The Sound of Flight - Part VIII (Final) ; OT5
This has taken way, way too long, but here it is - the final part. I can't say that this is how I planned for the series to end when I first started it, but as I returned to work on this recently, it just felt right for it to end here.
Title: The Sound of Flight - Part VIII (Final)
Rating: PG-13
Fandom: Dong Bang Shin Ki
Pairing(s): OT5
Disclaimer: This is only fiction.
All parts: Part I | Part II | Part III | Interlude | Part IV
Part V | Part VI | Part VII | Part VIII (final)
The Sound of Flight
Part VIII
Her face twists with an unreadable look. Changmin concentrates as hard as he can and manages to detect a mix of frustration, sadness, and the low throb of something Changmin can't quite place, but it makes him ache the way hunger does. No anger.
"Please," he says, as Yunho takes his hand, squeezing it tightly.
She lifts one arm and sweeps it sideways, as though drawing curtains shut. And that's the last thing Changmin sees.
Jaejoong is dreaming - he's moving through an empty castle. When he calls out, the sound echoes endlessly through the corridors, and he's afraid. He keeps walking, and walking, for what feels like a very long time. In the heavy, suffocating silence, he hears something breathes behind him, and gripped with fear, he turns around -
He blinks, eyes adjusting to brightness. He's in their car, and Junsu is slumped next to him, asleep. Changmin is on his other side in the backseat, head resting on the window. Yunho is at the wheel, and Yoochun beside him, all four of them peacefully asleep.
Jaejoong shifts to look out the windows. He doesn't recognize the surroundings at all - there's lots of greenery, no buildings in sight - somewhere rural?
"Where are we?" The scratchy voice comes from Jaejoong's right. "What happened?" asks Changmin, his gaze darting around the car.
"No clue," Jaejoong says.
Changmin gets out and circles the car, brow knitted in concentration. Jaejoong knows he's checking if they are alone, and from the way some of the tension leaves Changmin's shoulders, he knows they are safe. At least, for now.
He opens the door and steps out to join Changmin. "She let us go," Jaejoong says.
Changmin slants him a look. "Temporarily," he adds. "We're being watched all the time. She can come for us anytime she wants."
"So where do we go from here?" Jaejoong asks, moving closer to Changmin so they stand with their shoulders touching. The floor beneath their feets is carpeted with fallen leaves. He sighs, and they levitate into the air, swirling and dancing.
Changmin smiles. "Show-off."
A flower hovers between their faces, and then tucks itself behind Changmin's ear. Jaejoong laughs.
"Changmin, I hate to ask this but why do you have a bloody flower in your hair?"
Jaejoong spins around and comes face to face with a bemused Yunho. The leaves float back onto the ground slowly. "You're awake."
"Any idea what happened?" Yunho asks, his gaze flickering between them both.
"Or where we are, for that matter?" Yoochun adds, coming to stand with them, his fingers entwined with Junsu's.
The five of them stand in a complete circle. Jaejoong finds himself flooded with relief and warmth and comfort and he's not sure if that's entirely Changmin's doing. Home, he thinks, we're home again.
Home is where the heart is, and Yoochun is glad the five of them are together again, but the truth is, he really prefers home to be somewhere that actually has a roof. So when they find themselves at an apple farm after driving ahead for what feels like eternity but is probably something like half an hour, Yoochun is incredibly relieved.
He talks to the elderly farm owners, uses just a hint of his persuasiveness, and the five of them have a place to stay.
The room they are given is bare, except for the five bedrolls pushed up against one wall, and a table; but it is clean and it is safe.
After a shower, Yoochun feels alive again. He has one hand on the door, about to slide it open when he feels a hand on his shoulder. He frowns at Jaejoong, who tugs at his arm, and then lifts a silencing finger to his mouth.
He lets Jaejoong pull him away. "What?" he asks.
"They're in there, Junsu and Changmin. Talking."
"Oh," Yoochun says in understanding. "They'll work things out."
"Of course they will," Jaejoong says, smiling. "While they're doing that, we should find something for us to eat."
When Changmin steps into the room, only Junsu is there. He's crouched in a corner, rooting through his bag, looking for something. He's biting on his lower lip and he's humming something.
