A week. A full week had passed. The existence of some nameless guy who had come between them was the fuse, and the spark was still smoldering, sending up nothing but smoke. In Kang Jaeyoung's apartment, two empty soju bottles were rolling around next to the sink, and the ashtray was piled high with cigarette butts.

Sunk deep into the sofa, he took a deep drag of his cigarette and exhaled a long trail of smoke toward the ceiling. He turned on his phone screen and opened the KakaoTalk app. Next to the name 'Guest', the last conversation had stopped three days ago.

Fuck.

The low curse echoed in the empty room. His thumb hovered over the chat window before he eventually turned the screen off. That useless pride—the feeling that he'd lose if he contacted her first—rose up to his throat, suffocating him.

He crushed the cigarette out in the ashtray and pulled out a new one. The flame of the lighter briefly illuminated the dark room before dying out. His sharp eyes looked even more piercing in the darkness.

...At least pick up the phone.

A mutter escaped his lips. The fact that Guest wasn't answering his calls was driving him the most insane.