Chapter=39(Because you are his son!)

"Is it something you can't tell us?"

Minhae reassured again.

"If it's like that then it's alright!"

He laid a few steps back as he secretly paid attention to newmoon's silence.

In a moment of weakness, he almost spilled the truth nervously.

"No! If it's something that's bothering you then you can tell us! What are friends after all?"

Oasis commented in an uplifting voice.

Hearing the word 'friends', from the oasis made newmoon heart swell up with enormous emotions. He couldn't figure out what that foreign feeling was but he was convinced enough to blurt out.

The phrases that dad told mum when he was away showered in his mind. His heart crimpled in a sec knowing how he was being boycotted in his own family. Taking things aside, he was even banned from doing normal things like watching tv, playing, and strolling around.

Recalling all the images in his head, it didn't take him long to fall back into the pit of heaven. His smile faded from his face in a way as if his lips had never curled up and the tiny sparkle soon vanished behind that dark abyss of the eyelids. It almost seemed like an illusion.

Lowering his chin, newmoon sat down.

Only he knew the pain to open his mouth. Surprisingly, Minhae and oasis were waiting patiently as though they were giving him the time to express himself.

Newmoon thought for a few more minutes and took a long sigh as if he was about to finally speak!

"D-Do you know what'll happen if I die?"

He asked in a pained tone.

"…"

"…"

It was the sentences even newmoon was unaware of! He flinched. Before he could realize what nasty shit he just spilled, it was already too late. The mood of the environment quickly took a whole turn.

"Now! Where is that coming from?"

A mumbling voice sounded before newmoon saw the fist of somebody grabbing his collar. He was forced to stand up once again.

"TELL ME AGAIN?"

Surprisingly it was an oasis.

As he zoom his pupil to look at him, his eyes were bruised up in agitation. And the distance between the two eyebrows was almost dissolved into one.

"?"

Newmoon just kept on wondering why he was angry. Yes! He did misspell it from the original text but if coming to think deeply of it, it wasn't unreasonable at all. Indeed it was the ultimate conclusion he reached subconsciously. At that point, the simple thought only popped up in his head 'Woah! His mood swings are crazy, 'he seemed dangerous when pissed off' or 'Why is he making a fuss about a trivial question, I'm just wondering?"

Somewhere between them, he was emrassessed as well. In the first interaction, he showed cowardness and a weak spirit. There is no way in the hell he could recover it next time- No- after all seeing it, there is a no next time in the first place. It meant he was doomed.

All sorts of possibilities were flushing in his head, one mind was telling him to brush off lying as if it was a joke or admit it to the end. But more than that he was regretting his death.

The tightness of grip gradually increased as oasis began to shout even more.

However, at the moment all he could hear was his inner voice of himself. Soon oasis's voice became smaller and smaller to a point of mute. And just the movement of lips was seen. Sometimes it opened for a long while then paused for a bit. His expression was turning like a tide.

Minhae, "…"

"Y-Ya are you hearing me?"

As though in the end oasis finally get the mood of newmoon, he slacked him off twice before he punched him in the cheeks.

"?"

"…"

Only then did the long beep of deafness returned to his consciousness.

"Do you think a death is some kind of joke?"

Oasis's tone was sharpened with agitation.

He heard the voice. He heard him.

"Answer me! Do you seriously think death is some sort of video game where you might be revived once you pressed the 'play again' button after you die?"

Seeing how the situation was getting heated up, Minhae was silent for a long while and decided to interfere between them.

He walked a few steps and grabbed oasis's shoulder.

"Don't fucking kid me-??"

With a pause, he turned his head around. His entire face was burning in fire. Minhae glanced at him and compressed his shoulder a bit as if he was hinting to him to stop now.

Oasis shrugged his shoulder in irritation, glared at newmoon, and leaned back. It was written on his whole face that before leaving he wished to punch him a few more times. As though not able to grant that wish he kicked the nearby chair a few miles away in frustration.

Once more, newmoon however was clueless. He still was unaware of his behavior.

On the other side, Minhae calmly dragged the fallen chair near to the newmoon and sat down. He even waved newmoon to sit down too.

With a blank face, he plopped down. He couldn't get the point of why Minhae was calm and serene like the surface of the ocean at the moment when the oasis was furious and frantic like the tornado. Not only that, he casually made oasis backed up like it was nothing else just with a simple pat and glance.

"Newmoon! Please excuse his behavior!"

"Hey! That's me-!"

When oasis was about to open his mouth to protest and argued, Minhae stared and slightly furrowed his eyebrows.

"…"

Quickly, he grits his teeth and swallowed the rest of the words as he leaned to the wall of the windows and looks the other way!

"N-No! It's alright. I think it's my fault to ask such an irreverent and foolish question out of nowhere!"

Newmoon denied honestly.

