Chapter 42. When love turns to ash

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Seokmin stood at the threshold, paralyzed by the weight of his own hesitation. His heart pounded so violently that it felt like it might tear through his chest.

The silence behind the door was unbearable, but he knew—he knew Joshua wouldn’t open it. Joshua was on the other side, and yet felt miles away.

His hand hovered over the door handle, fingers trembling before finally twisting it. The door creaked open with a groan that echoed louder than it should have in the suffocating stillness.

Seokmin stepped inside, but his foot immediately met resistance. A sharp crack echoed through the room, and he looked down to see shattered glass beneath his feet.

His breath caught in his throat as a knot of dread formed in his stomach.

The room before him was unrecognizable.

Everything was destroyed—furniture overturned, books ripped from their shelves, pictures smashed against the floor.

The glass under his foot was from a framed photo of him and Joshua, now lying face down, the image too shattered to make out. Seokmin’s chest tightened as his gaze roamed the chaos.

He took a step forward, avoiding the scattered fragments, but his feet felt heavy, like every movement was dragging him deeper into the mess he had caused.

The air was thick with something broken, not just the objects but the very atmosphere of the place.

This was supposed to be Joshua’s sanctuary. His refuge. Now, it was nothing but a graveyard of emotions, torn apart by Seokmin’s actions.

His heart lurched when he saw the table—the one where they’d shared meals and laughter—split in half, its pieces splintered on the floor.

The walls bore the marks of Joshua’s fury; scratches and holes where things had been violently hurled, the evidence of a storm that had torn through the room, much like the one that had torn through Joshua’s heart.

Seokmin’s mouth went dry, bile rising in his throat as he finally processed the destruction. This wasn’t just a mess.

This was Joshua’s pain, his betrayal, laid bare. He felt suffocated by it, like every smashed object was a scream Joshua hadn’t been able to voice.

Seokmin’s knees buckled, his body trembling as he knelt amidst the wreckage. His hands fisted at his sides, nails digging into his palms, but the pain was nothing compared to the hollow ache spreading through his chest.

He had done this. He had reduced Joshua to this—this broken, devastated thing, and for what? Control? Obsession?

The weight of his own sins pressed down on him, suffocating, as the room around him seemed to close in.

His breath was ragged, and for the first time in his life, Seokmin felt small—so unbearably small and powerless.

"Joshua," Seokmin’s voice cracked, the sound barely a whisper in the vast silence of the wrecked room. He waited, heart pounding so violently in his chest it hurt, but no response came.

Panic clawed at him, a cold dread creeping up his spine. Joshua was stronger than this. He had to be. Seokmin clung to that belief, even as doubt gnawed at him.

“Joshua!” This time his voice was louder, desperate. His eyes darted across the room, frantically searching through the devastation, but all he found was emptiness—until his gaze fell on the couch, now pushed awkwardly away from the wall.

It wasn’t where it was supposed to be, as if someone had tried to create a hiding spot.

Seokmin’s breath hitched as he stumbled toward it, his feet unsteady beneath him. His heart stopped the moment he saw him.

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