Legs screaming in aching pain with each pounding step, heart beating against his ribcage rapidly with terror igniting its pace, breath nothing more than a wheezing gasp at the back of his throat as the greedy claws of fear grasped at his lungs.
Yixing was in a dream.
He was lost, caught like some wild animal between the jaws of unconsciousness and the terrors of his awoken mind. Like a being tumbling through space he was falling, twisting through the air between wakefulness and sleep with confusion intoxicating his mind. He was running, his legs throwing themselves painfully through the streets of Seoul while his true legs tensed and his body stiffened in the embrace of his mattress. He couldn’t breathe, like he was being smothered by the air itself on all sides as his dream self ran on and on. Blood-- thick, slippery, metallic blood was sliding down his arms like a snake, twisting around his limbs as if trying to squeeze the very life out of him.
And it was working.
He gasped, both in pain and shock, with the noise created so real that it could have passed from his living lips as well. Blood like lava was bubbling from his chest in rivulets of red, seeping between his shaking fingers before the blade was drawn from him, and then he was falling. Everything was muddled, his legs giving way beneath him far more than what seemed possible as he dropped. He was crumbling, disintegrating into ash, but when he looked up to the face of his killer standing so far above him, it was his own face that stared back at him…his own cold eyes that condemned him.
And then he woke.
Shaking hands clutched at his chest as he shot up in bed, sweat pouring from a clammy brow as heavy, irregular pants stole the stillness of his room. He felt sick, his chest heaving with each shuttering breath as he stared forward into the early morning gloom of his small living space, the world swimming, his heart pounding against his palm. Yixing didn’t know what to think or what to feel, emotions and remaining fear coursing through his veins like a chant, crashing over him live waves and robbing him of his calm. He shook his head, running shaky fingers through damp hair and closing his eyes as he tried to dam up the images that flooded through his mind. But to no avail.
He was always the monster in his dreams. No matter what the problem he was always there, his hardened self causing everything, those eyes haunting him from every mirror and every picture. There was no escape from them, no place to hide…even his sleep when seldom stolen held that cruel gaze.
He needed to shake this.
With his eyes flashing open Yixing tried to pull himself beyond the sickness churning in his stomach, swallowing past the metallic taste in his mouth before he drug his weary form from the mat he called a bed. Sweat clung to his shirt as he rid himself of the suffocating material, throwing the discarded piece to the side before taking a deep breath. Another day lay ahead of him, hours upon hours his unrested mind would have to deal with. He told himself he was ready, and as the nightmare began to fade in light of the new morning, he truly hoped he was right.
---
Hours later and the sun was beginning to rise over the Crimson Lotus, the mist of early morning still hanging in the air outside as it battled the evaporating heat of the peaking sun.
Yixing looked better as he stood in the kitchen of his workplace; white earphones pumping melodic nothings into his mind as he methodically sliced through vegetables, preparing for the night crowds the restaurant would bring in. Though the dark circles of the night’s adventures still painted exhaustion under his eyes he seemed no different than any other day. Black bangs fell before his gaze as the knife in his grip cut with experience through the various ingredients, his sleeves rolled up around his arms and an apron hanging about his waist. He would have looked normal, standing there as he was…but the bruises on his face and the small scars tracing up his bare arms made sure to remedy that normalcy.
In truth, the nightmares of his evening had not been too different than the course of his true night; reality and fiction a mix as it had swirled within his exhausted mind. The dream had simply continued where his night had left off, ending tragically at the edge of a knife, while his true evening had finished with him collapsing to his waiting mattress. However the bruises and metallic taste of blood had still remained even upon waking, and even after cleaning up for the day it was these marks of war he wore so plainly now.
Yet they did not hold him back.
Many hours passed within the quiet embrace of work, slipping seamlessly into the peaceful morning until a soft, chiming bell at the front door rung through the restaurant and a harsh Mandarin call beckoned him from the dining room. The young man was pulled from his daze by those words, yanking out his earphone and setting his knife down before brushing his hands on the apron and following the call.
Yixing slipped through the kitchen silently, past the counter, and then entered the small dining space in full view of the entryway. There were people standing there, a small group all chattering in Chinese with the owners of the Lotus among them. Though Xing remained slightly confused about the meaning of this gathering, he was introduced in Mandarin to the small group upon approaching and he bowed respectively, trying to make sense of it all.
Leave a “Break Me” in my ask, and I will write an angsty drabble about our characters.
she’s always been told to be a good girl. that she is a good girl. the epitome of perfection, she remembers being described as. people came to her of their own will — drifted to her because of a smile and a flutter of lashes.
she was a princess is every sense — but here and now, sooyeon feels inadequate. not enough.
