"From now on, this child will be a part of the family," their caretaker said and brought in a complete stranger.

"Hakyeon-hyung!" the youngest of the family ran up to the stranger and hugged him.

What? How does Jaehwan know this kid? The oldest son thought at that time.

Seeing his younger brother being so familiar with someone whom he's never met before, gave him an uncomfortable feeling. Jaehwan started to distance himself from the family for the past few years since he grew older and seldom came home on time. No matter how much their parents scolded him about it, he never listened. Yet, one day, a stranger became their fourth brother in the family and Jaehwan knew exactly who this 'Hakyeon' was.

Jaeho wasn't fond of it but he couldn't do anything or say anything to Jaehwan either.

Why would mom and dad agree to this? It's insane! Jaeho thought.

For the longest time, he watched Jaehwan follow Hakyeon around while ignoring the rest of his family. They were the ones who were blood-related to Jaehwan but the youngest didn't even bat an eye. Instead, it was as if Jaehwan resented them.

Jaeho didn't blame him though. It wasn't hard to think of the reason why Jaehwan didn't want to be a part of the well-known Lee family in Seoul.

For generations, the family had a long lineage of success and fame in the country. They had shares in various industries and were always invited to prestigious events. Even the President of the country knew about them. They were remarkable but all that fame had a darker secret behind it.

When Jaeho became eighteen, he moved to England to study abroad. He was accepted right away because of his academic records and experience. He wanted to study more, not for himself but for his family. As the oldest in the family, he had a lot of responsibilities to take care of. Since both of his younger brothers, Jaegwan and Jaehwan, were still in high school, he knew he had to do well. He would be the first to succeed in the family business so he knew he couldn't put the family to shame.

Jaeho didn't mind it though. He knew what he was doing was for the best of his family and at the same time, being away in another country exactly what he needed.

On one side, he was studying for the sake of the Lee family but on the other hand, he needed to break free temporarily. He lived all his life obeying to his parent's orders and never once defied their commands. He was the 'good' child of the family with Jaegwan, the second oldest, right behind it. Everyone knew how rebellious the youngest was and the 'stranger' was no different. Although Hakyeon was smart, he wasn't a true 'Lee'. If he was, then Jaeho's position would've been in danger. So, luckily, he wasn't.

Jaeho knew that once he started school in England, he would have only four years to be free to do whatever he wanted as long as the results at the end were good. He didn't mind his parent's demands, but he also knew how much pressure they can place on a person. He knew all about his family's side-business but he never once doubts it or questioned it. All he was, was a puppet. It wasn't as if he didn't know what he was doing and he knew that if Jaehwan ever found out, his youngest brother would surely be disappointed. But what else can he do? Jaeho wasn't like Jaehwan. He didn't know what to do with his life unless it was a life that his parents paved for him.

That's how he grew up.

Was going back now even an option?

In his first year of university, Jaeho had already become one of the top students in his year that even the senior students knew of his name. They envied his intelligence and his background, but everyone was on the same boat.

Except a few.

Their school was known for business and economics, one of the top universities in Europe and many famous innovators graduated from there as well. But in order to enroll and become a part of their student body, a lot of requirements had to be fulfilled. Not only did one have to a high enough achievement, but they also had to have the money to pay for the impossible tuitions.

Jaeho didn't have a problem nor did his classmates.

"We're going out later for lunch, you wanna join us?" one of his classmates invited him.

"Sure. I just need to turn in my report to the professor first. I'll catch up with you guys later," Jaeho said.

"I'll come along," another one said.

The two of them walked down the campus grounds towards the teacher's lounge when a bunch of chatters and crowd caught Jaeho's attention. There were several students with a banner walking around and handing out flyers to the other students who were passing by. But whenever they tried to pass a flyer to someone, they would be ignored. Jaeho also noticed how annoyed the other students looked and shoved one of the students onto the floor.

"Give it up," they told the girl and strutted away.

