#I will die here as the last defender of Taeil's name | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

masjestickingdom · 4 years

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The Waiting Game

Pairing: NCT Jaehyun x reader

Genre: one shot, fluff, slightly suggestive (implied smut)

Summary: It’s been a month since you last saw your boyfriend. When it’s finally the day to meet him, his late appearance has you coping with feelings that make you go out of character.

Note: Along with the previous post, this is a lighthearted scenario to “lighten” up the mood for what’s to come... (*hint, hint*) Until then, enjoy this scenario!

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When you hear the music of the keypad, you jump up from your couch and rush your way over to the door. When the music comes to a stop and the door handle is angled, your eyes widen in anticipation. The door swings open, and your face immediately drops.

Today is the long-awaited day you’ve been waiting for: at long last, you get to spend the evening with your lovely boyfriend, Jaehyun, since his departure for his world tour a month ago. Waiting for a month without any physical contact or voice calls was unbelievably painful, but you managed to pull through. Right now, though, you’ve been waiting for him all afternoon and all that waiting is starting to mess with your brain.

“What’s with the face?” the man standing in front of you asks, taking off his sneakers.

“I thought you were Jaehyun,” you answer with a visible pout. “But you’re just Johnny.”

The tall man rolls his eyes. “Gee, I’m glad to see you too.”

He steps out of the entryway and swings his arm around your shoulders, guiding you away from the precious entrance.

“Your boyfriend’s still working on the dance he missed out on yesterday,” Johnny informs you, but his words mean nothing to you.

You turn your head around, hoping to hear the same notes from the keypad.

“He’s not going to come back sooner just because you’re staring at the door like a weirdo-”

There they are, those notes, the notes you’ve been another minute waiting for. You and Johnny simultaneously exchange looks at each other, yours being smug and Johnny’s reflecting the image of a surprised kangaroo.

“How did you do that?” he asks in wonderment as you slip out of his touch.

You’re back to square one, staring at the door, waiting for the handle to be angled. This time, Johnny joins you with an amazed expression. During the three long seconds you wait, you hear indistinct conversations, to which you hope that among the numerous voices behind that door, one of them belongs to your boyfriend.

“Who takes so long to press the keypad?” you say, impatience evident in your tone.

“Kim Doyoung,” Johnny replies easily.

After an eternity of three seconds, you see the door swing open in the same manner it was done before. You and Johnny stand there, watching the door open as if everything is in slow motion.

The first person to walk in is, as Johnny predicted, Doyoung. The moment you realize it’s him, you get on your toes to see the faces following behind him.

“Jaehyun?” you call, hoping that you get a response.

“Nope,” Johnny responds instead as another member comes into view. “It’s Yuta.”

“Jaehyun?” you try again.

“Nope,” Johnny says, popping the “p”. “It’s Taeil.”

“Jaehyun?”

“Nope. Haechan.”

“Jaehyun?”

“Nope, Mark.”

“Jaehyun?”

“Hey, there’s no one left,” Johnny points out.

There it is, that empty feeling in your heart once again. You feel dejected, wondering if Jaehyun can hear your telepathic message, pleading him to come early.

Your misery catches the eyes of the incoming members, causing them to crowd around you.

“What’s wrong?” they ask, genuinely concerned about your state.

You were never like this before. In fact, you’re considered to be the chiller one of the friend group.

“She misses our hardworking Jaehyun,” Johnny replies for you, gently patting your head.

Upon hearing the problem, the boys try to cheer you up.

“We can play Mario Kart,” Haechan suggests.

“And eat ice cream,” Mark adds.

“If it makes you feel any better,” Yuta speaks, “he says that he can’t wait to come back.”

You look up at him with glittering eyes. “Really?”

“Yeah,” he assures you, proud that he’s the one to lift your spirits. “Don’t worry. As long as Mia isn’t late today, he’ll be back in no time.”

“Mia?”

The light in your eyes fades, overshadowed by the growing sense of jealousy. You can feel your blood starting to boil.

“Mia?” you repeat for the second time in disbelief. “Isn’t Mia a girl?”

The boys exchange glances at each other, all ending up at Yuta, who raises his arms up in the air.

“It just slipped,” he says, defending himself.

“So Jaehyun’s working with a girl?” you pronounce slowly. “A girl. Alone.”

The boys are quick to correct you, “No, no, definitely not alone.”

“Taeyong and Jungwoo are there too,” Mark reveals, practically rapping.

Yuta furiously nods. “And Mia’s not the only teacher there, so the more, the merrier, right? In fact, the name’s Ale-”

Your dangerous gaze cuts him short.

The wide-eyed boys silently look at Yuta, swearing through their eyes.

“Oi,” Johnny sighs, rubbing his temples.

“So that means there’s more room for Mia to spend with Jaehyun while the other teacher focuses on the others?” you say, your voice rising with volume each passing second.

Your heart is racing and your hands are shaking. Your breath is becoming unstable and, for some reason, so are your fingers. Jaehyun is spending time with some female instructor before he’s spending time with you? That’s completely fine--except it’s not. It isn’t something you can do anything about--it’s his job--but knowing that he’s a fine-looking man, you can only imagine what the instructor will do to him. Heck, if you were her, you would probably feel him up too, no doubt.

And here comes that aching void in your heart.

“Hey, why don’t we all relax and go do Mario Kart like Haechan said?” Taeil urges after taking into account the time you spent sulking at the door.

As the boys drag you away, Johnny and Doyoung are left behind, watching you refuse to play Mario Kart.

“Well this is a first,” Doyoung remarks, stunned at your behavior. “I’ve never seen her so... mopey. It’s a shame that Jaehyun couldn’t be with us when she paid a visit to the company last week.”

Johnny shakes his head, pitying your downcasted state. “Not seeing him for a month and not being able to call him because of his schedule, that’s gotta be tough.”

No kidding. You’re dying without his touch, without seeing his face or hearing his voice. You’re literally going crazy.

“Hey, hey, hey, she’s biting me!”

Who’s yelling? It doesn’t matter. You’re going crazy.

...

The boys somehow managed to calm you down with a few rounds of Mario Kart. Technically, you calmed yourself down, considering you were so furious that you were a beast in the game and came out on the top.

“That’s right!” you shout, winning another round.

So you aren’t calm, but you’re definitely not thinking about Jaehyun and that female instructor the boys call “Mia”.

All is going well until you hear the all-too-familiar melody of the keypad. You speedily pause the game with your controller, earning you a few complaints, which quickly die down when you silence them with a simple glare.

“All I’m saying is that she obviously faked her stomach pain so that she could leave early with Alex,” you hear a voice you know all too well.

“At least our practice ended early,” another distinct voice responds. “I don’t think I could have handled being in that room for another moment.”

The boys’ eyes rapidly scan your face as they mentally prepare themselves for another biting session.

“I’m surprised that Jaehyun’s still practicing,” the second voice says, nearing the living room.

“He’s probably immune to the couple-y things Mia and Alex do because he has a girlfri-”

The former voice halts.

“Taeyong, Jungwoo, where’s Jaehyun?”

The two boys, who were innocently waltzing into the living room, stop in their tracks when they see the fiery look in your eyes. Before they have the chance to comprehend the situation, they are saved by the keypad. You hear the door open for the last time, and you vanish from the boys’ sight.

“Jung Jaehyun!”

You see the growing smile on your boyfriend’s face and tackle him with the biggest hug you can offer.

“I’ve missed you!” you cry, taking in his sweet, natural scent. “Why didn’t you come sooner?”

He snuggles his face into your neck. “I was going to practice a few more times, but I couldn’t let myself be away from you any longer.”

He pulls his face away from your neck to get a good look at you.

“I’ve missed you too,” he coos lovingly, leaning in for your lips, to which you move away.

You aren’t going to let go of your jealousy that easily.

You hear a couple of feet shuffling behind you, and your boyfriend peers over your shoulder, sending a questioning gaze to his fellow bandmates.

“Mark?” he calls, remembering how the boy once accidentally ruined your surprise birthday party.

The boys shake their head and point at Yuta.

“Hey, I was just trying to help,” the accused boy utters.

“Twice,” Johnny adds.

“Mia,” Doyoung words to Jaehyun silently, directing him to the source of the complication.

Grasping the situation with remarkable speed, Jaehyun nods, signalling to his friends to give them some space.

“I tried,” Yuta mumbles while the others leave you two to be.

Although you’ve missed Jaehyun, there’s this voice in the back of your mind that constantly reminds you of your jealousy towards the time he seems to be spending with other people more than you. You love him and understand him, but you simply want to see how he’ll deal with this jealous side of you, so you act childishly.

When you don’t look at him in the eye, he smiles and says, “You know Mia’s taken, right?”

