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@wildscoped
a selective, private, and mutuals only roleplay blog for CHOI JIYONG ; an original character set in the world of NETFLIX'S K-POP DEMON HUNTERS. please read carrd and rules prior to interacting !!
note: this blog is a sideblog and follows back from @sunscoped
graphics made by: agmaknae
links. headcanons / playlist / musings / prompts / visage / wire / carrd
He’s running a brush through Ji’s hair, humming softly as Bomi lays curled up beside the both of them. “You know you don’t have to keep it long just for me, right? It doesn’t bother me if you want to buzz it off again.”
there's nothing that he loves more, he thinks, than feeling cheol-min play with his hair. it's a sensory nightmare half the time, and unless he absolutely has to have it down, it's tied up in some weird type of bun. he'd never liked having long hair, not really ━━━ but there was one reason, one PERSON, that stopped him from shaving it all off again.
cheol-min. who looked only all too pleased to play with hair that lay just past his shoulders. who would have quite happily spent hours running his fingers through jiyong's hair if the younger would only let him. selfish, he'd been called most of his life ━━━ but oh, for cheol-min? he'd do anything. for cheol-min? oh, he'd give the world just to see him smile.
there's a small quirk of the lips that goes unnoticed by the other, jiyong's head down and gaze focused on his phone, while his other hand is focused on giving bomi a little love. " mm, i know. " he murmurs, not bothering to look up from the screen. for as much as jiyong hated to admit it sometimes, cheol-min made him want to be ... gentle. he made him feel safe enough to BE gentle.
" but if i buzzed it all off again, you couldn't do this. "
is he cheol-min's type ? what a dumb fucking question.
𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐀𝐑𝐌 𝐎𝐕𝐄𝐑 𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐒𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐋𝐃𝐄𝐑 𝐑𝐄𝐋𝐀𝐗𝐄𝐒 𝐇𝐈𝐌 ; visibly so as he leans his weight against Jiyong and wraps his own arms around him and buries his face into his chest. Min's always worn his heart on his sleeve ; he's always been emotional. This was no different.
" I missed you. "
he holds cheol-min just that little bit closer, ever so subtle in the way that he himself seems to relax after having the other so close once again. it had been this way since their pre-debut days ; cheol-min had always put his heart and mind at ease, just by being close by.
a kiss, pressed to the top of his husband's head, fingers tracing small circles across the other's back as they just stand there together, basking in each other's presence.
" ah ? you literally saw me this morning before you went to work. " he teases softly, " but ... mm, i missed you too. house is always so empty when you and the kids are gone. "
its stupid. this is stupid. all of this is stupid. and yet he's doing waht he can to keep whatever small bond they had rekindled, alive. Yi-joon is terrible when it comes to these things, so like he did the first time, he leaves a painting on the counter when he leaves, wrapped. the painting isn't of them this time ; isn't of brothers ; but he figured he would like something of him and Cheol-min, and that's exactly what was under the wrapping paper.
if he flips the canvas, on the back in small writing, it says "Happy Birthday .... pabo."
( from @heirscoped )
and it's not as though he expects anything from his brother, not really. he knew, perhaps all too well, what might have been going through yi-joon's mind when he spots the gift on his kitchen counter, not unlike his last birthday. he knows all too well, because his feelings were much the same.
birthdays, in the choi household at least, were never a celebration ━━━ not really. to save face, for publicity, of course. both brothers had been celebrated ; galas, private parties upon rooftop bars that both were far too young to attend and far too young to enjoy properly. their parents had always presented them as trophies ( yi-joon moreso, he thinks, because his parents had tossed jiyong far off to the side long before he'd run away from home ) but behind closed doors it had always been a different story.
the gifts were for show, so that their parents could be showered in praise for just how well they looked after their children. any affection shown was little more than a token gesture, a photo opportunity for the two entrepreneurs they called mother and father. anything to look good in front of their friends, anything to look better for the press. but when the music had died down, when guests had left and all else had been forgotten, a birthday was little more than a reminder of all they'd yet to accomplish by a certain age.
when i was your age, i'd already made my first million.
