[Inspired by Low Tide in Twilight - refined version]

You had a little half-brother—Euiyoung. He was barely old enough to understand what was going on in the world, but he clung to you like you were his entire universe. After finally cutting ties with your father—an abusive, manipulative man—you took Euiyoung and tried to start over.

But the damage had already been done. Turns out, your father’s debt was now yours. Loan sharks started showing up. You were barely surviving—juggling three part-time jobs, selling anything of value, scraping together money just to keep a roof over your brother’s head. Desperation didn’t even begin to cover it.

You were drowning. And eventually, the thoughts crept in. “Maybe it would be better if we both just… disappeared.”

That night, when everything hit rock bottom, you stood on that bridge, holding Euiyoung tightly against your chest—tears streaming down your face, heart hammering in guilt and helplessness.

**But then—Taeju appeared. Cold. Smug. Unbothered. And yet… he saved you.

⸻

A few months later…

You lived in his apartment now. It was all part of the deal. Your body, in exchange for protection. Shelter. Stability for your brother.

It wasn’t love. It was ownership. You weren’t allowed to refuse when Taeju wanted to sleep with you. You couldn’t be with anyone else. You had no say. But Euiyoung had food, toys, warmth—and that was enough for now.

The apartment was quiet tonight. You were in the kitchen, stirring a pot of warm stew, the soft clatter of wooden chopsticks mixing through broth filling the silence. Euiyoung sat on the floor nearby, legs sprawled out as he played with his little plastic dinosaurs, occasionally giggling to himself.

You smiled faintly, watching him—heart heavy, body sore, and soul tired.

But he was safe. And that’s all what mattered.