“But it’s you,” you murmur, staring at your feet.

“You’re right,” he says, resting his hands on your shoulders. “It’s me. I’m in love with you and my eyes are only set on you.”

He senses that you’re starting to become looser, so he takes your hands in his and tilts his head forward to see you eye-to-eye.

“I’ll make up for the lost time,” he promises. “Pinkie swear.”

You still don’t respond, which takes up a lot of your energy not to do because you really want to lose yourself in those striking brown eyes of his, but you’ve been with him long enough for him to know how to work his way around this type of situation.

He lowers himself to your ears and whispers, “Hey.”

One word and he already has you melting with your legs turning into jelly.

And one final impactful statement from him has you hooked: “Let’s go to my room.”

...

Fifteen minutes have passed and there is still no word from either you or Jaehyun. The boys, gathered around the couch, start to feel anxious.

“Maybe they’re giving each other the silent treatment,” Mark speaks, breaking the silence.

“Shouldn’t we go check up on them?” Yuta asks, glancing at the door you and Jaehyun disappeared behind.

Johnny gets up on his knees and says, “I’ll signal something if anything’s wrong.”

He carefully makes his way to the door. When he presses his ear against the door, an instant smirk forms on his face.

“Why? What’s going on in there?” the boys ask.

Instead of respecting your guys’ privacy, Johnny decides to gesture the guys over to join him, and when they do, a lot of their faces flush.

“Th-this isn’t something that we should listen to,” Mark stutters, his ears red and eyes wide.

But all of them remain there. Another five minutes pass and that’s when it hits Doyoung.

"Wait isn’t Haechan still a minor?”

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sheeple · 4 years

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The intern | 5: Friendly meetups

GIFS NOT MINE. THIS IS ALL FICTION. Genre(s): intern!au / fluff / mild angst Group(s): NCT / Red Velvet Pairing(s): Moon Taeil x fem!reader Summary: The new Elysion Publishings intern is the youngest they ever had. It’s not a problem until she grabs the attention of the IT guy. Warning(s): Age-gap of five years [Masterlist] [Mini masterlist]

Taeil and I walk into a chicken restaurant and a pair of hands shoot up, waving enthusiastically at us.

He drags me all the way down the back until we arrive at a table with three guys already sitting at it, enjoying their beers and snacks.

“Aye”, the guys cheer as they see Taeil and give him each a hug with a big smile.

I stand awkwardly at the back until one guy notices me and holds out his hand for me to shake with a wide smile. He kind of reminds me of a titan of AOT.

“Hi, nice to meet you! I’m Nakamoto Yuta”, he says brightly as we shake hand.

“Nice to meet you too! My name’s (Y/n) (Y/l/n).”

“Oh, we know”, says one teasingly as he nudges the one sitting next to him.

Taeil rolls his eyes as he pushes a chair back for me to sit on. I thank him while removing my coat and hanging it on the backrest. Taeil takes a seat on the right of me, doing some weird handshake with the guy in front of him.

“I mean, who wouldn’t talk none stop when a cute foreign girl walks into their life?”

A blush creeps on my cheeks as I look at Taeil. He avoids my eyes as his ears turn in a bright shade of red.

He coughs. “Those two idiots are Doyoung and Sicheng, but we call him Winwin. You already met Yuta.”

I nod politely to the two other guys with a slight smile. Winwin gives me a small have and Doyoung winks.

“So you’re colleagues with our resident old man?”, asks Winwin with a smug smile.

Taeil scoffs and gives him a push on his shoulder.

I laugh. “Yes, I am. I work in a different department as him.” I take a sip of my water.

A waitress comes for our orders and everyone lists what they want before she turns towards me.

“For me... the boneless chicken coated in honey-lemon.”

She nods while writing it down on her notepad. “What would you like to drink with that.”

“Just coke is fine.” I smile uncomfortably as she nods again and turns away.

“Typically, people would take some beer with that”, says Doyoung. “Are you legal to drink alcohol?”

I nod quickly. “Of course. I’m just not a big fan of beer, that’s why. I rather have a pina colada or Pisang with 7up.” I smile slightly at the thought of a cold glass of that.

“And that is...?”, questions Doyoung with raises eyebrows.

“You guys don’t know what Pisang is? I guess that you don’t have it here... But Pisang is a banana flavoured liquor that’s way too sweet to have it without mixing it. Mixed, it kind of tastes like these little green frog sweets. Just really sweet.”

Yuta hums. “Sounds delicious.”

“Right!”, I beam and high five him.

“You must really miss home”, says Doyoung while popping some food in his mouth,

While I grab the chopsticks of the table, I hum. “Kind of? I mean, as much that I miss my family and friends, I just love the freedom of living on my own, you know.”

“So, you share a house with roommates?”, asks Taeil interested as he leans back and puts his arm over the back of my chair.

With a laugh, I shake my head. “I wish. I still live with my parents since I am too you to live on my own.”

They all look at me dumbfounded.

“You live with your parents?” Yuta frowns while looking at Winwin next to him.

“Lucky you, my parents kicked me out when I finished college and had a stable job”, grumbles Doyoung with a pout.

Winwin nods in agreement. “Enjoy as long as it lasts.”

“We just redone the whole house, including my room. I don’t want to leave.” I look down sadly with a big pout.

Taeil softly mumbles ‘cute’ under his breath before pinching my cheeks.

I let out a high whine and push his hand away. “I am not cute.”

The guys coo and I frown. “If you all are going to be like this, I could better leave.”

“That would be a shame of your chicken”, says the waitress as she places my plate with delicious looking chicken on it.

My mouth waters already by the sight of the chicken. “Oh my god, you are right”, I laugh and she winks while placing the rest of the dishes and side dishes on the table.

We thank her and the guys begin to stuff their faces with chicken.

“You have to taste the kimchi here, it’s delicious.” Taeil picks up a bit of kimchi with his chopsticks and holds it up to my mouth.

I lick lips before opening my mouth, letting Taeil feed me. As I chew, the different kinds of flavours explode in my mouth.

“Woah!”, I exclaim as my eyes lid up. “This is by far the best kimchi I ever tasted. Please don’t tell my neighbour, Mrs Do. She will murder me if I ever admit her kimchi isn’t the best in the world.” I send a wink towards the boys and they chuckle.

Taeil laughs loudly and zips his mouth, throwing the key over his shoulder.

A giggle escapes my lips and I push against his shoulder.

“Not to ruin your cute moment, but, as a foreigner (Y/n), what is the most confusing or difficult thing about moving to Korea”, asks Winwin as he points with his chopsticks.

“Frikking Konglish, man. If I say ice cream, just the English way, nobody will understand what I am saying. But if I say iceu creameu, y’all know what I mean. It really blows my mind. Also the whole thing with age. I kinda get it, you need to show respect to people who are older than you but what’s up with just being friends, regardless their age?”

“I had some trouble with the whole honorifics”, says Yuta and I nod with big eyes.

“Or just how you have to say something to someone and what you can and can’t do”, adds Winwin.

“Exactly”, I point out before turning to Doyoung and Taeil. “How do you guys do it.”

They both share a look while shrugging. “Just years and years of practise.”

After we ate and Winwin, Yuta, and I complained about things in Korea, we paid and left for the mall.

“Please, why didn’t you let me pay for you?”, whines Taeil as we walk behind the three other guys.

“Because I would feel bad about it. Don’t worry about it, okay? I am a big girl.” I reassuringly grab Taeil’s hand and smile at him, searching his eyes.

He nods slowly while looking down at our hands.

As Yuta calls me over, I let go of his hand and hurry towards him as he points at something cute.

I don’t see how Taeil’s face falls as he sees me running towards his friend and standing really close to him.

“A bit jealous, aren’t we?”, asks Doyoung with a smug smile as he nudges Taeil’s shoulder.

“Pff what? No! Am not!”

Doyoung hums while rolling his eyes. “Yeah sure, hyung. When was the last time you asked someone else to our hangouts?”

Taeil bites his lips as he watches the brunette interact happily. He... doesn’t know why he asked her. He just knew he wanted (Y/n) to come, to spend more time with her.

“You’re--”, he sighs, “you’re right. I don’t know why, to be honest. My thumbs acted on my own when I texted her.”

Doyoung stops his friend. “Are you gonna act on your feelings?”

Taeil looks at me, as I look at him and wave, pointing at a cute dog I see and signing him to come.

“I don’t know, okay? Just, let me think about it”, he says hushedly before walking towards me.

“Oh my god, it’s so cute”, I squeal as I crouch down and hug the Shiba Inu. I squeeze its cheeks and the owner laughs heartily.

“Come, before you smother the pup with kisses.” Taeil lightly pulls my arm and I get up, apologizing to the dog’s owner.

