Mark hadn't slept.
Every time he closed his eyes, he saw the same scene playing on repeat: Prem's hands cupping Korn's face, that possessive kiss in front of half the club, the way Korn had melted into it like he'd been waiting for it his whole life. The way everyone had stared. The way his own friends had looked at him with something between pity and disgust as he'd stormed out.
He'd spent the night scrolling through social media, watching the videos of his humiliation spread across campus feeds. Someone had filmed the public kiss and his meltdown afterward - his desperate shouting, his friends trying to restrain him, his pathetic exit from the club. The comments were brutal.
"Who was that guy Mark was going crazy over?" "Wait, was Mark dating that law student? Since when?" "Poor guy, whoever he is. Mark looked unhinged" "P'Prem moves fast lol" "Mark's meltdown was so embarrassing"
His phone showed seventeen missed calls from Mint and a string of increasingly frantic texts that he couldn't bring himself to read. What was he supposed to tell her? That she'd been his backup plan? That he'd been using her to avoid dealing with his real feelings? That he'd destroyed any chance with the person he actually cared about?
The worst part was seeing how Korn had responded to Prem. The way he'd melted into that kiss, looking dazed and overwhelmed like someone had just given him something he'd been desperately craving. Not once in three months had Korn looked at Mark the way he'd looked at Prem after that kiss.
A sharp knock on his door made him jump. "Mark! Open up. I know you're in there."
Jay. Mark had forgotten about their coffee meeting. He glanced at his phone – 10:15 AM. He was already late.
"Go away," Mark called, his voice hoarse.
"We can talk inside or we can have this talk out here in the hallway where everyone can hear, and I know you don't want that."
The knocking continued, steady and determined. Mark's roommate had gone home that morning for the weekend and wouldn't be back until Monday, so there was no one else to answer. Jay clearly wasn't planning to give up, and Mark knew he meant what he said about having this conversation in the hallway. After a few more minutes of the relentless knocking, Mark couldn't stand it anymore.
He opened the door to find Jay standing in the hallway with two coffee cups and an expression Mark had never seen before – disappointment mixed with something that looked like pity.
"You look like shit," Jay said, pushing past him into the room.
"Thanks. Really what I needed to hear." Mark closed the door and leaned against it, suddenly exhausted. "What do you want?"
Jay set the coffee cups down on Mark's desk, taking in the mess of the room – clothes everywhere, empty food containers, Mark's phone charging next to his laptop which was still open to one of the viral videos.
"I want to understand what the hell you were thinking last night," Jay said. "I want to understand how you could be so selfish, so stupid, so completely oblivious to how your actions affect other people."
Mark flinched. Jay's disappointment hit harder than his usual criticisms. Even when Jay had been calling out his behavior before, there had always been an undertone of hope that Mark would figure it out. Now there was only cold finality.
"I was trying to get him back," Mark said quietly. "I was trying to fix things."
"By cornering him in a bathroom? By making a scene in front of the entire club? By abandoning the girl you brought as your date?" Jay shook his head. "That's not fixing things, Mark. That's making everything worse."
"I know, okay? I know I fucked up. But seeing him with someone else..." Mark ran his hands through his hair, a gesture that would have been attractive if not for the obvious desperation behind it. "I couldn't think straight."
"You haven't been thinking straight for months. Maybe years." Jay moved to the window, looking out at the campus below. "Do you know what I overheard Korn asking his friends last week?"
Mark's stomach dropped. "What?"
"He asked them if they thought you were ashamed of him. If that's why you never wanted to be seen together in public." Jay turned back to face him. "I heard him, Mark. I heard the pain in his voice when he was trying to understand why his boyfriend treated him like a dirty secret."
"I was going to—"
"When? After how many more cancelled dates? After how many more times you made him feel like he was asking for too much just by wanting to exist in your life?"
The questions hit like physical blows. Mark wanted to defend himself, to explain the pressure he'd been under, the expectations from his family, the fear of what people would think. But looking at Jay's face, he realized how hollow those excuses sounded.
"I was scared," Mark admitted quietly.
"Of what? Of people knowing you cared about someone? Of being happy?" Jay's voice was getting louder. "You had someone who worshipped you, who would have done anything for you, who made excuses for your behavior even when you didn't deserve it. And you threw it away because you were scared."
