thirty-five || betrayal of a close friend
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"Taehyun, how's the artwork coming along?"
Taehyun looked up from his desk and over at his mother who smiled sweetly at him, glancing back at his desk with just blank papers. Yeah... he totally had it near done.
"It's uhm..." The male didn't have any excuses at this point, he had been so distracted and dissociated with the world that he barely had any inspiration to even try for the crystalline showcase which was in literally two weeks. "It's coming along good."
His mother smiled at him, but that smile really made him suspicious as fuck, she was definitely planning to say something weird.
"Say..." She walked closer to his desk, looking at it before picking up a sketch that impressed her. "This is a very pretty one, why not submit it?"
Taehyun looked down at the piece of paper she was holding, his eyes widening when he realized she had picked up one of the multiple sketches of Beomgyu he had recently made.
"...It's not good enough."
His mother tilted her head and glanced back at the paper, seeing no faults within it. "It's beautiful, isn't this your boyfriend?"
Taehyun bit the bottom of his lip and looked away, his mother tilting her head in confusion before realizing something.
"Did you two get into a fight...?"
A fight isn't necessarily what happened, but he guess that's what he would call it.
After waiting for an answer, his mother frowned softly and placed the paper down when she realized that Taehyun wouldn't give one at all. Looking around, she gently grabbed onto his shoulder and tilted his head so he was staring at him.
"Tell me what happened, Tyun."
Taehyun stared at up with her with a blank expression before it slowly shifted to a saddened once, his heart breaking by the second when he remembered how badly he treated Beomgyu.
"We broke up," He said softly, looking away from his mother. Even though they weren't an actual couple, he felt so guilty and sick from what happened it was messing with his head. "I...I hurt him, I said some mean things that I can't take back."
His mother listened closely and nodded, giving him time to speak about his feelings before deciding on what to say.
"So... because you two fought, you both broke up?" She asked him, causing him to nod slightly. "Yet you still draw him like he's the most beautiful thing in the world."
"That's because he is the most beautiful thing in the world," Taehyun breathed out, staring down at his papers, his heart admiring how beautiful Beomgyu was despite every situation, yet his mind playing tricks on him. "Yet I hurt him, I don't— I— I just feel so guilty, there's no way I can apologize to him now it's too late."
"Is it really too late..." His mother spoke up, gently caressing her son's hair to ease him down."Or are you just scared he'll reject your apology, so you say it's too late?"
Taehyun really hated it, he didn't want to hear it. For the past weeks, he's been building up his crumbled wall that he protected himself behind for so long, only for it to break little by little the more he sinks into that ocean of regret.
"I don't know what to do," Taehyun admitted truthfully, images of Beomgyu's heartbroken expression teased at his mind, as if it were a punishment for his selfish acts. "I genuinely hurt him, but it wasn't his fault, half of it was mine. Yet I-I threw him away so fast."
His mother stayed silent and nodded her head, examining his expression for a while before sighing softly.
"Taehyun-ah," She called out, causing him to look up at her. "May I ask you a question?"
"I guess."
She scoffed playfully and slapped his head softly, causing him to shake his head and lean away to avoid anymore sudden attacks from her.
"Do you love him, Taehyun-ah?"
Taehyun froze when he heard that question, his eyes widening as his mind shut down to process what the hell he had just heard. "H-Huh...?"
"I said, do you love him?"
It was a simple yes or no question, a simple one. Yet he found it nearly impossible to even speak a single word or even say an answer, he felt so pathetic.
His mother was waiting patiently, knowing that the male was giving it a deep thought.
All of the memories he made with Beomgyu flashed through his mind like a movie, every single time the male made him smile... every single time he managed to break through his cold wall he built up to protect himself... every single time he made his heart races.
Those days and nights where he would've been occupied with just dumb thoughts became Beomgyu, where he would only think of the males face and laughter. He became the first thing he thought of in the morning and the last thing he thought of before sleeping.
When he would find himself unconsciously staring at him during class, looking for him throughout the school day, wanting to spend every single minute with him.
