When he stepped out of the court, he could feel people staring at him and whispering. It wasn't the first time this had happened, but when Chaewon was with Han, he never noticed. All his focus had always been on Han. Now, without him, every look cut deep. His breathing grew heavy, his eyes filled with tears, and it felt like everyone was looking straight into his soul—like they were calling him trash.
All of it was just hallucinations, but it felt real.
He wanted to hide. To escape. To disappear somewhere no one knew him. Slowly, he walked to the faculty bus stop and sat on a bench, pressing one hand against his chest as he tried to calm himself down and hold back his tears.
With trembling hands, he pulled out his phone and called Hanbin
"Hyung, can you pick me up please," he said in a trembling voice.
Hanbin instantly sounded worried. "Are you crying?"
Chaewon replied with heavy breaths. "Hanbin Hyung, if you do not come it will be the end for me."
"Just give me ten minutes. I'll be there," Hanbin said.
But Hanbin was far away—it would take him almost two hours to reach. He was at a shooting, yet he left immediately and drove back home. In the meantime, he asked Mark to pick him up, since he was already nearby.
When Mark arrived at the faculty stop, he found him sitting with his head down. He stepped out of the car and gently said, "Get up, let's go home."
Chaewon's legs trembled as he tried to stand, almost collapsing before Mark caught him and helped him into the car.
He didn't speak the entire ride. Not a word. Just silence.
When they reached home, Mark guided him inside and helped him sit on the sofa.
Jiwoong brought him water. Everyone sat quietly around him, waiting for Hanbin.
When he finally arrived, he rushed inside. The moment he saw Chaewon, he slowed his steps, walked over, and sat beside him. He gently placed his hand on Chaewon's head, then pulled him into a hug, pressing Chaewon's head against his chest.
That was when Chaewon broke. He cried. He cried hard.
Hanbin whispered, "Cry. Just cry as much as you can."
The others tried to hold back, but tears welled in their eyes too. They had never seen him like this.
Chaewon had always been the one who never cried. During training, other trainees had called him a heartless for never showing emotions. When he was chosen to debut, he only smiled quietly from the corner. When the case happened, they weren't there to support him, and when he came back after it was settled, he pretended everything was fine—just so no one else had to worry. That was his nature: never disturb others for yourself, never ask for help.
But now, he couldn't hold it anymore. His voice broke as he spoke through sobs:
"Hyung you always said that our fans are our love. I did everything to make them happy. I did whatever I could do so they liked me. But what happened just because of some news they started to treat me as a disgusting and worthless person they never asked for clearance but it was all just blamed and accusation."
He stopped for two minutes, shaking, before continuing.
"I loved him so much with all my heart. For the first time I didn't expect him to give back the love I was giving to him. Because I was already getting a lot from him. My life got so easy just by being with him. I found peace with him but now loving him feels like a heavy burden on my heart."
Hanbin hugged him tighter.
This time, everyone else moved closer too, wrapping around him until it became a group hug.