A Bond Not Meant To Be - Markhyuck

Chapter 3: Silent Suffering

As the days passed, Haechan withdrew into himself. He still smiled, still laughed, but there was a hollowness behind his eyes that his brothers couldn't ignore. At first, they chalked it up to stress or exhaustion from school, but soon, they began to notice the small signs that something was wrong.

Haechan's skin grew paler, his energy drained quicker, and his laughter-once full of life-became weaker, quieter. He tried to hide it, not wanting to worry his brothers, but they weren't easily fooled.

Renjun was the first to notice the blood. One morning, while they were getting ready for school, Haechan had started coughing again. It wasn't unusual these days, but this time, Renjun saw the faint red stain on the tissue Haechan quickly tried to hide.

"Haechan, what's going on?" Renjun demanded, his voice tight with concern.

"It's nothing," Haechan insisted, avoiding his brother's eyes. "Just a little cough."

But Renjun wasn't convinced. He grabbed Haechan's wrist, forcing him to look up. "This isn't just a cough, Haechan. You're getting worse."

"I'm fine," Haechan lied, pulling his arm free. "Don't worry about me."

But Renjun was worried. And so were Jeno, Jaemin, Chenle, and Jisung. They had noticed the change in Haechan too. His once bright smile was dimming, and the light in his eyes was fading with each passing day.

Jeno cornered him later that evening. "You need to tell us what's going on, Haechan. We know something's wrong."

Haechan sighed, sitting down on the edge of his bed. His chest felt tight, and the weight of his secret was becoming too much to bear. "It's... Mark," he admitted quietly.

The mention of Mark's name made Jeno's face harden. "What did he do?"

Haechan shook his head, not wanting to blame Mark. "He didn't do anything wrong. He just... he doesn't feel the same way. I thought maybe we were mates, but he said... he said he'd reject me if we were."

Jeno's jaw clenched, his fists curling at his sides. "That bastard."

"Don't," Haechan said quickly, grabbing Jeno's arm. "Don't blame him. Love can't be forced, right? If he doesn't love me, then that's his choice. I can't make him feel something he doesn't."

Jeno's anger simmered, but he didn't say anything else. He knew Haechan was right, but it didn't make the situation any less painful to watch. His little brother was suffering, and there was nothing he could do to fix it.