Stray Kids || Tickle Fics

The First Recruits

•this is the second part to the semi-series based on 'The Interrogation'•

"Changbin, we need to try and find some food. It's been, what, two days? We've had one meal in the last two days."  Hyunjin's shoulders fell in defeat when Changbin didn't answer him. "Listen, I know you're frustrated, but use the two meals we found and spread over all last week as motivation. We can do that again! We just need to find food-"

"Hyunjin, please. Be quiet, you do this every morning when we wake up." The older's face was as hard and as lifeless as stone. "I thought you said you'd scout for some change lying on the ground, and here you are talking to me." Hyunjin shrank back slightly at his hyung's tone. He kept talking too much, but that was all he knew what to do. He couldn't just walk in silence, he would drive himself mad.

"I'm sorry, hyung." Hyunjin sniffled slightly, pulling his arms up to hug himself and rub his arms. "It's so cold, and it's almost May. Why is the world like this?" Changbin smirked at that.

"It's because the world hates us, Hyunjinnie. We've talked about this already." Hyunjin turned to him, his mouth open wide with disbelief.

"Hyung! You said you'd stop talking like that." The younger sighed and turned away from Changbin. "Fine, I'll stop talking. It's better than you talking, that's for sure."

A stone flew through the air from where Changbin was dragging his feet. "What do you want me to do, be happy? We've been running around with no where to go for weeks! Our families don't even care about us, and we almost got into a damn fight yesterday. How is that supposed to leave any joy in my life?"

Hyunjin opened his mouth for a second, but his words were lost in an instant when he caught the shine of a tear roll down Changbin's face. The older was too slow to wipe it away. "Hyung, no, come here." Changbin shook his head and shoved Hyunjin away when the taller went to grab his jacket sleeve. "Stop fighting me!" Hyunjin stopped walking and latched onto Changbin's entire arm, pulling him back towards him.

Changbin tired to hide his face, but Hyunjin was too smart to let anything slide. "Hyunjin, please, I don't need this-"

"Yes you do, and you know what? We need to stop pretending we're okay. You need to stop pretending you're okay. I'm sorry hyung, but you're not!" Hyunjin's face fell when he felt the man's body shake slightly with a sob. "No, no hyung, come here." Changbin didn't fight him as he was pulled to the younger's chest.

"I'm sorry, Jinnie. I was trying so hard to stay strong for you," he choked out, melting into Hyunjin's soothing back rubs. "I just don't know what to do. I feel so lost, and confused."

Hyunjin smiled at his honestly, the thing that he had been bottling up for the past two months. "It's okay to feel that way, why wouldn't you feel that way. The important thing to do is talk to me. That's the only way this is going to be bearable."

"What if we never make it out of this? Look at us! Look at me! I'm crying in your arms in the middle of an alley that smells like wet dog." Changbin took a deep breath to calm himself. "There's nothing we can do."

"Well, we have to keep moving, standing in one place for a long time is dangerous around here. I know you know that, we learned it back at the compound." Hyunjin smiled at Changbin when he pulled away from him, reaching up to wipe a leftover tear off his cheek.

"Yeah, before they kicked us out." Changbin grumbled. "I can't believe they did that."

"Honestly, anything is better than there." Hyunjin sighed as he followed along behind Changbin, who had started walking again. "Please, they treated us so badly. I'd rather sleep in a dumpster every night then on that thin sheet of bed they gave us."