i was younger when i made my first sale, what have you done with your life ?
at this rate, jiyong, we'd be better off sending you away and telling everyone you'd died. at least then we wouldn't have to live with the shame and disappoint that comes with having brought you into this world.
birthdays since then, of course, held little value. for most of them since, yi-joon hadn't even been in his life ( aside from the few times where jiyong had called him while drunk, desperate for approval from the only one in his family that he had ever cared about ) but times had changed, hadn't they ? yi-joon, though still rough around the edges, though he was fucking annoying at times, had a good heart. he cared, probably more than he'd ever want to admit and this painting ; delicate strokes that blended together to create the perfect portrait of jiyong and cheol-min, was proof of that.
words did not come easy to either brother, kind words ━━━ appreciative words even less so. because how could you talk to someone in a way that you had never experienced first hand ? how could you articulate just how much you appreciated the time and effort someone had put into something, the thought behind it, the fact that they were even in your life in the first place, when such a concept was so foreign to you ?
cheol-min had spoken to him about being more open and honest with his brother ; but such a task was easier said than done. sometimes, he worries that it's all a sick joke, that the moment he lets his walls down, he'll find out that yi-joon didn't want him in his life. he worries that vulnerability, building a proper relationship with his brother would only end in ruin ━━━ so why bother getting too close ? but with age, with time, jiyong had seen the subtle changes in his brother ━━━ the young man he'd grown into, flourishing finally, now that he was free from their parents.
jiyong would always harbor guilt for leaving his brother behind, he'd carry it until the day he died. but there were ways, he thinks, that he can try and make up for it now. it would never be enough in his eyes, but even if it's something small, he wants to do it. he wants to be a brother that yi-joon can be proud of and, more importantly, trust.
so, as he stares down at the painting, a soft smile on his face, he calls his brother ━━━ knowing full well why he'd left it there without hanging around but hey, if yi-joon thought he was giving a gift like this without a thank you, he was dead wrong. " hey ... yeah i just got home. you paint this ? no, no i love it. it's really good. got a special place for it in mind already ━━━ min's gonna lose his mind when he sees this ... huh ? check the back ? what for ━━━ ? "
" pabo ? pabo ? really ? real fucking mature ━━━ you little shit. no, turn your fucking car around and get over here. i just want to talk ━━━ fuck you ! "
@heirscoped
how much damage is a pretty boy like him really gonna do? but sure, he can talk as big as he wants. whatever he throws at him, seonghwa can take it. just try not to break a wrist while he's swinging.
he's glad to hear that, actually. a nice little smile on his face, though it lacks any real warmth. hope you like the taste of concrete, seonghwa. because jiyong's drawing his fist back and giving you a fucking one way ticket to the GROUND.
he's not worried. because OBVIOUSLY his wonderful, amazing, beautiful boyfriend won't let his GIRAFFE of a bestie beat his ass. he's vibing.
cheol-min isn't going to save you, bitch boy. and even if he tried, it's not like he could do anything.
CHANGBIN × HYUNJIN // STRAY KIDS • "STAY IN OUR LITTLE HOUSE" 6TH FANMEETING DAY #4
@wildscoped
on his way to beat @egosthrall ‘s ass.
Birthdays were always something that Cheol-min had celebrated ; his family never let a birthday be forgotten, and as always, they were obnoxiously loud about it. Even through all of the stress regarding the supernatural, even through the emotional rollercoaster Cheol-min was constantly on as of late, he still managed to celebrate Jiyong’s birthday despite all of his protests. And thought years had passed — and now they were older with two children ( not to mention, dae-ho was safe and had a family of his own ), he supposed that somethings never changed.
This was one of them.
“Ah, come on — there we go !” He laughs as he hoists their son ( named after min’s little brother ) into his seat, and then their daughter, Ae-cha, into another. There’s a few balloons becuase the kid wanted to decorate, and some other decorations here and there, but it was tame for Cheol-min — but he knew how his husband felt, so he tried not to go too over the top. The cake sat upon the island ; soft colours of strawberries and peaches upon whipped cream and vanilla sponge — simple, but made with love.
