Autumn is a second spring

79. Party

Boun and Kao exchanged glances as they stood outside Ohm's apartment door. They had both been worried after hearing about the breakup, but neither had expected things to be this bad.

 When Kao unlocked the door and they stepped inside, the heavy scent of alcohol immediately hit them like a wall. It was overwhelming, seeping into the air and clinging to everything. 

Empty bottles were scattered across the floor, some lying on their sides, others tipped over, the remnants of liquor pooling on the table and the floor.

The sight of Ohm slumped on the couch, head hanging low, eyes glassy with drunkenness, made both Boun and Kao's hearts ache. 

This wasn't the Ohm they knew—the disciplined one, the steady one, the one who was always in control. Ohm had always been the calm anchor between the three of them. To see him like this, broken and drowning himself in alcohol, was jarring.

"Ohm..." Kao breathed softly, his voice filled with shock.

Boun, always more direct, stormed forward, snatching the bottle from Ohm's hand. "What the hell are you doing?" Boun's voice was sharp, but there was an edge of pain beneath his anger.

Ohm blinked, his movements sluggish as he looked up at Boun through hazy eyes. His hair was disheveled, and his clothes wrinkled and stained, reeking of the alcohol he had been consuming. He made a half-hearted attempt to grab the bottle back, his coordination so far gone that he missed entirely. 

"Give it back," Ohm slurred, a bitter smile curling on his lips. "Come on, Boun. Don't be such a spoil-sport."

Boun held the bottle out of reach, his eyes blazing with frustration. "You think this is going to help? Drinking yourself into oblivion?"

Ohm laughed—a hollow, bitter sound that sent a shiver down Kao's spine. "Why not? Isn't this what people do when they get dumped?" He looked between Boun and Kao, his eyes red and bloodshot. 

"You should join me. Celebrate. It's a party, right?" His voice dripped with sarcasm, and that mocking smile returned, though it didn't reach his eyes. "Fluke left me. That is worth celebrating, isn't it?"

Boun's hands clenched into fists, and for a moment, it looked like he was going to snap back. But then he saw the tears in Ohm's eyes—tears that were just beginning to spill over, despite Ohm's smile. 

The tension in Boun's body dissolved into sadness, and he sank down onto the couch beside Ohm, unable to find any words.

Kao, too, sat down on Ohm's other side, quieter and more composed, but no less heartbroken to see his cousin like this. "Ohm," he began gently, "you don't have to do this. We are here. Just talk to us."

Ohm's bitter smile faltered, and his eyes filled with fresh tears. "Talk?" His voice cracked. "Talk about what, Phi? How I wasn't good enough for him? How I couldn't make him stay?" 

He shook his head, the tears falling freely now. "Fluke... he is gone, Phi. He left. I thought I was being a good boyfriend. I really thought... I gave him everything I had. But it wasn't enough. He didn't want me. Not anymore."

Boun, the more emotional of the two, couldn't hold back the tears that welled up in his own eyes. He reached out, placing a hand on Ohm's shoulder, but still said nothing. What could he say? What words could fix this?

"Ohm," Kao tried again, his voice steady despite the heaviness in his chest. "I am sure there is more to it than that. Fluke... he wouldn't have just left like that without a reason. Maybe he is going through something too."

But Ohm wasn't listening. He let out a shaky breath and stared at the floor, lost in his thoughts. "You know, Fluke never needed me," Ohm said quietly. His voice was so soft now, barely above a whisper. 

"He has always been so independent. So strong. He was with me because he wanted to be, not because he needed me." He paused, wiping his eyes with the back of his hand, though the tears continued to fall. "But I guess... I guess he doesn't want me anymore either."

Boun clenched his jaw, trying to keep himself together. Hearing Ohm say those words—he didn't want to believe them. He didn't want to believe that Fluke could just walk away from Ohm after everything they had been through. 

Fluke had been the one to bring warmth into Ohm's life, the one who made him laugh, made him smile like they had never seen before. Now, seeing Ohm reduced to this, it felt like everything was falling apart.

Kao was about to speak, but Ohm cut him off, his voice rising with desperation. "If Fluke wanted me, he would have left something behind. A clue, a message—anything! I have been looking for him, searching everywhere, but there us nothing, Phi. It's like he just... vanished."

Kao's brow furrowed in concern. "You couldn't find anything?"

Ohm nodded, his head hanging low. "We have been searching for weeks, but Fluke is brilliant at covering his tracks. He doesn't want to be found, Phi. If he did, we would have found him by now." He laughed bitterly again, though this time, it was tinged with hopelessness. "No one can find him if he doesn't want to be found."

Boun, who had been holding back his tears, let out a small sob. "Ohm..." His voice cracked, but he couldn't find the right words. He just sat there, his hand still resting on Ohm's shoulder, his heart aching for his cousin.

Ohm didn't respond. He just stared ahead, his eyes glassy with tears and exhaustion, his body swaying slightly from the alcohol. 

After a few more moments of silence, he let out a deep, shaky breath and slumped forward, his head dropping to his chest as he passed out, the alcohol finally taking its toll.

Kao sighed, standing up and gently placing a hand on Ohm's shoulder. "He is out cold," Kao said quietly. "Help me get him to bed."

Boun wiped his eyes quickly and stood up, nodding. Together, they lifted Ohm off the couch, his limp body heavy between them as they half-carried, half-walked him to the bedroom. Ohm's head lolled against Kao's shoulder as they laid him down gently on the bed.

"I will get a washcloth," Boun muttered, his voice thick with emotion as he stepped out of the room.

Kao sat on the edge of the bed for a moment, looking down at Ohm's pale, tear-streaked face. His cousin looked so small, so broken, like the weight of the world had crushed him into pieces.

Boun returned with a damp cloth and a bowl of water, his movements shaky as he set them down on the nightstand. He dipped the cloth into the water and began gently wiping Ohm's face, cleaning off the remnants of his tears and sweat. Boun whispered, his voice raw. "He has always been so strong..."

"I know," Kao said softly, watching Boun care for their cousin. "But everyone breaks eventually."

They worked in silence for the next few minutes, wiping Ohm down and changing him into a fresh pair of clothes. Once they had finished, they stood in the doorway of the bedroom, looking back at Ohm as he lay still, his chest rising and falling steadily in his sleep.

Boun broke the silence first. "Do you think something happened to Fluke?" His voice was small, full of uncertainty and fear.

Kao glanced at him, then back at Ohm. "I don't know," he admitted. "But I do know that Fluke wouldn't have left without a reason. Whatever it is, we will find out. But for now, we need to take care of Ohm."

Boun nodded, wiping his eyes again as they both walked back into the living room. Together, they began to clean up the mess of bottles and spilled alcohol, the silence between them heavy with worry for the man lying asleep in the other room.