Invisible Pain
Title: Invisible Pain (2/?)
Author: his_angel16
Pairing: Jaejin/Wonbin, onesided!Jaejin/Hongki
Genre: Angst, Romance
Rating: PG
Summary: Jaejin always hid his feelings. When he confessed, he had a chance of changing his words as if he had never spoken them. Now, all he can do is wonder if he had chosen right.
Chapter Two:
“How can that be? He’s never once said so,” Minhwan said. They were all sitting around the kitchen table, three hours after Jaejin called. “I’ve talked to him before about liking Hongki hyung, but he never admitted to liking him.”
“I wonder if he just lied about liking him,” Seunghyun suggested. “I mean, if it were me I’d do the same if one of you liked Jonghun hyung at the same time I do.”
“It doesn’t make sense,” Hongki murmured. He was staring at the cup of coffee in front of him. “Why would he change what he said if he knew it would turn out badly for him?”
“Maybe he was hoping you’d reject Minhwan,” Jonghun explained. “Jaejin has never fully confessed anything until he knew it for certain. He never wished to make a fool of himself over something. He’d get all the facts before coming to a conclusion.”
“And he concluded that I like Minhwan…”
“Exactly. So, since he likes you, too, he ran off.”
“But where? Who does he know that we don’t? Who would possibly hide him away from us intentionally?”
Seunghyun gasped. “He had gotten a phone call a few weeks ago from someone. He seemed really happy to talk to whoever it was.”
“Did he say anything that would give us an idea?”
“I don’t know. All he said was hyung and I miss you. Does that contain any information at all as to who called him? And if it does, is that the person he’s staying with?”
Jonghun looked at Hongki, then at Minhwan. “I have an idea of who called him.”
“Who? We don’t know anyone that-” Minhwan’s eyes widened. “Do you think it might be him? After all this time, he’s back?”
“It can’t be him.” Hongki shook his head. “He left, remember? He didn’t plan on returning. It can’t be him. He left us!” He stood, his chair falling backward, as he fled the kitchen. Seunghyun watched him leave, confused by his action.
“What’s wrong with Hongki hyung?”
“We think we know who it is.”
“Did hyung like him or something?”
Minhwan shook his head. “No, Hongki didn’t like him. But Jaejin hardly ever left his side.”
“Then, did Jaejin like him?”
“That’s not the case. They’re closer than brothers and shared secrets with each other that even we never knew. One time it was storming and Jaejin was nowhere to be found.”
“We searched the entire dorm for him, but still hadn’t found him. Hongki had found him in hyung’s room with hyung covering his ears and telling him everything would be fine.”
“So, they were like brothers? But that doesn’t explain why hyung stormed off like that…”
Jonghun sighed. “On the night that Wonbin left, it stormed. Jaejin was terrified. He stayed locked in the room, hiding under his blanket. We all thought he was sleeping. Hongki went to check on him a little while later. It was still storming and he tried to cover Jaejin’s ears like Wonbin had.”
“Jaejin just pushed hyung away, claiming to be fine.”
“Is hyung mad that Jaejin didn’t let him do that?” Seunghyun groaned. “Aish, I’m so confused!”
“Hongki’s mad that Wonbin left Jaejin like that. Jaejin depended on him and he just left.” Jonghun frowned. “When I think about it, I never knew Jaejin was afraid of storms until today.”
“Me either.” Minhwan chewed on his lip. “Has he always hid his fear, then?”
“Hyung knew about it,” Seunghyun reminded them. They turned to look at him.
“You’re right! Hongki did know about it!” Jonghun got up from his place at the table and followed after Hongki. He stopped at the door to the room, seeing Hongki sitting by the window as it stormed. “You okay?”
“I’m not worried about me. It’s Jaejin I’m worried about.” He turned his face to look at Jonghun. “What if seeing Wonbin again makes him remember everything that happened? What if it makes him wish he were one of us again?”
“Hongki, we all wish that Wonbin stayed. All of us missed him.”
“But Jaejin missed him the most.” He turned to stare out the window again. “I still haven’t fully forgiven Wonbin for walking out like that. Jaejin was hurting too much after he left.”
“We were all hurting, Hongki.”
