Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
"go home now kid." hyunjin nodded at chan's words and wiped the blood off at the side of his lips. they just finished beating up some students who dared to mess with them. they aren't really the type of people who randomly beat people up just for fun but those guys were getting on their nerves.
"ah shit my hand hurts, that kid's face sure is hard as a brick." felix said as he kicked the unconscious boy laying on the ground. changbin rolled his eyes at the younger boy and replied, "stop being a whiny bitch."
"where did they even get the courage to mess with us? geez i know we're bad and all but we're not that bad. we don't even know them." seungmin scoffed and lit up a cigarette. a chuckle left jisung's bruised lip as he took the cigarette from seungmin and put it between his lips.
"is that what your parents teach you at home? asshole." the oldest, woojin said. minho smirked at his remark, his gaze landing on the youngest one in their group, jeongin. he was examining the smoke escaping from jisung's mouth. sighing, he put his arm around the boy's shoulder giving it a squeeze.
"don't even try doing that kid. you're still young."
"i'm just a year younger than him." upon hearing their conversation, hyunjin ruffled his hair, grinning at the obviously irritated teen. "jisung's an asshole, don't be like him."
"hey! i heard that. aren't we all though?" chan shook his head at his friends, his eyes glaring daggers at them in which they all laughed it off.
they were called as "stray kids" in their school. they were feared all around the campus not only because they're the only one who has the courage to break the school's rules but also because they too, break bones if ever someone messes with them.
they are indeed stray kids, their lives are fucked up. some of them doesn't even have a place to call home. they're lost kids trying to cope with the world's cruelty and is still trying to find a reason to live. behind those intimidating images are boys crying for help, beggingtobesaved. happiness was vague and life is shitty to them but-
"go home now and treat all your bruises."
as long as they have each other, they can take all the cruelty that the world has to offer.
as they went their separate ways, hyunjin's mind flew to the thoughts of his deceased sister. after her death, his parents frequently fought and eventually decided to end their marriage. he went with his mom but he still felt alone, as if she was not there. she was, physically, but she couldn't give the love and care that a mother should give to her beloved child. she was broken and beyond repair.
it was a selfish act for hyunjin. he loved his sister too but when she died, his parents acted like she was the only child that they have and acted as if they're the only one sufferring. they still have him so why did they choose to be ignorant? so many questions were on his mind but all of them remained unanswered.
just before his thoughts could go any deeper, a loud cry cut him off. it was coming from an abandoned alley. he walked his way into the dark alley, squinting his eyes for he can't see anything clearly but the obscure image of a girl crying her eyes out and a man with a mad expression on his face. it was enough for him to quickly sprung into action.
"great, i just got into a fight earlier and here i am saving a girl's life who i don't even know." he thought but he couldn't afford seeing someone getting harassed or dying in front of him. his conscience will forever haunt him.
he punched the man on the face and even before it could stand up, he kicked him on his stomach and just like that, he was knocked out unconscious. he concluded that the man was drunk but still, it isn't a reason enough to hurt an innocent life.
sniffles and whimpers can be heard in the background and he looked over at the girl who was crouched on the ground while covering her ears. a sigh escaped his lips as he walked closer to her, he held his hand out and the girl looked at him confused, tears still streaming down her face.
"i need your phone, i didn't bring mine."
"i-"
"just give it to me." she nodded and got her phone from the pocket of her uniform's blazer and handed it to him with shaking hands. hyunjin quickly dialed the police's number and told them the place so that they could clean up the mess.
"the police should be here in 15 minutes or so." he said as he handed her the phone back. she stood up with trembling legs and wiped her tears. hyunjin can only looked at her strangely. why was she even out this late at night?
"t-thank you." it was barely a whisper but he heard it.
"yeah no problem. next time, go straight at home." he threw a glance at the i.d. she was still wearing and looked back at her.
"girls shouldn't be out this late at night bang minseo. trouble comes in the brightest days, what more when it is dark?"
