LIKE A TATTOO .βοΈ έΛ β 30 winter in boston
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warnings β’ profanity/vulgar language, alcohol and weed consumption, mention of severe depression, cheating. please read with caution.
the chapter includes a flashback.
[word count: ~2.8k] pay attention to the dates!
you always knew chaewon was a good person β maybe thatβs why you had been beating yourself up the past week.Β
after finding out about her past with heeseung, you developed some sort of secret animosity towards her. you didnβt want to feel this way about her, she was a good person β but you just couldnβt help it.Β
chaewon kim had always been kind, empathetic, honest, and generous. sheβs always been the same her entire life, never changing.Β
you donβt know why this childhood memory of you two stuck with you, but it did. it happened during elementary school. your fourth-grade teacher assigned the class a take-home art project for the weekend. the second you came home from school, your mom took you and chaewon shopping at the local art supply store to buy watercolour paint for both of you.
it was may around the time, you remember. the weather was warm, the sunlight shone, and the grass was lush and green. so, ultimately, your mom made you and chaewon paint in your backyard, afraid you guys would make a mess β and she was right, when are moms not?Β
there was clutter everywhere; paintbrushes lay on the grass, cups filled with water on the pavement. there was paint on both of your fingers, faces, knees, clothing β you name it.Β
you remember staring at the painting your eight-year-old self had finished, and you were proud. it was a painting of you and chaewon with your houses in the back β well, stick figures of you both and a two-dimensional house that was coloured pink, red, and blue, your favourite colours. regardless, you felt satisfied after you finished your painting.Β
you donβt really remember exactly how it happened back then, but chaewon had accidentally knocked over one of the cups filled with water. it had spilled all over your canvas, which was now a puddle of muddy watercolour paint all over.Β
of course you cried, you spent so much time on it, and you thought it was a really good painting (which, in retrospect, it probably wasnβt that great of a painting considering you were eight). but you knew for sure that it was unintentional, because soon after you, chaewon had also broken out in tears when she saw that she ruined your canvas.Β
it was a whole sob-fest. you can recall the heavy footsteps of your mom running outside to check on you two. she thought that someone mightβve gotten hurt, but was pleasantly greeted with the sight of two crying kids and a pool of murky water sitting atop what was supposed to be your finished painting.Β
you and chaewon were full-on bawling; tears and snot running down your faces and all. your mom had to run back inside to find you guys some tissues and your matching princess waterbottles to calm down.
honestly, you were too preoccupied mourning the loss of your painting to even realize chaewon had also been crying β but eventually, you noticed. and when you did, you felt bad because you knew she felt bad.Β
chaewon kept wiping her tears, but more fell out anyway, so it was no use. in a choked wail, she managed to spew out the words, βiβm sorry y/n, you can put water on my painting too, so itβs equal.β
you didnβt ruin her painting. you couldnβt bring yourself to.Β
by the time your mom came back outside, chaewon hadnβt stopped crying. she didnβt know how to make her feel better, so her mom ended up having to pick her up from your house to bring her home.
for the next few days, chaewon never came out to play with you because of how terrible she felt. you wanted to tell her that itβs okay, that you guys are still best-friends-for-life, but she never showed herself. it wasnβt until you made your mom convince her mom to tell chaewon that you didnβt hate her that she finally came out and talked to you.
that was just the kind of person she always was.
so, it wasnβt really a surprise to you when you saw her spamming your phone with calls and messages to talk.
your phone had been on silent the entire night, and you didnβt realize chaewon had been trying to reach you until your uber reached its destination (the destination in question being some random club giselle had found on some promoterβs instagram story).
you had a couple of shots at the pregame, but werenβt overly drunk β just a bit tipsy, bordering actual drunkenness, βhold on, i need to make a call.β
yunjin scoffed, βcome on, donβt tell me youβre drunk calling heeseung already.β
this bold statement earned a unanimous hush from the rest of your friends, as the name βheeseungβ is currently a big no-no word in your group.
sunoo pushed yunjin inside the entrance of the club, βokay,β he said, dragging the βoβ sound, βtake all the time you need y/n, these drinks arenβt going anywhere!β he smiled, and eventually disappeared inside with the rest of them, leaving you by yourself.
the march air in nyc was cool, the streets were bustling, and the club-goers near you kept chattering. you decided to find someplace quieter to call chaewon back. your heels clacked with every step you took, eventually ending up in some alleyway between a bodega and a shawarma shop.Β
admittedly, you stood there in fear for a while, staring at her contact information until you finally hit the call button. it rang once before she picked up.
you swallowed hard, βhey chae, sorry, my phone was on silent the entire time.β
βwhy didnβt you tell me about you and heeseung?β
you became uncomfortable at the mention of his name. your mouth opened to speak, but nothing came out.
chaewon continued, βyou saw the tattoo but you didnβt say anything, why?βΒ
βi β i donβt know, i didnβt want to drag you into this mess. i thought it was something i had to figure out on my own.β
she let out a frustrated sigh on the other side of the phone, βbut you mustβve felt hurt right? i know you y/n, come on.β
she was right, you were hurt. you had been hurting.
