"Open up, Yanam."
The voice was low. Husky.
It slid down Yanam's spine like a blade dipped in ice.
He stepped back, face draining of color.
"Open the damn door… Yanam."
Cold sweat slid down his temple as his mind went blank, unable to think. He had imagined a hundred times how he would react—how he would defend himself, how he would fight—but at that moment he forgot everything. The terror that carved him so deeply reduced him to something paralysed, unable to even think.
Then silence.
Five seconds of suffocating stillness.
And the door burst open.
He stood there in the doorway—
Tall. Towering.
Black coat fluttering, gloves on, breath uneven like he had run for hours. Black hair slightly messy, falling over sharp eyebrows. Black eyes, deep, unreadable, too intense.
An expressionless man who—for the first time in three years—was no longer expressionless.
A mixture of relief, heartbreak, anger, and something fragile flickered across his face.
He stepped forward.
Yanam instinctively stepped back.
He stopped midway, gaze falling to Yanam's trembling fingers clutching his own shirt. The pale cheeks, the widened brown eyes, the breathless panic.
He reached a hand out, wanting for a moment to touch his soft, smooth cheek with the tips of his fingers.
Yanam flinched violently, tripping on a toy and collapsing onto the sofa.
The man moved instantly, one hand landing beside Yanam's waist on the couch, the other gripping the armrest. The closeness trapped Yanam in a cage of shadow and heat.
Yanam shut his eyes tight, like a frightened bird pretending danger wouldn't see him if he couldn't see it.
The man's chest tightened painfully at the sight.
"Da… Da…"
A tiny voice broke the air.
Both turned.
Yu Anan stood near the hallway, dragging a plush toy by its ear, big brown eyes blinking softly under the sunlight.
Yanam's eyes opened, warm brown marbles catching light—and the man froze.
Those eyes… after three years… still the same, still gentle, still trembling.
"Da… Da…"
Yu Anan took a hesitant step, shy around strangers.
The man's eyes widened, shock slamming into him.
Then anger.
Then something darker.
He grabbed Yanam's chin roughly, lifting his face.
"A child?"
His voice sounded like cracking glass.
"So you really moved on."
Yanam's breath shook.
"When you said you'd get married, have a child… you weren't joking," he whispered bitterly, leaning closer.
"Three years, and you actually did it."
Yanam's heartbeat fluttered violently.
"L-leave me alone…"
His voice shook like fragile glass.
The man stopped, clutching his fingers tightly, letting him go.
Just as Yanam tried to stand, he stepped back. Then suddenly turned toward the child—too fast.
Yanam saw this; his eyes widened and he moved even before thinking.
He grabbed Yu Anan and held him tight against his chest, shielding him with his entire body.
"Don't touch my child!"