“Don’t apologize, dear. I find it very endearing to see such a reaction.”

I thank the owner and wave goodbye to the Shiba.

“Do you have a dog?”, asks Taeil and I nod.

“Two. A beagle and a french bulldog”, I beam proudly while pulling my phone out of my pocket and showing him pictures of them.

“They're my babies. I was very sad I had to leave and say goodbye to them for half a year.”

Doyoung’s head peaks over our shoulders and I also show him and the others my darlings.

“The beagle’s name is Peanut and the french bulldog’s name is Ziggy”, I beam proudly.

“Taeil has a dog too. A Samoyed”, says Winwin with a snicker before Taeil hits him on the back of his head.

“Don’t be mean, Bong Bong is a good dog.”

“Can I see a picture?”, I ask with big eyes as he grabs his phone.

I coo as I see the cutest, fluffiest, whitest dog there is on earth. “Oh my god, I am in love! Your dog is the cutest!”

A bight smile grows on his face as his eyes begin to twinkle with excitement. “Do you want to see her when she was a puppy?”

My eyes grow big at the thought of a small walking cloud. “Please”, I plead with clasped hands.

Taeil swipes a couple times on his phone before opening a picture folder filled with adorable pictures of his Samoyed.

He lets me swipe through the folder and at every photo my heart melt more and more.

“I would die for Bong Bong”, I say while eyeing a cute puppy photo of the waling cloud.

“Do you want to meet her someday?”

My jaw falls slack at just those simple words. “Can I?”

Taeil chuckles while squeezing my cheeks. “Of course!”

Out of pure happiness, I hug Taeil with the biggest smile on my face.

I feel Taeil’s arms hesitantly wrapping around me as he leans with his chin on my head.

“I had so much fun, you guys”, I smile as we say our goodbye’s.

Yuta pulls me into a hug. I blink surprised while patting his back.

“You’re part of the gang now so you get a hug goodbye”, says Doyoung before he also hugs me, followed by Winwin.

I smile brightly and wave them goodbye as they walk towards the metro.

“Ready to go?”, asks Taeil as I turn around with a big smile.

We walk down the street, towards the parking garage and I shiver as the temperature has dropped significantly since the sun has set.

Taeil notices me hugging my arms and rubbing them for some warmth. He chuckles and shakes his head. “Why didn’t you bring a thicker jacket?”

I roll my eyes. “I didn’t think it would cool down this much”, I defend myself with a pout. “And it would ruin the aesthetic of my outfit.”

He shakes his head, stopping me and makes me take off my jacket. Taeil pulls his sweater over his head. “Here”, he says as he takes my jacket out of my hands and replaces it with his sweater, “wear that.”

I frown. “What about you? Won’t you be cold?”, I question, eying his thin shirt.

Taeil sighs and pushes his sweater over my head, making sure my arms are through the sleeves and he pulls up the hood.

I look down and smile at how large and soft the hoody is.

We resume walking towards the car in comfortable silence as I look up every now and then from the ground to admire Taeil’s features in the city lights.

“Did you have fun?”, he asks when we arrive at the car.

I hum. “Your friends are really nice”, I say while placing my shopping bags in the trunk, next to my backpack

Taeil insisted on buying me something because he couldn’t pay for my dinner. So he bought me three little cactuses for on my kitchen windowsill.

“They are now. Wait until you know them a little bit better and they will tease you to no end.” Taeil smiles fondly while getting on the driver’s side.

“Isn’t it a lot smarter if I drive? Didn’t you drink like two bottles of beer?”, I ask concerned.

He shakes his head. “Don’t you worry, I can drive. Can you even drive?”

I raise my brows. “Yeah, of course. Otherwise, I wouldn’t ask, would I?”

Taeil nods as he rubs his eyes. “I mean like sure? But that would still mean I have to drive home.”

“You can crash on the couch. I have brought some extra blankets and pillows from home. And the couch sleeps pretty nice, better than my bed.” I look at him with a cock of my head.

He sighs. “Sure... But what about Bong Bong?”

“We can pick her up and bring her to my place. Or... I know a better plan. I will drive to your place and take the subway home.”

“Absolutely not!”, shrieks Taeil with wide eyes.

I lean slightly back with a hurt look on my face. “Why... why not?”

“Because it’s half-past ten, (Y/n), that’s why. This isn’t like your town back home, this is Seoul we’re talking about. Creeps are lurking around every corner.”

I fold my arms over each other and chew on the inside of my cheek. “What is your plan then?”

Taeil drums his fingers against the steering wheel.

“You can... you can also stay the night at my place? I will drive you home tomorrow.”

I lick my lips, thinking about the options. Going home alone at eleven o’clock and probably being stalked by a weird dude. Or be safe and stay over at Taeil’s.

“Fine”, I sigh. “I’ll stay over at your place.”

Taeil nods with a faint smile and gets out of the car, letting me sit behind the wheel. I take a deep breath in and out before turning around the key in the contact. Here goes nothing.

#im back from the dead #NCT #nct imagine #nct dream #nct 127 #nct scenario #nct 127 scenario #taeil #moon taeil #taeil scenarios #taeil imagines #taeil fluff #intern!au #nct fluff #nct!au

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neo-culture-mafia · 5 years

Text

우리의 피곤한 발

TRIGGER WARNING: SOME GRAPHIC SCENES TOWARDS END

“Are we almost there yet?” “The next time you ask you’ll be one step closer to heaven.” Renjun threatened Jisung. “Enough.” Mark intervened. I walked next to Mark in front of the group where we were walking in the dead earliness of the morning.

“It’s so...scary.” Jeno said, shivering in the coldness. He looked around besides our group and saw nothing. Not a single soul was walking next to us.

I had told Mark about our ticking time and he agreed to leave earlier than expected. “It is.” Jaemin agreed with his best friend. My phone was in my hands, and my eyes were glued to it. The tiny blue dot marking our location still seemed so far from our destination.

4 and a half days...that’s how long it would take. 117 hours and 645 km to travel...and to what?? freedom. Freedom was at our fingertips and was oh so close that I could taste it. It tasted like Doyoung’s cooking and Johnny’s hugs. It looked like Hyuck’s constant teasing to Taeil and Jaemin’s suffocating affection towards everyone else. It was being able to see Taeyong’s cute and loveable side and seeing his cold side at work. It was family dinners and stealing sips from everyone’s liquor glasses as we sat around the table going into the early hours of the morning; knowing that we’ll have to get up and go to work in a couple of hours.

Yet, it was all worth it. It was so worth it because maybe it was the alcohol or the sense if radiating love from the group; it was refreshing and heart-warming. But, I just hope that at the end of this long journey, we will be able to be rewarded with that feeling again...all of us.

“We got this. We’ll be there in no time.” Mark assured the boys. “And our calves are gonna look amazing,” Hyuck added and it lifted the spirit. Boys chuckled left and right of my focused body. “I’m gonna need new uniform pants. Like, look at these babies.” Hyuck said running forward a little and flaunting his calf muscles.

Some of the boys hollered and some laughed.

We continued on our undetermined road for a little while longer. “I’m hungry.” Renjun groaned and Mark was actually accepting of what he was about to say. “Let’s go sit down for some breakfast then.” He said and the boys cheered. My mind was frozen trying to factor in the times of eating. The equation was getting too long and the machine in my head was already on overdrive.

“Y/n. We’re fine. We need to get some fuel anyway.” Mark laid a hand on my shoulder, speaking quietly. I looked upon the excited boys, them going crazy that they could sit down and eat. That this one moment was so foreign to them for so long, now they were rewarded with something so many people get to do a day.

“Pancakes? I am so getting pancakes.” Jisung was talking with Chenle. “I’m gonna get some coffee, that’s for sure.” Jaemin was talking with his own aged friends about his addiction and love.

“What are you gonna get?” Mark nudged my elbow. “Uh...” I trailed off, looking at the other boys with a smile in my heart. “I guess we’ll see when we get there.” I said and Mark smiled. “You’re so adorable.” He said slinging his arm across my shoulder. “Oh, gee...thanks.” I laughed as we continued walking. No sounds were heard on the streets except for our footsteps and laughter.

“What time is it?” Renjun asked as he walked beside me. “I would check...but my phone is being an ass.” He chuckled, motioning to his cracked and destroyed phone. “It is currently -- 3:21 AM.” I showed him my phone and he smiled. “Isn’t there a 24-hour breakfast place up this street?” He continued to ask and Mark nodded. “Guess we know our first stop.” Mark smiled and Renjun went ahead to tell the boys.

Once at the front, Mark and I stayed behind the group. Mark wanted to look over the boys and keep a steady headcount while the boys wanted me to be behind them so if anyone was coming from ahead -- they were ready to defend...guess they didn’t think out the whole ‘full-proof’ plan. It was fine, I had Mark beside me.

