The mansion that he hasn’t set his eyes upon for years is now in front of him. He can choose to turn back now, as it’s not too late but he knows that he can’t keep running away. He didn’t want to face reality, but now the walls around his heart are broken down with one word: family. He cannot lie towards himself; he misses his family a lot. He can’t pretend as if it doesn’t break his heart when all of the memories with his family keep coming back to him.

He goes over to the doorbell just beside the small gate. His hand hovers over the bell, contemplating on whether he should press it. Just as his finger lands on the bell, the intercom besides the bell crackles and he hears Hyunshik’s voice. “So you finally came, little brother.”

“Hyung,” Daehyun croaks. Between his two older brothers, he has to admit that he likes being with Hyunshik more. Since Jiwook is the eldest, he starts working at their father’s company much faster. So it’s always Hyunshik and Daehyun who always spend time more with each other. Although now, he doesn’t know what to think of him anymore, after what Jiwook had told him. However, he knows he has to hold his judgement before seeing him face to face.

“Why don’t you come in?” the gate rolls to the side, revealing the mansion. Everything looks the same as the last time he set his eyes upon the mansion, except that it looks dull, without even a hint of happiness. Maybe Jiwook is right; it’s not heaven anymore. He has to control his own breathing as he arranges his steps, bringing himself closer to the front door. The door swings open, and Hyunshik is standing there, beaming at him. 

"Daehyun! I never thought this day would come, welcome home, brother," Hyunshik pats his younger brother's back and invites him to come inside. Daehyun, although reluctant, takes off his shoes and steps inside. He looks at the interior, feeling out of place. For years, he has never stepped into this house, and he doesn't know how he's going to be able to call this his 'home'. 

"Son." The voice that he misses the most greets him, and he frantically searches for the owner of the voice. There's his mom, standing at the top of the stairs, wearing the radiant smile he's hoping is for him. He doesn't wait anymore, and dashes upstairs, almost missing his balance. He throws himself at his mom, and hugs the woman tightly. He has to admit, no matter how grown he is; he will always be his mother's son. No exceptions. No matter how many times he's thrown away by his own family.

"I'm sorry, Daehyun... It's all my fault." 

"Don't say that, mom. If only I understood you were doing it for my sake, I would never doubt you. I'm the one who's supposed to be sorry. My ego was too big." 

The two hug each other for too long, until Hyunshik, who's been watching them has to clear his throat and waves from below. "Mom, I know you miss him a lot, but I can't help but be jealous of Daehyun." 

They let go of each other, and Daehyun laughs. Soon, the three of them laugh off happily. "I miss you too, hyung," Daehyun announces. 

"What's with all this noise?" Mr. Jung says as soon as he gets out of his study. He fixes his glasses as his eyes lay on his youngest son, who's still standing there, finishing off his laugh. Daehyun stops as the old man advances towards him, the old man’s face lacking a smile. 

"Dad, I'm home," Daehyun grins. 

The only reply he receives is a slap across the face, hard. The grin on his face disappears, and he rubs his hot cheek.

"Honey! What did you do that for? He's our son!" Mrs. Jung places herself in front of Daehyun just in case her husband decides to make another move. Daehyun, while still holding his cheek, can feel tears starting to form in his eyes. Hyunshik, who's still downstairs, hides his surprise. He never thought that was the kind of response his younger brother would get after years of not stepping into this house. 

"How dare you step inside this house! There's a reason why I sent you away, you ungrateful punk. Who invited you here?" Mr. Jung points an accusing finger at Daehyun, who's using all his will to stay strong. 

"I'm the one who asked him to come back," Jiwook appears suddenly. He's wearing his usual suit, as he's just about to get to work. He didn't expect it wouldn't take much for Daehyun to come back. "Can't you see? Our family is falling apart, surely Daehyun needs to know what's going on." 

"You, get lost! I don't want to see your face anymore," Mr. Jung shouts at Daehyun, losing his sense.

"Honey, he's our son! Why are you doing this?"

"Don't get involved in this!"