Changmin remembers Junsu, humming that same tune, as he held Changmin close. He remembers Junsu, arching into him, the way he whimpered and the way his skin burned. His mouth goes dry with want, and he itches to touch, to reach out and run his hands along that hot, hot skin.
Junsu turns around, jaw clenched. "Don't do that," he says tightly, crossing his arms defensively.
Changmin inhales sharply, stepping backwards, towards the door. "I'm sorry, I didn't realise - " he says immediately. "I didn't mean it - my gift - it's been unstable ever since yesterday." He reels his emotions in desperately, knowing how invaded Junsu must feel.
Junsu's eyes soften, and he straightens. "It's okay." He's holding an empty glass jar, and memories flash through Changmin's mind - the five of them after lights out, playing cards around the jar; Junsu handing Changmin the jar, saying, "Your hands are freezing!"; Junsu dimming the fire in the jar to a flicker as he leans over to kiss Changmin.
"Hold this for me, will you?" Junsu says, holding the jar out.
Changmin steps forward to take it. He unscrews the top, and watches as Junsu drops a ball of fire into it. It lights up the room instantly, and Changmin's hands start to warm.
"I'm sorry," Junsu says.
Changmin tears his gaze away from the dancing flames, and almost drops the jar. Junsu grabs it, his hands tightening over Changmin's.
"For everything," Junsu continues. "Especially what I said. I - I don't know what I was thinking. I was in shock. I didn't - didn't mean - " His voice cracks and he clears his throat. "What happened. It wasn't your fault."
"It's not yours either," Changmin says quietly, finally finding his voice. "You did what you had to do."
"I know," Junsu takes a deep breath. "I don't regret saving you. I was out of it for a while, but I thought things through, and when I went back, they told me you were gone. And I thought, I was so scared, that I'd never see you again, I'd never get to tell you that I don't regret it, that I'm sorry, that I love you and - "
The jar burns and the sudden sharp heat makes Changmin hiss in pain. Junsu glances down, swearing under his breath, and the fire shrinks at once. "Sorry," he says sheepishly. "I'll take it."
Changmin hands the jar over, pressing his hands to his cheeks briefly to cool them.
Junsu sets the jar down on the floor. "So, do you forgive me?"
Changmin blinks at him. "Junsu, you saved my life. What's there to forgive?" he says incredulously.
"That means you forgive me, right?" Junsu says, smiling. He leans in, his hands coming to frame Changmin's face tentatively.
"It means you can kiss me if you want," Changmin says, and Junsu does.
"How did you do it?"
Changmin is not surprised that Yoochun is the first of them to ask.
It's after dinner, and they are all well-fed and warm and the other three are lazing on their bedrolls, talking and laughing.
Changmin sighs, slides the door open and steps out into the chill of the night. He hears Yoochun follows him out and shut the door behind him.
They sit on the steps, and next to Changmin, Yoochun radiates warmth.
The dark canvas of the sky is littered with stars, winking down at them - Changmin has never seen so many stars before. The sight is both breath-taking and overwhelming. He tears his gaze away and draws a deep breath of crisp, cool air. And then, he tells Yoochun.
Changmin was sweating, the plan worked in his head, but whether or not he could execute it was the problem. After surveying the room carefully, he couldn't see any cameras but he knew he was being monitored somehow.
He'd tested that by banging loudly against the door and yelling that he really, really needed the toilet. After ten minutes, the door opened, a chamber pot rolled into the room and the door swung shut again before Changmin could even speak.
Changmin had reached out with his gift and confirmed that there was no one standing guard outside his room, so they must be keeping tabs on him by some other method.
He needed to get someone to open the door for him, and he couldn't think of any other way.
Slowly, deliberately, he picked up the blanket on the bed, and wound it around his neck. He proceeded to pretend to strangle himself so realistically at one point he choked, sputtering and coughing. He prayed that someone, anyone would come in to stop him. He figured that if she - Yuki, was that her name? - went to such lengths to get him here, she wouldn't want him to die.
He pretended to go limp, collapsing on the floor in an awkward position and waited. Sweat ran down his back in tiny rivers, and his shirt clung to his skin uncomfortably. Seconds ticked by. It was a test, Changmin knew. They wanted to know if he was faking, they -
And then, like a miracle, there was the click of the doorknob turning.
