Himchan woke up with an excrutiating pulsing in the head. It didn't help when he breathed in a revolting odor coming from himself and it made him sick to the stomach. When he looked down at himself, he was wearing the same clothes from last night.

 

Sitting at the edge of the bed, he palmed his face and grunted in his hand. Though somehow, he felt like something was stange. Something was different.

 

"Jieun!" he called out. No answer.

 

Groaning, he pulled himself up and grabbed a towel, heading for the bathroom. When he walked up to the mirror, he grabbed his toothbrush from its holder and applied toothpaste on it. He stopped when he noticed something odd and stared at the empty toothbrush holder beside his.

 

Shrugging off his thought, he continued to brush his teeth and took a steaming hot shower which unfortunately didn't help him with his hangover. When he finished, he dried himself a little and wrapped the towel around his waist.

 

He was expecting to see Jieun sitting on the bed, waiting for him to finish his shower so that she could tell him that the hangover soup was hot and ready to be eaten.

 

Strangely, she wasn't there for him as he expected. His brows stitched together and turned his head to either side of the room to look for her, but he couldn't even feel the presence of another soul in his house.

 

He headed for his wardrobe to find his suits all neatly arranged and untouched. He pulled open a drawer and took out a clean shirt and sweatpants to wear for the day. As he pushed back the drawer in its place, he noticed that the door of the wardrobe beside his wardrobe was slightly open. It belonged to Jieun. Himchan wasn't really sure what made him so curious to make him open her wardrobe, but when he did, it was all empty. He tried blinking a few times thinking maybe it was just a hallucination that he might be because of the hangover.

 

"What is this?" he asked himself, not quite understanding what was going on, and just to make sure, he opened both sides of the doors of her wardrobe. There was nothing.

 

Himchan jumped in his spot and froze for a while when he heard a loud crash coming from downstairs. Hoping that it was Jieun, he dashed down the stairs and ran towards the shuffling sounds that he was hearing.

 

In front of the door, was a pile of Jieun's clothes and belongings that accidentally fell out from the box that Zelo was holding.

 

"Zelo?" Himchan stared at the boy, wide eyed, surprised at the boy when he kneeled down to pick up the fallen items. 

 

Zelo raised his head to see Himchan standing at the hallway just ahead of him. He quickly stood up, flustered at the presence of Himchan in front of him and dared not to look him in the eyes.

 

"Himchan hyung, you're a-awake?" Zelo stuttered when Himchan was glaring at him who was holding onto Jieuns posessions.

 

"What the hell are you doing with Jieun's stuff Zelo? Does she even know you're doing this?" Himchan raised his voice and snatched the box away from Zelo's hand, picking up Jieun's belongings himself.

 

Zelo forcefully took the box back from Himchan and stared up at the older man.

 

"Nuna asked me to help clean up her stuff from your house hyung" he said, this time in a soft, sad and regretful voice. He really didn't like seeing Jieun sad and neither did he like seeing Himchan angry. 

 

"What? Why would she do that?" he grabbed Zelo's arm stopping him from whatever he was doing. Zelo looked up at Himchan with the same disappointed look that he had last night when he was comforting Jieun.

 

It finally struck Himchan and all memories from last night played like a tape recorder in his mind. 

 

'I don't want to see him now' he remembered this word clearly because it hurt him knowing that she doesn't want to see him anymore.

 

'It's over' he remembered her saying. Those words kept on ringing in his mind and it was only until when Zelo tugged his arm away, Himchan snapped out from his thoughts and garbbed onto Zelo's arm again.

 

"Zelo, where is she now? Tell me" he pleaded to the boy.

 

"Hyung, she doesn't want to see you" Zelo answered.

 

"Damn it, Zelo. Bring her back to me!" he shouted in Zelo's face this time, intimidating the poor boy. 

 

For once, even though he was still a kid in Jieun's eyes, he wanted to be a man for her. To protect her. Zelo stood up straight to flaunt his height, making an attempt to intimidate his own hyung. He pulled away his arm and shoved Himchan off of him.

 

"I don't want to see her sad anymore, hyung. I don't like seeing her cry because of you. You have always neglected her, so why are you looking for her now!" Zelo fired at Himchan.

 

Himchan's face reddened in anger when Zelo was speaking informally to him, but mainly because every single word he said was true and he didn't like the idea of admitting to it.

