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And just like that, Yeosang was back to being blatantly ignored by Seonghwa, but this time it was because of him being unable to hold his tongue and perhaps even hurting his feelings in the process.
Days went on as usual but Yeosang couldn't help but feel empty, even drained as if he had hit a slump.
Despite all of these, he made sure to take care of himself, he was still eating at the right time, making sure that he still gets work done, he even tried to fix his sleeping schedule, it was a far cry from how he was when he first started the job and Mingi was happy to see the improvement, but sometimes Yeosang's mind still wanders at night, thinking about Seonghwa.
He wanted nothing more than to see how he is and to ask if he's okay, he even apologized after he said those words to him but much like before, his messages and calls were unread and unanswered.
"Aren't you supposed to go to a meeting tomorrow?" Mingi asks Yeosang as he made a cup of coffee for himself, walking towards the couch where the photographer was busy answering emails on his laptop, they were watching a movie and surely Yeosang was glancing at the screen from time to time, but he was mostly using it as background noise.
Yeosang groans as he rolls his eyes, the sound of typing still being heard.
"Don't remind me, I honestly have no idea why I have to go." Mingi chuckles before sitting down next to him, munching on the chewy cookie that he had reached for on the table.
"You don't want to go because you barely had anything to do with the shoot or you don't want to see Seonghwa after what you said to him?" Yeosang shoots him a glare before shutting off his laptop, setting it aside and filling his mouth with a cookie.
"A little bit of both, you have no idea how scared I was when he got upset with me Gigi, plus I don't want to create an uncomfortable aura during the meeting."
He pouts, he has admitted that his ego got a little bruised because he wasn't given the chance to do his own style of photography for the campaign ad, but at the same time he didn't really know what would happen if he were to face Seonghwa for the first time in what seemed like another 2-3 weeks because he didn't just ghost him in this scenario, he was upset at him and that was far more worse in Yeosang's perspective.
"You have seriously got to stop that Doll, you're going to the meeting because you're still part of the team that was able to make the ad possible, if he's uncomfortable to see you during the meeting tomorrow then it's his problem because you're just as much of a photographer as he is."
Mingi pulls Yeosang close while encouraging him, he's been so worried about how Seonghwa feels when the latter has never even thought about Yeosang's feelings.
"I will not let him make you feel inferior and you have every right to be angry at him and his actions."
Mingi has always been an honest man, the type of person who has never held back whenever he wants to speak his mind and he will repeat his words towards Yeosang, even if it is becoming a broken record.
"If a friend of mine had ignored me for weeks on end with little to no explanation and they just happen to waltz inside my home as if nothing happened to seduce me and tell me about their date, I would be mad too and the way you reacted is valid, your feelings are valid."
He feels Yeosang shift under his hold, letting out a deep breath before he slides further down, until he has his head on his lap and Mingi strokes his hair, comforting him because he knew that everything was taking a toll on him even if he doesn't want to admit it.
"Do you know why Seonghwa is doing this to you, why he keeps you hanging by a thread?" Yeosang shrugs, staring up at the delicate features of his friend and Mingi sighs, shoulders pulling back before he traces shapes on Yeosang's cheeks with the tip of his finger.
"He's doing this because he knows that no matter what he does, you will always be there for him, whether it's good or bad," Mingi did not want to sound as if he's scolding him, but rather he was using his soft voice as he did not want to make Yeosang feel even more bad about himself, his heart hurts to see Yeosang cry over a person that does not deserve his love and loyalty, even if that said person is his friend.
"He's abusing how much you adore him. Yeo, he is so confident in terms of not having a stable relationship because he knows that you will be there to be his safety net and you're enabling him."
Mingi hopes that this time, he could get through Yeosang because he just wants to help his friend open his eyes to understand the toxicity of it all.
He has seen how Yeosang would always put Seonghwa first, the obvious power imbalance between them even though Yeosang is technically in the same reins in terms of their career, but Seonghwa still treats Yeosang as if he's a novice.
But Mingi knew that Yeosang's admiration for him also had something to do with it, he's always set him on a pedestal and the longer Seonghwa takes advantage of it, the toxic it gets. The younger man is getting taken advantage of and he was basically just letting him.
"You need to break it off Yeosang, I know that it will hurt like a bitch but I promise you that everything will be better, he doesn't need you and you don't need him. You can grow on your own Baby, you can grow and be known as Kang Yeosang and not just his partner."
