Caratland [Seventeen FF]

-18-

Minghao poV:

I fell on the floor as I felt someone falling on me.
"Get off!", I shouted and pushed the person off me. It was Jun.
"Calm down, crazy raccoon", he said and stood up.
"Thanks to you we ended up in your world!", I shouted.
"That's not my world!", he claimed as loud as I.
"What?", I asked, but looked around. We were indeed in my world. Wait, I don't want him to see my world.
"Wow, your world is somehow cute", he said. I looked back to it. It was a town not small, but not big either. What does he sees in it?
"Let's go back to reality", I suggested and walked ahead.

We went to the big grey building, which was smaller than the other buildings. It was in midden of the town. We took the elevator up to the 4th floor.
"Your world is like not what I expected", Jun commented as we looked out the glass window of the elevator.
"If you say so", I shrugged my shoulders.

I wanted to open the apartment when I remembered that I didn't want to show Jun that apartment.
"You know what? Let me just show you my world", I suggested and turned around to go back to the elevator. Jun stood there a little confused, but still followed me.
"Since when do you want me to see your things?", he probably joked.
"Never! Shut it, you black sheep", I blurted out. I could feel my cheeks heat up so I quickly looked out the window again.

We went to the mall next to a fountain in the town's centre. Jun wanted to see the shops in there so we did. They weren't special, we couldn't even buy something, so we got some ice cream that tasted like muesli.
"Oh my god, that reminds me on my first date. She was so weird and she wanted me to buy her flowers", Jun suddenly said as we sat down on the fountain.
"Well, I'm way better than your first date", I claimed.
"So you're calling it a date", Jun said and raised an eyebrow. I couldn't answer so I just looked away, feeling my cheeks heat up.
"Shut up. I still hate you", I murmured.
"Come on! That was like 4 years ago", Jun rolled his eyes.
"You're still annoying", I mumbled.
"I even helped you to get out even if I was supposed to kill you! How about thanking me for that?", he got louder.
"Oh my God, sorry that I was born, God of peace", I rolled my eyes. He suddenly got up and it was the first time I saw him that angry. His eyes were basically on fire as he balled his fist. He glared down at me, his ice cream falling on the floor.

"You know what, Minghao? All I'm trying to do is to get things from back then soothed out so we can live in peace, but all you're trying to do is to hold your grudge for forever! I was always patient with you: accepting your bad insults and your never ending corrections of my small mistakes. I even did partially your work and all I get back from you is that! I also have feelings and yeah, maybe I'm also still mad at you, but past is past and we somehow need to cope with that unless you decide to run away again. I don't even want to hear a sorry or I don't know some sort of compliment. All I want to hear from you is a simple "thank you", but even for that you're unable to speak up. Do you sometimes even think about me as a person! We have both scars from the past: physically or mentally. I'm not your punch bag, Minghao!", he shouted angry. I was speechless. I never saw him that angry and intimidating and for the first time I didn't want to talk back. I didn't know what to say since he was right. I opened my mouth, but nothing came out. I was frozen and I couldn't move. I could only stare at him. His eyes softened and he looked on the floor. We stood there, silent, no one daring to say something. He loosed his fist and suddenly ran away. I wanted to stop him, but I was still frozen and couldn't move.

He was right. With everything he said. I also knew that I shouldn't do this, but I still did. I don't know why. I just wanted to lash out on someone. I didn't even had the right to do this to him. For the first time I finally felt the emotion I was supposed to feel years ago: guilt. Out of nowhere I started regretting the things I did and I should have done it a long time ago. Then I thought back to the day I met him.

Flashback:

I was running with this bag in my hand. That day I wore black stuff since they told me that I will need to hide. They... I hated them. But once you were in, you couldn't get out. You would have to continue their commands till the day they won't need you or they would find you and destroy your life forever. The streets of China were wet and slippery. The moon was all up. I hated gangs. I hated the mafia. I hated my life. I hated the conditions I lived so that I needed to get money by them. I hated my father, who just died because of stupid behaviour. I hated my mom for gambling. I hated my foster siblings that got everything they needed. I hated my foster family, which never cared about me. I hated the foster house for never giving me a lovely family. And finally I hated the other gang, which was chasing me down those stupid streets.

I didn't even know what I was holding. In that box could've been everything: drugs, weapons, money. All I knew was that I was the person to bring that to my gang. I was their experimental rat. That rat, that was running away from 5 cats, which all had sharp claws, waiting to clash them inside my flesh. I couldn't breathe properly and I couldn't feel my limbs anymore. I ran into a shabby house and tried to hide there. I wanted to scream. Scream out the pain I felt for my disgusting cut wound on my right arm that I couldn't treat. Scream out the pain from my limbs. I crawled into which seemed like a bedroom. I crouched down behind the shelf, still holding that box. That box which could be the reason for my death. The reason of death by a 15 year old foster kid.
"Did you see that rat? We need to find him before Jay hears about it", I could hear a man from outside.
"Of course not, now stop chatting and start chasing him", the other responded. I could hear how both of them loaded their weapons.

I couldn't do that anymore. I didn't want to do this anymore. I didn't want to starve every night. I didn't want to sleep on the streets again. I didn't want to hope for a new job so I could survive for another few days. Maybe that was my last day. Maybe I would stop to suffer today. But I also didn't want to die. Yes, my life may be shitty as fuck, but I wanted to live. I didn't believe in God, but I remembered clashing both my hands together and hope that I would come out of this hell. That I would survive just one more day.

I suddenly heard the floor crack. I stopped any movement. I guess, I will die tonight. God didn't exist as happiness didn't exist. The shabby floor revealed the person's position. I could hear that he came nearer. I closed my eyes, preparing for my death. I grabbed the box as tight as desperate I was to survive.

The door opened slowly. My heart pounded so fast, I thought I would pass out any moment. The person kept nearing me. My fingers hurt as I pierced them into the wood of the box. I tried to keep my breath as low as possible. Then the person stopped moving. I was sure he saw me. I didn't want to open my eyes so I kept them shut. I heard how the person lifted his weapon. I could hear how his fingers slowly made their ways for the perfect shot. At that moment I was just hoping that death is quick.
"I can't do this to you", the person suddenly said. I opened my eyes shocked as I took a deep breath. "I can't kill you", he added. He had short black hair and his eyes were filled with tears. "I don't want to do this. I rather die myself", he said as he fell down next to me. I was shocked, speechless, surprised. He didn't even know me. He only knew that I was his enemy. "Is it fair to kill a person because of some stupid drugs? All I want to do is to feed my mother. I don't want someone to die so I can get bread into her mouth", he kept going as he took some little breaths. Maybe God exists. As a reflex I quickly took the gun away from him and pointed it at him. My whole body shook. I couldn't properly hold it.
"Please shoot me. I will not kill a person. I won't. I rather die than having blood of another person on my hands", he murmured. I put the weapon back on the floor. He was like me. Desperate to survive. Desperate to live. I didn't want to kill him like he didn't want to kill me. I balled my fists.
"I won't shoot you", I said as I slowly got up. My limbs still hurt from the running before and I couldn't feel my right arm anymore. "We're going to survive, together", I said grabbing his hand.
"But how? If they find out that I didn't kill you they will kill me. And if you return without that box you will die. There's no way we can survive", he panicked.
"Today is the first time since 15 years that Luck was by my side. I won't waste it", I reasoned and grabbed his hands tighter, forcing him to stand up too.
"We will survive this, together!"

That's how I got to know the Moon Junhui, who now works on the same island as I do.