Autumn's Rose Chapter 2 [The Remake]
Title: Autumn's Rose Chapter 2 [The Remake]
Pairing: HyukHae, supporting!KyuMin
Side Pairings: HanChul, KangTeuk
Rating: PG
Genre: Friendship, Romance, Angst
Summary: Donghae was a hopeless case in the eyes of any adult -rude, violent and full of hatred. Transferring into a new school, hopeless Donghae meets new people; people who wants to save him. Among them is the quiet Lee Hyukjae who has never talked to anyone but his friends. What made Donghae special enough to get the voice out of Hyukjae would be the question of many. This story serves as the only answer to that one simple, unanswered question.
Narrator's POV
A few minutes later, Hyukjae came running out hurriedly, face worried. “We have to go, fast!” he shouted, only to widen his eyes. Donghae wasn’t there. Hyukjae huffed, annoyed. Where did the kid go?Hyukjae wanted to call Jungsu but something in him prevented him from doing so. His feet grew itchy as if it wanted to run. His heart was uneasy but he allowed his legs to run -albeit grudgingly. They have to move fast if whatever Hyukjae found out in the dentist was true.
His legs brought him to the abandoned railway station -which serves as a place for illegal transactions. His mouth was dry, not used to calling the names of people that he barely knew. His feet kept walking and walking till the railway hit a four junction and it stopped. His ears began twitching. What am I looking for?
Suddenly, from far away, there was a scream. Without realizing it, his mouth curled up, lips parting as it shouted, “DONGHAE!”
This time, it was his ears that led him. His heart was beating rapidly, confusing the panicking him.What’s happening? Hyukjae kept running and running until he reached an alley way that led to the old, deserted stores that stood creepily in the cold afternoon air.
His eyes widened at the sight. Donghae was crouching, curled up into a ball with his frightened, wide eyes peeking between his knees. He was hyperventilating. “Donghae,” Hyukjae whispered. The name came out sleek and smooth, as if he had always been calling it.
The men surrounding him were drunken and laughing. “Drinking in the afternoon, gentlemen?” he said aloud. They spun around, startled at his voice. “Problems at work?” Hyukjae asked sarcastically.
“Stay away if you know what’s good for you,” one of the three men said.
“No,” Hyukjae corrected, shaking his head. He saw Donghae peeked under his arms to look at him. The male was still breathing heavily but even with the tears in his eyes, Hyukjae found him adorable. Drown yourself, Hyuk.
“No?” the man retorted. “What do you mean by no?”
Hyukjae frowned, annoyed at their slurred, incoherent talking. “No,” he repeated. “If you know what’s good, you stay away from him. Bullying the weak isn’t actually cool, you know. You shouldn’t keep reading thosebooks for dummies; it’ll do you more harm than good.”
Their eyes narrowed at him. As one of them charged at him with a wooden plank in hand, he sighed lazily. The man was knocked down before the plank could even touch Hyukjae. “You don’t fight with that,” he said and gave them another shake of the head.
Another charged at him with a metal lid that he found near his feet. “No,” Hyukjae snarled as he kicked the man in the shin. “Not with that either.”
“I said!” Hyukjae screamed, shaking in anger as the man with the wooden plank stood up again. “Youdon’t fight with that!”
The last man that was standing scowled. “Kid,” he growled. He didn’t finish his sentence but instead ran towards Hyukjae, bare handed. Hyukjae closed his eyes, standing still. The very next moment, he felt a strong punch on his jaw -not strong enough to break it. When he opened his eyes, the man that punched him was shaking in front of him, clutching his fist to his chest.
Hyukjae’s eyes narrowed at his fist. “Painful?” he asked. “Hitting someone is like that. Without even knowing what a real fight is, don’t you dare feel that you are powerful just because you manage to scare a high school kid!”
“Leave!” Hyukjae yelled. The three men scrambled like frightened mice. After Hyukjae made sure they left for good -running away like idiots- he turned and looked at the small, crouching form that is Donghae.
“They’re gone now,” he said, waiting for Donghae to uncurl himself but the male did not even move an inch.
“Let’s go,” Hyukjae said, pulling Donghae up by the arms. Donghae flinched and screamed, startling him.
“Please,” Donghae begged. “D-Don’t.”
Hyukjae froze. “D-Don’t hurt me,” Donghae whimpered. “P-Please, I w-was wrong. D-Don’t hurt me. I-I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”
“I-I’m…” Hyukjae trailed off, at lost for words. “D-Donghae?”
“I-I’ll do anything,” Donghae sniveled. “B-But please don’t hurt me.”
Hyukjae bended down on his knees, hands unsure as it placed itself on Donghae’s shoulders. “Look at me,” he said. “Donghae, look at me please.”
Donghae’s eyes were hazy, body shaking in fear as it obeyed Hyukjae’s words. Instead of mere fear in his eyes, Hyukjae noted the strong, struggling will in it, as if it was preventing Donghae from doing something.You don’t have to come out, Aiden. Don’t come out, please.
“I’m Hyukjae,” Hyukjae whispered. “From school, remember?”
Donghae’s eyes shifted, unfocused and shivering. “Donghae?” Hyukjae repeated.
“Y-Yes?” Donghae crocked.
“Good,” Hyukjae said. “Listen to my voice. Focus on it and breathe in and out. I won’t hurt you.”