"Are you okay, Jihyun?" one of her friends helped her up.

"I'm okay. Let's keep going," the girl got back up on her feet and dusted her skirt clean.

Despite just being shoved onto the floor, she continued to stand straight and tall, as if nothing happened. Jaeho recognized her right away.

"Jihyun Seo? The one from our class?" his friend asked.

"Yeah, her. Do you know what they were doing back there at the courtyard?" Jaeho asked his friend one day after witnessing the incident.

"You don't know? They're trying to reform the school. It's quite futile if you ask me. A few seniors tried to do it last year and since they graduated, I guess Jihyun took over."

"I see..." Jaeho finally understood why people were ignoring her the way they did and looked at her in irritation.

Everyone, most of the students weren't just good at their studies, but they were also from a similar background. Including Jaeho's family, everyone came from a wealthy and well-known family from various countries. It wasn't the students who were influential, but it was the student's family who were well-known. However, that wasn't the exact case for a few students, including Seo Jihyun.

Jihyun was also in the same faculty as Jaeho and often had a few classes which they shared together but neither of them has ever talked to one another. The reason why Jaeho paid attention to her in the first place was due to the fact that she was also from South Korea like him. There weren't many students from Seoul, and she was one of them. But unlike Jaeho, she didn't get accepted to the university because of her influential background. Instead, she barely made it on the waiting list. She had some money, enough to pay her degree but she was also a nobody. Luckily for her, her grades were outstanding, and the professors liked her, even if the administrators don't.

She was independent and righteous. She knew what she wanted and was clear about her opinions. Right after entering the school, she immediately joined a small student circle filled with students who had a similar experience as her. They all wanted to change the way the school operated at the time and was very clear of their will to fight against 'unjust' education systems.

That's why she was despised by the other students who were all 'rich' and glorious. Because unlike her, they liked the wealth they grew up in. Jaeho, too, was a part of those wealthy rich kids she despised so much.

Jaeho tried hard not to pay so much attention to her, knowing that it would only lead him to trouble. He knew that she was 'trouble' if he had anything to do with her. But for some reason, he couldn't ignore it. He found himself glancing her way every day whenever he saw her in class or by the courtyard handing out flyers which would end up in the garbage at the end. No matter how many times she was ignored or pushed onto the ground, she would stand back up and never backing down.

That's when he finally decided to approach her.

"Why don't you give up?" Jaeho said as he walked up to her and gave his hands to Jihyun to help her up.

"It's none of your business," she brushed him aside and got up on her own.

"You're obviously wasting your time and energy doing this," he said. "No matter what you do, this school isn't going to change. Why don't you just give up and graduate. You still have three years to go and you're doing all this."

"What I do is none of your business. Just go away if you're not going to help," she said.

Jaeho wasn't really going to butt-in her business but eventually, he did one thing he never imagined himself doing – helping her out. They didn't get along at first and Jihyun had a poor first impression of Jaeho for sure, but with Jaeho's reputation in school, people started to pay attention to what Jihyun was trying to fight for. He helped her pass out flyers without saying anything and even had the school's shareholders discuss on the possible changes of the system in the future. No one listened to Jihyun when she spoke, but they would all look at Jaeho when he did. After all, he is from the infamous 'Lee' family.

"Why are you helping me?" Jihyun asked one day as the two of them were cleaning up the flyers and club room.

"No reason," Jaeho lied.

"Yeah, sure. Like I'd believe you," she wasn't buying it.

"Heh. Honestly, it's nothing. It's just that... you remind me of someone I know," Jaeho said. "Whenever I see you, I can't help but want to help you. It's not that I disagree with what you're doing but we all know that what you're doing has a high-risk of also getting you kicked out. Yet, here you are, day after day, still handing out flyers and trying to make a change even when the rest of the world tells you not to do it. That part of you, just feels very familiar to me."

"To who?" Jihyun was curious.