"howon-ah." her voice is but a whisper, ragged and pained. her eyes are bloodshot, her hair askew from the constant running of her fingers in it. but she continues on, keeping strong. her stare is desperate, and as they graze over his features — familiar and home in her heart — she whimpers. it’s a sound so foreign, so strange to hear. "…why? what’s wrong with me?"
her voice sounds so broken, so defeated. the sting is in her eyes, but she doesn’t want to admit it’s tears of being upset, so weak. sooyeon isn’t weak — not in the slightest.
but lee howon makes her weak, in her heart, in her head and in her knees. the ultimate weapon to take down such a foe as her.
she reaches out, her hands bloodied and bleeding — knuckles cut open and bruised. her fingers are shaking as she reaches out, lips trembling. “why?” her voice cracks, her fingers gripping onto his sleeve. she shakes it gently, head drooping as her shoulders shake. she’s holding onto his clothes like a lifeline — body curling into herself as she lets out a particularly loud sob. “w-why? why am i not good enough for you?”
she believes it’s because howon is perfect. he is everything sooyeon has ever wanted, and everything sooyeon is not.
she believes it’s because she’s filth — and no one wants to spend their time around something so foul and dirtied as her.
Parties were always where the most amusement was, there were plenty of things to do, drinks to feel a little loose and tons of people to talk too. Being social was the biggest part for Taehyung, that and poisoning his tiny frame with the yummy alcohol that called his name and lured him in. Its not like Taehyung had to drive home, he didnt have a car - and he didnt have a car because he preferred to walk everywhere he went. Being publicly intoxicated was far better than drunk driving.
A lot of the people in this party had seemed smashed,and he could pick out the ones who would drive home in that condition, it was dangerous and something he found unacceptable. Distracting a lot of them with small talk, or a dancing - and he slipped their keys from their pockets or bags and hid them somewhere that would be much more simple to find in the morning; He would leave a note for the owner of the house in the morning so all his guests would know.
There was someone in particular who caught his eye - he wasnt doing much of anything, sitting around and looking down at his phone thumbing through social network sites and trying to make it seem as if he was busy on a phone, while at a party. He didnt have a drink in his hand - and he sat at the far end of the couch, his body language giving off the impression that he didnt want to be approached.
But that was exactly what pushed Taehyungs feet forward in that direction,his fingers tightening on the edge of the couch, and swiftly throwing his body over the back of the seat and plopped roughly onto the space next to the anti-social brunette, slipping his hand out and snatching the phone from his hand, and shoving it in his own back pocket.
"I really don't think Facebook is that important to avoid such a fun atmosphere." his hands were gesturing towards the entire room, music reverberated off the walls, making it complicated to hear, so he had to somewhat yell his words. Offering the stranger a smile - not a traditional one because he wasnt blessed with such a thing. He had an odd smile with no points at the corner of his lips, the ends of his lips went more round and the end, it was something people knew him for.
"Why don't you enjoy your time here instead of looking pissed off, and like you don't wanna be here, but if thats the case - why did you come in the first place? That doesn't seem very fun to me." he rambled off, he liked the sound of his own voice and that was the biggest reason as to why he trailed off and rambled on, 95% of the time. "Taehyung, by the way"
sooyeon’s never had to put her trust in anyone. she’s always been a one woman show, helping herself and not letting others do it. people let her down constantly — they never stay, never live up to what they promise. she gives and they take and she’ll get nothing in return.
but hoya’s words are strong, and it has sooyeon becoming flustered. swallowing, she nods her head, clutching the ends of her jacket to her as she stares at the male across from her. it’s something quick and simple — but has the potential to turn dangerous real quick. it has the female shifting and twitching under the stress, and she glances behind her for a moment, her lips pursing as she moves her attention back to hoya.
"i got ya." her words are strong, but her eyes tell a different story. she’s tense, she’s paranoid — she doesn’t think she can do this, but god — he’s putting his trust in her. and that’s more than sooyeon can ask for. "i’ll do my best. i won’t let a single thing happen."
she grins at him, all teeth and eyes disappearing. she lifts her hands in an okay gesture, tilting her head at him. “you can count on me.”
sooyeon feels awkward in the crowd of people, but hoya’s smile is bright — and as she nibbles her lip, she glances around. her head is spinning from the pressure. she feels clustered, too enclosed. she hugs her arms tighter around herself, flickering her gaze to hoya.
but hoya’s words are comforting — and she hesitates, before taking a step back from him. she just has to run in and run out real quick. it’s simple enough — and it should be easy for her. but this is stretching a little out of her comfort zone. turning to the male, she sets him with a firm stare, pursing her lips as she glares at him.
"you promise you’ll be right there?" she points at the spot he’s standing in, lips forming into a pout. "cause if i come back and you’re not here — you’re going to get it." she waves her fist at him for good measure.
It was never new for Jongup when people point out how clumsy and air headed he is everywhere. Instead of just experience and profit, Jongup also earns tons of burns and cuts from the job he’s into. Around his house, his parents would always tell him to be careful and don’t let the house burn down whenever they go out, luckily Jongup follows it but still, it’s a bit unnerving for him to hear that same phrase almost every day.
