Falling For You - ENHYPEN FF

38

Sunghoon shut his bedroom door with a quiet click, leaning his back against it as the weight of everything that had just happened sank in. His chest felt heavy, like he could barely breathe, and his gaze drifted aimlessly to the ceiling.

"I really said it..." he thought, his voice trembling even in his mind.

His fingers brushed his right cheek instinctively, where the warmth of Jeena's kiss still lingered. It wasn't just a memory—it was a sensation, a ghost of her touch that he couldn't shake. It left his chest feeling both full and hollow at the same time, like it was too much and yet not enough.

He stumbled toward his bed, sitting down heavily on the edge. His hands gripped the blanket beneath him as he stared at the floor, his thoughts crashing into one another like waves in a storm.

"I love you, Jee-jee," he whispered, barely able to hear his own voice. His eyes drifted to the small photo frame on his nightstand—the one of him and Jeena as kids, both grinning like the world was theirs.

The words kept echoing in his mind. He'd said it out loud—something he had kept buried for so long, too scared it would ruin everything they had. But now, it was out there.

He took a deep breath, trying to calm the storm of thoughts in his head.

"I'm glad she knows..." he murmured, but his voice broke, and the rest of the sentence stayed lodged in his throat. "But... did I make things harder for her?"

Her face flashed in his mind—her wide eyes, her parted lips, the way her confusion seemed to fight with something else he couldn't quite place. He pressed the heels of his palms into his eyes, as if that could erase the memory. But it didn't. It wouldn't.

"I didn't want her to feel like this," he muttered, his voice cracking. "I just... I wanted her to know."

And she did. She knew now. But the moment hadn't been clean or easy—it had been messy and raw, and it left him unsure if he'd done the right thing.

Yet... despite the chaos in his mind, he couldn't stop himself from smiling faintly, even if it was just for a second. That kiss—soft, fleeting, but so full of meaning—it made his heart ache in the best and worst way. She hadn't pulled away. She hadn't said no. And even if she hadn't said yes, that kiss told him enough.

"If only I could freeze time right there..." he thought, lying back on his bed.

His gaze fixated on the ceiling, but his thoughts drifted to Jeena—her eyes, her soft voice, and that faint smile that always unraveled him.

"I won't push her," he promised softly, as if saying it aloud would make it easier to keep. "I just want her to know... she doesn't have to love me back. I just want to love her."

Even as he said the words, a part of him knew they weren't entirely true. Loving her without expecting anything in return sounded noble, but it also felt like it might break him someday.

He closed his eyes, exhaling slowly, but the ache in his chest didn't go away. Her image was still there, vivid and unrelenting, etched into his every thought.

That night, he knew sleep wouldn't come easy.

*****

Jungwon strummed the last chord on his guitar, the soft sound filling his small bedroom. He'd been practicing a new song he wrote, pouring everything into it, hoping it would create a special moment at prom. The warm glow from his desk lamp made the night feel even more personal.

A light knock on the door made him pause.

"Jungwon, Sunoo's here," his mom called from the other side.