flutedrum | woosan ✓

39

Wooyoung stood there, his back turned to San, trying to compose himself, but every attempt was futile. His chest heaved with the weight of his anger and heartache. The room felt too small, too suffocating. He wiped at his tears aggressively, frustrated with himself for breaking down in front of San like this. He didn't want to appear so weak, so devastated, but he couldn't help it.

San stayed silent, watching him, unsure of how to reach out. He didn't want to make things worse, but standing still felt just as unbearable. He took a small step forward, his voice barely above a whisper. "Wooyoung..."

Wooyoung flinched at the sound of his name, turning around slowly, his eyes red and puffy from crying. "What, San?" His voice cracked. "What do you want from me? You already took everything away."

San's heart clenched at the sight of him—his Wooyoung, who was always so full of life and fire, now reduced to this broken state. San wanted to take all of his pain away, but he didn't know how. All he could offer was the truth. "I just want to fix this," he said softly. "I just want you back."

Wooyoung stared at him, his anger flaring up again. "Fix this?" he scoffed bitterly. "How can you fix something that's already shattered into a million pieces, San? You can't just glue this back together and pretend like nothing happened. You can't undo the fact that you broke my trust."

San's throat tightened, but he forced himself to stay calm. "I know I broke your trust, and I'm not asking you to forgive me overnight. I just...I need you to understand why I did it. I didn't want to lose you."

Wooyoung's lips trembled as the weight of San's words hit him. He had been so consumed by his own hurt, he hadn't fully processed the fact that San's actions, as misguided as they were, stemmed from love. "You didn't lose me," he whispered, his voice shaky. "But I feel like I lost you, San. You went behind my back...it's like I don't even know who you are anymore."

San winced at the words, the sting of them cutting deep. "I'm still me, Wooyoung. I swear, I'm still the same person who loves you more than anything. I just...I made a mistake. I was scared. I didn't want us to be stuck in that company forever, pretending like everything was fine when it wasn't."

"I get that," Wooyoung replied, his voice softening slightly, "but you didn't give me a choice. You didn't let me in. I thought we were in this together, San. And you just...you took it all away without even thinking about how I'd feel."

San's eyes filled with tears again, and he took a cautious step closer, this time not stopping when Wooyoung didn't back away. "I thought I was protecting you," he said, his voice barely above a whisper. "I thought if I could get us out, we could be together, free from all the restrictions and lies. I was wrong. I should've told you. I should've trusted you enough to talk to you."

Wooyoung blinked, his tears spilling over once more. He wanted to stay mad, wanted to hold onto his anger because it was easier than admitting how much he still loved San, despite everything. But hearing San's words, seeing the sincerity in his eyes—it was cracking through his defenses.

"I just..." Wooyoung sniffled, wiping at his face. "I don't know what to do with all this hurt, San. I don't know how to stop feeling like you betrayed me."

San's heart ached at the sight of Wooyoung in so much pain, and without thinking, he reached out and gently took Wooyoung's hand in his. Wooyoung tensed at first, but he didn't pull away.

"I'll do whatever it takes," San promised, his voice thick with emotion. "I'll prove to you that I'm still here. I'm not going anywhere. I don't expect you to forgive me right away, but I'm willing to fight for us, Wooyoung. I'm willing to fight for you."