"I didn't throw it away. I can still fix this. I can—"
"No." Jay's voice was flat, final. "You can't. You lost that right the moment you cancelled your date with him to bring another girl to a club. You lost it when you made him feel like a secret you were ashamed of. And even worse, you let someone worse than you get his hands on him, Mark. We all heard about Prem's last boyfriend - we came from the same high school, Mark. If I knew you would be this stupid, I would have..." He stopped talking abruptly.
Mark wanted to argue, to protest that it wasn't that simple, that there were things Jay didn't understand. But he was more focused on what Jay had almost said.
"You would have what?" Mark pressed. "What would you have done?"
Jay shook his head. "It doesn't matter now."
"Tell me."
"Mark—"
"Just tell me what you would have done!"
Jay's jaw clenched. "I saw him first. I should have been the one dating him. Then all of this wouldn't have happened and I wouldn't have had to watch you hurt him."
The words hit Mark like a physical blow. Jay had wanted Korn. Had been watching, waiting, probably caring for him in all the ways Mark had failed to.
"But I love him," Mark said finally, the words barely a whisper.
"No, you don't." Jay's response was immediate, brutal in its certainty. "You love the idea of him. You love having someone who's completely devoted to you. But you don't love him enough to put his needs before your own comfort. You don't love him enough to be proud of him. You don't love him enough to show up when you say you will."
"That's not true—"
"Isn't it? When was the last time you did something for Korn that required actual sacrifice from you? When was the last time you put his happiness before your own convenience?"
Mark opened his mouth to answer, then realized he couldn't. Every gesture, every moment of affection, every time he'd shown up – it had all been on his terms, when it was easy, when it didn't cost him anything.
"I can change," Mark said desperately. "I can be better. I can—"
"It's too late for that." Jay's voice was gentler now, but somehow that made it worse. "You had months to change. You had months to be better. And now he's with someone who's going to destroy him, and it's your fault he's vulnerable enough to fall for it." Jay paused, running a hand through his hair. "But I could be wrong. He may have changed - he hasn't been in another relationship since high school, so maybe things won't end up the same way. He looked like he's really into Korn, and I hope he's changed because if not, there's no telling how things are going to end."
"But what if he hasn't changed, Jay? What if he's still the same person who destroyed Pin? I can see it already - there's something calculated about the way he looks at Korn. Something wrong."
"Or maybe," Jay said quietly, "you just can't accept that someone else can give Korn what you never could."
The words hung in the air between them. Mark felt something break inside his chest, a desperate panic that he was losing everything – not just Korn, but Jay too. His best friend, the one person who had always been on his side.
"Why are you being like this?" Mark asked. "Why are you attacking me instead of helping me figure out how to win him back?"
Jay was quiet for a long moment, staring down at his hands. When he looked up, there was something in his expression that made Mark's blood run cold.
"Because I'm done watching you hurt him," Jay said simply. "Because I'm done making excuses for behavior that's inexcusable. And because..." He took a deep breath. "Because I've been thinking about asking him out myself."
The words hit Mark like a physical blow. He actually stepped backward, nearly stumbling over his own feet.
"What?"
"You heard me." Jay's voice was steady, but Mark could see the tension in his shoulders. "I've been thinking about it for weeks. Watching you treat him like garbage, watching him make excuses for you, watching him settle for scraps of affection from someone who should be grateful just to be in the same room as him."
"You can't." Mark's voice cracked. "He's... he's mine."
"No, he's not. He was never yours, Mark. You made sure of that." Jay stood up, moving toward the door. "You made sure he knew that being with you came with conditions. That he had to hide, had to minimize himself, had to be grateful for whatever attention you were willing to give him."
"Jay, please—"
"I'm done." Jay opened the door, then paused. "I'm done watching you waste something beautiful because you're too much of a coward to appreciate it. I'm done being your friend if being your friend means enabling you to hurt people I care about."
"You can't just leave. We've been friends since—"
"Since high school. I know. But the Mark I was friends with in high school wouldn't have done this. That Mark had honor. That Mark cared about other people's feelings." Jay's expression softened slightly. "I don't know who you've become, but I can't stand by and watch anymore."
"So what, you're just going to abandon me? When I need you most?"
"I'm not abandoning you. I'm choosing not to be complicit in your self-destruction." Jay stepped into the hallway. "And Mark? If you do anything – and I mean anything – to hurt Korn further, you'll have me to deal with. Not as your friend. As his."
The door closed with a soft click, leaving Mark alone with the wreckage of his choices.
