4*TOWN

☆ Anchor

Jesse had always sworn to protect Tae Young. Ever since Tae first came to him with his face wet and bruised, he promised to never let anything happen to him. For years, he's kept that promise. He always has. But right now, Tae is alone, and quite terrified.

The crowd around him is loud, and to Tae, it sounds like it's roaring. His eyes dart around, looking for any gap or a sign of Jesse, but he's far too panic-stricken to focus on any point. Tears start to swell in his eyes as he stands in the sea of people. He's constantly being pushed around, people walking past him without so much as a second glance.

He feels sick. The sweat formed on his skin starts to stick his hair to his forehead, but he's too distracted by his fear to notice. He needs to get out, he needs to find Jesse, or an escape, he doesn't know how much longer he can endure this.

Tae and Jesse took a trip downtown that day, and they were both enjoying themselves until Jesse stepped into some shop. Tae insisted that he'd be fine waiting outside, that he'd just stay in one spot until Jesse got back. He did stay in place for a while, but after a few minutes, he got distracted following a squirrel that he'd befriended. He'd only gotten a few away from where he was, before he really started to notice the fact that the area is flooded with people. Now, he's keeping his eyes glued to the floor, his brain basically shut down.

As Jesse emerges from the store, the moment he doesn't see Tae in the spot where he left him, he panics a little. Frantically looking around for him, he instantly notices the amount of people that are gathered, and starts pushing through them to find Tae. After only around a minute, he's relieved to spot Tae with his head down, his arms wrapped around himself.

Jesse rushes up to him, immediately starting to pull him through the crowd. Tae looks up, and when he realizes that it's Jesse, he clings onto his arm and lets himself be guided away.

When they're back into open space, Tae doesn't let go of Jesse's arm.

"I'm so sorry Tae, are you okay? Did something happen?"

"No... I was just scared, it's o- okay..."

"This is my fault, I should have-"

"Jesse, don't blame yourself please, you couldn't have known that would happen... I'm okay now, anyway."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. But could you, um... stay with me?"

"Of course, kid. I'm not going anywhere."