β...heeseung was the one who texted me,β you didnβt mean to, but a gasp escaped your lips, βand before you ask, no, we donβt keep in contact with each other, i was just as surprised as you are now when i saw his text.β
all you could think of right now was, why would heeseung text her?
βhe told me that you wouldnβt talk to him.β
βi know how you are, youβre curious arenβt you? but you donβt want to hear him out. he told me what happened, and itβs fucked up iβm not gonna lie. so i see where youβre coming from,β she added.
curiosity killed the cat, and you finally caved, βwhatβ¦ what happened between you and heeseung?β
you heard chaewon sigh before answering, βdo you remember my disappearing act in freshman year? when i wouldnβt come home from school for holidays or breaks, and you thought i hated you?β
yes. how could you forget? you figured that was the start of the end of your friendship with chaewon.
β...it was because of him. it was really bad back then β he was really bad back then. you shouldβve seen him. he was struggling, and i thought i could help him. he had no one. no family, no support system, he barely talked to his friends. it was like i was watching him kill himself slowly β i thought i was the only one that could be there for him. but, looking back at it now, it only made me isolate myself from everyone too.β
a huge lump formed in your throat, your stomach dropped β you felt bad now, bad that you didnβt hear heeseung out sooner.
you stayed silent, but she went on, βhe was so miserable in boston, and i was so stupid back then. i had been convincing him to leave unknowingly. he wanted to do something else with his life β wanted to start fresh and do what he always wanted to do. but he was cowardly and scared, and thatβs how i ended up with this tattoo. it was something i picked out from a random page of his sketchbook because it was small β because i wanted him to start somewhere instead of wallowing in his own pain.β
you just stared blankly at the brick wall in front of you, unable to form words to say, but still kept listening to her.
β...and he did end up leaving β without saying a word to anyone, including me. one day he was there and the next day he justβ¦ wasnβt.β
all of a sudden, you couldnβt hold it in anymore; tears started running down your cheeks, and you became frantic, βiβm sorry, iβm so sorry chaewon.β
she was taken aback. she didnβt know why you were crying. βy/n, you didnβt do anything wrong, why are you telling me sorry?β
her words only made you sob more. you choked out, βbecause iβm in love with him, and it hurts. it hurts so bad."
that was the first time you said it out loud, but you had known this truth from the start; you were in love with heeseung lee. but you canβt do anything about it anymore. he was chaewonβs first.
she could tell you were conflicted, you never had to tell her explicitly β chaewon could read you like a book, she grew up with you, how could she not know you?
you wanted chaewon to tell you to choose her without actually saying the words, but she couldnβt.
because she had been keeping a secret from you, and she couldnβt hide it anymore β not when she heard you in pain like this.
so she confessed. she had to.
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, FEBRUARY 2023.
soobin went back home to visit his parents the weekend of your first anniversary with him. he had always emphasized that he was βfamily-orientedβ and that boston was his home, so he couldnβt make an exception for his weekend in particular.
and yeah, you were annoyed, especially since he wouldnβt be spending the weekend leading up to your anniversary with you β but once he kissed your forehead and assured you that heβd get back before your dinner reservation, all of that annoyance mellowed away.
what you didnβt know was that he had been partying every night with his friends ever since he arrived in boston.
the day before he left to go back to nyc, his friends took him out. the place they went to was bustling with students β your typical college bar.Β
soobin always prohibited you from going out, but that rule never applied to him β and what you donβt know wouldnβt hurt him, he thought.
he was headed to the back of the bar when suddenly, he bumped into someone, causing their drink to spill all over his white shirt.
βfuck,β soobin mumbled, visibly irritated.
he looked up from his shirt to see who it was. but what he wasnβt expecting was to see your childhood best friend, chaewon, standing in front of him, caught red-handed with a now-empty cup in her hand.
chaewonβs stare couldβve burned a hole through his shirt, βoh my god, i am so sorry.β
soobin already had a couple of beers before coming to the bar, so he couldnβt tell if he was drunk or if he really did think that chaewon looks incredibly good right now.