For a moment, he just stood there, staring at the closed door. Then the reality of what had just happened hit him like a wave. In less than twenty-four hours, he'd lost both Korn and Jay. His boyfriend and his best friend - gone.
He couldn't wrap his mind around the fact that his best friend wanted to ask his boyfriend out. Of everyone on this campus, he wanted the one person Mark loved.
His phone buzzed. Another text from Mint: "Mark, I'm coming over. We need to talk."
He didn't have the energy to deal with her right now. Didn't have the energy to explain or lie or pretend that any of this was fixable. But he also didn't have the energy to fight when she inevitably showed up.
Instead, he opened his laptop and watched the videos again. Studying them like they might reveal some secret, some clue about how to undo what had been done. Watching the way Prem touched Korn, the way Korn responded, the way they looked at each other.
There was something there. Something in Prem's expression that felt wrong, calculated. Mark couldn't put his finger on it, but his instincts were screaming that this wasn't what it appeared to be.
Maybe he couldn't win Korn back. Maybe Jay was right that it was too late for that. But he could still protect him. He could still find out who Prem really was and what he really wanted.
Even if it meant losing everything else in the process.
Even if no one would believe him.
Even if it destroyed what little was left of his life.
Because despite everything Jay had said, despite all his mistakes and failures, Mark did love Korn. Maybe not in the right way, maybe not in the way Korn deserved, but enough to want him safe.
Even if safe meant safe from Mark himself.
His phone buzzed again. This time it wasn't Mint.
Unknown number: "Saw the videos. Rough night. Want to know who your replacement really is? Meet me at the engineering building, room 205. Come alone. - A friend"
Mark stared at the message, his heart pounding. Someone else had seen what he'd seen. Someone else knew there was more to Prem than the perfect boyfriend facade.
He grabbed his jacket and headed for the door, ignoring the persistent buzzing of his phone as Mint continued trying to reach him.
For the first time since last night, he had purpose.
Mark was halfway across campus when he spotted a familiar figure walking toward the law faculty dormitories. Korn, looking tired but somehow more relaxed than Mark had seen him in months. Mark stopped and pulled out his phone.
"Can we talk please? I just want to explain things to you. You've never been like this before. You've always been willing to hear me out."
He watched as Korn stopped walking, pulled out his phone, and read the message. Mark held his breath, waiting for a response, for any sign that Korn might give him a chance.
Instead, Korn's face hardened. Without even typing a reply, he put his phone away and continued walking toward his dorm.
The dismissal hit Mark like a physical blow. Korn hadn't even considered responding. Hadn't even hesitated before dismissing Mark's desperate plea.
Mark's chest burned with a mixture of hurt and rage. If Korn wouldn't listen to texts, maybe he'd listen to him in person.
"Korn!" Mark called out, jogging to catch up.
Korn froze, his shoulders tensing. He turned slowly, and when he saw Mark approaching, his expression shifted from surprise to something closer to fear.
"Mark, don't—"
"Please, just hear me out." Mark was breathing hard, not from running but from desperation. "Five minutes. That's all I'm asking."
"I have nothing to say to you." Korn's voice was cold, distant. "Just leave me alone, Mark."
"No, wait!" Mark grabbed Korn's arm, his grip tighter than it should have been. "You can't just walk away like our time together meant nothing to you."
"Let go of me." Korn's voice was sharp, and several students walking nearby turned to look.
Mark realized he was making a scene, but he didn't care anymore. Everyone already knew about them. The videos were everywhere. What did he have left to lose?
"I love you," Mark said desperately. "I know I messed up, but I love you. That has to count for something."
"No, it doesn't." Korn pulled his arm free, shaking his head as he looked around at the students who had stopped to stare. "Is that what you call love, Mark? Really? Now you say that you love me? After all this hiding and sneaking around, you're saying it out loud in front of all these people." His voice was bitter, incredulous. "So now you're not scared what your friends and family will think? Look around, Mark. Your secret is out and now everyone heard you say you love a man. But all it took for me to hear this was leaving you."
"I was never ashamed of you—"
"You were ashamed of us. Of what we had. You made me feel like wanting more than scraps of your attention was greedy." Korn's voice cracked slightly. "You made me feel like I was asking for too much just by wanting to exist in your life."
Around them, phones were coming out, the familiar sound of camera clicks filling the air. Flash after flash lit up their faces as students recorded the dramatic confrontation. Someone was even livestreaming, their excited commentary barely audible over the growing crowd noise.
