Eyes | Stray Kids Minsung Soulmate AU

"Soulmates aren't real."

TW: talks of suicide, skip this chapter if you are sensitive to that please.
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Word Count: 961
Third Person POV, Minho Focus:

Minho quickly excused himself from the table after seeing Jisung's name flash before his eyes. He couldn't believe this was happening. Most people would be ecstatic to have found their soulmate, but all he felt was dread.

He was terrified of winding up like his parents. They had been friends since they were children, losing their soulmate spots before realizing what finding your soulmate meant. They ended up catching feelings for each other, deciding to give it a shot to see if they could make it work. As soon as they made it official, though, their long-gone soulmate spots turned red, indicating that they weren't meant to be.

As far as Minho understood, his parents loved each other so much that they were willing to try and make things work. He shuddered, remembering the story he'd been told countless times growing up as he speed-walked out of the cafeteria and towards the back garden.

Minho's father had slowly fallen out of love with his mother, leading to a pretty nasty, one-sided divorce. His mother still loved his father, not wanting to divorce and still willing to try to make things last. His father was done though, so he went through with the divorce despite his soon-to-be ex-wife's pleas.

This all happened when Minho was 8. Not even 6 months after his 9th birthday, about a year after the divorce, his mom was found dead in her apartment. She had killed herself, leaving behind a note that simply said, "I loved him."

After this ordeal, Minho swore that he'd never fall in love, in fear of ending up like one of his parents. His father now worked nearly 18 hours every day to rid his mind of the guilt he felt for Minho's mother's death. This left the teenager to take care of himself, having to teach himself to cook, care for his cats, and look after the house himself, all by the age of 11.

That's why Minho's heart dropped when he made eye contact with Jisung. That's why he ran out of the cafeteria and away from his fears, just as he always did. He was now sitting on a bench in the back garden, trying to keep himself composed.

His mind was racing, so many things going through it at once. He couldn't fall in love. He couldn't have a soulmate.

He couldn't end up like his mother.

The shock of the whole situation caused the boy to just break down there on the bench. He wasn't just crying because he was overwhelmed, though. He was scared, terrified even. Love terrified him.

He began hyperventilating as he cried for the first time in years. Tears streamed down his face and it was hard to breathe. He felt so weak, so vulnerable. And he hated himself for it.

"Get it together, Minho! Goddamnit!" He said to himself, hands twisting in his hair.

Minho was too absorbed in his own thoughts and feelings that he didn't notice the squirrel-like boy approach him.

"Minho hyung... Are you okay?" Jisung hesitantly asked, taking a seat next to the crying boy and placing a gentle hand on his shoulder.

Minho's head shot up, startled at the sudden presence of the younger. He quickly wiped his tears with his sleeves, sniffling and trying to pretend like he hadn't just been bawling.

He glanced at the Jisung as he scooted away from him. "I-I'm fine, what are you doing here? Did you follow me?" He silently cursed himself for letting his breath hiccup as he tried to speak.

Jisung took his hand back and just held it in his lap as he spoke. "You seemed upset, so I thought I'd come check on you." He said softly. "I don't like it when people are upset."

Minho's heart softened just a bit at the sight of the honesty on the other's face. He quickly composed himself again, not wanting to let his walls crack any more than they had already begun to. "Just leave me alone."

The older stood up, grabbing his bag and beginning to walk away. He felt a tug on his wrist, causing him to turn around and look back at Jisung. The latter was sitting on the bench still, a look of confusion and hurt on his face. "But... are we going to talk about this? We-" he paused, taking a deep breath and standing up. "We're soulmates. Shouldn't we, I don't know, try to get to know each other or something?"

Minho scoffed at the younger, letting his defenses take over before responding. "I don't know about you, but I have absolutely no desire to start anything with you. Soulmates aren't real, nor will they ever be. Some stupid deformity in my eye doesn't change that." He harshly pulled his wrist out of the younger's grasp. "I don't need you. In fact, I don't even want you."

He was well aware that there was a possibility he was being too harsh. But he didn't care in that moment. All Minho knew was that he needed to get away from his "soulmate" before something awful happened.

Without looking back, the older walked away, leaving Jisung standing there in shock. Tears slowly formed in his eyes as he tried to wrap his mind around the fact that his own soulmate, the one he was supposed to be destined for, didn't believe in soulmates. He didn't want him in his life.

One single tear dropped down Jisung's cheek as he stood there, silently watching Minho walk back through the doors into the school. He simply let out a defeated sigh as the bell signaling the end of lunch rang and began his walk to his next class.