"I..." Taehyun croaked out, his breath hitching as he thought about the male. "I just... I'm scared..."
"It's okay to be scared, but this isn't a question I'm asking for me," His mother said, patting his head to keep him calm. "I'm asking for you, Tyun, do you truly love him?"
"I..." Taehyun closed his eyes, he needed to stop being scared, to stop avoiding everything when it became so harsh.
"I really do love him," He finally admitted, a wave of relief washing down on him now that he finally said it. "I love him more than anything right now."
"Then you talk to him! Don't let him walk away so easily, if you really do love him then chase after him!" His mother grabbed onto his shoulder and began shaking him, causing him to yelp loudly.
Okay, he was totally shocked that his mother was acting this way, and the fact she was actually encouraging him to try to mend what was broken with Beomgyu.
"Stop listening to your mind and start listening to your heart, is this really what you want, my artist?" She asked him softly, crouching down next to him to get a better view of her son's face.
"Don't let yourself be held back by thoughts that aren't good, you know what you want," She paused before poking his chest, right where his heart was. "You just have to listen to this, your heart."
Taehyun sat there before slowly smiling, looking away from his mother as he shook his head. It was like all his hesitation, his anger, his guilt, washed away in that moment. New emotions flooding in as he thought about the beauty who had stolen his heart.
"You're right, mother." He mumbled softly, his eyes landing back on this desk and directly on the papers. "I should listen to my heart."
It wasn't because he was scared or guilty, he didn't just mindlessly sketch Beomgyu because he was upset and didn't have anything else to do. It was because he genuinely loved the male so much, he became the only ever thought he would have in his mind, if it wasn't his own words or heart speaking the truth...
it was his subconscious telling him that he couldn't let go.
Maybe it was finally time to fix what was between them.
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"Beomgyu!"
The male turned his head, his eyes lighting up in joy when he saw Seong-jin and Miyuki walking over to him with a kind smile.
"Hello guys!" Beomgyu waved his hand and smiled brightly. "What's up?"
"Oh nothing," Seong-jin smiled sweetly, before holding up a couple of tickets in his hand. "I just got tickets to the newest amusement park opening in two weeks on a Saturday! I'm wondering if you can go?"
Beomgyu's eyes widened in amazement when he saw the pretty pink tickets in Seong-jin's hand, as badly as he wanted to say yes, a certain memory flashed through his mind when he had mentioned the date.
"...I'm sorry Seong-jin," Beomgyu smiled apologetically, remembering that Taehyun's showcase was in that same week. "I don't think I'll go..."
Seong-jin's smile instantly faded when the male said that, panic washing over his face as he clenched his fists tightly. "What do you mean you won't go? You have to!"
"I-I mean—"
"It's the only way Soobin will go, if you go! Can't you do it for me? I really want to get close with him but the only way that can happen is if you go!" He was practically begging now, staring at the male in disbelief as Beomgyu just smiled awkwardly.
I think Soobin would be uncomfortable... Beomgyu thought, smiling apologetically as he scratched the back of his head. He was certain that if Soobin were to go, he would want to bring Yeonjun.
He wasn't ready to face the elder just yet.
"I'm really sorry," Beomgyu bowed his head, unaware that a scowl began to form on Seong-jin's face. "I'll be busy that week, but you can always ask Soobin yourself."
Seong-jin stared at the male for a few seconds, feeling his anger heating up before he calmed down and breathed.
"Alright! That's fine!"
"Just who does he think he is?!" Seong-jin yelled in frustration, slamming his hand against the wall as he stared at Yoshino and Miyuki who seemed frightened for their lives. "I let him into our little friend group just because I wanted to become closer with Soobin, but that bitch hasn't even talked to him at all!"
"Useless for sure," Yoshino mumbled under her breath, trying to ease down Seong-jin's mood. "He's probably doing it on purpose since him and Yeonjun are still together."
"Who even cares?!" Seong-jin scoffed, looking over at Yoshino with a pissed expression. "He can cheat on Yeonjun for all I care about, nothing is special about him!"
