This Day | Gyuhao (Threequel to Youth & The Aged)

- 19

| Chapter Nineteen — Not even a little bit of empathy? |

"I'm coming with you."

"No."

"That wasn't a question."

"Mine wasn't either, Riki." Minghao says, stuffing a bag with many different weapons that Yuqi had kindly lent him.

"I'm healed."

"Correct. But, that doesn't mean you can just go out there and get yourself injured again." Minghao sighs, looking at him, "We all just got you back. I can't take that chance."

"You just said that our place is under attack." Riki says, skin crawling in fear, "Eunchae is there and you're telling me to just stay still and sit on my ass? Fuck no."

"Riki-yah." Seokmin looks at him sternly.

"What? I'm not a kid anymore." Riki spits back, looking at Minghao again, "I want to help. Hyung, let me go with you."

Minghao closes his eyes.

They didn't have time for this.

"Let us go, too." Chaewon steps up, multiple guns already wrapped around her belt loop, "Or at least a few of us. Shotaro could stay here and look after the others. You don't know how serious this could be."

Minghao takes a deep breath, "I don't want anybody to get hurt."

Walking up beside him, Yuqi takes his hand, "Then, let us come with you."

"The more help the better." Wonbin adds.

Minghao bites his lip, looking at Mingyu wearily, "What do you think?"

"I think we're on a time crunch." Mingyu says, throwing his own bag around his shoulder, "Let them come. Like they said, we need all the help we can get."

"Hurry the fuck up!" Jihoon had been starting up the jet, poking his head inside the building. He was freaking out, "My husband called and screamed for help and you all are sitting here having a stupid little conversation!" He cocks his head out the door, "Come on!"

"Yeah, we need to go." Joshua says, shaking, "Hao, Jeonghan's there."

"He'll be okay." Seungcheol comforts him, "He's strong, Shuji."

That was a little over 11 hours ago.

Everybody knew the flight to Chicago from Japan was long, but for some reason this specific one felt 10x longer. It was silent most of the time, just hands being squeezed and held, the chilled air eating up everybody's worry, only to leave some behind in its trembled path. 

Riki's the first one to stumble out of the jet when it lands, practically jumping with tears in his eyes as soon as his shoes hit the concrete next to it. Minghao tells him to slow down, even grabs his arm to hold him back, but he can't help it. He knows she's in there, knows everybody's in there, and it's killing him.

"Proceed with caution." Mingyu told the boy, shaking his head with a clock of his gun, "We don't know who else is—"

"I know." Riki took a deep breath, not tearing his eyes away from the building.

"There's no gunfire." Chaewon sighs, "I don't know if that's good or bad." It was hard to say, a bit insensitive too, but it was the honest truth. Who knows? They could all be dead inside. But nobody wanted that, so they didn't bother to let the thought eat at their mind.