Shining Star//Dimming Light (VOL.2) (Felix X SKZ ONE-SHOTS)

Lovely Little (ChanMinLix)

Pairing: Chan & Felix & Minho

Genre: Idol AU, Littlespace AU

!!TW!! : littlespace isn't a biological thing but it IS a commonly known/accepted coping mechanism/headspace, miscommunication, angst, mentioned past abuse, insecurities, headspace, accidental self-harm, spiraling

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Keeping a secret from seven other people when you lived with said people wasn't exactly an easy feat, and Felix learned that the hard way. Not only was his secret a little too big to hide, but he also sucked at lying, so it really shouldn't have come as a surprise when his bandmates found out.

About him being a Little, that is.

It wasn't that Felix was ashamed of his headspace. However, when becoming a trainee, he quickly realized that he simply didn't have the time or energy to regress, and no one had the time or energy to deal with being his caregiver. So, when they finally managed to debut as Stray Kids, he made it his mission to simply... forget about it. 

He needed to work harder, pull his own weight. He couldn't slow everyone down because of "special needs" nor did he want to. He was already enough of a burden with not being fluent in Korean, the least he could do was not waste everyone's time, and put in the necessary effort to keep up.

But of course, one couldn't just ignore their headspace – it was called as a coping mechanism for a reason, after all.

Nightmares began plaguing his nights and he became practically crippled with anxiety during the day. His stress, his exhaustion, his insecurities – absolutely everything kept on piling up with no way of getting out until, one day, the inevitable happened: Felix's mind completely caved in under the pressure.

A complete emotional breakdown over a broken mug of coffee was what finally pushed the others – who'd noticed his mental decline but hadn't been of much help since Felix wouldn't tell them anything – to act. Felix accidentally slipped during said breakdown, and the others finally realized what was wrong. 

Minho almost instantly stole him away, so to speak. The moment he understood Felix was not only distressed, but also in littlespace, he instantly took over and carried him to his room, away from prying eyes. He held him close as he tried his best to calm him down and, eventually, Felix passed out from exhaustion.

When Felix finally woke up again, and was no longer in littlespace, he had a serious talk about his health with their leader – and, once they figured out an agreeable solution that would suit both Felix's needs and his responsibilities as a member of the group, they had a serious group talk to discuss the matter properly.

Everyone was more than happy to help Felix out, though it quickly became obvious that Chan and Minho would be his main caregivers. The two instinctively looked after the younger even when he was out of headspace, and it quickly became obvious to everyone that the older pair actually had caregiver headspaces – though, really, it shouldn't have surprised anyone.

However, even with his biggest secret now out in the open, regressing in the presence of other people didn't exactly come naturally to Felix. His headspace resulted from a series of neglect or abuse incidents throughout his entire childhood, meaning he'd had to hide it from his family growing up, and then from everyone else when moving to South Korea. 

Thankfully, Chan was incredibly patient and understanding, and Minho just had this gentle aura that could make anyone feel at ease. With their help, Felix eventually grew more comfortable into his headspace and, after a few weeks, he started being able to regress on his own, without needing someone to talk him down.