"Is he still alive?" he heard an urgent voice. "Maybe he just fainted - "
He felt a pair of hands moving across his body, as someone unwound the blanket from around his neck. Fingers on his throat, looking for a pulse.
Holding his breath, Changmin pushed his gift out of his body as hard as he could, and opened his eyes to see the two men in suits curled up on the floor, trembling and shuddering as though having a seizure.
Behind them, the door was open.
He stood up, gasping in relief, stumbling towards the door. Then out of the corner of eye, he saw one of the men pull out a small hand-held device from his pocket and press a button with a trembling finger.
The device started to emit a high-pitched alarm, and Changmin swore under his breath. He should have expected this to happen. He darted out of the open door, slamming it shut behind him and started running. As he ran, he extended his gift, willing it to find anyone in his building he did not love with all his heart.
Yunho is staring at the ceiling, trying to go to sleep when he's nearly startled out of his skin by cold fingers on his arm. He jerks away, heart leaping into his throat, and then he realises that it's just Jaejoong, kneeling next to him.
"It's only me," Jaejoong whispers.
Yunho shifts so Jaejoong can crawl into his bedroll. "You should be asleep," Yunho murmurs.
Jaejoong doesn't answer, and he breathes warm puffs of air against Yunho's neck. It's familiar and comforting when their arms go around each other out of habit, holding each other close.
"This is only temporary," Jaejoong says when he finally speaks.
"I know," Yunho answers, and tightens his grip on Jaejoong just a little - careful not to use too much strength. "You're scared," he says, he doesn't need Changmin's gift to know that, he knows Jaejoong well enough.
When Jaejoong closes the distance between them and kisses him, there is relief, a spike of desire, and the feeling that this is inevitable, that the two of them will always come home to each other.
The next day, they sit outside in a circle, trying to decide where to go next.
"We're not safe - " Jaejoong says.
"We won't ever be safe!" Junsu interrupts. "Maybe she let us go, but who's to say that she won't change her mind? We're no match for her. Even if we don't have to worry about her, there's still the Academy to think about."
Yoochun can feel the beginnings of a headache between his eyes. Across from him, Changmin catches his eye, and raises a questioning eyebrow. After a moment, Yoochun feels Changmin projecting something at him, and he lets it bleed into him. It's a little bit of calm and a little bit of hope, and it helps him relax.
"Okay, we definitely can't stay here forever," Yunho says firmly. "We all agree on that, right?"
Yoochun nods, and winces inwardly at the thought of being stuck here in an apple farm for the rest of his life.
Next to him, Jaejoong shudders. "Definitely."
"So where do we go?" Yunho asks.
"The Academy," Junsu says.
Everyone else mirrors Yoochun's shock, turning to stare at Junsu.
"What? It makes sense!" Junsu says defensively.
"No," Yoochun says slowly, wondering if Junsu has gone mad. "It does not." Judging by the look Yunho is shooting Junsu, he is sure Yunho is wondering the same thing.
"I'm sure you guys are misunderstanding me," Junsu says firmly. "Just hear me out. I'm not saying that we should go back there - "
"That's exactly what you said!" Jaejoong sputters.
"Not to work with them," Junsu snapped. "I meant to get rid of them!"
There's a pause after Junsu's outburst as all of them think it over. Changmin suddenly recalls his conversation with Mr. Kim.
"It won't work," Yoochun says. "We'll all die. Painfully."
"No, no - wait - " Changmin interjects. "Junsu has a point. When we were back there, I found out some stuff - about the Academy." He told them what Mr. Kim told him. About the Network, about the Academy's true motivations. "So what Junsu said, it makes sense," he finished.
"So for the greater good, we should - just the five of us, mind you - go back and take on the Academy," Yoochun says, clearly incredulous. "And then we'd perish!"
"We're not just the five of us," Jaejoong says quietly. "We're the five of us." He rests one hand on Yoochun's knee. "And we can do this."
Changmin watches the struggle on Yoochun's face. "We can do it, if we do it together," he adds.
Yoochun ignores him and turns to Yunho. "What do you think?"
