don't let me fall
title don't let me fall
pairing Yifan/Baekhyun
rating PG-13
length 7,094
warnings Suicide Mentions, Mutant Hate Themes
summary Yifan flies close to the boy with the sun in his hands.
a/n Originally written for kojafras at artistalks. Actually this was written way before some of the recent exchange fics, and it's easy to tell from the words I used. I wish I can go back to the beginning sometimes. Also, first time writing an x-men au.
Yifan peers at his watch before circling the skies one more round, observing the squad of police on the bridge and the reporters attempting to breach the blockade they’ve placed up. Traffic’s starting to get worse now that rush hour’s starting, and the bridge being coned off is only provoking angry bystanders to make loaded comments about mutant problems.
Swallowing down choice words, Yifan lands on the roof of a nearby loft building, disregarding the looks and sneers peeking out of the curtains in the neighboring buildings. Even if anti-mutant views are prevalent in this neighborhood, Yifan still represents the Institute, and he isn’t about to give them any bad press.
It’s been nearly three hours since Yifan’s arrived on the scene, but his orders were strict in that he wasn’t to interfere with police business since the bridge is under their jurisdiction. He’s merely going to provide reconnaissance on the mutant in the report, and hopefully quell any potential disasters from either party.
A gust of wind picks up underneath Yifan’s feet, and a soft thud behind him alerts him that his teammate’s arrived. “How long is it before our boy shows up?” Yifan asks, eyes trained on the growing crowd of people below.
“I checked with Yunho, and he said that Jaeho’s en route to this location,” Sehun says as he dusts off his thighs. “ETA ten minutes. Also, Jonghyun said that the teaching position is still open if you change your mind.”
“Thanks Sehun,” Yifan says as he reaches over to rub his shoulder. “Look, you know you didn’t have to come with me right? I can handle this by myself and-”
“No I want to help!” Sehun ducks away from Yifan’s hand to cross his arms. “I still want to be an X-Man.”
Sehun came to the Institute in a rather unorthodox fashion-instead of joining the Institute as a student, he came to them as a junior superhero, one with a reputation already developed under his name. It’s not every day that a mutant appears at your doorstep, claiming to be your biggest fan, but Yifan took it with stride and grew into a sort of personal mentor for Sehun.
This time Yifan ruffles Sehun’s hair and the boy doesn’t avoid his touch, instead just pouting like a child-which to Yifan, he might as well be. “Thanks. Try not to let any of the senior members push you around okay?”
“Look who’s talking.” Sehun swats his hand away. “I think we got company.”
Sehun points over to the bay on the left, where a loud booming sound echoes against the murmur of the crowd. There’s something moving quickly in the sky and Yifan knows that this mutant might be a bit of trouble for the police to handle.
“Do you think they can handle a telekinetic?” Yifan asks. Sehun shrugs before kicking up a gust of wind to carry him as he jumps to the streets below.
It takes two hours, five destroyed police cars, and a lot of wasted bullets before Jaeho is contained. Yifan can’t say he’s happy with the methods the authority is using to handle these mutant criminals, but at least there wasn’t any casualties. In between overturned vehicles and injured policemen, Yifan reaches the truck carrying Jaeho himself, handcuffed and exhausted.
The reports claim Jaeho is a monster of unimaginable horror, but standing in front of the mutant himself, he looks like just any other adult standing in the streets. A few differences in the gene pool and Jaeho would probably be living a normal life like any other person his age, thinking about work and having normal adult problems.
But it isn’t bills Jaeho has to worry about; it’s the looks of hatred and disdain he’s going to be given just because he’s been labeled as a mutant. His face is going to be plastered on the evening news as a criminal, and there’s nothing Yifan can do about it.
“Can you believe these people?” Sehun grits out as he escapes from the shameless badgering of the reporters. “They want to use this incident to fuel their anti-mutant propaganda. The mutant menace they’re calling it.” He eyes a reporter down as the lady retreats back to the crowd. “Wouldn’t even let me get a full sentence in before they cut me off.”
“Is that what they’re saying?” Yifan asks, eyes still trained on Jaeho.
Sehun hums an agreement and joins Yifan in front of Jaeho’s truck. He pauses for a moment, as if trying to find some understanding of the mutant locked up in front of him. “I can’t say I’m surprised,” he says quietly, “If more criminals like him keep appearing, then it’s no wonder the public think we’re all monsters-”
“We’re not monsters,” Yifan interrupts, guarded. Sehun raises an eyebrow, something he’s quite fond of these days. “We’re just like everyone else.”
“Of course,” Sehun placates. “But it’s going to take more than just words for the world to see that.” Sehun’s smirk becomes smug. “I have a lot of faith in you though old man.”
With a gummy smile, Yifan bumps his shoulder into Sehun and nods at the wisdom his pupil’s sharing. On the good days, Sehun manages to be wise beyond his years and just like that, the student becomes the teacher.
“Let’s get back.”
When Yifan first discovered he was a mutant, he took the elevator at his father’s company and sat on the roof. Staring, silent. He watched cars pass on the streets below, people with simple lives, people he grew jealous of. The height drew him in like a flame. He stood on the edge of the building, looking down at his fate and his vision blurs.
He doesn’t have his team anymore. His friends would hate him. Mutant scum they’d call him, and it’s not fair. Why would his family want him anymore? They’d be ashamed to have a son who brought so much misfortune to their name.
They wouldn’t miss him.
The first step off felt like freedom. The air hugged him with secure arms and it erased the hatred that poisoned his thoughts. It was an empty escape Yifan surrendered to and if his fate was meant to end so quickly, he’d have made it to the ground.
Most people give up on cases like him, but Yifan had a guardian angel watching over him. It’s the single driving reason why he’s so passionate about helping other mutants.
His colleagues call him hopelessly optimistic, but what’s an X-Man if they aren’t beacons of hope?
“You’re going to have to try harder than that,” Yifan says, leaning back against his shoddy heater. “The trick is to wait for his spell to finish, and then rush in with a full on frontal assault.” He makes a few crazed movements with his hand that looks nothing remotely close to using a sword.
Sehun grunts his frustrations and tosses the controller aside as he snaps, “I hate this game.” He curls up against the foot of the couch and whines irritatingly. “I’m bored Yifan. Why don’t we go scouting or something? Maybe Chanyeol can use our help?”
“You heard the mission briefing earlier,” Yifan says, eyes fixated on his Candy Crush. “We’re part of the call group. Besides, you should be happy we have some downtime after that last mission.”
As an X-Man, it’s expected for each member to be fully prepared for being called upon, even at the most inconvenient of times. That said, the senior faculty do try to rotate the members around so that everyone is allowed his or her well-deserved break from activities on the active roster. It sounds so much simpler in theory than when actively applied.
Yifan grew into the system when he first started training at the Institute, but Sehun’s always acted on his own schedule. Even after his few weeks with the group, it’s still hard for him to adjust.
“I don’t think they meant for us to hole up inside your apartment,” Sehun mumbles. “How are you going to change if they summon you or something?”
Yifan ignores the rumble from his phone as he points over to the hallway closet. “Spandex isn’t that hard to get into. You’ll learn a few tricks as time goes by.”
“Speak for yourself. It’ll be the apocalypse before you see me in one of those suits.”
He tries to chuckle, but it’s short-lived when Yifan opens up the text from Jongdae, eyebrows knotting with each word read.
there’s been an accident with chanyeol...
Sehun catches the drift as he unzips his backpack for his uniform, excusing himself to change in the bathroom. Yifan wastes no time in replying to Kyungsoo’s message, informing him that they’ll be on their way.
“Is everything alright?” Sehun asks, even though he knows the answer.
Yifan fully aware of the danger in their job, but still he hopes that everything is alright.
The subway station is in chaos when they arrive. People are pouring out of the terminal in a frenzy, pushing aside one another in their haste. Smoke is billowing out from the entrance in a steady stream, flames licking up the inside of the walls and gathering in bundles on the railings. Sehun gets to work as soon as they arrive, directing people away from the area and into safer zones for recovery.
It’s not that hard locating his old teammate in the crowd, but Yifan’s stomach drops because he spots the limp Chanyeol’s carrying, the tell-tale sign of a mission gone wrong.
Chanyeol’s the type to usually get into a bit of trouble on the job-the last time he came back from a serious mission, he had a broken ankle and an excuse to flirt with the Institute nurse, Junmyeon. He was shamelessly happy with his injuries. But this time, Chanyeol look likes he’s in actual pain as he clenches his stomach, visible stress etching into his face.
Jongdae is right at his side with one of Chanyeol’s arms slung over his shoulder, guiding him from the underground with each careful step up the staircase. There’s a noticeable absence of the usual energy and spirit they have when out on the field, and before Yifan can ask any questions, Chanyeol’s knees give out and he collapses near the top of the steps, dragging Jongdae down with him in a heap.
“What happened?” Yifan asks, pressing a hand firm against Chanyeol’s back. His breathing is ragged. When Yifan pulls him up to sit at the railing, Chanyeol starts to cough, eyes unfocused like it’s taking all of his energy to keep conscious.