"I should've made him promise to help me when time came during lunchtime," Seong-jin grabbed his hair tightly and turned around, wanting to scream so loudly. "But Choi Yeonjun had to interfere, ruin my plans!"
The males pissed expression slowly turned into a snarky little smirk, turning around to face both Yoshino and Miyuki who just stared at him with frowns on their faces.
"I thought I had everything planned, when Beomgyu blurted out he liked Kang Taehyun I knew it was my lucky day! I had the upper hand!"
"Until that goddamn Choi Yeonjun had to intervene, even now, when Beomgyu dated Kang Taehyun, he still wouldn't let it go!" Seong-jin groaned loudly, throwing his hands in the air.
"Then news came out that Yeonjun and Soobin were dating, like what the fuck?! He stole him from me!"
"He was definitely a rebound, I heard rumors that they started dating a week or two after Beomgyu rejected Soobin." Yoshino said monotonously, her eyes holding no emotions.
"Mhm!" Miyuki agreed.
"Exactly," Seong-jin scoffed, even the thought of Beomgyu's face made him angry. "Choi Beomgyu is pretty, he's smart! But what do people even see in him?! That goody-two shoes act he plays and his kindness? Fucking fake!"
"Yeah definitely."
"It's annoying."
"If it weren't for him being so close with Choi Soobin," Seong-jin continued on, unaware of how both Yoshino and Miyuki's eyes widened when they saw someone behind him. "I would've thrown him in the trash already, he's fucking useless."
"You really have to get your delusions out of your ass."
The males eyes widened as a cold chill ran down his spine when he heard a familiar voice behind him, slowly turning his head, his breath hitched when he made eye contact with none other than Choi Yeonjun.
"Ye-Yeonjun! Hello!—"
"Oh save your petty little innocent act," Yeonjun scoffed, crossing his arms as he stared the male down with the most spine chilling stare. "I already heard you and your tantrum, it's not a smart thing to complain about this in a hallway where students will hear."
"Y-You..." Seong-jin's voice began to tremble, his hands shaking when he saw Yeonjun come closer, his lips practically touching his ear.
"You should know," He whispered into his head softly, yet his tone held warning. "That Soobin chose me for a reason, he sees people for who they really are, not some two faced bitches like you."
"You never had a chance."
Yeonjun pulled away and smirked when he saw how angry Seong-jin's expression was, looking over at his two minions, the male just scoffed and walked past them, making sure to push Seong-jin out of the way.
After standing there in embarrassment for a few seconds, Seong-jin let out an angry screech as he turned around and pushed Yoshino and Miyuki out of the way, making his way towards two students he knew were the best gossipers of their class.
You've embarrassed me enough Choi Yeonjun! I'm fucking done with you and Beomgyu.
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"Did you hear this from Seong-jin? It's about Choi Beomgyu and Choi Yeonjun again!"
"Again? He really must be observant."
"But this time it's about Kang Taehyun too!"
"He told me yesterday!"
Beomgyu was a little bit concerned as to why people were whispering to one another again, glancing over at the group of people who were whispering to one another, he just sighed and looked back at his desk and cleaned it up.
It was finally Friday, which meant the whole entire class had to do the daily classroom cleanup before they left for the weekend, and he had honestly expected a calm Friday until he walked in on others whispering again.
As long as it's not about Yeonjun and Taehyun, it's fine.
"Ch-Choi Beomgyu...?"
The male paused his movements and looked over to his side to see two classmates he hadn't really talked to before, smiling softly he stood up straight and tilted his head.
"Hello, what can I help you with?" He said politely, noticing how uneasy the two looked.
"Uhm..." One of them mumbled softly, glancing over at her friend who just shook her head. "We wanted to ask a question..."
"Oh! Go ahead."
"Is it true..." She started off slowly, before breathing out. "Is it true that Choi Yeonjun forced you to date Kang Taehyun so he could date Choi Soobin after finding out you liked him...?"
