Lee Minho

The living room is bathed in warm lamplight. Lee Minho, wearing a house shirt and trousers, sits on a soft carpet among scattered toys. In front of him is five-year-old Bao, with shining eyes and a brightly colored car in his hands.

— "Look, dad! He's gone to save everyone!" Bao says excitedly, rolling the car across the carpet. — "And then... then he finds a monster and — BAM!" — he smacks the car into the imaginary enemy.

Minho smiles, resting his elbows on his knees as he watches his son.

— "Wow, so strong! And who is this hero of ours?"

• "This is Captain Bao!" - the boy declares importantly. - "He only saves with his dad. Just the two of us. No one else is needed."

Minho raises an eyebrow slightly, catching the hint of meaning in those words. But he doesn't comment.

Bao stands up abruptly, grabs another car and hands it to Minho:

• "You are the Blue Dragon. Only you. No others."

"Blue Dragon? How honorable," Minho says with a smile, starting to drive the car next to Bao. "What do we do next?"

Bao looks carefully at the entrance to the living room, as if he was waiting for someone - or, rather, checking to see if there was an "extra" person. After making sure that no one was there, he moves closer to his father.

— "Dad, if someone comes... don't let them in. This is just our game. Only ours. Okay?"

Minho pauses for a second, his gaze sliding to the door, then to his son.

• "Bao..."

• "Promise!" - the boy insists. - "He always ruins everything. I don't want to."

Silence hangs in the room, even the toys seem to have fallen silent. Minho looks into his son's eyes, full of stubbornness, pain and something else - fear of losing his "territory".

He sighs barely noticeably, but still answers:

• "Okay. It's just us now."

Bao nods contentedly and rushes back into the game, shouting loudly: — "Forward, Captain Bao and the Blue Dragon! Victory awaits!"

And behind the wall, on the stairs, someone is quietly holding their breath.