Day Off(s)

PHOSPHENES
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Day 61.

It’s 10.30 in the morning – without any prior meeting schedule, it’s very late for him. But the desk – her desk – is still empty when he waddled toward his own. Hyungsik and Suho stopped for a while when he darted his eyes to them, then quickly returned to whatever their discussion is, as if they want to avoid his gaze as much as possible.

The office seems too quiet for his liking, amidst how normal it is. People talking here and there, shouting once in a while, but all of those merely sounds like a buzz, like a hum. Like white noises he heard when he wandered around the street enjoying his solitude and taking some pictures with his camera.

A glance to his phone, then to his screen. Then back to his phone, he repeats the pattern few times now, but still. They didn’t budge. No text he’s expected. No email he’s been waiting.

He’s still unable to sleep last night, although for some different reason than last week. This morning when he’s driving he contemplated a lot whether he should go to the office or not. How he would face Taeyeon? How he would face everyone at the office who had witnessed him as the worst human being? And pretend everything’s never happened? It’s been a very long time since his last outburst. The fact that Jinki and Jonghyun weren’t there to see it, he’s not sure if that’s a good thing or not.

Without somebody told him, he knew that at least 50% of the people at the office think he’s a jerk who loves walking above someone else’s head. Their gazes say a lot. Minho is a cold man, he does what he wants, he doesn’t feels bad after being vicious, Minho this, Minho that.

He’s tired of that. Countless time he said to himself to not listening what people said about him. But it’s so hard when you actually do care. Nobody believes he still has a heart somewhere under pile of he has inside. He knew it was wrong to throw his frustration to someone innocent. To someone who doesn’t know what’s exactly happened to him before he stepped to the office that day. To someone like Taeyeon. Poor girl just wanted to help and he blasted his anger toward her.

He’d been trying to call her several times since the first time he knew she didn’t go to the office. But every single time he attempted to reach her number, all the calls went straight to voice mail. All the texts and emails he sent are left un-responded. He assumed she probably blocked him already now.

He wanted to apologize, but he doesn’t know how. He doesn’t even know whether Taeyeon still wants to see his face or not after he told her to go away from his sight.

Another sighed rolled out without him realizing. He grabbed his phone and walked to the pantry, ignoring Suho’s eyes which entailed him close. He barely talked with Suho or Kyuhyun after that day. Besides work stuff, they keep their mouths zipped for each other. Their group chat went silent for three days straight.

Lucky for him, everyone seems avoiding him as well because Henry and Bora immediately scram when Minho slowly marched to one of the wooden tables. He opened his phone log and pressed the contact at the top. Zero, this time is not even reached the voice mail. It’s just suddenly disconnected.

Out of the blue, someone slapped the back of his head, shocked him to death his phone making a loud thud when it fell on the wooden surface of the table.

He shakes his head to shed the shock, “What the was that for?!!”

But the pain is incomparable with the terrifying look plastered on the face of the man standing tall with both hands on the hips.

“I know you’re an idiot, but I never thought you are that idiot!”

Stands before him, Changmin looks super mad – it all shows on his face – he needs Kyuhyun calmed him down and lead him to the vacant chair.

“Excuse me?!”

Kyuhyun slightly flinched seeing two of his best friend about to eat each other.

“Everything’s happened to you, it is what it is! That doesn’t make you have any right, you have no ing right to use Taeyeon as your punch bag.”

“Ho—“

“Suho told me.”

Changmin just arrived last night from Jeju. Kyuhyun shrugged while mouthed ‘I’m sorry’. Minho had asked him not to tell anyone who wasn’t present on the scene that day. But he guessed, he asked the favor to the wrong friend.

“Where is she now?”

Minho groaned because he was looking for her as well until the second, “Do I look like her mother?! How would I know?”

“What the actual heck?!”

“I’ve been trying to call her ever since but she won’t pick up. My calls not even reached the voice mail.”

