etastra:
the sound of the trunk popping open brings life and sound rushing back into the stillness, the unbearable silence, inhabiting his mind, insu blinking owlishly as head turns back to stare out through the rear view window, watching kyungsoo taking the initiative as he always does. for a moment the younger watches and wonders, about things he best left for the dead of night ( or not at all, if insu has anything to do with it ), but quiet musings are scattered to the wind when he feels warm, familiar lips press to his hairline, too gentle for someone like him ( she’s too gentle, too soft, for hands as rough as his, for hurt as deep as his, but maybe that’s why he’s gravitated towards her so easily ; he yearns for her gentleness, her softness, her almost innocence, though whether to corrupt it or to nourish it, cherish it, is still unknown to him ). he squeezes her arm in a brief thanks, a brief return of the affection, before she’s slipping out and leaving him the only one still sitting.
he remains inside the car for a moment before he slides out, twisting back to crack the stiffened bones, shoulders slumping in satisfaction and relief. he turns as he slams the door shut, wandering around the side of the vehicle to stare at them - she fits at kyungsoo’s side easily, perhaps better than she does his side, and insu doesn’t know what to do with such thoughts, such emotions, so he shoves them aside as he does best, shoving them to the recesses of mind to be drowned out with too much alcohol, too much weed, too little sleep. “i’m awake and i know for a fact dear hyung snores.” the term of endearment comes out mocking yet there’s some emotion laced through, something to cover the implications in his statement. he wanders over to kyungsoo’s other side and lingers just within personal space, a test of boundaries, a simple gravitational pull insu’s fallen into, it doesn’t matter as he’s not moving away from the older any time soon.
he falls silent at kyungsoo’s side, waits for the older to hand off luggage to each of them, gaze falling over their miscellaneous items, most stolen, the rare item bought. dark eyes land on the duffel off to the side of the trunk, and fingers twitch with the urge to reach for it, to test boundaries once more - insu knows nana isn’t allowed to carry the bag, and he merely assumes the same restriction extends to him, but now he wishes to see if it truly does. he reaches absentmindedly yet intentionally for the item in question, fingers curling over the rough fabric of the handle, already yanking it from where it’s pinned half under some other bag, hyper-aware of the eldest at his side yet unwilling to glance over, to see whatever may be playing on his features.
kyungsoo feels better, imperceptibly, when they both frame his sides. the three of them are in this together, caught in such an incredibly tangled web of crime and deceit that they must be linked together for the rest of their (most likely short) lives. so he takes a moment, sharp eyes still scanning the trunk, to reach an arm around nana’s waist and cup his hand around the back of insu’s neck, long fingers working against the tense chord of muscles there. it only lasts a few moments, before the touch is dropped and he starts yanking their bags out to lay them on the ground. “ well if i snore so much maybe i’ll let you two sleep in the car and i’ll keep the bed all to myself, ” he jokes. kyungsoo stiffens as he watches insu’s hand dart out to grab the bag. the one full of the riches that kyungsoo risked his very life for. his immediate response says to rip it out of the younger’s hands. there’s still a barrier of trust kyungsoo feels with insu. god, does he care about the kid, but he remembers how they met. how... unhinged, detached from reality he seems. there’s no telling what he could do with the money they so desperately need. but as kyungsoo looks at insu, he can’t find it in himself to care. insu could set their motel room on fire tonight, sending all three of them to an early grave, and kyungsoo doesn’t think he could ever blame the younger man. “ keep an eye on that insu-ah, ” he says, voice laced with warning. his hand comes up to cup his cheek, thumb pressing against the plumpest part. “ i know you can do that for me. ”
nana’s never been in a tight balancing act like this before. she’s a friendly girl, always surrounded by people, but this felt... different. insu and kyungsoo had such different personalities, and they both meant so much to her. but even she could admit to herself that it isn’t just friendship between the three of them. maybe because there are so many stakes to the three of them sticking together. they took her away from the cops who would most likely blame her for an accidental death, but in the meantime she became an accessory to robbery, car jacking, and so many other little crimes she couldn’t even think of. so maybe her deep dependency on them is born of something dark. but when insu touches her arm, when kyungsoo keeps her close with his hand at her waist, it makes her feel grounded and terrified at the same time. “ insu’s very comfortable to nap with, i wouldn’t mind sleeping in the car, ” she teases right back. the exchange around the bag has her eyes widening. nana herself would trust insu with anything, but she knows life has made kyungsoo more weary. the fact that he gives it up to the younger man... nana bites her lip. it’s says something, she’s just not sure what. instead she picks up various smaller bags, loading her arms as full as they can go. “ let’s go to the room, i want to see if this place has a pool. ”
