SoRa waved goodbye at the door as TaeKyung walked away backwards, waving to her with a wide smile. He gestured her to close the door once he reached the end of the front yard and she regretfully gave the last wave and shut the door. Seeing her figure disappear, a strange sense of dull pain spread through TaeKyung's chest. His arm dropped to his side and hung loose. Maybe it was jealousy, for he never had a warm home with a family waiting to welcome him home. Or maybe it was melancholy from realizing that his childhood friend would no longer come to him first for help. Whatever the emotion might have been, it was certainly not happiness. 

Shaking his thoughts away, he turned his back toward the house. There was no place for him -or anyone else- in that house; it was a space set only for the young couple. They left no opening for others to enter. Nor did they leave the slightest chance for others to tear down their life. They were truly meant for each other. There was no other way to explain the undeniable connection they held with one another.

As he began walking down the perfectly smoothed concrete sidewalk, a shadow appeared in front of his eyes. He looked up to find a familiar yet unexpected face. 

"Do you mind sparing some time with me?" the man asked very politely almost as if he was testing TaeKyung.

The two men sat face to face at a small table in the corner of a quiet cafe. There was a piano concerto playing faintly through the speakers on the ceiling, easing the noises of conversations and coffee brewers. TaeKyung awkwardly traced the rim of his coffee cup as he waited for the man to ask whatever he wanted to ask.

"I never like to beat around the bush," the man finally broke the silence. TaeKyung sat up tall and brought his hands to his lap at his voice. "You are from the orphanage, correct?"

TaeKyung swallowed a little, then nodded. "I was at the same orphanage as SoRa." He met his eyes with the man's. They were determined yet there was a slim feeling of sorrow in the man's eyes. "You are her father, am I right?"

"Biologically, yes. My name is Yoon SeoNam." The man introduced himself with an acute emphasis on the first word. "I'm surprised you know me."

"I actually don't know anything about you except for the fact that you are her father," TaeKyung confessed, scratching the back of his head. "I recognized your back at the store. You always came to the orphanage and watched from afar. But you never came close enough to be noticed by anyone, and you would always turn back around and walk away."

"So you caught me," SeoNam said. Now it was his turn to nervously trace the rim of the mug cup. "I wanted to step closer and meet my daughter. It sounds like an excuse now, I know." He let out a heartless chuckle and TaeKyung pursed his lips together. "But... whenever I thought of her, all that came to my mind was guilt. How could I meet her, when I'm the one who pushed her away? No, that is too nice of a word. I threw her away. I have no right to call myself a father, let alone meet her as if nothing happened."

There was a moment of silence in the air filled only with the smell of fresh coffee. The two men looked down at their own cups thinking to themselves. Spinning their minds at full speed, they plotted the words for the next sentence.

"You know, as an orphan, just knowing that I have a mother or a father is a comfort. Even if that person threw me away, knowing that they exist gives me an enormous strength." TaeKyung spoke, sounding each and every word carefully, now looking straight into SeoNam's eyes. He could see the hesitance in SeoNam's eyes, and sighed allowing his back to lean back against the chair. "Of course, telling the child know about the parent's existence might cause some ruckus. But in the case of SoRa... I'm sure she will understand. She grew up not knowing what a family is but always dreamt of one. She will be thrilled to know she has a father."

"I..." SeoNam swallowed his word, unknowingly tensing up. He took a sip of coffee trying to rehydrate his dry throat. After a short exhale, he raised his eyes, locking with TaeKyung's. "I plan on hiding from SoRa." TaeKyung opened his mouth to say something, when SeoNam continued, "Unless she is curious about her childhood. Then I will tell her everything without leaving a single fact hidden. But no sooner."

TaeKyung blinked, then smiled. "She would be more than overjoyed when she finds out you are her father."

The two men shook hands and stood up to take their leaves. SeoNam offered to pay for the both of them, and after a brief yays and nays, SeoNam put down the bills as TaeKyung tucked his wallet away. 

"I think I know who SoRa takes after," TaeKyung said as the two men began walking different ways.

Hey~

I'm really sorry for not updating for about a month >____<;;;; There was a lot of school things to take care of...

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