You kissed me. You said you’d wait for me.
Thank you for forgiving me.
You said all that… and then this?
Goodbye.
Winston couldn’t hold back and spat out a curse. Why hadn’t he realized it then? Every word Yu-jin had said had been a lie. The only truth was that one final farewell.
I can’t believe I fell for it again.
A groan slipped through his clenched teeth. To think he’d stoop so low as to use a naive teenage girl—it was utterly disgraceful.
All just to escape from me.
His entire body felt like it was burning with rage and hatred. He would find him no matter what. He would never let Yu-jin toy with him again. Grinding his teeth audibly, Winston growled under his breath. He felt a violent urge to strangle Yu-jin, but quickly shook his head.
What if Yu-jin actually ended up dead?
Even the thought made a chill run down his spine. He stepped back from that gruesome impulse, then imagined breaking Yu-jin’s legs instead—but again, he faltered. Just the image of Yu-jin crying, face twisted in agony, made it impossible to carry out, even in his imagination.
And there was another problem. If he ever harmed Yu-jin in any way—what would Angela do?
She’d hate me all over again.
Haa… A sigh boiled up from deep in his chest. The fury was driving him to the brink of madness, and yet he couldn’t do a damn thing. That helplessness only fed his rage even more.
Where the hell is he? What is he doing?
There were no signs of credit card use, no ATM withdrawals—nothing. As far as Winston knew, Yu-jin had no money. In this bitter winter, where could he possibly be wandering with the child?
Just the thought that Yu-jin might be digging through trash again, or selling himself and getting beaten to a pulp, made Winston feel like he was losing his mind.
If he ran off with another man…
He realized, almost absently, that a part of him would rather it be that. The absurdity of the thought made him let out a bitter laugh. Even if he found Yu-jin again, there wasn’t a damn thing he could do.
Faced with that inevitable conclusion, Winston found himself hopelessly trapped—cornered with no way out.
***
“You’ve returned, Mr. Campbell.”
As always, the butler waited at the front of the estate and greeted him with a polite tone. Winston gave a curt nod in response and brushed past him. The butler immediately followed, continuing to speak as they walked.
“We’re still pursuing any leads on Mr. Yu-jin’s whereabouts. There’s nothing to report yet, but we’ll keep trying.”
Winston only nodded again. It was what he expected—he didn’t have the energy left to react any further. He was simply exhausted. As he climbed the stairs in silence, the only sound echoing through the vast mansion was the heavy tread of his own footsteps.
The estate was enormous and spacious… and suffocatingly silent. The quiet was so intense that even the smallest sigh seemed like it would echo through the halls, making him hold his breath without realizing it.
He was supposed to head toward the room at the end of the hallway, but his steps halted before he got there. Standing in front of the door to the room Angela used to stay in, he paused for a moment, then slowly reached out and turned the doorknob. The door swung open easily, revealing a cold, empty room. Without anyone in it, the space held not a trace of warmth.
Winston stood frozen in place. The butler, noticing his stillness, refrained from speaking and simply watched with careful eyes. Without a word, Winston stepped inside the room and closed the door behind him. The butler, unable to do anything more, turned away with a bitter expression.
Winston didn’t walk far before coming to a stop again. The silence was suffocating, as if the whole world had gone still. He slowly scanned the room, but nothing had changed. Just like the day before. And the day before that.
There was no trace of Yu-jin and Angela—neither of them sitting on the floor playing house, nor sharing tea at the small table, nor lying side by side on the bed reading fairy tales. All of it was gone. Winston’s eyes traced every corner, seeking the memories they had left behind.
Haa… A heavy sigh escaped as he dragged a hand down his face. If this continued, he felt like he would collapse from a nervous breakdown.
…So lonely.
The thought crept in before he could stop it. And the moment he recognized it, a bone-deep loneliness seeped into his chest like a creeping frost, freezing him from the inside out. He regretted the thought instantly—but it was already too late. With a face drained of color, Winston stood there, staring blankly into the lifeless room.
