🆃🅷🅴 🆂🅿🅰🅲🅴 🅱🅴🆃🆆🅴🅴🅽 || hyeokmyungz☆

18

A little peek at what goes on at Woonhak's home
(This is a continuation of the previous chapter but it takes place at Woonhak's house later in the day)

Woonhak's POV:

I trudge through the front door, dropping my bag onto the floor. My little sister, Hana, looks up at me with a big smile. "Woonhak! How was school?"

(HANA IS A FICTIONAL NAME)

I force a smile onto my face. "It was good, Hana. How was your day?"

Hana starts chattering away about her day, but I can barely focus. The sound of my parents' arguing drifts from the other room, making my stomach twist into knots.

I try to distract Hana, playing a game with her, but my mind keeps wandering back to the fight. Why can't they just get along?

As we play, Hana gets up to go pick up her toys, and for a moment, I'm alone. A tear drops from my eye, and I quickly wipe it away. I wish all the arguing would just stop. I wish we could be a happy family again. I miss the family we were.

But as soon as Hana turns back to me, I put on a bright smile, masking my sadness. "Hey, Hana! Let's build a fort!"

Hana squeals with excitement, and we spend the next hour building a little fort out of couch cushions and blankets.

But the whole time, I can hear my parents' raised voices in the background. It's like a constant hum of tension, making my nerves fray.

As the afternoon wears on, the arguing only gets louder. I try to distract Hana with a movie, but even the loud cartoon characters can't drown out the sound of my parents' shouting.

I feel like I'm living in a war zone, with battles raging around me all the time. And I'm just trying to survive.

As the sun starts to set, Hana gets sleepy, and I tuck her into bed. As I turn out the light, she looks up at me with big, round eyes. "Woonhak? Are Mom and Dad okay?"

I force a smile onto my face. "Yeah, Hana. They're fine. Just...just having a discussion. Don't worry, sis."

Hana nods, seemingly satisfied with my answer, and drifts off to sleep.

But as I leave her room, I feel like I'm going to break. I wish someone would ask me if I'm okay, if I'm holding together.

I go to my room, shutting the door behind me, and let the tears flow. I'm so tired of being strong, of being the one who always has to hold it together.

I wish someone would just hold me, just tell me everything will be okay.

But as I cry, I know I have to be strong. For Hana, for my friends, for myself. I have to keep going, no matter what.

The next day

Still Woonhak's POV:

I walk into the cafeteria, trying to act normal. My friends are already there, laughing and chatting. I take a deep breath and join them, trying to shake off the lingering sadness from the few weeks of the things going on at home.

But as we sit down to eat, I can feel the weight of my emotions bearing down on me. I try to focus on the conversation, but my mind keeps wandering back to my parents' arguing, to the feeling of helplessness that's been suffocating me.

I try to push it away, to distract myself with the silly jokes and stories my friends are sharing. But it's no use. The tears start to prick at the corners of my eyes, and I know I'm in trouble.

I try to hold it together, but it's too late. My brave shell breaks, and I'm sobbing uncontrollably. My friends look at me in shock, concern being flooded on their faces.

"Woonhak, what's wrong?" Riwoo asks, but I just shake my head, unable to speak. Taesan looks at me with the most worry.

Jaehyun quickly gets up and sits next to me, putting a hand on my shoulder. "Hey, it's okay, Woonhak. We're here for you."

But I'm beyond consolation. I'm overwhelmed with emotion, unable to explain what's wrong.

Sungho and Leehan quickly move to cover me, blocking me from the view of the rest of the cafeteria. "Don't worry, Woonhak, we've got you," Sungho says softly.

But I know I'm causing a scene. People are starting to stare, and I'm mortified. I try to compose myself, but it's too late. The damage is done.

My friends stay with me, still shielding me from the eyes of the other students while comforting me, until I finally manage to calm down. But even then, I know I'm not okay. I'm just pretending to be, for their sake.

As we leave the cafeteria, Riwoo puts a hand on my shoulder. "Woonhak, we're here for you, no matter what. You can tell us anything."

But I just shake my head, unable to explain. I don't know how to put into words the pain and sadness that's been building up inside me.

All I can do is pretend to be okay, to put on a brave face for my friends. But deep down, I know I'm falling apart.

3rd person's POV:

As the period after lunch begins, Woonhak sits alone in class, his eyes fixed on the floor, his expression a picture of despair. His friends, scattered around the room, can't help but notice his distress.

Riwoo, sitting next to Taerae, leans in close, his voice barely above a whisper. "Hey, have you seen Woonhak? He looks really down."

Taerae follows Riwoo's gaze, his eyes widening in concern. "Yeah, I've never seen him like this before. Something's really wrong."

Taesan, sitting nearby as usual, joins the conversation, his brow furrowed with worry. "I know, right? I've been trying to talk to him over the phone after the rain issue, but he just shuts me down. I'm getting really worried."

Meanwhile, on the other side of the class, Sungho, Leehan, and Jaehyun are engaged in a hushed discussion. "Guys, Woonhak's been acting so strange lately," Sungho says, his voice laced with concern.

Leehan nods in agreement. "I know, right? He's always been so happy and carefree, but this is different. Something's eating away at him."

Jaehyun's expression turns thoughtful. "I think we should try to talk to him again, see if we can get him to open up."

As the conversation continues, the group's concern for Woonhak grows. They know their friend is struggling, and they're determined to be there for him, no matter what.

A/n: word count: 1100
Damn poor Woonhak