Ships Passing In The Night ｜Markhyuck (OT21 AU)

Chapter 58

TW: Implied/referenced child abuse, threatened/attempted physical assault of a minor

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The relentless, rhythmic sound of someone tapping the soles of their shoes against the curb hammered its way through Donghyuck's skull like a drum, punctuated only by the overly cheerful chirping of a family of birds that flitted in and out of the evergreen bushes behind him. There was a warm body pressed firmly up against him on either side—Jisung on his left and Chenle to his right—and Jisung's head rested heavily on his bicep as they breathed steadily in unison.

He actually thought the younger of the two might have fallen asleep, based on the deep, even tempo of his breaths, which Donghyuck was currently doing his best to match. Conversely, Chenle's knee bounced rapidly against his thigh on his other side, boredom starting to set in after almost thirty minutes sitting outside in silence, but Donghyuck was too weighed down by Jisung to twist his head and look to see if that was where the tapping was coming from.

A dozen or so paces away, he watched absently as Renjun paced the parking lot, restlessly weaving through the myriad parked cars that lay between Jisung and freedom. Renjun's bag was on the floor at their feet, piled up with the rest of his belongings, save for the phone that the older boy clutched resolutely against his hip as he aimlessly wandered the asphalt.

Donghyuck didn't know what exactly Renjun planned to use it for, since their only lifeline was currently otherwise occupied, breaking an unspeakable number of traffic laws to reach them as fast as humanly possible—and hadn't ever actually properly met Renjun, but that was beside the point—but the cool metal of his own device was a reassuring weight against Donghyuck's fingers, so he didn't begrudge his friend the tactile comfort.

After the call had gone through, Renjun had gone to collect the two freshmen from the main office, while Donghyuck had explained the situation as quickly and simply as possible down the phone. It hadn't taken much to convince the man on the other end—the exchange almost unnervingly effortless, actually—and then it had been over. Help was on its way, with a promise that their ride would arrive within the hour, so they'd all hurried outside to wait for him.

Donghyuck didn't know what Renjun had said to Mrs Yoon, to convince her to let Jisung leave. Chenle had mumbled something about fake brothers and a golden tongue—no part of which Donghyuck had actually followed—and then the three of them had been racing for the exit at a rate of knots, leaving Donghyuck to follow after them in mute bewilderment.

Picking a patch of curb seemingly at random, Renjun had then deposited the two younger boys in Donghyuck's lap and taken off on his endless, listless quest through the vast, polychromatic maze of cars—a quest that Donghyuck suspected wouldn't end until they were all safely off-campus.

"Hyung, is your friend nearly here?" Donghyuck startled a little as Jisung lifted his head to peer up at him, having assumed that he was out for the count. Jisung's eyes were unfocused and a little clouded as he slowly pushed himself up into a sitting position, making Donghyuck suspect he hadn't been entirely off base with his earlier assessment, so he carefully moulded his features into a small, easy grin.

"Not long now, Sungie," he told the younger boy, patting Jisung's closest knee with the hand that wasn't currently wedged half under Chenle's thigh. His smile widened as Jisung's expression brightened considerably at his words, and he let his fingers slide into Jisung's grip as the boy reached for Donghyuck's hand.

"Thanks again, hyung." The sincerity in Jisung's eyes almost made him want to look away, but Donghyuck forced himself to maintain eye contact. Jisung hadn't been this relaxed around him in days, even with everything else that had already happened today, and he wasn't about to ruin that because he was slightly overwhelmed under the weight of the younger boy's stare. "I did what you told me to, by the way."