Chapter Text
“Promise me you’ll text me when you get home.”
“Of course, Jinnie. Now hurry, you’re gonna be late to your swim meet.”
Hyunjin woke up in a cold sweat. He felt his heart pounding loudly in his chest as he struggled to breath. Counting slowly, he felt his pulse return to normal and his breathing slow down. Running a hand through his hair, he checked the clock on his nightstand.
2:49 a.m
Groaning, he scrunched his blanket and pushed it off himself. This had been the millionth time he’d woken up at the ungodliest hours, all due to his recurring nightmares. Every single one had the same problem, the same person that Hyunjin missed dearly.
Kim Seungmin.
The boy with prettiest doe eyes and sunny smiles. The boy that owned Hyunjin’s heart, and without knowing had taken a piece of it when he went missing. Seungmin had disappeared on a cloudy Friday in early March, no one knows where he went and any trace of the boy ever found lead to a dead end or came up false.
It was already September and the search for Seungmin came to an end. With the police saying that there wasn’t much evidence and that he probably just ran away. Hyunjin was angered by their reason, he knew Seungmin would never do that. His family and friends knew that was out of the ordinary, for Seungmin was not the type to just up and leave, he was someone that could be relied upon. He would be there for any of his close friends if they need help, dropping anything he could be doing to go help. Him just being a run away case was not plausible.
As he laid in bed, he couldn’t help drift back to that fateful day. A sense of guilt instantly nipping at his mind. That day Hyunjin had a swim meet, meaning he wouldn’t be able to walk the boy home like he always did and he couldn’t rely on their other friends as they had their own after school activities. Seungmin, being the kind person he is, didn’t mind. Stating he had to talk to a teacher and then he would head home, promising to send him a confirmation text when he arrived. But Hyunjin never got a text from the redhead.
He always blamed himself, maybe he could’ve prevented Seungmin’s disappearance. Told him to come to his swim meet and then they could walk home together. Sadly, he didn’t and leaving Seungmin alone remained as his biggest regret. His friends didn’t blame him, neither his parents or Changbin, yet the guilt still ate him away. Letting out a quiet sigh, he deciding to grab his phone off the charger. When he turned the screen on, he was met with the sight of six faces squeezing together to fit into the camera frame. They were all smiling brightly, faces showing how happy they were. Hyunjin smiled bitterly at the picture, it was taken during last year’s summer. When they all decided to spontaneously visit a beach in Busan, they’re first road trip together. Their three oldest friends unable to join as they had jobs and duties to fulfill.
As he began reminiscing, he suddenly felt something roll down the side of his face. Swiping a hand against his cheek, he saw the moisture that clung onto his skin. He was crying. Before he knew it, the memories and emotions became to strong, his body began trembling as he cried. He has always been too emotional, but for once he let the tears swarm him without a care. Cradling his phone, he fell asleep. This time he didn’t dream.
When he awoke, he cringed at the pounding headache. It didn’t help that his alarm was blasting at full volume. Quietly, he stood up from his bed and heading towards the bathroom. As he stopped in front of the mirror, he couldn’t help but frown. He noticed the dark bags underneath his eyes, indicating sleepless nights. His hair had also grown and hung low, barley covering his eyes. The boy in the mirror didn’t look like Hyunjin, way to skinny with all his happiness gone. Looking away, he quietly turned on the shower.
Shedding his clothes, he stepped in and relaxed underneath the warm water, instantly feeling his headache dimming. He grabbed his shampoo and began washing his hair, rinsing the soap soon after. After washing his body and rinsing the soap suds off, he grabbed a towel and wrapped it around his waist. Walking back to his room, he grabbed a clean T-shirt along a pair of sweatpants and underwear. As he finished dressing, he heard a knock at his door.
Confused, Hyunjin walked towards it. Opening the door slightly, he poked his head out. The first thing he saw was a head of black hair before the door was pushed open. Standing in his living room was Changbin, face contorted in distress. Hyunjin quietly closed the door and walked towards the older boy.
“Hyung, what’s wrong?”
“I-“ Changbin stuttered, a look of complete sadness taking over. “They’re leaving.”
“Who is?” Hyunjin asked, confusion laced in his voice. He had no idea who Changbin was talking about.
“My parents, they’re leaving. They couldn’t stand being at the house without Seungmin. Everything always reminding them about him.”
“Oh.” Hyunjin always remembered the Kim-Seo couple as nice people. They cared deeply for their two sons, always encouraging them and supporting their decisions. He always thought of them as his second parents and trusted them. He knew just how badly Seungmin’s disappearance hurt them, it’s not surprising they would want to get away from their pain.
A loud sniffle broke Hyunjin out of this thoughts. Looking at Changbin, he noticed the older boy had began crying. Grabbing his arm, Hyunjin led him to the couch and softly pulled the boy down to sit down next to him.
“Hyung, it’s gonna be alright. Don’t cry, you’ve always been an ugly crier.” Hyunjin said, trying to distract the elder.
“Shut up.” Changbin weakly smiled.
Shuffling close to the shorter boy, Hyunjin laid his head on his shoulder. He hoped Changbin knew he was there for him, both physically and emotionally. For a while, silence took over. It laid like a blanket over the two boys. Hyunjin felt Changbin move and silently listened as he talked.
“You know, they wanted me to come with them. But I told them no. Someone had to be here incase Min returned. They didn’t want me to, but I begged and they caved. I kind of regret it now but I think I’ll survive.”
“Don’t worry, hyung. You have us to keep you company.” Hyunjin said, gently squeezing Changbin’s hand. “We have to stay strong.”
“Yeah, especially you,” Changbin turned to him, scrutinizing him up and down. “You know it’s not your fault. We didn’t know, so stop beating yourself and actually take care of yourself, dumbass. Min wouldn’t appreciate how you’re treating yourself.”
Hyunjin flushes, slapping Changbin’s shoulder. The older let out a yelp, quickly glaring at the younger.
“Sorry! But don’t worry, I am.” Hyunjin said, hoping the latter wouldn’t hit him back.
“You better,” Changbin huffed, crossing his arms. “Now, I don’t wanna go home yet, let’s watch a movie.”
“Sure, which one?”
“I don’t really care, you can pick.”
With a nod, Hyunjin grabbed the remote control and turned on the tv. He clicked on the Netflix icon and waited for it to load. He picked the first movie he saw and laid back as the movie started. It didn’t take long for Changbin to fall asleep, leaving Hyunjin alone with the sound from the movie and snores from the sleeping boy.
As he stared off into space, he couldn’t help but think of Seungmin. The warm feeling he felt around the younger boy, how pretty he looked in the sunlight, all the laughs they shared together, and just how much he missed him. Careful not to wake up Changbin, Hyunjin stood up and rushed to his room. Once he got there, he grabbed a sticky note and a pencil. He wrote seven words on the small paper, sealing his promise to the younger boy.
Looking around the room, he let out a triumphant smile as he found what he was looking for. On the wall was a picture, it contained two boys smiling at the camera, arms wrapped around each other. Smiling, Hyunjin carefully placed the sticky note next to it. With one last glance, he turned away and sat down on his desk chair. Pencil in hand, he began to write.
I promise I will bring you home.