To See The Moon

Trust Each Other

     

     It's just a coincidence that as I'm posting this chapter about Seungmin's birthday, it's literally his actual birthday in KST (and it's my birthday in the time zone I'm in!) So I have birthday's on the mind XD

     

     Minho seemed a lot younger when he was asleep.

     Hyunjin wasn't sure why he thought that. Maybe it was because the older boy looked at peace, losing the lines of stress on his face. Maybe it was his features that were more relaxed. They were opposed to the tightened-up expression Minho usually wore, as if he was in danger at every corner. Maybe it was how vulnerable he was right now, bruises on his face, a split lip, bleeding from the head and completely out cold. Whatever it was, Minho looked his age, barely out of his teens.

     All Hyunjin knew as he nursed Minho's wounds in the safety of the dance studio, was that it was as clear as day how quickly Minho had been forced to grow up. Him, Hyunjin, and Changbin were all the same, having their childhood stolen from them, being pushed out of a nest before they had even grown their wings. Now all they were left with was broken, mismatched wings that barely kept them afloat.

     Placing a sterile cloth on Minho's forehead to quell the bleeding, Hyunjin allowed himself to wonder for a moment, whether the two could have met under different circumstances. If they had been born in the beautiful part of Nila, could Hyunjin have been able to attend the university of his dreams? Work hard to become a dancer? Perhaps meet Minho as a senior student? Could the two have become friends, bonding over their passion? Minho happily teaching Hyunjin, where their biggest worry could have been on whether or not they nailed the hook for a certain choreography? Could this ratty old studio have been replaced with one of shining lights, mirrors covering every wall, everything clean and vast, filled with potential? What would that life have been like? How much more would they have been able to accomplish?

     Too many questions circled Hyunjin's head. All useless ones anyways. But that didn't stop those feelings from stretching his heart, testing its limits. 

     Hyunjin's thoughts got pulled back to reality when he heard a groan, quick movement followed immediately by an "ah, frick!"

     "Minho hyung!" Hyunjin's full attention was back. Minho blinked a few times until the fog was completely out of his eyes. He tried to work himself to a sitting position but was stopped by Hyunjin firmly gripping his shoulder.

     "Not yet! I haven't fully stopped the bleeding!"

     Too disoriented to argue, Minho obliged and laid back down. He waited silently for the next few minutes as Hyunjin applied pressure to the cloth. Finally, he wrapped some ice up in another cloth. "Okay, sit up and keep this pressed to the injury."

     "Yeah, yeah, I know the procedure." Minho sat up, visibly wincing at the movement but overall still able to push through the action.

     "How do you feel?"

     "Like I've been buried under a ten-foot landslide," Minho said honestly. "Or.... like my father got mad again. Yeah, it's the latter."

     Hyunjin felt his temper flare up but tried to redirect it on the imminent problem. "You lost consciousness from a head wound. I'm worried that you might have a concussion."

     "No, don't worry," Minho said. "I haven't slept like, at all for the past few weeks, wasn't hungry much either, and spent most of my time training or going on jobs. My body was already at the breaking point, this injury just did the final trick. Besides..." A frown tugged at his lips. "My father never hurts me enough to be fatal. He knows he can't have me out of commission for weeks when he'll need me the very next day."