Yunho shrugs. "I think it's insane, but if we have a plan - if we actually think this through, it could work."
Yoochun exhales. "Fine. The leader has spoken." Then he grins, wicked and beautiful, the Yoochun they know and love. "Besides, it's completely obvious that you guys won't be able to do a thing without me. You'll be destroyed even before you started!"
Changmin laughs when a twig smacks Yoochun on the forehead without warning, and Jaejoong tries - and fails - to look like he has nothing to do with it.
They spend the next few days coming up with a plan, one that maximizes each of their gifts. For all of his resistance at the start, Yoochun becomes increasingly enthuasiastic, and he spends nearly all his time in heated discussions with Junsu.
The day before they are scheduled to leave, Changmin thinks about Yuki, and what he knows about her. He recalls the mix of emotions he felt from her before he lost consciousness. Frustration. Sadness. And that strange ache.
It takes him a few minutes before he realises that it feels familiar. It's like something he has felt before.
That ache that is a little like hunger. Something in between envy and yearning. What he felt every single time he ran away, afraid that he will never truly fit in with the four of them, wanting so badly to be a part of them, hungry for love.
"She won't come for us again," Changmin thinks out loud.
Jaejoong glances at him. "What?" He comes to sit next to Changmin, looking at him curiously.
"She won't come for us again," Changmin repeats, louder and more certain this time.
Jaejoong doesn't ask him how he knows this. He just reaches over and wraps one arm around Changmin's shoulders.
In the midst of packing up, Yunho looks over his shoulder at them and smiles. Junsu and Yoochun are arguing over the plan again.
Changmin doesn't know what the future is like. There are so many possibilities out there. Perhaps they will fail, and they will die. Perhaps they will be forced back under the Academy's control. Perhaps they will succeed, and they will finally be free. Perhaps one day, they will no longer be five. Perhaps some of them will get married. Perhaps they will find their own separate families. Perhaps one day, they will no longer feel like this about each other - no longer look at each other and see the world, no longer feel like this is all that matters.
But today, they have each other.
Today, they are five and they are together.
Changmin leans against Jaejoong, and thinks, no more running. Thinks, I belong.
Today is a beautiful place.
Back to Part VI
What do you think? ♥
MASTERLIST OF FICS HERE
Title: The Sound of Flight - Part VIII (Final)
Rating: PG-13
Fandom: Dong Bang Shin Ki
Pairing(s): OT5
Disclaimer: This is only fiction.
All parts: Part I | Part II | Part III | Interlude | Part IV
Part V | Part VI | Part VII | Part VIII (final)
The Sound of Flight
Part VIII
Her face twists with an unreadable look. Changmin concentrates as hard as he can and manages to detect a mix of frustration, sadness, and the low throb of something Changmin can't quite place, but it makes him ache the way hunger does. No anger.
"Please," he says, as Yunho takes his hand, squeezing it tightly.
She lifts one arm and sweeps it sideways, as though drawing curtains shut. And that's the last thing Changmin sees.
Jaejoong is dreaming - he's moving through an empty castle. When he calls out, the sound echoes endlessly through the corridors, and he's afraid. He keeps walking, and walking, for what feels like a very long time. In the heavy, suffocating silence, he hears something breathes behind him, and gripped with fear, he turns around -
He blinks, eyes adjusting to brightness. He's in their car, and Junsu is slumped next to him, asleep. Changmin is on his other side in the backseat, head resting on the window. Yunho is at the wheel, and Yoochun beside him, all four of them peacefully asleep.
Jaejoong shifts to look out the windows. He doesn't recognize the surroundings at all - there's lots of greenery, no buildings in sight - somewhere rural?
"Where are we?" The scratchy voice comes from Jaejoong's right. "What happened?" asks Changmin, his gaze darting around the car.
"No clue," Jaejoong says.
Changmin gets out and circles the car, brow knitted in concentration. Jaejoong knows he's checking if they are alone, and from the way some of the tension leaves Changmin's shoulders, he knows they are safe. At least, for now.
He opens the door and steps out to join Changmin. "She let us go," Jaejoong says.
Changmin slants him a look. "Temporarily," he adds. "We're being watched all the time. She can come for us anytime she wants."
