Chapter 2
Chapter 2
The Pain of Breakup
Leaving Chaeyeon’s irritated voice behind, Sihyeon walked out of the park.
Just in case she followed him.
Worried that she might see how pathetic he looked if she chased after him, he quickened his pace.
Pretending to scratch near his eyes, he wiped away his tears and lowered his head so no one would notice.
“.........”
When he looked down, his miserable appearance stood out. A plain white T-shirt, ripped jeans, and black striped slippers on his bare feet.
The wound from his fall had even stained his shin red.
“No wonder it hurt like hell…”
Seeing his own pitiful state, Sihyeon let out a hollow laugh.
Even after struggling until he became a complete mess, he still couldn’t keep the relationship together. The realization filled him with emptiness and despair.
“I seriously don’t know why I did that. Nothing would’ve changed no matter how much I clung to her.”
Today’s incident made it clear that their relationship would never improve.
If she truly loved him, would it make sense that she couldn’t even say “I like you” once to a boyfriend she’d dated for over a year?
Sihyeon felt that Chaeyeon had never seen him as anything more than an easy-to-control servant.
Once he’d already been branded as the lowest rank in their relationship, there was no way she’d ever listen to anything he asked for.
Drip… drip…
Water stains slowly spread across his white T-shirt.
Rain had started to fall.
In dramas, people say rain is nice because it hides your tears, but actually experiencing it himself, Sihyeon found it nothing but unpleasant.
“My luck is seriously fucking terrible…”
He muttered bitterly and stopped in place. Then he looked around.
“Idiot. It’s not like that.”
A couple joking around with their arms linked together.
“I love you…”
Lovers whispering affection while leaning into each other’s chests.
The kind of relationship Sihyeon could never obtain no matter how hard he tried was everywhere around him.
All he wanted was for Chaeyeon to say she liked him just once. Even a small gesture of affection from her side first.
If she had done that, Sihyeon could’ve been confident in her love. But since he had never once received affection from her, he couldn’t help doubting the relationship.
And those doubts piled up until they eventually led to today’s breakup.
“This seriously fucking sucks…”
Mocking himself, Sihyeon limped forward.
The rain-soaked night wind felt unbearably cold and heavy.
On his way home, a street food stall caught his eye.
Sihyeon wasn’t someone who enjoyed drinking much. Even when he went out with friends, he’d switch to soda after a few drinks. But tonight, alcohol called out to him more than ever.
He wanted to vomit out the dark clouds filling his chest with alcohol.
“Welcome.”
Pushing aside the red tent flap, he stepped inside and saw an older woman wearing a red apron.
The salty aroma of fish cake broth and the sweet smell of chicken skewer sauce filled the air.
Swallowing hard, Sihyeon pulled out a chair and ordered.
“One fish cake soup and a bottle of soju.”
His insides already felt like they were burning to their limit, so what difference would adding alcohol even make?
Tonight, for some reason, he had an irrational confidence that no matter how much he drank, he’d still be fine.
“Keuh…”
He tilted the bottle back and drank straight from it. After downing about three shots’ worth, Sihyeon let out a refreshed sigh.
Normally the burning sensation in his throat would’ve made him grimace, but right now, that pain actually felt good.
Because it made him feel like the reason he was suffering wasn’t the breakup, but the alcohol.
“Fucking bitch… do you know how well I treated you…”
The alcohol clouded his mind, and the emotions he’d been suppressing slowly began spilling out.
Tears he thought had already dried up kept falling, and sobs naturally escaped his throat.
“What’s so important about your stupid pride? Couldn’t you even say sorry once…?”
What kind of man would forgive his girlfriend for going on a blind date with just one apology?
If she’d actually cheated and he could forgive her with something like that, Sihyeon felt like he could apologize hundreds, thousands of times without hesitation.
“Hngh…”
He drained the remaining alcohol and pounded against his heated chest.
Then he ordered another bottle of soju.
Tap.
He opened the dating community app he frequently used on his phone.
—
Dating Advice | Dating Stories | Breakups | 19+ | etc.
—
Since this was his first relationship with a woman, Sihyeon visited the dating advice section of the community every single day.
Wondering if there was hidden meaning behind her reactions and replies.
Thinking about what actions to avoid on dates and how he should properly treat her.
The users had always taken his concerns seriously, saying it was cute how he fussed over even the smallest things.
“They were really good people…”
But now that he’d broken up, he couldn’t keep posting in the dating advice section anymore.
The place a newly single man belonged now wasn’t dating advice.
It was—
Breakups.
—
“Day 24 of praying for my ex-boyfriend’s hair loss.”
“Met a girl who suits me better than my ex. What do I do?”
“My ex texted me after three weeks asking if I’m doing well. Is this the rebound effect?”
—
This was a place where people who couldn’t forget their exes gathered together to vent.
“I thought maybe someday I’d end up posting here… but I never imagined it would become reality.”
With a bitter expression, Sihyeon wrote an introduction post in the breakup section.
—
[I broke up with my girlfriend… – ChaehyeonBaragi]
My girlfriend said she was hanging out with friends, but she was actually at a wine bar on a blind date.
I found out by chance and went there to confront her, but she said she was only there to fill a seat for her friend and insisted she’d done nothing wrong. She even acted shamelessly instead.
She’s always been the type who never admits when she’s wrong, but I never thought she’d react like this even in a situation like this, so I think I was really disappointed.
Maybe that’s why I ended up accepting the breakup so easily when she brought it up…
—
After posting, Sihyeon stuffed the now-cold fish cake into his mouth.
He finished the broth in one clean gulp and refreshed the page, only to see a huge number of comments already piling up.
