*Three Days Before Sunday(31 December)– Star Entertainment Company*
Han shouldn't have come. He knew it. They'd been careful for weeks — no public interactions, no photos, nothing for fans to dissect. But Taejoon had been _weird_ on the phone last night. Distracted. Answering late. Cutting the call short before Han even yawned.
So Han told his manager he had a "meeting" and took a car to Star Entertainment.
The lobby was chaos. Trainees, staff, delivery people with coffee trays. Han pulled his mask up higher and his cap down lower. He wasn't even sure Taejoon was here. For all he knew, he was at a dance studio across town.
Then the elevator dinged.
Taejoon stepped out with three of his label mates. He was in the middle of talking, gesturing with one hand, the other in his pocket. And next to him — too close next to him — was a woman. Pretty. Laughing at something he'd said. She touched his arm.
Han froze by the front desk.
Taejoon's head lifted, scanning the lobby out of habit. His eyes landed on Han. For half a second, his whole body locked up. Panic flashed across his face, clear as day.
Then he turned, sharp, and said something to the group. He pivoted on his heel and walked the other way, toward the back hallway. Fast. The woman followed, confused, along with the rest of the group.
Han was left standing there, hand half-raised in a wave he didn't get to finish.
He dropped it. Stared at the empty space where Taejoon had been.
What the hell?
Taejoon saw him. Looked right at him. And _left_.
A feeling curled in Han's stomach. Hot and ugly and unfamiliar. He wasn't— he didn't get _jealous_. He didn't. Except Taejoon had been avoiding him all week, and now he was laughing with some woman and literally walking away from Han in public.
He was still standing there, confused and pissed, when two figures slid up beside him near the water cooler.
Adriel — Alpha Boys' Adriel — and Lorenzo. They'd been coming out of a meeting room. They'd seen the whole thing.
"Ooooh," Adriel whispered, not quiet at all. He nudged Lorenzo with his elbow. "Oh oh, someone is jealous~"
Lorenzo bit his lip to keep from laughing. "Super jealous. Code red. Sound the alarms."
Han whipped around to glare at them. "I'm not—"
"You're glaring at the elevator like it insulted your mother," Adriel said cheerfully. "That's jealousy, bro."
"I'm not jealous," Han said through his teeth. "I'm confused. He's been acting weird. Avoiding me. And now he's—" He cut himself off. He wasn't about to discuss the woman to them.
Lorenzo and Adriel exchanged a look. The kind of look that said _we know something you don't know_.
"Right," Lorenzo said, dragging the word out. "Weird. So weird of him."
"Super weird," Adriel agreed. "No reason at all for him to be acting like that. Nope. Mystery."
Han narrowed his eyes. "Why are you two talking like that?"
"No reason!" They said together. Too fast.
Adriel cleared his throat. "Anyway. You should, uh. You should go. Yeah. Go home. Definitely don't follow him. Or think about it. Or be jealous about ladies who mean nothing."
"Ladies who mean _nothing_," Lorenzo repeated, emphatic. "Zero. Less than zero. Negative meaning."
Han's frown deepened. "What do you—"
His phone buzzed. Taejoon.
*Taejoon:* _sorry. can't talk rn. swamped. call you tonight?_
No explanation. No _why did you run_. Just _can't talk rn_.
Han stared at the text. The ugly feeling in his stomach twisted harder.
Adriel peered at his screen. "Oop. There he is. Texting you. Because he's sooo not thinking about you 24/7."
"Adriel," Lorenzo hissed. "Shut up."
"What? I'm helping!"
Han locked his phone and shoved it in his pocket. "I'm going."
"Good idea!" Lorenzo said, too bright. "Great idea. Love that for you. Don't be jealous. Definitely don't be jealous. He's probably just… busy. With… proposal—"
Adriel elbowed him so hard Lorenzo wheezed. "PROPOSAL-PLANS. He's busy with proposal-plans. For work. Work proposals. Business. Very boring. Not romantic at all."
Han stopped walking. Slowly turned back to them. "Proposal?"
