Limbo

All of the City Lights

I don't know how to warn you about this chapter. It's not a panic attack, it's an actual medical condition, but it manifests like a panic attack, so I'll just warn you that if you're sensitive to that, be careful <3 

Enjoy! Or cry. Whichever feels right here. 

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"There we go, Aegi."  Chan sighed, laying the dancer back in his bed. "Let's get you comfortable, yeah?" 

He was met with absolutely no response. The younger member just gave him deadweight and laid limp on the blankets, hugging Chan's pillow against his chest. His eyes still had a dark, distant look to them, but it looked more like he was lost in thought rather than depersonalizing. 

Chan tried to fluff up the pillow beneath his head, he tried getting the younger under the blankets, but Minho wasn't giving him any indication that he liked it or not. It was like he was just a body lying there. Every bit of his mind, his soul and heart, were gone. Lost. Killed when Seojun was killed in that car. And no matter how much Chan wanted to ignore it, the indications behind what Minho had said in the bathroom weighed down and was going to change a lot for them. 

Minho wasn't just scared of the car crash itself. He was scared of Seojun. 

Chan shook his head and sat beside the dancer, running his fingers through Minho's hair. Every other time he did this, the younger would lean into the couch and hum in contentment. Now, it was like he was brushing a doll's hair. Nothing but a vacant stare met him. 

"Minho, hun, I know you're tired, but can you tell me what's wrong? Please?" Chan pleaded, his heart hammering despite his best efforts to keep himself calm. This was a version of Minho he'd never seen. This was a version of a human he didn't even know could exist and it was honestly terrifying. 

Minho's blinked once, twice, then rolled onto his side, facing away from the leader, though he hugged his pillow tighter. 

Chan glanced back over to the doorway where Han and Jeongin stood perfectly still, like statues. They looked just as clueless as he felt. Did no one know what to do in this situation? Was there a right thing to do? Would Minho ever be back to his normal sassy, goofball self? Or, despite his body surviving, did Minho really die in that car with his manager? Chan shuddered. That was venturing into a territory he did not want to entertain the idea of. Ever. Minho would be okay. He was Minho. He was strong. He'd make it through. But whoever was lying in this bed, this person, limp in Chan's lap, was not Minho. 

Chan was pulled from his spiraling thoughts when Han sat down beside him, and crawled across Minho, to curl up beside the dancer. "You go sleep in your bed, hyung, Innie and I will watch him for the night." 

"Are you- are you sure, Hannie?" Chan asked, choking on how tight his throat felt. 

"Yeah. We're sure, hyung." Jeongin added, coming up to hug the leader. "Go to bed. If something happens, we'll get you, I promise." 

"But- what if he needs me." 

"Hyung." Han smiled, though the expression looked like it took all his strength to do. "Trust us. We trust you with him. Please, give us the same trust in return." 

Chan nodded, rubbing Jeongin's back as he stood up and let the maknae take his seat. When did those two boys grow up so much? Weren't they just kids yesterday? What happened? Where did that all go? But Chan did trust them. And Minho seemed to trust them too because, despite not even looking up at them, he reached out and grabbed Han's hand. Their fingers intertwined and Han's pained smile softened into something much more real. "Hi, hyung"

Chan hurried out of the room, very gently closing the door before he walked down to his room. He tried to be quiet, but it wasn't enough. 

"Chris? What's going on?"