Shallow Abyss || Zb1

11

Gunwook put his boxing gloves and towel into his bad. He yanked his bag over his shoulder as he left the locker room. He patted the other boxers there and bid them goodbye.

He got out of the building and sighed.
"I wonder what Tae Rae hyung will be doing by now" he muttered as he took out his phone from his pocket.

He dialed Tae Rae's number a couple of times but Tae Rae didn't pick. He clicked his tongue in dejection.

"Seems like he's busy" he muttered.

He entered a cafe nearby. He sat beside the window and dropped his bag on a chair beside his.
"Tae Rae hyung would love this place. It's quiet and calm. I should probably bring him here" he muttered.

He stood up and went to order what he wanted. After getting what he wanted, he turned and went back to his seat.

He took out his phone and took a picture of it. He immediately sent it to their group chat.

He started eating his cake. He sighed and turned. His eyes widened and his lips unconsciously tilted into a smile as he saw Tae Rae.

"Hyung–
He wanted to call but he stopped when he saw a boy sit in front of him with a food tray.

Gunwook sat back down and watched them. He sipped his drink and put all his attention on them.

He saw how the boy tried to feed Tae Rae but
Tae Rae looked away. The boy grabbed Tae Rae's jaw and forced Tae Rae to eat.

Gunwook's brows furrowed as he saw how aggressive the boy was with Tae Rae. He watched them talk for sometime but he couldn't understand them because they were far away.

Gunwook could clearly understand that Tae Rae was uncomfortable just by watching his body language. He saw how unhappy Tae Rae looked, he didn't even smile once.

The boy leaned in but Tae Rae moved his face away. He grabbed Tae Rae's face and Gunwook quickly stood up, having had enough.

"Hyung" Gunwook said and pulled out a chair for himself. He hung his hand over Tae Rae's shoulder.

"I saw you from afar. Hope I'm not interrupting" Gunwook said and looked at the boy.
"Who's this?"

"This is Jaewoo. My..friend" Tae Rae said and Gunwook looked at Jaewoo. He immediately sensed the negative energy hovering around him.

"Oh hi. I'm Gunwook. I'm his tight friend" Gunwook said and patted Tae Rae's shoulder. "You don't look familiar, I'm sure you don't go to our school" Gunwook said and Jaewoo nodded.

"Yeah, I don't. I moved out a year ago and just got back from Canada. I couldn't wait to see Tae Rae so, we came on a date" Jaewoo said and Tae Rae forced a smile.

"A date?" Gunwook asked looking at Tae Rae.
Tae Rae looked away and Jaewoo smiled.

"Yes, We have a lot of catching up to do. I guess you don't know but...I'm Tae Rae's ex. We broke up because I had to go abroad. Now I'm back for awhile, I'll be sure to spend all my time with Tae Rae"
He said squeezing Tae Rae's hand as he smiled.

"You'd love that, right Tae Rae?" Jae woo asked striking a smug smile. Gunwook immediately read what was going on. He saw how Tae Rae hesitated to nod, how Jae Woo kept squeezing Tae Rae's hand.

"Hyung, you finally got a manicure." Gunwook said and took away Tae Rae's hand from Jae Woo's.
Tae Rae was confused but Gunwook went along.
"It looks good on you" Gunwook said and intertwined his hand with Tae Rae's.

Jae Woo poked his tongue at his cheek in anger once he saw what Gunwook did. He didn't let his anger show on his face but Gunwook knew very well he was angry, so he smirked at Jae Woo.

"I forgot I have somewhere to be now, I have to go" Jae Woo said standing up. He leaned to peck
Tae Rae's cheek but Gunwook stopped him by purposely brushing Tae Rae's hair with his hands.

Jae Woo glared at Gunwook and turned and left.

Tae Rae released a sigh he didn't know he held. He pushed back his glasses and looked at Gunwook.
"He's a jerk." Gunwook said.

"I can tell without you telling me. Hyung, you have to give me the full tea. What happened between you two and why are you so uptight around him?"
Gunwook asked and sat in the seat facing Tae Rae.

Tae Rae sighed and brushed his hair backwards. He grabbed his bag and stood up.
"I don't have all day Gunwook. I have to go"
Tae Rae said and Gunwook held his hand.

"Hyung, it's fine if you don't want to tell me. We can talk about something else" Gunwook said hoping
Tae Rae would accept.

"Gunwook" Tae Rae said and Gunwook could tell by his tone that his decision still stood. Gunwook slowly nodded and let go of his hand.

"Bye then" he muttered and Tae Rae walked out.

He sighed and glanced over at his table where his bag and food tray was.

"I left what I was doing just to make sure you were okay, yet you can't spare me some time" Gunwook muttered and rubbed his temples.