A/N: People do stupid things when they're in love. That is all. 

When Woohyun woke up that morning to an empty bed and an empty apartment, he freaked out and started panicking, thinking Sunggyu had left him. He only calmed down when he found the suitcase still in the closet and none of the older’s belongings were missing except for his keys, a pair of shoes, and a jacket.

Woohyun then spent the day cleaning the apartment and cooking, hoping Sunggyu would be back by lunchtime. The food grew cold throughout the day but the older didn’t return.

Tired from all the chores, Woohyun had fallen asleep on the couch. He later woke up when it was already dark outside, tucked under the covers of their bed. Sunggyu laid next to him, his back to the younger, a pillow in between them. Seeing that pillow made him feel a million times worse and he wanted to throw it on the floor and embrace his boyfriend.

But, he didn’t.

The next morning, when he woke up before Sunggyu, he considered kissing the older awake. Again, he decided against it. Instead, he made him a quick breakfast before rushing to work. It was the first time in months that he made breakfast for Sunggyu again, and he hoped that what he wanted to say showed in that simple gesture.

At the end of the day, when his co-workers invited him out for a drink, he surprised them by declining.

“What? Are you dating someone again?” one of them, a guy named Junhyung, asked with a teasing wiggle of his eyebrows.

Some of the women started groaning and whining in disappointment.

It took a few seconds for Woohyun to comprehend the reactions. So, Ken wasn’t playing; they really did think he had broken up with Sunggyu.

“What do you mean?” he decided to play clueless. “I’ve been dating the same guy for three years now. Anyway, he misses me so I’m going to start spending more time with him at home.”

“Ahhh that lucky man!” exclaimed his co-worker Mia with a pout.

That sent a pang to Woohyun’s heart. He doubted Sunggyu had felt lucky in the last few months. So, he hurriedly bid his co-workers good-bye and rushed out of the building.

Sunggyu’s work hours ended earlier than his, so he was surely on his way home by now. Woohyun stopped by a flower shop to get a small bouquet and again at Sunggyu’s favorite Thai Restaurant to pick up dinner.

He arrived at their apartment, flowers and take-out in hand. But, the place was empty.

Sunggyu didn’t come home until 8pm and by then, the food was cold and the flowers were close to wilting.

The older actually looked surprised to see him when he arrived. “You’re home early,” he stated before his eyes fell on the flowers and the food.

Woohyun flashed him a smile before walking up to him to give him a hug. He felt the older stiffen in his arms and it made that gnawing guilt in his chest multiply tenfold. Nonetheless, he maintained the smile when he pulled away.

“Are you hungry? I got your favorite, Pad Thai. I’ll heat it up for you. We can eat together.”

He moved away to get the food ready when Sunggyu’s next words stopped him in his tracks.

“Actually, I already ate with Myungsoo.”

He turned around to see the older looking away from him, gaze on the floor.

“You should eat, though,” Sunggyu continued, nonchalantly heading to their bedroom. “I’m gonna go take a shower and go to bed early, I’m a bit tired.”

“Sunggyu,” Woohyun called out.

The said one paused in his tracks, back to him.

Woohyun moved closer. “About what happened Saturday, I-.”

“It’s okay.” Sunggyu turned around and smiled a small smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “I understand. You need your freedom. I’ll give it to you.” He placed a hand on the younger’s cheek, gently and Woohyun savored the caress before it disappeared. “Eat and rest now, okay?”

Without another word, Sunggyu turned and headed for the bedroom, leaving Woohyun there alone with cold Thai food and wilting flowers.

A month later, he wanted to believe that things were getting better. But, the truth was, it just wasn’t. The tiny crack caused by Woohyun’s selfishness slowly grew day-by-day. And to the younger’s despair, Sunggyu was now doing that Woohyun was doing before; he started giving him the cold shoulder.

It had started small, at first.

Some days, he would wake up to an empty bed, only to find Sunggyu already awake and making breakfast. They would eat together, make small talk, and the older would leave for work. On those days, Woohyun wouldn’t get a good-bye kiss like he would have had a year ago.

