“Jaehyun?” a familiar voice called softly from behind the door.
“Who is it?” Jaehyun asked, his voice low and tired.
“It’s me, Doyoung. Can I come in?” Doyoung asked gently.
Jaehyun let out a long, weary sigh. “Sure…” he muttered, and soon the door creaked open, revealing Doyoung with a small, concerned smile.
“I brought you a hot chocolate! Johnny hyung made it,” Doyoung said, carefully setting three steaming cups on the desk beside Jaehyun’s bed. The faint scent of cocoa filled the air, warm and comforting against the tension that lingered.
“Three?” Jaehyun raised an eyebrow, frowning slightly.
“Yeah. I thought I’d bring Taeyong hyung one too,” Doyoung explained.
“Mmhh…” Jaehyun muttered, turning away slightly on the bed, not ready to talk.
Doyoung let out a quiet sigh and carefully sat down beside him, placing a reassuring hand briefly on his shoulder.
“Okay, Jaehyun, tell me what’s wrong,” Doyoung began softly, his eyes meeting Jaehyun’s. “It’s not just that your sister isn’t feeling well… You also overreacted with Haechan.”
“Hyung, you don’t understand…” Jaehyun muttered, his hands gripping the blanket.
“Then explain it to me,” Doyoung said gently but firmly, leaning in slightly. “I want to help you, but I need to know what’s going on.” (Inside your head /in there he said, pointing at Jaehyubs head)
Jaehyun finally turned to face him, eyes dark with frustration and worry. Doyoung held out one of the cups toward him, warm and inviting. Slowly, almost reluctantly, Jaehyun sat up and took the cup, letting the comforting weight of it ground him for a moment.
“Soul… she’s so precious to me,” Jaehyun admitted quietly, voice tight. “She and Sungchan… they’re all I have left from my family. When Mom died, I promised I’d always protect them, no matter what. Soul… she can’t even remember her, but she’s so much like her…” His gaze dropped to the cup in his hands as he took a slow sip, letting the warmth seep into his fingers, trying to calm the turmoil inside.
“When our father died… Soul was there too. She was the only one with him. Chanie and I almost lost her more than once. She’s never had it easy. But losing her now… it would feel like losing Mom all over again,” he added, his voice breaking slightly. The fear that clawed at his chest made the cup tremble slightly in his hands.
“And because of that, you overreact when someone’s near her?” Doyoung asked gently.
“No!” Jaehyun exclaimed, shaking his head, frustration mixing with fear.
“Yes…” he added quietly, almost to himself, unable to deny the truth.
“I just… I just want to protect her, hyung! I can’t lose her too. I lost my parents, but I never complained. I was always there for them, even as a kid. Soul and Chanie… they were only six when Dad died,” Jaehyun said, his voice quivering, hands tightening around the cup like it could anchor him to something solid.
“And you took care of them when he passed… You were only ten,” Doyoung murmured softly, letting the weight of that fact settle between them. “A child left to shield two younger siblings.”
“Yeah… I had help from our aunt, but it never felt enough. I always felt like I had to do more. I was a little troublemaker back then, sure—but only to protect them. And when I joined you, hyung… I knew that if anyone found out about them…” He trailed off, eyes haunted.
