Weeks Later
Yeonjun found himself walking through the park one quiet afternoon, coffee in hand and earbuds in his ears. The weather was soft-cloudy, but peaceful. It had become part of his routine now. He walked, he breathed, he tried. Every day was still a battle, but the bruises were healing.
He started freelancing again-small design gigs, helping small businesses with branding, the occasional online commission. It wasn't much, but it gave him purpose. His apartment was clean now, his fridge stocked. The echoes of self-destruction had grown quieter, though they still murmured sometimes late at night.
He still hadn't gone back to the café.
He wanted to-God, he wanted to-but he wasn't ready. Not yet. He told himself he'd wait for a sign, something that told him it was time.
And then it happened. One Saturday morning, Yeonjun was visiting the local bookstore for a meeting with a client. He walked through the cozy aisles, fingers tracing the spines of old novels, until he turned a corner-and froze.
There he was. Beomgyu.
Wearing a soft gray sweater, tote bag slung over his shoulder, flipping through a poetry book in the corner. The light from the window poured in like a spotlight on him. His hair had grown a little longer, and there was a quiet calm to him now. But Yeonjun could still see the weight in his eyes.
Yeonjun's heart twisted. He wasn't sure if he should walk over or vanish behind the shelves. But he stood still-watching.
And then... Beomgyu looked up.
Their eyes met for the first time in weeks. No words. Just silence. Surprise. Unspoken things.
Yeonjun gave a soft nod, the kind that said "Hey, I see you" without a sound. Beomgyu didn't smile, but he didn't look away either. For a moment, they simply looked at each other-two souls that still remembered.
Then Beomgyu blinked, gave the faintest nod in return, and turned back to his book.
Yeonjun didn't approach. He didn't push. Instead, he walked past quietly, hands trembling just slightly, heart louder than it had been in days.
Later that day, when Taehyun came over to Beomgyu's, Beomgyu would casually mention, "I saw him today."
Taehyun blinked. "Yeonjun?"
Beomgyu just nodded, sipping his tea. "At the bookstore. He didn't say anything. Just... looked at me."
Taehyun studied him. "How did it feel?"
Beomgyu hesitated. "Strange. Familiar. Like a scar I forgot was still there."
Days After That
Beomgyu was on a grocery run when he turned the corner and saw Yeonjun again-this time sitting outside a small bakery, sketching something in a notebook.
They made eye contact again.
Yeonjun looked up and smiled-just a small one. Not hopeful, not heavy. Just... human.
This time, Beomgyu gave a soft nod and-surprisingly-walked over.
"Hey," he said, voice casual, if a little tight.
Yeonjun blinked, then sat up straighter. "Hey."
Beomgyu pointed to the sketchbook. "You drawing?"
Yeonjun smiled a little more. "Trying. It's not much."
Beomgyu shrugged. "It's something."
They stood in that stillness again. There was a calmness in it now-not free of pain, but softer around the edges.
Beomgyu spoke. "How's the promotion going?"
Yeonjun let out a breath, one that seemed to carry years of weight. "I stepped down."
Beomgyu blinked. "You... what?"
Yeonjun nodded. "After everything, I couldn't keep holding onto it. It stopped meaning anything. I was doing it for all the wrong reasons-and once I got it, I realized how much I'd destroyed just to get there. I needed to let it go. Needed to breathe."
Beomgyu looked down, digesting the words.
"I started tutoring again on the side. Doing some freelance work. Just... rebuilding. Slowly."
Beomgyu nodded slightly. "That's... good."
They didn't say much else, but that moment, however quiet, felt like something healing beginning to take root.
Beomgyu checked the time. "I should go. Just wanted to say... it's good you're doing better."
Yeonjun's smile faltered, just a little. "Thanks. I hope... you are too."
Beomgyu paused before nodding once. "Yeah. Trying."
And with that, he walked away. But this time, Yeonjun didn't feel the sting of silence.
This time, it felt like something was beginning.
A slow thaw.
A quiet re-crossing of paths.
+×+
The street is quiet, the air chilled with a lingering breeze. From across the road, a sleek black car sits idle under a flickering streetlamp. Inside, three figures sit cloaked in the dark, eyes fixated on Beomgyu's front door.
Mingyu leans forward, arms resting on the steering wheel, a smirk pulling at the corner of his lips.
"He really thought he could disappear forever, huh?" he mutters.
Junhui, chewing on a toothpick, scoffs. "Six years of hiding... and now he's walking around like nothing ever happened."
Vernon, calm and quiet as always, studies a small photo of Beomgyu. "Almost sent us to prison. If we hadn't gotten out in time..."
Mingyu chuckles darkly. "Well, we're back. And this time, we're not going down. He's going to pay."
They exchange glances, silent agreement forming in the tense air. Outside, Beomgyu moves about inside his well-lit house, unaware of the eyes watching from the shadows.