JIAH POV
"How dare you say that."
All three of us turn at the same time.
Standing there with anger burning across his face is Minseok.
For a second the café noise continues like nothing happened, cups clinking and people talking somewhere behind us, but at our table the air tightens so fast it feels like someone sealed the room.
Bora and Haerin react first.
"Oh fuck," they both say at the same time under their breath.
Minseok doesn't even look at them.
He walks straight toward our table with fast steps, his chair scraping loudly against the floor when he drags it aside without bothering to sit.
By the time he stops moving he is standing directly in front of me, his hands planted on the edge of the table like he might flip the whole thing over if he loses control.
I lean back slightly in my chair and let out a quiet sigh because I already know this conversation isn't going to end peacefully.
"You can forget him like he never existed?" he says, his voice tight with disbelief and fury. "After everything that happened, you have the nerve to say something like that?"
"Minseok, just hear me out," Bora cuts in quickly, leaning forward like she's trying to stop the explosion before it starts.
"Shut up," he snaps without even glancing at her. "I'm talking to her."
The café suddenly feels too small.
I fold my arms slowly across my chest and look up at him with the calmest expression I can manage.
"I'm not in the mood to argue with you, Minseok."
A harsh laugh leaves his mouth.
"Of course you're not," he says, shaking his head like he expected exactly that response. "You never have time for anything that doesn't revolve around you."
My jaw tightens.
"You're so fucking selfish," he continues, his voice rising slightly as the anger pushes through his control. "You always have been. Everything is about you, your decisions, your life, your feelings."
I don't say anything.
The silence seems to make him angrier.
"Because of you we lost our friend," he continues, leaning closer over the table now. "Ten years have passed and you're still the same selfish person who destroyed everything and walked away like it didn't matter."
"Just stop it, Minseok," I say quietly, the words slipping through my teeth before the pressure in my chest gets worse.
"I won't stop," he fires back immediately. "You broke more than his heart that day. You destroyed the entire group we had. Do you even remember how close we all were back then?"
Bora shifts nervously beside me.
"Minseok, please just calm down for a second," she says carefully.
"You knew exactly how much he loved you," Minseok continues like he didn't hear her. "Everyone knew it. He would've done anything for you and you still decided to tear him apart."
Haerin lowers her eyes.
Bora presses her fingers against her forehead.
"Minseok, stop," Bora says again, this time more firmly.
He finally turns toward her.
His expression hardens.
"Taeyoung doesn't even want to see her name anymore," he says bluntly. "He doesn't give a damn about this situation and honestly I don't blame him."
The words land like stones in my chest but I keep my face steady.
Minseok suddenly turns his full attention back to Bora.
"Is this why you asked me to come here tonight?" he demands. "So I can sit here and listen to her pretend none of this happened?"
Bora shakes her head quickly.
"I asked you to come because I wanted to tell you something important—"
"Your own boyfriend doesn't even want to hear about this mess anymore," Minseok cuts her off sharply. "And now you drag me here to listen to her excuses?"
"Fucking stop it, Minseok."
The words come out louder than I expected.
His head snaps toward me immediately.
For the first time since he walked in, the anger in his eyes pauses just enough for him to actually look at my face.
"You don't know anything about what I've been through," I say, my voice tight but steady. "You don't know how much I've changed or how much I regret what happened."
He studies me for a moment.
Then he scoffs.
"You should regret it," he says coldly. "You deserve to."
The words cut deeper than I want to admit.
"I lost my happiness because of that decision," I say quietly.
His jaw clenches.
"And we lost our fucking friend," he shoots back without hesitation.
The table goes silent.
I sit there for another second staring at him before something inside me finally snaps.
I push my chair back sharply and stand up, grabbing my bag from the side of the chair while Bora looks up at me with alarm in her eyes.
"Jiah—"
"Don't dig into him anymore," I say firmly, turning toward Bora while slinging the bag over my shoulder. "Just stop it."
Her lips part like she wants to argue but nothing comes out.
I look back at Minseok.
His expression is still hard.
"You think you know everything," I say quietly. "But you have no idea what I went through after that day."
The café suddenly feels suffocating.
Without waiting for anyone to respond, I turn around and walk straight toward the exit. The bell above the door rings loudly when I push it open, cold night air hitting my face the second I step outside.
Behind me the café door closes again.
The cold air outside the café hits my face the second the door shuts behind me, but it does nothing to cool the heat rushing through my chest.
My steps move faster than usual as I walk down the sidewalk, my bag hanging loosely from my shoulder while the noise of the street blurs into the background.
Cars pass by. People talk somewhere behind me. The city continues like nothing happened.
My chest feels tight.
Every word Minseok threw at me keeps echoing inside my head, sharp and ugly, digging into places I thought I buried years ago.
I clench my jaw and keep walking, my heels hitting the pavement harder with each step as if I can outrun the weight pressing on my ribs.
The anger burns, but underneath it something else sits heavier.
Hurt.
The streetlights cast long shadows across the road while the night air carries the smell of rain somewhere far away.
I barely notice where I'm going because my mind is still trapped in that café, still hearing Minseok's voice accusing me like nothing about that day mattered except the ending.
My breath comes out uneven.
Before I can take another step, a hand suddenly wraps around my wrist.
The grip is firm enough to stop me mid-stride.
A sharp gasp escapes my mouth as my body jerks slightly from the sudden pull, my heart jumping into my throat before I can react.
I spin around.
Kim Jeonhwa is standing in front of me.
The streetlight above us throws a pale glow over his face, his dark coat shifting slightly in the night breeze while his fingers remain loosely around my wrist like he caught me just before I could disappear.
His brows knit together when he looks at me.
"Where are you running away to?" he asks quietly.
I exhale slowly.
The tension in my shoulders finally loosens just a little when I recognize him standing there instead of the thousand other possibilities my mind imagined in that second.
"I'm not running," I say, though the words sound weaker than I intended.
His eyes study my face carefully.
"What happened?"
The question is simple.
Something inside my chest cracks.
Before I can stop myself, I step forward and wrap my arms around him, pressing my face against his chest while the fabric of his coat wrinkles under my grip.
My shoulders shake.
And I start crying.
_______________
ENHYEOK POV
The car moves smoothly through the night traffic while the city lights slide across the dark windows.
In the driver's seat, Mr. Lim keeps both hands steady on the wheel as the quiet hum of the engine fills the silence inside the vehicle.
My gaze drifts toward the sidewalk as we pass another intersection.
A familiar figure appears beneath the streetlights.
Ms. Seo walks quickly along the pavement, her shoulders tense and her steps uneven as if she is trying to outrun something behind her.
Mr. Lim notices it too.
"Do you want me to call her?" he asks calmly.
"There's no need for that," I reply.
The car continues forward.
A man reaches out and grabs her wrist.
Kim Jeonhwa.
For a brief moment they stand facing each other under the streetlight.
Then Ms. Seo suddenly steps forward and wraps her arms around him.
She is hugging him.