Don't run away from me

ch. 24

//seokmin;

Although he was terrified of having tutoring sessions, the fact that Joshua was the one who would be tutoring him made all the agony fade away, replaced by excitement and determination. Seokmin seemed to be eagerly looking forward to making Joshua proud of his results.

But all the happiness and fluttery feeling in his chest disappeared when he reached the floor where he lived, only to be greeted by the familiar figure of Mingyu. He looked like a drenched, lost, and scared puppy, visibly nervous as he shifted from one foot to another, probably too anxious to ring the doorbell. In Seokmin's mind, the overheard conversation replayed, shaking him to the core, with the feeling of betrayal souring his stomach. He takes a deep breath and heads towards the apartment door, trying to maintain his calm as much as possible.

'Oh! Seokmin!' Mingyu clings to his friend in a hug, but Seokmin doesn't react at all, completely ignoring the boy's presence and continuing to enter the code to unlock the door.

Mingyu backs away, probably embarrassed by Seokmin's rejection, as he usually responds to any hug with the same energy.

'Can we talk for a bit? Please?'

'I have nothing to talk to you about, Mingyu.' Seokmin turns abruptly towards the boy on his left, pointing his index finger at him. As much as he wished, the fact that both his best friend and his brother had lied to him for so long couldn't help but affect him, and Seokmin was very bad at managing negative emotions, usually being an open, lively, and calm person. But when he felt angry, hurt, betrayed, and lied to, Seokmin was like a ticking time bomb. 'How could you hide something like this from me? With my own brother, Mingyu? You both played me for a fool and told everyone except me. It's shitty, man. Why did you have to hide this from me? What kind of monster do you think I am that I wouldn't have accepted it? I had to find out in the stupidest way possible. If not then, when were you planning to tell me, huh? In another 3 years?' Seokmin doesn't realize that as he speaks, his voice becomes louder, poking Mingyu's shoulder with his finger until he backs up against a wall.
'Seokmin... I-I...' Mingyu's voice is almost muted, and the multitude of questions crashing into him leave him speechless. He looks into Seokmin's eyes, which only reflect flames behind them. He hangs his head.

"Don't look for me anymore, Mingyu. It's over. And with that, you have every right to be with Wonwoo as much as you want. Wish you both all the happiness in the world. I'm done with both of you." Seokmin enters his apartment, slamming the door behind him.
He had never felt so ignited before and couldn't understand why he couldn't keep his calm and why he had exploded so strongly in front of Mingyu. Despite everything that had happened, Seokmin still cared deeply for his friend, and seeing him in that state, confused, sad, crying, and probably sleep-deprived for days given the dark circles under his eyes, he couldn't help but feel guilty. But at the same time, it burned in his chest every time he thought that everything had happened behind his back, and what hurt even more was that he found out last. Even Hansol knew about Wonwoo and Mingyu.

"Mama!" Seokmin sits on the couch, with a fake smile on his face, as if his mother could see him.

"My precious boy!" his mother's gentle and soothing voice seems to heal all the wounds of his soul in just a few moments.

"I really missed your voice. How did you know to call me, hm?" Seokmin starts giggling, followed by his mother.

"Mother's instinct, my son. Why are you down? What happened?"

"What? I have nothing."

"Seokmin." Suddenly, the woman's voice becomes serious, and a shiver runs down the boy's spine as he imagines her standing in front of him with a slipper in hand, ready to scold him for doing something foolish.
Seokmin lets out a long sigh and stretches out on the couch.

"It's nothing serious, Mom. I just failed an exam."

"Hmm..."

"I'm serious!! Yaah, mom!Trust me, i'm just stressed because of the exam." Seokmin starts to playfully whine on the phone, and his mother begins to sweetly laugh at her son's reaction. He may be a grown man, but he always remains his mother's baby.

"Don't stress too much, okay? If you don't finish college, it's okay. You can come and cook at the restaurant, alright?"

Seokmin smiles at his mother's crazy idea. She always wanted to pass the restaurant down to one of her sons, but all three of them had different inclinations than entrepreneurship.

"Are you coming home for Christmas? I've talked to your brothers, and Seungcheol will arrive tomorrow with Jeonghan, and they'll stay for three weeks. Wonwoo said he'll come next week."

"Are you going to make Jeonghan hyung serve again to attract more customers, huh?" Seokmin laughs, already knowing that Jeonghan was his mother's weakness.

"Eyyy, I won't make him do it. He volunteers himself. It's not my fault he has such a handsome face. I don't even know how your brother managed to find such a gem."

The two start laughing on the phone, and in Seokmin's mind, the scene from the first year when Seungcheol brought Jeonghan home for Christmas and introduced him to their parents as his boyfriend appears. Jeonghan was absolutely terrified of their parents' reaction, and you could see it from how pale he was. Their mother immediately embraced him, thinking he was about to faint, and their father gave him a glass of soju to help him recover. They both loved Jeonghan as their own son, which is why whenever they went home, they put him to work in the restaurant and the yard. Jeonghan put a lot of dedication into everything he was given to do, grateful to be involved in the family he had longed for.

"Yes, mom. I'll come home right after I finish the exam, I promise. I really miss your dumplings."

"Aigoo, I'll make you all the dumplings in the world."

After a few more words exchanged, Seokmin ends the conversation with his mom, placing his phone on the coffee table. Suddenly, everything in his head is a total chaos, feeling dizzy, so he decides to close his eyes for a few moments to rest his heavy eyelids.