“It’s not fair!” Hongki punched the window pane, the glass shattering. It rained onto the floor in sparkling red shards.
“What isn’t fair?”
“That Jaejin went crawling back to the man who left him! That Jaejin forgave him for walking out! That Jaejin never once let me be the one to help him during a storm…” He winced at the pain in his hand. Jonghun noticed the blood, running over a second later.
“Are you an idiot?!” His voice brought the younger two into the room, unease washing over them. “Hongki, are you insane? Why’d you punch the window?”
“Why wouldn’t he let me help him just once…?”
“Hyung, are you okay?” Minhwan’s eyes were wide, staring at the blood dripping from Hongki’s hand. “Why did you punch the window?”
Sighing, Hongki sat down on the nearest bed, cradling his hand against his chest. “I wasn’t thinking. I’m sorry for scaring you guys. I’ll just…go clean my hand up.” After leaving the room, the younger two turned to Jonghun.
“Why did Hongki punch the window?” Seunghyun asked.
“He’s upset with himself for various reasons.” Looking from one to the other, Jonghun motioned for them to sit. “Minhwan knows a little of the story already, but you don’t, Seunghyun. I’ll just start from the beginning. When FT Island was first formed, Jaejin stuck to Wonbin like glue. Well, it’s because he knew Jaejin was terrified of storms.”
“And over the months we spent together,” Minhwan added, “Wonbin hyung would stay by Jaejin’s side whenever the weather started going bad. They sort of just fell into a routine after that.” He looked to the window, an amused smile appearing on his face. “Every time it stormed, the two of them would disappear, only to be found hiding under the covers on Wonbin hyung’s bed.”
“We’d find both of them fast asleep, Wonbin’s hands still covering Jaejin’s ears. It’s a little ironic that it’s storming and once again Jaejin is with Wonbin. I wonder if they’re doing the same thing they always had.” Jonghun’s eyes focused on Hongki standing in the hallway, towel wrapped tightly around his hand. “Hongki…”
“I’m going to look for him,” Hongki stated, eyes closed tightly. “He should be here, with the four of us, not with…him.”
“Hyung, you’re overreacting. Just let Jaejin stay-” Seunghyun fell quiet when Hongki’s fist slammed against the wall.
“I am not overreacting! If you were around right after Wonbin left, you’d have seen the mess Jaejin was in! He barely ate, had trouble sleeping. When he did fall asleep, it was because he was too exhausted from crying!” Hongki turned, ready to storm out of the room, but Jonghun grabbed his wrist.
“Let them be together for these few days. You an I both know that Wonbin will leave again, so let it go, please. Jaejin will come back to us on his own.”
Hearing Jonghun’s words, Hongki relaxed a little. Turning to face the younger, he took a deep breath. “I don’t want to see him abandoned by Wonbin again. If he has to go through it again, I can’t promise that I’ll stay calm…”
Minhwan felt his heart clench painfully at Hongki’s words. He came to a heartbreaking realization, closing his eyes against the tormenting idea. Hyung is in love with Jaejin, he thought to himself. His actions prove it, but why has he not realized it himself? Minhwan drew a shaky breath as he looked toward the window, trying to let the rain soothe his nerves.
Jaejin snuggled closer to Wonbin on the couch, smiling at the memories flowing back to him. The elder’s arm was draped around his shoulder, his hand resting lightly on his back. They had decided to watch a movie after they ate, their empty dishes already soaking in the soapy water. Peering up at his hyung, he closed his eyes.
“You still move around before you go to sleep?” Wonbin asked, making Jaejin jump at the sound. He looked at the younger. “If you’re still tired, you should go to bed. I have some errands to run.”
“C-can I come with you?” He sat up to get a better view of the elder. “I don’t want to be by myself right now.”
Smiling, Wonbin nodded. “Yeah, you can come.”
After they changed, they exited the apartment, Wonbin locking the door behind them. He opened the umbrella once they were outside, pulling the younger closer to keep him from being pelted by the rain. Walking down the road, Jaejin froze when he noticed a familiar person running toward them. Wonbin had taken a few steps forward, rain pelting the younger without the protection of the umbrella.
“Jaejinnie!” Hongki hollered, stopping right in front of them. “You had us worried! You shouldn’t run off like that.”
