"Dad."
He came.
His father always came the same way. without softness. Just presence. Heavy. Inevitable.
Zade stepped forward automatically to welcome him, every movement polished by years of habit. His father gave him a brief nod of acknowledgment before shifting his gaze toward the guest beside him.
And as expected, it was a girl.
Maybe twenty-five. Long hair, carefully styled. Pretty, objectively. The kind of pretty meant to impress. But Zade felt nothing. No spark. No curiosity. She was just another stranger standing in the doorway of his life.
Not to insult her. She was beautiful.
He had simply seen prettier.
More importantly, this wasn't someone he had been introduced to before.
'So he found another one again?'
Zade forced a polite smile, stepped aside, and let them in. He moved through the house with quiet efficiency, bringing drinks, setting them down carefully, pretending his pulse wasn't beating against his throat.
"Your roommate went to work?" his father asked, voice already carrying that subtle edge of scrutiny.
Zade shifted in his chair and took a slow sip of juice to buy himself time.
"Yeah."
"Mm."
That single hum carried more judgment than a paragraph ever could.
Zade stared down at his glass like it contained the most fascinating thing in the world. He could feel his father's eyes on him, assessing, measuring, finding fault. That familiar frown etched across his face.
Thankfully, he said nothing.
But somehow, the silence felt worse than words.
Then his father's gaze turned toward the girl.
"This daughter was so excited to meet you. I brought her to visit. You rarely come home, so I had to let her see you here." His tone then shifted into disgust.
"Do you know how troublesome it was? Even the roads are broken. You must get a transfer to the city as soon as possible. It's time for you to settle down. It's not good here to do that."
Zade's fingers tightened around the glass.
"Me and the daughter discussed, we can finish the marriage and all that this year-"
Ring!
The doorbell sliced through the air.
Zade's grip on the cup went rigid. His stomach dropped so suddenly he felt dizzy.
There shouldn't be anyone coming now.
If some unfamiliar face appeared at the door, he would have to explain who that person was, where they were from, why they were here. And his father would dig. He always dug.
That's also when he remembered Rai.
A sharp pang of regret hit him. He had no way to warn Rai that his father was here. No number. No social media. Nothing. Even if he tried calling the principal to reach Rai, his father would know from the principal. And that would only lead to assumptions...
Zade felt stupid. Helpless.
But first, who was at the door?
He stood up. His father rose immediately behind him.
Of course.
'Please don't be anyone.'
He didn't even know who he was praying it wouldn't be. Anyone new meant questions. Anyone familiar meant suspicion. Anyone too young might recognize his father. Though his father wasn't a celebrity, he was known enough. Zade didn't want villagers whispering. He didn't want innocent people caught in whatever narrative his father decided to create.
He opened the door.
"Doctor."
'Fuck. Why is she here?!'
God clearly wasn't listening today.
There she stood, one of the girls from that day. Smiling politely. Holding a lunchbox.
Zade could already feel his father's stare burning into the side of her face.
"Ah. Wh-"
Before Zade could send her away, his father grabbed his arm and pulled him back slightly.
"Who is this child? Do you know Zade well?"
The warning look his father shot him was clear: Don't interfere.
And just like that, Zade froze.
He was still the same boy. Still afraid of this man.
"Ah… we are neighbours…" the girl said, her voice faltering under the visible tension.
She shifted nervously.
"I didn't mean to disturb. We made some fruit salad and wanted to share with our neighbours. Here. I will leave. Sorry about the disturbance."
Zade took the box from her hands. She practically sprinted out of the gate as if chased after that.
Under any other circumstance, it would have been funny.
But with his father standing beside him, staring at the box like it contained poison, nothing was funny.
Zade braced himself.
But surprisingly, his father said nothing.
Didn't ask who she was.
Didn't comment.
Didn't accuse.
That silence was more unsettling than anger.
Zade placed the box in the kitchen and returned to sit down, feeling a fraction of relief as time passed and the marriage talk resumed without a single mention of the girl.
Still, the mood had shifted.
The guest his father brought seemed quieter now. Maybe the humid village air wasn't to her liking. Maybe the tension was suffocating her too.
"Your roommate packs your lunch?" his father suddenly asked.
Zade's spine stiffened.
He had forgotten to hide the breakfast and lunch boxes.
His father would definitely have something to say about that.
"He said there aren't many places to buy lunch around here, so he cooks. While he does that, he cooks for me too."
"Mmm. So they are good?"
"Yeah. They are good."
"Don't just eat whatever he gives you," his father replied evenly. "Pay him for that. And tell him to cook what you like if he can cook."
"…Mm."
Zade lowered his head slightly, the old instinct to submit creeping in without permission. He hated that about himself. Hated how small he felt around this man.
His eyes drifted toward the clock.
12 p.m.
They were now eating the lunch his father had brought from town.
And, just then, Rai popped in his mind again.
'In two hours… Rai will be home.'
Panic coiled in his stomach.
He couldn't even imagine how it would go...
Zade closed his eyes briefly.
He knows...this would turn into a disaster.
'~I think I am gonna die in this house...~'