17 Days - SVT

014

At this point, no one was surprised by the new couples. They stuck close to their partners, never straying far away. The only one that actually tried to keep his distance was Jihoon, but with Soonyoung, it was impossible.

"Can't you see I'm trying to be alone?" asked Jihoon eventually, annoyed.

"I thought you said you could trust me." pouted Soonyoung.

"Eventually." sighed Jihoon. "But not yet."

"When are you gonna trust me, then? Everyone else-"

"Well, I'm not everyone else!" shouted Jihoon. "Not everyone can trust easily! I'm positive I can trust you, but only if you give me time!"

"Okay, calm down." said Soonyoung, slightly intimidated. "Why are you so agitated?"

Jihoon sighed. "I'm sorry. I'm just really stressed. I lost hope on the very first day. I don't see the point in continuing, honestly."

"Woah, stop right there." said Soonyoung. "I know what it's like to lose someone for that very reason - not being able to continue. I don't want to feel that again."

"I forgot." said Jihoon softly. "Were you... sad, by any chance?"

"Sad? I still am." said Soonyoung. "I still miss him, even if I try to be happy about the whole thing."

"You act so hyper... I never would have guessed." said Jihoon.

Soonyoung shrugged. "I don't want to act sad. I'm afraid someone else will have to take care of me. I don't want to burden anyone."

Jihoon sighed. "I'm not good with words, but hear me out. As annoying as you are when you're really hyped up, you could never be a burden, to me, at least. Bottling up your emotions isn't good for you. If you ever need someone to talk to..."

"Can I talk to you now, then?"

"Of course."

Soonyoung bit his lip. "Leehyun... he was amazing. He was the perfect introverted balance to my extrovert. Together, we were complete opposites, and it made us one. But after his mother died from a stab wound, his father became abusive, both verbally and physically. I guess one day... it just got to be too much. He suddenly texted me 'goodbye' and stopped responding. By the time I found him... he was already lying dead on the pavement. He'd jumped from the top of his apartment building. There was nothing anyone could have done."

A small tear slid down Soonyoung's cheek, then another, then another. Jihoon, surprised, wrapped his arms around Soonyoung awkwardly.

"That must have been hard."

"It was." sobbed Soonyoung. "And I try to look at it in a positive light, but... it's so hard to pretend everything's okay, when I can never see him again."

Seeing Soonyoung so distraught felt... wrong. Someone had to protect him. And Jihoon, in that moment, realized there was only one person it could be.

He had to be there for Soonyoung, even if it killed him inside.

And so he suddenly hugged even tighter. Soonyoung would have been confused, but at that moment, he was just happy to have his small friend.

"Fate is clearly real." said Jihoon quietly. "I wish I'd realized this sooner. Sometimes, we don't like our fate, but we can't change it. What happened to Leehyun was... meant to happen. It's just a part of life. I know he's watching over you, protecting you."

Soonyoung nodded, sniffling. "I hope so."

Jihoon patted Soonyoung's back, unsure of what else to say. Luckily, the latter of the two broke the silence first.

"I'm so glad to have you, Jihoon. I know you don't feel the same way, but you make me feel happy in this hellhole."

Jihoon bit his lip. "Soonyoung... who said I didn't feel the same way?"

"What do you mean? I must be so annoying to you." sniffed Soonyoung.

"You can be, but you know what? That makes me love you more."

Soonyoung choked on his own tears. "Wait, what did you just say?"

"That makes me love you more." repeated Jihoon. "Over the past week, I've become more and more trusting towards you. And now, I want to keep you safe for the rest of our lives."

Soonyoung held his breath. "So... you mean... wait..."

Jihoon smiled. "I love you, Soonyoung."

Well... that was certainly not what Soonyoung expected when he broke down.

"I... I love you too." he said, wiping his tears. "Can I..."

"Kiss me?"

"How'd you know?"

"I just know you. I mean... as much as I love you, I still need a bit of time."

"Of course." said Soonyoung quickly. He should've known Jihoon was still working on his trust issues. "Sorry I asked."

"No, it's fine. Someday soon, I'll return the favor." said Jihoon. "Wait, what..."

The wind suddenly picked up, sending chills down their spines. "We need to get back to the others." said Soonyoung quickly, grabbing Jihoon's hand and pulling him to his feet.

"Soonyoung, what is going on?"

"If I'm not mistaken... it's a hurricane!"

Jihoon's stomach did a flip. "A hurricane?"

"Yes!" cried Soonyoung. "Come on, it's approaching quickly!"

Jihoon could now see the debris flying through the fog. He shivered and ran after Soonyoung, his short legs giving him a disadvantage.

"SOONYOUNG!" he yelled, barely withstanding the harsh winds.

"I'm coming, Jihoon!" cried Soonyoung, running back to where Jihoon ran to the best of his ability. He carefully lifted him bridal style and continued running.

"Won't I slow you down?" asked Jihoon, raising his voice to be heard over the wind.

"You weigh about a pound, it's fine!" shouted Soonyoung. "YAEDEURA!"

They had reached the shelter. A few of the others came out of their makeshift tents, confused.

"Soonyoung, what's going on?" asked Jeonghan.

"THERE'S A HURRICANE!" screamed Soonyoung.

Seungcheol cursed. "That's what that was? Everyone out of the tents, there's a hurricane and the tents will get blown to pieces!"

Everyone rushed outside at this. "Isn't it better to find shelter?" cried Mingyu.

"Technically, yes, but our options are somewhat limited!" replied Wonwoo. "We're stranded, in case you haven't noticed!"

"Staying in the tent is a bad idea, the heavy winds could cause the whole thing to fall on us and blow away." said Joshua as calmly as possible, though anyone could see him shaking. "Our only choice is to face the storm."

The wind suddenly blew harder than ever, nearly knocking some of the more lightweight boys over. "We can't just stay here like this!" cried Junhui, hugging Minghao tightly.

"We should get as far from the water as possible!" said Seungkwan, trembling. "Doesn't water make it worse?"

"He's right." said Vernon. "We need to outrun the wind."

"Wh- that's literally not possible." said Jihoon.

"If fate is real, anything is possible." said Vernon, shrugging. "Hurry!"

So they started running as fast as their legs would carry them. They managed to make it somewhere in the middle of the island, surrounded by palm trees. A few laid on the sand, exhausted.

"Head count." said Seungcheol breathlessly, quickly counting his friends. They all knew something was wrong when his face paled.

"What's wrong, Cheollie?" asked Jeonghan worriedly.

"Shit... we left Chan behind."