“He’s not lying,” Suho opened his mouth when he saw Changmin is about to roar again, “What? I was just being a nice person trying to reach her after that horrified afternoon! Y’all didn’t see how terrorized her face back then.”

The four of them then sit in silence. The distress on Minho’s face is very obvious. Kyuhyun sighed several times, inevitably. He wanted to confront him more, but never in all the years has he known Minho that the man ever looked like this. Besides when..

“What had happened?”

Minho knew the question was meant for him but he didn’t want to respond that just yet.

“Minho. We’re friends for a long time now. Don’t you think hiding your problem would make anyone’s life easier?”

Suho gritted his teeth, “Is this because The Witch?! Because I swear to Go—“

“It’s not because of her, Junmyeon. And her name is Irene.”

“Whoa. This is first,” Changmin leaned forward, interested to where’s the conversation seems to be going because Minho only called Suho with his real name, “Since when you pronounce her name right?”

The man keeps his lips tight, it’s not the topic he wanted to talk about. And Suho understood with only one glance. He glared towards Changmin, for Minho’s sake, which the later just nods to say thank you.

“Then care to tell me what’s making you a beast?”

“Family matters.”

Suho’s making the oh-not-again face while cupping his own cheeks to keep his rendered thin patience.

“Your father again? I thought you and your father are in a g—“

“No. It’s Minjung.”

Suho gasped. Changmin gulped. And Kyuhyun’s mind went blank in instant.

***

Taeyeon washes her face and rubs it hard to numb the pain shooting her nose and eyes. She looks at her reflection on the mirror and realized how pathetic she is. Who walked around at the end of winter without coat and scarf anyway?

It’s been three days she’s not going to the office. And only today she’s able to heat up some instant porridge for her lunch and actually down the almost-too-liquid-y substance. It was the first real meal went inside her stomach besides some crackers and gallon of chamomile tea she’s been chugging to tend the horrendous pang in her head.

More than two decades of existence, she rarely got sick. Once she fell though, it needs quite time to recover. She wiped her upper body with warm towel and cringed on the thought for not washing her hair which looks like untamed lion’s mane without its glorious tone and shape.

After that she changed into another pair of sweatpants and huge hoodie before opened the window to the balcony a little bit to let the air change, and flopped down to the couch with big mug of another batch of chamomile tea. The breeze went in and she pulled the light blanket she left it there closer to her chin.

While her head is hurting so bad, her heart is still in way more pain. It keeps reminds her to

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OdetteSwan
910 streak #1
Chapter 12: What did Taeyeon do that Minho is eibg an to her?
OdetteSwan
910 streak #2
Chapter 2: I think Minho also has a crush on Tae! But at least he apologized for beibg a jerk.
OdetteSwan
910 streak #3
Chapter 1: I finally started reading this. After all, LWFWE is done.
Looking forward to this "love at first sight" thing of Taeyon.
januarysunshine13 #4
Chapter 22: Welcome back!!! This story has a special place in my heart.... would like to see more epilogues.... and want to meet the baby!!!! I would really like to read about Jong and Minjung's life..... they seems so lovely..
Shinee2020 #5
Chapter 22: Yeah! So happy you add this epilogue. Love this first epilogue! But since it is the first one , waiting for the next one too. ;)
Jinkles-nim
#6
Chapter 22: Huaaaa... I can't wait for Kibum!! Must be really fun xD
LeaderOnyuu
#7
Chapter 22: Thank you for the epilogue but it's too short ㅋㅋㅋ
Jinkles-nim
#8
Chapter 21: Amen!
harumarch
#9
Chapter 21: Amen! this is one of my fav 2min story ♡♡ you really did a great work author-nim! and yes..!! would like more for epilogueㅋㅋ thank you for finishing this story!!
januarysunshine13 #10
Chapter 21: Awwww,, its over.... thank u for this lovely story....in very few works the writer can make all the characters likeable.... but u did it with this.... I wont mind if you make more fics from this universe so we know whats the crazy gang doing in their lives!!!!!