“The mutant down there he…” Jongdae starts, shaking his head. “He attacked Chanyeol when he tried to rescue him from the compartment. There was a mutant on the subway when it crashed. If Cerebro didn’t pick him up, then his powers are probably activating now.”
The sinking feeling from earlier returns to Yifan in full force. Usually when a mutant undergoes changes with their gene, they discover their abilities in brief moments, during late adolescent years and safe enough for experimentation. Other times, when put through enough trauma, a mutant’s abilities evolve too rapidly, and the results are catastrophic.
Jongdae blinks for a moment, and then turns to Yifan. “We have to bring Lu Han in.”
Yifan bristles. “What why?”
Lu Han’s the team’s treasured telepath, one of the founding members of the X-Men and the person who helped guide Yifan back from his downward spiral. He was also the person who ended up disappointing Yifan the most, breaking his heart in ways that took too many months to fix.
“He’s the most qualified among us to get into this person’s head,” Jongdae admits. “Unless you have some latent telepathy inside of you, Lu Han’s our best shot in calming this mutant down.”
“We don’t have to go that far,” Yifan says. “Lu Han’s… I don’t think he’s the best person for this.”
Yifan speaks from a shattered heart. When you play with a person’s memories, the consequences you gain from your actions are severe, and the trust you thought was secure is ultimately tainted. Yifan regrets having learnt this fact the hard way, growing too close to a boy he thought was genuine with the feelings he confided with him.
“Are you serious right now?” Jongdae asks, shooting him a pointed glare. “We have a mutant about to blow up the district because his powers are out of control. Lu Han might be able to send him into a stable state of mind, long enough for us to take him out of there.”
“You’re suggesting we mess with his thoughts right now,” Yifan snaps. “That doesn’t feel right.”
“I didn’t realize we were talking about our feelings,” Jongdae replies sharply, bite clear in his words. “Silly me, I’m just trying to save lives here.”
Boom, boom, boom. The subway echoes with a monstrous growl as debris fly out from the tunnel. The ground shakes softly beneath their feet and they know they’re running out of time to act.
Yifan doesn’t understand; it’s bad enough to dive into a person’s brain and manipulate their very existence. Jongdae might be a tactical genius, but Yifan can’t go along with his plan, no matter how much the senior mutant argues with him.
“There has to be another way,” Yifan says, quieter as he steps back from the entrance. “That mutant, he’s probably scared right now. We can’t just go in there and mess with his head like that.”
Jongdae rubs at his temples, visible annoyed. “Your bleeding heart is going to get you killed one day.” Wandering off to a nearby bench, Jongdae radios the Institute for pickup, leaving Yifan to stare deep into the ruination left behind.
A few bystanders nearby point their phones at him, but Yifan has more important things to worry about then what a few radical bloggers have to say about mutants. He peeks up from the metro sign and spots Sehun a few feet away in the air, calming people down from their hysteria with gentle words.
When he weighs his options, Yifan decides the route that would lead to less destruction is the best one. Yifan charges into the tunnel.
The tunnel is bleak, overhead lights blinking sporadically in a terrifying manner. Walls marked with stories greet him on his way down the escalator. Everything is lit up in bright oranges and yellows, posters advertising local bands crumpling from the edges as the flames grow with each minute that passes by.
When Yifan arrives at the main platform, it isn’t a pretty sight. Yifan stumbles along the scattered shrapnel as he surveys the wreckage: the subway train is overturned, box cars jammed in a horrific pile near the departing tunnel. There’s holes clustered near one of the compartment walls, rims still white hot as if done recently.
Yifan’s seen this kind of scene before. Back in his rookie days in the team, there was a massive breakout of criminals from Muir Island, thanks to the efforts of the Brotherhood of Mutants. Destruction was easier to contain when it was landlocked, but the facility suffered lasting damages because of it.
The closest compartment looks untouched compared to the rest of them, and as Yifan inches closer to the sliding doors for a closer inspection, his radio goes off.
“Yifan did you really-this is Jongdae,” his radio filters through, static breaking up Jongdae’s words. “I’m boosting the signal-not enough.”
“You should get Chanyeol to the Institute,” Yifan says, unsure of why they were worried about him when their teammate was the one injured.
Jongdae seems unamused. “We already-how does it look down there?”
“Like one of Minseok’s Danger Room sessions,” Yifan jokes.
The doors in front of him slide open automatically, and Yifan steps closer, bracing his hand against the metal hinges as the ground shakes once more. It’s enough to send him slipping against the window, cool glass pressing against his second skin and reflecting the flames dancing outside.
That’s when he hears it. The faint mumbles behind him. When he turns around, Yifan spots the mutant sitting on one of the metal seats, arms wrapped around his legs as he curls up into himself. He looks nothing like the monster the media will soon paint him as. His bangs shade over clenched eyes and soft lips pucker as he chants a senseless mantra.
“I’m normal, I’m normal, I’m normal,” he whispers, rocking back and forth, and Yifan casts a sympathetic glance his way when he realizes why he’s chanting those words.
Taking a cautious step forward, Yifan clears his throat, stifling a small cough when his senses come back to him. “Hello?” he starts, careful in his tone. The mutant’s head snaps forward and he’s suddenly staring straight into Yifan, eyes dilated with a mixture of power and fear. He pauses for a moment before continuing, “My name is Wu Yifan-Vikare of the X-Men. I’m here to help you.”
“Help?” The mutant repeats. His voice sounds distorted.
Yifan nods, a small part to himself to help him push through his with his words. “Yes. You’re going through some changes right now. It might be scary, but I’m going to help you through it.” He takes another step forward. “Can you tell me your name?”
“My name…” The mutant says, closing his eyes. “Baekhyun.”
“Baekhyun.” This is good. Yifan latches onto this progress and continues, “I know this seems scary, but believe me, it’s going to be alright.”
A delicate wave of heat ripples from Baekhyun’s body. It passes through Yifan like a heartbeat, warm and fragile.
“You and me, we’re a lot alike,” Yifan says as he closes the gap between them. “We’re mutants.”
Baekhyun raises his head. “Mutants?”
“Yeah.” Yifan nods. “We have, special gifts you see. For example, I can fly.” Yifan makes a flapping motion with his hands and it just leaves Baekhyun dumbfounded. Nearby, a railing detached from its bolts and crashes onto the floor.
“Your powers seem so harmless when compared to…” Baekhyun trails off, eyes wandering over to a sign near the exit door.
“It seems like it, but I had a bit of trouble when my powers first appeared,” Yifan says, as if recalling a fond memory, and not the single traumatizing moment in his entire life. “I had help though, through the Institute, they trained me on how to control my gift.” His hand drifts over to Baekhyun’s shoulder, and Yifan imagines he’s talking to one of his students. “They can help you too-”
“They can’t help me,” Baekhyun grits out. “The pain, the headaches, it all hurts.” Another wave. This time the heat lingers for a few moments.
Smoke’s starting to crowd inside of the compartment, and Yifan has to cover his mouth to hold back the coughs growing inside his throat. “Trust me on this Baekhyun. We can help you.” His fingers leave Baekhyun’s shoulder and he’s standing up again, holding his hand out for Baekhyun to take. “It’s what we do.”
Baekhyun’s staring out at the sign still, wobbling uneasily in his seat. When he finally breaks away to look at Yifan, he says nothing. Just stares, silent and lost. His eyes speak the words he’s afraid to say, desperate and pleading.
“Trust me,” Yifan reiterates, and he takes Baekhyun’s hand in his.
Baekhyun fitting into Yifan’s life starts out innocent, with Yifan checking up on him in the hospital bed and answering questions about the Institute. He’s fond of asking whatever question pops up in his head, and Yifan is more than happy to oblige him with answers. They talk till the visiting hours are up and Yifan feels like he’s overstayed his welcome.
When he makes to leave, Baekhyun is hesitant in his goodbyes, sometimes clutching on Yifan’s arm like he doesn’t want him to go. Yifan promises him that he’ll be there the next day.
“It doesn’t look good,” Kyungsoo says as he goes over the report once more. “The only bright side I can pull from this is that there were no casualties in the incident.” He sighs, and ducks his head, pressing all of his fingertips to his temples. “The officials still don’t know what to do with Baekhyun. It’s unclear if his abilities were the cause of the crash, or simply an unfortunate side effect of tragic events.”
The monitor overhead flashes a few images, a few of Baekhyun boarding the subway just a few hours before the accident, and then of an anti-mutant crowd gathering near the hospital.
“The protestors are having a field day with this though,” Kyungsoo gripes. “They’re calling for his head on a pike. A few even want that literally.”
Yifan turns away from the screen, choosing not to meet the eyes of his colleagues. Kyungsoo notices his discomfort and changes the display to a news report from MBS-TV. The subway fares no better than the hospital, with a similar crowd of people standing around it in a display of anger and hate. The field reporter-Hongbin-ducks between a few signs and leads his cameraman to the subway entrance, pointing out the wrecked state the terminal is in.
