Madman [Hwang Hyunjin ff]

5

I woke up again at 8:00, to the sound of my alarm going off. I quickly stretched, then entered the bathroom to get changed. As I took my shirt off, I noticed in the mirror that Felix had left a purple mark right on my collarbone. It was small, yet noticeable.

Lee Felix, you are dead meat.

I took a quick shower, then went downstairs to the cafeteria to eat something. Luckily, my clothes covered the hickey, so I did not have to worry about finding some concealer to hide it.

As I entered the cafeteria, I perceived a pair of eyes following me in every movement. I looked in that direction and saw Hyunjin staring at me. He was sat at the table with Felix on one side and Jeongin right in front of him. I quickly grabbed something to eat, then headed to their table.

- Good morning, sunshine - said Felix with his low tone. He smirked at me, raising his eyes from his plate.

- Good morning, dipshit - I smirked back at him, then turned to Jeongin and Hyunjin - How are you guys planning on teaching those kids today? You are the best shooters here, so I think you guys should lead the lesson -

- First we have to see their level. We can't start with target practice if they can't even hold a gun properly - said Jeongin. Hyunjin was serious silent as always, sucking on his lollypop and fidgeting with his rings.

I nodded in approval to what Jeongin had said, then went back to eating. Again, I felt Hyunjin's gaze on me, but I decided to ignore it.

We were all walking towards the target practice room, chatting happily. The other guys were all curious to see the new trainees, keen to compare themselves at that age to them.

I was not. To a certain extent, I sympathised with them. I remembered how badly punished we were four our mistakes, I remembered training was not fun. I kept these thoughts to myself, as I walked towards the heavy black door separating us from the trainees.

As Chan flung the door open, the mass of ten-year-old kids, who were calmly chatting a moment before, aligned itself along the wall on the side of the shooting range, silently. Not a single word could be heard, their discipline being impeccable.

When finally all of us entered, they bowed, waiting for us to speak first.

I noticed that out of the whole group of twelve kids, there was one girl, who appeared so fragile and scared. She reminded me of myself, and that scared me to death. I hoped with all my heart she was not going through the same things I had, knowing that, in fact, she was.

I tried to keep a steady and authoritative voice when speaking to the line of youngsters in front of me, avoiding eye contact with the little girl.

- Good morning. I am Park Eun, leader of the Stray Kids squad. These are Chan, Minho, Changbin, Hyunjin, Jisung, Felix, Seungmin and Jeongin. Today we will teach your target shooting, especially Jeongin and Hyunjin - the latter appeared lost in his own world, while Jeongin took a small step forward.

Then, the trainees all said their names, starting from their leader. The little girl spoke with a feeble voice, raising her chin as she said her name: Ari.

Then, Jeongin started asking technical questions, to which the trainees promptly replied. It seemed like their level was high enough for them to be able to actually shoot on targets.

We aligned them in front of the three targets present in the room, Jeongin, Hyunjin and Changbin following their movements and correcting them coldly. Jeongin looked so happy, it seemed like it was his home.

I started chatting with the others about random topics, avoiding looking at Felix. There was still a hint of guilt about last night. Our talk got interrupted by Changbin suddenly shouting.

- Goddammit, girl! What the fuck crossed your mind? Are you trying to kill me? - immediately, he shoved Ari against the wall, telling her to stay still. He took out his own gun, firing round after round, tracing the girl's shape with his bullets.

Ari was not being harmed, but she was crying, obviously scared to death. She fell onto the floor, curled up into a trembling ball.

I couldn't think straight anymore. I took out my own gun, making it click as I pressed it on Changbin's temple.

- you do that again and the next thing the janitor is going to clean up from this floor will be your useless fucking brain - I spat at him, looking at him directly in the eyes.

All around us there was complete silence, you could only hear the whimpers of Ari, which still had not moved from her curled position. I saw Minho rushing to get the girl up, but I quickly turned to him, my eyes red with anger.

- LEAVE HER! - I had not shouted like this in months. I was fuming, and I did not want anybody but me to touch that little girl.

I put my gun away, then took the girl in my embrace and left the room. She was still sobbing on my shoulder, as we passed many puzzled people in the building.

I left her in front of her room, telling her to go inside and wash her face. She looked at me with teary eyes.

- C-can you p-please stay? - she sniffled. I knew I shouldn't have, that teachers had to be detached from their students, but I could not leave that girl alone.

- No more than five minutes - I said in a cold tone, as I followed her inside. The room had no furniture but four beds, just like that of the guys. She gestured me to sit on her bed, to which I refused. I must keep some distance, I thought.

- I would like to thank you - I looked at her questioningly. Usually, trainees did not thank other people besides their teachers after a lesson. Also, her tone was gentle, and her voice soft, as if she really meant what she was saying, and not just because she was compelled to.

- Of course - I mumbled, still not really understanding why she would thank me that way.

- Today you proved to me that girls can have a place in here. That girls can fight - a slight smile appeared on her face, her eyes teary again.

- If you want respect, you're gonna have to earn it. Work hard, practice in your free time. Eventually, they will treat you as their peer, but only after you've proven you're better than them - I was shocked at how naturally those words came out of my mouth. Maybe it was because I had always thought that, but never actually got the chance to say it to somebody.

She nodded in understanding, then bowed.

- Thank you again, Park Eun-ssi - I quickly turned my back and rushed out of the room. I needed to cry very badly.

I roamed around the corridor with teary eyes, looking for Room 3. There, I closed the door with a loud thud and sat on my bed. I hid my face in my hands, letting few tears fall down as all my memories of my trainee days, thinking of that little girl having to go through all of it. For few minutes I did not move, I did not have any strength.

After a while, I changed into more comfortable clothes, and once again sat on my bed, staring at the floor, my hands fidgeting.

The door swung open, Minho entering my room with a worried look.

- Are you better? - I remembered shouting at him just a while ago.

- Yeah, I'm sorry for what happened down there. I shouldn't have acted like that -

- Don't worry, it's no big deal - he reassured me with a warm smile - what's that? - he questioningly pointed at my collarbone, which was exposed, showing the hickey.

Fuck.

- Nothing, I got hurt while unloading the guns yesterday - it was obviously a lie, but I would have said anything to make him go away. He mumbled something under his breath, smiling, then he went outside, closing the door.

I was exhausted to say the least, I felt like my legs could not support me. I laid down on my bed, then closed my eyes, hoping that all those bad memories would go away with some sleep.

However, after few minutes, I was woken up by a gunshot and two people loudly arguing. Startled by the gunshot, I quickly took my guns and knives, exiting my room. I saw some of the other guys peeking from their rooms, looking at the staircase which was wrapped around the elevator. I ran towards it, gun in my hands, ready to shoot at whoever would have threatened me.

- How dare you do this to me? You knew it! -