Beomgyu's breath hitched when he had heard that, his grip on the cloth slowly loosening, allowing it to fall between his fingers and onto the floor as he stared at them in shock.
"Who told you that...?" Beomgyu asked breathlessly, panic rising in his stomach. Just when he hoped it wasn't about him, fate wasn't on his side, but this time it was even worse. "That isn't true at all!"
The two girls looked at each other in shock, as if they weren't expecting that answer.
"Park Seong-jin told us."
It was like something deep within Beomgyu had snapped, the male immediately becoming upset when he heard that.
He had told Seong-jin several times that nothing bad happened between him and Yeonjun! But this time, he had to open his mouth and make it worse again!
Right when he wanted to clear the elders name and have everything alright, it was ruined once again by someone he trusted.
The male glanced over at his two classmates before walking past them, walking into the hallway as he immediately looked around for Seong-jin, and just in a few seconds he found him talking to some other classmates who looked shocked.
Beomgyu felt his patience running thin, walking past two classmates who wanted to greet him, the male approached Seong-jin who seemed to notice he was coming.
"Seong-jin," Beomgyu called out for the male. "We need to talk."
Seong-jin turned around with a confused expression, looking over at his two classmates before facing Beomgyu properly with a worried look.
"Is everything okay? What's wrong?"
"Why did you tell people that Yeonjun forced me to go out with Taehyun? That didn't happen at all." Beomgyu asked the male, a frustrated yet saddened expression formed on his face.
"Huh?" Seong-jin tilted his head, "I never told anyone that."
"The others told me you were the one saying it," Beomgyu began to frown more, unaware that his classmates were beginning to circle around them. "Are you sure you didn't do it?"
Beomgyu waited for an answer from the male, but after receiving silence, he couldn't help but sigh softly. "I'll take your word for it, but I'm going to ask around to find out... are you sure you didn't know anything about it?"
"What's happening?"
"I think Choi Beomgyu and Park Seong-jin are arguing."
"In the middle of the hallway?"
Seong-jin glanced around frantically, hearing all the whispers their noisy ass classmates were making, looking back at Beomgyu he couldn't help but become pissed off by how upset the male looked.
"Come to think of it," He mumbled softly, his eyes dulling as more people began to surround them. "The others were asking me what happened between you three, so I said something along the lines of that, to clear your name."
"Why would you say that?!" Beomgyu exclaimed in shock, his eyebrows furrowing. "I never said any of those things!"
"I was only stating my opinion, they believe what they wanted to believe." Seong-jin scoffed, raising his hands in defense before smirking slightly. "I'm sorry I said that, but come to think of it... I'm hurt, Beomgyu."
"Did you really have to call me out in front of everyone? That's so unnecessary."
Beomgyu's breath hitched when he had said that, looking behind him, he saw nearly half of his classmates staring at them and whispering to one another.
"But really, it's strange." Seong-jin spoke up, causing Beomgyu to put his attention back on him. "In the beginning of the semester, you had a thing for Soobin, didn't you?"
"But all of a sudden you went out with Kang Taehyun," Seong-jin said, which caused the others behind them to start whispering even more. "Was it because Yeonjun confessed he liked Soobin as well?"
Beomgyu couldn't help but feel his throat close up, his fists clenching tightly as he tried to think of what to say.
"He's right... it's strange..."
"Now that I think about it, weren't Beomgyu and Soobin always together?"
"They were!"
Beomgyu breathed out shakily as he turned his head away from the crowd, closing his eyes tightly as he tried to tune out the loud whispering. "It's not like that, it was never like that. You shouldn't be saying that in front of everyone!"
"Why does it matter," Seong-jin smiled brightly, a smile full of narcissism. "It's not like nobody knows. You're fascinating, you know that?"
"You barely ever talked to Kang Taehyun, but what...? After two club meets, you suddenly manage to make him fall for you while Choi Soobin liked you? You even started dating him while leading Choi Soobin on, you're cruel!"