—
“LMAOOO she only filled a seat for her friend? That’s 100% bullshit. She got caught cheating and used her friend as a shield.”
“You’re amazing for ending it with just an argument. If it were me, I’d have punched someone in the jaw first.”
“Just think of it as stepping in shit and go find another woman. A girl who even looks at another man never changes.”
—
Sihyeon’s post quickly became popular.
Users cursed about what kind of horrible woman she was and told him he’d done the right thing by breaking up.
Some of them were even the people who used to give him dating advice. Since they knew what his relationship had been like, they freely spat out profanity harsh enough to make someone want to shut their eyes.
“Maybe breaking up really was the right answer.”
People’s anger gave legitimacy to his breakup.
If he’d clung pitifully to Chaeyeon back in the park, their toxic power imbalance would’ve just repeated itself.
Wouldn’t it be better, like the comments said, to meet someone who could genuinely love him instead?
“Tsk… haa…”
He emptied about half of the second soju bottle.
After replying to the comments one by one, Sihyeon started browsing other people’s posts.
—
“Fuck… my ex started dating someone else just a week after we broke up.”
“Jihoon, try dating someone uglier than me for once ^^”
“Is it too late to apologize? I miss my ex so fucking much…”
—
So many different stories and worries.
Looking at all the people lamenting after their breakups, Sihyeon became afraid that he’d end up like them in the future.
As he let out another long sigh and continued scrolling—
“Huh?”
A post suddenly caught his attention.
—
“My ex-girlfriend keeps obsessing over me, what do I do…”
We dated for around two years. She was the one who coolly suggested we break up, but once I started dating another girl, she kept blowing up my phone.
She calls nonstop, and whenever I answer, she drunkenly says she was wrong and begs to get back together.
I seriously don’t know what to do…
—
For Sihyeon, who had always been the one desperately clinging on, the post was impossible to understand.
To him, the writer’s worries looked nothing more than spoiled complaints.
“What would it feel like to have your ex cling to you?”
As he reread the post over and over, Sihyeon eventually began imagining himself and Chaeyeon in that situation.
If someone as arrogant as her started clinging to him, how would he react?
Would he feel satisfied out of revenge? Would he angrily tell her it was too late?
Even he couldn’t predict his own reaction.
Still, if Chaeyeon realized how precious he was, sincerely apologized, and told him she loved him…
Then maybe all the suffering he’d endured until now would finally feel rewarded.
“Not like that would ever happen.”
Sihyeon scoffed and emptied the rest of the soju. The burning liquid slid down his throat.
“Hoo…”
He released the heat filling his body through an alcohol-laced sigh.
Just as he tapped the leftover fish cake skewer with his fingers and started sinking into thought again—
Kka-tok!
A notification rang from his phone.
—
[AloeFlavorTeaBag: Chaeba-nim, you broke up with your girlfriend!?]
—
AloeFlavorTeaBag.
Back when Sihyeon constantly asked for dating advice, this was the person who’d sent him an open chat link and offered to counsel him one-on-one.
They shortened his nickname, ChaehyeonBaragi, to Chaeba and had practically become his guide when it came to relationships.
—
[Me: Yeah… somehow it ended up like that.]
[AloeFlavorTeaBag: Geez… I knew this would happen. You should’ve broken up when I told you to.]
—
AloeFlavorTeaBag had always viewed Sihyeon and Chaeyeon’s relationship negatively.
No matter how sincerely they gave advice, they always told him to break up.
—
[Me: I thought if I kept treating her well, she’d eventually change. But I guess it was all just my misunderstanding…]
[AloeFlavorTeaBag: At least you realized it now. More importantly, what are you doing right now?]
[Me: Drinking at a street stall near my house.]
[AloeFlavorTeaBag: With who?]
[Me: Alone.]
[AloeFlavorTeaBag: Huh? Then call your friends and drink together. Ah, unless you don’t have any friends…]
[Me: I do have friends, okay? I just don’t want to bother them for no reason.]
[AloeFlavorTeaBag: Eh? Why would that be bothering them? Usually after a breakup, people meet friends, get comforted, and talk shit about their exes.]
[Me: It’s fine. I’m just gonna quietly drink alone.]
[AloeFlavorTeaBag: Alright… then don’t drink too much and head home safely. Stay strong!]
[Me: Thank you. Hope you have a good night.]
[AloeFlavorTeaBag: Same to you, Chaeba-nim!]
—
After finishing the chat, Sihyeon was about to turn off his screen, but instead pressed the back button.
Just in case, he checked his chatroom with Chaeyeon.
The unread count had disappeared, meaning she’d seen it, but there was still no reply.
“I thought she’d at least send a barrage of insults. Surprising.”
Sihyeon didn’t have anything left to send either, so he turned the screen off immediately.
Then, looking at the half-empty soju bottle, he ordered chicken skewers as another snack.
The food arrived, and just as he bit into a skewer soaked in sauce—
“Auntie, one fish cake soup please.”
A familiar voice rang in Sihyeon’s ears.
Looking up, he saw a woman with wavy brown hair stepping inside while lifting the tent flap.
She was dressed casually like someone who’d just stepped out for a quick walk, but her stunning appearance once again proved that fashion was completed by the face. Both men and women turned to look at her.
Yet unaware of all the attention, she looked around for a seat, causing the men’s interest to slowly cool.
“Everyone’s staring at her… does she not notice?”
The woman sat at the table next to Sihyeon.
Her face was partly hidden behind her hair. Sihyeon glanced at her briefly before silently raising his drink again.
Then—
“Huh? Sihyeon, what are you doing here?”
He heard his own name come from the woman sitting beside him.