14| crossfire
Minho was beyond furious at the members of Crimson Vector. As he tended to the wound on Hyunjin's leg, with the help of Seungmin, he was absolutely fuming. The gash wasn't large enough to keep Hyunjin down for long, but just the fact that he'd been injured at all really angered his partner. Minho was also subconsciously angry at himself for not being able to protect Hyunjin like a good partner.
"I hate them," Minho seethed, clenching his jaw as his hands turned into tight fists.
"I know the feeling," Hyunjin replied, though he said it in a lighthearted manner.
But Minho was beyond serious. He was plotting the demise of the entire organization as they spoke. In the back of his mind, he kept reliving the moment over and over again. Hyunjin took two steps out of the room, and as soon as he did, a pool of blood surrounded his ankle and swarmed upwards. Thankfully he was quick enough to jump away from the blood, because if he hadn't, his leg wouldn't just be sliced open...It would have been sliced off. But Minho was still beating himself up.
I should have gone out the door first, he scolded himself, it should have been me.
The guilt felt like gasoline inside his guts; needing nothing more than a mere spark to set it ablaze. He felt as if his insides were slowly dying because of the toxicity. He wanted to apologize to Hyunjin in a million different ways for not being a good partner, and for not being able to protect him. But, in the end, he couldn't find the right words to articulate to his partner just how sorry he really was. So, the guilt he was harboring inside of him turned into rage at all the members of Crimson Vector.
"Wrap the bandage tight and then come with me. I've got something I need you to look at," Seungmin whispered to Minho.
"I don't think I should leave Hyunjin," Minho replied, letting his eyes drift to where Hyunjin was lying on the bed.
"He needs to rest anyway. It'll only take a few minutes, I promise," the redhead assured.
Though he was hesitant, Minho finished wrapping Hyunjin's leg and made sure to tell him that he'd be right back before walking out the door with Seungmin. He followed the redhead into his and Jeongin's shared room. As soon as Seungmin realized that his partner was still speaking with Red, he felt relief wash over him. He knew that he couldn't let Jeongin see the contents of the file, but it was harder to keep it hidden than he expected it to be. However, the MIA file was something that Seungmin was absolutely determined to figure out without getting others involved. The only reason that he was showing Minho was because he needed a second opinion on who the boy in the pictures looked like.
"What are we doing?" Minho questioned as he watched Seungmin walk over to his bed.
The redhead had hidden the file under his pillow, just in case Jeongin came back into the room earlier than he expected. Seungmin motioned for Minho to come and sit beside of him, and though he was hesitant, Minho did as he was asked. He had no idea what the redhead was going to show him, and being that it was Seungmin he was with, he was nervous.
"I'll give you a heads up, the pictures are pretty graphic," Seungmin warned before he opened up the file.
Because of Hyunjin's injury, the redhead had been preoccupied, so he hadn't had the chance to go through the rest of the file's contents. The only thing he'd seen were the pictures, and they alone made him uneasy the longer he looked at them. Minho's eyes widened at the pictures.
"That's horrible," he mumbled, feeling his heart sink.
"Is this what happens to the people at Crimson Vector?" Minho questioned, letting his anger towards them subside a little after seeing those pictures.
Seungmin nodded.
"Yeah. They're injected with poisons, toxins, chemicals, and a load of other things. They're forced to swallow liquids and pills that cause them to have adverse reactions...It's a terrible process," the redhead explained.
"But, that's not why I asked you to look at them."
"Then...How come?" Minho questioned.
He watched as Seungmin gently removed the pictures from their clip that was keeping them secured to the rest of the information in the file. He handed the pictures to Minho.
"Do you think he looks like anyone in Supernova?" The redhead questioned.
Minho pursed his lips as he looked at the pictures. He shook his head after a few moments inspection.
"No, I don't see-" and then he paused.
The more he looked at the picture, the more he saw the resemblance. He sank his teeth into his bottom lip, chewing on it anxiously. He couldn't tell if there was really a resemblance or if he was just tricking himself into thinking there was because Seungmin's gaze was so intense. But, one way or another, he saw it.
