"I just want to be alone… I tried so hard… but the only thing I get is to leave him," she murmurs to herself, her voice barely holding itself together. "Maybe… maybe this is the best thing I could do for both of us."
She stares blankly at the wall, the silence of the room louder than ever. Her fists clutch the blanket as if it could hold the pieces of her breaking heart together.
She didn't sleep the whole night. Not even for a second.
Lying in bed, eyes wide open, she stared at the ceiling like it held the answers to her aching heart. Her pillow was damp, not just from tears—but from every silent war she fought with herself.
Every time she closed her eyes, memories of Rabin—his laugh, his stubbornness, his warmth—flooded her mind. But so did Raya's presence… and the image of the red carpet. The crowd. The photos. The reality.
In the next room, Rabin sat on the edge of his bed, staring blankly at the floor. His hands gripped his knees tightly, like it was the only thing grounding him from falling apart.
He didn't know what to do.
Didn't know what to say.
Didn't know how to fix what felt like it was slipping away.
He reached for his phone several times that night, only to lock it again, each time stopping himself from sending a message he feared wouldn't be read.
And in that silence, the distance between two rooms felt like two different worlds.
It was already 4 a.m.
Y/N stood silently in her room, her suitcase half-filled, her heart fully torn. She didn't plan this. Her mind just… told her to leave. Maybe it was running away. Maybe it was self-preservation. She didn't know. But what she knew was—she couldn't breathe in that apartment anymore.
She zipped her bag slowly, every click of the teeth sounding louder than thunder in that heavy silence.
She carefully opened her door, wheels hushed as she dragged the luggage behind her.
And just before she reached the front door, she stopped.
Her eyes lingered toward Rabin's room.
One last time.
With hesitant steps, she pushed the door slightly open and slipped inside.
There he was.
Curled up near the edge of the bed, facing the wall. His blanket was pushed to the side, his frame exposed to the early morning chill.
He looked… small. Tired. Lost.
Her eyes softened. The pain didn't go away, but something in her heart cracked again—like an old wound being touched.
She slowly walked over.
Without making a sound, she gently lifted the blanket and draped it over him.
Her hand lingered for just a second—just above his hair, but never touched.
"Sleep well, Rab," she whispered almost soundlessly, as if even the walls shouldn't hear it.
She turned around.
And with her suitcase in hand, she walked out the door….Without a slam.
Without a goodbye.
Only the sound of the quiet click as the door closed behind her.
As the cab rolled forward through the quiet dawn, Y/N leaned her head against the window. The city was still asleep, but her heart was wide awake—aching, pulsing, whispering the words she never dared to say aloud.
"I think… I don't deserve you, Rabin."
She looked down at her hands—shaking, empty, tired.
"This is the only way you can stand again. Without me becoming your stress… your burden. You've already fought so much."
She clenched her jaw to stop the tears. Her reflection in the window blurred with the glow of city lights.
"I love you, Rabin."
"But from now on… I'll love you from afar."
No more fights. No more jealousy. No more Raya.
Just silence—cold, comforting, unbearable silence.
She turned her face away from the light, hiding it in the shadows of the back seat.
Her presence vanished into the morning mist.
Her silhouette, once bright beside him, had faded quietly…
Rabin's POV
The morning air was still, far too still.
I blinked slowly as I sat up—something felt different.
The blanket…
I don't remember pulling one over me.
I looked down. It was tucked gently around me, like a whisper from someone who still cared.
Y/N.
I stood up quietly, walking barefoot across the wooden floor, every step echoing louder in my chest than in the apartment.
I paused in front of her door.
Hand hovering.
Knuckles almost ready to knock.
But I hesitated.
I turned and walked away—into the kitchen, pouring a glass of water.
The cold liquid did nothing to calm me. My throat was dry. My thoughts, dry and splintering.
Something's wrong.
I could feel it.
I turned around again, this time not hesitating.
I walked back to her door.
I knocked.
"Y/N?"
No answer.
Another knock—firmer.
Still silence.
"Y/N—open the door."
My chest tightened.
I reached for the knob.
It turned too easily.
I pushed the door open.
Empty.
Closet, half open.
Drawers, slightly ajar.
Her desk—bare.
The faint scent of her perfume still lingered in the air.
And on the bed—
A note.
My hands trembled as I picked it up.
"If you wake up and find me gone, just know it's not because I stopped loving you. It's because I loved you too much to keep hurting you."
My fingers clenched around the piece of paper as I read the second line scribbled beneath the first—soft, but final.
"You'll feel better when time passes…
Thank you for giving me so much love, Rab."
I dropped down on the edge of her bed, clutching the note to my heart like it could somehow pull her back.
She really left.
She really walked away from me.
My lips quivered with disbelief.
"You're wrong, Y/N… I won't feel better when time passes. I'll only feel more empty."
I buried my face in my hands.
The silence was loud.
Too loud.
And I realized—
Her absence wasn't just in the room.
It was inside me too.