“It’s been a while since we last spoke, Hongki,” Wonbin said. He walked back to Jaejin’s side, once again keeping the rain off of him. “Jaejin will be staying with me for a few days. I hope you don’t mind. He knows the schedule and I’m more than happy to take him where he needs to go.”
“Let’s go, Jaejin. The others are waiting for us.” When the younger made no intention to move, he rolled his eyes. Grabbing onto Jaejin’s wrist, he tried to pull the younger with him. “Come on!”
“He won’t be going anywhere with you.” The other members of FT Island showed up in time to see Wonbin pry Hongki’s hand off of Jaejin. Without warning, he pulled Jaejin closer, crushing their lips together. The look of shock on Hongki’s face made him smirk. “Jaejinnie is mine, Hongki. You can’t have him.”
Jaejin stared blankly at Wonbin, part of him screaming that he needed to punch the elder and the other part of him thankful that Hongki would now have to fight to keep him by his side. He looked at Hongki before allowing his eyes to drop to the ground. Wonbin had grasped his hand, intertwining their fingers.
“Jaejin, what’s going on?” Jonghun asked, glancing from the younger to Hongki and then to Wonbin. “You aren’t really staying with Wonbin, are you?”
Jaejin looked up, trying to put together a full thought before he spoke. He felt Wonbin give his hand a comforting squeeze and he cleared his throat, looking up with all the confidence he could muster. “I’m staying with Wonbin. I can’t be at the dorms right now, so naturally I’ve turned to someone I can trust and rely on. Sorry for worrying you all, but we need to get going.”
“You’re coming home with us,” Hongki ordered, taking hold of Jaejin’s wrist again. He frowned when the younger jerked away from him. “Yah, Jaejin, don’t act like this. Come home.”
Jaejin glared at him, Hongki taking a step back. He had never witnessed Jaejin so hostile in all the days of FT Island. Sure the younger got a bit tense and stressed, but what human hasn’t at some point in their life? Jaejin glanced at Minhwan and Seunghyun, the two of them standing a few paces behind Jonghun, both looked a bit startled by their hyung’s outburst.
“I’ll come by later and get some of my things.” Jaejin looked at Wonbin. “Let’s go. We have errands to run.”
Wonbin nodded. “You take the umbrella and go ahead first, okay? I want to talk with them for a minute.” He could tell Jaejin wanted to protest, but the younger nodded.
“Wait.” Hongki stepped in front of Jaejin, blocking his way. “Look me in the eyes and tell me that you don’t want to be around me. Only if you say it to my face will I let you stay with him.”
Wonbin tensed as Jaejin looked Hongki up and down before staring into his eyes. He could almost feel the tension between the two and he wished he could have stopped Hongki from requesting something so ridiculous and something that would only hurt the both of them. He closed his eyes once Jaejin opened his mouth to speak, already having a close guess as to what he was going to say.
“I hate you,” Jaejin spat, his eyes steely as he glared. “Now move out of the way. We’re busy and I don’t want to see your face right now. It annoys me.” Jaejin walked around Hongki, the elder stunned into silence at the harsh words that fell upon his ears. He didn’t even make a move to stop the younger from leaving.
Wonbin waited until Jaejin was out of earshot before he spoke. “I tried to warn you, Hongki. I told you that Jaejin wouldn’t be going anywhere with you and that he’s mine. Any chance you might have had in winning him over is long gone.” He smirked, clapping the other on the shoulder. “I guess I should thank you. Due to you being stupid and not knowing things, you drove my Jaejin back to me.”
Hongki turned to watch Wonbin walk away, going to find Jaejin. He felt Minhwan tug on his arm, hearing him say something, but was too dazed to comprehend it. He felt more than a million miles away, on some forsaken island where it always stormed and he couldn’t reach anyone. He felt someone place their hand on his shoulder and looked over to find a sympathetic look on Jonghun’s face. Seunghyun, too, stood there looking as if Hongki had just been diagnosed with some sort of incurable disease.
“Why would Jaejin hate me? I’m not mean to him, I always tried to be beside him whenever it stormed…” He looked at Jonghun, the leader hugging him as a tear slipped down his face. “Why does Jaejin hate me?”