 

Himchan slammed Zelo against the wall, making him drop the box and its contents onto the floor, and he stared into the boys eyes. Zelo stared back at him, not backing down. Himchan lifted his arm, balling them into a tight fist and gave one blow to Zelo's left cheek.

 

Zelo fell face down on the floor, dizzy from the impact. Himchan bent down and grabbed Zelo by the collar, pulling him up again. He was about to give Zelo another punch when Yongguk barged in through the doors, swiftly grabbing Himchan and rammed Himchan's back into the wall. It was evident that Yongguk was more stronger than both of them and now, he was in control.

 

"Calm down Himchan" Yongguk growled at him when Himchan was writhing under him to get to Zelo. 

 

Zelo leaned against the wall behind him for support. He his bloody lip as he looked at Himchan in the eye, daring him to do something to him again.

 

"Zelo, pick up her stuff and get in the car" Yongguk ordered. Zelo pushed himself off the wall and followed Yongguk's command.

 

"So you're in this too. You started everything!" Himchan scowled at the stronger guy who was holding him down.

 

"Fine, you can blame me all you want, but don't you ever hurt Zelo again. He's just a kid for goodness sakes" Yongguk said. Surprisingly, Himchan calmed down and Yongguk finally let go of him.

 

"Just tell me where she is Yongguk. I need to tell her.." he bit his lips, finding it hard to say it again.

 

"Tell her what Himchan?" Yongguk asked but Himchan shook his head and sighed.

 

"Nothing" Himchan said and forced Yongguk to let him go. "Get out from my house" he sounded fed up and disappeared into his house.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Jieun was sitting at her old dressing table. Through the mirror, she could see the reflection of her own white wardrobe and the window that let in the sunlight shining upon her bed filled with Rilakkuma bears that she loved and missed so much. Her parents didn't change anything about her room ever since she left to live with Himchan. Of course, like every other loving parent, they didn't allow it at first but seeing her so happy to have found someone that she really loved and cared about, they let her go.

 

Last night when she came knocking on their door, her father had opened it. Even without saying anything, her father could read her eyes and knew that something was wrong.

 

"Jieun ah, we missed you so much" was all he said and that was all what took her to throw herself at her father and cry in his shoulder. Her father was a man with little words, so he stood there and rubbed her back while she let all her sorrows out on him. Soon, her mother came running up to them and hugged them altogether to give her comfort, relief or whatever they could do to help her ease the pain in her heart.

 

She didn't really tell them what happened, but they kind of figured it out themselves since she decided to stay home and not go back to Himchan's place.

 

The reflection of herself in the mirror was the most horrid thing she had ever seen in her life. Her eyes were all red and her cheeks were puffy, making her eyes look smaller than it already was. A while ago, she tried to deflate her cheeks with cool water but that didn't work so in the end, she resorted to using make up, which only helped to cover the dark circles around her eyes. She didn't want to go out of her room and make her parents more worried than they already were.

 

There was a sudden knock on the door. Jieun straightened her posture and expected her mum to come in since she was always the one to initiate a talk when something was wrong. Surprisingly, her dad opened the door and poked his head into the room.

 

"Appa" she said with a soft yet surprising tone. Her father entered the room and gave her a warm smile that was almost comforting. Jieun returned her smile, knowing that he was trying his best.

 

He walked his way to the window to look out through it, then he turned his gaze to his daughter. She was smiling back at him, and he was sure that she had the same soft, alluring eyes of his wife.

 

"We never let anyone into your room" he blurted out. She giggled when he was making an attempt to initiate the conversation, which turned to be kind of awkward and silly. "We wanted it to stay this way until you came back. And now you have" he said and looked at her.

 

Jieun dropped her head and gazed at the floor. She felt guilty and ashamed for leaving them in the first place.

 

"I'm sorry" he said, and it made Jieun look up at her father who's eyes filled with sadness and regret.

 

"What for appa?" she walked up in front of him. Her voice incredulous.

 

"I should of never let you go with him in the first place. It's all my fault that you're crying like this for a useless man like him" he said as he cupped her face and swiped his thumb over her swollen face.

 

"Appa! It's not your fault" she assured him and pulled him into a tight embrace. Her father had a big build and she was pretty sure that his chest was made to fit her and only her. He put his big arms aroud her and she felt like she was about to cry again when she realised that her father was blaming himself for what she had done wrong.

 

 

"..it's not his fault either" she said softly in his ears. It just happened to slip from and reminding herself about Himchan hurt her deeply. Her father pulled her away from her and looked at his daughter who refused to meet his eyes.