Donghae nodded vigorously. “No, No,” Hyukjae corrected softly. “Breathe in and out. Focus on my voice, Donghae. Nothing else matters; listen to it. Don’t think of anything else.”
Donghae looked up, eyes shifting again before it focused on Hyukjae’s face. He blinked before his eyes landed on Hyukjae’s lips which was parting and humming softly. It took a while before his ears began twitching and Hyukjae’s voice filled his eardrums.
What are you doing, Donghae?!
N-Nothing… I-I’m sorry.
“Can you hear me?” Hyukjae asked after his shivering calmed down.
Donghae nodded stiffly. “You…” he mumbled.
“Yes?”
“Y-You talked to me,” Donghae stammered.
Hyukjae froze for a moment before scoffing and rolling his eyes. “Let’s go,” he said as he stood up. Donghae nodded again, and tried pulling himself up with the trash can near him. Hyukjae looked over and sighed. He held out his hands and Donghae took it, shaking but grateful.
“Hyukjae…” Donghae said as he stood up.
“What’s wrong?” Hyukjae asked.
“Can you…” Donghae trailed off. “-them…not…tell…don’t?”
Hyukjae laughed. “Don’t tell the rest about what happened?”
Donghae nodded. “Don’t worry,” Hyukjae shook his head. “I hate telling stories anyway.”
“T-Thanks…”
Hyukjae; he was always caring silently. Even from the start, he eyes everyone he cares for, not showing his love clearly because he was never taught how to. He didn’t ask Donghae what happened. He didn’t ask why Donghae was hysterical. He let the matter be just like that because he was never one to force the story out of people. Donghae knew the moment that he heard his name being called out of those lips, that they were going to be chained in some way; no matter how big or small. He knew the moment that Hyukjae called his name that he was already accepted into the so called family.
:::
“Hyukjae?” Jungsu greeted as soon as he picked up the call. “Where are you?”
Meet me in front of Chapel’s, hyung.
“Did you find something?” Jungsu asked. “Did you see Heechul?”
I didn’t see him, but I think I have a clue to where he is right now. We have to hurry, hyung.
The colour on Jungsu’s face drained. “Why? Where is he? What happened to him? Did something happen?!” he almost shouted.
Hyung, relax. Go fetch Sungmin hyung and Kyuhyun first. Meet me after. Hurry!
“Alright,” Jungsu nodded. “Wait, Donghae’s with you, right? Nothing happened, right?”
Donghae’s fine. Just hurry!
Jungsu blinked as Hyukjae hung up. “What’s wrong, Jungsu?” Youngwoon asked, worried as Jungsu froze.
“Hyukjae…just said Donghae’s name,” Jungsu mumbled. “He said Donghae’s fine. He said Donghae’s name!”
Youngwoon laughed. “That was fast,” he said. “I didn’t think that Hyuk would open up to Donghae that fast.”
“Told you so,” Hangeng said, smiling.
“But what did Hyukjae say, Jungsu?” Youngwoon asked.
“Oh!” Jungsu exclaimed. “He said to fetch Sungmin and Kyuhyun before meeting them at Chapel’s. We have to hurry! He thinks he knows where Heechul went to.”
Hangeng’s eyes widened. “I don’t like it when Hyukjae thinks,” he confessed. “It’s always right.”
Jungsu smiled. “Let’s go fetch Sungmin and Kyuhyun,” he muttered.
:::
“Hyuk!” Sungmin shouted as soon as he got out of the car. Hyukjae was flipping through his notebook beside Donghae; afraid that his exhausted mind would not remember their faces. He looked up and saw Sungmin running towards him and sighed in relief.
“Ming,” Hyukjae he muttered as he pulled Sungmin into a hug. “They didn’t hurt you in there, did they?”
Sungmin laughed, pulling out of the hug slightly to cup Hyukjae’s face in his palms. “What kind of a question is that?” he teased. “Hyung would never let anyone touch me.”
Hyukjae scowled. “I was being serious,” he grumbled.
“So was I, you little twerp,” Sungmin smiled, squeezing Hyukjae’s face affectionately before he pushed the younger away to take a peek Donghae. Donghae was sitting down, head resting on the glass wall of Chapel’s Restaurant -their usual hang out place.
“Are you okay, Donghae?” Jungsu asked before Sungmin could even open his mouth. Donghae looked up and nodded weakly.
“Come on, let’s go,” Hyukjae said, distracting the others from Donghae.
“Where are we going?” Hangeng asked. “Where’s Heechul?”
“I’ll tell all of you in the car, let’s go,” Hyukjae repeated. “Donghae, up.”
The others did a double take and spun around as soon as Hyukjae called Donghae. Their eyes widened as they saw Hyukjae holding out his hand towards Donghae and pulling him up from the chair. “Uhm, Hyuk…” Sungmin muttered.
Hyukjae perked his eyebrows as he put an arm around Donghae’s shoulder. Yes?
“Did something happen?” Kyuhyun asked, eyeing Donghae’s limping legs.
“Kid just fell,” Hyukjae lied easily, shrugging. “Idiotic, if you ask me.”
Donghae glared at Hyukjae. What? Hyukjae merely rolled his eyes at the younger and once again ushered everyone into the car, not realizing the reason why they were staring. You touch a stranger.
