Paused for a moment, I tried hard to find a topic of conversation. Until what Daehyun said before came to my mind. Still curious about why Daehyun asked me to forget "him" directly, I turned to him beside me, then asked in a low voice, "Daehyun, why did you suddenly say that to me?"

Hearing the question, Daehyun immediately turned to look at me so that our eyes met in curiosity. He asked in return, "Say what?"

"About you want me to forget him. You mean, Donghwa, right? Why did you suddenly say that? You never said that bluntly to me before. That's weird, you know."

He chuckled softly as he turned his face forward before replying, "When did I say that? You might mishear me."

I could tell that he was just being evasive about telling me the reason, so I said with a sullen face, "You're starting to play tricks again. Do you think I'm a kid who would just believe your words? Now, who the one did change the subject?"

With a pause, he sighed steadfastly. "Don't bring it up. Just pretend you didn't hear anything. Like I said before when I was stressed, I would talk nonsense. So just pretend that you didn't hear anything, okay?"

After his words, silence immediately filled this dim room. Both of us didn't talk to each other, which made our current atmosphere feel very strange, like two strangers who were trying to find the topics to get along with.

I gripped the blanket while sneaking a glance at Daehyun beside me, hoping he would say something.

Until I accidentally saw a bruise near his temple. Suddenly I felt silly in my heart but also felt sorry as I knew that it was caused by his father, and it was probably because of me.

I couldn't help but ask to make sure, "Did you argue with your father again? Is it because of me?"

Daehyun turned sideways, looking at me with a frown. "Hell, no."

Even though his lips said "no", his gestures showed a different thing that made me believe that it was indeed because of me.

I smiled weakly. "You already sacrificed many things for me. If Mr. Kim rebukes you, you should listen to his words. I have known him for a long time ago and he's very unhappy with indiscipline, and I'm sure that you know it better than I do, don't you?" I turned to him, and added, "You're not that different from him. But, lately, you've lost yourself I think. That's not good, you know."

He chuckled. "No. It's not that I lost myself, but I just found the best way for myself. This is the real me. You just need to get used to the current me so you don't get me wrong one day. I'm a rebel who used to escape from his own family to abroad, you know."

I paused for a moment as he finished his words, looked at him intently, then said, "You are indeed a very unpredictable person."

"Why? What I showed you all the time wasn't making it up."

I could only be silent. It's not that I was at a loss for words to respond to, but it's just that I didn't want to convey what I thought of him right now.

He said that what he showed me wasn't making it up. Hearing the statement, made me want to laugh at it.

That's funny.

I had been in a relationship with someone for a decade and I could tell the difference between how to feel like having something and how it felt after getting what you want.

It's the same with Donghwa. We dated, then lived together as a couple. Everything was clear about how the difference was revealed by times without being covered up.

that began with an intoxicating sweetness like sipping old wine. Then gradually, the sweetness disappeared and was replaced by a tormenting bitter taste.

Simply, when you loved someone, then you would try to show the best side of yourself and after that, the other side would be revealed by the time that was unhappy with pretense.

I just didn't fully trust him because I didn't know him that much.

After a long silence, I replied curtly, "That's just my opinion, though. It's you who know about who exactly you are."

Taking a silent breath, I started to tell, "You know, when A Yeong was here, she told me about you. She said that you were a very unexpected person. At first, she thought that you were a cold, bossy, arrogant, assertive, and indifferent boss. But, after she was your assistant for these months, she said that she got you wrong. She said everything was the opposite of what she had seen so far."

I smiled, then continued, "At first, I thought so too. The first time you replaced your father at TU Company, you did look very arrogant, especially at that time, I didn't know that it was you. But, after being close to you, I felt that you didn't change a lot. You're still acting the way I knew you years ago. But, because I don't know much about you, you surprise me too often. So that's why I say that you are an unpredictable person."

He chuckled after hearing my speech. "I heard a lot of gossip about it. I'm not surprised anymore. But, it's just that I didn't expect you guys to talk about me when I wasn't around."

"I think A Yeong really admires you. She is always excited when she talks about you."

"That kid ...."

Still smiling, I said, "I'm actually curious about how you were in the past either. If you don't mind, would you please tell me everything? I want to hear everything while there is still time. I want to get to know you better."

He stunned for a moment before sighing heavily. "Me in the past, huh? I don't have any interesting stories to tell actually."

"I don't think it's a problem, though. Just tell me. I'll be a good listener for you."

He paused for a moment, then said, "How should I start it? Everything seems messy in my head if I have to remember my past. Maybe you can ask me and I will answer you so everything becomes systematic." He chuckled.

Smiling, I replied, "Um, maybe you can start over, like where you came from? I'm sure that you're not from Sokcho, are you?"

He chuckled again. "Exactly. Guess, where am I from?"

I stared at him in silence before answering surely, "Gyeongsang."

Daehyun chuckled in awe. He then asked excitedly, "How did you guess?"

"It's easy. Your dialect shows your true identity. You know that the people of that region have a strong and aggressive accent, especially your father. He's even worse than you. Compared to him, you speak a little gentler than him."

"Ah, as I thought. You're right. I come from that region, precisely Ulsan."

Actually, when Daehyun was having a casual conversation, the words and tone of his voice were quite gentle. However, once he got angry, even though he tried to suppress his anger, the intonation of his voice was truly terrifying. If I had to choose, I would rather let Donghwa shout at me when he was angry than Daehyun who had to say something when he was angry. He truly scared me.

After that, I asked again, "Then, what about your childhood?"

"Um, nothing special. I only had a short time to hang out because I had to get back on time. After that, I just spent time with books in my house."

"So, that's why you always rushed home when we played?"

He smiled. From his eyes, there was a bitter thing as he said, "Yeah. If I didn't return on time, my father would scold me because he thought that I didn't want to study and become disobedient to him. At that time, I didn't dare to fight him."

Feeling that there was something wrong with his words, I frowned in confusion. "At that time? Then, you mean now you dare to fight him?"

"Um, maybe." Paused for a moment, he said, "He was always pressuring me. But, in the end, he also released me and agreed to all my decisions."

Feeling interested in this conversation, I asked, "So, what about your mother?"

However, after hearing the question, he immediately fell silent, lowering his gaze slightly.

His face darkened. The familiar attitude of him that had previously warmed now turned cold in silence.

Realizing that I had asked the wrong thing, I immediately apologized, "Ah, Daehyun, sorry, I shouldn't—"

"She died eleven years ago." Daehyun suddenly interrupted and spoke deeply as if he still had deep sorrow on that day, "That year, my mother was on vacation in Hong Kong with her friends. But, unexpectedly, the sars epidemic had spread in the Hong Kong and Vietnam areas. She decided to return, but he had caught the virus."

"Ah, I'm sorry to hear that. I shouldn't have asked that," I said guiltily.

"Heh, I didn't expect it to happen so fast. She's the only one who can understand me completely. He knows what I want. But, since she left my life has been really messed up ...."