1.1 | louder than bombs

- 23 -

tw: homophobic slurs

"I'm not lying, Doe. Hyung copied that vitamin 'me' pick-up line from me."

"Wait," Cairo stopped mid-step, pulling Jaemoon to a stop too. "You're telling me that you have enough pick-up lines that Dohyun copies them? Why didn't I know this?!"

Jaemoon shrugged as he continued walking, interlacing his fingers with Cairo's to continue walking towards the clock tower. Sun was setting over the horizon, blushing clouds peppered over the gradient evening sky.

"For one, I didn't want to scare my potential boyfriend away with them, we were only just getting to know each other. Two, I didn't find the need to use them after we became boyfriends."

"I don't believe you."

"You're going to regret that. Just wait for the tons of corny lines that will be coming your way," Jaemoon leaned down, flicking his boyfriend's nose with a soft smile.

"Oh look at that! A twink!"

Jaemoon snapped his head up so fast he thought he would get a whiplash. A group of three men were leaning by the clock tower, their faces shady as if they just shot another dash of heroin into their blood.

One, in particular, made Jaemoon's knuckles itch for a punch, the man directing a mocking finger at his Doe.

"Didn't know that pussies like him also make into the army," he continued, eyeing Cairo's cargo pants. "How can we sleep at night keeping our lives in these twats' hands?"

"Do you want to repeat that?" Jaemoon's voice was eerily calm, as frigid as ice.

"Of course! That twink next you is as useless as this," he kicked into the ground, pointing at a small puff of dust airing over their feet.

Jaemoon lunged at that only to be stopped by Cairo, the Medic tugging on his hand. "It's not worth it, Moon."

Jaemoon looked down at Cairo with disbelieving eyes, gritting his teeth. "Please. Let's just go somewhere else, Moon."

"Like hell we will," Troy said as he cracked his knuckles, ready to lunge when they spoke again. His wet grey locks from the sauna heat falling over his forehead as he tilted his head in a calculative manner, thinking how to hit the fuckface for it to hurt the most.

"Aw, look at that, Dicky. The gaysian is his boyfriend!" another exclaimed to the first one in a false, cajoling tone when he saw how Cairo held Jaemoon's hand to stop him.

Jaemoon felt Cairo's grip go loose around his arm, looking down to see Cairo clenching his jaw.

"This son of a bitch," Troy stirred forward only to be roughly pushed back by Cairo. "Let me."

It was so sudden, how Cairo went from pleading to radiating pure anger in seconds. And Troy loved it. Troy smirked when he saw his best friend, the grey-head stepping back as he looked at Cairo who looked ready to pop a vein.

"Gaysian you say? I must give it to you," Cairo stalked closer to them, his fists shaking from concealed fury. "That was very creative."

Jaemoon was about to make a move when Troy put his hand up. "He'll be fine, Jeon. If anything, we should worry about them." He tipped his head at the leering thugs.

"That's because I am creative when it comes to you disgusting people, faggot." Dicky sneered, looming over Cairo's much shorter stature. He puffed his chest out to look more intimidating while looking back at his other two friends with a raised eyebrow as if to say this-fag-thinks-he-can-do-something.

"Let us see how creative you can be when you can't speak for a week." With that Cairo raised his right hand, his fingers curling around the man's greasy hair and bringing it down to his raised knee. Dicky groaned but didn't have much time to fight back before he was pushed back only to be high kicked straight on his jaw by a flying boot, Cairo huffing as he regained his balance. Cairo then locked his ankle around the back of Dicky's shin before tugging hard, the greasehead falling on his knees.

Cairo looked up for a moment to see the other two shocked, the thugs letting out a scared whimper when they saw Cairo's blazing eyes.

"That's right, fuckers. Not much of a twink anymore, eh?" he gritted out hotly as he smirked before bringing up his knee once more to bash into Dicky's chin. He fell back, clutching his jaw. But Cairo wasn't done yet.

The medic straddled him, raising his fist and punching Dicky's mouth to the ground repeatedly, blood coating his knuckles. Blood from his own broken skin or the bastard's mouth, Cairo didn't know nor did he care.

"I think I should give credits to the one who named you," Cairo growled before punching his nose this time. "Perfect," punch. "For," punch. "A dickface," punch. "Like," punch. "You," punch.

Cairo was pulled back before he could land another hit, strong arms wrapping around his waist. "That's enough, Cai. You did a good job rearranging his face."

He struggled against his best friend, managing to kick the sleazeface in his jaw one more time before he was pulled back completely, Troy being stronger than Cairo.

They watched as Dicky tried to say something before wincing in pain as he coughed out blood. His friends rushed to him, pulling him up before he could say something that would get him punched again. But it was already too late.

"Th-that was n-nothing," he let out with great difficulty, his pride too bruised to accept that he was indeed punched by a homosexual.

"So you're saying you want more? I'll be glad to give one." Phoenix said from behind him, turning him around. She raised her small, balled-up fist, exerting all her force on his nose. A sickening crack was heard in the stunned silence.

"Shut your trap, Dicky. Let's just go somewhere else," one of the friends repeated Cairo's words from minutes before, finally walking away with a groaning Dicky.

"I— what just happened?" asked a dazed Dohyun. The couple only just turned right to the street before Phoenix took off running, the confused man following her only to see his girlfriend give a man the punch of his life.

"Nothing much, just that homophobic prick getting his homophobic ass handed to him by Cai and Nix here," Troy beamed with a delighted and proud smile. Cairo was normally very harmless, but that's before someone comes for his loved ones. And boy, did Troy love seeing Cairo's switch flip.

Cairo shrugged his fist once more before looking back up at a shocked Jaemoon with his adorable boxy smile. "Come on, now. I want to get those sweet churros I'm smelling."

It was comical how Jaemoon looked even more shocked than he already was. "Are you just going to smile and pretend like that didn't just happen?"

He knew that Cairo was more than capable of defending himself but what surprised him was how Cairo seemed reluctant to fight up until the Captain was insulted. The fiery passion that took over his Doe was so unexpected that he was just left dumbfounded.

"Say things about me, I don't mind. But say something about who I love, that's another story." Jaemoon took a sharp breath at the slip up which Cairo didn't seem to notice, the brunette too busy sniffing the air for another whiff of churros.

Jaemoon snapped out of it when he felt Troy pat him on his back, the grey-head giving him a knowing smile before turning away.

"Chop-chop everyone, let's get my strong baby his churros!" he slung an arm around Cairo who stumbled forward under the unsuspected muscle weight, Troy simply pouting when it was slapped away.

🏔

'cause when we fall, we know how to land~
(iykyk *wink*)

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athenelar