His gaze shifts to Jiyong when he sees him, grinning as he leans up, arms wrapping around his husbands neck and pulling him down so he can kiss his cheek, shoving a small, but long box into Jiyong’s hands ; inside it a silver chain with a long, silver pendant on it, a combination of a sun and a moon etched into it, matching the bracelets they had worn for years.
“Happy birthday, Yeobo. Hurry up and let’s get into the cake before the kids do —“
he'd never enjoyed his birthday ━━ to some extent he still doesn't. every year that passed was nothing more than a reminder that, despite it all, he was still alive ; stubborn as he was. the decorations around their home are minimal ( and he's sure that cheol-min had exercised all of his self-restraint to manage that ) though, really, it's still too much in jiyong's eyes. he'd never seen himself as someone important, he'd never seen himself as someone worthy of celebration. but cheol-min had always celebrated him ━━ every chance that he got, any excuse to make a big deal about jiyong was taken full advantage of.
it's a trait, he'd found over the years, that their children seemed to have picked up on too. jiyong was his own worst critic with a lot of things ; and his approach to his own parenting was no different. he worried that he was never enough, that he'd fuck up his kids, that they'd hate him. he worried that he'd be too much like his own kids without ever meaning to. it's easy to get lost in his thoughts with things like that, but when he sees the looks plastered on his children's face as they see him ; the excitement, the love, the eagerness to eat the cake that they'd made for him, jiyong realizes something.
he was nothing like his own parents ━━ and more importantly than that, his children would never know, would never experience the same things that he had growing up, because they had two parents that loved them more than anything else in the world, and that was more than what jiyong had ever had.
he catches his husband's eye, gaze darting down to the other's hand when he notices a long box, the younger of the two already having an idea of what his husband may have gotten him. cheol-min had developed a habit over the years of buying jiyong jewelry for every special occasion, and it was a habit that he'd grown to love dearly, always making sure to wear something that his husband had bought him over the many years that they'd been together.
" you didn't have to get me anything, min. " he murmurs softly, arm wrapping around the other to bring him closer, laughing softly when he hears their son complain about how gross the two were being as jiyong goes in for a kiss. " it does look nice though, help me put it on after cake ? " he asks, looking over the other's shoulder towards the sweet treat that was practically calling his name.
happiness, was not something that he'd thought he'd ever get the chance to experience. an angry child, an angry teenager, a lost and misguided young adult. hopeless, he'd been called, useless, a waste of time. too many people had put jiyong in the too hard basket, too many hadn't wanted even to try when it came to him ; so complex was he. but cheol-min had only ever approached him with kindness and understanding. never expecting anything in return other than knowing that jiyong would be okay.
cheol-min had gotten him many a gift over the years, each one adored and appreciated in ways that the younger couldn't possibly begin to articulate. but his favourite gift, the one that jiyong cherished more than anything in this world wasn't a necklace, or some ring, or even a cake ━━ it was a family, his family. a place to belong, a place to call home.
the greatest gift that cheol-min had ever given him ━━ was happiness.
he's mailing this card to his company building. happy birthday. 😌
it's going straight in the bin, actually. fucking rude.
He's also sad, so where's HIS husband ???
don't you worry, his husband is right here ; with an arm over min's shoulder to pull him in close.
@wildscoped : ❛ am i all that you imagined? ❜ ( I KNOW CHEOL-SOO IS THERE SOMEWHERE GIB ME HIM )
𝐂𝐇𝐄𝐎𝐋-𝐒𝐎𝐎 𝐖𝐀𝐒 𝐀𝐍 𝐄𝐍𝐈𝐆𝐌𝐀 𝐀𝐌𝐎𝐍𝐆𝐒𝐓 𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐏𝐄𝐄𝐑𝐒 ; mostly because he and his family were so invested in their community. As a noble household, most would never have imagined that a family of their title, of their nobility, would ever be ones to mingle, let alone help the common folk.