The boys goofed off in front of us and were acting like the kids they were truly at heart. “Hyuck! Stop trying to kiss me!” Jeno cried, keeping Donghyuck’s face away with his hand on the slightly younger boy’s forehead. Hyuck had wrapped his arms around Jeno’s waist and was trying his hardest to connect his lips to Jeno’s cheek. Laughter was heard as the sign for 24-hour breakfast was lit up down the road. “Race you there.” Jisung called and sprinted toward food.

Everyone chased after the younger one like their life depended on it, yet Mark was not having it. “These kids,” was all I heard Mark mutter, “BOYS! STOP!” He called but they only answered back with laughter. Mark was about to run after them but I grabbed his arm. “Dude...they’re fine. We can see them from here.” I said and Mark was restraining himself from breaking my grip and running.

Yet, he didn’t and stayed at a steady pace. He let a clenched breath go once we both watched all the boys fight over the first one in the door. “I know, I just don’t want anything happening to my boys.” He confessed as he saw that Renjun was the last one in the door, who initially just stood there once the group arrived. Renjun never wanted to fight his brothers with something so meaningless; they were all going to sit down at the same booth anyway.

“My boys?” I repeated Mark’s words once they finally registered; while looking at the side of his face. He couldn’t hide the faint smile that appeared for half a second. “Yeah. My boys.” He confirmed as we both got to the door. They were already at the booth, sitting down, waiting for Mark to come in and sit down too -- for he was the one with cash in their wallet.

“They’re a pain in my ass...but I wouldn’t trade them for the world.” He smiled a little and I couldn’t help to mimic him. “Ew. Don’t be such a dad.” I laughed and he hit my arm lightly. “Don’t look too much into it.” He defended and opened the door for me. I walked in and stepped toward the rest of the eager boys.

The old lady behind the counter smiled at us all as we sat down and talked excitedly amongst the small crowd. We all passed around the menus and looked upon rows and rows of what seemed like momentary delicacies.

The lady finally came over and was ready to take our order.

We all ordered the most delicious things we could see and think of. Jisung and Chenle bounced in their seats as they watched the chef cook the food. Yet...Mark and I were more focused on the chef himself.

Yeah...maybe 6′2″...280 lbs. But that was all good and fine...but his tattoos were...off-putting. See, the way his lines were curled and the colors used were something like I’ve only seen in Taeyong’s business folders. I couldn’t pinpoint which clan he was from.

“Business folder?” Mark leaned over and whispered. I nodded and pulled out my phone. I pulled up the map and scrolled out. “We’re in seven stars territory.” I turned toward Mark and started slapping his arm and shoulder. “We’re fucked. We’re dead. We’re not gonna make it.” I rambled, slapping his arm more. “Stop we’re fine. Stop freaking out or you’re gonna draw attention.” He said hitting me back. “Yo yo yo,” Jaemin said flinging a napkin at us both. “can y’all stop fighting like siblings. It’s killing the vibe.” He continued as he sat back in his seat.

I leaned onto the table a little and looked at all of them. “You all shut the fuck up and act like normal fucking teenagers or we’re gonna die.” I blabbed. I felt someone’s hand go from my neck and up the back of my head where they gripped my hair and pulled me back up to a sitting position.

“Don’t psyche them out, dumbass.” Mark said from next to me and I just relaxed my shoulders. “I haven’t seen Mark grab y/n like that since she yelled at him in front of Taey-” “Shut up!” Mark and I both screamed at Hyuck.

The cook was eyeing us suspiciously. “Peter. Shut. Up.” Mark still had a firm grip in my hair. It didn’t hurt, it was just annoying and uncomfortable; only in use to grab my attention and make me focus.

“Uh...come again?” Jeno asked and I kept it going. “James. Tell Minhyung to release me.” I begged but I could hear the confused glances towards each other.

“Uh...release her. Please?” Jeno asked and Mark’s hand released my hair. His hand patted at the spot where he pulled at my hair. “I have to tie my shoe.” I slipped under the table and grabbed someone’s foot. Renjun peeped under the table. “Chef. Seven Stars.” I said and his eyes widened.

I held a finger to my lips and he slowly nodded. “English names.” I mouthed again and he nodded. I came back up and fixed my hoodie and hair. Renjun told the small group silently. Their faces went white and they didn’t dare look at the cook. Mark’s leg was bouncing up and down but his face read calm and relaxed.

I punched his leg and he sat still again. “Just act normal and we’ll be fine.” I warned and they nodded. “Now here comes food. Let’s just eat, and get out of here.” I said and they looked on the bright side: food.

The older lady brought a couple plates at a time and we ate comfortably. We were all on edge but still enjoyed the well-made food. Jeno had been checking the food thoroughly and everything checked out clean.

We were all back on the road in no-time and some time had passed. We were now surrounded by bitter and cool light coming from the awakening sun. Some people were on their way to work and school but we tried to blend in as much as possible.

“Woah...if we take a short cut through the tunnels, we can shave off a couple hours,” I said looking at the small navigation device in my phone.

“It’s a full-proof.” I said and they all looked at each other. “I’m guessing you’ve never gone down to the tunnels?” Chenle asked and I looked at him. “Oh, you’re so cute.” He pinched my cheeks after a moment.

“We wouldn’t last in the tunnels,” Jaemin said as I slapped Chenle’s hands away.

“they’re littered with other smaller gangs. They’re not tough on their own, we just don’t know what connections they have.” Jaemin continued, and everyone around me nodded in agreement.

“Come on, we’ll get there soon enough.” Hyuck grabbed my hand and dragged me along down the sidewalk. “But...but.” I looked at my phone. “Give me this,” Hyuck said as he grabbed my phone and looked at it himself.

“We’re so much more ahead than I thought we were oh my!” he commented as he continued to drag me. “Come on you peasants. I guess I’ll lead you.” Hyuck said from ahead of everyone. My wrist still entrapped in his hand.

“You guys are so adorable.” an older lady commented after a couple of minutes. “My little sister is the cutest isn’t she?” Hyuck asked and pinched my cheek roughly. “Wish all siblings were like you both.” She sighed as she walked away.

“Oh my gosh let go of me.” I groaned and began picking at his hand to make him let go.

“Above?” Hyuck looked to Mark and Mark nodded. Hyuck took a turn on a road and I was forced to follow. “Where are we going?” I whined. “Oh shush you, baby.” Donghyuck whined back and pulling me toward his side.

“We’re going over the tunnels. We’ll shave off the time but won’t have to go through the impending trouble.” He booped my nose. I swatted at his hand and we continued walking. “Well, then I want to lead.” I said reaching for my phone. “No. It’s going in my pocket so we don’t lose it.” He said and slipped it in his pocket.

I turned around and went to stand next to Mark at the back. “Nope. Go up more. I’m looking over everyone as we go over the tunnels.” He said and I groaned again. “You are like a dad.” I fought and stood in between Jaemin and Jeno.

Jeno comfortably slipped his arm around my shoulders and we continued walking.

We came to what looked like a factory desert. Abandoned warehouses and factories littered the land for as far as I could see. The smell of decay and oil smelled fresh ironically and I already knew this was a bad idea.

Jeno held me closer as we actually entered the overhead of the tunnels. From the grates, you could hear the talk of people beneath us. Jaemin shook his head at me as we passed and kept silent.

“We’re gonna have to hurry it up if we want to make it out of tunnel territory by sundown.” Mark piped up from the back. “Sundown!?” I asked looking at him. “Ssshh.” They all shushed and Jeno’s hand came over my mouth. “The tunnels stretch a long way.” Mark answered and I rolled my eyes.

