Joong attempted for a second punch but Joss was able to dodge it and push him on the ground. Joss managed to throw a punch at Joong, the corner of his busted lip instantly bled.
"Stop! Joss please stop!" Nine shouted at them.
The two immediately stood up and dusted themselves off.
Nine went to Joss and profusedly apologized on Joong's behalf. Joong was even more pissed that Nine was helping the other guy and not him. He couldn't bear seeing more of it and so he left. He woke up this morning, all alone in the house so he decided to go for a run. And he never expected to see his Nine sitting and talking and laughing with a dude who obviously had the looks and built of a playboy.
Joong slammed the door. He was seething in anger. He didn't know how to contain his emotions. This was the first time he ever felt this way.
Not an hour had passed and Nine entered the living room.
"Joong! Why did you punched Joss? Are you crazy?" Nine was beyond upset at Joong.
"Oh so his name is Joss. You should be thankful a punch was all he got." Joong answered sarcastically.
"Do you hear yourself Joong? Are you a war freak now? You just punched someone who did nothing to you." Nine crossed his arms.
"Nothing? He was flirting with you in case you haven't notice P'Nine." Joong was starting to raise his voice.
"For you, everyone you see around me is a flirt." Nine responded.
Nine noticed dried blood on the side of Joong's lips. He went to get the first aid kit and came back to Joong who was now topless.
"Come here." Nine placed the kit on the dining table. Joong walked to him and sat on the chair so he could treat the wound.
Nine cleansed it and dabbed an antibiotic cream. Joong was staring at him the entire time. When it was finished, Nine changed to a new set of clothes.
"Where are you going?" Joong asked him.
"I'll be at Ben's. I'll come back once you've cooled off." Nine said as he was putting a cap on.
"You're running away again. Just like last time. Is this how you deal with things P'Nine?" Joong raised his voice at Nine.
Nine scoffed.
"No Joong. I'm leaving because you can't deal with your childish tantrums." Nine grabbed his phone, wallet and keys, slamming the door on his way out.
Joong sat down on the couch. He closed his eyes and massaged the bridge of his nose in frustration.
Ben and Earth was having their breakfast when Nine arrived. He had texted Ben when he was on his way to let him know that he needed to stay at his place again for the night.
"Did something happened again?" Ben asked.
Nine nodded slowly.
"There there buddy. Eat. You'll feel better after." Ben urged him.
"We're going for an afternoon run later. You should come. You know, to clear your mind." Earth suggested.
If he could, Nine would have laughed at the irony. The fight started with the morning jog and now he was being invited to another one, who knows what chaos would unravel if he went.
"I think I had enough runs for today." He declined.
"Bud are you okay? You're eyes are all red and puffy." Ben pointed out.
"I haven't had enough sleep last night." Nine replied.
"Any particular reason why?" Earth followed up.
"Joong." Nine answered.
"Ooohh." Ben and Earth squinted their eyes at Nine.
"So he kept you up all night huh? Good for you bud." Ben tapped his back.
"What? No! We had a fight last night and this morning. What were you two thinking?" Nine couldn't believe that his friends would even think of something perverted, that once again reminded him of Pavel's influence on the group.
"I'm going to sleep." Nine left the table before the two could even make another remark.
Nine closed the curtains. He kicked his shoes off. He sat om the bed before lying down. He wondered what Joong was doing now. He turned to his side and hugged a pillow. His chest feels heavy. He took a few deep breaths to calm himself down. Nine didn't want to cry anymore. He closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.
The rain woke Nine. He stretched his arms. It was dark outside and from the sound of it, the rain isn't going to stop any time soon.
He checked his phone. It was 6 in the evening.
"Wow." Nine was amazed that he managed to sleep all day.
He scrolled on his instragram and liked a few pictures. He opened his messages and noticed three unopened messages from Joong.
It wasn't recent. It was a few weeks old and it was just in his inbox, unopened. He recalled that it was sent the night he first left Joong because of his "confession prank" and he didn't had the courage to open it. He had somehow forgotten that it ever existed.
Nine clicked on the first one.
P'Nine, I'm sorry, I have gone too far this time. I'm sorry for all the headaches that I have caused you. You must be very angry at me right now. I'm sorry for pranking you almost everyday. I'm sorry for for everything.
Nine felt a tug in his chest. He clicked on the second message.
I like you very much P'Nine. This is not a prank. I swear. I know I joke around too often but with this one, I wished I didn't. The first time I saw you, I knew I wanted to be around you. The first time we kissed, I knew I like you. The first time I hugged you, I knew I would miss it the moment you left my arms. Sorry I'm rambling here. Just please, come back.
Nine knew that if he was able to read this message that night, he would come running back to Joong.
He clicked on the last one.
P'Nine, it's me again. Please come back. I promise I'll be good and do better from now on. I promise I'll treat you right. No more pranks or jokes or games. I promise I won't cause you headache anymore. I promise I'll take good care of you like how you take care of me. I promise I won't make you cry.
Nine felt his tear plop on the pillow.
"I hate you Joong." Nine whispered.
A knock on the door made Nine immediately wiped his eyes. He didn't want Ben or Earth to see him crying.
"Nine?" It was Ben on the other side.
"Come in. What's up?"
Ben looked at him, unable to say anything.
"You should come down. You better see it for yourself." Ben said.
Nine wondered what it could be. Ben opened the curtains on a window downstairs facing the front yard.
There he was. Rattling the metal gate. With flowers in his hand and obviously drunk, soaked in the rain, Joong was calling out his name.
