firefly | zhong chenle

CH6

"we've lost too many because they wanted to be heroes. we don't train heroes. we don't want sacrifices. we want fighters"

-

Arin took off towards the hole, crouching down right at the entrance. In the far corner, she noticed a small hand holding a rock, softly tapping it against the broken down walls of the building.

"I'm here" Arin called out "Don't stop talking. I'll get you out"

Arin, despite being absolutely terrified right now, slid herself into the hole, making mental notes of her surroundings.

"I'm Arin. What's your name?" Arin cooed, attempting to encourage the little boy to keep talking.

"Daeun" The boys voice was extremely quiet, but still there.

"Daeun" She responded back to him as she crawled over a piece of debris, approaching close to the voice "How old are you Daeun?"

"8" The boys voice was evidently closer this time.

"8! You're almost a grown up" Arin chuckled, her fingers tracing the broken down roof and floorboards. Her hand grasped the edges for support, cutting open her flesh but she didn't even seem to notice.

"Can you tell me a little bit about yourself? What do you like to do?" Arin asked. Thankfully, the boy began responding again. Although weak, she could at least still hear it. After a 5 minute conversation, Arin finally made her way to him. He was trapped between two rocks, sandwiching his body into place. Thankfully, the boy was small enough to have some moving space.

"Daeun, you're going to listen to me okay" Arin said, her palm pressed against the roof to stop it from falling on her and the boy.

"I'm going to grab you and slowly slide you out. Stay very very still" She almost pleaded. Inhaling deeply, she let go of her own support and grabbed the boy by his arms, slowly, very slowly, sliding him out from the gap.

"Just like that..." She dragged out her words as she steadily pulled the top half of his body into her embrace. At this moment, she felt a sense of pride. As a doctor, there wasn't a better feeling in the world than saving lives because that's why she exists. To save people.

Just as she got most of the body out, the roof rumbled, a piece of the wall falling to the side of her. She held in a yelp, concealing her fear to ensure that Daeun felt like he was safe. However, the thing she dreaded most was about to happen.

The entrance she had made note of before was shaking, as if it was able to crumble. The structure of this broken down building was far too unstable for her to make a calculated decision. Holding the boy in her embrace, she breathed slowly.

"Okay..." She reassured herself. She had always seen people close to death on a hospital bed, but never when she was holding them right in her hands where the world seemed like it was all about to crash down on her. Arin took a step towards the entrance, and that step almost costed her life.

The walls suddenly shook violently, the roof crumbling as if there were an earthquake. Sounds of bricks against concrete erupted, the debris dragging against eachother to create sounds of utter chaos. The smell of ashes were replaced with the smell of dust and dirt from broken bricks.

Arin shut her eyes and held the boy close, not knowing in the slightest what was happening. All possibilities ran through her head. Maybe this was the end to her career, her life. Maybe this boy called Daeun was going to be the last person she ever saves. She hated herself for thinking that she could save every person in the world, but she knew, all too well, that she would sacrifice anything to protect even a stranger.

Until she felt something warm. An embrace, perhaps. And a tingly breath upon her forehead. It felt like a haven. And she has felt this kind of safe feeling in an embrace before, but nevertheless, it made her feel protected, shielded. She could hear a heartbeat too. It was so fast she couldn't count each individual thump.

That was quickly cut short when she was pushed out from that warmth and attacked with sunlight. With a sigh of relief, Arin placed the little boy that she was holding onto for dear life down as she watched him run to someone who seemed to be his older brother. The older brother, probably still in highschool, nodded to her, a huge smile on his face as his eyes glinted when Arin made eye contact with him. Arin nodded back politely as a greeting, smiling small as they exchanged silent appreciation.

Arin could tell the older brother was about to approach her when she was jerked away by the wrist, her body whipping around to be faced with a pair of intimidating chocolate eyes. Chenle's precisely. His eyes were like knives, carving 'idiot' into her flesh.

"Uh-"

"Why the fuck did you do that" Chenles voice's rose, his rage causing his ears to turn bright pink.

"None of you were available to save the boy" Arin retaliating, despite knowing she did something she was strictly told not to do

"But we will save him once we get the time" Chenle sneered

"He wouldn't be alive by the time you get to him" Arin now matched his volume and began shouting

"Listen, Hwa Arin. This isn't a playground. If you think you're better than firefighters that's trained here for decades, then okay, you can take my position as captain. But before that, making a dumb decision like that could've cost us so much" Chenle pointed a finger at her, in which she scoffed in return

"I'm a doctor, Captain. I save lives. What kind of doctor would I be if I turned a blind eye to what was happening?!" She pushed his shoulder back with her finger

"We are firefighters too. We save lives. We both exist to save people. But you know what, you could've gotten yourself killed in that situation and no one would've made it out alive" Chenle stepped closer her to the point she could feel his breath fanning on her cheek. The heaves of the chest signified just how pissed he was.

"I was willing to-"

"Don't you dare say sacrifice" Chenle spat "Learn to protect yourself before you protect others". Arin blinked, a bit shocked at how he was reacting. After all, she did manage to save a boy who hasn't even seen a quarter of the world yet.

"You're going to go back to the station and run ten laps around the track"

"Ten?!"

Jeno walked past, hearing the conversation and immediately cut in between them, placing a hand on Chenle's shoulder "Ten is a bit excessive Chenle. It's her first mission. Let it go"

"If there's a first, there will be a second. Anyone else here will have to suffer the same consequences. She is not an exception" Chenle shook Jeno's hand off, and walked away. Jeno glanced at the girl, knowing full well that one lap is 800 metres.

"5 will suffice" Jeno chuckled "He's always been really strict on this. We've lost too many because they wanted to be heroes. We don't train heroes. We don't want sacrifices. We want fighters"