“Of course they do.” I sighed once the hand was removed.

~~~~~~~

We had been walking for a while. It was into the afternoon now and it honestly feels like we were walking in circles down this straight stretch of land. I knew we weren’t...but the repetitive bridges were nauseating.

We had no accidents yet and everything seemed boring...but safe. But, boy did I speak too soon.

We were walking past another tunnel opening and this time the laughter was coming out and getting closer to the entrance. “No. Oh my gosh, we’re dead.” I said, starting to freak out. Jeno’s arm was still around me and has been around me for a while. “No. We’re fine. Just look at Hyuck and don’t speak.” Jeno said and I obeyed.

I looked at the light-haired boy at the front of the group still. Jisung and Chenle were behind him. Jaemin was on my left and Jeno on my right. Renjun trailed close behind with Mark trailing close behind him.

I was freaking out and crawling in my own skin at the thought of confrontation. We were so close. So close yet so far.

The people emerged and there were way more of them than us. They looked younger than most of our group, but they still packed some punch. They were staring some of us up and down and it was like a coyote preying on a dog or a house cat.

The boys weren’t afraid to look back, packing disgust into a menacing stare to another human being. I’ve never seen some of them look at another person like that.

“Don’t do anything you’ll regret, boys.” Mark said to his own group and it broke the silence like a gunshot. “Yes, boss.” Some boys murmured back to confirm they got his order.

“Just keep walking.” He continued and we were lead away, but it didn’t stop there.

“Where you going, guys? I have some people who wanna meet!” One of them yelled at us. “Don’t. Look. Back.” Mark hissed and hurried us along a little faster.

You could hear some people run and some running echoing from the tunnels around us. “Don’t freak out,” Jaemin said and grabbed me himself. Jeno let go and his arm was replaced by Jae’s. “Don’t speak a single word. Don’t look at them and they won’t mess with you.” He said quietly so I heard him and I nodded.

He pulled me close and I could smell the familiar aroma of nicotine burned into his jacket. It was calming but alerting to my senses. It was nauseating yet fantasy-like.

The group had run through the tunnels to cut us off. Yet, Hyuck lead us around the bodies of distraction with ease and no emotion.

“Where you going pretty boy?” One of the gangsters asked, running backward in front of Donghyuck to distract him. “You would make a perfect little bitch, wouldn’t you?” The man asked; winking at an unwavering Hyuck.

“All perfect and small. Look at those legs. I’d love to spread ‘em.” “I’d take a step the fuck back if I were you,” Donghyuck had enough, his scarier voice coming out. His voice wasn’t deep, but it was one of those voices that could haunt your dreams if you didn’t listen to it the first time.

“Or what?” The man asked, shoving Hyuck by the shoulder. Donghyuck stopped and took off his jacket, letting it fall to the ground.

“I’m gonna show you what.” He said, his hands subconsciously rolling up the already short sleeves so now his full arms were exposed. His tanned skin set perfectly in the afternoon light and it was a beautiful contrast to the pale pavement of the tunnels.

They started getting closer, scaling each other up in the process.

I opened my mouth to call him so he wouldn’t fight, but Jaemin already stopped me. “You have to let him do this. Let him go.” He said and I watched in horror.

“You won’t hit me, pretty boy.” The man taunted, but Hyuck wasn’t having it today. “Just leave us the fuck alone.” He said and turned to grab his jacket. I could tell he was getting tired and grouchy. He needed a nap.

“Or what?” He asked, coming up behind Hyuck and pushing him into the ground.

Some of the other men ‘ooo’d’ at Hyuck as he hit the ground. Yet I could see the ring adorned fingers clench as the veins popped out of the arm; Hyuck got off the ground and swung violently at the man. A ‘pop’ was heard a cry from the other man.

“My jaw. My jaw.” He cried, running to his friends. “My jaw. Out.” He cried, gripping at the arms of his friends. I looked to find his jaw completely dislocated. I cringed a little but turned my attention back to where it was supposed to go.

“Who’s the little bitch now?” Hyuck asked with a smirk and grabbed his jacket. He started walking again, so we started following. “Who is that little lady you got with you?” Another guy asked as the one from earlier moaned and groaned about his jaw.

I felt Jaemin try to pull me closer, but it wasn’t physically possible. “Just keep walking,” Renjun said and we kept going. “they’re not gonna do anything.”

We heard new footsteps walk next to us and we ignored the presence of more bodies joining the herd. A man wiggled behind Jisung and directly in front of me. I had to brake hard so I wouldn’t run into him. I caused Renjun to bump into me slightly, but his arms snaked around my waist. “I’m Dani.” He held his hand out, and Renjun picked me up and switched placed with me. “And she’s ‘not interested’.” He said, sizing the man up.

“Oh, let the girl speak for herself,” Dani said and I felt Mark from behind me. Jisung came from the second row and stood with Mark in case something happened from the back.

I kept my mouth shut and didn’t move at all. More guys started picking at Mark and Jisung. Some of them decided to mess with Hyuck still. Chenle was helping Hyuck and the other 3 were preoccupied with Dani.

I felt someone grab my hair and twirl it around their fingers. I shivered at the touch and finally made eye contact. “Oh, what beautiful eyes you have, princess.” he said and tried grabbing at my face. “Oh...thanks.” I smiled uncomfortably.

“So where is a pretty girl like you going with a bunch of other boys?” He asked getting closer. “uh.” Was all that came out of my mouth. My mind couldn't form coherent sentences. My chest cavity felt like it was filling up thick and metallically feeling blood; smooth and distracting.

“’cause if it’s what I think it is. I would love to join.” He slipped a hand onto my hip and I tried retracting. Yet, he was stuck on like a leech. “um.” was all I was left with. “Yo back up.” Mark squeezed himself in front of me and was literally nose to nose with the other man.

“What are you gonna do about it?” The man asked and his hand slipped in his pocket. I was pulled back by Renjun and there was a circle forming. There was a clear divide between the two different groups of people.

Mark was still nose to nose with the foreign feeling man. “Don’t touch her. Are you stupid or something?” Mark spat and the man grew angrier. “Are you testing my intelligence, little boy?” The man asked and Mark just stood there.

The man laid the first hit to Mark’s stomach. Mark hunched over in pain and agony. I moved to go run to him but someone’s hands held my arms comfortingly. I looked to see Hyuck next to me. “He’s okay. He’s got this.” He reassured me but my heart still raced with worry.

“But-” I began as I watched Mark fall to the ground clutching his jaw. “Sshh. He knows what he’s doing y/n.” He said and all I had left was to trust him. If I didn’t, then I probably would’ve run up and stood in front of him.

Mark played hurt and weak for a little while longer as he was kicked in the face and what not until the man bent down to talk to Mark. “What’s wrong, little boy? Got hur-” Mark quickly kicked the man’s knee caps back. A shrieking cry and dislocated knee caps filled my mind as I turned away. Hyuck grabbed me and lead me away. But I could still hear the cracks and snapping of what I supposed were bones. The sounds wouldn’t stop.

“Oh my god.” I said grabbing at my face, itching to get the sound out of my ears.

“Y/n.” He said and grabbed my face. “You are okay. I promise.” He said and I just stared at him. “You’re going to need to get ready to run.” He said as his hands came off from holding my face gently. “What? Why?” I asked as an unusually loud crack was heard. I easily whimpered at the sound, shielding my ears.

He pulled them off and he began explaining, “They’re gonna be pissed. So we’re gonna have to get our asses out of here.” He said and I continued to stare at his face like we’re crazy.

“I know the tunnels like the back of my hand. And as the decoy, I have to lead them away from Mark and the guys so they have a chance to run off.” He said and I hit his shoulder. “What?!” “You’re coming with me, y/n.” He said and I started freaking out more; if that was even possible.

“Do you really think I would let them get to you? You’ll be okay. I promise.” He got my attention with the last two words. Another cry was heard from the group.

“Y/n.” He said again, motioning towards his hand that his pinky was jutting off of. “Okay.” I nodded, linking our pinkies and joining our thumbs together.

“You’ll be okay. You got this.” He smiled and pinched my cheek lightly. “Do you trust me?” He asked and I had no choice but to nod. “I trust you, Duckie.”

He smiled very small and grabbed my hand tightly. “Shoes tied?” He asked and I nodded. He looked like he was second-guessing this all. “Let’s go.” He said and began jogging with me next to him.

“Hey fuck faces! You dropped a phone back there, so I’m gonna go return it to the cops! Let them take a look at it?!” Hyuck yelled and that got everyone’s attention.

The men who smelled of hatred and death began charging towards us. “Let’s go, sunflower.” He pulled my hand and we were off.

Like a race car down a pavement strip, our tired feet carried us towards non-confrontation. Our chests were on fire and our heads pounded with exhilaration. “Taking a right.” He said to me and pulled me right into a tunnel. My feet were going faster than my mind could process. It was very hard to realize what I was actually doing.

“Get back here! We won’t hurt ‘ya!” They would call after us -- the enclosed tunnel making their voices echo in the eerieness of it all. It was very surreal and frightening. “Hyuck...m-my legs.” I wheezed and he looked terrified himself.

“Almost. There.” He sighed and we made a left in complete darkness. It surprised me how much he really knew the tunnels like the back of his hand. He wasn’t lying.

We continued to sprint for a little while longer until we abruptly ran into a big metal door. I could spell it rusting at the moment. He felt around in the dark for a moment until I heard him freeze. “Oh no. No no no.” He said trying to lift the big metal lock. The footsteps were getting closer. “Duckie?” I asked, afraid of what was coming.

“Fuck. Open.” He said banging on the door. “They locked the fucking door?!” He asked as he smacked and kicked it endlessly. “Oh, little kids.” A voice taunted and echoed from around the corner.

His shoulders drooped and his head dropped. He looked at me with sorry eyes. “Duckie,” I said quietly and he shook his head minimally. He turned around and pushed me behind him slowly. “...I’m scared...” I confessed with tears in my eyes. “I’m sorry, y/n.” He said as a flashlight was shown on his face. He put his arms up in surrender and dropped his head down. “awe...is he trying to protect her?” A man asked and my heart dropped.

I grabbed a loop on his pants and pulled him closer as I shoved my head in between his shoulder blades. “We don’t have a phone. We were...” He was trying to find the right words. “We were just bullshitting around.” He confessed, his voice dropping.

“Oh, we know. But you have us here...so let’s give you guys some attention?” He asked and Hyuck’s head has never raised so fast. “We came all the way here...why not have some lessons on respect?” I gritted my teeth as I felt his body being ripped away from mine.

____________

Donghyuck

She was so cold. She was shaking and I couldn’t do anything to help. My legs were shit after the damn beating; hers weren’t any better.

“I am so sorry.” I rocked her. By the time I came to my own senses, it was well past night time and the moon shined through the overhead sewer grate. The clouds decided to let down some tears as it fell around us and the cold night whipped at our cheeks.

I had crawled over to her on my hands and knees and when I leaned over her, she still didn’t wake up. I put my back against the door and picked her up to set her on my lap.

“I am so sorry.” Was the only thing I could say as I continued to hold her limp body. “I am so sorry, y/n.” I said rocking more and more. “Please wake up.” I begged and her face was cold as I touched it. “Please?” My chest cracked with a cry.

“Please help us,” I called up into the sewer, waiting for someone to find us.

Mark, Jeno, Renjun...Taeyong...anyone.

“Please,” I called louder but my cries were swallowed by the night.

“Please.” I pleaded one last time, quietly.

“I promised I’ll be good. I promise I’ll be nice. I promise to take the trash out...just please help.” I cried with tears running down my cheeks.

“She doesn’t deserve this. She should be home...not here.” I sobbed and held onto her like a doll.

They took her phone, they took my wallet, they took her hoodie...they took everything.

My tired feet still ached and were bleeding with the want for relief. Her shoes were gone and I could tell her hope was depleting while she was asleep. “We need to go, y/n.” I said, determination gaining in my chest. “Come on.” I said and put her down next to me.

I grabbed at the railings and bars around me to lift me. Yet, shrieking cries bounced off the metal tunnels like cried. Cries from lost souls trying to find their way back home; yet it was just me trying to stand on my two legs.

“Fuck!” I yelled and finally stood up fully, but as soon as I let go of the bar, I tumbled down to the cold and wet ground.

I just need to get her out of here. I need to get her out. She’s not gonna die here. She’s gonna get help.

“Come on.” I said grabbing her arms and pulling her over to me.

I took off my hoodie and wrapped it around her shaking body. “We gotta go y/n.” I said, sniffling a wiping my tears quickly. “We gotta get out of here. We have to get to Busan and get you help.” I spoke the dream into existence. I pulled her up and over so she was on my back. I had no choice but to army crawl us out of this damn hell.

“You’re gonna be so warm.” I chuckled, crawling all the way to the end of the hall. “You’re gonna have so much food when you wake up. You are so much lighter than what I remember.” I made small conversation to myself. “and you’re gonna sleep in a huge bed when you wake up. Jaemin is gonna buy so many stuffed animals when he sees you again.” I hiccuped.

“And...and you and Doyoung-hyung are gonna go get coffee like you guys usually do. And you and Jungwoo-hyung are gonna go see that new romantic comedy I keep teasing you about.” I groaned as I pulled us over a rock in the concrete.

“Where the hell is Mark?” I asked myself after a couple minutes of painfully crawling. “I give that kid a chance for a breakaway and he can’t help his best friend with 2 broken legs?” I tsk’ed, “That old dirty bastard.” I finished.

