An unprecedented, profound emotion that he had never felt before.

A sticky something intensely seeping into his bloodstream, bringing a fiery exhilaration.

A sense of responsibility stronger than now, an unwavering determination to become a presence larger than a mountain.

The moment Seojun first held his son, he could feel something beyond that.

And he realized.

The strong and subtle bond felt only between father and son was exactly like this. Eum Soyeon, who gave me this noble and valuable gift, accomplished something truly remarkable.

She suddenly left, saying she would share my pain and sorrow, taking away something important from me. So, the subsequent period of time was even more fragile. The lingering attachment to her clung to my nerves, scraping at my consciousness and emotions, but eventually, it brought me great joy.

The woman who made me feel disappointed seemed to have thoroughly prepared and returned, bringing back the something she took away along with time.

She, who made pearls out of pain, appeared before me with an astonishingly beautiful child as if it were a lie.

My son, Um Hyunwoo.

But now, my child and my woman are currently…

So, why are they sticking so closely together, excluding me? Huh?

Seojun’s strange jealousy began to arise in the car, moving towards Lake Park near Shonaise Heights.

The child sitting on Soyeon’s lap was desperately clinging to her, as if trying not to fall off from his mom’s embrace. For a brief moment, Soyeon resisted the urge to let go of her frightening aura, claiming the child to be hers.

Struggling with the crisis of turning childish unexpectedly, Seojun barely managed to suppress it with a few deep breaths. Now, he was sitting on the soft grass, observing his woman and child with a vigilant eye.

Catch me if you can, the mischievous woman who laughed loudly by the lake and happily jumped around, accompanied by a small child.

Under the warm sunlight pouring down like glittering dust, Seojun’s heart, like the sun, was pricked indiscriminately. Despite taking a leisurely posture in the cool shade of a tree, his insides felt muddled and uncomfortably warm, experiencing this hazy and steamy climate for the first time in his life.

There was a way to overcome this situation. There was even something brought from Korea for him. However…

Do I really have to go that far?

If I can’t avoid it, I should enjoy it, they said. Along with that saying, if the one who taught me this method to escape is in front of me, I would want to step on that bastard’s child first and kill him.

“Son!”

Finally making up his mind, Seojun called out to Hyunwoo with a loud voice.

Stopping in his tracks and walking towards me, Soyeon and Hyunwoo, Seojun smiled instead of expressing dissatisfaction.

As expected, the child opened his round eyes and clung tightly to Soyeon’s moon, while Soyeon looked a bit tired from playing with the child.

Now, is it my turn to step forward?

Seojun tightly grasped the small hand, resembling a sprout, and separated Hyunwoo from Soyeon.
Looking at Eum Soyeon, who sparkled with a proud yet worried expression, Seojun lifted Hyunwoo onto his outstretched leg and asked.

“Son.”

“Yeah?”

“Who am I?”

“Mom said. You’re not fake; you’re a real dad.”

“That’s right. I’m your real dad. Say it one more time, in that sense.”

“Dad! Pa!”

Hyunwoo, who grew up without knowing the existence of a dad and confidently pronounced the unfamiliar word, “dad,” without hesitation, had, in the depths of his heart, burst out the vague longing he had merely suppressed in his small chest with the two syllables.

Seojun, who glanced down at Hyunwoo for a moment, smiled wryly. It was a smile quite different from a smirk.

The sensation of the child continuously fidgeting on his thigh was not only ticklish but also irritating. Along with that feeling, the inside of Seojun’s chest fluttered. Suddenly, the warmth seeped into Seojun’s black pupils, a mix of sorry and tender emotions overwhelming him for a moment.

Seeing two identical men facing each other, Soyeon couldn’t help but be moved to tears. Accordingly, her voice trembled.

“Hyunwoo, isn’t it nice that Dad’s here?”

“Yeah.”

Hyunwoo, nodding at his mom’s words, said, “Grandma said so too. Hyenu said we should live with Mom in Korea. Then, can Dad live with us too?”

“Hyunwoo, that’s… ”

Just when Soyeon was about to respond with uncertainty, Seojun quickly interrupted.

“That’s right. The three of us will live together.”

“Hik!”

Hyunwoo, with his big, black pupils exposed like go stones, wrinkled both eyebrows and the bridge of his nose simultaneously. Even without hearing it in words, Soyeon knew the meaning behind that expression well.

Something extraordinarily good. It was Hyunwoo’s exclamation that was readily expressed when he was extremely excited. So, how joyful was this news?

“Promise!”

Hyunwoo didn’t stop there but raised his little finger high, meaning to seal the deal. Despite being a very young child, his thinking and judgment surpassed most adults.

“Smart little guy.”