"My younger brother. He's exactly like you. Rebellious, doesn't know when to give up and would do anything he can to fight for what he believes to be right."

"Are you two close?" Jihyun noticed how fondly Jaeho spoke of his younger brother. But she also noticed the pained expression on his face.

He shook his head.

"He hates me," Jaeho told her.

"Why?"

"Because I'm a coward. I'm not the older brother he looks up to anymore," Jaeho said.

"Huh?"

"It's a long story."

"Well, I don't really get it, but can't you change that? I mean, it seems like you really like this little brother of yours. If you like him so much, can't you change yourself to someone he can look up to? I'm sure you two were close at one point for you to have that kind of expression on your face," Jihyun said honestly. "I don't know what happened between the two of you but looking at you helping me like this, it means that you're not really a bad person. I'm sure that if you change a little, talked to him again and tell him what's on your mind, the two of you can reconcile again."

"You really think so?" he doubted.

"You won't know unless you try, right?"

She was right. He understood exactly what she was telling him at that time, and he knew that as long as he tried to change, explain himself, Jaehwan would eventually look his way again. But taking a step forward have always been difficult for Jaeho so, he needed time.

Eventually, in those four years of university in England, having to meet Jihyun, Jaeho realized something. He can change but was just too afraid of doing so because if he changed, he would disappoint his mother for sure...

Meeting Jihyun was the turning point in Jaeho's life and he learned a lot from her, about himself and decisions he could make. Without his parent's consent and rebelling for the first time in his life, he married Jihyun one year after their graduation. No one attended their wedding aside from a few of their classmates and when Jaeho's parents heard about the marriage, they were furious. They were probably thinking of disowning him at that point if it weren't for the fact that Jaegwan wasn't exactly the smartest in the family and Jaehwan ran away from home to chase after Hakyeon.

But Jaeho didn't regret it. He married the woman who made him see something he was too blinded to see at first and he loved someone who made him realize that he wasn't just his mother's puppet. Unfortunately, Jihyun wasn't the healthiest. She was diagnosed with stomach cancer not too long after their marriage and passed away, causing Jaeho to forcefully return to Seoul, back to being the oldest son of the 'Lee' family.

✣

"I missed you Jaehwan-ah," Jaeho said as he nervously looked into his cup of coffee and telling his brother his true feelings as well as his regret. "I know I've disappointed you in more ways than I can count but I really want to make up for it. At least, that's what I promised Jihyun..."

"What do you mean?" Jaehwan asked, not knowing how his sister-in-law, whom he's never met and only heard, had anything to do with their conversation.

"During the time when I was in England and with Jihyun, we often talked about you. I always talked about how the two of you were very much alike and how stubborn the two of you were. She really wanted to meet you and I intended to bring her back as well. If only... When she died, she told me only one thing."

"What was that?"

"For us to reconcile. For us to make mends. That's why I came back in the first place," Jaeho revealed.

"I didn't come back because I wanted to be controlled by mom and dad. I came back because I wanted to correct what I did wrong, what our family did wrong. Our family only became this influential because of our ancestors and yet, our parents tarnished it. I knew what they've been doing weren't right, but I was too afraid to go against their wishes. When I decided to come back, the only thing I had in mind was to make up for my mistakes, not stopping them when I could. But I needed more proof, more evidence to stop them. That's why it took me this long. I know you still can't trust me but I can reassure you, since I've decided to come back, the only thing that's been on my mind is so that you can call me 'hyung' once more," Jaeho said earnestly and looked directly at Jaehwan without wavering.

Jaehwan have never seen his brother so determined before. He's never seen Jaeho like this and he didn't really know what to make of it. He was so sure that when he decided to cut ties with his family, that he would never talk with his brother ever again. He was so sure that he would never forgive Jaeho for being a coward but when he saw the remorse in Jaeho's eyes, he could only imagine the hardships he must've gone through alone.

"Do you really mean it? Helping me out?" Jaehwan asked. "Making things right again?"

