A Distraction // Bangchan

Chapter Thirty-Nine

Lauren sat at her kitchen table, staring blankly at the cup of tea in front of her. The day had been long and exhausting, and no matter how much she tried to focus on work or distract herself with anything else, her thoughts kept circling back to Chan. The article she had read yesterday about Stray Kids in London had only made it worse, pulling her back into the ache of missing him.

She sighed, running a hand through her hair, feeling the weight of the heartbreak settle back into her chest. She had been doing everything she could to move on, to distance herself from the pain, but nothing seemed to work. He was always there, lingering in the back of her mind, no matter how hard she tried to push him away.

Her phone buzzed on the table, breaking through the silence of the apartment. At first, she didn't even bother checking it—probably just a work notification or some random message. But when the phone buzzed again, her curiosity got the better of her. She reached for it, her heart nearly stopping when she saw his name flash on the screen.

Chan.

Her pulse quickened, and she sat up straighter, staring at the message in disbelief. He hadn't texted her since the breakup. Not once. She had spent weeks wondering if he was going through the same heartbreak she was, wondering if he missed her, if he regretted the choice he had made. But he had been silent—until now.

Her fingers hovered over the screen, and she hesitated for a moment before opening the message.

Chan: I miss you

Three words. That was all it took for her heart to clench painfully in her chest. She stared at the message, her breath catching in her throat as a wave of emotions crashed over her. It wasn't fair. He couldn't just drop this on her after all this time. Not when she was trying so hard to move on, to heal. She had spent so many nights thinking about him, aching for him, but he had been the one to walk away.

And now, here he was, texting her from across the world, telling her he missed her.

Her hands shook slightly as she typed out a reply, her heart pounding.

Lauren: why now?

She hit send, her chest tightening as she waited for his response. Why now? After everything, why was he texting her now? Was it the distance, the late-night loneliness, or was it something more? She didn't know what to expect from him, but she knew she couldn't just pretend everything was okay. Not after the way he had ended things, how cold and distant he had been when he walked away.

Her phone buzzed again, and she swallowed hard, her eyes scanning his next message.

Chan: I don't know. I just... I can't stop thinking about you

The tears welled up in her eyes before she could stop them. She blinked them back, her chest tightening with the familiar ache of longing. She had been thinking about him too, every day, every night. But she had been trying to move on, trying to accept that they couldn't be together. And now, he was telling her he couldn't stop thinking about her.

Of course you can't stop thinking about me, she thought bitterly. Neither can I. But you're the one who left.

Her fingers moved over the keyboard again, her response fueled by a mix of sadness and frustration.

Lauren: You're drunk, aren't you?

She knew him well enough to recognize when he was speaking from the heart or when he was speaking from the bottom of a bottle. There was a part of her that wanted to believe he meant every word, but the more rational part of her knew this wasn't just him missing her—it was the alcohol loosening his tongue.