Alone.
***
“Daddy, Daddy! Lemon came back again! Can I give it some carrot?”
Lemon was the name Angela had given to the little rabbit she’d found near the front of the house. One bitter winter day, the rabbit had wandered around in search of food, and Angela had named it Lemon and fed it some carrots from the fridge. After hiding behind the curtains and secretly watching the rabbit gently nibble and carry off the carrot she had placed a short distance away, she had been eagerly awaiting its return ever since. Now, her cheeks flushed with excitement, Angela looked up at Yu-jin, who gave her a warm smile and nodded.
“Go ahead. Just don’t touch it, remember?”
“Yup, I know!”
Angela gave an enthusiastic nod before dashing off. Yu-jin watched her go with a look of tender affection on his face. They had arrived at this house late that evening, after leaving Sam’s place. Battling against the icy wind with Angela held tightly in his arms, Yu-jin had nearly collapsed from relief when he finally spotted the house.
We really got lucky, didn’t we?
A faint smile tugged at his lips. Unable to sleep, tossing and turning with the fear that Winston might show up at any moment, Yu-jin had asked Sam if he could borrow the computer. His phone had been turned off long ago. The first thing he did was buy a temporary phone and email his publisher with the new number. By sheer coincidence, the publisher must have been awake, because the CEO replied almost immediately.
“Yu-jin, I’ve got good news! A Newspaper wants to feature our book as ‘Book of the Week’! Have you heard of that segment?”
Yu-jin’s eyes widened in disbelief. Of course! Anyone even remotely interested in books would read that column. Whenever he wanted to discover new titles, he read it too.
He searched for the segment online. But—dozens, maybe even hundreds of books were published every single day. And out of all of those, my book? He just couldn’t believe it.
“W-Wait, really? Are you saying that editor actually picked my book?”
“Yes! Didn’t I tell you? I said from the beginning this book had real potential!”
The man burst out laughing, unable to hide his excitement. Yu-jin’s heart was pounding so hard it felt like it might explode. He struggled to steady his breathing, trying not to pass out from the overwhelming thrill. Is this real? Am I dreaming? His shoulders trembled with each breath as he stood there, stunned, and then the editor asked again, his voice still riding high on excitement.
“Let’s get started on the next one right away. Do you have a manuscript in progress? Or at least an idea?”
“Uh, I… well…”
Yu-jin blinked, caught completely off guard. He stammered for a moment before finally managing a response.
“I do, kind of…”
The truth was, he could write as many stories as he wanted. There were countless tales buried deep in his heart, all clamoring to be born into the world. His entire body buzzed with a heady, overwhelming emotion, and he took a deep breath to calm himself. The editor, thrilled, went on.
“Perfect, let’s jump in. How long do you think it’ll take? I’m thinking of building momentum by lining up releases one after another.”
“Ah…”
Of course Yu-jin wanted to accept the offer immediately. But there was a major problem—he wasn’t in any condition to write at the moment.
“Well, it’s just that… I need to find a place to stay first…”
He trailed off, trying to gloss over his situation as best he could. The editor seemed surprised and responded quickly.
“What do you mean? You’re saying you’re not in a position to write right now?”
“Something like that…”
Yu-jin replied awkwardly, clearly uncomfortable with explaining more. He was about to fall silent when the editor suddenly asked,
“You don’t have a space to work in? So if I provide you with one, that’s enough?”
“Eh?”
Yu-jin blinked, startled by the unexpected question. Then came an unbelievable offer.
“All right. I’ll lend you a studio—use it to write your next book. How’s that sound?”
“Eh…?!”
All Yu-jin could do was let out another stunned gasp. It was such an unreal offer… but the man was serious. Completely, earnestly serious. And so, after giving his thanks and farewells to Sam in advance, Yu-jin set out with Angela at dawn and arrived at the house the editor had told him about.
