Broken (MinSung 18+)

Chapter 47

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"Hyung... are you okay?" Jeongin asked, sitting alone with Hyunjin by the edge of the indoor pool while basking in the sunny glow leaking through the windows onto his back.

"Yeah. Why do you ask?" Hyunjin responded after taking a deep breath, leaning back and kicking his feet slightly in the water. He tilted his head, but still didn't turn to look at the boy beside him. His gaze was focused on the wall across from them inside the pool room.

"You kind of snapped at Jisung in the meeting yesterday... and you're still acting kind of distant and cold. Even to me." Jeongin brought his knees up to his chest and wrapped his arms around them, leaning his head down in dejection.

I just... want us to be normal. No arguing. No tension. No kidnappings or secret plans between the group. Just... normal. And I want him to look at me.

I want him to pat my head, like he does. Smile at me like I'm the cutest thing he's ever seen. When he brought me food while I was volunteering... I really thought there was something, there. He seemed to really, really care. Like more than normal. And we haven't had any moments like that, since.

Was it all in my head?

Am I overthinking this or being inconsiderate?

Was he just showing basic kindness?

While lost in his thoughts, he didn't notice the sad noise that escaped Hyunjin's lips, or the arm that was slowly moving around, to the outside of his body. He only realized it when he felt Hyunjin's hand on his right arm, pulling him in to lean on the older boy. Hyunjin rested his head atop Jeongin's hair, pressing his cheek into the tea tree scent of the younger's shampoo and inhaling deeply with comfort.

"I didn't mean to be distant or cold with you. I'm just still bothered. Jisung just decided everything on his own. We almost lost him... again. If something had happened to him just because he didn't want to ask for help, I can't imagine how we'd all be right now."

"You really care about him, don't you?" Jeongin asked, swallowing at the tension he didn't realize he had surrounded himself with. I have to ask. I have to just ask.

"Of course I do. He's family." Hyunjin said, tightening his grip on the younger's arm just slightly.

"No... I mean... you really care about him, don't you, hyung? Do you... like him?" Jeongin snapped his mouth shut, quieting quickly. He didn't want to hear the answer, but he needed to, either for closure or clarification. Where he would normally feel the budding seed of jealousy in the pit of his stomach, he felt a lingering sensation of raw sadness, instead. He had been beating around this question for months, unable to ask out of hesitant fear.

"Yeah, I just said that. He's family. Of course I like him." Hyunjin's eyebrows scrunched in confusion, even though his facial expression couldn't be seen from atop the younger's head.

Jeongin sighed, knowing that his friend did not understand what he was asking. "Hyung... I'm asking... if you have feelings for him." He finally said, letting out a loud sigh. He really didn't want to keep pressing, keep asking.

"Innie... Why do you ask?" Hyunjin questioned, finally understanding the covert implication. He lifted his head and removed his arm to pull back and look at the boy.

Knowing that his body language could be fully seen, Jeongin desperately tried to seem like a normal friend asking the question. He stretched his legs back out, dipping his feet into the water and bringing them back up to create small splashes of droplets. He extended both of his arms backwards, laying his hands flat against the ground, warmed by the sunlight.