Stray Kids Oneshots

Silent

~ Felix centric
~ angst
~ 1st person
~ summary : After a devastating accident leaves Felix partially deaf and his family in turmoil, he grapples with the challenges of hiding his hearing aid at school.
~ warnings : (I don't think there is any? Let me know)
~ 692 words
~ authors note : this was actually something I wrote for school but I just changed it up
Happy birthday Felix!!!

———

Crash

It all happened in a flash. The sounds of sirens and screams from people around me were deadened as I tried to figure out what happened.

———

I couldn't believe my ears (why did I write it like that). When the doctors told my aunt and I that I had gone partially deaf my heart sank. What makes the situation worse is that my father had fallen into a coma and my mother was too injured to even leave the hospital.

The ride home to my aunt's place was mostly silent, with the slight sound of the radio playing in the background and cars passing by. I could barely hear either though.

"So," my aunt coughed awkwardly to break the silence, "Minho has put all your belongings into the guest room so we don't have to stop by yours. Once we get home, you can rest, and we'll call you down for dinner once it's ready. I'm sure you must be tired from what happened." She smiled. Her voice was muffled to my ears but I could understand what she was trying to say. I nodded and smiled back at her.

As soon as we got home, I rushed towards the guest room. There was no point even trying to listen to what they were saying, I just knew they were talking about me. I just hope they won't say anything to anyone. No one can know about this. No one.

I felt a hand grab my shoulder and gently shake me.

"Felix? Wake up, dinners ready."

———

The doctor had given me a hearing aid to help enhance my hearing, but I was hesitant to use it. If I wore it someone would find out and then everyone would hate me and then I would have to leave and then-

I took a deep breath, trying to stop myself from spiralling.

I had to wear a hearing aid, otherwise, I couldn't hear anything that going on, which wouldn't be so great. The only possible way to wear this stupid hearing aid was to put a beanie over my head, which wasn't ideal as it was quite hot outside. But oh well.

———

My aunts car pulled up to school, dropping Minho and me off to school. I bid my goodbye to both of them and headed off to class.

This was going to be a horrible day.

Classes went by in a blur and it all went well. Sorta. I was barely paying attention. Lesson 5 is where everything started to go downhill.

"Woah, what is that behind your ear?" Someone, Jihoon, had called out from behind me. I could hear his friends laughing at me. This was not good.

Before I knew it, someone grabbed my beanie, revealing the hearing aid. Everything seemed to stop. I felt like I couldn't breathe.

Without thinking, I grabbed my bag and ran out of the room. I stopped once I found the nearest bathroom and locked myself inside one of the stalls. I was freaking out. I slowly lowered myself onto the bathroom floor and pulled my knees up to my chest.

The memory of Jihoon revealing his hearing aid to the entire class still haunts him. His heart races and his breathing becomes shallow and erratic. He can't shake the feeling of vulnerability that comes with having his differences exposed.

I lean against the stall door, trying to steady myself. My eyes fill with tears, and he struggles to regain control. He knows he needs to calm down before heading back to class.

I close my eyes and count to ten, attempting to slow my heart rate down. Gradually, my breathing became steadier and the panic began to slow.

After a few minutes, I gather my strength, flush the toilet for appearance's sake, and step out of the stall. I splash some cold water on my face and look at myself in the mirror, trying to find my reflection in the midst of the turmoil.

You're ok, you're ok.

Before he knew it, he heard the bell ring for the next lesson, which he didn't have with Jihoon so it should be fine... right?