elevate | stray kids (feat. day6)

chapter eleven: paradox

A/N: I'm uploading two chapters at once so make sure you've read the one before this

In the Inbetween, the wind was whispering.

Look. Listen. Understand.

Felix felt the world around him fade away.

-

Jisung was looking at the photos again. Lately, he'd been quieter than ever, staring into the distance with a blank expression. He'd been the closest with Chan out of all of them - they'd practically grown up together - so he struggled to turn his back on the past the most. He held a photo frame in his hands, so tenderly, gazing down at the picture of all eight of them on the rooftop.

Felix didn't know whether to talk to him. He more than often had Hyunjin beside him, providing silent reassurance. But it was heartbreaking to see the once happy couple become so sombre.

They all were, these days.

The warehouse door opened, Jeongin and Changbin staggering through. Jeongin's left leg was gushing out blood.

"Minho's fucking bombs..." Jeongin panted.

"Hey, just sit down," Changbin pushed him into one of the chairs in the medical area, "Which painkiller?"

"Something strong. Knock me out." Jeongin's face was screwed up in agony.

Felix teleported over to them, "How can I help?"

"It's shrapnel," Changbin explained as he handed Jeongin a couple of pills, "From one of Minho's bombs. Pick a piece, pull it out, disinfect, stitch it up, and bandage for good measure."

Looking more closely through the blood, Felix could see several small bits of metal embedded into Jeongin's leg. He was already bleeding a lot, and when they were pulled out it would be even worse.

"That's why we do it one at a time," Changbin said, pulling on a pair of plastic gloves, and handing a pair to Felix. It was as if he read his mind.

"We still got food," Jeongin murmured feverishly, "In the bag by the door. So not a total failure of a supply run."

"That's not important right now."

"Were you injured as well?" Felix asked Changbin as he slowly pinched a piece of shrapnel, tugging it out.

"No," He coughed, "Just inhaled a lot of smoke. Can't do much about that."

"A ghoul scratched his shoulder," Jeongin snitched, just before his eyes slipped shut as the anaesthetic took hold.

"Then we'll deal with that afterwards." Felix replied.

"I'll help," Jisung's voice was quiet, but firm, "Is it the left shoulder?" He'd walked over without them even noticing.

"It's not urgent, Jisung," Changbin said, "It's fine. We don't want it getting too crowded over here."

"I want to help."

Felix leaned close to Changbin, and whispered in his ear, "He's in one of his moods. Let him help."

"Okay, fine." Changbin said loud enough for them both to hear.

The door creaked open again.

"You left groceries on the fl- shit, what happened?" Hyunjin ran over immediately. There was a crash as Seungmin dumped the ammunition boxes on the floor, joining them.

"Bomb," Changbin grunted. He was trying to stitch up one of Jeongin's wounds, whilst Jisung was simultaneously dabbing his shoulder with a cotton bud soaked in alcohol. Every few seconds, he winced, clearly not happy with the distraction.