“We should send someone there, to try and help the local police in containing these crowds so nothing violent happens,” Jongdae suggests. “Acts like these will no doubt just attract more attention, and get worse when the more radical people join.”
“I already have that covered,” Kyungsoo points out as the news feed brings up two adults slipping in from the crowd.
“-and it looks like we have an X-Man in our midst,” Hongbin continues his report and waves over the attention of the nearest mutant. “Playback! Might we have a word?”
Zitao looks over at the camera for a brief moment, and then turns to Hongbin with a precise eyebrow raise. “We’re investigating here, if you’re wondering. The X-Men have been granted jurisdiction over this area as it is involving mutant affairs.”
“No I was wondering, who is your partner here?” Hongbin says, tilting his chin up at the other mutant.
“Park Chorong-Aegis,” Zitao says. “She’s a member of the X-Men, and my partner, so if it’s no trouble, we’d like to get on with our-”
“We don’t want you here mutie scum!” A shout from the crowd interrupts him, and it riles up the angry citizens.
Zitao sighs, and motions over for Chorong to follow him into the tunnel. Just before they take their first step down, a beer bottle is thrown carelessly through the air, aiming right for Zitao’s head. A whine breaks through the noise and everything is a still blue. The bottle breaks upon impact with the barrier, a simple construction surrounding the pair. Chorong is effortless in her ability, maintaining a shield even as she converses with her partner.
The feed is disturbed when a voice calls in, “Do Kyungsoo, you have an incoming transmission from Genosha. From a mister Zhang Yixing.”
“Patch him through,” Kyungsoo says, swiveling in his chair to face the secondary monitor.
As Kyungsoo relays Yixing’s message, Yifan takes this time to leave the conference room, avoiding the stare Jongdae’s burning through his back.
Yifan visits the hospital later that day, slipping past the crowd thanks to Jongin’s teleportation. When the young mutant asked him why it was so important he went alone, Yifan just gave him a sheepish smile and said it was personal business. Jongin didn’t look convinced, but he went along with his words, disappearing into the shadows without further questions.
Knock, knock, he taps against the door.
Baekhyun looks tiny in his sheets. He’s staring straight at the vase of flowers at the nightstand, purposefully avoiding his window and the disturbing crowd outside. Yifan can’t blame him; in a single day, his life has changed forever, and nothing will be the same for him.
Yifan enters the room with the brightest smile he can muster, and Baekhyun takes it with comfort, easily relaxing into a familiar conversation with him. He looks so innocent like this, and it makes Yifan want to take away all of his pain, to ease the headaches and show him that being a mutant isn’t a life filled with unfortunate events.
Baekhyun tells him of how his life was before the subway, how he was a college student looking to make his mark in the musical world as a professional pianist. Yifan glances down at his fingers, long and slender, just like his, and at the same time, completely different. Where Yifan’s is strong, worn from years of action, Baekhyun’s is smooth, untouched.
He continues on about how he used to dream about being on big stages and filling up crowds with smiles, as bright as his would be. It’s there, the barest smile tugging on Baekhyun’s lips. Yifan takes it and memorizes it.
“How are you feeling?” he asks, and Yifan’s surprised Baekhyun’s the one asking him.
Yifan pauses as he watches the clouds drift outside. “I could be better.” He returns to Baekhyun with a gummy smile. “But I’m doing well. How about you? Are you feeling better?”
Baekhyun’s smile drops. “I feel like my head’s being thrown into the sun, if that makes any sense.” His fingers unconsciously reach for Yifan’s wrist and it coaxes a shudder out of the older mutant.
Yifan remains firm, ignoring the heat trailing along his arm from the touch. Baekhyun seems like a physical type of person, leaning into the space of others to feel comfortable. It doesn’t mean anything, and just like before, Yifan sits and listens, acting on thoughts that would bring about the least destruction.
“What did Zitao and Chorong find out?” Yifan asks as he passes by Kyungsoo in the hallway.
Kyungsoo looks at him once before shaking his head. “There was an obstruction in the tunnel, a road bump if you will. On a grander scale.” He looks worried. “I’m not sure who’s responsible for this, but we have to be careful. I remember reading similar reports to this, incidents that are far more intentional than accidental.”
“This has happened before?” Yifan asks, a sinking sensation growing inside of him.
Kyungsoo nods. “The fact that these all happen with mutants caught in the aftermath is no coincidence.” He brushes a stray lock of hair back. “I’m having Jongin look into this, investigating the places in the reports to see if there’s anything we might’ve missed that’ll help us track down the person causing all of this.”
Yifan watches a few students walk into the classroom at the end of the hall and Kyungsoo follows his gaze, clearing his throat.
“The good news is we can clear any involvement Baekhyun has with this, and help provide better protection for him.” He waves a hand back and forth. “I’m sure the crowds will stop their idiocy when news that a mutant was not the cause of the incident makes rounds.”
Yifan resists grinning. “That is good news.”
Kyungsoo shoots him a knowing look, but doesn’t push for answers.
“Do you have anywhere to go?” Yifan asks when he visits Baekhyun to inform him about the news.
Baekhyun’s holding onto his hand, kneading heat into his fingers with slow and careful circles. It helps calm him down, and Yifan doesn’t shy away from the contact, having grown close to him these past few days.
Yifan’s learned so much about him, from the way Baekhyun likes to listen to indie bands, to the fact that Baekhyun’s never been outside of New York. He wants to take him places. He wants to give Baekhyun the world, show him places that one can only see through videos and read about in books.
“My family haven’t contacted me back,” Baekhyun replies sadly, dropping his hand back onto the sheets. “I don’t think they want to see me. I feel like, once the news about me being a mutant popped up in newspaper articles, they’ve just been ashamed.”
Yifan takes Baekhyun’s hand instead, rubbing it affectionately like Baekhyun had been doing for him. “You are nothing to be ashamed of, trust me.” He speaks from personal experience, having dealt with this kind of rejection firsthand. The wounds from his last meeting with his parents still run deep inside of him, but the thrill of being an X-Man have done wonders in patching them up.
“I can’t even eat without burning up the food in my hands.” Baekhyun grimaces. “The only thing worse than bland food is burnt bland food.”
“Is that how your powers work?” Yifan asks, curious about the nature of his abilities.
Baekhyun tilts his head like a puppy in thought. “I’m not sure how it happens. It was like, that day on the subway, it felt like I was the sun. A ball of burning energy.” His forehead wrinkles. “It felt like I was charging up a solarbeam, which would’ve been cool if it wasn’t so scary.”
“This is the first time I’ve heard someone describe their powers like that,” Yifan chuckles. “Does it still hurt now?”
“Not as much.” Baekhyun raises a hand to his face, and Yifan feels it, the heat pooling near his palm. “I’ve been able to control it some, but the headaches are getting worse. They’ve been giving me painkillers, but those only do so much before it’s back to pain central.”
Yifan hums. “That offer from earlier still stands you know.” Yifan rubs at his arm slowly, cautiously. “You could come to the Institute. We could help you there, with your headaches. We have much more experience dealing with mutant problems than regular doctors.” A smile reaches his lips. I mean, not to brag or anything, but Junmyeon’s one of the best around these parts.”
Baekhyun looks back at him with his own smile, and it’s cute, just like the rest of him. “If I go, will you be there with me?”
“Of course,” Yifan assures. “Trust me.”
The day Baekhyun is released from the hospital is what Yifan would like to call, the day that shouldn’t have gone wrong.
Or rather, what could go wrong, did go wrong.
“What’s with your hero types and always gathering in flocks?” Hyojun shouts from atop an overturned car, joyfully basking in the ruins of what was once the Blackbird.
The hospital is being evacuated due to a mutant threat, and Yifan curses at himself for not realizing that there would be other parties interested in such a dangerous mutant. He doesn’t believe Baekhyun’s a threat to anybody, but the Brotherhood seem to know how much power he holds. How much destruction he could cause in the wrong hands.
“Fuck,” Yifan curses under his breath, backing behind an abandoned ambulance as the flames spread out across the grounds.
He’s trapped. Innocent people are still trapped inside of the building, too scared to leave through the entrance because of the mutants. Jongdae and Sehun are trying to pull their pilot out of the wreckage, and Yifan can’t get to them without risk getting blown to pieces by Hyojun’s blasts the second he steps out.
Sirens wail around him and the police are heading their way, no doubt inviting more people to witness the monsters that plague their city. The Brotherhood have always been the poster children for anti-mutant propaganda, but unlike the X-Men, they revel in it. They fed off the negative attention, consuming and exploiting the fear to bring out even more chaos.
An explosion sets off behind the ambulance and Yifan rocks forward from the shockwave, ducking away from the debris that fly over him. The last time the X-Men had to deal with Hyojun’s combustive powers, Lu Han had stepped in with his telekinesis and disabled him from using his abilities. But there’s no more telekinesis today, and Yifan’s cards are running out.