Minhae shook his head, "No! It's not your fault. If it comes to blame, it should be us no- me! Cause I started this topic and somehow forced you to reveal your feelings although you weren't comfortable at all!"

Hearing it, newmoon opened his mouth in startled as though he wanted to defend his thoughts and correct him but for some reason, he lacked the courage to do so!

Minhae bowed his head and apologized to him.

Seeing him bowing his head for good for nothing person like him, Newmoon could no longer hold the guilt and confessed,

"No, you didn't do anything wrong. Don't apologize!"

"…"

Newmoon didn't know how the circumstances turned out like this. It was embarrassing enough to ask such a foolish question and now he had sinned to make him bow his head.

He clenched his fist even harder as if he was pushing his limit to speak.

"I should be thankful enough that you noticed my tea- I mean…!"

"It will cause a catastrophic disaster!"

"Eh?"

Nodding his head, Minhae slightly leaned back and continued in a gentle tone. His eyes blankly looked at the random places as though he was taking his time to answer reasonably.

"Um,..to your family members and your loved ones! Once you die everyone will mourn for you including your siblings as well. But mostly your mum and dad will suffer the most and the scar would never be healed-!"

"But in my case, my dad won't-!!"

Immediately afterward he closed his mouth with his hands but Unfortunately, By that time he had already blurted out the truth. A cold sweat dripped across his forehead.

Without a pause, Minhae corrected him,

"Of course, he will!"

Meanwhile, a few distances away, Oasis was mumbling something under his breath. Probably cursing newmoon for another foolish assumption?

"Because you are his son!"

Newmoon remained still as if he wasn't affected by his words.

Seeing how his eyes were unmoved and his face unaffected, Minhae look at him for a while as if he was analyzing something in his mind.

Thinking how Minhae had become quiet and how frustrated he was with the incident, he finally give up.

In a hopeless tone, he began to share all of his bottled-up feelings in front of Minhae.

"So, it's like that! I know as a weak student I should work hard too but hearing the same word 'read- read every time and everywhere, even the interest and motivation for study vanished instantly. I can't concentrate if he constantly forces me to!"

He tugged his hair in irritation.

"Back then, I used to study because the subjects used to grab my curiosity and I wanted to gain more knowledge about it, to cut it short, it was enjoyable but not anymore. Ever since I jumped to grade 5, it became harder and the gap grew dangerously. Till then, my grade hit the rock bottom."

"But he never plugs even the single thread of my younger brother's hair. He only prefers him. Due to this we even got into a huge fight this morning!"

During his explanation, Minhae didn't even butt in the middle and listened attentively. Once he finished, only then Minhae took some action toward him.

He patted his shoulders and appreciated him, "First of all, we're thankful that you opened up to us and share it. We respect your boldness and bravery. Not everybody shared their dark secrets about their family and not the outsiders like us. Secondly, it must have been tuff for you!"

As soon as he heard the second phrase, newmoon's eyes got wet and his heart tighten as though he had been dying to hear those exact words for a long time.

His body shook as he tried to control his feelings from pouring over.

Minhae sensed if he pushed him the next second, he might burst into tears. So, he retract his hands and focused on the points, [Note= Add how newmoon felt a sense of familiarity when he heard Minhae asking what happened in the first part]

"To be honest, as an outsider I can't judge and don't possess any rights to talk dirt about your family but let me confess something about it now that we've come to the topic of it."

Minhae glanced at the windows and exclaimed, "Likewise you, I too have a younger brother to whom I felt the invisible distance between me and him at some point in life back then!"

Newmoon, "…"

With a pause, he continued, "But later on, I realized I was just overreacting and overthinking. And mum loves us both equally. Well I know you aren't resonating with me right now but you'll eventually figure it out!"

Michael's gaze fixed on the one bird that was on the tree outside the windows. Maybe if he recalled something after seeing it, he concluded, "And you know what? The only reason why they give their extra attention to the younger ones is the fact they are 'younger' than you. Suppose if we're the younger one, then their entire focus and priority would be us."

It was the first time newmoon had heard someone advising him, and on top of that it was non-other than his admired pairs 'Minhae'. He had an idea they were exceptional pairs but it surprised him beyond that.

The cold breeze fluttered the minhae's hair showing the long and thick eyelashes of his eyes. That day newmoon came to realize that even the boy possessed bold eyebrows and eyelashes. As if the wind brushed all of his anxiety away for some reason, he felt utterly light in his heart as his mind began to clear. Every single word was directly engraved in his subconscious level.

"But you know, there is one benefit here though?"

"?"

"It means you are becoming an adult and your parents trust you as a whole to the point you don't need any guardian around you!"

For some unknown reason, newmoon flinched, "…"

Glancing at him straightly, Minhae smiled.

"Now, isn't that something to celebrate or cheer up?"