Minhwan rubbed soothing circles across the elder’s back, fighting back his own tears. Jaejin couldn’t hate Hongki, he knew the other was practically incapable of feeling such a strong emotion. He frowned as he looked toward the building Jaejin and Wonbin had disappeared around, wondering if he could catch up with them if he ran. Not thinking much of it, he glanced at Hongki before he sprinted away, going after Jaejin to demand an apology. Turning the corner, he froze at seeing Jaejin sitting on the cold concrete, Wonbin’s arm around him as he sobbed.
“Shhh, Jaejin,” Wonbin whispered, trying to soothe the younger. “I’m sure he’ll forgive you.”
“Even if I was angry, I shouldn’t have told him I hate him. You and I both know that’s clearly not the case,” Jaejin replied. He sniffled, wiping at his eyes with his hands.
“Hongki will forgive you. Once you can sort out your feelings for him or even find a way to hide them, I’m sure that the two of you will be able to smooth things over in no time at all. So don’t worry about it, okay?”
Jaejin shook his head, burying his face in his arms. “It’ll take too long for me to sort these feelings out.” He looked up at Wonbin, tears streaking his face. “You’ll help me keep them hidden, right? You’ll keep acting like there’s some sort of spark between us, won’t you? I can’t face any of them without you there, too.”
Wonbin offered him a smile, hugging him tightly. “I’ll keep acting as long as you need me to. Until your feelings for Hongki vanish or until you’re able to conceal them alone, I’ll stay beside you.”
Minhwan walked back around the corner and leaned against the wall. He was slightly in shock that it was all an act. He glanced at where Hongki and the rest of FT Island were standing before he peered around the wall back toward Wonbin and Jaejin. He didn’t know what he should do. He wanted to run over and tell Hongki that Jaejin hadn’t meant it; that Jaejin was really just trying to hide that he loved him, but another part of him wanted to keep it a secret. Hongki knowing that Jaejin loved him could mean that he would lose Hongki. Biting his lip, he turned and started back for his band mates. He’d use the information only if he needed to and only to keep Jaejin from trying to claim Hongki as his. He felt bad for having to resort to using blackmail, but if he wanted to keep the one he liked by his side, he had to keep Jaejin from confessing.
Author: his_angel16
Pairing: Jaejin/Wonbin, onesided!Jaejin/Hongki
Genre: Angst, Romance
Rating: PG
Summary: Jaejin always hid his feelings. When he confessed, he had a chance of changing his words as if he had never spoken them. Now, all he can do is wonder if he had chosen right.
Chapter Two:
“How can that be? He’s never once said so,” Minhwan said. They were all sitting around the kitchen table, three hours after Jaejin called. “I’ve talked to him before about liking Hongki hyung, but he never admitted to liking him.”
“I wonder if he just lied about liking him,” Seunghyun suggested. “I mean, if it were me I’d do the same if one of you liked Jonghun hyung at the same time I do.”
“It doesn’t make sense,” Hongki murmured. He was staring at the cup of coffee in front of him. “Why would he change what he said if he knew it would turn out badly for him?”
“Maybe he was hoping you’d reject Minhwan,” Jonghun explained. “Jaejin has never fully confessed anything until he knew it for certain. He never wished to make a fool of himself over something. He’d get all the facts before coming to a conclusion.”
“And he concluded that I like Minhwan…”
“Exactly. So, since he likes you, too, he ran off.”
“But where? Who does he know that we don’t? Who would possibly hide him away from us intentionally?”
Seunghyun gasped. “He had gotten a phone call a few weeks ago from someone. He seemed really happy to talk to whoever it was.”
“Did he say anything that would give us an idea?”
“I don’t know. All he said was hyung and I miss you. Does that contain any information at all as to who called him? And if it does, is that the person he’s staying with?”
Jonghun looked at Hongki, then at Minhwan. “I have an idea of who called him.”
“Who? We don’t know anyone that-” Minhwan’s eyes widened. “Do you think it might be him? After all this time, he’s back?”
“It can’t be him.” Hongki shook his head. “He left, remember? He didn’t plan on returning. It can’t be him. He left us!” He stood, his chair falling backward, as he fled the kitchen. Seunghyun watched him leave, confused by his action.
“What’s wrong with Hongki hyung?”
“We think we know who it is.”
