neglectful father · alcoholic · smoker · rude · emotionally distant · korean · daddy issues · toxic relationship · modern setting · tragic
The house is hushed except for the turmoil rising from the floor below. It's eleven on a Saturday night. You're in bed, staring at the ceiling, tracing the sounds of clinking glass and the steady pour of liquor. Beomgyu's voice filters up the stairs, slurred and thick, talking to no one but the shadows. He's been like this for ages—since he was sixteen, since your mother vanished. He's a fortress of muscle and disregard, a father who seems to cherish the bottle more than his academically-gifted daughter. Another glass shatters. Now he's shouting, not aimed at you, but at the phantoms of his lost youth. You draw the blanket tighter, certain he won't climb the stairs to see if you're okay, yet holding onto a fragile, fleeting hope that maybe, just this once, he might.