One day passed. They sent him back to the hole he’d been calling home for the past years. A silent breeze whispered from deep within the darkest corners. The silk covers witnessed his tensed muscles. The same heart beat he’d join in slumber disturbed him. Each breath grew heavier as night approached its end. Blurred childhood memories turned the gentle wind into a thunderstorm. Thick bloody curtains rode waves of air from the opened window. He stood still, a stone against the sea’s rage, swiftly carried away.

Two days passed. Exactly five photos crumbled to the ground. He counted them all from the bed. Some were wet, some torn. He didn’t want to end nature’s voice speaking only for his ears. No matter how many times he sought refuge in those images, none seemed to reflect his current state of mind. He grabbed again his head and sat in front of the wall. A sudden burst to empty the piece of architecture glued his palms against its rough surface. Fortunately, some divine intervention stopped him.

Three days passed. Changmin couldn’t shrug away the feeling of being watched. He recalled those mesmerizing eyes that stared right into his decaying soul. Not a single picture had been taken since the hospital visit. Something denied him that possibility. The camera never left its usual spot by his side, so why was it so hard to pick it up and push the button? Had the shutter sound finally lost its magic? There was nothing wrong with the little device or its accessories.  Speaking in technical terms, everything was perfectly fine.

A week and a half flew before his eyes. Disturbance came once again in the form a ringing phone. For the middle of the day, it wasn’t something unusual. Changmin never expected to be contacted again. Yet, there he was, talking to detective Jun and detective Kang who called separately to give him the good and the bad news. Bad news: his brother was in prison. Good news: he could take his nephew. Changmin almost suffocated from restraining his laughter. Were they really going to let a kid in his care?

~||~

“Are you sure about this?” the woman ripped the pack. She desperately wanted her cigarette, no matter what the consequences. Detective Kang observed her ill-mannered actions and sighed. He searched his pockets and gave her his lighter. It disappeared from his grasp and ended in the woman’s hand. She drew her beloved drug and lighted it up with immense skill. The moment her lungs were once again insulted by its toxicity, she felt happy.

“Not really, but if they said yes, we’ll go with it.” Of course Changmin gave her a weird vibe. There was nothing she could do at that moment. It was virtually impossible to keep the kid in their hands as long as he was a minor. It disturbed her. She had to smoke that day. Detective Kang pointed a finger at the sign behind them forbidding such act. The woman frowned, puffed once and crashed the cigarette under her boot. The man was obviously not pleased of that and collected the cigarette’s remains with a napkin.

Speaking of the devil, the dirty black car pulled over in the parking lot. Both detectives watched as the funny man got out of the vehicle and almost stumbled upon his own feet. He hurried to their side and apologized with a deep bow for him being late. None said a thing as they handed him the paperwork and some final words. Daniel had been watching everything from the window, ready to leave. Yet, something constrained him. It wasn’t the nurse, the doctor, the plain bed, the small T.V. or the poor food they served. He couldn’t trust himself to go back in the real life, where no white walls physically restrained him. Mentally, he had been incarcerated in a small room for a while; only his shadow trailed his path.  What made it different if he left with the stranger? Had he really been the savior he’d been searching for? It was a risk Daniel chose from the moment their eyes connected. The social assistant nudged at his shoulder and he followed her right away. He hid his face among layers of hair plastered around his skin like a curtain. The slight movement of his body created waves at each of his lock. Full lips were constantly being bit. Daniel was nervous of meeting the stranger for the first time; a real, official meeting.

Changmin on the other hand denied their decision, at least, in his mind. He couldn’t voice out his opinion as the hospital building looked rather menacing. He also could not bear the fact that he had to take care of somebody. Had some deity from above mocked him all along? His thoughts were cut short the moment his so called nephew rushed out of the hospital. One of the nurses came behind and helped the kid have his bag. Changmin walked to their side and offered to take his stuff to the car, only to be met by cold, stern eyes. He retreated slightly to the right as the detectives watched the scene unfold.

“Daniel,” detective Kang’s voice covered the tense atmosphere “You’re going to live with your uncle for a while, you do know that, right?”

Daniel simply shrugged it off and opened the car’s door. He threw the bag inside and took his place, smacking the door after him. Changmin’s fingers twitched in annoyance. He treasured his car, despite its appearance.

“Thank you,” the photographer mumbled as he bowed in front of the detectives and the nurse “Now if you’ll excuse me.”

“Mister Shim,” Changmin turned around as detective Jun smiled in his direction “Keep in touch.” He merely nodded and got inside the car afterwards. With the seatbelt fixed over his chest, he the engine, grabbed the wheel and left without another word. “I wonder where his camera is...” detective Jun inquired as she slipped another cigarette from the pack.

~||~

The sound of the vehicle soothed and aggravated him at the same time. He never could have imagined himself driving ever again. At least, not until that one time he recollected in his dreams.

“Who are you?” the boy’s dried voice erupted from behind. Changmin’s insides filled with winged beings hitting his stomach’s walls. They were more like moths than butterflies, eating away at the lining.

“I’m your uncle.” Changmin answered with a subtle stutter in his voice. He was nervous. Knuckles turned white as his hands tightened around the wheel.

“I have no uncle.”