A second explosion hits the ambulance head on and the vehicle starts to superheat, whining and creaking around the edges. Yifan wastes no time diving behind another ambulance as the former one detonates in a fiery display of destruction, shards of metal flying haphazardly through the air. He winces as a piece flies right past his arm, slicing along his skin and drawing blood.
Yifan climbs back onto his feet, peering from behind the ambulance as Hyojun starts to circle the hospital fountain in boredom. A thought appears. It’s a long shot, but if they could somehow knock Hyojun into the fountain, Jongdae could charge it with electricity and hopefully send him unconscious enough to lock up.
“Oh no,” he whispers as a squad of police cars pull in from the street, lining up along the side like target practice.
Hyojun laughs manically and immediately gets to work on blasting the cars with his beams, each car erupting in explosions like a scene out of an apocalyptic movie. Policemen drag out from the vehicles, burnt and injured.
“Is this it?” Hyojun taunts, blasting a car with a second beam and sending it barreling out into the building across the street. Bystanders start to scream and drop their phones to get out of the area.
Yifan thinks Hyojun’s distracted enough with his pride to not notice him sneaking back to the rest of his team. He’s wrong, and Hyojun immediately snarls as he sends a blast his direction, exploding the hospital doors and lighting up the entrance in flames. More screams fill his ears and Yifan stumbles back to a safer position.
“Yifan?” No, this isn’t good. Yifan looks up and sees Baekhyun staring right at him, eyes wide and terrified.
“Get back!” he shouts, but it’s too late.
The hairs on the back of his neck stand up as he feels the charge of heat headed his way. The worst thing that could happen is happening. Baekhyun was going to get hurt. He feels his body move on its own accord, jumping up in a brazen act of protection. His arms curl around Baekhyun tightly, secure, and he twists around so that Baekhyun’s no longer in the line of fire.
He feels nothing. The explosion doesn’t set off in his mind, but there he is, lying on his side on the floor with flames charring the floor. He can’t move. His arms and legs feel distant, unresponsive. He thinks there’s screaming, but he can’t say for sure since the only thing he can hear is ringing, loud and oppressive.
How could he have been so stupid? He’s an X-Man; he wasn’t supposed to make mistakes like this.
Yifan looks up to the side, and Baekhyun’s clutching his head, face scrunched up in agony as he screams. His body starts to glow, and when Baekhyun releases his energy, everything is bathed in a blinding white.
“Yifan?” he hears the voice calling out to him.
His eyes slowly open, and he’s no longer at the hospital. The room is familiar, and as his eyesight adjusts from the grogginess, he recognizes the medical cots of the Institute.
He’s back home, and without thinking, he tries to sit up to leave, when he’s struck with a searing pain throughout his body. It claws at his skin and when Yifan looks down, his eyes widen with horror. He realizes his body is burned, and everything rushes back to him all at once. The fight with Hyojun, the damaged hospital, but most of all, Baekhyun.
“Baekhyun,” he says quietly.
“So you’re awake now,” Junmyeon says, pushing up his glasses as he meanders back into the room. “You’ve been out for a couple of days. That last battle took a lot out of you.”
“What…” Yifan starts, wincing. “What happened?”
Junmyeon sets a few charts down on the table. “You took a direct hit from one of Hyojun’s combustion blasts. Normally I’d reprimand you for being so reckless, but you’ve already gone through enough.” The glasses slide down on his nose and he grumbles as he pushes them back up. “After you blacked out, there was a power disturbance in front of the hospital, but oddly enough, only Hyojun was affected by that wave. At the epicenter of the blast was a young boy, Byun Baekhyun I’m assuming.”
“How is he?” Yifan blurts out, not caring about the pain that starts to sear through his back. “Baekhyun I mean. Is he okay?”
“Calm down Yifan,” Junmyeon says as he presses down on Yifan’s shoulder with the barest touch. “We wouldn’t want you to worry those injuries.” As soon as Yifan’s leaning back on the bed, Junmyeon opens up a placating smile. “Baekhyun’s fine. He was a bit shaken up when we arrived at the scene, but he kept saying he was fine, and that we should worry more about you. He thought you were dead, but I assured him otherwise.”
Relief seeps into his shoulders and Yifan exhales slowly, closing his eyes as he thinks about how worried Baekhyun must’ve been seeing his body on the ground, unresponsive.
“He’s here at the Institute,” Junmyeon continues. “Said he wanted to see if there was any truth to what you told him.” His smiles grows wider. “I think he likes it here.”
Yifan laughs, and he’s happy. He feels happy, despite everything that’s happened.
“He starts the next term with the other students, but for now, he’s just going to get a feel for the Institute as a guest.” Junmyeon types a few words into his computer and sits down next to Yifan. “We told him he doesn’t have to actively stay on the ground, but he insisted.” His eyes pin Yifan down. “I have a feeling you’re part of the reason he wants to stay here so badly?”
“You could say that,” Yifan replies, turning his head away so Junmyeon doesn’t catch the pink on his cheeks.
“You’re doing pretty well,” Baekhyun says as he pushes Yifan’s wheelchair next to his bed. “Junmyeon says you’ll be fully recovered by next month.”
It’s been a long and strenuous journey, but Yifan’s road to recovery has been successful. The treatments with the Institute’s healers have done wonder on healing most of the physical injuries on his body, leaving behind only battle scars as reminders of what he went through.
“He says he thinks,” Yifan corrects, but he smiles anyways. “He also thinks I have a latent healing factor. But it’s good to hear. I’m excited to get back on the field.” Yifan taps on the lovely message Sehun left on his cast, and slowly sits up onto the side of the bed. “I hear your sessions with Lu Han have been going well?”
“Like a charm,” Baekhyun says. “The headaches have pretty much disappeared now. On the other hand, I accidentally burned a bar of soap in my hands while taking a shower so I’m still getting used to controlling my powers.”
Yifan snickers. “Be thankful it was just a bar of soap.”
“Yeah I guess you’re right,” Baekhyun laughs loudly before he softens it with a hum. “I’m thankful for a lot of things now. For being able to live, to not feeling anymore pain. But mostly, I’m thankful for you.”
It feels genuine, his words, and Yifan has to shake his head to stop the heat creeping up his face. “I didn’t do much though.”
Baekhyun gasps. “You helped me a lot Yifan. I don’t think I could’ve gone through this without your help. Being a mutant, it’s shown me a lot and well, it’s probably the universe just trying to give me a sign.” He takes one of Yifan’s hands in his and just like before, Yifan doesn’t pull back. “I haven’t really opened up to anyone as much as I have with you.”
Yifan closes his fingers around Baekhyun’s and it feels right, holding him like this, being together like this. “I’ll always be here if you need someone to talk to. Or if you need anything else.”
“Thanks,” Baekhyun whispers.
It’s brief, the first real hug between them, but it feels like the start that’s been long overdue. Yifan inhales everything. Baekhyun smells like innocence and Yifan wants to keep it with him forever, to have it beside him every morning. Hands start to roam along his back and they trail along the scars left behind, slowly like Yifan will fall to pieces.
“I won’t break,” Yifan answers to unsaid questions. “Trust me.”
Baekhyun smiles into his collarbones.
“So do you have a codename picked out?” Chanyeol asks, waving around his sling and taking up more space than he usually does. He got injured again in a recent mission and has been milking it for all its worth.
Baekhyun drops his spoon of mashed potatoes and looks up thoughtfully. “I was thinking Firefly.”
“Too obvious,” Jongdae says, tapping his spoon against his untouched tray. “You need something with a bit more zest.”
“What about Apollo?” Sehun suggests.
Baekhyun shudders and turns to Yifan for an opinion. Yifan catches his gaze and blinks like a deer caught in headlights. “I’m sorry what?”
“We’re thinking of codenames for Baekhyun here.” Chanyeol says loudly as he throws a spoon at Yifan’s side.
“Ow hey,” Yifan says as he rubs his arm. “I can’t believe you qualify to be an X-Man.”
Chanyeol gapes and Jongdae lets out a snort.
“I have a suggestion,” Kyungsoo says as he plops down at their table. “How about, Strobe Light?”
Baekhyun decides he doesn’t really need a codename.
“How did you get your codename?” Baekhyun asks one evening, as they lie on Yifan’s bed, tucked away in his apartment for a bit of downtime.
Yifan rolls onto his side so he can stare at Baekhyun’s face. It’s ethereal. Everything about Baekhyun is angelic, and Yifan has to remind himself that he’s real. It’s all real and right in front of him. Yifan’s sweater hangs loose around Baekhyun’s body and his collarbones peek out tantalizingly.
“I fell in love with a story about a boy who flew to close to the sun.” Yifan admits.
Baekhyun hums thoughtfully, and when he shifts to get comfortable, the sweater slips further off his body, revealing a bare shoulder. His skin looks soft, unmarred by scars.
Yifan gulps.
“I didn’t peg you for the deep, intellectual type,” Baekhyun teases, tongue peeking out between his teeth.
Yifan leans in closer. “There’s a lot you don’t know about me. But I’d love to teach you.”
Baekhyun’s flushes a soft pink and Yifan knows he’s finally found his sun.
