Loose Ends

013.

As it turns out, Park is a lot heavier than he looks.

Cai has been struggling to get the other boy to his feet for the past ten minutes, and he can tell that Park is just getting more frustrated with himself as time goes on. He keeps heaving out sighs and it's clear that he's close to breaking down again and Cai can't see that, he can't.

"Don't push yourself, idiot. Put your weight on me, not your ankle." Cai's voice is kind, despite the slight harshness to his words.

Park simply nods, allowing Cai to hoist him up again, fully leaning on the other boy this time. Park's arm is wrapped around Cai's shoulder with Cai firmly holding his hand to keep it in place, and that's distracting enough but there's also the fact that Cai is holding onto Park's waist so tightly that he's pretty sure it's going to leave a mark. 

But Cai simply wills those thoughts out of his mind because now is definitely not the time to be thinking about how attracted he is to the boy who's currently on the verge of tears.

So yeah, he's heavier than Cai thought he'd be. He decides to blame it on the abnormally long legs.

"You good now?" He asks, silently taking note of how exhausted Park looks. The black eye just makes it worse, and despite how angry he is, how heartbroken, he still has the overwhelming urge to take care of Park; and right now that means getting him back to camp so he can get some rest.

Park nods at his words, taking a combination of a step and a hop forward and cringing at the pain in his ankle, electing to hold it up a bit.  He curses under his breath, flailing his hand a bit before his fingers properly intertwine with Cai's. Cai gives his hand what he hopes is a comforting squeeze, letting his thumb brush over the other's knuckles.

"Relax, okay? You're gonna be fine, Park. I've got you."

That seems to do the trick because Park manages to take a step with Cai's help, and a few near-falls later, they can see the smoke coming from the bonfire at the campsite. Park stops abruptly, turning to face the blond beside him.

"Cai?" He starts, not quite meeting his eyes. "You're not going to tell them that I, um, cried, right?" He says it like it's a dirty word, a pale blush coating his cheeks.

"What? No Park, god. Do you really think I'm that terrible?" Cai asks, disbelief and more than a bit of hurt obvious in his voice.

"No! No, I don't." Park says quickly, eyes still focused on the mossy ground beneath them. "I just -- I know you're mad at me, okay? And I know that I was an asshole to you so I guess, I guess I just thought that you'd want to get back at me, I dunno."

Cai wants to be offended by the words but Park's voice is so small and he swears he can see the beginnings of a tremble in his pink lips and god, all he wants to do is hold him until everything bad and dark in his life seems insignificant.

"Look, we can talk when we get back. I'm not going to say I'm not upset about what happened before because I am, but this? I'd never throw this back in your face, Park." Their eyes finally meet then and Cai sees the smallest hint of a smile on Park's lips, and somehow he knows right then that they'll be okay.

No matter what demons lurk in the shadows of their lives, they'll be okay.

-

The others don't even notice when Cai and Park stumble into the clearing where they've set up camp, presumably because they're too caught up in the passionate argument they all seem to be in the middle of.

"If it weren't for him none of this even would have happened!" Olivia is screeching, causing Jude to bark out a humorless laugh.

"Caius didn't even do anything! Last time I checked it was Park who-"