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The color purple once again helped Kim Dooshik find his home.
He landed on the roof, his heart beating fast. Two voices could be heard getting closer with each passing second; one unfamiliar which belonged to a boy and one he’d be able to recognize in the sea of sounds.
Before he had a chance to come up with what he was going to say, they were already there on the other side of the roof. The boy who must have been Bongseok noticed him first. He glanced back at his mother, seeking explanation. There was a stranger on their roof after all.
He looked very different than the little Bongseok Dooshik remembered. He was a young man now, all grown up and handsome. Dooshik had missed the years that had led to this transformation, but he still had that “yes, that’s my son” thought at the back of his head as soon as he saw him.
And then there was Mihyun, older than the last time he had seen her but still beautiful. Dooshik had spent years imagining their reunion and never truly believing it would happen. Now the moment felt so unreal that he might have looked a little stunned and uncertain, wandering with his gaze from his wife and his son.
He did not know what to say.
Bongseok smiled slightly, finally realizing who the man standing opposite them was. Mihyun also smiled, tears shimmering in her eyes.
Before he found them, Dooshik had wondered if they would want to accept him back into their lives. Leaving them had not been his choice and for the first few years Mihyun had probably waited for him, but it had been so long since he had disappeared. She could have moved on and he had no right to barge back into her life, expecting her to be still in love with him.
But now, when he started walking towards them, his doubts disappeared. How else was he supposed to explain the way Mihyun was looking at him? As if no time had passed, as if their love was still the only thing they both could be certain of.
None of them said anything, no words were good enough to express their feelings. Dooshik approached his family. He put his hand on the back of Bongseok’s neck and reached with his other hand to hold Mihyun. Soon he had his arms around both of them, pulling them into a hug. He put his chin on Mihyun head, looking at his son and trying to blink away the tears welling up in his eyes.
“You found us,” Mihyun was the one to break the silence, her voice a mere whisper.
Of course he did. He had spotted the purple roof from a long distance. Only Mihyun could so blatantly and at the same time subtly lead him home.
“I’m sorry it took me so long,” he said, caressing Mihyun’s hair.
“It’s not your fault,” Bongseok pointed out.
Dooshik knew that but it still meant a lot for him to hear those words from his son who had to live without his father and could have as well started resenting him.
“Bongseok-ah. My son. You’ve grown up well.”
Mihyun chuckled, wiping the tears from her face before reaching out to hold their son with her free hand.
“It’s thanks to mom.” Bongseok grinned. “She raised me well.”
“She sure did. I saw the news. You’re the mysterious hero in the yellow raincoat, aren’t you?”
Bongseok shrugged, and Mihyun tapped him on the shoulder, clearly amused. Dooshik had missed her smile so much he was afraid he would never get enough of seeing it.
“I made him hide his abilities for a long time, but at some point I couldn’t restrict him anymore. He wanted to fly.”
“Like my father,” Bongseok added. “You know, I sometimes dream about that time when I flew to the clouds and you found me there. It’s my most vivid memory of you.”
Dooshik pulled Bongseok away a little to have a better look at his face. “You still remember that? That must have been a traumatic experience for you.”
“No. I was afraid at first, but then you hugged me and I felt safe again. Thinking about that moment makes me happy because it tells me what kind of father you were before you were taken away from us. You wanted to protect me and that’s why I could never hate you for leaving. I know why you did it. To protect me and mom.”
Mihyun freed herself from the embrace to wipe her tears. They seemed to never stop coming. Dooshik understood that as he himself had to fight his own from falling, especially now that he was overwhelmed by the pride in their son.
“You’re so mature, Bongseok-ah,” he observed. “Mom really did raise you well without my help. I guess there’s not much left that I can teach you.”
“You’ve already taught me that in order to learn how to fly well, you have to know how to fall well.”
Dooshik smiled, looking at Mihyun in awe. She had shared these words with their son, this way leting Dooshik also teach Bongseok something.