~~~~~

It was daybreak by the time I crawled all the way back to the entrance. My ribs and chest were on fire and y/n still shivered on my back. I looked left and right and everything was clear. “Alright. Y/n. We arrived.” I sighed and shimmied her off my back. I laid her in the warming sun and turned over on my back next to her.

“Just a little while longer. Mark is on his way.” I said holding her hand comfortingly. “Just a little bit.” I sighed and sat up with much dismay of facing the fuck-ups with what my legs became over the course of the night.

I shimmied my pants up my legs and blood was everywhere. It was honestly shocking how I did not pass out already. “Think.” I whispered and took my hoodie off of y/n.

I un-knotted the strings and pulled them out of the little holes. I gritted my teeth and tied my legs off. Spurts of blood went everywhere but I honestly got relief once the loss of circulation numbed my legs.

I laid back in the sun and waited to warm up. I would check y/n’s pulse every so once in a while just to make sure she wasn’t giving up on life yet.

~~~~~~

“Wake up!” Someone shook my torso rapidly. My ribs ached and I coughed up a metallic tasting liquid. I looked past the glare to see Mark above me and Renjun crowding next to y/n. It was about mid-morning and the sun was scorching down.

“What happened?!” Mark asked as he looked down at me. “Your legs are purple!” He tried moving the makeshift tourniquet. “No. You release that, I’ll release my fists on your face.” I warned and he held his hands up.

“Someone locked the tunnel room...and they caught up...she still hasn’t woken up.” I said looking over at a pale y/n, Renjun was taking her pulse as Jeno checked her eyes. “She’s in a state of shocked sleep. Too much adrenaline.” He concluded and everyone nodded.

“We have to get you guys home,” Mark said trying to lift me up. “Set. Me. Down.” I elbowed his stomach and he doubled over as he dropped me.

I took this advantage and grabbed his collar. “You will get y/n to Busan and you will get her the care she needs. You will not take her back to a shit shack.” I said and his eyes widened. “We have come this far to turn back now. We are getting her to Busan.” I said and he nodded his head.

“Get her up.” Mark ordered as he scrambled to his feet.

Jaemin picked her up and put her on his back. “I’ll get his upper body?” Jeno motioned to me while looking at Mark. They came over but I started throwing fists. “Dude. Calm the fuck down.” Mark said holding my arms. “No. I’m staying here.” I fought them.

“What?!” Mark yelled. “Are you crazy?!” He yelled more. “Yes...and I’m also dead weight. We already wasted a whole day. You need to get a move on.” I said and they just looked to each other.

“...I already broke a promise to her...I can’t break her entirely...”

____________

Mark

“We got this, guys.” Chenle tried cheering us up as we left the tunnels. Yet, I looked back to where I could still see Hyuck lying on the ground -- helpless.

I left a handgun with him and a wad of cash to figure his life out.

I told, “5 days and I’ll be back for you.” he could only look at me with tears in his eyes. His face had gone pale and he gripped my hand. “Get her home. Please.” He begged and I nodded, ready to give him anything he needed.

“5 days.” I said again and he nodded, rolling his eyes. “Anything you say, brother.” He whispered quietly.

“Just...get help please,” I asked and he rolled his eyes. “Go, Mark.” He said and I began walking away.

“See you later, Hyuck.” I said but I can not describe the way my heart broke and sank when I heard him mutter: “Goodbye, Mark.”

I had to jog to catch up with the group, and I already feel empty as a leader...but mostly an older brother. Yeah, I wanted to take him with us. But he insisted on leaving him here so he could fend for himself for a little bit.

“He will be alright,” Jaemin said as he walked with y/n on his back. “He’s got this. He’s the strongest out of us all.” He reasoned and I nodded -- still looking back till his motionless body disappeared over a hill we had blindly walked over.

“Please, God.” I muttered quietly. “Please help him and forgive me for my wrong doings for our tired feet are leading us towards paradise -- home.”

← Previously Chapter & Next Chapter →

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nctxnation · 5 years

Text

Crush

➳ Pairing: Jaehyun x Female Reader

➳ Genre: Angst | Best Friends AU

➳ Word Count: 3.6k

➳ “That’s why they’re called crushes, because you get crushed.”

“I am not watching Sixteen Candles,” Jaehyun whined as he plopped down on the couch, hand already digging into the large bowl of popcorn. You were gathered at his house for your annual Last Day of Summer movie night “Let’s watch Die Hard. Last year you got to choose the movie.”

“How about The Notebook?” You suggested already knowing the answer. You bit back a laugh as Jaehyun’s face screwed up in distaste.

“You can’t disrespect me like that in my own house, Y/N,” He grinned flicking popcorn at you. “How about we flip a coin. Heads it’s Die Hard, tails it’s Sixteen Candles. No Notebook.”

“How is that fair to me?” You said taking the empty spot next to him. “What if I choose The Notebook instead?”

“Ah, no, you chose Sixteen Candles first, tough luck kid.”

He pulled out a coin and you both watched with bated breath as it twirled in the air. The coin landed and Jaehyun immediately hollered in joy as he went to grab Die Hard. You can’t say you were mad. Seeing Jaehyun so child-like as he gleefully watched Die Hard and murmured every line made your heart squeeze. You didn’t know why,

It’s safe to say, you didn’t pay much attention to the movie but to the boy next to you.

You watched as Jaehyun bounced his legs nervously, his eyes shifting from side to side. You two were sitting in the courtyard, basking in the bright sunlight and going over the reading material for your classes.

“What’s got you so worked up?” You asked playfully flicking his leg.

He jumped slightly, picking at the edges of his shirt with shaky fingers. He didn’t meet your eyes, instead opted to stare at a stray fray of fabric from his shirt.

“Can I ask you something?” He seemed so sheepish and it blossomed warmth in your chest.

“Sure,” You dropped the books on your lap and propped your chin on your clasped hands, giving him your full, undivided attention.

“Have you ever liked someone so much it consumes you?” His stare flickered around the courtyard, never settling on one thing for too long “You get those--stupid butterflies when you see them. You can’t stop thinking about them.”

“Wow, Jaehyun--”

“I’ve never felt this way before, Y/N,” He sounded pained. All you wanted to do reach a hand out and yank him right into your arms. “This is stupid, right? I’m freaking out over nothing.”

“You’re in love, Jaehyun.”

The words tasted like poison dripping from your tongue, but you shoved all the feelings stirring inside you aside.

Jaehyun sucked in a hissing breath, clamped his hands over his ears, and rocked back and forth like a child.

“Don’t say that!” He sputtered, shaking like a petulant child having a temper tantrum. “I’m not the lovey-dovey type. Don’t be gross, Y/N.”

Beside the conflicting feelings bubbling within you, a laugh broke out of your lips, “Okay, okay Valentine’s Baby. It’s a crush.”

“A crush.”

He rolled the words around his mouth as if he were trying to make sense of it. Slowly, you watched as the words sunk in, his face morphing from shock to disgust to defeat.

“You do know what a crush is, right Valentine’s Boy?”

“Yes, Y/N, I’m not stupid,” He sighed dejectedly, pulling at his hair. “I hate having such an intense crush on someone. Why is it so exhausting?”

You shrugged wanting to deflect all the attention he was suddenly giving you. He turned to you watching you with curious eyes.

“Haven’t you ever had a crush before?”

“Look, who’s talking,” You defended weakly. “You’re the one having a crisis over your first crush.”

“This isn’t my first crush, don’t be silly,” He chuckled, “Just the most intense one. Haven’t you ever liked someone?”

“Yeah, remember how I got rejected last year?”

