Evanescent | Sung Hanbin ZB1

Ch.20 Trapped

Before Hanbin could react to the sound of angry footsteps coming from behind him, someone grabbed his collar to turn him around, and he got punched in the face hard. Right away, he felt a metallic taste in his mouth. And when he looked up, Hao was standing in front of him, fuming with rage and disappointment.

Hao called Hanbin earlier that night, saying he wanted to meet up, so they agreed to meet at the park in the neighbourhood.

"Hyung..." Hanbin wiped off the blood from the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand.

"This was for Iseul." Hao had heard the news from Iseo.

"How could you?" Hao spat out word by word while prodding Hanbin's chest with his index finger. "You know how much Iseul loves you, and you promised you would never hurt her. Yet, now you're turning your back on someone who has been by your side for your entire life for someone you've known for less than a year? For your stupid dreams? Sung Hanbin, are you kidding me?"

"I'm sorry." Hanbin was filled with shame and couldn't even look Hao in the eye. "I know I've failed everyone."

"The only person you should feel sorry for is Iseul, but even so, an apology could never heal a broken heart. This is all I have to say. I hope you're ashamed of yourself." Hao said with the coldest expression he ever had towards Hanbin. Hao wasn't the type to get angry easily, but when it came to people he cared about, he would stand up for them unhesitatingly.

Hanbin fell to the ground after Hao left the scene. He never expected others to show him understanding, but being bashed by his best friend in such a harsh manner felt way worse than imagined.

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Hanbin and Iseul didn't wait for too long to tell their parents about their breakup. They knew that stalling would just make things much harder.

Hanbin's parents took a while to process the news. Yet, despite the shock, they couldn't bring themselves to make any criticism after seeing their son drowning in guilt. Being at fault didn't mean that he was doing any better than those he had hurt.

Iseul's parents were clearly disappointed. Hanbin was like a son to the family, not just because he was Iseul's long-term boyfriend, they also watched him grow up. At times like this, however, it was normal for them to be on their daughter's side. Their hearts ached for Iseul, who they knew wholeheartedly loved Hanbin. Looking at Hanbin, who kneeled down in front of them while taking up all the blame himself, as well as Iseul, who defended Hanbin till the very last moment, any words of condemnation stuck in their throats.

Just like that, Hanbin and Iseul officially broke up. It was ironic how a 10-year relationship could end in an instant.

Hanbin felt like he had ruined everything. Iseul's happiness, his friendship with Hao, and the relationship between his family and Iseul's. He felt like his world was crumbling down all at once.

For the very first time, he wished he could run away from reality, from his responsibilities.

That night, he wandered mindlessly through the streets of Seoul. In the end, he found himself standing downstairs from Evanescent Studio. Snippets of moments spent with Dal flashed through his mind. Amidst all the mayhem and misery, Dal was still able to put a smile on his face.

"I hope you're doing much better than me." He looked up to the second floor of the building, where the studio was. "Is it okay to miss you? Because I miss you so much."

Hanbin just stood there in the same position for a long time, until a familiar figure walked out of the building. As always, Dal worked till late at night again. She looked towards where Hanbin was, as if she sensed that somebody was there. But Hanbin was hiding in the shadows, behind a light post, so she was unable to spot him. His heart clenched at the sight of her, and tears welled up. His eyes followed her until she was completely out of sight.

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Hanbin was internally broken, and his genuine smile that he always had on his face was long gone. Everyone around him could feel it, but no one knew how to help him.

"Bin-ah, let's have a drink together." Hanbin received a call from his father the other night. "It's been a while since we've had some father-and-son time."

"Sure, Appa." Hanbin couldn't turn down his father, even though meeting his parents had become a somewhat stressful event for him. They had been nothing but considerate, yet their care and attention only made him feel more ashamed.

Hanbin and his father bought cans of beer from the convenience store and went to a park nearby.

"Cheers." Mr. Sung raised his can of beer.

"Cheers." Hanbin clinked his can with his father's and gulped down the can of beer.

"Do you love that girl?" Mr. Sung went straight to the point. He couldn't bear to see his son locking himself up in a cage of guilt anymore.

Hanbin wasn't expecting that question from his father at all. Everyone, including Hanbin himself, had put their focus on how he betrayed and left Iseul, but no one really cared about the other side of the story about him and Dal. Not that he wanted that to happen because he wanted to keep Dal out of the picture; he didn't want people calling her names and putting the blame on her.

"Appa, I'm not in contact with her anymore."

"That wasn't my question, Bin."

Hanbin's eyes flickered.

"If you love her, go to her. Stop wasting your time."

"I can't do that."

"Why? Because you feel sorry for Iseul?"

"I've hurt Iseul enough."

"Do you think this is what Iseul wants for you? She would want you to be happy too, Bin. Look at yourself now, you're like a soulless body. You're a kind child, son. But sometimes, by trying too hard to be the good guy and being too considerate of others' feelings, you forget the most important things, like your own happiness. Love is complicated. Sometimes there is no definite right or wrong. Yes, you've hurt Iseul. But you've owned up to it, and it's time to move on. Bin-ah, you deserve to be happy too."

"Appa..." Hanbin could no longer hold back his tears after hearing his dad's heartfelt words.

"Aigoo." Mr. Sung hugged Hanbin tightly in his embrace. "No matter what happens, you will always be appa and eomma's precious son, Bin."

"Thank you, Appa."

"Now, go find that girl. I can't wait to see the girl who captured the heart of my son."

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Happy new year everyone!! Wishing you all a year filled with love and happiness<3