I hate you.

Those grave words rang clearly over and over in Hyesung's mind that evening as he tossed and turned, unable to sleep.

He didn't understand. He didn't understand anything at all. He thought everything was going fine between the two of them; they didn't fight over anything that he knew of. It had just been their usual playful banter, nothing serious. He didn't even remember doing or saying anything while they were drinking last, as he had left almost completely sober at that time (compared to drunk beyond salvation) after they were all done.

One thing he did understand, though, was that those three words hurt him more than any blow or punch or kick that he had ever received in his life.

Those three words hurt him in places he had hoped not to get hurt. It struck him right at the heart, at the very core of his being, piercing cleanly through his soul. The pain felt as though someone just punched him cleanly through the guts, knocked out all the air out of him, kept kicking him while he was down, then threw him into a den of wild lions to be gnawed on and chewed and torn apart limb by limb while entirely conscious to feel every iota of pain coursing through his body.

Hyesung abruptly sat up, clutching at his chest as he found it hard to breathe. He glanced the phone sitting idly on his side table. There had been a few missed calls from Minwoo, possibly wanting to inquire about how things went.

Well, it went badly, is the lightest way of putting it.

He had been hoping for one other call, though. But of course, it never came.

He sighed as he went back to lying down, pulling the covers over him as far as they could go, as he tried to lull himself to sleep.

But he couldn't. He just couldn't. Not after hearing that horrible confession.

----------

"Wow hyung, you look horrible." Andy emphasized as he reached up to pat some concealer under Hyesung's eyes. "Didn't you get any sleep, at all? Your under eye bags are worse than usual."

"No, not really." Hyesung wasn't in the mood to deal with anyone this morning, not even their adorable maknae. The tone of his reply thankfully sent the message to their ever perceptive youngest, as he promptly shut up and just focused on taking care of the older. He gratefully patted Andy on the cheek as he put on a cloth mask, effectively hiding any blemishes and traces that the concealer and light BB cream didn't catch.

Practice was uneventful. Though the atmosphere was still noticeably tense, the others decided not to push it lest they make the situation worse. Eric and Hyesung were careful to keep their distance from each other the whole time, with Eric not even glancing towards Hyesung's direction one bit, completely ignoring the other as if he didn't exist, talking through him to get to the other members as if he was a mere brick wall.

Hyesung would be lying if he said he didn't mind. Of course he minded. No matter how much he told the other to go away, that he hates him, he knew that he had said it all in jest. He thought that this was an established thing; so why was Eric so touchy?

Finally, he had enough. At the end of the day, he pulled Eric aside again once the others had gone.

"We need to talk."

"No, we don't." Eric made a move to get away from him again, but Hyesung kept a firm grip on him this time.

"Yes, we do. We clearly do, Eric."

"No, we don't." Eric emphasized darkly as he glared at Hyesung with those same eyes filled with hatred. "I'm tired of all of this. Just leave me alone."

Hyesung snapped. "What exactly are you tired of, Eric?! Why is it so hard to make me understand? Did I do something to you without my knowledge? Did I offend you in any way?"

A mirthless laugh escaped Eric's lips. "And now you're feigning innocence? You really believe that you did nothing wrong to me?" Eric moved slowly, menacingly, towards Hyesung, the younger slowly backing up until his back met the hard, cold wall. He stared up at Eric, fear and worry and confusion and anger all mixed up at once, as he felt his throat run dry. He opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out.

"I'm human too, Hyesung." A glint of sadness made its way to the older's brown orbs, as he used his right hand to pound at his own chest. "I have feelings, too, didn't you know that? Why do you make me feel like I'm just some random piece of ? Why do you make me feel as though I'm the most horrible person in the world? What is it about me that you hate so much?"

"I-I don't--" Hyesung stammered, his voice leaving him completely as he wordlessly reached for Eric's cheek. Eric slapped his hand away, seemingly burned by the simple touch.

"Stop it. Just stop making me feel so confused!"

"I'm not trying to make you feel confused, Eric!" Hyesung shouted, tears of rage glistening in his own eyes as he bristled out of control. "Didn't you even stop to think how this whole ordeal would make me feel? How dare you make assumptions on your own when you don't even know !"

"Think about your feelings?! Then how the hell do you think this whole thing makes me feel?! You think I feel good fighting about this with you?!"

"Shut up, just shut the up for a second and listen to me, will you?!"

"Why the should I listen to you?! You won't even--"

Everything be damned. Hyesung grabbed Eric roughly by the collar, yanking him down to his level as he crashed their lips together.

For a moment, nothing registered in Eric's foggy mind. And then it clicked.

Shin Hyesung is kissing him.

-----
A/N: Can you guys feel my frustration seeping into this fic? Yeaaah. I'm just so frustrated with writing and projects and everything that I channeled all that into here lol. Anyways, this is meant to just be a short fic, I hope. It'll end in a chapter or two,  hopefully.

Also, does the nature of this fic require an M-rating? ._. Like the swearing and stuff, and... stuff coming up in the next chapter lol. Oh well, you guys be the judge when it's up. xD