𝐁𝐔𝐓 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐉𝐔𝐍𝐆 𝐅𝐀𝐌𝐈𝐋𝐘 𝐖𝐀𝐒 𝐅𝐔𝐋𝐋 𝐎𝐅 𝐒𝐔𝐑𝐏𝐑𝐈𝐒𝐄𝐒 -- Cheol-soo, especially. Always willing to help travelers that made their way to Daegu, or help around the transport village as a whole. Well known amongst the community, there wasn't a single person that didn't know him or his family. It was because of his willingness to help, that he met Jiyong in the first place.
And now look at how far they came.
𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐄𝐒 𝐀 𝐇𝐔𝐌 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐆𝐇𝐓 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐋𝐄𝐀𝐕𝐄𝐒 𝐇𝐈𝐌, gaze flickering upwards as fingers, laced with the half-demon's squeezes his hand softly.
" All that and more, if I'm being honest. "
𝐇𝐄 𝐃𝐈𝐃𝐍'𝐓 𝐄𝐗𝐏𝐄𝐂𝐓 𝐓𝐎 𝐆𝐑𝐎𝐖 𝐀𝐒 𝐀𝐓𝐓𝐀𝐂𝐇𝐄𝐃 𝐀𝐒 𝐇𝐄 𝐖𝐀𝐒 ; and because he was so spiritually inclined, he could see what Jiyong really was from day one. The patterns, the teeth, the eyes -- and yet none of that bothered him. Lips quirk upwards into a sweet smile ; He had seen many spirits, many demons before with how spiritually inclined he was, but there was something about Jiyong that was different. Kind. He was more then what Cheol-soo could have imagined, and more than he could ever want.
For Cheol-soo, Jiyong was home.
" Aaah, but! What about me, Jiyong? Am I all that you imagined? Be honest, Jagiya ! "
insecurity gets the better of him more often than he'd care to admit. being who he is, being what he is, doesn't allow for acceptance ; an outcast whether he liked it or not. and maybe he'd told him himself that it was how he preferred for things to be, maybe he'd grown used to the isolation ; shunned by his mother, abandoned by his father, an ridiculed by his brother. family had never done anything for him, acceptance had never been something in his cards and that, over the years, had simply become his reality.
or at least he'd thought so. until cheol-soo had come into his life, sticking his nose in where it didn't belong and god, pestering jiyong to no end, refusing to leave him alone. he'd tried to play it off, pretended like he'd found it annoying but he couldn't lie to himself for long, he'd found it beyond endearing. he hadn't known at the time, that cheol-soo could see him for who he really was. his surprise had been obvious when he'd finally found out because for some reason he just couldn't believe that cheol-soo would see him, see all of him, and still want him.
for the first time in his life, he'd been accepted by someone ━━━ and he couldn't be happier.
" all that and more, huh ? you must . . . hm, you must really like me. " a smile, nervous almost as cheol-soo takes his hand, blackened and sharp are the fingertips that curl as he returns the gentle squeeze, but his love doesn't bat an eye, he doesn't care. he's just . . . always loved jiyong for exactly who he is, and perhaps that's something that the demon never thought he'd have for himself.
something like this ; a quiet moment, a gentle moment, but han jiyong knows better by now, thinking it might stay that way, laughter bubbling up as cheol-soo throws the question straight back at him.
" be honest ? are you sure that's what you want ? " a teasing tone, as he leans down to press a kiss against the other's lips, laughter that dies down soon enough as he presses their foreheads together. " you're everything i never wanted to admit that i needed. i think . . . i know, i'd be lost without you, jagiya. "
@seouldayz
Put this on the dash bc I forgot I got it commed
Ft @wildscoped
𝐈𝐓'𝐒 𝐀 𝐌𝐈𝐗𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐄 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐒 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐇𝐄 𝐅𝐄𝐄𝐋𝐒 𝐈𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐌𝐎𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓 : betrayal, distrust, anger, disappointment. His gaze remained fixed on Jiyong, doing what he could to reason, not based on his emotions. There was nothing wrong with that, of course — but he was always a more … rational thinker than most. Even so, how could Jiyong do this to him? How could he go behind his back and give up his soul? The sound of Jiyong’s screams through the speaker made him wince, himself — Cheol-min turning it off as soon as he sit was asked of him. And then, it hit him.
