(no) Strings Attached

You Are Enough

Seonghwa flinched. Not visibly. Not to most. But Hongjoong saw it. The way his fingers curled in against his palm, the way his throat bobbed with the swallow of panic.

"I didn't want to mess it up," Seonghwa said finally, voice too small for someone who usually carried so much grace. "The day. The routine. Your mood. I didn't want to make it anyone else's problem."

"Starving yourself isn't 'not making it a problem.' That is the problem," Hongjoong shot back, softer now but no less intense. "You think you're being strong, but all I see is you punishing yourself."

"I'm not—" Seonghwa's voice broke mid-protest, and he bit the inside of his cheek so hard Hongjoong saw the tension in his jaw. "I just... didn't do enough today. Didn't deserve to stop."

Hongjoong's heart clenched.

"You're not a machine, little fairy," he said, gently now, his voice lowering as he stepped closer. "You don't earn rest. You need it. You're allowed to eat. Even if the day wasn't perfect. Even if you think you failed someone."

Seonghwa's eyes were glassy now, gaze fixed on the floor like it might swallow him whole.

And Hongjoong softened fully — reaching out, hand ghosting over Seonghwa's wrist without touching. "You didn't fail anyone."

That's when Seonghwa's walls finally cracked. Just the smallest tremble in his fingers. The way his shoulders caved in on themselves.

"You never have to be perfect," Hongjoong whispered. "I just need you to be here."

"I'm sorry," Seonghwa murmured, barely audible. "For making you go out of your way. I didn't mean to cause trouble."

Hongjoong stared at him, disbelief curling hot in his chest.

"I'll do better," Seonghwa added, voice stiff. "Next time I'll manage it myself. I won't be a burden."

There was a silence.

Then—

"What?" The word shot out like a bullet.

Seonghwa blinked, startled, lifting his head just slightly as Hongjoong's expression twisted into something raw and disbelieving.

"That's your takeaway? You think I'm mad because you inconvenienced me?"

Hongjoong's voice trembled, fingers curling into fists at his sides. "What kind of logic—what kind of world do you live in where needing help makes you a burden?"

Seonghwa flinched, shoulders locking up.

"I'm just saying I'll do better next time," he said quickly, breath hitching. "I wasn't enough today, I know. I—I should've—"

"You're doing it again," Hongjoong snapped, cutting him off. "Do you even hear yourself? You're punishing yourself like you're some broken thing that needs fixing, and for what? For skipping one meal? For existing like a human being?"

Seonghwa's eyes darted around, panic now fully settled in his expression. "Please, I'm trying—"

"No, stop." Hongjoong took a shaky breath, voice rising with every word. "You keep trying to meet these invisible standards that don't exist. And when you don't, you starve yourself and spiral and act like it's all your fault."

"I'm not trying to—" Seonghwa choked, stepping back slightly, his hands curled into his sleeves now in utmost horror. "I just... I want to be better. I want to live up to something. To what my father—what people expect—"

"Fuck your father!" Hongjoong exploded.

The room fell into stunned silence. Seonghwa's eyes widened. His breath caught in his throat.