Jiyong POV:

I stared at my phone for hours, waiting, hoping it would light up or that the front door would open and Youngbae would be back. I'd put the frog legs away, deciding against letting them sit out and go to waste. Exhaustion consumed my body. I felt like I couldn't move from my seat at the dining table, but at the same time, I couldn't fall asleep. I was too guilty.

Just like I had to force myself not to call him again, I had to force myself to get up and lay in my bed. Countless hours of alternating between staring at the ceiling and my phone, and still, nothing. I felt so empty. The only thing worse than hurting just a love, was hurting your best friend at the same time. And despite my hopes, I didn't know if he'd talk to me again any time soon, if ever, unless we had to.

10:04

I lost control of my fingers and my mind and called him. He still hadn't come back.

...ring...

...ring...

...ring...

...ring...

I heard his voice, but by the second word, and by the joyful tone he'd always had had before, I knew it was voicemail. "Hey, it's Taeyang. I can't pick up the phone right now, but uh, well, you know what to do." His words were followed by a short laugh and a beep shortly after. I hung up without saying anything and let out a long breath before heading out to the balcony for a drink and a smoke.

Youngbae POV:

12:29

I felt my body being shaken; my eyes fluttered open, head pounding, to see my longtime friend and coworker, Chaerin (CL).

"Hey, you gotta get up. You okay, bro?" She looked concerned; I didn't know I passed out.

"Huh? Yeah, yeah. I'm fine." I sat up and looked at her.

"What happened?" At this point, she was crouching by me, trying to figure out what went on. "You're not working on anything new right now, what are you doing here?"

"You know me. I was upset about something, so I came here to dance and get my mind off of it, but I guess I fell asleep." I forced myself to laugh softly, trying to play everything off as okay.

Her eyes narrowed at me. I could tell she wasn't buying it. She shook her head and reached for her phone. "I'm calling Jiyong, you need to go to a doctor or somethi-"

"No!" I cut her off and grabbed her arm before she could grab her phone, sounding more urgent than I meant to. I immediately tried to fix my tone to sound calm. "I mean ,uh, I don't want to make him worry. I can take myself to the doctor, Chae. Don't worry." I flashed her a fake smile. She stared at me for a moment, still obviously not buying it. Her face mimicked sheer confusion and 'what-the-hell' as she put her phone down on the floor and I let her arm go.

"I don't know what's up with you..." She looked me dead in the eye. "You." She pointed at me, her hand millimeters away from touching me. "Take care of yourself. I don't want to see you getting hurt. You hear?" I kept the fake smile plastered on my face and nodded at her, standing up and stretching. I knew I had to leave. As much as Chaerin was a genuinely good friend, she'd want to know what was going on; and with something like this, I couldn't tell her. I couldn't tell anyone.

I grabbed my hat and mask off of the floor, putting them on once more and quickly leaving. We muttered quick goodbyes to each other and gave eachother friendly hugs before I made my way out the door and back to the street, continuing my walk from yesterday. My feet dragged; my exhaustion from before hadn't subsided whatsoever. I didn't want to be out here. I didn't want to be awake. Hell, this all messed me up so much, I wouldn't care if I simply dropped dead. I knew well enough not to wish it; and don't get me wrong, I didn't wish it. But I don't think I'd have the energy to stop it or care enough to try and prevent it. I was drained; emotionally, physically.

While something so petty as simply exclaiming the wrong name in bed shouldn't bother me this much, it was the fact that it was her name. Ji-eun, the one who'd caused him countless sleepless nights and so much pain. It hurt me way more than it should. It enraged me way more than it should. But now, I was numb. I was emotionless; without a care in the world, so long as I didn't have to see Jiyong's face.

My stomach growled loudly, reminding me that I still hadn't eaten since the morning before, but I didn't have the appetite. Much less, I questioned my ability to hold anything down at the moment. I felt tears threatening to make their way out once more, and I walked faster, pulling down the brim of my hat to cover the tiny bit of my face that showed, more. When my legs couldn't take it anymore, I walked into a hotel. The letters 'Hilton' reflected the sunlight in a similar way to the mirror-like windows all the way up the skyscraper. I checked in, convincing the suspicious desk clerk that I simply shared the same name with the famous star, Taeyang. After paying for my room, I took the elevator to the top floor and let myself into my temporary home. The first thing I did was take the battery out of my phone and collapse down on the bed.