♔
pairing Yifan/Baekhyun
rating PG-13
length 7,094
warnings Suicide Mentions, Mutant Hate Themes
summary Yifan flies close to the boy with the sun in his hands.
a/n Originally written for kojafras at artistalks. Actually this was written way before some of the recent exchange fics, and it's easy to tell from the words I used. I wish I can go back to the beginning sometimes. Also, first time writing an x-men au.
Yifan peers at his watch before circling the skies one more round, observing the squad of police on the bridge and the reporters attempting to breach the blockade they’ve placed up. Traffic’s starting to get worse now that rush hour’s starting, and the bridge being coned off is only provoking angry bystanders to make loaded comments about mutant problems.
Swallowing down choice words, Yifan lands on the roof of a nearby loft building, disregarding the looks and sneers peeking out of the curtains in the neighboring buildings. Even if anti-mutant views are prevalent in this neighborhood, Yifan still represents the Institute, and he isn’t about to give them any bad press.
It’s been nearly three hours since Yifan’s arrived on the scene, but his orders were strict in that he wasn’t to interfere with police business since the bridge is under their jurisdiction. He’s merely going to provide reconnaissance on the mutant in the report, and hopefully quell any potential disasters from either party.
A gust of wind picks up underneath Yifan’s feet, and a soft thud behind him alerts him that his teammate’s arrived. “How long is it before our boy shows up?” Yifan asks, eyes trained on the growing crowd of people below.
“I checked with Yunho, and he said that Jaeho’s en route to this location,” Sehun says as he dusts off his thighs. “ETA ten minutes. Also, Jonghyun said that the teaching position is still open if you change your mind.”
“Thanks Sehun,” Yifan says as he reaches over to rub his shoulder. “Look, you know you didn’t have to come with me right? I can handle this by myself and-”
“No I want to help!” Sehun ducks away from Yifan’s hand to cross his arms. “I still want to be an X-Man.”
Sehun came to the Institute in a rather unorthodox fashion-instead of joining the Institute as a student, he came to them as a junior superhero, one with a reputation already developed under his name. It’s not every day that a mutant appears at your doorstep, claiming to be your biggest fan, but Yifan took it with stride and grew into a sort of personal mentor for Sehun.
This time Yifan ruffles Sehun’s hair and the boy doesn’t avoid his touch, instead just pouting like a child-which to Yifan, he might as well be. “Thanks. Try not to let any of the senior members push you around okay?”
“Look who’s talking.” Sehun swats his hand away. “I think we got company.”
Sehun points over to the bay on the left, where a loud booming sound echoes against the murmur of the crowd. There’s something moving quickly in the sky and Yifan knows that this mutant might be a bit of trouble for the police to handle.
“Do you think they can handle a telekinetic?” Yifan asks. Sehun shrugs before kicking up a gust of wind to carry him as he jumps to the streets below.
It takes two hours, five destroyed police cars, and a lot of wasted bullets before Jaeho is contained. Yifan can’t say he’s happy with the methods the authority is using to handle these mutant criminals, but at least there wasn’t any casualties. In between overturned vehicles and injured policemen, Yifan reaches the truck carrying Jaeho himself, handcuffed and exhausted.
The reports claim Jaeho is a monster of unimaginable horror, but standing in front of the mutant himself, he looks like just any other adult standing in the streets. A few differences in the gene pool and Jaeho would probably be living a normal life like any other person his age, thinking about work and having normal adult problems.
But it isn’t bills Jaeho has to worry about; it’s the looks of hatred and disdain he’s going to be given just because he’s been labeled as a mutant. His face is going to be plastered on the evening news as a criminal, and there’s nothing Yifan can do about it.
“Can you believe these people?” Sehun grits out as he escapes from the shameless badgering of the reporters. “They want to use this incident to fuel their anti-mutant propaganda. The mutant menace they’re calling it.” He eyes a reporter down as the lady retreats back to the crowd. “Wouldn’t even let me get a full sentence in before they cut me off.”
“Is that what they’re saying?” Yifan asks, eyes still trained on Jaeho.
Sehun hums an agreement and joins Yifan in front of Jaeho’s truck. He pauses for a moment, as if trying to find some understanding of the mutant locked up in front of him. “I can’t say I’m surprised,” he says quietly, “If more criminals like him keep appearing, then it’s no wonder the public think we’re all monsters-”
“We’re not monsters,” Yifan interrupts, guarded. Sehun raises an eyebrow, something he’s quite fond of these days. “We’re just like everyone else.”
“Of course,” Sehun placates. “But it’s going to take more than just words for the world to see that.” Sehun’s smirk becomes smug. “I have a lot of faith in you though old man.”
With a gummy smile, Yifan bumps his shoulder into Sehun and nods at the wisdom his pupil’s sharing. On the good days, Sehun manages to be wise beyond his years and just like that, the student becomes the teacher.
“Let’s get back.”
When Yifan first discovered he was a mutant, he took the elevator at his father’s company and sat on the roof. Staring, silent. He watched cars pass on the streets below, people with simple lives, people he grew jealous of. The height drew him in like a flame. He stood on the edge of the building, looking down at his fate and his vision blurs.
He doesn’t have his team anymore. His friends would hate him. Mutant scum they’d call him, and it’s not fair. Why would his family want him anymore? They’d be ashamed to have a son who brought so much misfortune to their name.
They wouldn’t miss him.
The first step off felt like freedom. The air hugged him with secure arms and it erased the hatred that poisoned his thoughts. It was an empty escape Yifan surrendered to and if his fate was meant to end so quickly, he’d have made it to the ground.
Most people give up on cases like him, but Yifan had a guardian angel watching over him. It’s the single driving reason why he’s so passionate about helping other mutants.
His colleagues call him hopelessly optimistic, but what’s an X-Man if they aren’t beacons of hope?
“You’re going to have to try harder than that,” Yifan says, leaning back against his shoddy heater. “The trick is to wait for his spell to finish, and then rush in with a full on frontal assault.” He makes a few crazed movements with his hand that looks nothing remotely close to using a sword.
Sehun grunts his frustrations and tosses the controller aside as he snaps, “I hate this game.” He curls up against the foot of the couch and whines irritatingly. “I’m bored Yifan. Why don’t we go scouting or something? Maybe Chanyeol can use our help?”
“You heard the mission briefing earlier,” Yifan says, eyes fixated on his Candy Crush. “We’re part of the call group. Besides, you should be happy we have some downtime after that last mission.”
As an X-Man, it’s expected for each member to be fully prepared for being called upon, even at the most inconvenient of times. That said, the senior faculty do try to rotate the members around so that everyone is allowed his or her well-deserved break from activities on the active roster. It sounds so much simpler in theory than when actively applied.
Yifan grew into the system when he first started training at the Institute, but Sehun’s always acted on his own schedule. Even after his few weeks with the group, it’s still hard for him to adjust.
“I don’t think they meant for us to hole up inside your apartment,” Sehun mumbles. “How are you going to change if they summon you or something?”
Yifan ignores the rumble from his phone as he points over to the hallway closet. “Spandex isn’t that hard to get into. You’ll learn a few tricks as time goes by.”
“Speak for yourself. It’ll be the apocalypse before you see me in one of those suits.”
He tries to chuckle, but it’s short-lived when Yifan opens up the text from Jongdae, eyebrows knotting with each word read.
there’s been an accident with chanyeol...
Sehun catches the drift as he unzips his backpack for his uniform, excusing himself to change in the bathroom. Yifan wastes no time in replying to Kyungsoo’s message, informing him that they’ll be on their way.
“Is everything alright?” Sehun asks, even though he knows the answer.
Yifan fully aware of the danger in their job, but still he hopes that everything is alright.
The subway station is in chaos when they arrive. People are pouring out of the terminal in a frenzy, pushing aside one another in their haste. Smoke is billowing out from the entrance in a steady stream, flames licking up the inside of the walls and gathering in bundles on the railings. Sehun gets to work as soon as they arrive, directing people away from the area and into safer zones for recovery.
It’s not that hard locating his old teammate in the crowd, but Yifan’s stomach drops because he spots the limp Chanyeol’s carrying, the tell-tale sign of a mission gone wrong.
Chanyeol’s the type to usually get into a bit of trouble on the job-the last time he came back from a serious mission, he had a broken ankle and an excuse to flirt with the Institute nurse, Junmyeon. He was shamelessly happy with his injuries. But this time, Chanyeol look likes he’s in actual pain as he clenches his stomach, visible stress etching into his face.
Jongdae is right at his side with one of Chanyeol’s arms slung over his shoulder, guiding him from the underground with each careful step up the staircase. There’s a noticeable absence of the usual energy and spirit they have when out on the field, and before Yifan can ask any questions, Chanyeol’s knees give out and he collapses near the top of the steps, dragging Jongdae down with him in a heap.
“What happened?” Yifan asks, pressing a hand firm against Chanyeol’s back. His breathing is ragged. When Yifan pulls him up to sit at the railing, Chanyeol starts to cough, eyes unfocused like it’s taking all of his energy to keep conscious.
