Mom enters my room with a bang.
I bother not to spare her a glance.

"WHERE THE HELL HAVE YOU BEEN?"
She storms, out of anger.

"Come on, Eomma. You can't be worried about a grown, married man now. I have a wife, you know."
I make a witty reply, nonchalantly, still not looking up.

I hear her scoff, then she continues,
"HOSEOK I HAVE HAD ENOUGH OF YOU."

It is my time to scoff now. I dare to finally look up, straight into her glaring eyes, glaring back with, if possible, a greater intensity.
"Really, Eomma, YOU have had enough?"
I try to put all my focus on the word 'you'. It is taking all my body's energy to not shout back.
She replies, almost unbothered of my reply, her tone lowering down now,
"Hoseok, you know why I did, what I did. Don't-"
"Oh come on, Eomma! your made up golden reputation cannot be a possible excuse for your cruelty."
I cut her off, stating facts.
It seems I have pushed the right button and the toxin pours out,
"HOSEOK, DON'T YOU DARE TALK TO YOUR MOTHER LIKE THIS OR-"

"OR WHAT? OR WHAT, EOMMA? WHAT IS LEFT FOR YOU TO DO NOW? WHAT IS POSSIBLY LEFT?"
I finally snap.

She tries not to shout back,
"Hoseok, you're not big enough to know what it takes to be a part of this society. What I did was better for you-"

"What you did was better for YOU and YOUR fucked up reputation in YOUR so called society."
I try to lower my voice, my anger not coming any scale close to lower.

"Language, Hoseok. You do not talk to your mother like that."
Well, now she is trying to be a mother.

"Attention, Eomma. You do not do this to your own son."
I reply her, in her own words.

"Hoseok, what I did was right. Stop acting like an 18 year old in love and think rationally."
Mom is talking about rational now.

"Rational? May I have the honours to know, how in your pretty little world, rational is defined?"
Wits, never thought I had it in me.

"Hoseok, that girl is no more eligible for our house, our family. God knows what has happened, what has not. I NO MORE TRUST-"

"STOP IT, EOMMA! STOP IT! DID YOU EVEN VISIT HER? DID YOU EVEN ASK HER HOW SHE IS? YOUR FAMILY! YOUR HOUSE! KEEP IT ALL TO YOURSELF! I AM DONE. I NO LONGER WANT TO BE A PART OF 'YOUR' FAMILY, 'YOUR' HOUSE!"
My anger now, knows no limits.

"Oh God, Hoseok! Stop shouting please. Let's discuss this together. Let's find some solution of this together. Let's do this calmly. Okay, Eomma?"
Jiwoo, my great great sister, is finally here to save the world.
I did not notice her coming in. She is standing next to mom, trying to get a hold of her and is trying to calm ME.

But my Mom, is another story,
"NO! LET HIM DO WHAT HE WANTS TO DO! FOR A PETTY GIRL LIKE HER. WHO NO LONGER HAS HER OWN DIGNIT-"

My phone's ring tone interrupts our nice family time. I do not bother to see. My anger acting for me,
"ENOUGH MOM! DIGNITY! DIGNITY YOU TALK ABOUT! YOU!
RIGHT, IN YOUR HOUSE, YOUR FAMILY, THIS PRETTY LITTLE DIGNITY IS ALL WHAT YOU DESIRE. THE OTHER MIGHT EVEN DIE OF THIS DIGNITY OF YOURS BUT YOU SEE ONLY YOURSELF. NOW, I SEE WHY APPA LEFT. YOU MUST HAVE DONE THIS TO HIM TOO."

That is it.
I stepped on the right nerve.
And I regret no shit.

"Oh Hoseok!"
Jiwoo sighs at me and holds mom's stumbling figure.
Mom utters not even a single word. Her gaze has finally, fallen low.
I don't know whether it is her ego or guilt but something has shut her ignorance down.

My phone keeps on ringing.
I, now, look at the screen.
And my entire world freezes.
I did not expect this, not even in my dreams.
Jiwoo notices my concern and asks,
"Hoseok, what-"
I don't even let her finish and storm out of my room, my house as fast as I can.

My eyes are on my constantly ringing phone.

I do not know what to do.

Do I pick up?

Then what?

What do I say?

What do I have to say?

Do I apologise?

Do I ask how she is?

What could've mom done at her house?

How much damage...?

And I am now, finally out of my house, contemplating on whether to answer or not.

I finally, gather up the courage to answer her call.

But before I could, it ends.

My phone stops ringing.

I didn't answer.

I couldn't.

What did I just do?

How could I?

I keep staring at my screen.

The notification, sending daggers straight to my heart,

One missed call from 'my love'.

One drop, rests on "love".