"So where do we go from here?" Jaejoong asks, moving closer to Changmin so they stand with their shoulders touching. The floor beneath their feets is carpeted with fallen leaves. He sighs, and they levitate into the air, swirling and dancing.
Changmin smiles. "Show-off."
A flower hovers between their faces, and then tucks itself behind Changmin's ear. Jaejoong laughs.
"Changmin, I hate to ask this but why do you have a bloody flower in your hair?"
Jaejoong spins around and comes face to face with a bemused Yunho. The leaves float back onto the ground slowly. "You're awake."
"Any idea what happened?" Yunho asks, his gaze flickering between them both.
"Or where we are, for that matter?" Yoochun adds, coming to stand with them, his fingers entwined with Junsu's.
The five of them stand in a complete circle. Jaejoong finds himself flooded with relief and warmth and comfort and he's not sure if that's entirely Changmin's doing. Home, he thinks, we're home again.
Home is where the heart is, and Yoochun is glad the five of them are together again, but the truth is, he really prefers home to be somewhere that actually has a roof. So when they find themselves at an apple farm after driving ahead for what feels like eternity but is probably something like half an hour, Yoochun is incredibly relieved.
He talks to the elderly farm owners, uses just a hint of his persuasiveness, and the five of them have a place to stay.
The room they are given is bare, except for the five bedrolls pushed up against one wall, and a table; but it is clean and it is safe.
After a shower, Yoochun feels alive again. He has one hand on the door, about to slide it open when he feels a hand on his shoulder. He frowns at Jaejoong, who tugs at his arm, and then lifts a silencing finger to his mouth.
He lets Jaejoong pull him away. "What?" he asks.
"They're in there, Junsu and Changmin. Talking."
"Oh," Yoochun says in understanding. "They'll work things out."
"Of course they will," Jaejoong says, smiling. "While they're doing that, we should find something for us to eat."
When Changmin steps into the room, only Junsu is there. He's crouched in a corner, rooting through his bag, looking for something. He's biting on his lower lip and he's humming something.
Changmin remembers Junsu, humming that same tune, as he held Changmin close. He remembers Junsu, arching into him, the way he whimpered and the way his skin burned. His mouth goes dry with want, and he itches to touch, to reach out and run his hands along that hot, hot skin.
Junsu turns around, jaw clenched. "Don't do that," he says tightly, crossing his arms defensively.
Changmin inhales sharply, stepping backwards, towards the door. "I'm sorry, I didn't realise - " he says immediately. "I didn't mean it - my gift - it's been unstable ever since yesterday." He reels his emotions in desperately, knowing how invaded Junsu must feel.
Junsu's eyes soften, and he straightens. "It's okay." He's holding an empty glass jar, and memories flash through Changmin's mind - the five of them after lights out, playing cards around the jar; Junsu handing Changmin the jar, saying, "Your hands are freezing!"; Junsu dimming the fire in the jar to a flicker as he leans over to kiss Changmin.
"Hold this for me, will you?" Junsu says, holding the jar out.
Changmin steps forward to take it. He unscrews the top, and watches as Junsu drops a ball of fire into it. It lights up the room instantly, and Changmin's hands start to warm.
"I'm sorry," Junsu says.
Changmin tears his gaze away from the dancing flames, and almost drops the jar. Junsu grabs it, his hands tightening over Changmin's.
"For everything," Junsu continues. "Especially what I said. I - I don't know what I was thinking. I was in shock. I didn't - didn't mean - " His voice cracks and he clears his throat. "What happened. It wasn't your fault."
"It's not yours either," Changmin says quietly, finally finding his voice. "You did what you had to do."
"I know," Junsu takes a deep breath. "I don't regret saving you. I was out of it for a while, but I thought things through, and when I went back, they told me you were gone. And I thought, I was so scared, that I'd never see you again, I'd never get to tell you that I don't regret it, that I'm sorry, that I love you and - "
The jar burns and the sudden sharp heat makes Changmin hiss in pain. Junsu glances down, swearing under his breath, and the fire shrinks at once. "Sorry," he says sheepishly. "I'll take it."
Changmin hands the jar over, pressing his hands to his cheeks briefly to cool them.
