Alone {𝕄𝕀ℕ𝕊𝕌ℕ𝔾}

Chapter Forty-Nine

FELIX SIGHED; HE WAS TIRED, HIS MUSCLES STIFF FROM THE OVEREXERTION OF HIS BASKETBALL practice. It was hard, being the youngest member in a team full of excellent players, but he enjoyed the challenge. It kept his mind off of things he'd rather not think about.

He ran a hand through his hair, and just then, it began to rain. Shit! He thought, startled by the sudden precipitations. He ran, because he didn't really fancy catching a cold, especially since he had a volleyball practice tomorrow.

By the time he made it back to his home, he was completely soaked. What shocked him more, however, was his brother standing at the door, wet clothes clinging to his skin as he fumbled with the keys. When he finally managed to open the door, he walked in, Felix's presence gone unnoticed.

He stopped the door before it could close, silently walking in himself. He removed his shoes, brushing past his brother as he made his way towards the stairs. "... Felix?" He stopped, eyes wide as he inclined his head in the elder's direction slightly.

"I'm..." Minho's voice caught in his throat, and after a few moments of tense silence, the younger of the two continued up the stairs. "sorry," he whispered, biting his lip as Felix disappeared. The younger male closed his bedroom door, leaning against it as he breathed deeply.

Why now?

He raised his eyes from the ground, turning to stare out at the window, rain pelting down against the glass surface. Why do you suddenly want to talk to me... now?

"Hyung!" Felix exclaimed, a bright grin settling on his lips as he bounded towards his brother. "I got a B+ on my math test!" he giggled excitedly, staring at Minho expectantly. "Okay," he mumbled, not even turning to face his little brother.

Felix's expression dimmed slightly, but he perked right back up again and took a seat next to the elder, swinging his feet under the chair since he still couldn't manage to reach the ground, despite the fact that he was already fourteen. He couldn't wait for his growth spurt; maybe then he could be tall and cool like Minho.

"And I made a new friend today! His name's Jisung. He's really nice–" Minho turned to him with a glare. "I don't care, Felix. Leave me alone," he growled, and the boy flinched back, eyes downcast as his bottom lip trembled. Stop being a crybaby. You're almost fifteen!

"Sorry, hyung..." Minho had never snapped at him like that before, and he began to walk up the stairs, head hung low.

~#~#~#~#~#~

"Mom?" Felix called as he pushed open the door; he'd just gotten back home from hanging out with Jisung. "Guess she's not home," he mumbled as he removed his shoes when he got no answer. He decided to see if Minho was home.

"Hyung?" he called, gently knocking on the door. Is he sleeping? He pushed open the door, and his eyebrows furrowed when something blocked his entrance. He tried the knob again, but it wouldn't budge. He knew there were no locks on the door, so why couldn't he get in?

He backed away, heading to the bathroom, shaking his head. He froze when he noticed the bottle of Extra Strength Tylenol opened on the counter. He peered into it, eyes widening when he saw that it was empty; they'd only gotten it a month ago, how was this possible?

Suddenly gripped by an influx of panic, his slow fourteen-year-old brain suddenly understood the gravity of the situation. He ran back to his brother's door, pounding on it. "Hyung! Hyung, open the door!" he cried, but got no response.

His eyes welled with tears, and he backed away, before running at the door, shoulder first. Hopefully all those sports he played wouldn't be completely useless. It still didn't budge, and he backed away and rammed into it again, and again, and again.