A young man was having fun playing an online game while chatting with his friends over voice chat. He never smiled throughout the game except when his friends joked around or did something stupid in the match.

  He shouted whenever one of them became a burden to the team, hurling insults as if he were angry, yet there was always a happy smile on his face.

  Deep in his heart, he knew the truth.

  It wasn’t the game he enjoyed.

  It was the warmth of belonging.

  But that warmth dimmed in an instant, extinguished by a single question from his friend.

  “Hey, it’s already eight. Aren’t you going to work?”

  “Yeah, don’t you usually log off around this time?” another friend added curiously.

  The young man fell silent.

  He stared at the ceiling of his room, his smile gone.

  He let out a long breath before answering in a quiet, gentle voice.

  “Actually… my little sister… I have to take her to the hospital soon.”

  “Huh? Again?” one of them asked.

  “Yeah. Her stomach acid’s acting up again.”

  “How many times has it been this year? Feels like you go to the hospital every month,” another said.

  “Yeah… what can I do? My family matters more than my job. You guys know what my family’s like.”

  “Yeah… that’s true.”

  “Stay strong, okay?”

  “Just tell me if you get fired. I’ll help you look for a job.”

  “Don’t worry, things will work out somehow. Maybe it’s just not your time to shine yet.”

  The young man smiled at their words of encouragement.

  But instead of responding warmly, he said,

  “Alright, enough about me. Let’s play two more matches, then I’ll head to the hospital.”

  “Okay. After that we’ll replace you with someone better.”

  “You bastard!”

  And so he kept playing, smiling all the way until the time he had planned.

  The clock showed 9:31 on a Monday morning.

  Two hours after that conversation.

  “Let’s play again tonight, okay? I’m heading to the hospital.”

  “Okay.”

  “Aye aye, captain!”

  “Bye-bye!”

  And so the young man spent his morning playing games after staying up all night playing games as well.

  Now, as he prepared to face the real world, the smile on his face slowly faded while he stared at the dark ceiling of his room, the lights still turned off.

  His name was Kevin Harrington.

  A 20-year-old young man with a thick beard, a wild mustache, and long uncut hair, left that way simply because he was too lazy to trim it. Anyone who saw him would think he was already in his forties.

  The first thing he did when he got out of bed was stand in front of a large mirror, one that was cracked in many places, and mutter,

  “…damn it.”

  Kevin let out a long breath.

  Then, slowly, he lifted the large mirror, carried it outside, and threw it into the nearest trash bin.

  With difficulty, his tall, overweight body strained under the weight of the mirror. He grumbled and cursed under his breath the whole time, until he finally reached the bin.

  Unfortunately, he had placed it in the recycling section.

  Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

  But he only sighed and walked away, even though he knew he was wrong.

  He felt someone’s gaze on him.

  When he looked around, he saw a muscular man from the neighborhood staring in his direction.

  “He’s probably thinking why an old guy like me isn’t at work at this hour,” Kevin muttered.

  The muscular man stood up and began walking toward him.

  Kevin noticed.

  His steps quickened.

  So did the man’s.

  Kevin began to panic and eventually broke into a run, no longer even checking if the man was still chasing him.

  When he reached his house, he immediately locked the door, gasping for breath. His poor stamina left him exhausted and panicked, unable to think clearly.

  At that exact moment, his phone rang.

  Without even checking who it was, Kevin snapped,

  “Who the hell is it?! Don’t bother me!”

  “It’s me, idiot! Where the hell are you? The boss is looking for you! You didn’t show up to work, you idiot!”

  “Oh, it's just you. I’m sick.”

  “Bullshit! I know you’re fine! You overslept again, didn’t you?! How many times have I told you! don’t stay up all night if you can’t work in the morning! Get here now before I lose my temper!”

  “Shut up.”

  “W-wait—!”

  Kevin ended the call.

  With his mind in chaos, Kevin walked into the living room and found his mother throwing things at the wall of the neighboring house, screaming curses that he could barely understand.

  “You bastard! My child is sick because of you! Just you wait! Karma will come for you, you bastard!

  God sees everything! God sees everything! You’ll be destroyed soon! Torn to pieces! You’ll die! Die! Just die already, you bastard!

  It’s all your fault! Why did you do this to me? Are you jealous of me? Huh? Why are you taking it out on me? I’ve done nothing wrong and you give me misery?!

  What did I do wrong, God, to deserve all this suffering?! Kill him! Kill him, oh just God! Do your job as a just God!”

  Hearing that, Kevin quietly turned back toward the door.

  “Again… and again… how long is this going to keep happening?” he muttered.

  Sighing, already used to the sight, he decided to go to the neighbor’s house to apologize as he always did.

