The night ended quietly.
Not with peace, not with healing, but with the slow exhaustion that comes after a body simply cannot stay awake any longer.
Kang Daehyun had fallen asleep sitting on the floor beside the couch of the secluded house.
The empty bottle rested on the table nearby.
The shattered glass from earlier still glittered faintly across the wooden floor, catching the faint grey light filtering through the tall windows.
He hadn't meant to sleep.
But his body had finally taken control.
Hours of pain, alcohol, and emotional exhaustion had dragged him into a shallow, restless sleep where even dreams felt heavy.
Then the light changed.
Morning came.
A thin line of pale gold crept through the trees outside, stretching across the floor until it reached his face.
Daehyun stirred.
His body protested immediately.
Every injury he had ignored the previous night greeted him again the moment consciousness returned.
The stab wound throbbed sharply beneath the bandage.
His ribs ached from Sooah's blow with the chopping board.
His shoulder burned where he had restrained her during the struggle.
A quiet breath escaped him as he slowly pushed himself upright.
"…Morning already."
His voice was hoarse.
He rubbed his face with one hand, trying to clear the fog of exhaustion.
For a moment he simply sat there, staring at the dim room.
The events of the previous night returned slowly.
The house.
The drinks.
The pain.
The moment he had allowed himself to break.
His jaw tightened slightly.
There was no time to linger in that weakness now.
Saturday morning.
Which meant something important.
Minjun.
The thought snapped him fully awake.
He stood slowly, his muscles stiff and sore, and walked toward the bathroom.
The man who stared back from the mirror looked exactly as tired as he felt.
His hair was slightly disheveled.
Dark circles shadowed his eyes.
The bandage around his ribs had soaked through faintly again during the night.
He cleaned the wound carefully.
Rewrapped it.
Pulled on a fresh shirt.
Long sleeves.
Always long sleeves.
The reflection staring back at him once again became the same calm, composed figure the world expected.
No one would see the damage underneath.
No one ever did.
The Drive Back
The road back to the city was quiet.
Morning traffic hadn't begun yet.
The sky had shifted into soft shades of orange and pale blue, sunlight slowly spreading across the distant skyline of Seoul.
The world looked peaceful from a distance.
Normal.
Daehyun drove silently.
The alcohol from the night before had long faded, leaving behind only the dull ache of exhaustion.
But his mind had already returned to its usual place.
Responsibility.
Routine.
Control.
Soon he would pick up Minjun.
Soon he would return home.
Soon he would step back into the life waiting for him.
The life he carried every day.
The car pulled into the gates of the Han family estate just as the sun fully cleared the horizon.
Inside the house, Minjun was already awake.
The small boy ran toward him immediately the moment he stepped through the door.
"Daddy!"
Daehyun caught him easily, lifting him into his arms despite the pain in his ribs.
Minjun wrapped his arms around his neck happily.
"Grandma made pancakes."
"Did she?"
Minjun nodded enthusiastically.
"And dinosaurs!"
That statement required no explanation.
To a three-year-old, pancakes shaped like dinosaurs were an extraordinary event.
Daehyun smiled faintly.
For a moment, the heaviness inside him lifted just a little.
He thanked Sooah's parents quietly before leaving.
Minjun waved goodbye from the car window as they drove away.
The boy talked nonstop the entire ride home about dinosaurs, pancakes, and an imaginary battle he had invented between the two.
Daehyun listened quietly.
Children filled silence effortlessly.
Sometimes he wondered if Minjun realized how important those small conversations were.
Probably not.
But Daehyun held onto every word anyway.
Returning Home
The Kang residence stood exactly as they had left it.
Large.
Silent.
Perfectly maintained.
From the outside, it looked like the home of a powerful family living a peaceful life.
No one would ever guess what happened inside its walls.
Daehyun carried Minjun inside.
The boy immediately ran toward the living room to retrieve his other toys.
"Shhh," Daehyun reminded him gently.
"Mommy's still sleeping."
Minjun nodded solemnly.
Children understood the importance of quiet mornings.
Daehyun walked slowly down the hallway.
His steps softened automatically as he approached the bedroom door.
For a moment he paused.
His hand rested on the handle.
Every morning like this carried the same quiet tension.
Two years had taught him something simple and terrifying.
You never knew which Sooah would wake up.
The calm one.
The confused one.
Or the terrified stranger who believed she had been kidnapped.
His fingers tightened slightly around the door handle.
Then he opened it.
The Moment of Relief
The room was dim.
The curtains blocked most of the morning sunlight.
Sooah lay asleep in the center of the bed.
Her breathing was slow and steady.
Peaceful.
No tension in her body.
No frantic movement.
No signs of an episode.
Daehyun stood there quietly.
For a long moment he simply watched her.
Relief spread through his chest like a quiet exhale he hadn't realized he'd been holding.
No episode.
Not yet.
The medication had worked.
At least for now.
He stepped closer to the bed carefully.
Sooah's hair had fallen loosely across the pillow.
Her face looked calm.
Almost like the woman he remembered from before everything changed.
For a moment he allowed himself to imagine that nothing had happened.
That their life was still normal.
That the last two years had never existed.
But the thought faded quickly.
Reality always returned.
His gaze drifted toward the bandage hidden beneath his shirt.
Toward the bruises scattered across his body.
Toward the quiet tension that never truly left his mind anymore.
Two years had taught him another truth as well.
Peace never lasted long.
Episodes came without warning.
Sometimes hours apart.
Sometimes days.
Sometimes weeks.
There was no pattern.
No way to predict them.
Which meant every quiet morning like this came with the same silent understanding.
This moment of calm could end at any time.
Still, Daehyun felt the tightness in his chest loosen slightly.
Because right now—
She was just sleeping.
His voice came out in the softest whisper.
"…Good morning."
Sooah didn't wake.
She simply continued sleeping peacefully.
Behind him, faint footsteps echoed down the hallway as Minjun ran toward the bedroom with his dinosaur toy.
"Daddy!"
Daehyun turned quickly, pressing a finger to his lips.
Minjun immediately lowered his voice to a whisper.
"Mommy still sleeping?"
Daehyun nodded gently.
"Yeah."
The boy peeked over the edge of the bed curiously.
Sooah didn't move.
Minjun seemed satisfied.
Then he held up his dinosaur toy proudly.
"Look."
Daehyun crouched slightly beside him.
"That's a strong dinosaur."
Minjun nodded seriously.
The boy had no idea that his father stood there quietly bracing himself for whatever the day might bring.
Because peace in their home was always temporary.
And Kang Daehyun had learned to live inside that fragile space between calm and chaos — relieved for the moment, yet always preparing for the storm that might come next.