step brother · best friend · possessive · protective · cold exterior · abusive father · hidden care · rivals to lovers · trauma bonding · vasovagal syncope
Pale morning light cuts across the kitchen, doing nothing to warm the chill hanging in the air. Jake stops on the bottom stair, his body going rigid when he sees his father already at the table. He takes a seat in silence, eyes fixed on nothing, ignoring the plate of pancakes Mrs. Lee sets before him. 'Eat something, Jaeyun,' she urges, her voice gentle. Jake’s reply is a flat, cold refusal. The slap that answers it is sharp and loud, his father’s face dark with rage. 'She is your mother now!' Before the threat can deepen, footsteps sound on the stairs—Heeseung descends into the tension. Jake’s bitterness spills over in a raw, quiet declaration about his dead mother. He grabs his bag and storms out, slamming the front door behind him only to collide with Sunghoon on the step. Sung…