Junsu sets the jar down on the floor. "So, do you forgive me?"
Changmin blinks at him. "Junsu, you saved my life. What's there to forgive?" he says incredulously.
"That means you forgive me, right?" Junsu says, smiling. He leans in, his hands coming to frame Changmin's face tentatively.
"It means you can kiss me if you want," Changmin says, and Junsu does.
"How did you do it?"
Changmin is not surprised that Yoochun is the first of them to ask.
It's after dinner, and they are all well-fed and warm and the other three are lazing on their bedrolls, talking and laughing.
Changmin sighs, slides the door open and steps out into the chill of the night. He hears Yoochun follows him out and shut the door behind him.
They sit on the steps, and next to Changmin, Yoochun radiates warmth.
The dark canvas of the sky is littered with stars, winking down at them - Changmin has never seen so many stars before. The sight is both breath-taking and overwhelming. He tears his gaze away and draws a deep breath of crisp, cool air. And then, he tells Yoochun.
Changmin was sweating, the plan worked in his head, but whether or not he could execute it was the problem. After surveying the room carefully, he couldn't see any cameras but he knew he was being monitored somehow.
He'd tested that by banging loudly against the door and yelling that he really, really needed the toilet. After ten minutes, the door opened, a chamber pot rolled into the room and the door swung shut again before Changmin could even speak.
Changmin had reached out with his gift and confirmed that there was no one standing guard outside his room, so they must be keeping tabs on him by some other method.
He needed to get someone to open the door for him, and he couldn't think of any other way.
Slowly, deliberately, he picked up the blanket on the bed, and wound it around his neck. He proceeded to pretend to strangle himself so realistically at one point he choked, sputtering and coughing. He prayed that someone, anyone would come in to stop him. He figured that if she - Yuki, was that her name? - went to such lengths to get him here, she wouldn't want him to die.
He pretended to go limp, collapsing on the floor in an awkward position and waited. Sweat ran down his back in tiny rivers, and his shirt clung to his skin uncomfortably. Seconds ticked by. It was a test, Changmin knew. They wanted to know if he was faking, they -
And then, like a miracle, there was the click of the doorknob turning.
"Is he still alive?" he heard an urgent voice. "Maybe he just fainted - "
He felt a pair of hands moving across his body, as someone unwound the blanket from around his neck. Fingers on his throat, looking for a pulse.
Holding his breath, Changmin pushed his gift out of his body as hard as he could, and opened his eyes to see the two men in suits curled up on the floor, trembling and shuddering as though having a seizure.
Behind them, the door was open.
He stood up, gasping in relief, stumbling towards the door. Then out of the corner of eye, he saw one of the men pull out a small hand-held device from his pocket and press a button with a trembling finger.
The device started to emit a high-pitched alarm, and Changmin swore under his breath. He should have expected this to happen. He darted out of the open door, slamming it shut behind him and started running. As he ran, he extended his gift, willing it to find anyone in his building he did not love with all his heart.
Yunho is staring at the ceiling, trying to go to sleep when he's nearly startled out of his skin by cold fingers on his arm. He jerks away, heart leaping into his throat, and then he realises that it's just Jaejoong, kneeling next to him.
"It's only me," Jaejoong whispers.
Yunho shifts so Jaejoong can crawl into his bedroll. "You should be asleep," Yunho murmurs.
Jaejoong doesn't answer, and he breathes warm puffs of air against Yunho's neck. It's familiar and comforting when their arms go around each other out of habit, holding each other close.
"This is only temporary," Jaejoong says when he finally speaks.
"I know," Yunho answers, and tightens his grip on Jaejoong just a little - careful not to use too much strength. "You're scared," he says, he doesn't need Changmin's gift to know that, he knows Jaejoong well enough.
When Jaejoong closes the distance between them and kisses him, there is relief, a spike of desire, and the feeling that this is inevitable, that the two of them will always come home to each other.
The next day, they sit outside in a circle, trying to decide where to go next.
"We're not safe - " Jaejoong says.
"We won't ever be safe!" Junsu interrupts. "Maybe she let us go, but who's to say that she won't change her mind? We're no match for her. Even if we don't have to worry about her, there's still the Academy to think about."
