"Don't tire yourself. Take the meds and eat healthily."

Heechul smiled at the middle-aged woman and nodded assuringly.

"I will, Mrs. Park. Thank you for taking care of me."

"No, no," she waved her hand in front of her face, "Chullie, no need to thank me. Just get better, okay? I'm going now. Have a good rest."

Mrs. Park enveloped Heechul in a bear hug, waving at her son right after and went to her car. Heechul followed her with his gaze, bowing slightly when the driver pulled over, and even after the car had gone, he was still there. The reason was that he had no courage to face Jungsoo—whom he knew was also still standing a few distances behind him. It felt so nostalgic to come back to this house but everything was also so awkward. He could not foolishly pretend everything was like how it used to be. Moreover, Jungsoo seemed to have fallen back to his usual self, being all cold towards him. 

"Are you gonna stand there until tomorrow?" 

Here we go—Heechul shut his eyes tightly when Jungsoo's not-so-friendly remark reached his ears. He turned around and wordlessly entered the house. From his sneaky observations, nothing had changed much. The kids' room—when he put them to bed earlier—was still the same. And he bet the rest of the house was too. What, probably, had changed was the fact that the trace of him was nowhere to be found in this house. It was as if he had never lived here in the past. 

Diminishing his wild thoughts quickly, he went straight to his luggage and pulled his suitcase to the guest room.

"Prof. Park?" 

On the calling of his name, Jungsoo followed the source of the voice and found Heechul standing in the hallway in front of the guest room. He had been pondering on how to tell Heechul that he was yet to be ready to share the same room and now that the latter had known which room he should stay in, it slightly eased him.

"The key?" 

Heechul asked, beaming, as he spread his palm. Jungsoo was spaced out for a moment before he went to the nearby drawer and took out the key. He handed it to Heechul and their hands accidentally brushed, sending tingling feelings all over his inside. He did not know why he was still affected by him. 

"You don't need to be too tense, Prof. Park," Heechul suddenly looked at him after the latter succeeded in unlocking the door. 

"I know my place. I'm refitting now and if so, I gotta do it properly right?" 

Jungsoo was stunned when Heechul cast him that smile—that beautiful smile that was only his. It was as if there were a magnet pulling him to wanting more. 

"Good night, Prof. Park."

And he knew, eventually, he would want more. 

«────── « ⋅♥⋅ » ──────»

Jungsoo was in a rush, looping a tie around his neck as he walked fast to the kitchen. He woke up a bit late today and actually, it had happened several times. Keeping up with his workload and still obligated to do his duty as a father cut him no slack. He had to stay until late at night and woke early in the morning. 

Was he exhausted? No doubt— but he also knew that the real question was whether he had a choice.

By the time he reached the end of the hallway, his buttons were all clasped and he was ready to prepare some breakfast. But, he surely forgot one thing—

"Good morning, Prof. Park."

—that he had Heechul back now. His eyes were fixed on the dining table where a stack of pancakes—some honey and butter ready in its side—, two glasses of milk and scrambled eggs were already served. His gaze traveled upward and stopped when he saw Heechul pour a freshly-brewed coffee into two cups. It was like the old time. His astonishment did not stop until that. He was stunned when his kids raced towards the dining room, already dressed up neatly, when Heechul called them.

"Good morning, Daddy," Hyukjae chirped, taking a seat on one of the chairs. And just then, Heechul finally looked at him—probably because he took too long to reply to his son's greeting