Chapter 4

“Look, daddy. No hands!”

“Whoa!” Jiyong claps, grinning wide when his son speeds up in front of him.

Jinwoo is practically the carbon copy of Taeyeon. Good and bad. The boy is smart, sensitive, and caring beyond belief. He also takes side with his mother when it comes to outdoor activity. They both rather spend days at home than spend hours outside. So it's with nothing but pride Jiyong watches his son riding the bike he just bought. It's the boy's birthday and they are about to spend the whole afternoon in the park. How awesome is that?

“Careful, baby.” That sweet voice. Jiyong turns his head in time to see Taeyeon smiling at their son. The smile that makes his heart echoes with longing. The smile that would have been enough to drag him to her side and kiss her.

Jiyong can't come to her though. Not even when his heart screams for him to hurry. There's barely a hundred feet of cobbled pavement between him and the bench where she's sitting but there are a million miles of invisible distance between their hearts.

That and there's another man by her side. A man with stylish sunglasses perched on his well-kept blonde hair. A man in crisp polo and sleek khakis.  A man who's busy taking pictures of Jinwoo with his obviously state-of-the-art camera. A new man in Taeyeon's life.

Jiyong frowns, suddenly considering buying an expensive camera too. He can. He has the money. He's the great Kwon Jiyong, three times national motocross champions. Girls are coming for him from around the country. Not every man can ride a motorbike like he does.

The jealously slithering inside is embarrassing but he can't help it. He wants to be that man, sitting so close to Taeyeon.

Jiyong kicks an innocent pebble to channel his frustration, stealing another look at the man again. He then looks down at the shredded jeans he has on. At his Megadeath shirt. At the tattoos all over his arms. Appearance-wise, Jiyong knows he doesn't stand a chance. A beautiful woman like Taeyeon only deserves an equally beautiful man.

Risking another glance at the couple on the bench, Jiyong regrets it instantly. The green-eyed monster inside him grows by ten sizes, feeding on the smile adoring Taeyeon's face when the man leans in and whispers into her ear.

Oh, how he wishes clubbing a man over jealousy is legal in this country. Two years after their official separation, he can't still accept the fact that Taeyeon has moved on. He has no idea which one he hates more; the stupid man or his idiot self.

“Good job, Jinwoo! One more lap!” He cheers for his boy as an effort to snip the growing pettiness inside.

The boy put his foot down for a stop, giving his father a thumb up. His face is red after the few laps on his new bike, but the boy still gives a huge smile under his safety helmet. Jiyong responds with extra enthusiastic thumb up, fishing his ringing phone out as he does so.

It's from Tabi, asking him to take a red-eye flight to the circuit tonight.

“Come on, Tabi. I barely spent a day with my boy.” Jiyong huffs into the speaker, clearly annoyed. “You promised me a week. I want a week. Seven days!”

“No. No. They can wait.” He turns away, afraid of Taeyeon and her new boy's judgment shall they hear the conversation. “The new engine can wait., damn it.”

“Screw the sponsor. I need this. My son needs me. You and Mr.Lee don't get to-”

“Jinwoo, watch out! No!”

He lifts his head at Taeyeon's scream. In time to see Jinwoo's bike fall from the steel ramp, slamming the skinny boy onto the concrete floor.

He hears a loud “ouch.” He sees Taeyeon runs for their son, her man following closely behind. He dashes too, doesn't even bother to properly end his conversation with Tabi.

“Are you okay?” Reaching the boy first, Jiyong gently scoops him onto his lap. “Tell me where it hurts, buddy.”

“My hand.” Jinwoo screws his eyes shut, clearly in a lot of pain.

One look and Jiyong can tell that Jinwoo's arm has been broken. Another look to the side and he can see tears start to well up in Taeyeon's eyes.

“It's okay. It's okay.” Jiyong fakes calmness and kisses the side of Jinwoo's head. “It's just a fall. Daddy falls all the time. You'll be alright.”

Looking up at his crying ex-wife, Jiyong grimaces. “He will be alright."

“He will be alright. He's a strong boy.”

With distaste, Jiyong watches the man says those words with arm slinging around Taeyeon's shoulder. The three of them are now in a waiting room of a hospital, waiting for an update from the doctor regarding Jinwoo's injury.

He stares at the room where Jinwoo is treated. Resenting himself for choosing a bicycle as Jinwoo's birthday present. What was he thinking? Why didn't he just stick to the usual gift of books or lego set?

Jiyong squints at the lovey-dovey couple again, fully knowing that Taeyeon is blaming him for this incident. Now not only that he isn't as good-looking as his rival. He's also once again responsible for Taeyeon's tears. Tears that the damned man is currently wiping from the smooth skin of her cheeks.

“Kwon Jinwoo's parents?”

“Yes.” Jiyong scurries toward the female doctor. Taeyeon and her man following closely.

“Hi, I'm doctor Choi. I'm treating your son.” The doctor holds up an X-ray image. "He has a fractured ulna. There's a broken bone in his arm."

“Oh yeah.” Jiyong instantly recognizes  the broken bone in the image. “I had one of those last January, completely healed in one month.”

Taeyeon flashes a look at him. A look that Jiyong can easily decipher as displeasure.

“How severe is the injury?”Taeyeon asks, hugging herself.

“Pretty severe but I don't think a young boy like him will need pins. Kids heal themselves quickly.”

“Great.” Letting out a deep breath, Jiyong finally able to feel a bit of relieve. “I figure it will be just a cast then, no surgery?”

“Yep. A cast for the forearm.” Glancing at Jiyong, the doctor now turns her attention to Taeyeon. “Did your son hit his head when he fell?”

“No. He broke his fall with the arm.” Taeyeon shakes her head. “What's wrong?”

“Did he fall hard?”

“Not really, the ramp isn't that high.” Taeyeon's man chimes in.

“Alright.” The doctor frowns, scribbling something into the chart. “Did he fall and breaks his bone often before?”

Narrowing his eyes toward the doctor, Jiyong suddenly recalls the few trips they made to the hospital the first weeks Jinwoo learned to ride a bike. The few trips that made Taeyeon hate bike even more.

“He fell, sometimes. Trip over and stuff. My boy is a little clumsy.” Taeyeon gulps. “Why? What's wrong?”

“He has some nystagmus. Involuntary eye movement.”

“Which means?” Jiyong cuts in, sense of foreboding suddenly escalating.

“Nystagmus can be a sign of neurological issues, I-”

“Are you telling me that something is wrong with Jinwoo