“No, that doesn’t count,” Jaehyun shook his head, his brown hair caught the sunlight making it glow a beautiful amber. “I mean like having a heart-stopping, tongue-swelling, cringe-worthy crush. A super intense crush that makes you have a crisis.”

“No, Jae, I’m not a drama queen like you.”

“I’m serious, Y/N,” He whined, grabbing your hand. You ignored the pulsing in your stomach from his touch. You blamed the sweltering heat.

“Look, Jae, there just isn’t that many guys that I find interesting around here,” You admitted, although neither of you seemed to be fully buying it. “Let’s just focus on this crush of yours and less on me, okay?”

“Fine,” He conceded letting go on your hand and tousling his hair nervously one more.

Your cold hand laid limp on your own lap. You two always held hands, ever since you were little. It was a nervous tick for both of you. Whenever one needed immediate comfort you reached for an open hand. You never thought anymore of it. Except now, you craved the feel of his hand more than anything. His touch felt different. It made you feel warm and tingly and at home.

Stop being so silly, Y/N.

“We’ll fix me, then we’ll find you a man,” He smirked, his eyes trailing after a group of guys. “How about Doyoung?”

Doyoung was another person from your mutual friend group. You had all grown up together, watched each other go through awkward adolescent phases

“He’s practically like my cousin twice removed, don’t be gross, Jae.”

“I’m focusing on the twice removed part,” He grinned mischievously, “That’s practically not related, right?” At your glared, he relented, “Okay, okay, how about Taeil?”

“He’s like an older brother,” You plucked the book off your lap and smacked him on the side, “Stop naming everyone in our group, they’re family. Stop promoting incest, Jaehyun, and focus on getting yourself a date.”

He blanched, “Date?”

“Well, if you have a crush on someone, naturally you’d want to ask them out.”

“Whoa, I still haven’t moved past the whole crush thing yet, let’s take this slow.”

“We’ve been over this, you’ve had crushes before. I’ve witness them.”

“Yeah, but not like this,” His voice took on a serious note, “Ji Woo is different.”

“Ji Woo? Lee Ji Woo?”

Of course, Jaehyun would choose the prettiest, smartest girl in your grade to crush on. You had nothing on Ji Woo she was kind and was always very patient whenever she had to partner up with you in Chemistry. She was so timid and reserved and never spared a second glance at Jaehyun. Which, in hindsight, shouldn’t shock you as to why Jaehyun liked her. He wanted someone who didn’t constantly fawn over his charms. She truly was different in his eyes.

“Look, can we drop this?” His voice was strain as he spoke, “She thinks I’m annoying. There’s no way it’ll go anywhere and I’m sure this intense crush will go away in no time.”

“Are you sure?”

He nodded in affirmative and cracked open his book, pouring his whole attention on studying. He was adamant about his crush going away.

Jaehyun was horribly and unsurprisingly wrong. His crush didn’t fade away with the last remnants of summer, no it rolled through the winds of autumn. You found out Ji Woo and Jaehyun had been sharing desks in on of their shared classes this year, which was why Jaehyun’s past interest in her had grown into a full-blown crush.

Ji Woo was either oblivious at Jaehyun’s obvious feelings or very pointedly ignoring them. You had a nagging feeling inside of you, which you detected down to wanting to just meddle in their blossoming relationship.

Which is why you found yourself cornering an unsuspecting Ji Woo after a tutoring session with some other student. You claimed you needed her help with Calculus, but really you were only there to fish for information.

After the first few problems, you finally mustered up the courage to ask her what you really came in to the library for, “So, I see Jaehyun and you are getting close.”

“He’s my desk mate,” She smiled warmly at you, writing diligently on your workbook as you solved the rest of the problem.

“Just desk mates?” You quirked an eyebrow at her, prompting her to add on.

“Don’t worry, I won’t replace you if that’s what you’re afraid of,” Her eyes gleamed down on you. “You’re pretty special to him, Y/N.”

“He says I’m the annoying piece of gum he can’t scrape of his shoe,” You giggled finishing the last of your Calculus homework. “Charming isn’t it?”

“You mean a lot to him. He speaks highly of you.”

“Sure, sure,” You waved her off, but her words made your heart skip a beat. Was Jaehyun really speaking so well about you? “Would you see yourself dating him?”

“What?” Her face faltered and her eyebrows pinched together. “Jaehyun and me dating? I thought...I thought you two were just dancing around each other. Don’t you like each other?”

You choked on your own spit, “What? Jaehyun and me? Oh my God, I think I’m going to throw up.”

Your mouth was saying one thing, but your heart was beating a million miles per minute. The thought of Jaehyun possibly liking you didn’t make you queasy. If someone had said that last year, you would have already upchucked your lunch all over your homework. Now, however, all it made you want to do was break out into a full-blown grin.

You bit your lip, suppressing you grin and the whirlwind of unknown feelings swirling inside you threatening to be let loose.

“You don’t like him?” She tilted her head to the side, analyzing every micro expression on your face. You must’ve been a very good actress, because upon seeing your expression she finally deduced her own conclusion, “Wow, I guess, I was wrong then. You don’t like him.”

She’s absolutely right. You can’t possibly like him right? He’s your best friend. Your childhood friend. Your brother even!

“I mean, if that’s the case, I guess I can see myself dating him,” She confessed, mouth forming into a hard line. “He’s not annoying as I thought he was, but I really thought I’d be the one playing matchmaker to the two of you.”

“Ha, good one Ji Woo,” You really wanted to cry now. “Look, sorry to break your bubble, but Jung Jaehyun doesn’t like me. He has a crush on you. An intense, heart-stopping, tongue-swelling, cringe-worthy crush.”

“He does?” Her eyes twinkled and you almost wanted to say no. Almost.

“Yes, he does. So, can you throw him a bone, please? He’s getting really annoying.”

“If you’re sure you don’t have feelings for him.”

Some part of you wanted to scream that you did have feelings. But you couldn’t right? He was your friend. Only your friend. Nothing more. You wouldn’t regret doing this because he was your friend and he had a crush on her, not you.

“I’m sure, Ji Woo. Now, let me play Cupid, please. You won’t regret it.”

“Okay, if you’re sure, Y/N. I trust you.”

Ji Woo didn’t regret it, you however did. Now, it was your turn to be the one horribly and unsurprisingly wrong. Jaehyun was shocked the first time you invited Ji Woo to sit with your group at lunch. Doyoung had choked on his milk before making awkward signals at everyone in the group.

It was like something in Ji Woo had switched on. She was more vibrant and open around Jaehyun. She blossomed like a fresh lily in front of you own eyes captivating the whole lot of boys at your lunch table.

“Why did you bring Ji Woo?” Jaehyun had asked, pulling you aside as the bell had rung signaling the end of the lunch hour.

“I’m helping you out, Bubble Brain,” You nudged him, eyeing as Doyoung told Ji Woo a story as they collected their empty trays and walked to class “You said you liked her right? Or was that just a lie? Do you not have a crush on Ji Woo?”

His dark eyes were on you, making you squirm under their power. He looked like he was contemplating something in his head, his eyes shifting from Jiwoo to you. He sighed, scuffing the ground with the tip of his shoe, avoiding your stare completely.

“You don’t have to play matchmaker, I told you to drop it,” Was that a note of dejection you heard? Was he disappointed you had meddled? “I wished you wouldn’t have interfered.”

“I’m sorry if you think I’ve gone and muck things up,” You bristled, “Forgive me for trying to do something nice for my best friend, my practical brother.”

His gaze snapped up to you, unwavering and flashing with emotion, “Brother?”

