𝔇𝔢𝔞𝔯 𝔏𝔬𝔳𝔢𝔩𝔶 ᴊᴇᴏɴɢᴄʜᴀɴ

t e n

The lecture had now ended, once again making Jeongin nervous about the fact that Hyunjin was going to question him, but a group of his friends approached him, thankfully diverting all the attention away.

He didn't really want to tell him exactly what happened right now.

"Jeongin!" a very familiar voice called out. 

The person hugged him tightly. "Oh, how much I missed you!"

Jeongin chuckled, hugging his friend back. "It's been hell these past few weeks!" he blurted out.

"Come on, guys! Am I not here!?" The other friend said, completely dramatic about not being invited to the hug.

"Oh, Seungmin! Come here," Jeongin dragged him in, making all three friends chuckle.

"Felix...! You're suffocating me!" Seungmin said, prompting Felix to finally let go of the long hug.

"You, sir, will give me every single detail about what happened! I need to see your man! We weren't even invited to your wedd—!"

Jeongin quickly silenced the loud Felix, well aware that there were still people in the classroom, and he didn't want anyone overhearing anything.

"Come on, we don't have class for a few more minutes; I'll tell you everything!" Jeongin dragged both of them out.

"I don't know... it's just... really hard for us to get along. I mean, I've been trying my best, even letting him go back to university. I can see he's grateful, but we're still not making progress..."

The person on the other end listened.

"My mom isn't leaving me alone about the grandson topic!" Chan complained to his friend, who seemed to understand his situation and offered consolation. He rested his foot on his office desk as he spoke about his married life.

"I don't even have time for a honeymoon or anything like that. It would just be as quiet as ever. My husband still doesn't talk to me about anything." He looked up at the ceiling, sadness lingering over him as he thought about how, no matter what he did, Jeongin wouldn't love him.

His friend continued talking, until Chan heard a knock on his office door. "Ah, I'll talk to you later, yeah? Okay... bye," he ended the call and called over to whoever had knocked.

More work. Well, not just work—he had to deal with a person who had been getting on his nerves lately.

"Yo, he is hot though!" Felix observed the picture of Jeongin's husband on his phone.

"He's evil! A psychopath!" Jeongin spat.

"That's still hot though!" Felix protested. "Although, I do get why you're scared," he added.

"Hey, Jeongin. Look," now Seungmin was the one to speak. After finally hearing the drama, he shared his conclusion.

"It's just my opinion, but as long as it's not toxic or abusive, you're alright. It shouldn't be much of a complaint; from what you've said, your husband is truly in love with you, which is a blessing considering how dangerous the environment around them is."

"But Seungmin—!"

"Look, Jeongin. Whatever happened, happened. He seems like the kind of guy who would do anything for you. You're here because of him, right? Your mother-in-law wouldn't have allowed you to come back to university otherwise. So, I suggest you try to get along with him. I'm sure it won't be that bad."

There. Seungmin had said his opinion. Jeongin was left speechless—at this point, he was just being a stubborn, spoiled kid.

"I do get you. I'm against forced marriages too, but nothing can be done against your parents."

"I... uhm, kind of agree with Seungmin here though..." Felix added, looking at Jeongin with an assuring expression. "You're lucky to live a life even I'd want," he said, trying to lighten Jeongin's mood.

"But... I don't love him. He might have even murdered someone—!"

Seungmin sighed. "Jeongin, stop overthinking. I highly doubt that. Look, everything will get better. If you've got your husband by your side, nothing's going to hurt you... and please, if you go near that playboy Hyunjin, I swear I'll literally tell your rich husband!"

"W-what!? What does that have to do with him!?"

"I know you still like him, and not your husband. So, think before you do something foolish like cheating—which I hope you won't. It's wrong."

"I know that! And besides, he even sat with me during my first class, but I barely spoke to him!"

Both of his friends sighed. He had just returned, and he had already run into Hyunjin?

"Well, I guess we'll have to keep an eye on you," Seungmin joked.

Was Chan really not that bad? Was Jeongin just overreacting? Should he actually accept everything and move on? Should he forget about pursuing his past crushes and focus on the man who loved him most?

Though, sometimes, Jeongin was actually grateful to Chan for a few things. It felt as if he was forcing himself to hate his husband. After all, Chan was still just a stranger to Jeongin.

He saw his bodyguard, Changbin, standing by the car waiting for him. Jeongin quickly walked up to him and bowed, making Changbin bow lower.

"Please, sir," he said, opening the car door and gesturing for him to sit.

Today was exhausting. He was tired enough to not even think about studying when he reached home. Thankfully, Mrs. Bang wasn't home. He fell onto the large bed in their room, his face buried in the sheets.

A minute or two passed before he heard a knock on the door.

"Come in."

He knew it would be Hanni, bringing him tea and something to eat, as Jeongin had just gotten home.

"So! How was your day?" she asked curiously, sitting beside him as she set up the tray and table.

"Exhausting," was all he said with a huff.

"Really? Just that?" she rolled her eyes playfully.

"I mean, I finally got to meet my friends again..." He stuffed some food in his mouth. "Oh! And now I have a personal bodyguard too!" He looked at Hanni as if sharing all the gossip.

"Oh, probably one of the higher-ranked ones, am I right?" she wondered.

"Yeah! Changbin was his name... I think."

Hanni formed her mouth into an 'o'.

They talked more for a while, until another maid called for her, causing Hanni to suddenly get up in a panic as she had been completely wasting time.

"Ah, shoot! I'll be going now, Master!" she panicked, quickly running off, making Jeongin chuckle. He once again fell back onto his bed, arms fully stretched out as he occupied most of the bed