When they reached the hotel, Seokmin picked up the room keys and handed one to Han.
"Hyung, this is yours."
Han gave a tired smile. "Thanks."
Everyone split off toward their rooms.
Inside, Seungmin immediately started unpacking—opening suitcases, hanging clothes, arranging toiletries. Meanwhile, Han dropped straight onto the bed without removing his shoes.
"How long are we staying here?" he asked, staring at the ceiling.
"How long do you want to?" Seungmin replied without looking up.
Han sighed. "I don't know… maybe five or six days."
"I want to stay here forever with you," Seungmin said casually.
Han turned away, showing he wasn't in the mood to talk.
A moment later, Seungmin tried again. "Are you hungry?"
"Yeah. Bring something here."
Without arguing, Seungmin left the room.
When he returned with dinner, Han was already asleep—completely knocked out. Seungmin set the tray down and gently shook his shoulder.
"Han, wake up. Eat something first."
The only response was a soft, half-conscious mumble.
He moved behind him on the bed, pulled him upright, and supported his back.
"Drink this," he said, guiding the milk to his lips. Han swallowed slowly, eyes barely open.
After he finished, Seungmin lowered him onto the pillow again,Remove his shoes, jacket and lay beside him, one arm loosely around his waist. Soon, both of them drifted off.
---
Han didn't wake until late afternoon—4 p.m.
"Oh, you finally woke up. Are you hungry?" Seungmin asked, stretching.
Still half-asleep, Han nodded. "Hmmm."
"Alright. Go wash up. I'll bring breakfast."
"I'm tired. I don't want to bathe."
"That's because you haven't eaten since yesterday. Just wash up," Seungmin insisted before leaving.
Han pushed himself up slowly, dragged his feet to the sink, washed his face, brushed his teeth, then sat at the table waiting.
While scrolling through his phone, he froze.
On Seokmin's account was a picture of Seokmin and Chaewon walking along the ocean. Their shoulders almost touched; their smiles looked effortless.
"They look good together," he whispered.
Then the guilt hit him.
So I pushed away the only person who was close to me and The only person who really cared about me. What am I even fighting for?
His reflection in the window looked worse than he felt—tired eyes, tense jaw.
I don't even love myself. I'm just surviving. And when I finally tried to fight… look at me. Still wounded.
Do I even want to go back to England?
His thoughts kept spiraling until the door opened again. Seungmin walked in with breakfast and set it on the table.
They ate together, though Han barely touched his food.
"Are you okay?" Seungmin asked quietly.
Han blinked back into reality. "Yeah… I'm fine. How's the office? Business okay?"
Seungmin paused before answering.
"Even if something's wrong, you don't need to know. It's private."
The tone shut him down instantly. He finished eating in silence and went back to the bed, curling up with his phone.
After a while, Seungmin joined him on the mattress.
"Don't you want to go outside? You usually enjoy being out. Having fun."
"No." His voice was flat. "People change. Or maybe I never liked it in the first place. Maybe I was pretending. If you want to go, go."
"How can I go without you?"
Han didn't reply.
The silence stretched, heavy but weirdly familiar. Eventually, Seungmin lay down beside him. Watching him stay so calm—almost unaffected—both irritated Han and strangely comforted him.
When Seungmin finally fell asleep, Han slipped out of bed. He changed into fresh clothes, needing some air, some distance, something.
He wandered the hotel hallways aimlessly until his phone rang.
Jiwoo.
He stepped into a quiet corner and answered.