βhey,β he blurted out, βarenβt you y/nβs friend?β
chaewon was all over the place, she had been drinking like crazy that night. she stumbled forward when soobin caught her immediately, placing his hands on her hips.
she looked up at him and laughed. their faces were so close, if she were to stand on her toes, their lips would meet.
chaewon brought her hands to his chest, βyeah, i guess i am.β
soobin smirked, βi think youβre kinda drunk right now.β
βso are you, your pants are unzipped.β
his eyes flew to his zipper, which was, indeed, unzipped. quickly, he fixed himself before speaking again, βwhatβs the occasion?β chaewon hummed at soobinβs question, β...to be drinking like this?β
she just giggled, rolling her eyes, βjust trying to forget.β
he raised an eyebrow, confused, βforget about what?β
soobin didnβt fucking know who βhimβ was, and honestly, he didnβt really care.
chaewon cut off his trail of thought when she suddenly asked, βwhat are you doing here? shouldnβt you be with y/n?β
he looked at her up and down before replying, βiβm just here to have fun. i never have any fun with her around. can you just keep the fact that you saw me here a secret from her?β
back then, chaewon was hurt. she was hurt that she was left behind, like she was something disposable, easily replaceable. heesseung left her in boston without uttering a single word β without a goodbye.
maybe hurt people hurt people, she thought, because she made a lapse in judgment that night. that was her excuse when she wrapped her arms around soobin and said, βitβll be our little secret then.β
the truth was, soobin did love you β maybe not as much as you loved him, but still, he loved you to some extent.
he knew it was wrong when he kissed chaewon at the bar, knew it was wrong when he took her home, and knew it especially when he was in bed with her.
when his alarm sounded the next morning, she was already gone, and he had to make his train back to nyc.
soobin felt bad; you were a nice girl, you rarely complained, you listened to him, and you were gorgeous.
it was when he was on the train that he decided to bite the bullet. he pulled out his phone and opened up your messages. there were missed calls, several texts asking him where he was.Β
that only made him feel worse, because in the midst of all this happening, he forgot.
he forgot that today was your first anniversary with him.
his fingers moved across the screen when he typed up a single message: βletβs break up.β
for the past week, heeseung had the same routine: wake up, go to work, think about texting or calling you, maybe actually texting or calling you, come home from work, lie on his couch, smoke a joint, and think about his life and all his shortcomings.
today was the same. it was past midnight, and jay had offered to close up the shop tonight. so heeseung just shrugged and started his nightly routine early.
he got home and started rolling his paper. he licked the edges so that the joint would be wrapped tightly. when he finished, he allowed his couch to swallow him before he brought the lighter to his lips.
the joint was wedged in between his teeth when he scowled out, βfuck my life.β
he only got a few hits in when he heard a few hurried knocks from his door.
it must be jake or something, wanting to bother me, he thought.
he carefully balanced the lit joint on the ashtray and walked over to his door.
the last person he expected when he opened the door was you.
heeseung rubbed his eyes once, then twice, wondering if he was just having a really bad high.Β
he looked at you standing there, tears falling, mascara running, breathing heavy.Β
after you hung up the call with chaewon, you couldnβt just go inside the club and pretend nothing happened. you didnβt know where to go.Β
all you could think of was heeseung.
you let out a choked-out sob, βyou knew, didnβt you? you knew soobin cheated on me, is that why you fought him that night?β
heeseung didnβt say it out loud, but he told you, βyesβ with his eyes β that only sent you spiralling more.
your wails were louder; you were ugly-crying. youβve never felt like this before, so helpless and betrayed.
it broke heeseungβs heart to watch you like this, so he brought you into his embrace.
you didnβt care anymore. you cried into his chest, balling your fists in his shirt.
he rested his chin on your head, running his fingers through your hair to comfort you.
βdid you know who it was β who he cheated on me with?β it hurt to speak at this point; your throat was closing up on you.
heeseung shook his head, βno.β
βit was chaewon. he cheated on me with chaewon the day before our anniversary.β
he lifted his chin from your head to look down at you.
you looked up at him, eyes red and puffy now, βiβm sorry, heeseung, iβm so sorry.β
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author's note: me after reading that one ask thatβs been sitting in my inbox that predicted this entire thing
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