Weeks passed since Jeonghan's confession on national television. Weeks passed since Jeonghan left his friends' apartment, moved or even talked. Weeks passed since he broke Seungcheol's heart and his with that. Instead of feeling happier about saving his fake boyfriend's career, he only felt worse.
Jeonghan was not the only one who never went into public after the announcement Jeonghan has made. As soon as it was made and Jeonghan left Youngsoo's talk show, Seungcheol called his manager, demanding for answers. Upon finding out the truth, that it was all a set up by his company, Seungcheol could not contain his anger and sadness anymore. He couldn't believe anybody's words, couldn't believe that Jeonghan had sacrificed his reputation just to 'help' Seungcheol. If he had known, he would have rejected this kind of help right away.
It had been weeks since Seungcheol talked to anyone. Not even his friends could cheer the rapper up, and not even the music he loved helped him to overcome his feelings. He reacted in a depreciating way whenever somebody would attempt to talk to him, not wanting to hear their words or their complaints. This time around, Seungcheol has never felt so lonely before.
The loneliness lead him to write songs about heartbreak, the feelings he had for Jeonghan made him write love songs and the anger he had towards the person he loved and everybody involved in this matter, made him write songs with all his negative feelings spat onto the sheet of paper, each and every word symbolizing how hurt he actually was.
Though, even when writing songs, Seungcheol never felt like rapping or singing them. Reading the lyrics made him remember the events which caused him to feel this way, and he would soon find himself in tears. Unlike the last time he cried, there was nobody to comfort him there. Seungcheol was on his own, not getting one step closer to being fixed.
For several times now, Jongsuk tried to get the artist out of his apartment. There was no use to try to unlock the door, for the male changed the locks the day he found out about Jongsuk's horrible plan. His trust for his manager was gone, replaced with hatred and disgust towards him. The same went to his CEO, who had treated the rapper like a son all this time. Now Seungcheol noticed, that just like almost everyone else, he was used for money or for fame. To the world, he was just a toy which did not deserve any love or affection.
His two closest friends, Wonwoo and Mingyu, tried to cheer up their dear friend. They came by almost every day, knocking on Seungcheol's door to tell him about recent events, trying to distract him from Jeonghan. At times they tried to talk about it to Seungcheol, just sitting in front of his door while yelling loudly. Seungcheol never let them inside. The only person to go in and out of his apartment was his maid, who also did the grocery shopping for him and cooked for the male, feeling sad for the person she worked for.
What surprised Seungcheol the most, were the people he talked to occasionally, pass by his apartment door and say encouraging words to him. Some of them even left letters in his mailbox, which his maid would hand him every morning. The first time he received the letters, Seungcheol just threw them aside, being sure that it was another way of winning his trust only to fuck him over again, but as time passed by and his loneliness grew, Seungcheol began reading the letters.
He found out that Jeonghan quit his job at the café, that Woohyun was preparing a second album and much more. All of his friends said they didn't believe in Jeonghan cheating on Seungcheol, claiming that his TV act looked forced and unrealistic; which it was. Jeonghan has never cheated on Seungcheol, they were not even officially dating during that time, yet he told the whole world he did to protect Seungcheol's career.
The rapper wasn't sure if he should continue with making music or should put an end to it. He doubted his capability to go on stage again and perform in front of a large audience. His trust for his company and his manager was gone, and he did not want to ask them to finance his new music. It was easier to stop it, to throw the many song texts he wrote aside and to focus on his miserable life.
What surprised him the most was when one night, Jihoon was sitting in front of Seungcheol's door, murmuring something about helping the male out. Jihoon was a person to never do such a thing such as coming by to check on a friend, but perhaps Seungcheol was wrong because Jihoon sounded more than convinced that he could help Seungcheol out with his problems.
Meanwhile, all that happened in Seungcheol's life, Jeonghan was behaving in a similar way, perhaps even in a much unhealthier way. He locked himself up in his best friend's room, curled up into a ball while hiding under the warm blankets. Every tray with delicious food served to Jeonghan was left untouched, causing Jeonghan to grow thinner and thinner. Dark circles formed under his always puffy red eyes and Jeonghan only spoke to tell people to leave him alone; that he still needed time for himself to think.
There was nothing to think about, though. Jeonghan had confessed a lie on national television to make Seungcheol happier. He thought if he does it, even Jeonghan would feel more satisfied, but it was not the case. He felt obnoxious about himself, hated himself even. If he had the power to, he would turn back time and change everything. Perhaps he would change the past where they swapped their phones on accident, or perhaps he would tell Seungcheol he could not attend Soonyoung's birthday party due to his upcoming exams.
The only time he spoke to someone, was when his friends asked him if he was alright, or if he wanted to leave the house to get some fresh air, for the male had been locked up in Jisoo's bedroom for days. Every time he was asked that question, he would answer with a simple no, not wanting to go out and let the world see the male who hurt no other than the world's most popular rapper.
He was sure people hated him by now, thinking of him as a bad person for cheating on somebody, especially if that somebody was no other than S.Coups. People recognized him before, and he was sure that by now, almost everyone in South Korea has heard his name or seen his face at least once. He was sure that by now, he was the most hated person to exist.
Jeonghan never imagined experiencing love in such a way. His love story hasn't even started yet, and he already experienced his first heartbreak. When he received Jongsuk's phone call not too long ago, asking him to meet him, Jeonghan thought the manager found a way to get this situation fixed. He did, but it was not in a way Jeonghan approved of. Somehow, though, he agreed on doing it.