A silence stretched between them. Changmin didn’t dare look at the boy, not even through the mirror. A strong red light ahead pushed its foot slowly down the brake. Daniel seemed too busy tapping the sky’s tears on the window. He loved rain as it always washes his pain away.

“You do.” Came Changmin’s reply before shades of green spread across the car. Daniel turned around and slammed his back against the seat, boringly inspecting the inside.

“Do you even know my name?” of course he does. Related or not, those damned cops must have told him something.

“Daniel. It’s Daniel, isn’t it?” and there was his confirmation. The boy chuckled and hit the back of Changmin’s chair with his knees.

“Maybe it is, maybe it isn’t.”

“It’s Daniel.” Changmin affirmed, sure of himself. Somehow, he couldn’t see a child as proud as this one lie to him. They glowed in their own ego.

“Fine, it’s Daniel. But what’s yours?” he finally admitted and snorted as he finished his question. Daniel wasn’t in the mood to deal with people as broken as him.

“Changmin.”

“Changmin, huh? What a silly name.” he laughed. Not that his father’s wasn’t close. Chang Hee and Changmin; maybe they were nephew and uncle after all, or those mean police officers pulled a prank on him.

“Yours is Biblical. Is God your judge?” Changmin drove further at a constant speed: not too fast and not too slow. There were still eerie feelings hovering above his tired eyes, so he couldn’t risk it. The storm outside wouldn’t permit him either.

“The only one that judges me is myself. Lately, I was put under blame by others.” Daniel snapped. “They line up like a hoard of sheep, ready to please society. Isn’t that ironic?” he laughed and hit the chair again, this time with his feet.

“Sometimes, you need to do that in order to maintain peace and...”

“Peace? Tell me, uncle, when have you last loved?” Changmin couldn’t finish his sentence as Daniel lashed out at him. He expected anything but that question. Changmin understood the child had been through Hell and back, but how could he talk about love so easily? Another stop made him slow down.

“Long time ago.” The engine sounded clearer than ever in Changmin’s ears.

“One time?” Daniel inquired as he grabbed the seat from behind with both his hands and placed his head near Changmin’s. Their eyes meet in the mirror.

“Twice.” Changmin diverted his pair of orbs back to the cars roaring in front of them.

“What happened with the first?” Daniel’s voice kept low as the closeness didn’t force it out louder.

“That person left.” Changmin inhaled deeply, not sure if he should succumb to the child’s game minds. “That person returned to someone else.” Yet, he hadn’t talked in a while about his own persona. And the facts were too old by now. “That person threw me like a piece of chewed gum.”

“Because you couldn’t be swallowed, could you?” Daniel chuckled at his ear and retreated to his place once they started moving again. “The other?”

“The second passed away.” Changmin removed that dreadful moment from his current state of mind. He no longer could relate to that person and mentioning said person’s name once again didn’t matter. Heavier felt to talk about his incapacity of saving a life. One that saved his first.

“Was it because you couldn’t die instead of them?”

The car sped up. Only a few kilometers separated them from a cozy home.

“Do you like orange juice?”

“Love it.”

~||~

Changmin pushed the fence and let Daniel go ahead. The small house seemed out of place in the residential area. Taller buildings painted the background skies with blinding lights. There, they were only a few flickering stars that went through the light pollution and some dim street lamps that adorned the area. He could barely see the neighbors from the darkness committed to maintain a rather lonely sensation. Daniel felt fear creeping up his skin. He rushed to the front door without another explanation or rude comment escaping his mouth. He didn’t like shadows anymore. They whispered of danger. Loud sounds echoed as his palms searched for a light switch. When he hit them, the front porch lit up like a Christmas tree. Changmin wasn’t far behind, carrying Daniel’s bags and playing with the keys in search of the one belonging to the front door. The rain had stopped five minutes before their arrival. Cool air let Daniel take a deep breath before hearing the key turn inside the lock. A warm light flushed both of them as they have been welcomed in an instant.

Changmin took his shoes off and disappeared inside. Daniel stood a while longer, taking in the scenery. Photos adorned the entrance hall. A few jackets too big for Changmin’s figure hanged dusted. He took his shoes off and placed them against Changmin’s pair and stole the house slippers. They found their way underneath his feet when he stepped over the wooden floor.

In front, there was a pair of staircases leading upstairs. On his right, more framed photos over white walls. They were scattered and had no real value for Daniel. Pictures of flowers, pictures of mountains and pictures of animals, common things you could find at any furniture store. On his right, there was an opening. A familiar scent invited him there. He found a large kitchen separated from the dining room or living room through a long bar. Changmin was at the bar, picking oranges from the fruit basket and cutting them in half. Daniel did say he loves them.

The child sit down at the bar as Changmin murdered those oranges for their delicious juice. A tall glass filled up rapidly with said liquid. Changmin sketched a smile and left Daniel with his orange juice. He grabbed the bag standing at the entrance and hurried upstairs. He only had one large room; one room he had to share with his nephew.

Changmin rushed back downstairs to ask Daniel if he would rather have the sofa or the bed against the large windows.

Daniel scared him when he appeared out of the kitchen and almost made Changmin fall over him.

“Woah there. Anyway, I was thinking if ---”

Changmin’s back brushed the empty wall. Once again, the child had a thing for interrupting him. Daniel hanged into the elder, closed his eyes and pressed his lips against Changmin’s. Orange perfume filled Changmin's nostrils with desire.