Taste | Changbin

Chapter Eighty-Three

The sound of Lennon's sniffles broke the silence. Changbin reached his hands out to her, an attempt to console her. She forced herself away from him and backed into the furthest corner of the couch. 

"Please, don't do this to me," his voice wavered. 

She shook her head, "it's for the best." 

"I don't want to do this without you. I can't do this without you. Please, please, please," he begged. "It doesn't have to end like this. We can get through this, I know we can." 

Tears blurred her vision. The shape of Changbin turned into nothing, but a splotched blur. "You have your whole career ahead of you. We'll get back to South Korea and I'll turn in my resignation. Management won't have to figure out what to do with me anymore. I'll let Chan know, so he can tell them later." 

"Baby, I-" 

"Don't call me that. Please, just go away, and leave me alone." 

"Lennon..." It felt like someone was squeezing his heart. Someone had taken it between their hands and they were squeezing it so hard that it hurt. He thought it was going to burst in his chest. 

"Please," she repeated herself. 

As much as she pushed him away, she wanted him to stay with her. She wanted him to grab her hand and yank her into the warmth of his chest. She wanted him to wipe her tears away again and console her. Coo at her lovingly and promise that it'd be okay, but he didn't. 

His shoulders dropped, he gave her one last look, and he spun around to the door. He knew if he faced her again, he'd crumble completely. Legs heavy as concrete, he forced himself to put one foot in front of the other. Over and over again, he repeated the motion until he stood at the door. 

He hesitated with a hand gripping the knob for a moment. He wanted her to tell him to wait. He wanted her to spring off of the couch and tell him it was a mistake, but she didn't. They each held their breaths, hoping the other would say something, but neither of them did. 

He turned the knob and left the makeup room without another word. Back on the couch, Lennon completely crumbled. Tears cascaded down her face like waterfalls. Snot streamed into her mouth. She wrapped her arms around herself and began to sob. 

Outside the door, Changbin bit down on his lip. As much as he wanted to comfort her, he couldn't. She said it herself, she told him to get out, this was what she wanted. 

"What's going on?" Han appeared around the corner. He looked Changbin up and down with a raised eyebrow. Moving closer, he could hear Lennon's sobs through the wooden door. "What the fuck happened?" 

Changbin moved away from the door. "She broke up with me. You might want to check on her. Something happened while we were on stage, but I'm not sure what. She doesn't want to see me anymore." 

"Hyung," Han started. 

Changbin shook his head, "it's fine. It was stupid, you know, falling in love in this industry. Nobody can be happy unless the fans are happy. Can you please just check on her? I'm going to get on the bus and go lay in one of the beds, so she doesn't have to see me. Just explain things to the rest of the guys, will you? I need some time to cope." 

He nodded his head, "of course." 

"Thank you. Please make sure you get her to her room when we get to the hotel. No matter how much she begs, don't let her be alone. She needs someone to help her get through this and I think besides Hana, you're the closest to her. I'll text you at the hotel." 

Han never had a chance to respond. Changbin left him standing there. He didn't want to turn into a puddle of emotions in front of a younger member. This was something Chan was able to help him with or even Lee Know. 

How was he supposed to be a role model to the younger guys if they realized how easily he could break down?