*6 years back to the night when Jaewon embarrassed Taesan in front of his friends*
Taesan nodded silently, the weight of Jaewon's words lingering in the air. As they walked, the distance between them felt more pronounced with each step. Inside, Taesan couldn't shake the sense of loss. "Alright, I suppose..." He shrugged, convincing himself it was just a joke. Though Jaewon's mockery stung, his affection for him clouded his judgment, masking the pain.
They both entered the apartment, and Jaewon immediately leeched onto the couch, a long yawn escaping his lips. Meanwhile, Taesan remained lost in thought, his mind still buzzing with the night's events. He made his way toward his bedroom.
"Sunbae, where are you headed?"
Taesan paused mid-step, glancing back. "Ah, I have some work to do. Some assignments I need to finish."
Jaewon waved a dismissive hand. "Leave it, man. It's not that important."
"Jae, I need to get it done. You rest okay. Good night"
Jaewon groaned theatrically. "Ahh, fine. Good night then." Jaewon muttered under his breath as Taesan walked away, his tone tinged with annoyance. "So annoying... Pfft."
The silence between them stretched, each of them retreating into their own space. Taesan sat at his desk, but his mind wasn't on his assignments. The words Jaewon had thrown out earlier echoed in his thoughts, each one twisting the knife a little deeper. The mocking laughter of Jaewon and his friends had still stung, even hours after the fact. It wasn't just the teasing; it was the way they all had laughed at him, as if he were nothing more than the punchline of some cruel joke.
He ran his fingers through his hair, staring blankly at the pages in front of him, but his thoughts were far from his assignments. "How could he have let it slide so easily?" Jaewon had always been the center of attention, effortlessly charming everyone around him, but at that moment, Taesan realized how deeply he'd let himself fade into the background of Jaewon's world. He was always the quiet one, the dependable one, the one who never complained and never made waves. He never challenged Jaewon, never stood up for himself—not out of any sense of weakness, but because he didn't know how to draw a line.
Meanwhile, Jaewon was sprawled out on the couch, his phone in hand, his attention focused on whatever light distraction it offered. He hadn't noticed the shift in Taesan's mood. For Jaewon, everything had been light and fun—just another night with his friends. He'd spoken without thinking, as usual, never realizing the weight his words carried. But Taesan? He carried them like invisible bruises, lingering beneath the surface, pulling him into a quiet spiral.
The hours ticked by, and Taesan finally gave up on trying to focus on his work. He left his desk, stepping quietly into the living room, but stopped short when he saw Jaewon, eyes closed, the faint rhythm of his breathing steady and relaxed. He had fallen asleep on the couch.
A bitter smile tugged at Taesan's lips. "How easy it was for Jaewon to sleep without a care in the world. How easily he could brush off the things he said, not knowing how deeply they cut."
But Taesan didn't move him. Instead, he turned off the lights, left the apartment, and headed down the stairs.
The cool night air was a welcome change from the suffocating tension in the apartment. He wandered aimlessly for a while, trying to shake off the feeling of being trapped in his own thoughts.
"What was he doing? Why did it hurt so much?"
But in the quiet of the night, as he walked the empty streets, he realized that it wasn't just Jaewon's words that hurt. It was the realization that Taesan had let himself be nothing more than a sidekick, a background character in his own life. He had allowed himself to be overlooked, underappreciated, and unseen.
But not anymore.
By the time Taesan returned home, the weight on his shoulders had lightened somewhat. He found Jaewon still asleep on the couch, his breathing steady. Taesan paused for a moment, looking at him—his best friend, the one he had always put first.
But something had shifted inside of him. As Taesan quietly slid into his room, shutting the door behind him, he made a vow to himself. It was time to stop living in Jaewon's delusions. He would seek for a quiet vengeance.
He slid his notebook aside and powered on his computer. With a steady resolve, Taesan delved into the world of programming, immersing himself in the intricacies of coding, decoding, and hacking. The hours slipped away unnoticed as he was consumed by the challenge, his mind unraveling the complexities with each line of code he typed. The night stretched on, and with it, his determination to master this new craft grew ever stronger.
"Ahhh YESS!!! At long last, I've reached Level D in coding. Soon, I'll be able to hack even the most basic of unsecured systems."
He glanced at the clock on the wall and frowned. Dawn was less than an hour away. The faint blue light seeping through the curtains made the apartment feel colder than usual, as if the night itself had overstayed its welcome.
Stepping out of his room, he found Jaewon still sprawled across the couch, fast asleep. One arm hung loosely off the edge, mouth slightly open, breathing slow and careless. He looked completely defenseless, almost pathetic.
Taesan stood there for a moment, simply watching.
After everything, Jaewon could still sleep like that. Peaceful. Unbothered. As if nothing he had done mattered.
"Ahn Jaewon," Taesan murmured under his breath, eyes hardening, "prepare yourself. Retribution is coming."
The words were quiet, but steady.
He turned away and walked to the kitchen. The small routine grounded him. Bread into the toaster. Butter spread thin and even. Each movement precise, controlled. The crisp scent of toast filled the air, oddly comforting. He ate slowly, savoring the warmth, the crunch, the simplicity. It felt like the last calm moment before a storm.
Once finished, he slipped on his jacket and stepped outside.
The streets were still half-asleep, wrapped in the pale gray of early dawn. Streetlights flickered overhead, casting long shadows across the empty road. No cars. No voices. Just the distant hum of the city waiting to wake.
Cold air brushed against his face, clearing his thoughts.
Every memory surfaced one by one. The lies. The humiliation. The way Jaewon had laughed while treating him like a fool. Like someone disposable.
His hands curled slowly inside his pockets.
"I will make you pay for everything, Ahn Jaewon."
——————— TO BE CONTINUED