"Of course! As long as I can help you, I'll do anything. I'm sure that's what Jihyun would've wanted," Jaeho said.

"Then..." Jaehwan swallowed nervously. "Then, help me, hyung."

✣

"Are you sure we're going the right way?" Wonshik asked his partner who was so busy looking at the GPS.

"Yup, turn right around the corner," Hongbin pointed as Wonshik drove around the streets of the neighborhood.

The two of them were going to pay a visit to the homeroom teacher of Class 404, Kim HeeChan. He was the only person whom they haven't spoken to about the students and although he hasn't been to school in a long time, they knew that they had to talk to the man for more information about the class. Maybe he would know something about why the entire class decided to take such drastic measures.

Following the address that Park Hae-Jin gave them, they arrived at one of the luxurious apartment complexes of Sinsadong district not too far from the school.

"And I thought only celebrities live in these kinds of places," Hongbin said. "Guess teachers of KW really make a ton."

Wonshik looked at his partner from top to bottom, silently commenting back "what about you?" and shook his head.

"Let's just go," Wonshik said instead.

The apartment complex was quite guarded, and gates surrounded the three buildings altogether with a large courtyard in the front. There were only expensive looking cars around after they passed the gates and if it weren't for being police officers, they would never get access to a highly guarded place like this.

They went up the elevators and down a long corridor. Apartment number 806 – Kim HeeChan, the name plate said next to the mailbox by the door.

Ding. Dong.

No answer.

Ding. Dong.

"Is he out?" Hongbin wonders and tries knocking on the door instead. "Hello? Mister Kim HeeChan? Are you there?"

Silence.

"What now?" Hongbin asks Wonshik. "Should we-"

Just then, the doors finally clicked open but it creaked slowly for the two officers. However, the person on the other side of the door surprised them. It was Kim HeeChan but not the same young man who appeared in the class photos.

"Who... are you two?" he asks them.

"We're with the Gangnam Police Department. We're currently investigating the case at KW High School regarding Class 404. I'm Lee Hongbin and this is my partner, Kim Wonshik. We'd like to ask you a few questions."

"C-come in," he said and opened the door as if he was using all his might to do so.

"Are you okay?" Hongbin asked looking at the man. "We heard you were sick..."

"I'm fine..." HeeChan insisted even though it was obvious he wasn't fine at all.

The young man who had a bright smile in those pictures that were taken at the beginning of the year was no where to be found. Instead, the man who ended up sitting across from Hongbin and Wonshik was a sickly man, fragile and pale to the bones like a living corpse. He hard very obvious dark circles under his eyes and could barely give the two a cup of tea without his hands shaking.

"We know that you haven't been going to school for awhile due to your health condition but we'd still like to ask you a few questions about the students of Class 404," Hongbin said.

Kim HeeChan nodded slightly and nervously.

"What are your impressions of your students? Did any of them ever come to you for consolidations or difficulties regarding school or their family?" Hongbin started.

"They have. Several of them," Kim HeeChan said honestly. "They used to come to me and tell me about how ironic it is that they enjoy going to school more so than staying at home..."

"What do you mean?" Wonshik asked further.

"It's true that our school is highly competitive and can be quite stressful. I don't agree with the system itself, but the school have always been this way since it was established. But rather than the ranks or the system, my students were more pressured by their family's expectations. They're all from highly influential, rich families who have a lot of say in our society, but the children born in these kinds of family aren't exactly always happy. I used to think they were all born in luxury so by default, I would think they're all selfish and egotistic but when I learned more about them, all they ever wanted was just to feel human rather than a bunch of robots being controlled by their family. I pity them..." Kim HeeChan said. "But... they didn't have to..."

Tears fell suddenly. HeeChan's voice shook and his hands trembled as his head sinks lower and lower.

"Why, why did they kill themselves? Why wasn't I there to help them? Why am I like this?" he cried.

His voice and tears took both the