“Did hyung like him or something?”
Minhwan shook his head. “No, Hongki didn’t like him. But Jaejin hardly ever left his side.”
“Then, did Jaejin like him?”
“That’s not the case. They’re closer than brothers and shared secrets with each other that even we never knew. One time it was storming and Jaejin was nowhere to be found.”
“We searched the entire dorm for him, but still hadn’t found him. Hongki had found him in hyung’s room with hyung covering his ears and telling him everything would be fine.”
“So, they were like brothers? But that doesn’t explain why hyung stormed off like that…”
Jonghun sighed. “On the night that Wonbin left, it stormed. Jaejin was terrified. He stayed locked in the room, hiding under his blanket. We all thought he was sleeping. Hongki went to check on him a little while later. It was still storming and he tried to cover Jaejin’s ears like Wonbin had.”
“Jaejin just pushed hyung away, claiming to be fine.”
“Is hyung mad that Jaejin didn’t let him do that?” Seunghyun groaned. “Aish, I’m so confused!”
“Hongki’s mad that Wonbin left Jaejin like that. Jaejin depended on him and he just left.” Jonghun frowned. “When I think about it, I never knew Jaejin was afraid of storms until today.”
“Me either.” Minhwan chewed on his lip. “Has he always hid his fear, then?”
“Hyung knew about it,” Seunghyun reminded them. They turned to look at him.
“You’re right! Hongki did know about it!” Jonghun got up from his place at the table and followed after Hongki. He stopped at the door to the room, seeing Hongki sitting by the window as it stormed. “You okay?”
“I’m not worried about me. It’s Jaejin I’m worried about.” He turned his face to look at Jonghun. “What if seeing Wonbin again makes him remember everything that happened? What if it makes him wish he were one of us again?”
“Hongki, we all wish that Wonbin stayed. All of us missed him.”
“But Jaejin missed him the most.” He turned to stare out the window again. “I still haven’t fully forgiven Wonbin for walking out like that. Jaejin was hurting too much after he left.”
“We were all hurting, Hongki.”
“It’s not fair!” Hongki punched the window pane, the glass shattering. It rained onto the floor in sparkling red shards.
“What isn’t fair?”
“That Jaejin went crawling back to the man who left him! That Jaejin forgave him for walking out! That Jaejin never once let me be the one to help him during a storm…” He winced at the pain in his hand. Jonghun noticed the blood, running over a second later.
“Are you an idiot?!” His voice brought the younger two into the room, unease washing over them. “Hongki, are you insane? Why’d you punch the window?”
“Why wouldn’t he let me help him just once…?”
“Hyung, are you okay?” Minhwan’s eyes were wide, staring at the blood dripping from Hongki’s hand. “Why did you punch the window?”
Sighing, Hongki sat down on the nearest bed, cradling his hand against his chest. “I wasn’t thinking. I’m sorry for scaring you guys. I’ll just…go clean my hand up.” After leaving the room, the younger two turned to Jonghun.
“Why did Hongki punch the window?” Seunghyun asked.
“He’s upset with himself for various reasons.” Looking from one to the other, Jonghun motioned for them to sit. “Minhwan knows a little of the story already, but you don’t, Seunghyun. I’ll just start from the beginning. When FT Island was first formed, Jaejin stuck to Wonbin like glue. Well, it’s because he knew Jaejin was terrified of storms.”
“And over the months we spent together,” Minhwan added, “Wonbin hyung would stay by Jaejin’s side whenever the weather started going bad. They sort of just fell into a routine after that.” He looked to the window, an amused smile appearing on his face. “Every time it stormed, the two of them would disappear, only to be found hiding under the covers on Wonbin hyung’s bed.”
“We’d find both of them fast asleep, Wonbin’s hands still covering Jaejin’s ears. It’s a little ironic that it’s storming and once again Jaejin is with Wonbin. I wonder if they’re doing the same thing they always had.” Jonghun’s eyes focused on Hongki standing in the hallway, towel wrapped tightly around his hand. “Hongki…”
“I’m going to look for him,” Hongki stated, eyes closed tightly. “He should be here, with the four of us, not with…him.”
“Hyung, you’re overreacting. Just let Jaejin stay-” Seunghyun fell quiet when Hongki’s fist slammed against the wall.