Woohyun had stopped going out drinking with his co-workers after the work day and started heading straight home after, only to find that Sunggyu wasn’t home yet. It wasn’t until later that he found out the older was having coffee with Dongwoo after work; they apparently started doing it when Woohyun had started coming home late all those months ago.

“You can go out with your friends after work, Woohyun,” Sunggyu told him when Woohyun asked about it. “I don’t mind.”

But Woohyun, himself, minded. He didn’t want to fall back into that habit again!

Sunggyu had also stopped calling him with his nicknames. “Hyun”, “Hyunnie”, and “Namu” were all replaced with just plain old “Woohyun.” The younger had to admit, he really missed the way the older would affectionately call out to him with these nicknames.

And what more was that there was now an annoying pillow in between them in bed. Even if Woohyun wanted to reach out and wrap his arms around Sunggyu, he couldn’t do it.

Several times, he tried to bring up the issue with Sunggyu, to talk to him and possibly mend the crack that was slowly tearing them apart. But, just like Woohyun all those months ago, Sunggyu would avoid the question or pretend that he didn’t hear it. Unlike Woohyun, however, he never exploded in anger or showed irritation. He was just… nonchalant.

That felt even worse than angry outbursts.

“What can I do, Gyu?” he asked the older one day.

Sunggyu just responded with wide, startled eyes before morphing back into a somber look. “What do you mean?” he asked.

“What can I do to make you happy again?” Woohyun bravely asked.

And again, the older only smiled a small smile. “But, I am happy with you, Woohyun,” he responded before excusing himself from the room.

That response only shot an arrow at his already aching heart.

Woohyun hated seeing that blank and contemplative look that seemed to grace Sunggyu’s face these days. He missed the brightness in the older’s eyes, his smile, and his laugh. He wished Sunggyu would just talk to him. But, there was nothing he could do except try and try to earn his way back into his boyfriend’s heart.

He knew his boyfriend loved him; it showed. But... Sunggyu’s trust and faith in him had been crushed because of his foolishness.

Woohyun had no one to blame but himself.

“You look miserable.”

“Shut up, Lee Howon.”

Woohyun’s co-worker could only cluck his tongue at him, disapprovingly. “You know, you could just say this one little word called ‘sorry’,” he continued mocking the other.

Woohyun glared at him. “You think I haven’t tried?”

Howon raised an eyebrow at him, skeptically.

“Okay, fine, I didn’t exactly... say it,” Woohyun admitted. “I… have a little trouble with apologizing… But, I try to show it!”

The other looked like he didn’t believe him at all.

“Like… what more does Sunggyu want from me?!” Woohyun continued, the stress and irritation taking over again. “I did everything I could! I come home on time, I cook for him, I even ask him on dates! And he’s still acting like this!” Resigned, he dropped his face into his hands, groaning, pathetically. “I don’t know what else to do.”

Howon was quiet for a moment before bluntly saying, “Here’s an idea, just say you’re sorry, !”

“I’m trying!” Woohyun lifted his head, pouting tiredly at his co-worker. “But I’m not good at it. I’ve done a lot of stupid things and Gyu has always forgiven me. But this time…”

“This time you really hurt him, I know,” Howon said. “You rant about it almost every day. Look, I don't agree with Sunggyu's little tantrum, it's pretty childish. But, then again, so were you, so you kinda deserve it.”

The other groaned again in frustration.

“Word of advice, Nam Woohyun. Next time, when you have an issue about your relationship, don’t expect Sunggyu to just know about it or figure it out because you ignored him for a couple of months. Actually tell him? It will save you all this misery. You showed him that you're sorry, great. Now, say it to him. Take the initiative for once."

Woohyun wanted to retort something sassy, but could not find the words. Because deep in his heart, he knew that Howon was right.

A/N: They say actions speak louder than words... But, words can also make the biggest impact. Aish, these two. They're so stubborn!