karma // jaeyong

ⲁⲥⲧ ғⲟᴜʀ

তততততততত

past

The thunder is deafening, and the wind is howling. Rain pounds against the glass window, occasional flashes of lightning blinding. Jaemin's bedroom is dark, the shadows long and menacing. He tucks himself further under his covers, swallowing thickly. He usually likes the gentle sound of rain, but tonight, it is far from calming.

Jaemin has never liked storms, nor fancied the dark. It's not as if he believes in monsters that hide in amongst the shadows, but it is a little unnerving not being able to see anything in the dark. The shadows in his room seem to move, the flashes of lightning momentarily lighting the room. He half expects a looming presence to unveil itself from one of the many crevices in his room, or maybe from beneath his bed.

Okay, perhaps Jaemin is a little paranoid about monsters, but he simply blames it on past experiences. After all, there was a ferocious storm the night he lost everything. The sound of thunder and torrential rain just bring back images and memories he'd rather forget.

Jaemin can still remember the stench of death, the dead bodies of his clan laying around him, painted in red, and a man dressed in white and gold carrying a bloodied jian. All the while the rain fell, the thunder boomed, the wind howled, and lightning cracked across the ebony sky. 

He scrunches his sore eyes closed, sucking his lips in, trying to rid his head of those horrid memories.

Thunder clashes outside, and Jaemin chokes back a whimper, hiding his head under his soft covers. He reminisces on when his mother used to hold him in her arms, sing a soft lullaby to him, on dark stormy nights like this one. He wasn't as scared of the dark back then, nor storms. Now, at the ripe age of twelve, he shouldn't be this scared. But, he's terrified.

A flash of lightning, followed by a deafening roar of thunder, and pounding hurried footsteps outside his door. Jaemin tenses, before his door slides open with a slam. He shrieks, covering his ears in fear.

I'm going to die! Jaemin thinks to himself. He feels the creaky mattress dip beside him, as if whoever was out there had thrown themselves onto the bed next to him in a panic. Then, his covers are thrown back, and Jaemin's ice blue eyes widen as his gaze falls upon a distressed Sungchan with tears rolling down his chubby cheeks.

"Jaemin!" Sungchan sobs, immediately throwing himself on Jaemin and crying. Jaemin, still in shock, just gapes at the younger boy as he cries into his chest. He tries to calm down his pounding heart, the younger startling him so bad he thought he was going to die from shock.

"S-Sungchan!" He gasps, before awkwardly wrapping his arms around Sungchan. "What's wrong?"

Sungchan hiccups. "I'm scared."

Jaemin swallows, petting the younger boy's head reassuringly. "Is it the thunder?"

"Mhm," Sungchan whimpers. "I don't like storms."

Jaemin just nods, staring blankly at the ceiling as Sungchan burrows himself further under the covers, curling in closer to the older boy. His skin is warm, his small and trembling hands clutching at the soft silk of Jaemin's night tunic. The young boy's warmth and presence is enough to calm his raging nerves.

Although Jaemin's heart is still racing from fear of the dark and the storm, he feels content now that Sungchan is here. Since Yunho had brought him into the Jung Clan two years ago, he has grown extremely close with little Sungchan. Well, 'little' as in 'young', as he is already taller than Jaemin even at nine.

Sungchan is a lot younger than Yunho, fifteen years younger to be exact, so they weren't close. Then, he's eight years younger than Jaehyun, and due to Jaehyun's trauma they never were close either. Jaemin was an only child, he never had any siblings. So, as soon as Jaemin entered Sungchan's life, the two bonded, their age difference minimal. They often cuddle together like this, content with just each other's company.