As soon as Hyukjae got in the car, Hyukjae was stared at -by everyone except Youngwoon, the driver. “Youngwoon hyung, do you know the place where the old Lawry’s warehouses are?” Hyukjae started.
“Yes, why?” Youngwoon answered.
“Head there, please,” Hyukjae said.
Hangeng’s eyes widened. “Don’t tell me Heechul’s there,” he begged. “He has no business there!”
“What’s wrong, hyung?” Kyuhyun asked.
“That’s the place where Kuroki’s gang is, Kyu,” Sungmin muttered. “It’s their headquarters there.”
“Who’s Kuroki?” Donghae asked.
“He owns one of the biggest underground groups in Seoul,” Hyukjae said. “He’s known as Kuroki but his real name is Kim Chongjin.”
“Why would Heechul go there?” Jungsu exclaimed.
“Hyung,” Hyukjae said, nudging Sungmin who was seated in front of him. “Do you remember the drunken idiot beside us the night we went to the pub?”
Sungmin nodded. “Well, it turns out that he’s one of Kuroki’s,” Hyukjae explained.
“That still doesn’t explain-”
“Wait,” Hyukjae interrupted, getting impatient. “It was them that framed you, hyung. They were the ones who found your Student ID in the pub and framed you for their work that night. I met one of them at the dentist just now because apparently he broke a tooth while running away. But what caught my eye were the fresh scars on the left side of his face… All of you know how Heechul hyung fights, right?”
Hangeng laughed despite the tension. “Aim for the face,” he said. “Yeah, we know.”
“Heechul hyung overheard him talking on the phone in the washroom about the case and well, he managed to get the man to talk,” Hyukjae shrugged. “And oh, Heechul hyung broke the teeth that he just fixed too. I think I broke it for the second time too…”
“So are you telling me that that idiot went to Kuroki’s all by himself?!” Sungmin shouted. “That idiot!”
“If they touch a single thread of his hair…” Hangeng growled.
“Why the fuck did he went alone?” Sungmin snarled. “Once I get my hands on him, I’ll knock his head so hard he - urgh.”
“He was the one who caused your capture,” Jungsu sighed. “He must have felt guilty knowing that it really wasn’t you.”
Sungmin’s face drained of its color as he slumped back onto his seat. “He’ll be fine, Min,” Kyuhyun whispered, taking Sungmin’s hand into his and shaking it slightly. “Min, he’ll be fine!”
“He better be,” Sungmin groaned, letting his head fall into Kyuhyun’s chest. “He better be fine or I’ll kill him.”
:::
“It’s labeled numerically,” Hyukjae said as soon as they arrived. “Search for number three! Quick!'
The others scrambled, running together in pairs. “Donghae!” Hyukjae called out aloud before he could stop himself. “Hangeng hyung, you’ll be fine alone, right?”
Hangeng nodded. “I’ll call you if I find it first,” he said.
“Donghae, you’re with me,” Hyukjae said, voice firm as he beckoned Donghae over. “Stay with me and don’t you ever wander off alone.”
Donghae nodded obediently despite feeling like a kid being reprimanded. “Let’s go,” Hyukjae muttered.
The duo ran to the left, eyes searching. There seems to be every number but three and Hyukjae grew annoyed. They ran around for a full ten minutes before getting a call from Jungsu. “We found it!” Jungsu screamed. “Come beside Warehouse 32, there’s an alley way by its right; go straight in before turning left. It’s right in there! None of you kids are to enter the warehouse, do you understand me? Stay by the door. Hangeng, come quickly!”
:::
“Ahh, finally the asshole brought friends,” Chongjin smiled as Hyukjae and the gang arrived by the door. They watch as he prodded Heechul slightly with his feet.
Hangeng ran in, blood boiling as he charged towards Chongjin. “Hangeng!” Jungsu yelled, stopping him in his tracks.
“Do you expect me to stay here while Heechul’s been hurt like that?!” Hangeng screamed, pointing to Heechul with his finger weakly. He had tears in his eyes -angry and pained tears.
“Touch him and you’ll stoop as low as them!” Jungsu said.
“Ouch, that kind of hurts a little,” Chongjin joked.
“You shut the fuck up!” Jungsu screamed, eyes glaring at Chongjin, startling Donghae and the rest. “Without even knowing a thing, you think you’re powerful, huh?”
Chongjin laughed again, causing Hangeng to strike but once again, Jungsu held him back. “Do you want to waste Heechul’s effort?” Jungsu demanded. “Being beaten up like that; do you want to waste his efforts?!”
Hangeng’s body shook harshly as he stared at Heechul, their eyes meeting. Heechul managed to smile at him despite being sprawled on the floor, wounded. I’m fine, Hannie. I’m fine.
“I think you’re a little too late,” Chongjin laughed. “Your weak friend here is dying already.”
“Weak?” Hangeng demanded. His eyes were sharp and piercing. “Weak, you say?”
Chongjin shrugged. “Yeah, weak,” he said carelessly. The men behind him started laughing as though it was amusing. “It was so easy to break him.”
“Ten people against one,” Hyukjae shouted by the door. He was unable to take it anymore as Heechul was insulted. Nobody insults brave Heechul. “What part of you deserves to call Heechul hyung weak?”
“Even though he knew he wouldn’t stand a chance with all of you, he still came,” Kangin yelled. He was beyond furious. His hands were shaking and also had to be held down by Jungsu's gentle ones. “In order to take responsibility for his actions, he came here to save his friend!”
