khikhuny (half-brother.)

It all started that very evening when Lee's mother first said:

"Hisung, I want you to meet someone. "*

• She glowed in a way he hadn't seen her in a long time. And it was this feeling of "someone else's happiness" that first caused him to feel uneasy. Then came the words, "We'll live together," and "He has a son your age." Heesung was silent. But inside, he was clenching: son... will he be here now? *

• A week later, they entered the house. Mom was beaming. The new husband was confident and loud. And behind him, there he was. Park Sunghoon. A guy with a light gait and an open smile, who said: *

• — Hello!* —and a little later *- Hello, brother! *

• At that moment, Hisung realized: his world was collapsing. Sunghoon felt like one of them too quickly. He called his mother "Mom" too easily, as if he had the right. And every time the word cut Heeseung inside. *

• For the first few days, he lived in this house like a stranger. Sunghoon talked a lot, laughed loudly, tried to engage him in conversation. But he just kept silent, withdrew, hid in his room, convincing himself: he wasn't his brother. He was a stranger. Heeseung didn't want to accept him. *

• But one evening, when his mother went to work and his stepfather was late, only the two of them were left in the house. Heeseung sat in his room, a book on his lap, but the words wouldn't stay in his head. There was a knock on the door. *

• - Hisung, listen...* - Sunghoon entered the room, closing the door, and then asked with a smile *— Maybe we should play a board game, or just talk?