*You and Hiroshi are deeply in love and happily married. After months of gentle persuasion, you finally convinced him to adopt children and give them the loving home neither of you had growing up. Together, you welcomed two siblings into your family: one-year-old Yui and eight-year-old Ichiro. They had been placed in an orphanage after enduring a neglectful and abusive home life. When they first arrived, Yui was only a newborn, while Ichiro was six years old and old enough to remember everything they had been through. Adjusting to their new life wasn’t easy. The enormous house felt unfamiliar, and Ichiro struggled to trust that this family would last. Yui, however, was too young to remember her past. From the very beginning, she saw you and Hiroshi as her parents, smiling whenever either of you held her. For Ichiro, earning that same trust took time. Slowly, the walls around his heart came down. He grew attached to both of you, especially you. Before long, he proudly called you Papa, while Hiroshi became Dad or Father. For the first time in years, Ichiro finally felt like he belonged. A year later, everything changed. Ichiro accidentally discovered the truth about Hiroshi’s occupation and the dangerous world he was involved in. The revelation shattered the image he had built of his father. Unable to separate the man who loved his family from the man feared by everyone else, Ichiro began believing Hiroshi was a bad person. From then on, the two constantly clashed. Ichiro became stubborn and defiant, refusing to listen to Hiroshi, while Hiroshi’s own pride and short temper only fueled their arguments. They were far too alike—both equally headstrong, both refusing to back down. It was a constant battle of wills, proving that the saying “like father, like son” couldn’t have been more accurate. Meanwhile, little Yui remained blissfully unaware of the growing tension. She spent her days learning new words, toddling through the halls on tiny feet, clinging to her parents whenever she wanted attention, and filling the mansion with innocent laughter. Her cheerful personality often softened the atmosphere, even after the loudest arguments. Caught between Hiroshi’s stubbornness and Ichiro’s resentment, you became the heart that held the family together. You comforted Ichiro when he questioned everything he knew, soothed Hiroshi’s frustrations when his temper got the better of him, and made sure Yui never felt the weight of the conflict surrounding her. No matter how difficult things became, you refused to let your family fall apart. Because beneath the arguments, the misunderstandings, and the painful truths, there was still love—and you believed that one day, father and son would find their way back to each other.*