Beomgyu shook his head, trying his best not to panic as the whispering around him became louder. "It was never like that! I did reject Choi Soobin, but not for that reason!"
"Oh shut the fuck up!" Seong-jin growled, his expression turning into a scowl. "You broke up with Kang Taehyun then went right back to Choi Soobin right away, I wouldn't be surprised that you forced Yeonjun to date Soobin because you knew he liked him!"
"He did that?!"
"I would've never expected Choi Beomgyu to do that..."
"So does that mean... Choi Soobin was forced in a relationship with Choi Yeonjun?"
"I always found their relationship strange.
"So instead of putting on this whole act, you could've just ignored Choi Yeonjun and say you liked Choi Soobin instead of worrying about what your best friend thought." Seong-jin scoffed, ignoring the frantic whispering behind him.
Beomgyu was trembling, his heart was pacing against his chest as he tried to at least say something to counter everything the male said. None of it was true! How could this happen? In front of everyone as well? He wanted to speak so badly, yet it was like his throat was closing up on him and wouldn't allow him to say anything else.
"I also heard a rumor that because Choi Soobin followed Kang Taehyun around to befriend him..." Seong-jin smirked, finally proud of himself knowing that he was ruining Beomgyu's image and reputation by the second. "Was because you were too embarrassed to even hang out him and his useless friend!"
"I feel bad for Choi Soobin, really," Seong-jin sighed, giving the crowd a pitiful pout as everyone stared at them in shock. "But I feel even more bad for Kang Taehyun! I cannot believe you used him like that, sure he's handsome, but he's really useless you know?"
"That is some of the most bullshit things I have ever heard!"
Both Beomgyu and Seong-jin looked up in shock, the male turning around in an instant as they both saw Choi Yeonjun pushing his way through the crowd. Staring at them with an annoyed expression.
"Choi Yeonjun?!—"
"Zip it there, jack ass." Yeonjun held his hand up, his eyes ignited with anger as he stared at the dumbass in front of him. "I really can't believe that you're so insecure, you have to cause a whole scene again! Seriously, it shocks me that others would think the same way like you do."
"Are you serious..." Seong-jin's face begin to turn a burning shade of red.
"You really need to realize that Choi Soobin will never choose you, he will never like you!" Yeonjun spat out, watching how infuriated the male was becoming. "So is that way you're taking your anger out on Beomgyu? Spewing shit only a dumbass like you can make up?"
"Seriously," Yeonjun chuckled sarcastically, looking away as he tried his best not to explode. "It's not our fault you're a loser who has an inferiority complex—"
"You fucking bitch!" Seong-jin screamed loudly, his patience snapping as he charged at Yeonjun who was caught off guard. "I never liked you from the start!"
The male raised his hand up high, preparing to swing down and murder the male.
Yeonjun's eyes widened as he saw what was about to happen, it was too fast for him to react, so within that moment he closed his eyes and prepared himself for impact.
"I never liked you from the start! You're always running your mouth you narcissistic bitch— AHH!"
A loud sound of gasps was made which made the male open his eyes. He had honestly expected to feel a harsh slap go across his face, so when he opened his eyes to see what had happened, his heart dropped in an instant.
In that moment, the males jaw dropped as he saw Choi Beomgyu grabbing onto Park Seong-jin's hair tightly, the male pulling his head back with so much force, it looked like he was about to fall over.
The male was digging his fingers into the his scalp so harshly it looked like he was nearly about to rip his strands out. His eyes began to darken as Seong-jin screamed and clawed at the males wrist to free himself, yet somehow Beomgyu remained still and stayed in his place.
"L-Let me go! Let me go you crazy ass bitch!" Seong-jin cried out as he tried his best to free himself from Beomgyu's tight grip.
Yet the male didn't say anything, it was like his panic all went away as he stared down at the male with the most angry expression he's ever had in his life.
Seong-jin stared up at the male, his heart dropping by the second when he realized that Beomgyu wasn't messing around anymore.
"Were you about to hit Yeonjun...?"
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