"If that's what you want, fine, I'll go," Daehyun says, already making his way down the stairs. "I'm sorry for causing all of this mess. I won't come back here again, I promise." He passes Hyunshik, who gives him a pitiful look. He shrugs, but when he sees Jiwook, he glares at him. "You knew this would happen wouldn't you? You purposely asked me to come back so that you can see me being embarrassed in front of the whole family, didn't you? I never thought I could hate you more, but you just made me…" 

"Daehyun, it's not like that, believe me!" 

Daehyun doesn't bother to listen to his explanation. He makes his way quickly, and leaves the mansion, for what seems like the last time. If that’s what his father wants, then he’d be more than glad to step out of this house. He makes a promise to himself that he will not come here ever again, that he doesn’t want to see his family anymore.

…

“You seem like a mess these days. Are you sure you’re okay? Ever since that man, whatever his name is… Daehyun, right? Ever since he has woken up from the one-month coma, you don’t seem too happy. Did anything happen between the two of you? Perhaps, did you get into a fight with him?” Jinhwan keeps talking on without stopping, and Yongguk has to put up a hand to stop him from talking further.

“I don’t know what you’re thinking, but it’s not like that. Just, mind your own business. I have a lot of work to do, so please get out of my office,” Yongguk gestures for him to leave, but Jinhwan doesn’t budge. He’s not the type to peer into someone else’s affairs, but whatever Yongguk’s problem is, it’s affecting his performance. And if Yongguk’s performance is affected, that means he’s also responsible for it.

“Yongguk, you’re not like this before. There’s something going on between you and that Daehyun guy, right? Is this about Jiyoon?”

Yongguk can’t take it anymore as he slams the table with his hand, and points towards the door. “I said, leave. Don’t make me drag you out of this room with my own hands.”

Jinhwan puts up both of his hands in surrender, and retreats. Just outside of Yongguk’s office, he’s left to ponder by himself. Yongguk never gets angry, ever. He notices that lately, the doctor seems to have a lot of things on his mind. Jinhwan thinks back to what might make Yongguk uneasy, but couldn’t find the reason. He advances towards the counter, catching the attention of the nurses there.

“Do you guys notice something wrong about Doctor Yongguk?”

“I don’t think so. But then again, I rarely meet him nowadays. He likes to lock himself up in his room, I notice. What’s wrong with oppa?” Nayoung butts in.

“Oh, so you’re calling him oppa, but you’re not calling me oppa?”

Nayoung gives him a disgusted look, and continues to do her work, refusing to entertain him.

“Fine, fine whatever you like. But really, don’t you think he’s being a bit too much? Raising his voice and all. This is a hospital for crying out loud.”

“Oppa raised his voice?” Nayoung asks, this time really paying attention to Jinhwan.

“Blergh, stop calling him oppa, it’s making me shiver. Anyway, you think it’s weird too, don’t you?”

Nayoung sticks out his lower lip, and nods. “It’s weird…”

“Ah, even thinking about it is making me frustrated. He’s not one to get mad easily, but this time it seems like every single thing irks him. I can’t even invite him to go out for lunch. He has so many excuses, I tell you! He doesn’t like to get out of his room much nowadays. Can you imagine, I had to take over most of the surgeries he’s supposed to carry out just because he refused to do them. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if people find him dead in his office since he doesn’t leave his room.”

“Hey, don’t say that!” Nayoung hits his face with the file she’s holding. “Maybe he has some problems at home?”

“But what? When I ask him, he’ll get mad and ask me to leave his office. How am I supposed to help him when he keeps pushing me out?”

The both of them don’t realize that there’s a man hovering near them, listening to every single detail of their conversation. The man pretends to be reading the information related to health on the wall near the counter, when in reality he’s eavesdropping. A small scar can be seen on his hand.

He plays around with the ring on his finger, and after feeling satisfied with what he listened to just now, makes his way towards Yongguk’s office. People who pass him don’t even bother to give him a second glance, because to them, he’s just a normal visitor at the hospital. He keeps his straight face as he keeps walking.

If only they know, that under his expressionless face lies a thousand secrets.

And tucked neatly at his waist, is a sharp knife, small enough to be concealed, but sharp enough to end a life.

With definite steps, he walks towards the office, smiling secretly to himself while thinking about the fate Yongguk is about to face.