And for the first time in years—
I felt truly, completely alone.
My hands trembled as I dialed her number—once… twice… three times.
"The number you are trying to reach is currently out of service."
"No… no no no…" I muttered under my breath, gripping the phone tighter as if I could force the connection to go through by sheer will.
She wouldn't do this.
She couldn't do this.
I threw on the nearest jacket, keys in hand, and bolted down the stairs like the building was on fire. The cold morning air hit my face, but I didn't care.
I jumped into my car and slammed the door shut.
Where would she go?
My mind was blank, but my heart was in chaos. I didn't know where I was heading, I just drove—fast. Past red lights, through empty streets, headlights slicing through the fog.
My grip tightened on the wheel.
"Don't leave me like this, Y/N… not without a fight."
I sped past every memory, every place we've been together, hoping—praying—that fate would lead me to her.
My hands were shaking. My mind spinning in every direction.
Then suddenly—Frost.
I scrolled through the contacts with lightning speed and hit dial.
One ring.
Two rings.
Click.
Frost: "Hello?"
Rabin: "Let's meet. Now."
Frost: "This early? I don't want to fight, man."
Rabin: "No time for that, Frost. Where are you now?"
Frost: (hesitates) "My apartment."
Rabin: "Don't move."
I ended the call before he could reply.
Slamming the gas, I turned the wheel hard, tires screeching against the pavement. The city was still sleepy, but my heart was wide awake—racing, like it knew something I didn't.
I didn't care if he had answers or just a punch to give me—if there was even the slightest chance he knew where she went…
I'd find her.
Even if I had to tear the whole world apart.
Frost's POV
Tch… gate crasher.
I muttered under my breath as I glanced at the video intercom. Rabin—storming through the lobby like a man possessed.
I didn't even have time to fix my damn hair.
Ding dong.
I sighed and opened the door.
Frost: "So, what's the emergency this time? Gonna break another vase?"
Rabin: (voice rough) "Where is she?"
I leaned on the doorframe, arms crossed.
Frost: "I knew it. That's what this is all about."
Rabin: "Don't play games with me. You picked her up last night."
Frost: "I did. Because she had no one else."
He walked past me, uninvited, pacing my living room like it was his. I didn't stop him. He looked… wrecked.
Rabin: "Where is she?"
His voice cracked with desperation, eyes wild like a man losing grip.
Frost: "What? I dropped her off right in front of you yesterday. After that—whatever happened isn't on me."
Rabin: "Don't lie to me!"
He steps forward, his jaw clenched like he's ready to swing. But I don't flinch.
Frost: (cold) "You cause the scene, and now you're blaming me?"
I scoffed. "You ignored the girl who waited in the rain for you. I saw her. You didn't."
Rabin: "She left without a word!"
Frost: "Because you were too busy letting Raya cling to your arm like a damn accessory!"
I throw back. My voice rising too now. "You didn't even look for her in the crowd!"
Rabin: (bitter) "You think I didn't want to? I waited at the palace! She didn't show up!"
Frost: "Because she was locked in the damn agency office looking for your precious event files while you were out playing the perfect couple with someone else!"
The room goes dead silent.
Rabin freezes.
Rabin: (quietly) "She… she was locked in?"
Frost: "Yeah. Your little fake girl Raya did it.. And when she finally got out—soaked, late, humiliated—she saw you smiling like everything was perfect. You think that doesn't kill someone inside?"
Rabin slowly sits down. Like his legs just gave out.
Rabin: "I didn't know…"
Frost: (softer now) "She didn't want you to. She didn't want to ruin your moment."
Rabin runs his hand over his face, defeated.
Rabin: "I love her. I really do. I just… didn't know how much until I felt her slipping."
Frost: (with a sigh) "Then find her. Don't sit here crying in my apartment."
He looked up at me.
Rabin POV
Rabin: (voice hoarse) "Where is she? Frost—any clue?"
I search his face like the answer's hiding in his eyes. My hands tremble slightly, and I don't even try to hide it.
Frost: (shaking his head) "She didn't say anything to me. I just came to know when you spoke out."
His tone was lower now—no longer defensive, just real.
Rabin: (desperately) "She must've said something. A word. A hint. Anything?"
Frost: (crosses his arms) "No… I thought she went back to you. Hell, I thought she still wanted to be with you."
Rabin: (almost breaking) "I didn't know she was hurting that much. I thought she was just tired… I—"
He cut me off.
Frost: "You really don't listen when she's quiet, do you?"
(sighs) "You hear the world, but not her."
Those words hit like a punch in the gut.
Rabin: (softly) "I know I screwed up."
There's silence.
Frost: (after a moment) "You said you love her, right?"
Rabin: "More than anything."
Frost: (nods) "Then go find her. Not because you're guilty. Not because you're scared. But because she's worth it."
I grab my phone again, still no signal from her number. My chest tightens. Where are you, Y/N?
Rabin: "If she doesn't want to see me again…?"
Frost: (calm but firm) "Then you stand in the storm until she does."