The words hit Mark like physical blows because they were true. Every canceled date, every time he'd looked around nervously when they were together in public, every excuse he'd made.
"I can change," Mark said, his voice breaking. "I can be better. Please, just give me another chance."
"I gave you chances. Months of them. And you chose to bring another girl to the club instead of keeping your date with me."
"I didn't know you were going to be there—"
"That's not the point!" Korn's voice rose, drawing more attention from passing students. "And it sure as hell doesn't sound any better! The point is that you chose her over me. You chose hiding over being honest. You chose your comfort over my feelings." Korn's expression hardened. "Let me ask you something - were you with her when you were calling off our dates? How long have you been playing with both of our feelings? I'm not even upset with her, she's not the problem here. You are, Mark."
As if summoned by his words, Korn's gaze swept across the growing crowd and landed on a familiar face. Mint stood at the edge of the circle of onlookers, her expression a mixture of shock and dawning realization as she watched the confrontation unfold.
Mark felt something desperate and ugly rising in his chest. "So you're just going to run to the first guy who shows you attention? You think Prem actually cares about you?"
"Don't." Korn's voice turned dangerous. "Don't you dare talk about him."
"You barely know him!" Mark's voice cracked with desperation. "You only met him last night, Korn! You're throwing away everything we had!"
Korn stared at him in disgust. "Me throwing away everything? No, Mark, you did that the moment you decided to be seen going around campus with someone else instead of the person you just stood out here saying that you love."
"You may think this is over between us, but it's not," Mark said, his voice hollow but with an edge of something darker. "You are mine, Korn, and you know this."
Korn's expression shifted from hurt to something closer to fear. The possessiveness in Mark's voice, the way he said "mine" like Korn was an object to be owned, made him take a step back.
"We didn't have anything, Mark. That's what you never understood. We had secrets. We had stolen moments. We had me making myself smaller so you could feel comfortable." Korn shook his head. "That's not a relationship. That's just you using someone who cared about you."
"I have to go," Korn said softly, and this time when he walked away, Mark didn't follow.
Mark stood there on the campus walkway, watching the person he loved disappear into the crowd of students. Around him, people were staring and whispering, probably recognizing him from the videos.
His phone buzzed again. The mysterious number again: "Interesting scene just now. Did it help your case at all? Room 205. Don't keep me waiting."
Mark looked toward Korn's retreating figure, then noticed Mint still standing at the edge of the crowd, her hands on her hips, her expression a mixture of hurt and anger. For a moment their eyes met across the dispersing group of students. Mark just looked at her and turned away, walking in the opposite direction without a word.
"Mark!" she called after him, her voice cutting through the campus noise. "Mark, wait!"
He didn't look back, didn't slow down, didn't acknowledge her at all. He had somewhere to be.
But first, he saw Jay approaching from across the courtyard, his expression grim and determined.
"Mark!" Jay called out, his voice sharp and demanding. "We need to talk. Now."
"I can't. I have somewhere to be," Mark said, starting to walk away.
Jay grabbed his arm, spinning him around. "You think I'm just going to stand by and watch you destroy yourself? Watch you destroy him?"
"Let go of me." Mark pulled free, but Jay stepped closer, not backing down. "Didn't you make it clear that you're not my friend any longer? So stay the hell out of my business."
"He told you to stay away from Korn. He told you it was over. But you can't help yourself, can you?" Jay's voice was rising, drawing stares from passing students. "I just watched you confront him in front of half the campus like some kind of stalker."
"You don't know what you're talking about."
"I told you already to leave him alone. You didn't respect him when you had him, just let him go." Jay's expression was cold, disgusted. "I told you if you tried anything, you'd have to deal with me. And here you are, claiming he belongs to you like he's your property."
Mark felt his face flush with anger and shame. "You think you understand our relationship? You think you know what we had?"
"I know what you threw away. I know you had someone incredible who cared about you, and you treated him like a dirty secret." Jay stepped closer, his voice dropping to a dangerous whisper. "And I know that if you don't stop this pathetic stalking routine, I'm going to make sure everyone on campus knows exactly what kind of person you really are."
"Is that a threat?"
"It's a promise." Jay's smile was sharp, lacking any warmth. "You want to play games? You want to keep harassing someone who's made it clear they want nothing to do with you? Fine. But I won't let you hurt him anymore."
"You can't stop me from—"
"From what? Following him around? Sending desperate texts? Making scenes in public?" Jay laughed, but there was no humor in it. "Mark, you've already stopped yourself. You've made yourself into a joke. The whole campus is talking about your meltdown at the club."