“Besides, maybe I could teach you a thing or two.” Bongseok caught his attention again. “The world has changed in the last few years. I’ve changed too. I have a lot of stories to tell you.”
“I’ll gladly listen to them all,” Dooshik promised, infinitely grateful for the acceptance his son showed him.
“But first I need to take care of the laundry.”
Bongseok sent the last smile to his father and left his embrace. Dooshik watched him go to the other side of the roof.
“He’s being suspiciously nice today.” Mihyun said, standing next to Dooshik. “Don’t get fooled by that cute smile. He can be very disobedient.”
“Dad,” Bongseok shouted, folding the purple curtains. Dooshik’s heart skipped a beat. “Can you occupy mom somehow so she will let me breath for a moment?”
“See? A little brat.”
“With supernatural hearing, I suppose.” Dooshik turned to face Mihyun. “He takes after both of us.”
“He does.” She put her hand on his chest. “I heard your heart a moment ago. You have to get used to him calling you his dad. Oh, it’s beating faster now.”
Dooshik smiled, memories flooding him. It was both a relief and sort of an agony to have her so close again. He kept longing for her even now when she was next to him.
“You still have that influence on me.”
She looked up at him, her eyes no longer filled with tears. He found so much warmth in her gaze that it would be enough to keep him alive forever. And when she reached out and stroked his cheek with her hand, he found himself on the brink of breaking down in her arms. He had used to dream about her touch and soothing voice.
“Only recently have I found out what really happened to you. How have you been, Dooshik-ssi?”
“Not so bad.” He put his hands on her back. “Don’t worry.”
“I can hear your heartbeat, remember? I know when you lie.”
He blinked the tears away, smiling lightly. No one understood him better than her, but it was not just because of her powers. She was the one he could be vulnerable with.
“I was dying inside,” Dooshik confessed just like years before, when he had found her in her apartment because keeping his distance had been a torture. “Without you and Bongseok-ah.”
She stroked his check and he closed his eyes, nuzzling to her touch.
“I was dying too,” she whispered. “I thought I’d never see you again. It hurt so much I couldn’t even talk to Bongseok-ah about you. We never mentioned you. I’m sorry.”
Dooshik pulled her into a hug, holding her so tight as if he was afraid she would disappear if he did not. She pressed her face to his shoulder and he caressed her hair, his heart aching in his chest.
“It’s okay,” he assured her, his voice steady despite all the emotions flooding him. “You did so well, Mihyun-ssi. You can have some rest now.”
“You too.” She raised her head to look him in the eyes. “You’re home. You’re safe.”
In her arms, he would always be.
Ignoring the fact that Bongseok was standing just a few steps away from them, Dooshik cupped Mihyun’s face in his hands and kissed her. Fifteen years had passed but her taste, touch, voice, everything was familiar, written in his memory like a love poem. She reciprocated his kiss and he felt young and foolish again, and madly in love, excitement pushing away all the pain and misery of the last years.
Before he could do anything about it, he started to float just like during their first kiss. But this time he put his arms around Mihyun and still kissing her deeply, he allowed his powers to raise them both from the ground.
Mihyun chuckled between kisses, her arms wrapped around his neck, her laughter resonating in his entire body. He smiled brightly for the first time in so long, separating their lips so he could look at Mihyun’s amused face, as beautiful as ever, and learn this moment by heart so he could reply it in his memory whenever he wanted.
Only after a second did he remember that was not necessary. She was not going anywhere, their time was not running out. She would still be there tomorrow, and the day after, until the end of their lives. And Bongseok would be there too. He would never lose them again. They were safe. They were home.
He lowered them on the ground and not letting Mihyun’s out of his arms, he pulled Bongseok, who was clearly laughing at them, into another embrace. The boy said something about how embarrassing it was for him as a young man to hug his parents so much, but he seemed too happy about it for Dooshik to take his complaints seriously.
“I love you,” he told them, his smile never leaving his lips.
“We know,” Mihyun replied without hesitation.
Dooshik was no longer dying inside.