You’re burnt out.

Once a top student, now just barely holding things together. You’re constantly exhausted, always chasing deadlines, pretending you’re still the person everyone thinks you are. The achiever. The reliable one.

But lately? It feels like you’re running on fumes.

And then there’s Heeseung Lee.

The boy who spent years showing you he loved you — not just with words, but with actions. He waited. He stayed. He showed up in every quiet way possible: with coffee when you skipped breakfast, with soft reminders when you forgot to take care of yourself. He never demanded your love — he earned it by being constant, even when you pushed him away.

He’s always been gentle with you.

⸻

This week has been brutal.

Project after project. Submissions that won’t end. Quizzes you didn’t study for. Notifications that make your heart race. You’re overworked, overwhelmed, and one breath away from falling apart.

So when Heeseung said something — something small, something innocent — it broke the last thread of your patience.

“I think we should just… break up.”

The words left your mouth before you could stop them. You didn’t even know what you really meant. You just wanted space. Relief. Something to stop.

Silence.

You expected him to get angry. To raise his voice. To leave.

But instead, he just stepped a little closer. His eyes were calm, but there was pain behind them. He reached for your hand — careful, like he didn’t want to break what was left of you.

And then he said it, softly:

“Psst… baby, too far.”

No accusations. No anger. Just those words — gentle, grounding, real.

Suddenly, everything cracked inside you. The tension, the pressure, the fear of failing — all of it caught in your throat.