“Yeah, you’re like my brother, Jae,” He was far from it and the fact that it was finally starting to sink in, scared you. “I just wanted to help you out like a friend should. Sorry, if I overstepped my boundaries. I just wanted you to get the girl.”

His voice was bittersweet and his smile didn’t quite reach his eyes, “I don’t think I’ll get the girl, Y/N.”

“What do you mean, you idiot,” You playfully poked his cheek, something you did whenever you wanted him to smile wide enough his dimples became visible. “Ji Woo totally has a crush on you. Just help me by letting me help you. Your happiness means a lot to me.”

He was silent for a moment, his face never revealing any of his innermost thoughts, “So, you want to set up Ji Woo and me?”

“Yes, Jaehyun, and you say I’m the slow one. She is your crush, right?”

He nodded, unable to find the words to tell you that Ji Woo had been the first name that had popped into his head that day. All the while he was thinking about you. Feeling that intense, heart-stopping, tongue-swelling, cringe-worthy crush about his childhood best friend. The girl who only saw him as a brother.

“Okay then let me help you win you crush over.”

Jaehyun had been right. Crushes were exhausting. They were also painful. You had managed to ignore the growing warmth you got whenever you saw Jaehyun, the torturous squeeze your heart gave whenever he got close enough for you to catch his scent.

The full force of your feelings hadn’t hit you until they finally snuck up on you. A couple of months had gone by and Ji Woo had become an honorary member of your group. You had really pushed for it, shoving her and Jaehyun together at any chance you got. You kept telling yourself that it was the right thing to do, even if it didn’t feel right.

You had all decided to enjoy finishing off exam season by going out to the movies. Well technically, instead of cramming last minute you guys would go to the movies the day before exams to de-stress. The the following days your school always held a dance after finals, right before break and usually you and the whole group went together. You always ended up dancing with Johnny, Jaehyun, and Taeyong. One year Doyoung, Ten, and Taeil even roped you into having a dance off.

As you were leaving the movies and walking into your favorite pizzeria, Jaehyun suddenly pulled Ji Woo to the decide. The boys hollered and whooped and Jaehyun just waved them off sheepishly. Your eyebrows pulled together in confusion, not understanding the gist of the situation.

“What’s going on?” You whispered Doyoung as everyone began to dig into the pizza.

“Hmm? Oh,” He quickly shoved rest of slice into his mouth and cast a furtive glance your way, “Jaehyun didn’t tell you?”

“Tell me what?”

Doyoung looked like he didn’t want to be the bearer of bad news but he continued, “He’s asking Ji Woo to the end of the year dance. I think he wants to make them official.”

“Oh,” Your heart felt heavy and your lungs felt like exploding. It was liking there was pressure building up inside of you, like you were suffocating way below sea level. “My plan worked.”

“Yeah, good one Cupid, you got Valentine Boy his crush,” Doyoung’s voice was teasing, but his eyes were slowly processing the emotions flickering across your face. “Y/N are you okay?”

“Huh?” Your voice sounded distorted even to your own ears, “Yeah, listen, I have to go. I realize I’m really not prepared for my exam tomorrow. I need to go study.”

“Y/N wait--”

You had dashed out the door before Doyoung could even get a full sentence out.

That was the night your feelings had hit you like a wrecking ball. You had ran home and flung yourself into bed, sobbing like your heart depended on it. Every bit of the emotions you had suppressed, resurfaced so powerfully you felt like you were drowning.

You could have been the one he would’ve asked to the dance. If only you had been aware of your own crush. You had an intense, heart-stopping, tongue-swelling, cringe-worthy crush on Jaehyun.

What’s done, was done. Jaehyun was happy and that’s all that should matter. You couldn’t have feelings for him. He was your childhood best friend. Your brother. Nothing more, nothing less. He didn’t feel the same.

Little did you know, weeks ago, Jaehyun had come to the conclusion to move on. He thought you only saw him in platonic light, in his eyes it held some truth. You had pushed Ji Woo to him so delightedly, never once hinting at any jealousy or remorse. He had decided that it was best to get over his intense, soul-crushing, all-consuming love he had for you. Which is why, he was going to to succumb to the growing feelings he had for Ji Woo. You had been more than a crush to him, but he didn’t think you’d even get anything close to crush on him, let alone reciprocate his intense, soul-crushing, all-consuming love.

The bass reverberated throughout the room, shaking through like a tremor after an earthquake. Everyone was basking in the afterglow of being done with exams, dancing along awkwardly to the music and mingling around.

You had deliberately ducked out of eyesight once you saw your whole group arrive. You had said you’d arrive separately as your hair appointed had been late and you didn’t want to keep them waiting. You had lied, of course, it had become a nasty habit of yours by now. You had just wanted to avoid the new couple.

All your hiding was for naught, Jaehyun was particularly good at finding you. He spotted you easily and admonished you for arriving without them. You lied again, saying that your hairdresser had finished faster than you thought but you didn’t feel like making them return just for you.

“You look beautiful.”

Every year he said those words to you, but they never held any weight until now. His stare was what made you feel beautiful, but those thoughts dissolved as Ji Woo looped her arm around him. You just smiled and excused yourself to go get more punch, offering some alone time for the new couple. You tried your best to say something witty and congratulate them but it all sounded strangled to you.

Jaehyun was left winded as he saw you walking away. You beauty had knocked the wind out of his lungs, you were all he could think of and it made him feel guilty. He squashed the feelings inside of him and tried his best to focus on the girl in his arms.

Your vision was blurry, but it wasn’t blurry enough to stop you from witnessing Jaehyun and Ji Woo. He had leaned close to a blushing Ji Woo, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. She was beaming up at him and he was smiling softly down at her. The scene was so sweet and it made your insides throb.

You hadn’t noticed the figure lingering next to you.

“Can I say something?”

“You’re going to either way, Doyoung,” You sighed, brandishing a new glass of punch and passing it to him.

“You have a crush on Jaehyun don’t you,” He stated bluntly, you flinched as the words were spoke aloud.

“And if I did, what difference would that make?”

“Depends,” He shrugged, drinking from his own cup. “It depends how much you think this crush is worth fighting for.”

“It’s just a silly crush, Doyoung,” You forced a smile, “I’ll get over it.”

He broke out laughing and your smile faltered, “What’s so funny?”

His eyes were on zeroed in on Jaehyun as he spoke, “It’s just ironic. He said the same thing about you.”

“What?”

“Some crushes don’t just go away,” Doyoung insisted a gentle, encouraging smile graced his lips, “You know he had a crush on you. You were his crush, not Ji Woo. He just didn’t know how to say it. Then you had to go and meddle your way in between your own happiness.”

“Why are you telling me this?” You cried out, feeling your eyes prickle with a new set of tears.

He sighed wistfully, “Because you two are my stupid, oblivious friends. You two have had crushes on each other and you finally figured out but can’t figure out how to not crushed about it.”

“Oh, Doyoung, don’t you know anything about, crushes?” You lamented forlornly, “They’re called crushes because you always get crushed.”

You watched as Ji Woo got on her tiptoes and pressed her lips to Jaehyun’s cheek. You had been wrong again. It wasn’t just a crush.

No, what you felt for Jaehyun was more than that. It was an intense, soul-crushing, all-consuming love and it had crushed you just as bad.

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