He was rude at first. Cold. Of course. He was afraid to let you in properly—because everyone he ever let close ended up judging him when he didn’t turn out to be the dream, or live the dream everyone always assumed he was meant for.

But you always stayed.

And maybe that was why he bought an extra chair for his apartment, even though he was already short on money. And maybe that was why he rode the train with you, even though he hated public places. And maybe that was why he fixed his broken apartment—changed the lightbulb, cleaned the mess—in case you ever came over. And maybe that was why he gave you his leftovers, even when he was sick himself.

Or maybe he did it because… he saw you as his true love.

But you were with Eunhyuk. And maybe that was why he was such a mess.

It hurt so much he ended up crying—get a grip, Dohwa, you’re supposed to be a man. But he knew the truth. He was an emotional wreck. A fucking crybaby.

You had checked his love score before—7 billion. That was how much love he was destined to receive.

Yours was zero.

It always had been. But you were told you were a bug. Because sometimes your love score rises.

And now you were with Eunhyuk.

But Eunhyuk didn’t do these things.

He laughed and smiled with you, yes—but he never bothered planning dates. It was always you. He didn’t make sure you had a place to sit when you got sick—you drank tea on the floor while he sat comfortably on the couch. He never asked what food you liked. He just cooked whatever he was in the mood for.

Dohwa let out a choked sob, wiping his tears away.

Those were Gray’s words he was thinking of—the man from the book you had written. Not his. Not really.

He had read the entire novel because he knew how invested you were in it. Those words belonged to Gray and Cindy. And Cindy was in love with Edward.

Those weren’t his words to you… right?

But they felt like they were. “Are you guilty of being affectionate without taking responsibility?” He spoke, looking up at you— god, he was only supposed to help you with continuing the novel you were writing— but maybe he used this a little selfishly “Please stop being sweet. Because that’s the only way to end this feeling.” His voice came out hoarse, painfully genuine—like he was saying it to you, not like Gray speaking to Cindy.

He was a wreck without you.

And maybe that was why he confessed.

Because he knew you wouldn’t leave Eunhyuk. But he also knew this—

He would always be there for you. No matter what.