  But before he could, someone knocked on his door with a heavy, adult man’s voice.

  Uneasy, Kevin peeked through the window.

  It was the muscular man from before.

  Panicking again, Kevin ran upstairs, opened his bedroom window on the second floor, and jumped, Landing on a soft mattress placed right below the window.

  He sprinted through the backyard, climbed over the fence, and slipped into the neighbor’s yard, unnoticed.

  Even from there, his mother’s screams could still be heard clearly.

  Panting, he knocked on the neighbor’s back door.

  “Damn it… why do I have to deal with all this in the morning? If I’d known, I would’ve just gone to work…” he muttered.

  He kept knocking.

  “Alright, alright, give me a second… huh? Why the back door?” a mature woman’s voice said from inside.

  The lock clicked open.

  The door opened.

  “Oh, Kevin? What are you doing?”

  Kevin scratched his head awkwardly and gave a small smile.

  “Well… my mom… you know… sorry.”

  “Ahh… I told you, you don’t have to keep apologizing like this. We’re used to it.”

  “Come on, Auntie… let me make it up to you this time. I feel bad if I don’t give anything,” Kevin said, pulling out his wallet.

  “Put that away. We’re not so poor that we need money just because your mother keeps shouting. For now, come sit in the living room. Do you want tea or milk?”

  “I told you I’m not a kid! …Just don’t make the milk too sweet.”

  “Hehe, how cute.”

  “I’m not cute!”

  “Yeah, yeah.”

  Kevin sat in the living room, waiting for his drink.

  It was completely different from his own home.

  Everything was neat and organized. Medals and trophies were displayed proudly. Not a single object lay scattered on the floor.

  The atmosphere gave him a strange sense of peace.

  “…this is what a home should feel like,” he murmured.

  A little girl peeked from behind the wall.

  Kevin recognized her and waved.

  “Come here, Maria.”

  Maria walked over, clutching her stuffed rabbit. She sat beside him without saying a word.

  Her purple twin-tail hair, her favorite purple dress with black and red accents, and her small, shy figure—anyone who saw her would agree on one word:

  Adorable.

  “So, what do you want to play today?” Kevin asked with a smile.

  “…”

  “Uh… hello? Anyone there?”

  “…”

  “Maria, what are you thinking about?”

  “Nothing.”

  “Then want to play?”

  She shook her head. “I haven’t had breakfast.”

  “Why?”

  “I overslept.”

  “Ah…”

  “I woke up because someone was shouting.”

  “…Sorry. That’s the one of my family.”

  “Why does your family shout?”

  “…I don’t really know,” Kevin answered, looking down at the floor.

  Maria looked at him.

  “You’re lying. You’re Both not a family.”

  “We really are.”

  “Then why you don't know?”

  “…Well…”

  “Isn’t family supposed to know each other?”

  “…Yes. But my family is… a little special.”

  “Special?”

  “Yeah… anyway, how about you?”

  “I’m great. I’m healthy.”

  Kevin gently patted her head, “Yeah, you’re amazing.”

  Maria smiled.

  Then suddenly asked,

  “Kevin, why do you need a reason to come to my house? You can just come if you want to play. You came to play, right?”

  “You’re wrong! I came to apologize.”

  “…not because it’s more comfortable here than your house?”

  Kevin froze.

  His mouth stopped mid-response.

  He didn’t know what to say.

  Because even he didn’t know the answer.

  Seeing his expression change, Maria panicked.

  “…sorry.”

  Kevin smiled again.

  “Why are you apologizing?”

  “Because I feel like I did something wrong.”

  “You didn’t.”

  “But I feel like I did.”

  “You’re stubborn, huh.”

  “My mom said I should apologize when I do something wrong. But I’m just a kid, so I don’t always know if I’m wrong… so I apologize when I feel like I am. Even if I’m not sure.”

  Kevin blinked.

  “…you really are nine years old, right?”

  “Yes. Is there a problem with my age?”

  “No… I just feel like you’re more mature than me.”

  “That’s weird. You’re older than me.”

  “…ahaha. You’re right.”

  Maria suddenly leaned closer, staring at his face carefully.

  Kevin tilted his head.

  “What is it?”

  “Don’t you want to cut your hair? My dad became handsome just by cutting his hair.”

  Kevin froze.

  “…my hair, huh? Change… haha… if only I could.”

  “Of course you can change. Who says you can’t?”

  “…I can… change?”

  Kevin laughed.

  And at the same time...

  he cried.

  Maria panicked.

  “Sorry! I didn’t know you were that scared of cutting your hair!”

  Kevin shook his head, stop crying like a little girl but still laughing softly.

  “No… no, this isn’t your fault. It’s mine.”

  At that moment, Only Kevin realized they had been talking about two completely different things.