JoongDunk Ep4

As Joong stormed out of the dressing room, he pulled out his phone and dialed Pond. The moment his friend picked up, Joong didn't even bother with pleasantries.

"I fucking hate your friend."

Pond blinked at the harshness in Joong's voice. "Uh... okay? Which friend? And why do you sound like you're about to murder someone?"

"Dunk. That asshole," Joong spat. "He started everything-made me want him all the damn time. Now I can't even breathe without thinking about him. And guess what? Now he suddenly wants to stop. Says he sees me as a friend. That he's not into men. That everything we did for the past eight months meant nothing."

Pond's eyes widened. "Wait-hold on. What do you mean by 'everything you did'? What exactly have you two been-"

"We've been eating each other's faces every chance we get, Pound," Joong cut him off, his voice shaking with frustration. "I fucking know what his cum tastes like."

"SHIA!" Pond choked, nearly dropping his phone. "You're kidding, right? You have to be kidding."

Joong let out a bitter laugh. "Does anything about my voice sound like I'm joking? The only thing we haven't done is have sex."

Pond ran a hand over his face. "Holy shit. Okay, back up. Start from the beginning."

So Joong did. He laid it all out-the initial idea, the make-out sessions, the growing tension, how he had stupidly let himself feel something real, only for Dunk to act like it was all just practice.

By the time he was done, Pond was silent.

Joong scoffed. "Can you believe it? After everything, he's still saying he sees me as a friend. That he's not into men."

Pound sighed. "I mean... the Dunk I know isn't into men."

Joong's chest ached at those words. He exhaled sharply. "And what about me, huh? The Joong you know-do I look like I'm into men?"

Pond hesitated.

Joong let out a humorless chuckle. "Exactly. I wasn't into men either. But this... whatever this is, it's different. It's Dunk. So why can't he do the same for me? Why is he fighting it so much? Am I that bad to be with?"

Pond sighed again, softer this time. "Joong... I don't think it's about you being 'bad to be with.' I think it's about him-about what this means for him. Maybe he's just scared."

Joong clenched his jaw, his grip on his phone tightening.

Scared or not, Dunk had wrecked him.

And the worst part is he wanted him so bad.

"Joong, listen," Pond sighed, choosing his words carefully. "Dunk and Phuwin are alike in one major way-once they've set a plan for their lives, they rarely stray from it. And I don't think having a boyfriend was ever part of Dunk's plan."

Joong stayed quiet, his grip on the phone tightening.

"Just because he acts in BL dramas doesn't mean he's comfortable actually being in a relationship with a man. Maybe it was easy for you to accept, but not everyone processes change the same way. Some people embrace it, and others..." Pond hesitated. "Others fight it. And I think Dunk is scared."

Joong scoffed, wiping at his eyes. "Scared of what? Me?"

"No," Pond said gently. "Scared of what being with you means. Dunk's been going through something that even he might not fully understand yet. And the fact that he hasn't even mentioned any of this to me? That says a lot. You know how he is-he bottles things up until they explode."

Joong's anger drained out of him, replaced by something heavier-regret. Guilt. "Now I feel like an ass," he muttered, blinking as his vision blurred with unshed tears.

Pond sighed when he heard Joong sniffle. "Why are you crying for someone you hate?" he teased, trying to lighten the mood.

"Pond," Joong whined, rubbing his face. "What the hell do I do? I love him. How do I make him see that I'm the one for him?"

Pond was quiet for a moment before asking, "Have you even told him that you love him?"

Joong hesitated. "...Not yet."

"Then start there."

Joong swallowed hard, the thought terrifying and exhilarating at the same time.

"But before you do, let me talk to him first," Pond added. "He might need to hear some things from someone who isn't you."

Joong nodded, even though Pond couldn't see him. "Okay."

A voice called for Joong in the background, signaling the end of their break.

"I have to go. Let's talk later," Joong said.

"Alright, just don't cry on set, superstar." Pond chuckled.

Joong let out a small, watery laugh before hanging up, but his heart still felt unbearably heavy.

He had to tell Dunk how he felt.

He just didn't know if Dunk was ready to hear it.