Jiyong POV:

I sat on my chair on the balcony, bottle of soju in hand. Of all the times I needed soju to drown my sorrows, I'd never needed it more than now. Of all the times I needed soju to work and it did, now it didn't. It was like drinking water at this point; water that went in cold and warmed you from the inside out. As the hours passed, the empty cigarette boxes piled up, as did the empty green bottles, infamous for their usually strong contents. The sun went down and Youngbae still hadn't returned. I don't know why I thought he'd come back. I was an . I forced myself to get up and go back inside; to sit against the side of my bed and look at all the pictures of Youngbae and I throughout the years on my walls. Pictures from long ago, pictures from more recent times, pictures from when we would have never forseen anything like this happening.

Words couldn't do justice to how mad I was at myself for letting this happen. I grabbed the nearest picture and threw it across the room at another wall. The glass of the frame shattered and the picture landed face up on the floor, close enough just so I could see our smiling faces and our arms casually slung across each others' shoulders. I remembered that day. We were 10; our only care in the world back then was what our parents were going to make for dinner, or what game we'd play that day. My hands yanked at my hair, the tears of regret that had dried up the night before, returning thricefold. It was now that I realised the only thing worse than hurting just a friend or just a lover, was hurting the one person you knew loved you more than anything else, who loved you the most. This is when the rage set in. After hours of sitting around, hating myself and wallowing in self-pity, I was furious at myself for letting this happen. I grabbed my books off of their shelves and threw them with all my might across the room until I had nothing left to throw. At which point, I curled up on the floor again, feeling too helpless and ashamed to move from that position.

4 days passed.

4 days and 4 nights of the same routine. I'd pick everything up just to throw it back down again. The small piles of glass from the picture frames remained untouched on the floor. I had to force myself to get up and take a shower, turning the water so hot that it nearly burned my skin. By the time I was out and dressed again, it was roughly a half hour past midnight. I'd just gotten back into bed when I decided to try again. I hadn't called him in nearly 5 days. If there ever was a time I almost lost my mind, it would be now.

...ring...

...ring...

...ring...

"What do you want?" I heard on the other line, his voice remaining the same as the last time we'd spoke.

"Youngbae..."

"What?" His words were more of a demand to speak and speak fast than a question.

"Please just..." I was biting back tears, forcing myself to keep speaking. "...come back. I'm sorry, okay?" The other line was silent for a moment. It was then that I heard the dial tone, a tone that never seemed so harsh, so violent, until this moment.

Another day passed and I swore I was on the brink of going insane. My thoughts were out of control. I would be willing to give my life just to have Youngbae come back. I hadn't slept. I hadn't eaten. The only things I've done since he left were drink soju, smoke, cry, and throw things. I'd never felt so empty in my entire life, and what made it worse was that it was of my doing. The apartment had been so silent these days. It seemed almost dead until now, when the click of a door opening and closing rang in my ears, followed by the sound of shoes being removed and quiet footsteps.

I walked out of my room, the first sight greeting my eyes being Youngbae. His expression was unreadable, but he was heading to his room, showing no interest on acknowledging my presence. I thought for a moment of what I should do, before deciding on something I'd never done in my life, and probably would have never done to anyone except my best friend and boyfriend, who I'm sure at the moment hated my guts. I walked out in front of him, and he stopped, the blank, annoyed look on his face becoming one of confusion and slight frustration. Our eyes met for a moment and I fell to my knees, staring at the floor, sobs threatening to break loose. "Youngbae, I'm sorry."

"Get up." He said. I couldn't tell what his tone was, and a rush of fear ran through me. I did as he said, standing up to face him. To my complete shock, the first thing he did was envelope me in a tight hug. "If you ever mention that wench's name around me again, I won't come back so easily." I nodded and returned the embrace, wrapping my arms around him loosely, fearful that he would suddenly change his mind and leave again. We stayed like this for a while, simply hugging and appreciating the fact that we were once again somewhat okay.

A/N: And they're okay again!...sort of, but time will mend their relationship. Tell me what you think of this chapter and what you think might happen next. I'm interested to see what you guys think is in store. Much love- Baozi.

ps. I want to keep updating quickly like this. Unless something comes up where I can't, expect an update at least every few days, if not every or every other day.