Yu jin's POV
When I ran out of the building, I didn't even know what I was doing. My slippers were half-on, my jacket wasn't zipped, I didn't even take anything with me, except my phone that was in my pocket. Park Min was already in his car, one hand on the door handle, like he was seconds away from escaping the entire mess I was about to cause.
"Park sir!" I shouted. My voice came out louder than intended.
He turned, his hair already speckled with rain. "Yu Jin?"
"Don't go yet," I said, breathless. "I need your help."
He frowned, glancing toward the apartment. "Help with what?"
"Woo Min. "
"And you came to me because…?"
"Because you owe me," I said, marching straight to the car. "Remember that hangover I fixed? You owe me one. Consider this the universe collecting interest."
He stared at me for a second like he was calculating how stupid I sounded. Then he sighed and unlocked the passenger door. "Get in before you drown."
The rain started properly once we were on the road. It came down hard, fast, and noisy, as if someone was shaking a jar of nails on the roof. The wipers barely kept up.
Park Min drove quietly, both hands on the wheel, posture perfect. The kind of man who could drive through a tornado without blinking.
I kept refreshing my phone, checking for Woo Min's messages. Nothing. No calls. Not even a passive-aggressive emoji.
"Turn left here," I said. "He likes the river path when he's pissed off."
Park Min didn't comment. He just turned.
We drove for another ten minutes. Nothing but puddles, shadows, and my nerves getting fried.
"He didn't even take his bag," I muttered. "What if he slipped or got hit by a car? He doesn't even carry cash half the time."
Park Min said, calm and steady, "He's an adult. He probably just needed space."
"Thanks for that Emotional Support."
He gave me a look. "I'm serious. You're panicking."
"Of course I'm panicking. He left angry. You don't know him like I do. When he's mad, he does stupid things."
"Sounds familiar," he said quietly.
I pretended I didn't hear that.
A flash of lightning hit somewhere behind us, followed by a loud crack. I flinched.
"Scared?" he asked, half-teasing.
"No," I said. "Just love being reminded I'm mortal."
That earned me the tiniest grin.
I glanced sideways at him. "You always drive like this?"
"Like what?"
"Like you're auditioning for a car commercial."
"I'm trying to keep us alive."
"Sure. Just saying, even death might prefer a little background music."
He reached over, switched on the radio. It crackled with static.
"Happy now?"
"Ecstatic," I said, rolling my eyes. "What a vibe."
***
After a while, the silence came back, heavier this time. My phone screen glowed with Rin's wallpaper, his tiny smile and his juice-stained cheeks. And that's when it hit me.
"Oh, hell," I said under my breath.
Park Min looked over. "What now?"
"Rin."
"What about him?"
"I left him home." My stomach dropped. "Alone. He's probably scared out of his mind."
"Yu Jin." His voice changed . "And you're worried because? He looks mature to me."
"I thought I'd be back fast. I just needed to talk to you and find Woo Min and.. "
"Stop talking and keep calm. We're going back."
The rain was worse now, the kind that blurs everything into gray. He slowed down. The road was starting to flood.
"We can't keep driving," he said. "It's too dangerous."
"I can't just sit here," I snapped. "My kid is alone!"
He pulled over, turned on the hazard lights. "Let's wait for it to slow down a little."
I wanted to argue, but the truth was, I couldn't even see five meters ahead. I dropped my face into my hands.
For a while, there was only the rain and the hum of the car engine. Then I felt his gaze.
When I looked up, he wasn't pretending not to stare this time.
"What?" I asked.
He hesitated. "Why do you have to be a guy?"
I blinked. "Because my parents weren't creative? Why the hell are you asking that?"
He sighed. "Forget it."
"No, seriously. What does that even mean?"
He didn't answer. He just stared out at the rain.
"You know, for someone who claims he's straight," I said, "you ask weird questions."
"You're twisting it again."
"Maybe I am," I said. "Or maybe you're just scared to hear yourself."
He turned toward me. "You really think I'm…"
"I don't think anything," I interrupted. "I just think you're lying to yourself so hard you could win awards for it."
He gave me this long look somewhere between annoyance and confusion.
"Stop talking, Yu Jin."
That's when I said it. The worst idea I've ever had.
"You want to test it?" I asked. "Your straightness. We can do a field experiment."
His mouth opened. "What?"
"Kiss a guy," I said. "Just once. See if you implode."
"I would never…"
"Yeah, yeah, I know. You'd never. Except you did."
He froze. "What are you talking about?"
That hit harder than thunder. He didn't remember.
"You really don't remember, huh?" I asked quietly. "You really wiped it out like it was nothing." I mumbled in my brain.
"Remember what?"
I laughed once, no humor in it. "Forget it."
He reached out, maybe to touch my arm, but I leaned forward first and kissed him.
He stiffened for a second, then kissed me back.
The sound of rain got louder somehow. His hand found my jaw, firm and warm. Everything about it felt wrong and right at the same time. His breath was uneven, and mine wasn't better.
Then I pulled away.
"Drive me home," I said, voice low.
He didn't argue.
The drive back was quiet except for the rain and the radio still hissing static. I stared out the window, my throat tight. Every streetlight felt like it was pointing at me.
When we reached my building, I didn't move right away.
He said, quietly, "You shouldn't leave your kid like that again."
I nodded.
His jaw tightened, but he didn't respond. I got out before he could. The door shut with a heavy thud.
Inside, the first thing I heard was Rin crying.
Woo Min was there, soaked, standing by the door with his phone in his hand. He looked like he'd walked through the storm itself.
"Papa!" Rin ran to me, still sniffling. "You were gone!"
"I'm here, baby," I said, hugging him tight. His hands were cold. "I'm sorry."
Then Woo Min's voice came, low but sharp. "Where were you?"
"I went to look for you."
He stared at me, eyes narrowing. "And you thought the best way to do that was to leave a four-year-old home alone during a storm?"
"I didn't think it would get this bad."
"You never think. You just act."
"That's not fair."
"No, what's not fair is a child calling me crying because you vanished."
Rin looked between us, scared. "Daddy, don't yell."
I turned to him fast. "It's okay, Rin. We're not yelling."
Woo Min ran a hand through his hair, dripping water on the floor. "You always do this, Yu Jin. You say you'll handle things, and somehow I'm always the one cleaning up your mess."
I stared at him. "Oh, so now you're a saint?"
"I didn't say that."
"You act like it."
He laughed once. "You ran off with your boss. What do you want me to think?"
"It wasn't like that."
"Then what was it like? Because from where I'm standing, he shows up, you follow, and suddenly I'm the villain again."
I bit the inside of my cheek. "You don't get it."
"Then make me get it."
"I can't explain something you've already decided."
He stepped closer, his voice dropping. "You think I don't see how he looks at you? You think I didn't notice the way you change when he's around?"
I flinched. "Stop."
"You don't even know what you want, Yu Jin."
"Neither do you," I said. "You say you care, but the second I screw up, you shut me out like a bad signal."
His jaw locked. "You left a kid alone tonight. Don't twist this into a therapy session."
That was it. Something in me snapped. "At least I came back."
He stepped right up to me, his voice low. "You don't get points for showing
up late."
He pushed me, not hard, just enough to make my chest burn. I grabbed his shirt and kissed him.
He froze. His breath hitched against my mouth before he pushed me back.
"Yu Jin." His voice was shaking. "What the hell?"