“He took on a challenge that he had no chance of winning,” Jungsu's small, angry voice came next. “Which part of him is weak? Even though he’s not a strong fighter, he faced his challenge head on! His will is strong!”
Sungmin stood rigidly by the door, his heart beating in anger as he stared at Chongjin. He took a look at the disheveled Heechul that was bleeding on the floor and his blood boiled.
“He’s stronger than any of you put together,” Sungmin said, voice trembling with anger. “You don’t even deserve to be compared to him.”
As soon as Sungmin's voice was heard, everyone turned their heads. Even the wounded Heechul looked up from the ground, eyes glimmering as Sungmin spoke.
“For little punks like you who have to be in a group to beat up one person, aren’t you full of it?!” Sungmin screamed. Bit by bit, the trio holding him back released their hold on him.
“This punk here isn’t even strong enough to fight one of us anyway,” Chongjin said, unfazed.
“Fight?” Sungmin scoffed. He had pushed passed Jungsu and the duo. They didn’t even bother holding him back because it would have been useless. They have seen this side of him before. Sungmin is one to not tolerate violence.
"A fight is done with bare hands. It is to protect the things important to you,” Sungmin shouted. “You guys are utterly pitiful. Do you even know how to have a decent fight?”
Angered, Chongjin’s men started charging towards Sungmin with their metal rods held up. Kyuhyun cringed, turning his body into Donghae's arms. Shocked, Donghae could only hold the boy in his arms as his eyes widened in awe at the sight in front of him.
Sungmin dodged all the rods that were swung at him, almost lazily. When he grew tired of it, he caught hold of one of the rods and snatched it away from the man’s hold. With one swift move, he had five of the men down, all with bleeding legs. The men were lucky that it wasn’t Kyuhyun who they attacked. If it was, Sungmin would have killed them.
The other four that was charging at him backed out upon seeing their friends down. Sungmin gave them a disgusted look. They can’t even be called friends.
“It hurts when you strike someone bare-handed,” Sungmin said aloud. Donghae looked up as soon as he heard those words. Wasn’t that the same thing Hyukjae said? “It’s not only the hand, here too…” The others remained silent as Sungmin placed his hand over his heart. “You’ll feel a lot of weight in here. Hitting someone is like that. Not understanding obvious things like this, don’t go swinging a toy like a fool! Calling people weak…you’re a disgrace to delinquents!”
Chongjin froze. Heechul said the exact same things as Sungmin did. They’re all friends who live by the same rules. “Heechul fought to protect me,” Sungmin said. It didn’t even hurt his pride. He was one to never lie to himself. His eyes fell on Heechul and their eyes met for the first time that evening. “For someone whom he claimed he hated, he fought bravely. For someone that hated him, he stood up for him. That’s a real fight. Someone like you who don’t understand simple things like that doesn’t even deserve to feel the touch of his fist!”
Slowly, Sungmin edged forward towards Chongjin until the tip of their shoes were touching. “Be delinquents with pride and dignity!” he screamed. Chongjin was punched in the face in the very next second.
:::
“Go on in,” Hangeng said, nudging Sungmin’s shoulders. “He’s much better now. Go on.”
Sungmin looked up, meeting Hangeng’s eyes with his shaky ones. “He’s not going to die?” he asked.
“For a moment there, I thought you sounded hopeful,” Hangeng teased lightly. “But no, honey; he’ll be fine. Go on in, he wants to meet you.”
Sungmin gulped. He nodded as he took Kyuhyun’s hands in his. “Donghae, Hyukjae,” he called out to the duo sitting by the chair. “Let’s go in.”
Hyukjae hummed, jumping to his feet with Donghae by his side. He had gone back to not talking with Donghae and Sungmin frowned. Until when are you going to be this stubborn, Hyuk?
As the foursome entered the room, Heechul looked up. Jungsu, who was holding Heechul’s hands rose from the bed, patted Heechul’s hair and stood aside. “Uhm…” Sungmin greeted awkwardly. Heechul’s forehead was bandaged up and there was a cast on his left arm and feet. “Are you…okay?”
Heechul gulped visibly but otherwise nodded his head. “Sorry…” he mumbled without meeting Sungmin’s eyes. “-for you know…the police…capture…you know.”
Sungmin scoffed, unable to hide the ghost of his smiles. “You idiot,” he finally said, stomping towards Heechul with Kyuhyun by his side. “Why did you go alone? You could have been killed if we reached there a little later!”
Heechul flinched as Sungmin knocked on his head lightly. His lips jutted out a little, pouting and frowning at the same time. “I don’t like have debts,” he said. “It’s burdening.”
Sungmin shook his head and sighed. “Heechul hyung,” Kyuhyun said in his small voice as he peeked around Sungmin to meet Heechul’s eyes timidly.
“Yes, Kyuhyun?” Heechul answered.
“Uhm…” Kyuhyun mumbled. “Does this mean we’re friends?”
There was a moment of silence before everyone in the room -but Donghae who understood nothing and Hyukjae who was merely shaking his head at the ridiculousness of it all- burst out laughing. Sungmin’s and Heechul’s eyes met gradually and they froze before a smile adorned each of their lips.
“Yeah,” Heechul nodded.
“We’re friends,” Sungmin agreed.
Lesson one: A friend is someone who knows the song in your heart, and can sing it back to you when you have forgotten the words.