“ So you were just going to keep this hidden from me? You were going to lie to me? ” His voice was quiet, almost hushed, like a whisper as his gaze flickered down to his feet and finger tips of one hand fiddled with the edge of his pocket. The last thing he had ever expected was for Jiyong to do something like this — to sell his soul to a devil and become something that he knew both of them despised. It didn’t help that the other said that he would keep it hidden from him, either. What happened to trust? Jiyong was one of the most important people to him, so much so that he was up there with Cheol-min's little brother. how could they come back from this? How could he ever consider being able to trust his lover again after being lied to like this, after having to find out that the other had become a demon for a reason unknown to him? The thoughts in his mind push and pull and tug at each other, rational and irrational both decide to fight as if one was trying to claim dominance over the other. He wanted to scream — he wanted to yell — he wanted to say things that he knew he wouldn’t mean, but in that moment, he wanted to rip him a new one. He already had enough to deal with. He already had to try and save his brother from a demon — to try and save his little brother from losing his life, and now his own boyfriend had decided to pull some sort of stunt that would just make things worse.
𝐀𝐋𝐋 𝐇𝐄 𝐖𝐀𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐃 𝐓𝐎 𝐃𝐎 𝐖𝐀𝐒 𝐘𝐄𝐋𝐋 𝐀𝐓 𝐇𝐈𝐌, but he couldn’t. Part of him understood where the other was coming from, part of him knew what it was like to risk everything that you had for someone that you cared so deeply for. He gave up his career in order to save Jiyong's life, or when it came to Dae-ho — where he gave up a lot to take care of his baby brother when they were growing up; this, in a way, was no different. If it were him, he may have done the same. it made Cheol-min have sympathy for Jiyong, sympathy that he had for his situation — for the reason behind it ; for what was love if not giving sacrifice?
“ You should have told me, Ji. This is causing me more stress than if you were just up front with me. ”
𝐀 𝐃𝐄𝐄𝐏 𝐒𝐈𝐆𝐇 𝐋𝐄𝐀𝐕𝐄𝐒 𝐇𝐈𝐌 ; he can see how the other fails to look at him, how he tries to reach for some comfort and pulls his hand back as fingers were replaced with blackened claws — similar to the beast that they all knew a little too well nowadays. A man who thrived off the blood and the carnage and the despair of other people, the hands of a man who was not human, at least not anymore. He knew what Jiyong’s self-worth was, and he knew that this could not improve it; if anything, it would make it worse. Slowly, he reaches for his hand, fingers curling around the claws of the other — gentle, soft as if nothing had changed between them at all. He had always said that he would be there no matter what, through thick and through thin, so he wasn’t about to abandon him now, even if he made a piss poor decision. The claws don’t scare him. In fact, he holds them tighter, a sigh leaving him as his gaze moves to look up at the taller.
“ … Fine. You don't have to tell me. But I'm here for you, regardless. I'll get it over it. ... I’m sure there's a way to get you back to normal, right? We’ll figure it out. We always do.”
he has no answer to cheol-min's questions ; other than the truth. he was never supposed to find out about this, he was never supposed to know. jiyong becoming a demon was not only an ace up their sleeve, but the result of a deal made to keep his lover safe. he had almost lost cheol-min once before ; a freak accident that had almost killed him, but instead, had almost killed cheol-min during his stupid fucking attempt at keeping jiyong safe. and he gets it now, he thinks. in some fucked up way he gets it ; because what was sacrifice, if not the grandest declaration of love ?
yes, he had gone behind cheol-min's back. yes he had lied, and yes he had planned to make sure that the knowledge of what he had down would never reach cheol-min ━━ but it hadn't worked out that way, had it ? however the other had managed to get the audio, he had it now. there was no changing that. and while jiyong feels horrible for trying to keep this from him he knows, without a doubt, that he'd do it all over again ━━ because this was a way of keeping everyone safe. none of the others were fucking doing anything ( woo, perhaps, was doing the most of them all ; but it still wasn't enough ) so damn it, if jiyong had to take the initiative here, then so fucking be it.
