Aki closed his fingers around the paper brim of his empty coffee cup and ripped another small piece off. Without looking, he added it to the pile on the table. Mindlessly stuck on repeat, he ripped, added, ripped, added, over and over.

He’d spent the night in the twenty-four-hour Korean café, trading off between sleeping in the bathroom and eating cake to justify staying. He’d been hoping to improve his Korean, but the speakers played nothing but pop songs. Aki learned a million new ways to tell Nao how he felt but doubted he’d gained the right words to impress Namjoon.

Another rip.

Another one on the pile.

Another turn of the mangled cup… Another rip.

His ribs tightened in his chest, crushing his heart until it screamed. He didn’t deserve to be by Nao’s side.

Another turn.

Another rip.

Another sugarcoated song about love.

Aki’s thumb hit the bottom of the cup. Nothing more to tear up but himself.

He stood, bones aching from napping on the bathroom floor. He needed a bed, and the only way was with Namjoon’s help.