Hearing it, newmoon flinched. He felt as if he had been hit by a bucket of ice. All insecurities, assumptions, and fog began to dissipate one after another.

"Why didn't I think through in the first place?"

A voice in his mind said.

A faint of realization quickly rushed to his entire face. He blanks out for a minute.

"..Because you prefer him more than me right?"

Suddenly, he heard another voice in his head.

"Mum you don't need to calm down me anymore! I am in the best shape than ever. I know why he looks down upon me! After all, I was a child he never wanted me to be born in this world. That's why he despises me to deal-!!"

Soon after, the images and the sound fell like a rain shower and he couldn't hold it any longer but wrap his head with his arms and secretly wish to disappear from the earth. No matter how much he give thought, his yelling at dad didn't make sense at all. It's as though he was asking for attention like a small child.

To think deeply, he indeed was in a place to be scolded by him. Not only once, he nearly failed twice in 2 years. And the academic is so poor that who knows if the teacher added extra marks just to make him pass?

He began to find the loose holes and the reason for his father's behaviors. To talk about john, was a small, fragile, and absent-minded child to whom even if you beat them, or scold he doesn't care. No in truth he doesn't understand.

He closed his eyes tightly as if the level of cringes reached his heart.

To whom he was even comparing himself?

His younger brother who was only 10 years old?

"Of course, he would get an earful and beating if his academics are low as pit hole!"

Oasis declared from far away.

"You should be glad you're alive!"

He commented pouting his mouth and turning around to face the outside view.

Ever since their meeting, it was the first time he threw some bitter truth at newmoon.

On the other side, newmoon was speechless.

"Seeing how you are speechless and your face color changed, I think you make it through!"

At the same moment, the bell rings.

They're so deeply engraved by the topic that they didn't witness the students come and go.

Looking around, Minhae stood up patting newmoon's shoulders once again, "Now then it is solved, don't think much. It's normal to misunderstand the matter. Sometimes it happens!"

Gazing deeply into newmoon's eyes, Minhae gives a wide smile.

A pure positive aura shone in the center of his eyes.

~Badump~

Then he turned to the oasis and asked, "Right oasis?"

A deep dimple was seen on the right side of his cheek adding an extra level of handsomeness in him.

"..."

Oasis, however, wrinkled his nose, "What are you looking at me for? I don't know! Ya, know I am a single child."

"Oh right, It slipped through my mind for a second."

Minhae rubbed his nose.

"I hope your mind got cleared newmoon! If you ever find difficulties in your study then, we are here for you! We'll help our best-"

Minhae hadn't finished his words when oasis interfered in the middle as he passed through them.

"But only if he has the will to fight! Say that sort of stuff one more time and I'll punch you to a pulp. Remember that!"

The word 'punch' made newmoon shiver as if he recalled the sensation of getting hit from earlier. Newmoon hands almost touched his cheeks.

"Btw, you might not know but he is sensitive whenever it comes to the topic of life and death."

Minhae reminds him in a low voice.

"It can't be helped cause he lost someone very close to him 2 years ago-!"

"Yaa! I'm hearing it!"

Oasis shouted from the front.

Being caught red-handed, Minhae laughed and waved his hands as if it was a goodbye to him.

Then they left.

Once again, newmoon was all by himself but his soul wasn't. His mind was full of positive things.

"Oh!! Minhae must be referring to the death of his grandparents!"

He muttered to himself.

Now he understands it. His anger was reasonable too. Being scratched on the old wound doesn't feel pleasant after all.

He had a day full of a rollercoaster. Gets scolded raises his voice to his father to a point of getting beaten, meets best friend pairs, once again gets a good punch, then receives advice and clarification to end the conversation about being friends.

As expected, they were on a whole different level.

…

In the evening, he sneakily peeked inside the house like a thief and straightforwardly entered the kitchen. Having been hungry for a whole day his legs were getting weak and about to give up just like how his stomach gave up long ago. He barely made it home.

All things aside, he started to look for food in every utensil. Even in frustration, he cursed at himself recalling the morning incident.

"This is what happens if I show off my attitude in front of my parents. Hmph! In other families and drama, they show utter love between parents and children but in reality, this sort of thing happens behind the scenes."

He cried internally. But was expressionless on the outside. Cause to cry one needs tears and for that one needs to have energy. In his case, energy is what he lacked at the moment. Upside, down, left to right he didn't leave a single dark spot to search for grains of rice but nothing was there even dust!

Every once in a while, he used to steal a glance of the hallway too, afraid his mum would pop out from nowhere. After saying his heart out, now he was feeling guilty and embarrassed for no reason. Isn't it too late for that?

He continued to look out.

As for dad, one thing was for sure. whenever he was pissed off, he would come home late that particular day. So, he was strangely relieved about dad?