" i wasn't lying i was just ━━ fuck, min. i knew how you'd react if i told you, because you're doing it right fucking now. if i'd told you what i was planning then you would have stopped me ; or worse ! you would have gone and done this shit yourself, given yourself to that fucking psycho just to keep your brother safe. i know you'd do anything for dae, okay ? i fucking know that ; but did you ever stop to think about how losing you would fuck with me ? how it'd fuck with dae-ho ? someone had to keep you safe and ━━ " he stops, worked up and damn near shaking at this point. it is not, by any means, that choi jiyong knows how to regulate his emotions. it's that he shuts himself down, keeps himself quiet. better to suffer in silence and let it fester rather than air out his dirty laundry for all to judge.
" i never wanted to cause you any more stress than what you already fucking have ━━ but i couldn't just sit around and wait for something bad to fucking happen. " he takes a moment, a deep breath to try and calm himself down. it's harder than it looks ; but cheol-min had been nothing but patient with him all these years, taught him that it's okay to take a breath, to think about what you say before you say it. that doesn't mean it's easy, not by any means. but for cheol-min, he tries. because his boyfriend deserves that fucking much at least.
in the silence that follows, he half expects cheol-min to leave ; why stay and try to talk sense into the monster than stood before you ? perhaps jiyong doesn't think himself worthy of anything good, perhaps that's why he did this. he knew just how much cheol-min hated demons, he knew that doing something so drastic would do more harm than good. maybe he was trying to give the other an excuse to leave ; jiyong the fuck up, bound to ruin everything good in his life, one way or another. self-inflicted punishment was what this was. jiyong knew he wasn't worthy of someone like cheol-min, he's just trying to prove the point to not only himself, but his boyfriend as well.
but a hand takes his own, still in plain view, still blackened at the fingertips, still disgustingly and painfully not human. and yet, cheol-min holds his hand like he always had, soft and comforting, as if telling jiyong without words, that he'd always be there. his gaze stays locked on their hands for a moment, as if in awe, as if he can't understand why time and time again, after everyone had told the other that jiyong was nothing but trouble, he still chose to stay. what was it he saw, jiyong wonders, that made him think that i'm anything other than a fucking waste of space ?
" i . . . " words fail him, voice quiet and uncharacteristically weak in the moment. he lets out a shaky breath as he squeezes cheol-min's hand just that little bit tighter. he still can't look at him, part of him thinks that he doesn't deserve to ━━ but the comfort that such a gesture provides is . . . more than what jiyong had ever deserved. " yeah. okay. your brother . . . he takes priority though, don't worry about me. i'm . . . i'm fine. "
𝐇𝐄’𝐒 𝐈𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐂𝐀𝐑 𝐖𝐀𝐈𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆 … normally that would be good to hear, but he knew that keeping his brother unsupervised was the stupidest idea he could make. Dae-ho was a lot of things — but not a lot of people knew that he could be very smart when he felt like he had to be, especially when it came to getting away from something if he was angry or upset. How many times did he have to go and find him when they were kids because he snuck out after arguing with him or their parents or their sisters? Enough that he knew what he was capable of.
“ we have to hurry, he shouldn’t be alone for too long — ! “
𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐒𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐏𝐀𝐈𝐍 𝐂𝐀𝐔𝐆𝐇𝐓 𝐔𝐏 𝐖𝐈𝐓𝐇 𝐇𝐈𝐌 𝐀𝐆𝐀𝐈𝐍 and shot up his spine once more, his grip on his boyfriend tightening as he hissed sharply from the pain, his free hand shuffling in his pockets. Pain killers — he’d dry swallow them if he had to — he didn’t care. He needed to get to his brother before he left that fucking car, or all of this would be for absolutely nothing. But his head was spinning at this point ... the pain was building as he used Jiyong as a crutch. He could get to the car on his own, slowly ... His brother was more important.
