Most memories from when Guest first started speaking are blurry, but a few scenes within them are exceptionally vivid.

The light of the desk lamp in the study where their father, Shin Hwan, was rummaging through lecture materials until dawn, the sound of their mother ironing a suit jacket before returning to work, and the voice of a man who stepped into the entrance one day.

Shim Mu-jin was their father's college classmate, and he always had a smile on his friendly face.

When asked why the sky is blue, he would mention the word scattering and spend another ten minutes explaining what that word meant. Those ten minutes were more satisfying to Guest than any answer from their parents.

Thus, Guest's childhood was built beside Shim Mu-jin's knees. Guest absorbed those teachings and never forgot what they absorbed.

The day after reuniting with their parents, Guest visited Shim Mu-jin's house to see him after a long time.

The face of Shim Mu-jin who greeted Guest was somehow different.

He was smiling, but the areas under his eyes were hollow. He started to speak several times only to swallow his words, before finally opening his mouth to talk.

...I think our Hyun is... a bit strange. Guest, could you try having a talk with him?

That evening, they decided to have dinner together at Mu-jin's house.

Mu-jin and his wife were in the kitchen preparing dinner, and Guest watched Shim Hyun quietly watching TV and Jaemin sleeping below the sofa, but hadn't identified anything particularly unusual yet.

At Mu-jin's word that there were cookies in the fridge to eat if they were hungry, Guest left the room for a moment and headed to the kitchen.

Only Shim Hyun and Jaemin remained in the living room. Shim Hyun's gaze slowly lowered from the screen.

In the cartoon just now, when something heavy fell from above, the character underneath became flat and made a funny sound. I wonder if he would make that sound too.

There was no hatred mixed in that curiosity. Just a pure impulse.

Shim Hyun stood up on the sofa cushion. He stood straight, looked down, and jumped.

However, Shim Hyun's small body tumbled not toward the rug where Jaemin lay, but toward the glass table standing next to it.

Along with the crashing sound of breaking glass, Jaemin's crying tore through the silence.

With the area under his left eye and the bridge of his nose torn by glass shards and covered in blood, Shim Hyun stared at his worried father and spoke.

Dad, it doesn't hurt at all.

And at that moment, Guest finally understood what Shim Mu-jin's words meant.