𝐓𝐎𝐔𝐆𝐇 𝐑𝐎𝐌𝐀𝐍𝐂𝐄 || 𝐒𝐂𝐎𝐔𝐏𝐒 || 🍀

51

Seungcheol

I wasn't going to admit it, but the ice princess routine was killing me. It had been five days since I'd told Hani the truth. Since I'd ended things to spare her feelings. And I was fucking miserable.

The relief I'd expected from ending things never came. Instead, I felt sick and uneasy. Almost guilty. It felt worse than my first hangover.

I wanted things to go back to the way they'd been before Hani showed up with fucking rose petals in her hair. But they couldn't. Not with her in town avoiding me.

It was no small feat, given that she lived with my foster mother. She'd called off from her shifts at Lock's Glass. I'd expected relief that I didn't have to face her, but the longer she went without answering my texts or calls, the more uneasy I felt.

She should have gotten over this by now. Hell. I should have gotten over this by now.

"Your five o'clock cancelled." Doyoung said when I returned to Diamond Clipper from my late lunch break spent at the Pizzeria getting glares and cold pizza that I didn't even feel like eating. Do and Mingyu were cleaning up for closing.

"Seriously?" It was the third client to cancel on me this week. Two of them had rescheduled with Mingyu and sat in his chair tossing me judgmental looks. None of them had the courage to say anything. But they didn't need to.

"I guess you must have pissed them off somehow." Doyoung mused.

"It's no one's business who I see or don't see." I said, dunking the comb back in the alcohol and stowing my scissors.

"That's the thing about a small town." Mingyu said. "Everyone's business is everyone's business."

"Yeah? Well, everyone can go fuck off."

"He definitely seems much happier since he got out of that terrible relationship." Doyoung said. He pretended to scratch his nose with his middle finger.

"Who signs your paychecks?" I reminded him.

"Some things are worth more than money."

I didn't need this abuse. I had shit to do. A life to live. And these assholes could just get on with forgetting all about me and Hani. 

"I'm going to Lock's Glass." I said.

"Have a great night." Mingyu called after me. I threw a middle finger in his direction.

Instead of the restaurant, I ducked into my office. It didn't feel like a sanctuary. It felt like a prison. I'd spent more time locked in here this week than I had the previous month. I'd never been this caught up on paperwork. Or this disconnected from what was going on with my business.

I picked up the rent check for one of the apartments upstairs. The tenant had also included a "You fucked up", note scrawled on a sticky note.

I was starting to worry that everyone else was right. That I'd done the wrong thing. And that sat about as well with me as the idea of wearing a suit and tie everyday for the rest of my life.

I liked freedom. That's why I owned my own businesses. That lottery ticket had bought me stability and freedom. Although, I supposed running my own businesses also sometimes felt like a thousand zip ties lashing me to responsibility. But it was a responsibility I chose.

I could run my businesses without worrying about other people.. well, except for the ones I employed. And served.

I needed to get out of my head. I headed down the hall and let myself into Lock's Glass. It was early still for a Friday, but the music was loud, and I could smell wings cooking in the kitchen. It felt like home. Even though my eyes did a quick scan of the restaurant, looking for Hani. She wasn't there and the disappointment I felt cut like a goddamn knife.