×Sunghoon's pov×

Meanwhile, Jungwon and Jake made their way to Jay's room, which was empty and pristine.

Jungwon went to Sunghoon's room to borrow some clothes, while Jake headed to the bathroom to grab towels.

"Here, take some of my clothes to change."

Jungwon, still feeling a little awkward after the 'Heeseung incident', mumbled a thanks to Sunghoon, who simply nodded, his gaze already drifting.

Jake, as he got out of the bathroom, noticed the underlying tension, and attempted to lighten the mood, pretending to be sad.

"Yah! You know me way longer, why are you only giving him clothes?!"

"Cause you stink either way. You'll make the bed smelly anyway."

Jungwon's eyes opened wide, and covered his mouth with his hands, trying his best not to laugh.

"That's... Offensive."

"That's... The truth."

Sunghoon smiled, and handed Jake a pair of clothes as well, rolling his eyes as if he didn't want to.

Soon, one by one, they headed to the bathroom to shower, refreshing themselves after the intense night.

With the borrowed clothes in hand, Jungwon and Jake made their way to Jay's room.

The room was dark, save for the faint moonlight streaming in through the window. Jungwon fumbled for the light switch, but it was no use.

"Oh no, the power's out."

"Don't worry, I have my phone."

Jake said, turning on the flashlight function. The faint glow illuminated the room, casting long shadows across the walls as they changed.

"Hyung, it's scary, and your phone will die really soon."

"Shh, calm down."

Jungwon's heart pounded in his chest as he realized the power outage. The darkness enveloped him like a suffocating blanket, making his skin crawl.

Sunghoon could clearly hear their footsteps echoing in the eerie silence of the hallway.

As they entered Sunghoon's room, Jungwon smiled nervously, looking at Sunghoon with puppy eyes.

"What is it?"

"The power's out."

"Oh? Really?"

Sunghoon tried to turn on the light, but, as expected, he failed. So he turned back at the boys.

"Oh. Well, why are you here."

"Cause I'm scared! Can you come sleep with us?"

"But Jay's room is full of led lamps and small lights."

Jungwon pouted, and Sunghoon couldn't say no, even though he was extremely sleepy and tired.

"Fine. Let's go."

Sunghoon followed the boys to Jay's room, and sat on the bed, next to Jungwon, quietly cuddling him.

"Goodnight, hyung. And sorry for saying that."

"Shhh, just sleep. It will be okay."

Suddenly, a noise from the corridor sent Jungwon's heart into overdrive. It was a creak, a soft but unmistakable sound that indicated someone was approaching.

"What was that?"

Jake hissed, his phone flashlight wavering as he scanned the darkness as if he would find a monster.

"I don't know. No one can get in here. Jay paid thousands for this security system, we are safe."

The creaking sound came again, closer this time, accompanied by a low, almost inaudible moan.

Jungwon's mind raced, conjuring up all sorts of terrifying images. He couldn't breathe, his chest constricting with every passing second.

"Hyung, I can't take it anymore."

He whispered, his voice a desperate plea. He wasn't afraid of watching horror movies, but of all that happening in real life.

And he wasn't actually scared that someone would get in the house and attack them. He was only scared of the dark. It was just that the sound made it even scarier.

His words trailed off, his voice choked with fear. Sunghoon understood. He reached onto Jay's bedside table, opened the drawer, and pulled out a small, glowing keychain.

"Here. I know it's really small, but it works. It's Jay's, he keeps it here just in case."

He said, pressing it into Jungwon's palm. The tiny blue light cast a faint glow around them, providing a small sense of comfort in the oppressive darkness.

Jungwon's breathing slowly began to steady as he clung onto the keychain, its warmth seeping into his trembling hands.

"Is Jay hyung scared of the dark?"

"No. Why?"

"Because this has a really strong smell of his hand cream."

How do I say that without making it obvious that Jay likes him?

"Well, it's a small cat, and cats remind him of you, and as he told you many times, you help him sleep better, so he's probably holding this at night since you don't live here."

"Oh. Makes sense."

Jungwon smiled slightly, and closed his eyes, fortunately falling asleep quite easily, despite the room being dark.

As the night wore on, Jungwon's grip on the lightning cat keychain tightened. The faint glow it emitted seemed to ward off the encroaching shadows, but his heart still pounded with unease.

However, their moment of solace was short-lived. Abruptly, Jungwon's eyes snapped open, a gasp escaping his lips. Sunghoon and Jake stirred beside him, startled awake.

"What's wrong?"

Sunghoon asked groggily, rubbing his eyes. Jungwon's voice was thick with fear, his hands were shaking.

"Bad dream. The rooms grew pitch black, and the darkness... it felt like it was suffocating me."

"It will be fine, you're safe with us."

Jake whispered, as he stroked the younger's head. Sunghoon nodded, and hugged Jungwon even more tight.

He knew Jungwon was ashamed of his fear, and that he hated it when it was showing, but everyone always took care of him, making sure that Jungwon knew how normal his fear was, even for someone his age.

"Try to sleep again. We're right here."

Jungwon closed his eyes and focused on the soft, rhythmic breathing of Sunghoon beside him.

He gripped the lightning cat keychain tightly, its blue glow a beacon of hope in the scary darkness.

Slowly but surely, Jungwon's fear began to dissipate. The horrifying images that had haunted his dream faded away, replaced by a sense of tranquility.

He drifted back to sleep, comforted by the presence of his friends and the faint light of the keychain.

"He's so precious."

Jake whispered, his voice a hushed murmur, and Sunghoon chuckled softly, nodding.

As the first rays of dawn peeked through the curtains, Sunghoon's eyes shot open. Despite the dull ache in his back from having slept in a bad position, a surge of excitement coursed through him.

He had his ice skating practice, and it was a crucial event leading up to the upcoming competition. With each breath he took, his anticipation grew stronger.

Slipping out of bed, he stretched his sore muscles and made his way to the bathroom. As he ran the water and splashed it on his face, he couldn't help but smile at his reflection. Today was going to be the day he would step on the ice again.