“The mutant down there he…” Jongdae starts, shaking his head. “He attacked Chanyeol when he tried to rescue him from the compartment. There was a mutant on the subway when it crashed. If Cerebro didn’t pick him up, then his powers are probably activating now.”
The sinking feeling from earlier returns to Yifan in full force. Usually when a mutant undergoes changes with their gene, they discover their abilities in brief moments, during late adolescent years and safe enough for experimentation. Other times, when put through enough trauma, a mutant’s abilities evolve too rapidly, and the results are catastrophic.
Jongdae blinks for a moment, and then turns to Yifan. “We have to bring Lu Han in.”
Yifan bristles. “What why?”
Lu Han’s the team’s treasured telepath, one of the founding members of the X-Men and the person who helped guide Yifan back from his downward spiral. He was also the person who ended up disappointing Yifan the most, breaking his heart in ways that took too many months to fix.
“He’s the most qualified among us to get into this person’s head,” Jongdae admits. “Unless you have some latent telepathy inside of you, Lu Han’s our best shot in calming this mutant down.”
“We don’t have to go that far,” Yifan says. “Lu Han’s… I don’t think he’s the best person for this.”
Yifan speaks from a shattered heart. When you play with a person’s memories, the consequences you gain from your actions are severe, and the trust you thought was secure is ultimately tainted. Yifan regrets having learnt this fact the hard way, growing too close to a boy he thought was genuine with the feelings he confided with him.
“Are you serious right now?” Jongdae asks, shooting him a pointed glare. “We have a mutant about to blow up the district because his powers are out of control. Lu Han might be able to send him into a stable state of mind, long enough for us to take him out of there.”
“You’re suggesting we mess with his thoughts right now,” Yifan snaps. “That doesn’t feel right.”
“I didn’t realize we were talking about our feelings,” Jongdae replies sharply, bite clear in his words. “Silly me, I’m just trying to save lives here.”
Boom, boom, boom. The subway echoes with a monstrous growl as debris fly out from the tunnel. The ground shakes softly beneath their feet and they know they’re running out of time to act.
Yifan doesn’t understand; it’s bad enough to dive into a person’s brain and manipulate their very existence. Jongdae might be a tactical genius, but Yifan can’t go along with his plan, no matter how much the senior mutant argues with him.
“There has to be another way,” Yifan says, quieter as he steps back from the entrance. “That mutant, he’s probably scared right now. We can’t just go in there and mess with his head like that.”
Jongdae rubs at his temples, visible annoyed. “Your bleeding heart is going to get you killed one day.” Wandering off to a nearby bench, Jongdae radios the Institute for pickup, leaving Yifan to stare deep into the ruination left behind.
A few bystanders nearby point their phones at him, but Yifan has more important things to worry about then what a few radical bloggers have to say about mutants. He peeks up from the metro sign and spots Sehun a few feet away in the air, calming people down from their hysteria with gentle words.
When he weighs his options, Yifan decides the route that would lead to less destruction is the best one. Yifan charges into the tunnel.
The tunnel is bleak, overhead lights blinking sporadically in a terrifying manner. Walls marked with stories greet him on his way down the escalator. Everything is lit up in bright oranges and yellows, posters advertising local bands crumpling from the edges as the flames grow with each minute that passes by.
When Yifan arrives at the main platform, it isn’t a pretty sight. Yifan stumbles along the scattered shrapnel as he surveys the wreckage: the subway train is overturned, box cars jammed in a horrific pile near the departing tunnel. There’s holes clustered near one of the compartment walls, rims still white hot as if done recently.
Yifan’s seen this kind of scene before. Back in his rookie days in the team, there was a massive breakout of criminals from Muir Island, thanks to the efforts of the Brotherhood of Mutants. Destruction was easier to contain when it was landlocked, but the facility suffered lasting damages because of it.
The closest compartment looks untouched compared to the rest of them, and as Yifan inches closer to the sliding doors for a closer inspection, his radio goes off.
“Yifan did you really-this is Jongdae,” his radio filters through, static breaking up Jongdae’s words. “I’m boosting the signal-not enough.”
“You should get Chanyeol to the Institute,” Yifan says, unsure of why they were worried about him when their teammate was the one injured.
Jongdae seems unamused. “We already-how does it look down there?”
“Like one of Minseok’s Danger Room sessions,” Yifan jokes.
The doors in front of him slide open automatically, and Yifan steps closer, bracing his hand against the metal hinges as the ground shakes once more. It’s enough to send him slipping against the window, cool glass pressing against his second skin and reflecting the flames dancing outside.
That’s when he hears it. The faint mumbles behind him. When he turns around, Yifan spots the mutant sitting on one of the metal seats, arms wrapped around his legs as he curls up into himself. He looks nothing like the monster the media will soon paint him as. His bangs shade over clenched eyes and soft lips pucker as he chants a senseless mantra.
“I’m normal, I’m normal, I’m normal,” he whispers, rocking back and forth, and Yifan casts a sympathetic glance his way when he realizes why he’s chanting those words.
Taking a cautious step forward, Yifan clears his throat, stifling a small cough when his senses come back to him. “Hello?” he starts, careful in his tone. The mutant’s head snaps forward and he’s suddenly staring straight into Yifan, eyes dilated with a mixture of power and fear. He pauses for a moment before continuing, “My name is Wu Yifan-Vikare of the X-Men. I’m here to help you.”
“Help?” The mutant repeats. His voice sounds distorted.
Yifan nods, a small part to himself to help him push through his with his words. “Yes. You’re going through some changes right now. It might be scary, but I’m going to help you through it.” He takes another step forward. “Can you tell me your name?”
“My name…” The mutant says, closing his eyes. “Baekhyun.”
“Baekhyun.” This is good. Yifan latches onto this progress and continues, “I know this seems scary, but believe me, it’s going to be alright.”
A delicate wave of heat ripples from Baekhyun’s body. It passes through Yifan like a heartbeat, warm and fragile.
“You and me, we’re a lot alike,” Yifan says as he closes the gap between them. “We’re mutants.”
Baekhyun raises his head. “Mutants?”
“Yeah.” Yifan nods. “We have, special gifts you see. For example, I can fly.” Yifan makes a flapping motion with his hands and it just leaves Baekhyun dumbfounded. Nearby, a railing detached from its bolts and crashes onto the floor.
“Your powers seem so harmless when compared to…” Baekhyun trails off, eyes wandering over to a sign near the exit door.
“It seems like it, but I had a bit of trouble when my powers first appeared,” Yifan says, as if recalling a fond memory, and not the single traumatizing moment in his entire life. “I had help though, through the Institute, they trained me on how to control my gift.” His hand drifts over to Baekhyun’s shoulder, and Yifan imagines he’s talking to one of his students. “They can help you too-”
“They can’t help me,” Baekhyun grits out. “The pain, the headaches, it all hurts.” Another wave. This time the heat lingers for a few moments.
Smoke’s starting to crowd inside of the compartment, and Yifan has to cover his mouth to hold back the coughs growing inside his throat. “Trust me on this Baekhyun. We can help you.” His fingers leave Baekhyun’s shoulder and he’s standing up again, holding his hand out for Baekhyun to take. “It’s what we do.”
Baekhyun’s staring out at the sign still, wobbling uneasily in his seat. When he finally breaks away to look at Yifan, he says nothing. Just stares, silent and lost. His eyes speak the words he’s afraid to say, desperate and pleading.
“Trust me,” Yifan reiterates, and he takes Baekhyun’s hand in his.
Baekhyun fitting into Yifan’s life starts out innocent, with Yifan checking up on him in the hospital bed and answering questions about the Institute. He’s fond of asking whatever question pops up in his head, and Yifan is more than happy to oblige him with answers. They talk till the visiting hours are up and Yifan feels like he’s overstayed his welcome.
When he makes to leave, Baekhyun is hesitant in his goodbyes, sometimes clutching on Yifan’s arm like he doesn’t want him to go. Yifan promises him that he’ll be there the next day.
“It doesn’t look good,” Kyungsoo says as he goes over the report once more. “The only bright side I can pull from this is that there were no casualties in the incident.” He sighs, and ducks his head, pressing all of his fingertips to his temples. “The officials still don’t know what to do with Baekhyun. It’s unclear if his abilities were the cause of the crash, or simply an unfortunate side effect of tragic events.”
The monitor overhead flashes a few images, a few of Baekhyun boarding the subway just a few hours before the accident, and then of an anti-mutant crowd gathering near the hospital.
“The protestors are having a field day with this though,” Kyungsoo gripes. “They’re calling for his head on a pike. A few even want that literally.”
Yifan turns away from the screen, choosing not to meet the eyes of his colleagues. Kyungsoo notices his discomfort and changes the display to a news report from MBS-TV. The subway fares no better than the hospital, with a similar crowd of people standing around it in a display of anger and hate. The field reporter-Hongbin-ducks between a few signs and leads his cameraman to the subway entrance, pointing out the wrecked state the terminal is in.