Yoochun can feel the beginnings of a headache between his eyes. Across from him, Changmin catches his eye, and raises a questioning eyebrow. After a moment, Yoochun feels Changmin projecting something at him, and he lets it bleed into him. It's a little bit of calm and a little bit of hope, and it helps him relax.
"Okay, we definitely can't stay here forever," Yunho says firmly. "We all agree on that, right?"
Yoochun nods, and winces inwardly at the thought of being stuck here in an apple farm for the rest of his life.
Next to him, Jaejoong shudders. "Definitely."
"So where do we go?" Yunho asks.
"The Academy," Junsu says.
Everyone else mirrors Yoochun's shock, turning to stare at Junsu.
"What? It makes sense!" Junsu says defensively.
"No," Yoochun says slowly, wondering if Junsu has gone mad. "It does not." Judging by the look Yunho is shooting Junsu, he is sure Yunho is wondering the same thing.
"I'm sure you guys are misunderstanding me," Junsu says firmly. "Just hear me out. I'm not saying that we should go back there - "
"That's exactly what you said!" Jaejoong sputters.
"Not to work with them," Junsu snapped. "I meant to get rid of them!"
There's a pause after Junsu's outburst as all of them think it over. Changmin suddenly recalls his conversation with Mr. Kim.
"It won't work," Yoochun says. "We'll all die. Painfully."
"No, no - wait - " Changmin interjects. "Junsu has a point. When we were back there, I found out some stuff - about the Academy." He told them what Mr. Kim told him. About the Network, about the Academy's true motivations. "So what Junsu said, it makes sense," he finished.
"So for the greater good, we should - just the five of us, mind you - go back and take on the Academy," Yoochun says, clearly incredulous. "And then we'd perish!"
"We're not just the five of us," Jaejoong says quietly. "We're the five of us." He rests one hand on Yoochun's knee. "And we can do this."
Changmin watches the struggle on Yoochun's face. "We can do it, if we do it together," he adds.
Yoochun ignores him and turns to Yunho. "What do you think?"
Yunho shrugs. "I think it's insane, but if we have a plan - if we actually think this through, it could work."
Yoochun exhales. "Fine. The leader has spoken." Then he grins, wicked and beautiful, the Yoochun they know and love. "Besides, it's completely obvious that you guys won't be able to do a thing without me. You'll be destroyed even before you started!"
Changmin laughs when a twig smacks Yoochun on the forehead without warning, and Jaejoong tries - and fails - to look like he has nothing to do with it.
They spend the next few days coming up with a plan, one that maximizes each of their gifts. For all of his resistance at the start, Yoochun becomes increasingly enthuasiastic, and he spends nearly all his time in heated discussions with Junsu.
The day before they are scheduled to leave, Changmin thinks about Yuki, and what he knows about her. He recalls the mix of emotions he felt from her before he lost consciousness. Frustration. Sadness. And that strange ache.
It takes him a few minutes before he realises that it feels familiar. It's like something he has felt before.
That ache that is a little like hunger. Something in between envy and yearning. What he felt every single time he ran away, afraid that he will never truly fit in with the four of them, wanting so badly to be a part of them, hungry for love.
"She won't come for us again," Changmin thinks out loud.
Jaejoong glances at him. "What?" He comes to sit next to Changmin, looking at him curiously.
"She won't come for us again," Changmin repeats, louder and more certain this time.
Jaejoong doesn't ask him how he knows this. He just reaches over and wraps one arm around Changmin's shoulders.
In the midst of packing up, Yunho looks over his shoulder at them and smiles. Junsu and Yoochun are arguing over the plan again.
Changmin doesn't know what the future is like. There are so many possibilities out there. Perhaps they will fail, and they will die. Perhaps they will be forced back under the Academy's control. Perhaps they will succeed, and they will finally be free. Perhaps one day, they will no longer be five. Perhaps some of them will get married. Perhaps they will find their own separate families. Perhaps one day, they will no longer feel like this about each other - no longer look at each other and see the world, no longer feel like this is all that matters.
But today, they have each other.
Today, they are five and they are together.
Changmin leans against Jaejoong, and thinks, no more running. Thinks, I belong.
Today is a beautiful place.
Back to Part VI
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