- Donna Roberts
Pairing: HyukHae, supporting!KyuMin
Side Pairings: HanChul, KangTeuk
Rating: PG
Genre: Friendship, Romance, Angst
Summary: Donghae was a hopeless case in the eyes of any adult -rude, violent and full of hatred. Transferring into a new school, hopeless Donghae meets new people; people who wants to save him. Among them is the quiet Lee Hyukjae who has never talked to anyone but his friends. What made Donghae special enough to get the voice out of Hyukjae would be the question of many. This story serves as the only answer to that one simple, unanswered question.
Narrator's POV
A few minutes later, Hyukjae came running out hurriedly, face worried. “We have to go, fast!” he shouted, only to widen his eyes. Donghae wasn’t there. Hyukjae huffed, annoyed. Where did the kid go?Hyukjae wanted to call Jungsu but something in him prevented him from doing so. His feet grew itchy as if it wanted to run. His heart was uneasy but he allowed his legs to run -albeit grudgingly. They have to move fast if whatever Hyukjae found out in the dentist was true.
His legs brought him to the abandoned railway station -which serves as a place for illegal transactions. His mouth was dry, not used to calling the names of people that he barely knew. His feet kept walking and walking till the railway hit a four junction and it stopped. His ears began twitching. What am I looking for?
Suddenly, from far away, there was a scream. Without realizing it, his mouth curled up, lips parting as it shouted, “DONGHAE!”
This time, it was his ears that led him. His heart was beating rapidly, confusing the panicking him.What’s happening? Hyukjae kept running and running until he reached an alley way that led to the old, deserted stores that stood creepily in the cold afternoon air.
His eyes widened at the sight. Donghae was crouching, curled up into a ball with his frightened, wide eyes peeking between his knees. He was hyperventilating. “Donghae,” Hyukjae whispered. The name came out sleek and smooth, as if he had always been calling it.
The men surrounding him were drunken and laughing. “Drinking in the afternoon, gentlemen?” he said aloud. They spun around, startled at his voice. “Problems at work?” Hyukjae asked sarcastically.
“Stay away if you know what’s good for you,” one of the three men said.
“No,” Hyukjae corrected, shaking his head. He saw Donghae peeked under his arms to look at him. The male was still breathing heavily but even with the tears in his eyes, Hyukjae found him adorable. Drown yourself, Hyuk.
“No?” the man retorted. “What do you mean by no?”
Hyukjae frowned, annoyed at their slurred, incoherent talking. “No,” he repeated. “If you know what’s good, you stay away from him. Bullying the weak isn’t actually cool, you know. You shouldn’t keep reading thosebooks for dummies; it’ll do you more harm than good.”
Their eyes narrowed at him. As one of them charged at him with a wooden plank in hand, he sighed lazily. The man was knocked down before the plank could even touch Hyukjae. “You don’t fight with that,” he said and gave them another shake of the head.
Another charged at him with a metal lid that he found near his feet. “No,” Hyukjae snarled as he kicked the man in the shin. “Not with that either.”
“I said!” Hyukjae screamed, shaking in anger as the man with the wooden plank stood up again. “Youdon’t fight with that!”
The last man that was standing scowled. “Kid,” he growled. He didn’t finish his sentence but instead ran towards Hyukjae, bare handed. Hyukjae closed his eyes, standing still. The very next moment, he felt a strong punch on his jaw -not strong enough to break it. When he opened his eyes, the man that punched him was shaking in front of him, clutching his fist to his chest.
Hyukjae’s eyes narrowed at his fist. “Painful?” he asked. “Hitting someone is like that. Without even knowing what a real fight is, don’t you dare feel that you are powerful just because you manage to scare a high school kid!”
“Leave!” Hyukjae yelled. The three men scrambled like frightened mice. After Hyukjae made sure they left for good -running away like idiots- he turned and looked at the small, crouching form that is Donghae.
“They’re gone now,” he said, waiting for Donghae to uncurl himself but the male did not even move an inch.
“Let’s go,” Hyukjae said, pulling Donghae up by the arms. Donghae flinched and screamed, startling him.
“Please,” Donghae begged. “D-Don’t.”
Hyukjae froze. “D-Don’t hurt me,” Donghae whimpered. “P-Please, I w-was wrong. D-Don’t hurt me. I-I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”
“I-I’m…” Hyukjae trailed off, at lost for words. “D-Donghae?”
“I-I’ll do anything,” Donghae sniveled. “B-But please don’t hurt me.”
Hyukjae bended down on his knees, hands unsure as it placed itself on Donghae’s shoulders. “Look at me,” he said. “Donghae, look at me please.”
Donghae’s eyes were hazy, body shaking in fear as it obeyed Hyukjae’s words. Instead of mere fear in his eyes, Hyukjae noted the strong, struggling will in it, as if it was preventing Donghae from doing something.You don’t have to come out, Aiden. Don’t come out, please.
“I’m Hyukjae,” Hyukjae whispered. “From school, remember?”
Donghae’s eyes shifted, unfocused and shivering. “Donghae?” Hyukjae repeated.
“Y-Yes?” Donghae crocked.
“Good,” Hyukjae said. “Listen to my voice. Focus on it and breathe in and out. I won’t hurt you.”
