“I know I’ve said this before, but I’m sorry. I don’t expect you to forgive me, not after what I did, but please hear me out. I really do like you. You made my life so much happier with your presence. Junhui was just...I don’t even know. I don’t know why I did it. I don’t know what’s wrong with me, but I know that I like Kim Mingyu. You can ignore me, but I just need to know if you forgive me. Please.” Jeonghan watched as Mingyu turned away after reading the message. Choking back tears, he wished he had someone to comfort him. But he didn’t. Everyone had abandoned him a long time ago. His parents didn’t want him once they found out he was gay. His friends left him when they were afraid of being seen with him.

And now, even Mingyu was leaving him. The only people he had left were Junhui, Jisoo and Seungcheol, and he couldn’t go to them because of that day in the washroom. He never had a childhood. No family bonding time as a result of his parents’ busy work. No freedom. He was forced to stay in his room everyday, doing revision. But all of it was wasted the moment his parents threw him out of the house 7 years ago. Finally after working everyday after school for 7 years and getting less than 4 hours of sleep everyday, he had the money to buy a house.

He finally had his own freedom, but it wasn’t any happier. The happiest moments of his life were with Mingyu. Home was a word that he found funny. Home was supposed to be warm and full of love. But his home was filled with coldness and anger. His father would come home drunk almost everyday, hitting him till he bled. And he didn’t stop there. It wasn’t just physical abuse. It was something much worse, something that gave him nightmares every night, something that made him suspicious and wary of everyone. His mother wasn’t any better, she was too busy with work to even care.

Mingyu was the one person who had ever cared about him. The only person he had ever loved. The short time he had spent with Mingyu outweighed his whole life before that. Everything that he had hidden deep beneath his happy exterior came out now. He let out all his tears. 

“Mingyu!” Mingyu turned his head at the familiar voice. He narrowed his eyes and turned away. Rushing to catch up with him, Jeonghan grabbed his arm weakly. “Mingyu, please! Don’t leave me, please! Not you too...” Mingyu turned back at the last sentence. What did he mean, you too? He cocked his head, waiting for Jeonghan to explain.

”I-I don’t know how to explain this, but I just...” He cast his eyes downward. 

“I need you, Mingyu. You’re the only one who has ever cared for me. Have you ever wondered why I don’t have parents? It’s because they threw me out when they found out about my uality. My father-he...” Jeonghan couldn’t continue. Mingyu understood anyway. His eyes softened, and for a minute he forgot what Jeonghan had done to him. He set his jaw, not revealing any emotions. 

“Will you forgive me? I’ll make it up to you, I promise. I know I said you can ignore me, but I realised I really need you. I need you there for me. I know I’m older, and I never thought I would need someone as much as this. Not after I’ve been living alone for 7 years.”

Mingyu was hearing this for the first time. He really hadn’t thought much about Jeonghan’s life. He never knew that, hidden beneath was a broken boy who needed someone, someone to just care for him, comfort him when he needed it. And Mingyu was willing to be that person. He knew what he was getting himself into, but he had fallen into an endless black hole the moment he had decided to be with Jeonghan. He gave a short nod, receiving an appreciative glance from Jeonghan. His eyes were red and puffy, Mingyu could tell he had been crying.

”I just needed your forgiveness. I understand if you don’t want to have any interaction with me. I’ll go now.” He smiled sadly at Mingyu. Mingyu grabbed him by the arm, stopping him. He pulled the older into his arms, engulfing him. He wished he could tell Jeonghan that he was there for him. That he would always be there. And he wished he could tell him how much he loved him. But all he could do was hold Jeonghan.

Hold him, and never let go.

Author’s Note: another longer chapter yay! Ive been getting more inspiration lately, so the chapters are a little longer. Hope yall liked it! And the comments really mean a lot to me! <3 thx for all the support on this story!