It’s not that he’s really clumsy, airheaded or dumb like people make out of him, he’s just unlucky. He couldn’t remember the first accident he had experienced, but his mother had told him that right from when he was a child, accidents seemed to like him more than blessings. Example of such accidents were when a child was playing with his paint and paint brush, then tripping to nothing right in front of Jongup and well the ending is a red colored Jongup.
When he aged, his accidents worsened. He often tripped a step or two from the stairs, got his hands clamped between the frame and the door, spilled beverages on his pristine white uniform and etc. Jongup was bothered by this so when he had the time before, he went to a site dealing with unfortunate things and well he found some guy near his neighbourhood who helps people with his case.
Without his parents’ knowledge, he went to him and conversed about these accidents he’s experiencing. He was given a charm of some sort and was told to keep that item close to his body to repel every bad luck, and so he did. He kept the charm inside his pockets when school starts, put it around his next around summer when the whole family decided to go to a beach, and well hit it inside his pockets with warmers when winter reached. He and that charm had become one.
Years passed and his accidents dwindled down and eventually it isn’t happening anymore. Years had already passed from when he got the charm, he didn’t knew that this day would come. He watched as that same charm fall to the toilet bowl and be flushed away. His mouth hang open and eyes doubled in size as the small piece of charm continued to be drown and after a few beats of his heart, disappeared from his sight.
He left the comfort room uneasy and fidgety. What if the accidents happen again? Please no. When he thought that the years had already made him immune to accidents, this happened. His hand was just shot with hot oil from the fryer. He jumped in surprised and went quickly to a nearby faucet after turning the fryer off. A co-worker spotted him and took care of his spot before ushering him out of the kitchen to deal with the burn.
He apologized and scampered away quickly, trying not to cause any traffic inside the bustling kitchen. Inside the lockers area, he took his bag and fished out a piece of bandage, with pokemon designs on it and placed it on his burn. He hissed at the contact but it died down as he blew it frantically.
After that he went outside and started regaining the time he had lost dealing with that small burn. He apologized to his co-worker who took over his spot and thanked him at the same time. He smiled and walked away as Jongup takes the fryer on his hand again and started frying. This day’s going to be really long, he muttered.
Afternoon came and the other crews were already preparing for the night crowd. They refilled the ice box, fried new batches of chicken and prepared clusters of French fries. He took his cap off and placed it inside his locker as the other who crews who has the same schedule of his had already bid their goodbyes quickly, wanting to go home and rest.
His mind was still filled about the disappearance of his charm, and his burn stings still but its burn was not as painful as it was earlier. He sighed again in content and locked his things off before taking his bag from the ground and left.
His earphones started pumping life inside his body. The song was completely overwhelming, the beat, the rhythm, the lyrics, it was painful, the lyrics were but it was beautiful that Jongup couldn’t help but to be carried away by it. He ran his hair through his hair, eyes focused at the road and also avoiding the bodies that seems to trying to bump him. He turned, walked sideways, stopped then continued just to avoid them, what’s with these people? He wondered.
When he reached the crossings, his side was already empty, people had already grouped in the middle of the road, walking carelessly and free. He smiled because right now, there was no person at all that could bump him. He smiled and started walking, eyes on the ground as he watch his foot step on the white marks.
It was close to closing time when she finally peeled herself from the book in her lap to take stock of the disorder of her shop and to remind her remaining customers that they had a set amount of time to finish up whatever they were doing and leave. She didn't blame any of them for lingering so long, knowing that she would have done the same in their place, so it was always with a small smile that she greeted every one whenever it was time to do such things. The only annoyance of owning a bookstore was the mess that people tended to leave behind as a result of picking up books and setting them down in completely different areas or moving the tables and plush chairs set up to suit their own needs. Luckily there was a "no food or drink allowed" sign she'd had the forethought to put up weeks earlier so daily cleanup was only reorganizing and vacuuming as was needed. Owning a store could be both a blessing and a curse.
Marking her place,she rose and began her rounds, fixing any simple misplacement that she passed by and mentally marking where she would have to return after closing time. Nearly everyone was out when she found him, sprawled across a secluded corner where the science and fantasy sections met. Books piled every which way and all around him, Lucy could only stare in complete surprise as the male lightly snored away, curled with his head cushioned on his arm and a tiny pile of books. How could anyone pick that many books and pile them up without her notice or another customer commenting on it? Not to mention he was completely fast asleep, dark circles marking his eyes in a clear sign of exhaustion. With a light touch and then shake of his shoulder, she attempted to wake him.
"Hello? Excuse me sir but you can't sleep here and it's almost closing time..."
"Don’t tell me to relax" he replied sending a deadly glare in the other’s direction.
He barely remembered the previous nights events because he got so intoxicated. He did remember going out with Reina though she wouldn’t be drinking and mainly wanted to keep him from getting into too much trouble. Then it became a blur afterwards and the next thing he knew he was waking up with a new haircut as well as a new color of red to go along with it. So far Hoya was the only one to have seen him with his new hairstyle that he wasn’t completely sure what to make of just yet. Apparently the other had liked it and was trying to calm him down.