Donghae nodded vigorously. “No, No,” Hyukjae corrected softly. “Breathe in and out. Focus on my voice, Donghae. Nothing else matters; listen to it. Don’t think of anything else.”
Donghae looked up, eyes shifting again before it focused on Hyukjae’s face. He blinked before his eyes landed on Hyukjae’s lips which was parting and humming softly. It took a while before his ears began twitching and Hyukjae’s voice filled his eardrums.
What are you doing, Donghae?!
N-Nothing… I-I’m sorry.
“Can you hear me?” Hyukjae asked after his shivering calmed down.
Donghae nodded stiffly. “You…” he mumbled.
“Yes?”
“Y-You talked to me,” Donghae stammered.
Hyukjae froze for a moment before scoffing and rolling his eyes. “Let’s go,” he said as he stood up. Donghae nodded again, and tried pulling himself up with the trash can near him. Hyukjae looked over and sighed. He held out his hands and Donghae took it, shaking but grateful.
“Hyukjae…” Donghae said as he stood up.
“What’s wrong?” Hyukjae asked.
“Can you…” Donghae trailed off. “-them…not…tell…don’t?”
Hyukjae laughed. “Don’t tell the rest about what happened?”
Donghae nodded. “Don’t worry,” Hyukjae shook his head. “I hate telling stories anyway.”
“T-Thanks…”
Hyukjae; he was always caring silently. Even from the start, he eyes everyone he cares for, not showing his love clearly because he was never taught how to. He didn’t ask Donghae what happened. He didn’t ask why Donghae was hysterical. He let the matter be just like that because he was never one to force the story out of people. Donghae knew the moment that he heard his name being called out of those lips, that they were going to be chained in some way; no matter how big or small. He knew the moment that Hyukjae called his name that he was already accepted into the so called family.
:::
“Hyukjae?” Jungsu greeted as soon as he picked up the call. “Where are you?”
Meet me in front of Chapel’s, hyung.
“Did you find something?” Jungsu asked. “Did you see Heechul?”
I didn’t see him, but I think I have a clue to where he is right now. We have to hurry, hyung.
The colour on Jungsu’s face drained. “Why? Where is he? What happened to him? Did something happen?!” he almost shouted.
Hyung, relax. Go fetch Sungmin hyung and Kyuhyun first. Meet me after. Hurry!
“Alright,” Jungsu nodded. “Wait, Donghae’s with you, right? Nothing happened, right?”
Donghae’s fine. Just hurry!
Jungsu blinked as Hyukjae hung up. “What’s wrong, Jungsu?” Youngwoon asked, worried as Jungsu froze.
“Hyukjae…just said Donghae’s name,” Jungsu mumbled. “He said Donghae’s fine. He said Donghae’s name!”
Youngwoon laughed. “That was fast,” he said. “I didn’t think that Hyuk would open up to Donghae that fast.”
“Told you so,” Hangeng said, smiling.
“But what did Hyukjae say, Jungsu?” Youngwoon asked.
“Oh!” Jungsu exclaimed. “He said to fetch Sungmin and Kyuhyun before meeting them at Chapel’s. We have to hurry! He thinks he knows where Heechul went to.”
Hangeng’s eyes widened. “I don’t like it when Hyukjae thinks,” he confessed. “It’s always right.”
Jungsu smiled. “Let’s go fetch Sungmin and Kyuhyun,” he muttered.
:::
“Hyuk!” Sungmin shouted as soon as he got out of the car. Hyukjae was flipping through his notebook beside Donghae; afraid that his exhausted mind would not remember their faces. He looked up and saw Sungmin running towards him and sighed in relief.
“Ming,” Hyukjae he muttered as he pulled Sungmin into a hug. “They didn’t hurt you in there, did they?”
Sungmin laughed, pulling out of the hug slightly to cup Hyukjae’s face in his palms. “What kind of a question is that?” he teased. “Hyung would never let anyone touch me.”
Hyukjae scowled. “I was being serious,” he grumbled.
“So was I, you little twerp,” Sungmin smiled, squeezing Hyukjae’s face affectionately before he pushed the younger away to take a peek Donghae. Donghae was sitting down, head resting on the glass wall of Chapel’s Restaurant -their usual hang out place.
“Are you okay, Donghae?” Jungsu asked before Sungmin could even open his mouth. Donghae looked up and nodded weakly.
“Come on, let’s go,” Hyukjae said, distracting the others from Donghae.
“Where are we going?” Hangeng asked. “Where’s Heechul?”
“I’ll tell all of you in the car, let’s go,” Hyukjae repeated. “Donghae, up.”
The others did a double take and spun around as soon as Hyukjae called Donghae. Their eyes widened as they saw Hyukjae holding out his hand towards Donghae and pulling him up from the chair. “Uhm, Hyuk…” Sungmin muttered.
Hyukjae perked his eyebrows as he put an arm around Donghae’s shoulder. Yes?
“Did something happen?” Kyuhyun asked, eyeing Donghae’s limping legs.
“Kid just fell,” Hyukjae lied easily, shrugging. “Idiotic, if you ask me.”
Donghae glared at Hyukjae. What? Hyukjae merely rolled his eyes at the younger and once again ushered everyone into the car, not realizing the reason why they were staring. You touch a stranger.
As soon as Hyukjae got in the car, Hyukjae was stared at -by everyone except Youngwoon, the driver. “Youngwoon hyung, do you know the place where the old Lawry’s warehouses are?” Hyukjae started.