“I am not overreacting! If you were around right after Wonbin left, you’d have seen the mess Jaejin was in! He barely ate, had trouble sleeping. When he did fall asleep, it was because he was too exhausted from crying!” Hongki turned, ready to storm out of the room, but Jonghun grabbed his wrist.
“Let them be together for these few days. You an I both know that Wonbin will leave again, so let it go, please. Jaejin will come back to us on his own.”
Hearing Jonghun’s words, Hongki relaxed a little. Turning to face the younger, he took a deep breath. “I don’t want to see him abandoned by Wonbin again. If he has to go through it again, I can’t promise that I’ll stay calm…”
Minhwan felt his heart clench painfully at Hongki’s words. He came to a heartbreaking realization, closing his eyes against the tormenting idea. Hyung is in love with Jaejin, he thought to himself. His actions prove it, but why has he not realized it himself? Minhwan drew a shaky breath as he looked toward the window, trying to let the rain soothe his nerves.
Jaejin snuggled closer to Wonbin on the couch, smiling at the memories flowing back to him. The elder’s arm was draped around his shoulder, his hand resting lightly on his back. They had decided to watch a movie after they ate, their empty dishes already soaking in the soapy water. Peering up at his hyung, he closed his eyes.
“You still move around before you go to sleep?” Wonbin asked, making Jaejin jump at the sound. He looked at the younger. “If you’re still tired, you should go to bed. I have some errands to run.”
“C-can I come with you?” He sat up to get a better view of the elder. “I don’t want to be by myself right now.”
Smiling, Wonbin nodded. “Yeah, you can come.”
After they changed, they exited the apartment, Wonbin locking the door behind them. He opened the umbrella once they were outside, pulling the younger closer to keep him from being pelted by the rain. Walking down the road, Jaejin froze when he noticed a familiar person running toward them. Wonbin had taken a few steps forward, rain pelting the younger without the protection of the umbrella.
“Jaejinnie!” Hongki hollered, stopping right in front of them. “You had us worried! You shouldn’t run off like that.”
“It’s been a while since we last spoke, Hongki,” Wonbin said. He walked back to Jaejin’s side, once again keeping the rain off of him. “Jaejin will be staying with me for a few days. I hope you don’t mind. He knows the schedule and I’m more than happy to take him where he needs to go.”
“Let’s go, Jaejin. The others are waiting for us.” When the younger made no intention to move, he rolled his eyes. Grabbing onto Jaejin’s wrist, he tried to pull the younger with him. “Come on!”
“He won’t be going anywhere with you.” The other members of FT Island showed up in time to see Wonbin pry Hongki’s hand off of Jaejin. Without warning, he pulled Jaejin closer, crushing their lips together. The look of shock on Hongki’s face made him smirk. “Jaejinnie is mine, Hongki. You can’t have him.”
Jaejin stared blankly at Wonbin, part of him screaming that he needed to punch the elder and the other part of him thankful that Hongki would now have to fight to keep him by his side. He looked at Hongki before allowing his eyes to drop to the ground. Wonbin had grasped his hand, intertwining their fingers.
“Jaejin, what’s going on?” Jonghun asked, glancing from the younger to Hongki and then to Wonbin. “You aren’t really staying with Wonbin, are you?”
Jaejin looked up, trying to put together a full thought before he spoke. He felt Wonbin give his hand a comforting squeeze and he cleared his throat, looking up with all the confidence he could muster. “I’m staying with Wonbin. I can’t be at the dorms right now, so naturally I’ve turned to someone I can trust and rely on. Sorry for worrying you all, but we need to get going.”
“You’re coming home with us,” Hongki ordered, taking hold of Jaejin’s wrist again. He frowned when the younger jerked away from him. “Yah, Jaejin, don’t act like this. Come home.”
Jaejin glared at him, Hongki taking a step back. He had never witnessed Jaejin so hostile in all the days of FT Island. Sure the younger got a bit tense and stressed, but what human hasn’t at some point in their life? Jaejin glanced at Minhwan and Seunghyun, the two of them standing a few paces behind Jonghun, both looked a bit startled by their hyung’s outburst.
“I’ll come by later and get some of my things.” Jaejin looked at Wonbin. “Let’s go. We have errands to run.”