“We should send someone there, to try and help the local police in containing these crowds so nothing violent happens,” Jongdae suggests. “Acts like these will no doubt just attract more attention, and get worse when the more radical people join.”
“I already have that covered,” Kyungsoo points out as the news feed brings up two adults slipping in from the crowd.
“-and it looks like we have an X-Man in our midst,” Hongbin continues his report and waves over the attention of the nearest mutant. “Playback! Might we have a word?”
Zitao looks over at the camera for a brief moment, and then turns to Hongbin with a precise eyebrow raise. “We’re investigating here, if you’re wondering. The X-Men have been granted jurisdiction over this area as it is involving mutant affairs.”
“No I was wondering, who is your partner here?” Hongbin says, tilting his chin up at the other mutant.
“Park Chorong-Aegis,” Zitao says. “She’s a member of the X-Men, and my partner, so if it’s no trouble, we’d like to get on with our-”
“We don’t want you here mutie scum!” A shout from the crowd interrupts him, and it riles up the angry citizens.
Zitao sighs, and motions over for Chorong to follow him into the tunnel. Just before they take their first step down, a beer bottle is thrown carelessly through the air, aiming right for Zitao’s head. A whine breaks through the noise and everything is a still blue. The bottle breaks upon impact with the barrier, a simple construction surrounding the pair. Chorong is effortless in her ability, maintaining a shield even as she converses with her partner.
The feed is disturbed when a voice calls in, “Do Kyungsoo, you have an incoming transmission from Genosha. From a mister Zhang Yixing.”
“Patch him through,” Kyungsoo says, swiveling in his chair to face the secondary monitor.
As Kyungsoo relays Yixing’s message, Yifan takes this time to leave the conference room, avoiding the stare Jongdae’s burning through his back.
Yifan visits the hospital later that day, slipping past the crowd thanks to Jongin’s teleportation. When the young mutant asked him why it was so important he went alone, Yifan just gave him a sheepish smile and said it was personal business. Jongin didn’t look convinced, but he went along with his words, disappearing into the shadows without further questions.
Knock, knock, he taps against the door.
Baekhyun looks tiny in his sheets. He’s staring straight at the vase of flowers at the nightstand, purposefully avoiding his window and the disturbing crowd outside. Yifan can’t blame him; in a single day, his life has changed forever, and nothing will be the same for him.
Yifan enters the room with the brightest smile he can muster, and Baekhyun takes it with comfort, easily relaxing into a familiar conversation with him. He looks so innocent like this, and it makes Yifan want to take away all of his pain, to ease the headaches and show him that being a mutant isn’t a life filled with unfortunate events.
Baekhyun tells him of how his life was before the subway, how he was a college student looking to make his mark in the musical world as a professional pianist. Yifan glances down at his fingers, long and slender, just like his, and at the same time, completely different. Where Yifan’s is strong, worn from years of action, Baekhyun’s is smooth, untouched.
He continues on about how he used to dream about being on big stages and filling up crowds with smiles, as bright as his would be. It’s there, the barest smile tugging on Baekhyun’s lips. Yifan takes it and memorizes it.
“How are you feeling?” he asks, and Yifan’s surprised Baekhyun’s the one asking him.
Yifan pauses as he watches the clouds drift outside. “I could be better.” He returns to Baekhyun with a gummy smile. “But I’m doing well. How about you? Are you feeling better?”
Baekhyun’s smile drops. “I feel like my head’s being thrown into the sun, if that makes any sense.” His fingers unconsciously reach for Yifan’s wrist and it coaxes a shudder out of the older mutant.
Yifan remains firm, ignoring the heat trailing along his arm from the touch. Baekhyun seems like a physical type of person, leaning into the space of others to feel comfortable. It doesn’t mean anything, and just like before, Yifan sits and listens, acting on thoughts that would bring about the least destruction.
“What did Zitao and Chorong find out?” Yifan asks as he passes by Kyungsoo in the hallway.
Kyungsoo looks at him once before shaking his head. “There was an obstruction in the tunnel, a road bump if you will. On a grander scale.” He looks worried. “I’m not sure who’s responsible for this, but we have to be careful. I remember reading similar reports to this, incidents that are far more intentional than accidental.”
“This has happened before?” Yifan asks, a sinking sensation growing inside of him.
Kyungsoo nods. “The fact that these all happen with mutants caught in the aftermath is no coincidence.” He brushes a stray lock of hair back. “I’m having Jongin look into this, investigating the places in the reports to see if there’s anything we might’ve missed that’ll help us track down the person causing all of this.”
Yifan watches a few students walk into the classroom at the end of the hall and Kyungsoo follows his gaze, clearing his throat.
“The good news is we can clear any involvement Baekhyun has with this, and help provide better protection for him.” He waves a hand back and forth. “I’m sure the crowds will stop their idiocy when news that a mutant was not the cause of the incident makes rounds.”
Yifan resists grinning. “That is good news.”
Kyungsoo shoots him a knowing look, but doesn’t push for answers.
“Do you have anywhere to go?” Yifan asks when he visits Baekhyun to inform him about the news.
Baekhyun’s holding onto his hand, kneading heat into his fingers with slow and careful circles. It helps calm him down, and Yifan doesn’t shy away from the contact, having grown close to him these past few days.
Yifan’s learned so much about him, from the way Baekhyun likes to listen to indie bands, to the fact that Baekhyun’s never been outside of New York. He wants to take him places. He wants to give Baekhyun the world, show him places that one can only see through videos and read about in books.
“My family haven’t contacted me back,” Baekhyun replies sadly, dropping his hand back onto the sheets. “I don’t think they want to see me. I feel like, once the news about me being a mutant popped up in newspaper articles, they’ve just been ashamed.”
Yifan takes Baekhyun’s hand instead, rubbing it affectionately like Baekhyun had been doing for him. “You are nothing to be ashamed of, trust me.” He speaks from personal experience, having dealt with this kind of rejection firsthand. The wounds from his last meeting with his parents still run deep inside of him, but the thrill of being an X-Man have done wonders in patching them up.
“I can’t even eat without burning up the food in my hands.” Baekhyun grimaces. “The only thing worse than bland food is burnt bland food.”
“Is that how your powers work?” Yifan asks, curious about the nature of his abilities.
Baekhyun tilts his head like a puppy in thought. “I’m not sure how it happens. It was like, that day on the subway, it felt like I was the sun. A ball of burning energy.” His forehead wrinkles. “It felt like I was charging up a solarbeam, which would’ve been cool if it wasn’t so scary.”
“This is the first time I’ve heard someone describe their powers like that,” Yifan chuckles. “Does it still hurt now?”
“Not as much.” Baekhyun raises a hand to his face, and Yifan feels it, the heat pooling near his palm. “I’ve been able to control it some, but the headaches are getting worse. They’ve been giving me painkillers, but those only do so much before it’s back to pain central.”
Yifan hums. “That offer from earlier still stands you know.” Yifan rubs at his arm slowly, cautiously. “You could come to the Institute. We could help you there, with your headaches. We have much more experience dealing with mutant problems than regular doctors.” A smile reaches his lips. I mean, not to brag or anything, but Junmyeon’s one of the best around these parts.”
Baekhyun looks back at him with his own smile, and it’s cute, just like the rest of him. “If I go, will you be there with me?”
“Of course,” Yifan assures. “Trust me.”
The day Baekhyun is released from the hospital is what Yifan would like to call, the day that shouldn’t have gone wrong.
Or rather, what could go wrong, did go wrong.
“What’s with your hero types and always gathering in flocks?” Hyojun shouts from atop an overturned car, joyfully basking in the ruins of what was once the Blackbird.
The hospital is being evacuated due to a mutant threat, and Yifan curses at himself for not realizing that there would be other parties interested in such a dangerous mutant. He doesn’t believe Baekhyun’s a threat to anybody, but the Brotherhood seem to know how much power he holds. How much destruction he could cause in the wrong hands.
“Fuck,” Yifan curses under his breath, backing behind an abandoned ambulance as the flames spread out across the grounds.
He’s trapped. Innocent people are still trapped inside of the building, too scared to leave through the entrance because of the mutants. Jongdae and Sehun are trying to pull their pilot out of the wreckage, and Yifan can’t get to them without risk getting blown to pieces by Hyojun’s blasts the second he steps out.
Sirens wail around him and the police are heading their way, no doubt inviting more people to witness the monsters that plague their city. The Brotherhood have always been the poster children for anti-mutant propaganda, but unlike the X-Men, they revel in it. They fed off the negative attention, consuming and exploiting the fear to bring out even more chaos.
An explosion sets off behind the ambulance and Yifan rocks forward from the shockwave, ducking away from the debris that fly over him. The last time the X-Men had to deal with Hyojun’s combustive powers, Lu Han had stepped in with his telekinesis and disabled him from using his abilities. But there’s no more telekinesis today, and Yifan’s cards are running out.