It was out of love for Seungcheol when Jeonghan agreed on taking all the blame. It was out of love for Seungcheol when Jeonghan went to the talk show he dreaded most, to admit something he didn't do. It was out of love for Seungcheol when Jeonghan decided it was time to let go of him and let him lead a drama free life; a life without him having to be worried about Jeonghan's well-being all the time.
As much as he wanted to tell anyone about it, he agreed not to do so. Instead of telling his friends about the horrible things he agreed on doing, he told them nothing. He kept quiet, blaming himself for ruining everything. And most importantly, he felt like he deserved to suffer. It was him, after all, who got Seungcheol into trouble and that from the very beginning.
Jeonghan's phone started ringing, startling the male. He hoped for Seungcheol's number to flash on his phone screen but was only let down when he saw Jongsuk's number. Still, he wondered what it was the cruel manager wanted to talk about. He hadn't talked to him ever since he went on Youngsoo's talk show.
"Hello?" His voice sounded raspy, his throat dry from never speaking and barely drinking.
"It's Lee Jongsuk, Seungcheol's manager," Jeonghan hated him. "The police called me about the break in in your apartment."
Jeonghan had forgotten about it. He forgot about the break in– no, he tried to forget it. These past weeks, he tried to forget everything related to Seungcheol, and even if it was partly working and he started to forget all the dates, laughter and cuddles he shared with the other, he started to remember all the bad things happening to them. The party, Woohyun, Jeonghan on television and Seungcheol, who was betrayed by not only Jeonghan but also his company.
"What about it?" Jeonghan wanted to know.
"The culprit has been found. They want you to go over to the police station and figure out what you will do about her. If you'll sue her or let her off with a warning, you know, the usual." informed him Jongsuk.
Jeonghan thought about it for a moment, wondering if he should go outside for the first time in weeks. He didn't look presentable, neither did he have the motivation to make himself look presentable. All he wanted was to disappear into thin air or make his memories disappear. Neither was he ready to meet the manager who supported his act of hurting Seungcheol and letting Jeonghan get hurt. As often as Jeonghan tried to tell himself he made the right choice, he kept thinking he did something terribly wrong.
"I don't care," Jeonghan then said. "You deal with it. I don't want anything to do with everything that has happened the last two months."
Then he remembered; it had been three months already. Three months ago he signed the contract on being Choi Seungcheol's fake boyfriend. When his relationship with Seungcheol was just beginning, he could not wait for it to come to an end. Now that it had ended earlier than expected, he wished for it to continue on forever.
Jeonghan just knew that he couldn't control his emotions anymore. There were times where he wanted to run right into Seungcheol's arms and apologize, to make him love him again. Then there were the much darker times, where Jeonghan felt nothing but shame, knowing that he could never be held in Seungcheol's strong arms again, feel his soft lips on his own or breathe in the scent of wood and cologne.
"I can go there with you if you want, but you should definitely go to the police station. The culprit ruined your whole apartment and broke almost all of your possessions. The least she can do is replace everything she broke."
Jeonghan's lips started to quiver as he felt his chest tighten. He took a deep breath in and then out, letting the tears stream down his cheeks. "You don't understand it, Jongsuk. I just want to forget everything. This will- this will only make me remember him." he stuttered into the phone before hanging up and turning the device off.
Without wanting to, he let the tears he held in escape, sobbing into his pillow as he wondered when the pain would stop.
Jisoo hated seeing his friend behave this way. Not only did he hate the way Jeonghan behaved, but also Seungcheol. Ever since his best friend went on national television and officially broke off his bond with the rapper, he hadn't heard a word from Seungcheol. No news about a new album, single or tour. Nothing. It was like he vanished from the world's surface.
Every day, he would hear his best friend cry his heart out. He watched as he starved himself, blamed himself for something which wasn't his fault and was slowly withering away like a flower. Jisoo had been through heartbreak too, but he never ended up to be the way Jeonghan ended up to be. Everyone reacted to heartbreak in different ways, but the way Jeonghan reacted wasn't healthy.
Even when Jeonghan's family was trying to talk to him on the phone, and Mrs. Yoon made the effort to visit Jisoo in his apartment, where Jeonghan was hiding, Jeonghan insisted on her leaving, saying that he was tired and did not want to talk. He shut himself off completely. Jeonghan was a whole different person.
The sobs became louder, making Jisoo shift uncomfortably in his seat on the couch. He was not the only one who felt that way. His gaze turned to Seokmin, who stopped to play games on his phone, a blank expression on his face. Everyone who knew Jeonghan believed that he didn't cheat on the superstar, and everyone who knew Jeonghan, was more worried than anyone could ever be.
"Seokmin, are you going to meet Jihoon and Seungkwan today?" Jisoo wondered. Seokmin has now started recording an album with Jihoon's help. His two friends, who were trying to become singers, were preparing for their debut, passing the auditions effortlessly.
"No, not today." he replied.
"Can you do me a favor then? Would you watch over Jeonghan for me and give me Jihoon's number?"
Seokmin furrowed his eyebrows, trying to block out Jeonghan's sobs. "I- um... why do you need Jihoon's number?" he finally asked, wondering if Jisoo also wanted to record an album.
"Because I'm going to put an end to this. We can't just sit around and watch Jeonghan turn into whatever he is now, and wait for Seungcheol to release another killer album filled with heartbreak songs. This is not how it should be. The two of them should be together right now, in each other's arms." Jisoo said full of determination.
A small smile spread across Seokmin's face. "I trust you, Jisoo," he told him while giving him Jihoon's phone number.
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This chapter is more of a filler, but I hope you liked it.
I would still like to hear your thought/predictions on this. And idk if you picked it up from this chapter, but Jisoo is going to do something which makes me really happy but who knows if his plan will work out...
Thank you for reading/commenting/voting. It means a lot to me ^^