"It's a coincidence. There's no way anyone in Supernova is a Human Vessel," Minho stated bluntly, handing the pictures back over to the redhead.
"But don't you think the boy in the pictures looks like a younger version of-"
"No," Minho hissed, standing up off the bed and quickly making his way towards the door.
It doesn't look like anyone in Supernova, Minho assured himself, nobody in Supernova could be like them.
And all he could do was return to his room, care for Hyunjin, and pray to any God that would listen for him to be right about that.
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"The bakery over there is having a sale on cream puffs," Felix pointed out.
"We're here to buy extra bandage wrap for Hyunjin; not to buy cream puffs," Changbin replied.
Felix sighed, pulling the fifty dollar bill from his pocket.
"She gave us fifty dollars, Changbin. I highly doubt bandage wrap is gonna cost us fifty dollars," the younger boy stated.
"You know that Red probably wants her change back," the older boy answered.
"Well duh. But, as long as we bring everyone back one, I don't think she'll mind. Plus, they're on sale, and that lady probably worked really hard on them," the Australian answered, gesturing over to the middle aged lady that was setting the cream puffs out in the shop window.
Changbin had to admit that he did really like sweet things. He didn't seem like he'd be the type to like sweets, but in reality, he had a massive sweet tooth, and he loved everything from chocolate to sweet rice cakes. He pursed his lips.
"It depends on how much the bandage wrap is," Changbin replied vaguely.
But Felix smiled brightly beside of him, knowing that either way, they'd be walking away with sweets in the end. And he was right. By the time the pair headed home, they had a grocery bag of bandage wrap and a box of a dozen cream puffs, which Felix was more than ecstatic about.
"There's only ten of us, so we can each have two instead of one," Felix giggled, handing the bag to Changbin so that he could open up the box.
"Which one do you want?" The Australian questioned, glancing over at the older boy.
"Surprise me," Changbin replied, not really caring what flavor he'd get.
He liked all things sweet. He'd never come into contact with a dessert he didn't enjoy, so he was sure he'd be okay with anything.
"Try the lemon one," Felix smiled, handing the freshly prepared dessert to his partner.
"I'm trying the chocolate one. You can never go wrong with chocolate," the Australian smiled.
And despite the cool evening air, Changbin felt warm, because the younger boy's smile warmed him in ways that his jacket never could.
"How is it?" Felix asked, looking over at the raven haired boy.
"It's good," Changbin stated, sinking his teeth into the cream puff again.
When he pulled it away from his face, Felix giggled, placing his own food on top of the box so that he could use that hand to reach out and wipe the cream off the side of Changbin's lips. As the older boy watched the younger lick his thumb, his cheeks instantly began to heat up, and he couldn't help but to wonder why his face suddenly felt so hot.
"The lemon is good," Felix stated, picking up his own again.
"Try the chocolate."
As the younger boy said those words, he held the cream puff in front of Changbin's lips, offering to feed it to him.
"I-I'm good," Changbin stuttered, looking down at the sidewalk they were strolling along.
He tried to focus on the cracks in the cement, rather than the abnormal heat that was creeping along every inch of his body, despite the chilling evening air.
"No, it's really good, promise," Felix insisted.
When Changbin still seemed hesitant, the Australian spoke up again.
"Don't worry; I didn't bite off that side," Felix assured.
But it wasn't where he bit or if it was tasty or not that made the raven haired boy so reluctant. It was the fact that Felix wanted to feed him, and he felt uncomfortable by the proposition, but more than that, he felt thankful for it. But the older boy didn't want to get used to Felix's presence in his life. He didn't want to become accustomed to being fed by him. He didn't want Felix's bright eyes or his warm smile to feel like a regular part of his life. He didn't want to get used to the Australian, because if he were to get used to him, he'd undoubtedly leave...Just like every other good thing that had ever come his way in life.
"Come on, Changbin. It's super delicious," Felix smiled.