Adriel's face went blank. "I said… pro-pose-ul? That's a new protein shake. At the company gym. You should try it."
Lorenzo was already dragging Adriel away by the back of his shirt. "We're leaving! Bye Han! Have a good day! Don't be jealous! Bye!"
Han stood there, watching them speed-walk down the hall. His phone felt heavy in his pocket.
Taejoon was avoiding him. Ran from him. Had some lady hanging off him. Was "busy with ladies"
Han wasn't jealous. He wasn't.
He left Star Entertainment without looking back.
The day went on as always nothing special happened
*That Night – Han's Apartment*
11:52 PM. Right on schedule.
Han opened his chat with Taejoon. Same as every night for weeks. His thumb hovered over the call button, then he switched to text instead. Didn't want to seem desperate.
*Han:* _you done being swamped?_
Three dots. They appeared, disappeared, appeared again.
*Taejoon:* _I'm busy now, text later_
That was it. No emoji. No "sorry." No "call you in 10." Just _busy now_.
Han stared at the screen until it went dark. Then he threw his phone face-down on the bed like it had burned him.
"Busy," he said to his empty room. "Right."
He tried to act normal. Took a shower. Made tea he didn't drink. Put on a movie he didn't watch. But his brain wouldn't shut up.
_Busy with what?_
_Busy with who?_
The woman from the company flashed in his head. Laughing. Touching Taejoon's arm. Taejoon hadn't even flinched away. And then he'd seen Han and _ran_.
Han laid down. Stared at the ceiling. 12:30 AM. 1:04 AM. 1:47 AM.
He rolled onto his side. Then his back. Then his stomach. The sheets were twisted around his legs. He kicked them off.
It was stupid. He wasn't like this. He didn't get possessive. Didn't spiral over texts. But Taejoon had been weird for days. Avoiding him. Distant. And now "busy" at midnight when they always talked.
_What if he's with her?_ The thought slipped in before he could stop it. _What if "busy" means her apartment. Her bed. Her—_
Han punched his pillow. "Stop it."
He didn't.
He must've dozed off eventually, because the next thing he knew, he was dreaming.
It was Star Entertainment's hallway. But warped. The lights were dim. He was standing there, frozen, watching from around a corner.
Taejoon was there. With her. She was pressed close, laughing, her hands in his hair. Taejoon was smiling — that real smile, the one Han thought was only for him — and then he was leaning down. Kissing her. Slow. Intimate. His hands on her waist like they belonged there.
In the dream, Han couldn't move. Couldn't speak. Couldn't even breathe. Just stood there while his chest cracked open.
He jolted awake gasping.
2:19 AM.
His shirt was stuck to his back with sweat. His heart was hammering against his ribs like it wanted out. The room was dark and quiet and empty, and for a second he didn't know what was real.
Then it hit him. It was a dream. Just a dream.
It didn't help.
Han sat up, dragging a shaky hand through his damp hair. "God," he muttered. "What is wrong with me?"
His phone was still face-down on the bed. He didn't touch it. Didn't check if Taejoon had texted back. Because if he had, and it was still _busy_, Han might actually throw it at the wall.
He got up and went to the kitchen. Drank water straight from the bottle. Stared out the window at the city lights.
Taejoon was probably asleep. Or setting up lights on a rooftop. Or… not alone.
Han pressed his forehead against the cold glass.
He wasn't going back to sleep.
*Across Town – Taejoon's Apartment*
Taejoon was on his balcony, phone in his hand, unsent text glaring up at him.
*Taejoon:* _I miss you. I'm sorry. It's not what you think. Two more days. Please wait two more days._
He deleted it. Wrote it again. Deleted it again.
His phone said 2:22 AM. He knew Han was awake. Han never slept well when he was upset. And Taejoon had made him upset.
The ring box was on the table next to him. Open. Mocking him.
"Two more days," he told the city. "Just don't hate me for two more days."
He had no idea Han was standing at his own window, thinking Taejoon was with someone else.