SHE sent him a glare as she headed down the stairs, ignoring his beautiful, bright smile when he looked up to see her.

"Good morning, jagiya..." he spoke in a soft tone, "you look beautiful."

She rolled her eyes and sat away from him on one of the stools, raising her phone up to her face to look at its screen.

"Jagiya, I made us food," he muttered hopefully, glancing at her in hope that she would eat with him.

She ignored him once again and turned to her phone, scrolling through her social media profiles. He ignored the tears that filled his eyes, and the dull ache in his heart and sat down beside her, his expression desperate.

"Will you please talk to me, jagiya?" He whispered. "I really miss you... A lot."

She looked up from her phone and turned to face him, her eyes filled with annoyance and frustration.

"Didn't I tell you to leave me alone?" She snapped, causing him to flinch and back away.

"S-Sorry, jagiya," he apologized almost immediately, bowing a little, "I just thought that it's been three days and I miss talking to you. I really do."

She shook her head and turned away from his wide, desperate eyes.

"Please, just stop. That's enough."

He bit his lower lip and nodded in hesitation, his eyes dropping to the floor in disappointment.

"Okay, jagiya..."

She rolled her eyes and shook her head, then stood up from her seat, her phone still in her hand.

"I'll go now,"

He nodded in disappointment and glanced at the smooth marble island, then glanced up to watch her leave the room, soon disappearing out of the mansion.

He sighed and wrapped his arms around his head, resting it on the island as he began to lightly sob.

Why didn't he just tell her?

Why couldn't he be useful for once in his life?

Why couldn't he do something to save his relationship with his wife?

The thoughts brought more tears to his eyes. More painful thoughts came to his mind. With more cruel, suffocating words.

He sobbed and cried until his eyelids grew heavy. His vision blurred. He decided to close his eyes and rest his face against the marble, his heartbeats echoing through his ear.

His eyes grew tired. He knew that he was exhausted for the past few days while he tried to please his wife. Not that his efforts were successful or anything, but were still something.

As the train of thoughts stumbled to a halt, he closed his eyes and decided to sleep, not caring for once about where he was.

. . .

A few hours had now passed, and he had accidentally fell asleep on the kitchen counter. He realized that as soon as his eyes fluttered open.

He stretched and sat up straight, his back aching slightly from sleeping in such uncomfortable position. He squinted into the dim sunlight coming into the room, realizing how tired he was. Because why else would he fall asleep on the kitchen counter?

He sighed and turned around the room, meeting the dead silence. The refrigerator. The stoves. The cupboards. The chairs and the small table not too far away from the island he was sitting by.

Everything was the same.

Just like he had imagined before falling asleep.

Nothing had moved, or seemed out of the ordinary.

So what woke him up?

He furrowed his eyebrows and got up slowly from his seat, taking a glance at the room around him.

Ding.

Dong.

It took him a few seconds to absorb the thought that what woke him up was the doorbell ringing.

Now that whoever was there was standing for a while now, the ringing became faster. More impatient.

He took slow, unfocused steps towards the front door, passing by the living room.

Who was it this time? He thought.

It couldn't be his wife, because she had a copy of the keys. And it couldn't be her family members, as they were all busy with their work and businesses, plus they knew that they wouldn't find their sister in the house.

Could it be Lauren, coming to ruin his life once again?

Or could it be a complete stranger?

Either option would have been a nightmare, as it seemed. Or at least he thought so.

He moved faster towards the door, grimacing at the noise of the doorbell echoing through his ears. The noise was overwhelming.

Then, he reached for the doorknob and twisted it open in one swift move. The sunlight met his sensitive eyes and he shut them closed for a brief second before opening them again, meeting the sight of the person standing by the door.

But it was rather two people.

He stared at their familiar faces for a moment, almost letting out a gasp of shock. The couple stared back at him for a moment, their frowning, angry expressions telling him that they didn't come for a good cause.

The faces that traumatized him and the mouths that told him that he was good for nothing. The very same eyes that judged him every time he was with his friends or anyone he was happy with.

His parents.

"M-Mother? Father?"