“Yes, why?” Youngwoon answered.
“Head there, please,” Hyukjae said.
Hangeng’s eyes widened. “Don’t tell me Heechul’s there,” he begged. “He has no business there!”
“What’s wrong, hyung?” Kyuhyun asked.
“That’s the place where Kuroki’s gang is, Kyu,” Sungmin muttered. “It’s their headquarters there.”
“Who’s Kuroki?” Donghae asked.
“He owns one of the biggest underground groups in Seoul,” Hyukjae said. “He’s known as Kuroki but his real name is Kim Chongjin.”
“Why would Heechul go there?” Jungsu exclaimed.
“Hyung,” Hyukjae said, nudging Sungmin who was seated in front of him. “Do you remember the drunken idiot beside us the night we went to the pub?”
Sungmin nodded. “Well, it turns out that he’s one of Kuroki’s,” Hyukjae explained.
“That still doesn’t explain-”
“Wait,” Hyukjae interrupted, getting impatient. “It was them that framed you, hyung. They were the ones who found your Student ID in the pub and framed you for their work that night. I met one of them at the dentist just now because apparently he broke a tooth while running away. But what caught my eye were the fresh scars on the left side of his face… All of you know how Heechul hyung fights, right?”
Hangeng laughed despite the tension. “Aim for the face,” he said. “Yeah, we know.”
“Heechul hyung overheard him talking on the phone in the washroom about the case and well, he managed to get the man to talk,” Hyukjae shrugged. “And oh, Heechul hyung broke the teeth that he just fixed too. I think I broke it for the second time too…”
“So are you telling me that that idiot went to Kuroki’s all by himself?!” Sungmin shouted. “That idiot!”
“If they touch a single thread of his hair…” Hangeng growled.
“Why the fuck did he went alone?” Sungmin snarled. “Once I get my hands on him, I’ll knock his head so hard he - urgh.”
“He was the one who caused your capture,” Jungsu sighed. “He must have felt guilty knowing that it really wasn’t you.”
Sungmin’s face drained of its color as he slumped back onto his seat. “He’ll be fine, Min,” Kyuhyun whispered, taking Sungmin’s hand into his and shaking it slightly. “Min, he’ll be fine!”
“He better be,” Sungmin groaned, letting his head fall into Kyuhyun’s chest. “He better be fine or I’ll kill him.”
:::
“It’s labeled numerically,” Hyukjae said as soon as they arrived. “Search for number three! Quick!'
The others scrambled, running together in pairs. “Donghae!” Hyukjae called out aloud before he could stop himself. “Hangeng hyung, you’ll be fine alone, right?”
Hangeng nodded. “I’ll call you if I find it first,” he said.
“Donghae, you’re with me,” Hyukjae said, voice firm as he beckoned Donghae over. “Stay with me and don’t you ever wander off alone.”
Donghae nodded obediently despite feeling like a kid being reprimanded. “Let’s go,” Hyukjae muttered.
The duo ran to the left, eyes searching. There seems to be every number but three and Hyukjae grew annoyed. They ran around for a full ten minutes before getting a call from Jungsu. “We found it!” Jungsu screamed. “Come beside Warehouse 32, there’s an alley way by its right; go straight in before turning left. It’s right in there! None of you kids are to enter the warehouse, do you understand me? Stay by the door. Hangeng, come quickly!”
:::
“Ahh, finally the asshole brought friends,” Chongjin smiled as Hyukjae and the gang arrived by the door. They watch as he prodded Heechul slightly with his feet.
Hangeng ran in, blood boiling as he charged towards Chongjin. “Hangeng!” Jungsu yelled, stopping him in his tracks.
“Do you expect me to stay here while Heechul’s been hurt like that?!” Hangeng screamed, pointing to Heechul with his finger weakly. He had tears in his eyes -angry and pained tears.
“Touch him and you’ll stoop as low as them!” Jungsu said.
“Ouch, that kind of hurts a little,” Chongjin joked.
“You shut the fuck up!” Jungsu screamed, eyes glaring at Chongjin, startling Donghae and the rest. “Without even knowing a thing, you think you’re powerful, huh?”
Chongjin laughed again, causing Hangeng to strike but once again, Jungsu held him back. “Do you want to waste Heechul’s effort?” Jungsu demanded. “Being beaten up like that; do you want to waste his efforts?!”
Hangeng’s body shook harshly as he stared at Heechul, their eyes meeting. Heechul managed to smile at him despite being sprawled on the floor, wounded. I’m fine, Hannie. I’m fine.
“I think you’re a little too late,” Chongjin laughed. “Your weak friend here is dying already.”
“Weak?” Hangeng demanded. His eyes were sharp and piercing. “Weak, you say?”
Chongjin shrugged. “Yeah, weak,” he said carelessly. The men behind him started laughing as though it was amusing. “It was so easy to break him.”
“Ten people against one,” Hyukjae shouted by the door. He was unable to take it anymore as Heechul was insulted. Nobody insults brave Heechul. “What part of you deserves to call Heechul hyung weak?”
“Even though he knew he wouldn’t stand a chance with all of you, he still came,” Kangin yelled. He was beyond furious. His hands were shaking and also had to be held down by Jungsu's gentle ones. “In order to take responsibility for his actions, he came here to save his friend!”
