Waking up wasn’t that pleasant today, or was it that bad. Unlike the usual drunk people, he remembered everything pretty well, though there were some vivid images. As promised, Jaebum did offer something to eat. It seemed that the owner of the apartment decided to order some pizza, instead of making something. Either way, Jinyoung was still grateful.

Looking at it now, the only reason why he loathed this guy was because of Mark. But, now that latter had finally chosen someone, the hatred seemed to die down. To top things off, Jaebum was cool as hell.

Even with what he described as his “ fits”, Jaebum still stood by him.

Was Jaebum doing this out of pity? Was he that pathetic?

Probably.

Rethinking everything that had happened, where was he? He was lost.

He was at that point where he couldn’t describe anything anymore. He wasn’t numb; he was feeling everything, all at the same time. And, it was hard as hell.

Disappointment, anger, jealousy, sadness, pain, everything.

He was being eaten alive by his own insecurities and this was something he hated feeling the most- insecure. It only caused him to over think, and he wasn’t used to any of it.

“Hey”

“Yeah?”

“Stop thinking, just eat. Pizza might get cold.”

“Sorry”

Jaebum chuckled, handing Jinyoung a plate with a slice of pizza on top. He gladly accepted, chewing on the slice.

“You know, pepperoni’s my favourite.”

Oddly enough, it was his favourite flavour too. “Me, too”

“Oh, wait. Let me go get you something to drink. Do you want tea again or some cola?”

“Cola would do” He said. The guy left and soon came back with a can of coke. “Thanks”

For a moment, neither of them talked. The room was silent, up to the point that it was deafening. It was weird how silence could also be loud at the same time. Though, what was he supposed to feel? It seemed that even Jaebum found the stillness unbearable. So, the guy broke the ice.

Jaebum kept on talking, telling stories about random things; school, people, politics, even the weather. Though, why did Jinyoung feel that he was being pitied on?

“You know, you don’t have to feel sorry for me.”

“Excuse me?”

“I mean, thank you for accompanying me. But-“

“Wait, wait, wait. First of all, I do not pity you. Secondly, I do this because I’m your friend. I don’t do this because I pity people, I do this because I care.”

“You don’t have to tell me random stories just to make me feel better.”

“Again, I’m not doing this to make you feel better. I’m talking about random because I know how painful and awkward silence is, considering how you are right now. For a moment, forget about everything.”

“It’s not that easy.”

“I know, and I never said it was easy. But, you could at least try. Wouldn’t that be better? That would be so much better than wallowing in sadness.”

Maybe it was because of all that had happened that Jinyoung wanted to disagree. It wasn’t that Jaebum was wrong. It was probably because he couldn’t really find the strength to do so.

“And to top things off, you brought this to yourself. You were the one who tattle tailed on the fake relationship.”

Ouch.

“What do you know, huh?” He said, eyes glaring at Jaebum’s. “You know nothing about me or what happened, nothing!”

“Jinyoung-“

“And you know another thing? Just drop the act. Not pitying me? That’s bull . Stop meddling with my life. You don’t know me for you to say such things.”

He knew he was going overboard, especially with the kindness that was shown to him. He was just thinking out loud, not even bothering to choose his words.

Jaebum knew nothing, or maybe the person couldn’t really understand. Or maybe, Jinyoung wasn’t the one who understood. Wasn’t he glad that someone was still trying him.

But no, for him, Jaebum knew nothing. Yeah, keep telling that to yourself, Park Jinyoung.

---

Mark’s body felt so heavy, like he didn’t actually want to go to school today. But no, he couldn’t really do that, not when he was the only hope for his family. A lot has happened yesterday, and he still couldn’t move on from any it.

Jinyoung, Jackson’s grandfather, a lot has happened.

But, was this all necessary? Actually, it wasn’t the necessity he was questioning, it was his worth.

Was he really worth the trouble? Really, did things have to reach up to this point?

He wanted to fight for this, whatever this is, whatever they had. But, now he was wondering if he was worth fighting for.

The door creaked open, distracting him from his thoughts. It was his mom.

“Good morning, son.”

“Hey, mom. Anything you need?”

“Nothing, really. Jackson’s already here to pick you up.”

Oh. He nodded, giving his mom a small smile. “Thanks, mom. I’ll be out in five.” He stood up, walking towards the bathroom. He showered quickly, not wanting Jackson to wait too long.

As he exited his room, he could already hear that voice, that voi