.

“Mother,” Junmyeon hesitantly starts again. “I don’t want to take over.”

Sookhee grabs his hand and shakes her head, “No… You’re just - just feeling under the weather, right?” she purses her lips together when she receives no answer from her son. “Your father built this company with his own hands, you can’t say you don’t want to take over!” She raises her voice without knowing, her blood beginning to boil at the thought of sacrificing her late husband’s hard work for her son’s careless thoughts.

Junmyeon ducks his head low, feeling ashamed for making her mad. “I…”

She shakes her head and inhales a breath of air to calm down. “Junmyeon, listen to me. I only want the best for you. What you think now may not be what you want later in life. This is your safe place - being the heir of the Kim Group.” His mother caresses the side of his face. “Make you father proud, please?”

He doesn’t protest, but he also doesn’t accept her words.

The storm outside is getting worse, but to Kyungsoo, Junmyeon’s mental state is even worse compared to the growing storm. Instead of the calm and collected Kim Junmyeon, all Kyungsoo can see in front of him is a broken and unstable Kim Junmyeon. He stands in front of the teen, carefully monitoring his every move in case something unexpected happens. “Junmyeon, you’re not saying anything.” Kyungsoo speaks of matter-of-factly.

Junmyeon hovers over the stack of books (his favorite from childhood) on the wooden table, eyes red from holding in his tears and fists trembling with rage. “I can’t do this! I can’t do that! I’m sick of this life!” The sixteen-year-old shouts all of the sudden, startling his friend in the process. His mother’s constant expectations of him to accomplish certain things has put so much stress on him. All Junmyeon ever wanted was to live a normal life and accomplish his dream, but now, everything seems so dark and hopeless.

“I’m sure there’s a way.” Kyungsoo says quietly.

“I don’t want to take over!”

As lightning flashes across the sky, Junmyeon shoves all the books off the table.

“You’re eighteen now, darling.” Sookhee soothes the crinkles on her son’s expensive dress shirt, a proud grin on her face as she reminisces of her son’s past achievements in school. “Number one in your class - even Kyungsoo can’t beat you and he’s such a smart boy!”

Junmyeon feels the urge to roll his eyes, but keeps it to himself. “Thank you, mother.”

She chuckles at her son’s politeness. “You keep getting better throughout the year. Your father would be so proud to see you now.” Her tone softens at the mention of her deceased husband, and although Junmyeon still resents her for crushing his dreams, he still loves her because she is the woman who brought him into this world. He brings her into his arms for a reassuring hug.

“It’s my birthday party today. Cheer up, mother.” Junmyeon gives her a smile.

“I can’t wait until the day you inherit the position as CEO.”

No.

Proud?

I’m not proud of myself.

Junmyeon’s eyes widen in fear the very moment he arrives in front of the mansion that is engulfed in flames. Heart beating rapidly inside his chest, the teen searches around to see if there are any survivors. Quickly dialing the emergency number, Junmyeon spots an unconscious Kyungsoo lying on the ground far away from the fire. In his frantic state, he still sees someone running back inside the burning house -

Kyungsoo’s father?

“There’s a fire at the Do Group’s mansion in Cheongpyeong, please come quickly!” Junmyeon rushes to his childhood friend’s side to check if he’s alright as he answers the questions from the operator. “Please hurry! I think there are still people in the house!” Once the operator hangs up, the teen shakes Kyungsoo’s shoulder and brings the unconscious boy into his arms.

“Kyungsoo?!” he shouts his name out in distress. “Can you hear me?”

Said teen emits a small, pained groan, his cheeks slightly covered with dust from the fire. “M-Mom...d-dad...don’t go…” Words are struggling to form in his constricted throat, and Kyungsoo finds it difficult to breathe properly in his weak state.