A second explosion hits the ambulance head on and the vehicle starts to superheat, whining and creaking around the edges. Yifan wastes no time diving behind another ambulance as the former one detonates in a fiery display of destruction, shards of metal flying haphazardly through the air. He winces as a piece flies right past his arm, slicing along his skin and drawing blood.
Yifan climbs back onto his feet, peering from behind the ambulance as Hyojun starts to circle the hospital fountain in boredom. A thought appears. It’s a long shot, but if they could somehow knock Hyojun into the fountain, Jongdae could charge it with electricity and hopefully send him unconscious enough to lock up.
“Oh no,” he whispers as a squad of police cars pull in from the street, lining up along the side like target practice.
Hyojun laughs manically and immediately gets to work on blasting the cars with his beams, each car erupting in explosions like a scene out of an apocalyptic movie. Policemen drag out from the vehicles, burnt and injured.
“Is this it?” Hyojun taunts, blasting a car with a second beam and sending it barreling out into the building across the street. Bystanders start to scream and drop their phones to get out of the area.
Yifan thinks Hyojun’s distracted enough with his pride to not notice him sneaking back to the rest of his team. He’s wrong, and Hyojun immediately snarls as he sends a blast his direction, exploding the hospital doors and lighting up the entrance in flames. More screams fill his ears and Yifan stumbles back to a safer position.
“Yifan?” No, this isn’t good. Yifan looks up and sees Baekhyun staring right at him, eyes wide and terrified.
“Get back!” he shouts, but it’s too late.
The hairs on the back of his neck stand up as he feels the charge of heat headed his way. The worst thing that could happen is happening. Baekhyun was going to get hurt. He feels his body move on its own accord, jumping up in a brazen act of protection. His arms curl around Baekhyun tightly, secure, and he twists around so that Baekhyun’s no longer in the line of fire.
He feels nothing. The explosion doesn’t set off in his mind, but there he is, lying on his side on the floor with flames charring the floor. He can’t move. His arms and legs feel distant, unresponsive. He thinks there’s screaming, but he can’t say for sure since the only thing he can hear is ringing, loud and oppressive.
How could he have been so stupid? He’s an X-Man; he wasn’t supposed to make mistakes like this.
Yifan looks up to the side, and Baekhyun’s clutching his head, face scrunched up in agony as he screams. His body starts to glow, and when Baekhyun releases his energy, everything is bathed in a blinding white.
“Yifan?” he hears the voice calling out to him.
His eyes slowly open, and he’s no longer at the hospital. The room is familiar, and as his eyesight adjusts from the grogginess, he recognizes the medical cots of the Institute.
He’s back home, and without thinking, he tries to sit up to leave, when he’s struck with a searing pain throughout his body. It claws at his skin and when Yifan looks down, his eyes widen with horror. He realizes his body is burned, and everything rushes back to him all at once. The fight with Hyojun, the damaged hospital, but most of all, Baekhyun.
“Baekhyun,” he says quietly.
“So you’re awake now,” Junmyeon says, pushing up his glasses as he meanders back into the room. “You’ve been out for a couple of days. That last battle took a lot out of you.”
“What…” Yifan starts, wincing. “What happened?”
Junmyeon sets a few charts down on the table. “You took a direct hit from one of Hyojun’s combustion blasts. Normally I’d reprimand you for being so reckless, but you’ve already gone through enough.” The glasses slide down on his nose and he grumbles as he pushes them back up. “After you blacked out, there was a power disturbance in front of the hospital, but oddly enough, only Hyojun was affected by that wave. At the epicenter of the blast was a young boy, Byun Baekhyun I’m assuming.”
“How is he?” Yifan blurts out, not caring about the pain that starts to sear through his back. “Baekhyun I mean. Is he okay?”
“Calm down Yifan,” Junmyeon says as he presses down on Yifan’s shoulder with the barest touch. “We wouldn’t want you to worry those injuries.” As soon as Yifan’s leaning back on the bed, Junmyeon opens up a placating smile. “Baekhyun’s fine. He was a bit shaken up when we arrived at the scene, but he kept saying he was fine, and that we should worry more about you. He thought you were dead, but I assured him otherwise.”
Relief seeps into his shoulders and Yifan exhales slowly, closing his eyes as he thinks about how worried Baekhyun must’ve been seeing his body on the ground, unresponsive.
“He’s here at the Institute,” Junmyeon continues. “Said he wanted to see if there was any truth to what you told him.” His smiles grows wider. “I think he likes it here.”
Yifan laughs, and he’s happy. He feels happy, despite everything that’s happened.
“He starts the next term with the other students, but for now, he’s just going to get a feel for the Institute as a guest.” Junmyeon types a few words into his computer and sits down next to Yifan. “We told him he doesn’t have to actively stay on the ground, but he insisted.” His eyes pin Yifan down. “I have a feeling you’re part of the reason he wants to stay here so badly?”
“You could say that,” Yifan replies, turning his head away so Junmyeon doesn’t catch the pink on his cheeks.
“You’re doing pretty well,” Baekhyun says as he pushes Yifan’s wheelchair next to his bed. “Junmyeon says you’ll be fully recovered by next month.”
It’s been a long and strenuous journey, but Yifan’s road to recovery has been successful. The treatments with the Institute’s healers have done wonder on healing most of the physical injuries on his body, leaving behind only battle scars as reminders of what he went through.
“He says he thinks,” Yifan corrects, but he smiles anyways. “He also thinks I have a latent healing factor. But it’s good to hear. I’m excited to get back on the field.” Yifan taps on the lovely message Sehun left on his cast, and slowly sits up onto the side of the bed. “I hear your sessions with Lu Han have been going well?”
“Like a charm,” Baekhyun says. “The headaches have pretty much disappeared now. On the other hand, I accidentally burned a bar of soap in my hands while taking a shower so I’m still getting used to controlling my powers.”
Yifan snickers. “Be thankful it was just a bar of soap.”
“Yeah I guess you’re right,” Baekhyun laughs loudly before he softens it with a hum. “I’m thankful for a lot of things now. For being able to live, to not feeling anymore pain. But mostly, I’m thankful for you.”
It feels genuine, his words, and Yifan has to shake his head to stop the heat creeping up his face. “I didn’t do much though.”
Baekhyun gasps. “You helped me a lot Yifan. I don’t think I could’ve gone through this without your help. Being a mutant, it’s shown me a lot and well, it’s probably the universe just trying to give me a sign.” He takes one of Yifan’s hands in his and just like before, Yifan doesn’t pull back. “I haven’t really opened up to anyone as much as I have with you.”
Yifan closes his fingers around Baekhyun’s and it feels right, holding him like this, being together like this. “I’ll always be here if you need someone to talk to. Or if you need anything else.”
“Thanks,” Baekhyun whispers.
It’s brief, the first real hug between them, but it feels like the start that’s been long overdue. Yifan inhales everything. Baekhyun smells like innocence and Yifan wants to keep it with him forever, to have it beside him every morning. Hands start to roam along his back and they trail along the scars left behind, slowly like Yifan will fall to pieces.
“I won’t break,” Yifan answers to unsaid questions. “Trust me.”
Baekhyun smiles into his collarbones.
“So do you have a codename picked out?” Chanyeol asks, waving around his sling and taking up more space than he usually does. He got injured again in a recent mission and has been milking it for all its worth.
Baekhyun drops his spoon of mashed potatoes and looks up thoughtfully. “I was thinking Firefly.”
“Too obvious,” Jongdae says, tapping his spoon against his untouched tray. “You need something with a bit more zest.”
“What about Apollo?” Sehun suggests.
Baekhyun shudders and turns to Yifan for an opinion. Yifan catches his gaze and blinks like a deer caught in headlights. “I’m sorry what?”
“We’re thinking of codenames for Baekhyun here.” Chanyeol says loudly as he throws a spoon at Yifan’s side.
“Ow hey,” Yifan says as he rubs his arm. “I can’t believe you qualify to be an X-Man.”
Chanyeol gapes and Jongdae lets out a snort.
“I have a suggestion,” Kyungsoo says as he plops down at their table. “How about, Strobe Light?”
Baekhyun decides he doesn’t really need a codename.
“How did you get your codename?” Baekhyun asks one evening, as they lie on Yifan’s bed, tucked away in his apartment for a bit of downtime.
Yifan rolls onto his side so he can stare at Baekhyun’s face. It’s ethereal. Everything about Baekhyun is angelic, and Yifan has to remind himself that he’s real. It’s all real and right in front of him. Yifan’s sweater hangs loose around Baekhyun’s body and his collarbones peek out tantalizingly.
“I fell in love with a story about a boy who flew to close to the sun.” Yifan admits.
Baekhyun hums thoughtfully, and when he shifts to get comfortable, the sweater slips further off his body, revealing a bare shoulder. His skin looks soft, unmarred by scars.
Yifan gulps.
“I didn’t peg you for the deep, intellectual type,” Baekhyun teases, tongue peeking out between his teeth.
Yifan leans in closer. “There’s a lot you don’t know about me. But I’d love to teach you.”
Baekhyun’s flushes a soft pink and Yifan knows he’s finally found his sun.
♔