Wonbin nodded. “You take the umbrella and go ahead first, okay? I want to talk with them for a minute.” He could tell Jaejin wanted to protest, but the younger nodded.
“Wait.” Hongki stepped in front of Jaejin, blocking his way. “Look me in the eyes and tell me that you don’t want to be around me. Only if you say it to my face will I let you stay with him.”
Wonbin tensed as Jaejin looked Hongki up and down before staring into his eyes. He could almost feel the tension between the two and he wished he could have stopped Hongki from requesting something so ridiculous and something that would only hurt the both of them. He closed his eyes once Jaejin opened his mouth to speak, already having a close guess as to what he was going to say.
“I hate you,” Jaejin spat, his eyes steely as he glared. “Now move out of the way. We’re busy and I don’t want to see your face right now. It annoys me.” Jaejin walked around Hongki, the elder stunned into silence at the harsh words that fell upon his ears. He didn’t even make a move to stop the younger from leaving.
Wonbin waited until Jaejin was out of earshot before he spoke. “I tried to warn you, Hongki. I told you that Jaejin wouldn’t be going anywhere with you and that he’s mine. Any chance you might have had in winning him over is long gone.” He smirked, clapping the other on the shoulder. “I guess I should thank you. Due to you being stupid and not knowing things, you drove my Jaejin back to me.”
Hongki turned to watch Wonbin walk away, going to find Jaejin. He felt Minhwan tug on his arm, hearing him say something, but was too dazed to comprehend it. He felt more than a million miles away, on some forsaken island where it always stormed and he couldn’t reach anyone. He felt someone place their hand on his shoulder and looked over to find a sympathetic look on Jonghun’s face. Seunghyun, too, stood there looking as if Hongki had just been diagnosed with some sort of incurable disease.
“Why would Jaejin hate me? I’m not mean to him, I always tried to be beside him whenever it stormed…” He looked at Jonghun, the leader hugging him as a tear slipped down his face. “Why does Jaejin hate me?”
Minhwan rubbed soothing circles across the elder’s back, fighting back his own tears. Jaejin couldn’t hate Hongki, he knew the other was practically incapable of feeling such a strong emotion. He frowned as he looked toward the building Jaejin and Wonbin had disappeared around, wondering if he could catch up with them if he ran. Not thinking much of it, he glanced at Hongki before he sprinted away, going after Jaejin to demand an apology. Turning the corner, he froze at seeing Jaejin sitting on the cold concrete, Wonbin’s arm around him as he sobbed.
“Shhh, Jaejin,” Wonbin whispered, trying to soothe the younger. “I’m sure he’ll forgive you.”
“Even if I was angry, I shouldn’t have told him I hate him. You and I both know that’s clearly not the case,” Jaejin replied. He sniffled, wiping at his eyes with his hands.
“Hongki will forgive you. Once you can sort out your feelings for him or even find a way to hide them, I’m sure that the two of you will be able to smooth things over in no time at all. So don’t worry about it, okay?”
Jaejin shook his head, burying his face in his arms. “It’ll take too long for me to sort these feelings out.” He looked up at Wonbin, tears streaking his face. “You’ll help me keep them hidden, right? You’ll keep acting like there’s some sort of spark between us, won’t you? I can’t face any of them without you there, too.”
Wonbin offered him a smile, hugging him tightly. “I’ll keep acting as long as you need me to. Until your feelings for Hongki vanish or until you’re able to conceal them alone, I’ll stay beside you.”
Minhwan walked back around the corner and leaned against the wall. He was slightly in shock that it was all an act. He glanced at where Hongki and the rest of FT Island were standing before he peered around the wall back toward Wonbin and Jaejin. He didn’t know what he should do. He wanted to run over and tell Hongki that Jaejin hadn’t meant it; that Jaejin was really just trying to hide that he loved him, but another part of him wanted to keep it a secret. Hongki knowing that Jaejin loved him could mean that he would lose Hongki. Biting his lip, he turned and started back for his band mates. He’d use the information only if he needed to and only to keep Jaejin from trying to claim Hongki as his. He felt bad for having to resort to using blackmail, but if he wanted to keep the one he liked by his side, he had to keep Jaejin from confessing.