" I'll be fine — I'll be right behind you, but you have to go back. Make sure he's still there, okay? Please. "
stubbornness, jiyong had learned over the years, was a fucking annoying trait that seemingly every member of the jung family seemed have in abundance. his boyfriend, however, seemed to have the most of it, pushing through just about anything despite how much of a fucking bad idea it was, all in the name of keeping his brother safe. there had been plenty of times over the years that the two of them had gotten into arguments with each other ━━ two stubborn men that refused to admit the other was right. but during all the years that they'd known each other, jiyong had learned to . . . back down, so to speak. pick your battles wisely, or however the fucking saying goes.
some things weren't worth the fucking hassle, but this ? hell no, he was arguing this. he keeps his hold tight on cheol-min, debates for a second whether carrying the other might be a better idea. but jiyong knows his own strength ━━ he's only human. he might be able to carry the other for a short distance, but not all the way to the car.
" you just got pushed down the fucking stairs by some psycho ━━ like hell i'm letting you walk back on your own. just pick up the pace, or i'll fucking carry you ! i don't care at this point. if dae-ho knows what's fucking good for him, he'll be in the fucking car waiting, just like i told him too. now come on ━━ i'm not fucking leaving you here. "
𝐇𝐄 𝐖𝐀𝐈𝐓𝐒 𝐖𝐈𝐓𝐇 𝐁𝐀𝐈𝐓𝐄𝐃 𝐁𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐇 ; listening to the line crack, worry now appearing upon furrowed brow. Lips parted to speak again, only to cut off when he heard Dae-ho finally speak, his body visibly tensing and his eyes widening at the tone he used. He was afraid of something – of someone. Cheol-min knew – he knew from the beginning that something like this was going to happen ; that Soo-jin was a monster and that he was going to kill his brother, just like he had killed the others. Disregarding the pain that he was in, Cheol-min sprang to his feet, allowing Jiyong to grab his arm and guide him, the sobs from his baby brother causing cracks to form in his heart.
"We'll be right there, Dae just – " He keeps his pace with Jiyong as he's taken to the car, letting the other talk first before continuing after him. "No, it's okay – You'll be okay, Dae-ho, I promise. I PROMISE, okay? Don't hang up on us –"
𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐁𝐄𝐀𝐓 𝐅𝐄𝐋𝐓 𝐋𝐈𝐊𝐄 𝐀 𝐖𝐈𝐋𝐃 𝐀𝐍𝐈𝐌𝐀𝐋 trying to burst from its cage. His stomach was twisting into several knots, and he swore that he felt as if he was going to vomit. No, no, no, no. This couldn't be happening. Even though Cheol-min had been right this whole time, he couldn't believe it. He couldn't let this happen. He promised to protect him –
𝐇𝐄 𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐌𝐈𝐒𝐄𝐃 𝐓𝐎 𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐓𝐄𝐂𝐓 𝐇𝐈𝐌.
𝐇𝐄 𝐃𝐈𝐃𝐍'𝐓 𝐂𝐀𝐑𝐄 𝐈𝐅 𝐇𝐄 𝐖𝐀𝐒 𝐏𝐔𝐒𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐇𝐈𝐌𝐒𝐄𝐋𝐅 𝐓𝐎𝐎 𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐃. He, himself, didn't matter. As soon as they got to the car, he rushed inside it as soon as it was unlocked. "Dae-ho, please – Just keep quiet. We're on our way. I'll stay on the phone with you the entire time, okay? It's okay, it'll be okay – "
𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐒𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐃 𝐎𝐅 𝐅𝐎𝐎𝐓𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐏𝐒 𝐌𝐀𝐊𝐄𝐒 𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐁𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐃 𝐑𝐔𝐍 𝐂𝐎𝐋𝐃. Cheol-min glanced at Jiyong. "Step on it, Ji! I don't care how many driving laws you have to break, just get to those dorms NOW ! " He knew the other would forgive him for talking to him this way ; his stress and fear, and anxiety were all through the roof. The whistle he could hear caused the hairs to stand up on the back of his neck.
