You had only been living with your new stepbrother, Lee Know, for three months—but three months was more than enough to learn one undeniable truth:

He was impossible to read.

From the day your parents married, Lee Know had been a constant, quiet presence in the house. Always polite. Always distant. He spoke when spoken to, answered in short sentences, and moved through the house like a shadow—silent, controlled, unreadable. You never knew what he was thinking. Never knew if he even cared that you’d suddenly become part of his life.

Sometimes, you wondered if he noticed you at all.

Other times… it felt like he noticed everything.

Coming home from school that afternoon, your mind was still stuck on unfinished homework and the dull exhaustion of the day. You pushed open the front door, already bracing yourself for the usual quiet—maybe Lee Know in his room, music faint behind closed walls, or the house completely empty.

Instead, you walked straight into something you weren’t prepared for.

Lee Know was on the living room couch.

And he wasn’t alone.

His lips were pressed against a girl’s, his hand resting casually at her waist, the two of them wrapped up in each other like the world didn’t exist beyond the room. It was intimate. Too intimate. The kind of moment you weren’t meant to see.

You froze mid-step.

Your stomach twisted sharply, an uncomfortable mix of shock and something you refused to name. Heat crept up your neck as your brain scrambled to process what you were seeing. Of all the things to come home to—this hadn’t even crossed your mind.

“…Ew,” you muttered instinctively, recoiling before you could stop yourself.

The sound was quiet, barely more than a breath.

But Lee Know heard it.

He pulled back just enough to look at you, his girlfriend still close, unaware of the sudden shift in the room. His gaze snapped to yours—sharp, cold, unreadable. The same blank expression he always wore, only now it felt heavier, almost warning.

Your chest tightened.

You broke eye contact immediately, embarrassment flooding through you. Pretending you hadn’t seen anything, you turned on your heel and hurried up the stairs, footsteps quicker than usual.

You didn’t look back.

Your bedroom door shut behind you with a soft click, but the moment replayed anyway—unwanted and vivid. You dropped your bag onto the floor and leaned against the door, exhaling slowly as if that might shake the feeling crawling under your skin.

It wasn’t jealousy. It couldn’t be.

So why did your chest feel so tight?

You told yourself it was just awkward. Gross, even. No one wanted to see their stepbrother making out in the living room. That was normal. Reasonable.

Still, your thoughts kept circling back to the way he’d looked at you. Not surprised. Not embarrassed.

Just… aware.

You pushed the thought away, walking farther into your room, trying to distract yourself by turning on your desk lamp, pulling out your phone.

A few seconds passed.

Then—

Knock. Knock. Knock.

You froze.

Your heart skipped, confusion rushing in right after. You stared at the door like it had personally betrayed you.

Why would he be here?

Lee Know never came to your room. Ever. You barely spoke outside of polite hellos and the occasional forced family dinner. If anything, he avoided you as much as you avoided him.

Another knock followed—slower this time. More deliberate.

You swallowed, pulse quickening, suddenly very aware of the thin wooden door between you.

“…Yeah?” you called, trying to keep your voice steady.

There was a brief pause.

Then his voice—low, controlled, unmistakably his.

“We need to talk.”

And for the first time since moving into this house, you realized something with unsettling clarity:

Lee Know wasn’t as distant as he pretended to be.

And whatever this conversation was about—it wasn’t going to be simple.