Shattered (PONDPHUWIN)

Chapter 14: The Aftermath

The days that followed Phuwin's departure from the house blurred into a haze of pain and emptiness. He moved into a small, nondescript studio apartment on the other side of the city, far enough away from the life he had shared with Pond that it felt like he had stepped into another world—one where love and happiness were distant memories, unreachable and unattainable.

Phuwin's new home was cold and sterile, devoid of the warmth that had once filled the spaces he and Pond had occupied together. He barely bothered to unpack, leaving most of his belongings in boxes that lined the walls, their presence a constant reminder of the life he had left behind. The days bled into each other, one indistinguishable from the next, as Phuwin sank deeper into a depression that felt like a suffocating weight on his chest.

He stopped answering his phone, letting calls and messages from friends and family go unanswered. Even Gemini, who had been his rock through so many other challenges in life, found himself shut out. Phuwin couldn't bear the thought of talking to anyone, of hearing the pity in their voices, or worse, their anger on his behalf. He couldn't handle the weight of their concern when he couldn't even handle the weight of his own grief.

Gemini tried—calling, texting, even showing up at Phuwin's new apartment unannounced—but Phuwin ignored the knocks on the door, retreating further into himself each time. He didn't want to talk about what had happened; he didn't want to relive the betrayal over and over again, but more than that, he didn't want to be reminded of the life he had lost.

The betrayal had cut deeper than Phuwin could have ever imagined. It wasn't just that Pond had been unfaithful—it was that he had made Phuwin question everything about himself. Phuwin began to replay every moment of their relationship, every conversation, every glance, searching for the signs he had missed. He scrutinized his every action, his every word, wondering what he had done wrong, how he had failed to see the truth. The questions tormented him, and the answers, when they came, were always the same: it was his fault. He hadn't been enough. He hadn't been worthy of love.

Phuwin's work, once a source of pride and fulfillment, began to suffer. He missed deadlines, his performance became erratic, and he found himself making careless mistakes that he would have never made before. His passion for his job, the thing that had always grounded him, seemed to evaporate, leaving him adrift in a sea of self-doubt.

His colleagues noticed the change, whispering among themselves as Phuwin withdrew further into isolation. He was no longer the vibrant, driven person they had known, but a shadow of his former self, going through the motions with no real sense of purpose. The energy that had once fueled his success was gone, replaced by a numbness that pervaded every aspect of his life.

Phuwin's self-worth crumbled under the weight of his depression. He looked in the mirror and saw only the man who had been abandoned, who wasn't enough to keep the person he loved. He believed that Pond's betrayal was a reflection of his own inadequacy, that he was unlovable, undeserving of the happiness he had once dreamed of.

The thought of moving on, of finding love again, seemed impossible. Phuwin convinced himself that he was damaged beyond repair, that no one would ever truly love him, not in the way he had once believed Pond did. He was broken, and the pieces of himself that remained felt too jagged, too sharp to ever fit back together.

Gemini continued to reach out, his concern growing with each unanswered call, each ignored text. He knew Phuwin was hurting, knew that he needed support, but Phuwin's refusal to let anyone in made it impossible to help. Gemini felt helpless, watching from the sidelines as his best friend spiraled further into despair, and yet he couldn't break through the walls Phuwin had built around himself.

Phuwin's days became a cycle of going to work, barely functioning, and then returning to his empty apartment, where he would sit in the dark, his thoughts a constant barrage of self-recrimination. He couldn't escape the pain, couldn't escape the belief that he had failed in the most fundamental way. The life he had imagined with Pond, the future he had planned, was gone, and in its place was a void that threatened to consume him.

The more Phuwin isolated himself, the more his depression deepened. He stopped eating, stopped sleeping, stopped caring about anything. The world outside seemed to move on without him, but Phuwin was stuck, unable to move forward, unable to see a way out of the darkness that had enveloped him.

One evening, as Phuwin sat alone in his apartment, the weight of everything pressing down on him, he found himself staring at a photograph he had kept on his desk. It was a picture of him and Pond, taken during happier times, both of them smiling, their arms around each other. It was a reminder of what he had lost, of what he would never have again.

In a moment of overwhelming despair, Phuwin grabbed the photograph and threw it across the room, watching as it shattered against the wall, the glass splintering into pieces. The sound echoed through the apartment, a final, resounding testament to the destruction of his life.

And as Phuwin collapsed to the floor, a guttural scream tore from his throat, raw and broken, echoing through the emptiness around him. His body trembled violently as tears cascaded down his face, uncontrollable sobs wracking his chest. He gasped for air, but the despair was suffocating, pulling him under with every breath. It was as if the world had shattered around him, leaving him stranded in an unbearable silence, with nothing but the weight of his agony. He clawed at the ground, desperate, his heart screaming for relief that would never come. He was utterly, hopelessly alone, lost in a void that swallowed every glimmer of hope.