There are tears in his eyes as he tries to shake his friend awake, “Don’t do this to me! Kyungsoo, please!” The boy feels so weak and light in his arms, and it honestly frightens Junmyeon to death. There are so many questions swirling in his mind at this moment. How did the fire happen? Why is Kyungsoo the only one out here? Where are his parents? In the midst of confusion, he feels the weak boy stirring in his arms.

“Kyungsoo, can you hear me?” Junmyeon questions again as he stares at the boy in his arms.

Kyungsoo doesn’t reply, but Junmyeon notices a trail of tears running escaping from the corner of his eyes. His heart shatters at the sight; Kyungsoo looks so broken, so lonely, so hurt. Junmyeon brings his attention back to the burning mansion, his breathing hard and uneven as he witnesses an explosion from within the house. Gasping, he immediately shields Kyungsoo’s body with his own.

“Please, please be alright,” he pleads, hoping that what he saw earlier was not true.

Kyungsoo’s father and mother shouldn’t be in the house.

Please.

He then hears the sound of sirens ringing from a distance.

Junmyeon’s hold on his childhood friend never loosens until the paramedic forces him to let go.

The steady beeping of the heart monitor is the only thing that keeps Junmyeon sane at the moment. He sits on the stool by the hospital bed, gaze staring blankly at the pale blue wall opposite from him as he waits for his childhood friend to recover from the shock and pain from the house fire. The scene keeps replaying itself inside his mind - he keeps seeing the figure of Kyungsoo’s father running back into the flames before an abrupt explosion occurs from one side of the building. Everything is engulfed in flames, and what’s worse is the fact that Kyungsoo’s parents never made it out alive.

How is he going to tell Kyungsoo the truth?

Kyungsoo, who only yearned for comfort and love from his parents, is now an orphan.

Both his mother and father died in that fire; Kyungsoo was the only one who survived.

Junmyeon couldn’t even begin to imagine how his childhood friend would be able to deal with the news. Just the slightest thought of it made his heart clench in sorrow and pity. Inhaling a breath of air, the teen breaks away from his deep thoughts to make sure Kyungsoo’s condition hasn’t gotten worse after being hospitalized. He notices a slight furrow in the teen’s brows following a low groan within his throat. Becoming alert at the changes, Junmyeon instantly stands up from his seat and hovers over Kyungsoo. He is cautious when he places a hand over the boy’s shoulder, not wanting to cause any further damage than what’s already been done in the fire.

“Kyungsoo, can you hear me?” He receives a small whimper in return.

Figuring that his friend must be parched, Junmyeon pours a glass of water and places it on the stand next to the bed as Kyungsoo struggles to open his eyes with a pained groan. Once confirmed that his friend is indeed waking up, Junmyeon presses the button on the headboard to call for the doctor.

Kyungsoo whimpers softly at the immense amount of pain in the back of his head, but still manages to regain his vision after a few seconds of blurriness. “Jun...myeon...what…?” He stares at his friend in confusion, wondering why his body aches along with the fact that he is hospitalized. Staring at his friends with his doe-like eyes, the teen tries to search for an answer to his silent questions.

To Junmyeon, Kyungsoo looks so much like a lost child who needed to be protected at all cost. He parts his lips, but not a single word seems to be able to form, and so Junmyeon closes his mouth and dryly swallows. The teen just doesn’t know how to break the awful news to his beloved friend; it would hurt him too much. His heart clenches at the sight of Kyungsoo staring at him innocently, as if his mind has temporarily forgotten the event from hours ago. “You…” Junmyeon hesitantly begins. “You really don’t remember what happened?”

“What-”

Before Kyungsoo can comprehend anything, the door opens to reveal a doctor and a nurse coming in. Wanting to avoid any heartbreaks for the moment, Junmyeon steps aside and lets the doctor inspect his friend’s current condition. In the process, he avoids meeting the curious and lost gaze of Kyungsoo’s. Once the doctor finishes up with a few notes, he turns to Junmyeon with a grim expression. “His condition has gotten a lot better since his arrival. If he continues to heal properly, he will be able to leave in two days.”

Junmyeon gives him a resp