“He took on a challenge that he had no chance of winning,” Jungsu's small, angry voice came next. “Which part of him is weak? Even though he’s not a strong fighter, he faced his challenge head on! His will is strong!”
Sungmin stood rigidly by the door, his heart beating in anger as he stared at Chongjin. He took a look at the disheveled Heechul that was bleeding on the floor and his blood boiled.
“He’s stronger than any of you put together,” Sungmin said, voice trembling with anger. “You don’t even deserve to be compared to him.”
As soon as Sungmin's voice was heard, everyone turned their heads. Even the wounded Heechul looked up from the ground, eyes glimmering as Sungmin spoke.
“For little punks like you who have to be in a group to beat up one person, aren’t you full of it?!” Sungmin screamed. Bit by bit, the trio holding him back released their hold on him.
“This punk here isn’t even strong enough to fight one of us anyway,” Chongjin said, unfazed.
“Fight?” Sungmin scoffed. He had pushed passed Jungsu and the duo. They didn’t even bother holding him back because it would have been useless. They have seen this side of him before. Sungmin is one to not tolerate violence.
"A fight is done with bare hands. It is to protect the things important to you,” Sungmin shouted. “You guys are utterly pitiful. Do you even know how to have a decent fight?”
Angered, Chongjin’s men started charging towards Sungmin with their metal rods held up. Kyuhyun cringed, turning his body into Donghae's arms. Shocked, Donghae could only hold the boy in his arms as his eyes widened in awe at the sight in front of him.
Sungmin dodged all the rods that were swung at him, almost lazily. When he grew tired of it, he caught hold of one of the rods and snatched it away from the man’s hold. With one swift move, he had five of the men down, all with bleeding legs. The men were lucky that it wasn’t Kyuhyun who they attacked. If it was, Sungmin would have killed them.
The other four that was charging at him backed out upon seeing their friends down. Sungmin gave them a disgusted look. They can’t even be called friends.
“It hurts when you strike someone bare-handed,” Sungmin said aloud. Donghae looked up as soon as he heard those words. Wasn’t that the same thing Hyukjae said? “It’s not only the hand, here too…” The others remained silent as Sungmin placed his hand over his heart. “You’ll feel a lot of weight in here. Hitting someone is like that. Not understanding obvious things like this, don’t go swinging a toy like a fool! Calling people weak…you’re a disgrace to delinquents!”
Chongjin froze. Heechul said the exact same things as Sungmin did. They’re all friends who live by the same rules. “Heechul fought to protect me,” Sungmin said. It didn’t even hurt his pride. He was one to never lie to himself. His eyes fell on Heechul and their eyes met for the first time that evening. “For someone whom he claimed he hated, he fought bravely. For someone that hated him, he stood up for him. That’s a real fight. Someone like you who don’t understand simple things like that doesn’t even deserve to feel the touch of his fist!”
Slowly, Sungmin edged forward towards Chongjin until the tip of their shoes were touching. “Be delinquents with pride and dignity!” he screamed. Chongjin was punched in the face in the very next second.
:::
“Go on in,” Hangeng said, nudging Sungmin’s shoulders. “He’s much better now. Go on.”
Sungmin looked up, meeting Hangeng’s eyes with his shaky ones. “He’s not going to die?” he asked.
“For a moment there, I thought you sounded hopeful,” Hangeng teased lightly. “But no, honey; he’ll be fine. Go on in, he wants to meet you.”
Sungmin gulped. He nodded as he took Kyuhyun’s hands in his. “Donghae, Hyukjae,” he called out to the duo sitting by the chair. “Let’s go in.”
Hyukjae hummed, jumping to his feet with Donghae by his side. He had gone back to not talking with Donghae and Sungmin frowned. Until when are you going to be this stubborn, Hyuk?
As the foursome entered the room, Heechul looked up. Jungsu, who was holding Heechul’s hands rose from the bed, patted Heechul’s hair and stood aside. “Uhm…” Sungmin greeted awkwardly. Heechul’s forehead was bandaged up and there was a cast on his left arm and feet. “Are you…okay?”
Heechul gulped visibly but otherwise nodded his head. “Sorry…” he mumbled without meeting Sungmin’s eyes. “-for you know…the police…capture…you know.”
Sungmin scoffed, unable to hide the ghost of his smiles. “You idiot,” he finally said, stomping towards Heechul with Kyuhyun by his side. “Why did you go alone? You could have been killed if we reached there a little later!”
Heechul flinched as Sungmin knocked on his head lightly. His lips jutted out a little, pouting and frowning at the same time. “I don’t like have debts,” he said. “It’s burdening.”
Sungmin shook his head and sighed. “Heechul hyung,” Kyuhyun said in his small voice as he peeked around Sungmin to meet Heechul’s eyes timidly.
“Yes, Kyuhyun?” Heechul answered.
“Uhm…” Kyuhyun mumbled. “Does this mean we’re friends?”
There was a moment of silence before everyone in the room -but Donghae who understood nothing and Hyukjae who was merely shaking his head at the ridiculousness of it all- burst out laughing. Sungmin’s and Heechul’s eyes met gradually and they froze before a smile adorned each of their lips.
“Yeah,” Heechul nodded.
“We’re friends,” Sungmin agreed.
Lesson one: A friend is someone who knows the song in your heart, and can sing it back to you when you have forgotten the words.
- Donna Roberts