The words hit like physical blows because they were true. Mark had seen the videos, read the comments, felt the stares and whispers following him around campus.
"But here's what's going to happen," Jay continued, his voice deadly calm. "You're going to leave Korn alone. Completely. No more texts, no more showing up places, no more pathetic attempts to 'explain' yourself. You're going to accept that it's over and move on with your life."
"And if I don't?"
Jay's expression turned predatory. "Then I'll make sure Korn knows everything. Every lie you told him, every time you chose someone else over him, every moment you made him feel like he wasn't worth your time. I'll make sure he understands exactly what kind of person he escaped from."
Mark felt something snap inside his chest. "You think you're protecting him? You think you know what's best for him?"
"I know I'd never treat him the way you did."
"You don't know him at all!" Mark's voice cracked, drawing more attention from nearby students. "You think because you were my friend, because you watched from the sidelines, that gives you some claim to him?"
Jay's eyes flashed with something dangerous. "I know him better than you think."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"It means I've been paying attention. Real attention. Not the half-hearted, when-it's-convenient attention you gave him." Jay stepped closer, and Mark could see something possessive flickering in his expression. "It means I see how special he is, how much he deserves someone who will actually appreciate him."
The implication hit Mark like a slap. "You really do want him for yourself. At first I thought maybe you were lying to get me upset and back off, but no, you're for real. You think my boyfriend will accept you, Jay?"
"He's not yours anymore, and if he accepts me is all up to him."
"You hypocrite!" Mark's voice rose to a shout, no longer caring about the students stopping to stare. "You're standing here lecturing me about stalking while you've been watching him, following his life, waiting for your chance!"
"It's not the same thing—"
"Isn't it? At least I was honest about my feelings. At least I wasn't the one pretending to be your loyal buddy all the while plotting to take your place!"
Jay's composure finally cracked, his face flushing with anger. "I never plotted anything! I just—"
"You just what? Waited patiently for me to screw up so you could swoop in and be the hero?" Mark laughed bitterly. "How long have you been in love with him, Jay? Months? Years? How long have you been watching my relationship and wishing it was yours?"
"Shut up."
"That's why you were so eager to give me advice, isn't it? That's why you kept pushing me to treat him better. Not because you cared about our relationship, but because you wanted to position yourself as the better option."
"I said shut up!" Jay shoved Mark hard, sending him stumbling backward.
Mark caught his balance and came back swinging, his fist connecting with Jay's jaw. They crashed into each other, grappling and throwing wild punches as students scattered around them, some pulling out phones to record the fight.
"You're pathetic!" Jay grunted as they struggled. "You lost him! He doesn't want you anymore!"
"And he'll never want you either!" Mark shot back, landing a blow to Jay's ribs. "You think being his white knight will make him forget that you're just another obsessed asshole who also watched as I treated him that way? He's not a fool, Jay. He knows you were my best friend."
Campus security approached, and both Mark and Jay stepped back from each other, breathing hard and disheveled.
"It's over," Mark said quickly, pulling his arm away when one of the guards reached for him. "Sorry for causing problems. We're done here."
Jay wiped blood from his split lip, his eyes still locked on Mark with cold fury. "This isn't over," he said quietly.
"No," Mark agreed, his own mouth swollen and his shirt torn. "It's not."
The security guards looked between them warily. "You both need to separate now. Any more trouble and we're calling the police."
As the crowd began to disperse, Mark caught sight of his phone on the ground where it had fallen during the fight. The mysterious message was still on the screen, the meeting time approaching fast.
He had to get to room 205. He had to find out who wanted to tell him about Prem. He needed to know the type of person he was going up against to get Korn back.
Twenty minutes later, after being released with a warning, a mandatory counseling referral, and a quick trip to the clinic, Mark made his way to the engineering building. His face was bruised, his lip still bleeding slightly, but his determination had only grown stronger.
Room 205 was on the second floor, tucked away at the end of a quiet hallway. Mark approached the door slowly, his heart pounding with anticipation and dread.
He knocked twice and waited.
The door opened, revealing a figure with his back to Mark. He could hear a video playing - the familiar sound of his own voice arguing with Korn from their confrontation earlier. When the person slowly turned around, Mark's eyes widened in surprise.
"What are you doing here?" Mark asked, confusion replacing his anticipation.
The person smiled, but it didn't reach their eyes.