" I love you too, Dae – We're coming! We're on our way right now, we – "
𝐇𝐄 𝐂𝐎𝐔𝐋𝐃𝐍'𝐓 𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐏 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐓𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐒 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐄𝐃 𝐓𝐎 𝐅𝐀𝐋𝐋 at the sound of his brother's screams on the other side of the phone. Soo-jin's voice made him stop breathing momentarily, air caught within his lungs. " Get away from him. " his words were quiet, before they suddenly echoed within the vehicle. " GET THE FUCK AWAY FROM HIM ! "
𝐈𝐓 𝐖𝐀𝐒 𝐏𝐀𝐈𝐍𝐅𝐔𝐋 to hear his brother still tell that monster that he loved him, but it wasn't the time to dwell on that. " WE'LL BE THERE SOON, DAE, WE – "
Your time has run out, Jungmin. You, my descendant and your friends were far too late. I told you that I would get what I wanted. But I will keep my word. I'll take excellent care of him.
– Was your little deal worth it in the end, Jiyong? Protecting your lover would have meant making the deal for his brother, eh? Now he has to deal with such a tragic loss, and your soul still belongs to me. You're a failure through and through, aren't you?
𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐄'𝐒 𝐋𝐀𝐔𝐆𝐇𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐎𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐏𝐇𝐎𝐍𝐄 that chills the air before the sound of something being crushed, static, and the call dropping. An attempt to recall Dae-ho's phone ; it goes right to voicemail. He felt sick, horrified – he was going to lose his baby brother. His pride and joy. How could he live with himself after this?
“ Faster, Ji – DRIVE FASTER ! ”
he's sure he's never driven so fast before in his life, weaving through traffic and running just a few too many red lights ━━ it's a wonder, really, that the police haven't noticed them yet, that something hadn't happened to them on the way. he tries to drown out the sound of dae-ho's voice, panicked and terrified as he continues to drive ; getting distracted now is too dangerous, he needs to keep his focus on the road, make sure they get there in time and stop soo-jin before ━━
you're a failure through and through, aren't you ?
words that seem to echo in his mind, getting louder with each passing second. it's nothing that he hasn't heard before ━━ but it doesn't make it easy to hear. a failure to his family, who had wanted the perfect son. a failure to his brother, who hated him for leaving him behind, who despised him for escaping while he was forced to step into the shoes of what jiyong once was. a failure to his group ; who had made excuse after excuse about his behaviour ━━ about the articles when jiyong would make front page, drunk out of his mind as he stumbled out of a nightclub for the third time that week. he was a failure to cheol-min ; who had loved him for so long, someone so broken that he was surely beyond repair. and he was a failure to dae-ho ; because he couldn't keep him safe, because now in the moments where the line goes dead, there's a crippling realization :
they're already too late.
cheol-min was too lost in his desparation to think rationally, to understand just what was going on ; but jiyong knew better. minutes away from dae-ho's dorm and yet jiyong knew what they'd be walking into. a rescue mission ? no, they'd already passed the point of that, hadn't they ? this was nothing more than a recovery now, and the information crushed jiyong, threatened to break down what little resolve he had in that very moment. because they all knew how dangerous soo-jin was ; and yet clearly they hadn't taken him seriously enough. if they had ━━ they wouldn't be here, would they ?
it's the way cheol-min's voice pierces through his thoughts, brings him back to reality and forces him to stay the fuck out of his head for just a few seconds. the urgency is real, the heartbreak and denial clear as day on his boyfriend's face. jiyong had always known how important dae-ho was to the other ; his entire world, min had always said. practically a son, in a weird way. cheol-min had damn near raised his baby brother, not because he had to, but because he wanted to. there would never be anyone in this world that came before his brother, jiyong knew this, and it's why despite the deep seated feeling in his gut that said they were too late begins to fester ━━ he puts his foot down more, his car speeding through the streets of seoul.
he barely bothers to park the car, coming to an abrupt stop outside the building before following cheol-min inside. he wants to say something about how it's stupid to push himself like this ; let me go in instead, i'll get dae, everything will be okay. but jiyong knows better than anyone that telling jung cheol-min what to do is a recipe for fucking disaster. " come on ━━ you remember what floor he's on ? "
