Hyun Seo was so taken aback by Young Suk’s words that he couldn’t close his gaping mouth.

Despite knowing how well his mother had taken care of her children.

She had been so gentle when things were difficult. How could a person change so abruptly?

Next to him, Hye Su, who had been slightly trembling, said nothing. She was too angry to want to engage in conversation.

Quietly, Hye Su got up and did as Young Suk asked. She gathered all the gifts that Do Ha had given and placed them in front of her.

“Here they are.”
She even showed the respect that Young Suk desired as she spoke.

“Is this everything?”
“Yes. Take everything, nothing is missing.”
“Hmm. Okay. Also, please keep it a secret from Do Ha that I came today.”
Young Suk was truly a woman who only cared about herself until the very end.

After Young Suk left and quite some time passed, Hye Su finally spoke to Hyun Seo, who had been shedding tears all along.

“We… seem to have to let Do Ha go now.”
“Mom…”
“Hyun Seo, I know it’s hard, but you have to forget Do Ha now.”
At those words, tears burst forth like a flood, his voice becoming a sob.

“What should… I do…”
Hye Su also exhaled a sigh of despair. The sadness of not being able to see Do Ha was more overwhelming than the anger and betrayal she felt towards Young Suk.

But what could they do? They could only think that their connection with Do Ha had ended here.

“Cut him off even if Do Ha contacts you.”
“…How can you say that.”
“Listen to me, Hyun Seo. Before we see something worse.”
“……”
After that, Hyun Seo spent a painful time in desolation. He didn’t know how many kilos he had lost during that period.

After more than a month had passed, the first contact came from Do Ha.

Hyun Seo couldn’t answer the phone despite seeing his name flashing on the ringing device. He was so happy that his heart was pounding, but tears were the only thing that came out.

When she didn’t answer the phone, a text message came in its stead.

[Hyun Seo, how have you been?] [We are fine. Don’t worry about us, you must be busy. Take care of yourself.] She sent a placid reply. It must have been different from the usual overjoyed response of Hyun Seo. He seemed to notice the change in her tone.

[Is something wrong? Your aunt didn’t answer her phone either.] [No, nothing’s wrong.] [Have you been busy lately? Why haven’t you been in contact?] It seemed odd to him, as Hyun Seo, who used to contact him daily, suddenly ceased all communication.

[Yeah, I’m busy.] [You are a freshman, but you seem very busy.] [Yes. I’ve been doing a lot of things. And I also have a boyfriend now.] She thought that telling him, who she had followed around obsessively, that she had a boyfriend would naturally create some distance.

After her statement, Do Ha sent a message after a slight pause.

[Really?] [Yes.] [Who is he?] [A classmate. Anyway, I won’t be able to contact you frequently from now on.] After Hyun Seo’s words that day, there was no reply from Do Ha.

However, he contacted her again the next day.

[Hyun Seo, why did you lie? You don’t have a boyfriend.] [What?] [Seung Jin checked it for me. He said you are not dating your classmate. Seung Jin asked your classmates as well.] “……”
Hyun Seo was absolutely flabbergasted. Seung Jin was Do Ha’s high school classmate and also a senior in Hyun Seo’s department.

She murmured, forgetting to reply to Do Ha.

“Why would Seung Jin brother check that for him……”
Sometimes, Do Ha could be strangely persistent about odd things. She didn’t know why it was coming out in this situation, though.

“So you went around asking about my love life even though we aren’t close?”
[Why did you lie, Hyun Seo?] Hyun Seo couldn’t continue her words due to the awkwardness. She couldn’t bring herself to say that she had done it to cut off contact.

[Are you and your aunt avoiding me?] Hyun Seo couldn’t bring herself to respond to him in the end.

Even after that, Do Ha tried to contact both Hyun Seo and Hye Su several times, but neither of them answered the phone or replied to his messages.

Then, unexpectedly one weekend, Do Ha showed up.

“Brother……”
Hyun Seo felt like she was about to cry out of joy from seeing Do Ha, especially after what happened with Young Suk, but she held back her tears.

“Is your aunt here?”
“Yes……”
“Why haven’t you been answering my calls?”
“……”
The encounter was equally hard for Hye Su. She wanted to cook a warm meal for Do Ha, whom she hadn’t seen in a long time, but she couldn’t even offer him a cup of water.

It had to end miserably so it could be the end for good.

“Do Ha, you don’t need to come like this anymore.”
“What do you mean by that?”
Usually calm in any situation, Do Ha seemed quite taken aback by Hye Su’s firm tone.

“I’m saying this for your own good. From now on, you should focus on relationships that are necessary to you, that are helpful to you.”
“I am already putting a lot of thought into those relationships. But what does that have to do with me coming here?”