 

"You still love him, don't you?" His voice wasn't angry but was at a disbelief when she nodded as an answer.

 

"I would be lying to you and to myself if I said that I wanted to forget him. I still love him appa, but he doesn't feel the same way. And I remember that you once told me that sometimes I have to let go of the things that I love" she felt a tear fall down her cheeks and before she could wipe them away, her dad did. "Holding onto him was too painful, so I had to let him go. But appa, why does it still hurt?" she cried when she clutched her shirt at her chest.

 

"That was the part that I left out. I didn't want to tell you the cost of letting something that you loved go" he said as he wiped the tears that were continuously falling off his daughters face.

 

Again, there was a sudden knock on the door and both Jieun and her father turned to see her mother at the door with a displeased and worried look on her face.

 

"Why are you crying Jieun?" she asked when she noticed Jieun's red eyes and wet face. Jieun wiped away the tears with her sleeve and managed a smile back at her mother.

 

"I'm ok omma, don't worry about me" she said.

 

"What is it yeobo?" her father spoke up.

 

"Someone is here to see Jieun" she said and lead Jieun downstairs. Her mother pointed to their living room and then walked the opposite direction. 

 

"Jieun nuna!" a familiar voice cried out, which Jieun soon figured it was Zelo when he threw himself at her and hugged her, "I miss you nuna" he said while still holding tightly onto her.

 

"You saw me yesterday Zelo" she giggled at his cuteness and ruffled his hair when he pulled away.

 

"I still missed you though" Zelo pouted his lips at her.

 

The smile on her face disappeared when she noticed Zelo's cut lip. The blood was already dry, but she didn't recall Zelo having a cut lip the last time she saw him.

 

"Junhong! What happened to you?" she asked and gently her thumb over his lips.

 

"I f-fell" he lied miserably. Zelo pulled away her hand and on his lip.

 

"Don't lie to me Junhong" she crossed her arms over her chest and squinted her eyes a him, making him more nervous.

 

"I..I was getting your stuff a-and I fell down the steps" he lied again but unfortunately, Jieun wasn't buying it.

 

"Where's Yongguk?" she suddenly asked him. She turned around and opened the door to the front of her house. As expected, Yongguk was waiting outside, leaning on the side of his car. 

 

"J-Jieun nuna!" Zelo cried out but failed to stop her when he found themselves already in front of the curious looking Yongguk.

 

"Is something wrong Jieun?" he looked at the panicked Zelo then back at Jieun.

 

"Tell me what happened to Zelo" she said and grabbed Zelo by the arm to emphasize on her curiosity, "Tell me the truth".

 

"You know how careless the boy is. He was carrying your stuff...and slammed into the wall" Yongguk lied much more horribly this time. Zelo slapped his forehead. They were caught red handed.

 

Jieun crossed her arms over her chest again and tapped her foot impatiently waiting for the truth. 

 

"I got into a fight with Himchan" Zelo confessed and hung his head low.

 

"You what?" she asked surprised. Yongguk rolled his eyes because he already expected that kind of reaction from her.

 

"It's not a big deal. Zelo's a big boy now" Yongguk said.

 

"Man!" Zelo interrupted.

 

"And boys--I mean, men fight, that's how they--we communicate" he said, trying his best to untangle his words.

 

Jieun rubbed her temples in attempt to absorb all the gibberish 'men' information into her head. A pair of long arms wrapped around her figure from behind and she opened her eyes to see Zelo resting his chin on her shoulder.

 

"It doesn't hurt nuna. I'm prefectly fine, so don't worry about me" he assured her and to admit, these were one of the ways which could make her helt melt for Zelo.

 

"Zelo, could you give Yongguk and me a minute" she smiled at him apologetically because she needed to speak privately to Yongguk. 

 

Zelo pouted because he couldn't be included in their conversation. Even so, he let go of her and went into the car.

 

"Himchan did that to him?" she asked in a half whisper voice. For a moment, he stared at her and then nodded lightly.

 

"I think you should go see him" Yongguk told her and she stared back at him thinking he was crazy. She opened to protest, but closed it again when she couldn't find any reason not to go see him for one last time. She had to make it clear to Himchan and to herself that what they once had a very long time ago was gone.

 

 

 

 

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Sorry if I took such a long time to update and I really missed you guys xp. Blame Himchan though, it's entirely his fault.

fyi I'll be delaying my Jongup fanfic for a while.