Maybe I can feel comfortable with his presence...Just this once? Changbin questioned within his own mind, though doubts still pricked at him endlessly.
The older boy just didn't want to get used to someone who would be temporary. He didn't want to find comfort in the arms of the Australian when he knew that his comfort would be ripped away from him sooner or later. But, despite all the things telling him to turn the Australian down on his offer, he opened his mouth anyway.
"Good, right?" The brunette smiled, and Changbin nodded his head.
The sides of your eyes crinkle up when you smile, Felix, Changbin mentally noted, being sure to take a snapshot of that moment in his mind.
That way, when, not if, but when, Felix decided it would be time to walk out of the older boy's life, Changbin would always have that memory of him; smiling in his presence.
The rest of the walk back to the hideout was spent talking about anything and everything aside from the upcoming mission. Both of them avoided that topic. It was an unspoken type of vibe, but it was clear that neither Felix nor Changbin cared for discussing the mission that evening. Finally, they arrived back, and as soon as Felix opened up the door, he shouted.
"Hey everyone, we brought cream puffs!"
Woojin, Chan, and Jisung were all sitting on the couch watching a random television show. Up in the mountains, most channels weren't available for them to watch, and they weren't allowed to own phones while they stayed at the hideout because they're easily traceable. Quickly, Jeongin came running down the hall at the prospect of food.
"Seungmin, what kind do you want?" The younger boy asked the redhead who was slowly following behind him, wearily regarding both Changbin and Felix.
Despite his promise to Jeongin, he was even more interested in their relationship than he'd ever been. But, Jeongin was around, so he kept his mouth closed and bit his tongue.
"Just grab me one," Seungmin replied, not really caring what flavor he'd receive.
He had other things, more important things, on his mind that evening. Jeongin handed one to Seungmin and the pair walked over to the couch to take a seat with the others. Thankfully, Jeongin was one that easily forgave people, and he was already back to being best friends with the redhead. He showed that he was completely over his anger by draping his legs over the lap of the older boy and resting his head on the redhead's shoulder.
Stop staring the Felix and Changbin, Jeongin mentally groaned as he followed the older boy's gaze.
Minho exited his and Hyunjin's shared room. He wouldn't have left his partner's side had Hyunjin not wanted a cream puff.
"I figured Hyunjin would like raspberry," Felix lightly smiled, handing the bag of bandage wrap over to Minho.
The Australian had stared at the rack of flavors for longer than needed in order to pick out a flavor for his injured fellow member. He just hoped that it would make Hyunjin feel a teeny bit better. Minho grabbed both himself and Hyunjin a cream puff, smiling lightly at both Felix and Changbin. Though, Minho's gaze did falter with uncertainty as he looked at the raven haired boy, and he let his eyes linger for a few seconds longer than what was necessary.
"Thanks guys," Minho said in a quiet voice, quickly retreating back to his and Hyunjin's shared room.
"Let's sit with the others, yeah?" Felix smiled at Changbin softly.
"I'm gonna go back to the room," the older boy said in a quiet voice.
Felix reached out and grabbed Changbin's hand gently.
"Just for a little while?" The Australian prompted.
The raven haired boy felt torn, but he figured that he should stay close to Felix while he had the chance to do so. After all, if the brunette was going to disappear eventually, Changbin wanted to remember every detail about the younger boy; right up to the placement of every freckle on his face.
Changbin nodded, following Felix over to the open end of the couch. The Australian sat between the raven haired boy and Chan, because he knew that Changbin would be more comfortable beside of him. Despite the fact that the seat would normally only seat one person, the both of them squeezed into it, and Changbin surprisingly didn't mind their closeness.
"Where's Red been all day? I haven't seen her since the mission," Jeongin spoke up.
"Me neither," Jisung nodded.
"She's reviewing the information that Jeongin, Seungmin, Minho, and Hyunjin gathered today," Woojin spoke up.
"You're her partner. Shouldn't she being doing that with you?" Chan questioned.
Woojin shrugged his shoulders in reply.
"It's always been this way," he admitted.
"I might be her partner, but she's still the leader, and I don't know any more than the rest of you."
"Doesn't that ever get old?" Jeongin questioned.
"I mean, me and Seungmin share everything. I couldn't imagine keeping anything from him."
At those words, Seungmin felt his heart rate speed up as the guilt of hiding the MIA folder began to eat away at him even more. He felt bad about it, but he knew he couldn't show the folder to the younger boy.
"No," Woojin shook his head instantly.
"I mean, sure, I'd love to know more. I think about that all the time. But, I know that Red would tell me if she needed my help. She tells us what we need to know, and that's that. And, I think that's what being partners is all about. You don't have to tell each other everything. As long as you're making sure to look out for your partner and keep them safe, then it's a successful partnership."
Each and every word that Woojin spoke resonated with all the others; especially Seungmin and Changbin. After that, the redhead began to zone out. He was brought back to reality when Jeongin lightly poked his cheek.
"Stop staring at Changbin," the younger boy whispered.
That time, it really hadn't been intentional. He'd just kind of zoned out without warning, and his eyes just so happened to be locked on Changbin. Thankfully, Jeongin had brought him out of his daze before the raven haired boy noticed. Not that there was much of a risk, because Changbin hadn't pulled his eyes off Felix since the two of them sat down.
"Sorry," Seungmin mumbled.
"I zoned out."
Jeongin didn't really believe Seungmin's words, and rightfully so. The young boy knew that the older was hiding something from him, and he was absolutely determined to find out what and why. It was fair to say that Jeongin didn't really trust Seungmin's words or actions in that moment. After all, he said that he was done with the obsessing over Changbin and Felix's relationship, and yet he'd caught Seungmin staring out the kitchen window at them, and he'd caught the redhead staring at the raven haired boy just a few seconds prior. Jeongin didn't officially know what Seungmin was hiding from him. He knew it was something but he didn't have a clue as to what. But, he had a hunch that whatever it was, it involved Changbin and Felix, or at least something along those lines.
Conversations dragged along, but Changbin didn't pay much attention to the words that anyone other than Felix spoke. The younger boy leaned back on the couch, and because they were so close, the back of Felix's head came to rest on Changbin's shoulder. It wasn't intentional, but the Australian didn't really know how to react. If he pulled away quickly it would cause the others to look in his direction, and if that were to happen, Changbin would definitely go back to their room. Felix enjoyed sitting with the older boy among his friends, and he hoped that Changbin liked it too. Then again, if he were to sit there in that position, it could definitely give the raven haired boy the wrong idea. With his heartbeat racing just a little, Felix stole a glance at Changbin's face, only to find that the older boy was already staring at him. Felix was a bit startled, but when he tried to adjust his sitting position so that he wouldn't be so close to Changbin, the older boy lightly grasped the side of Felix's jacket. Or, rather, he grasped the side of his own jacket that he'd allowed Felix to wear in order to keep himself warm.
"It's okay," Changbin mumbled in a low voice so that the rest of the members wouldn't hear him speaking and think he wanted to join in on their tedious conversations.
"I don't mind."
Though Felix was slightly taken aback, he didn't have a problem with leaning back against the older boy again. Seungmin noticed, but said nothing of it for Jeongin's sake. Instead of commenting on that, the redhead brought his own head down to rest it on top of Jeongin's, allowing the younger boy to feel like he was finally more important to Seungmin than whatever was going on between Felix and Changbin.
Inside her room, Red clicked off the lamp by her bedside and decided to get some sleep, even though it was still a bit early. Minho finished tending to Hyunjin for the night, and that pair also decided to call it a night because they were exhausted after a very long day. Jisung, Chan, and Woojin were laughing about something stupid in the living room while Seungmin and Jeongin leaned on one another, enjoying one another's company for the first time in a long time, while Changbin and Felix stayed cuddled up on the other end of the couch.
There was unspoken comments, hidden truths, uneasiness in the hearts of many; but for that night at least, they could all simply pretend that everything was okay.
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