By The Way, Danplan Oneshots

Protocol

Hosuh weaved through the late night crowd, wrinkling his nose as the stench of alcohol hit him full force. Thank god his friends hadn't been reduced to such a state – at worst, Stephen was a little tipsy. The drinks sloshed in his hand and he stumbled. His foot had caught on a larger one, sending him sprawling into its owner.

"Ugh, I'm so sorry!" Hosuh apologised quickly as the drinks spilt onto the larger man's jacket. The man turned quickly, his face flushed with alcohol. He was swaying on his feet, his eyes unfocused.

"What the fuck was that, eh?" His words were slurred and his breath smelt like sour milk. Hosuh didn't let his distaste show on his face, however, and apologised again under his breath. He knew not to rile up unpredictable drunks – last time Stephen had done the same thing a few weeks ago and ended up with a black eye for the week.

"I'm sorry, I tripped..." Hosuh began to back away, holding the glasses tighter. The drunk stared at him, his lip curling into a snarl.

"Stay away from me you fucking queer!" The drunk yelled, aiming a punch at Hosuh. Hosuh ducked, falling into the crowd again. He huffed, blowing a few strands of hair from his face.

A bar really wasn't his opinion of a good night out, but his friends thought it was. Naturally, Hosuh joined them, enjoying their company. But now, as the bar grew louder and rowdier, he wanted to call it a night.

"Hosuh you're back!" Stephen waved enthusiastically, almost standing up in his chair. Daniel pulled him down at the last second, shaking his head. Stephen shrugged him off, his movements a little slower than usual.

"You can't tell Stephen to sit down." Stephen yelled. Jay laughed at his antics, taking a drink off Hosuh.

"I think we need to get home." The blind commented, gesturing to Stephen. "He's going to get too drunk soon."

"Yeah." Hosuh sat down, pushing the other drink to Daniel. He paused from trying to calm Stephen down, taking the glass.

"Thanks."

"What was all that about over there?" Hosuh jumped at Jay's voice, automatically glancing behind him. The drunk man seemed to have left, which pleased him. Trust Jay not to miss anything.

"Just some drunk being homophobic." Hosuh rolled his eyes, chuckling lightly. "Nothing new."

"I'll raise a glass to that." Jay grinned, holding up the glass. Hosuh held up his own, and they clashed with a small clink.

"I wanna join!" Stephen lunges over the table, enthusiastically hitting Hosuh's drink. The action took Hosuh by surprise, and the glass slipped from his grasp; a second later the drink had spilt all over his hand and hoodie.

Hosuh let out a noise of surprise, getting out of his seat before the liquid could soak him further. Jay cursed as Daniel pulled Stephen back wearily.

"Whoops." Stephen commented, trying to reach out for his refreshment again. Daniel swatted his arm away.

"No more drinking. We're going to the car." Daniel ordered.

"But that's not fun!"

"I'll let you pick some music."

"I'm going with Daniel to the car."

Hosuh laughed lightly as Stephen changed his mind quickly, acting like a small child.

"I'm going to wash my hands..." Hosuh shook his hands, feeling them grow sticky. Jay nodded in understanding, raising an eyebrow.

"I'll wait here." He replied. Hosuh thanked him quickly, rolling up his sleeves as he went into the toilets.

Hosuh almost retched at the smell – it was like something had died in each cubicle, and had been decaying for several months. One corner was splattered with sick, and he edged away from it in disgust. His hand reached for the tap, twisting it carefully and watching as water gurgled pathetically into his waiting hands.

They were some toilets at a bar at midnight after all. He wasn't expecting much.

Well, maybe he was expecting something more (like soap, maybe) but he settled for scrubbing his hands to the best of his ability, because this was better than having sticky hands for the rest of the night.

"It's you, ain't it?" A voice slurred behind him and Hosuh span around, only to be met with a fist. It collided with his cheekbone and he stumbled back, his hand moving to the targeted spot.

"What?!" Hosuh began, but froze at the sight opposite him. It was the drunken man he had bumped into before, and apparently he had more to drink. "I don't want any trouble..."

"Fuck you." The man stumbled forward and Hosuh backed into the wall. "You fucking spilt your drink on me an' don't even apologise –"

"I did!" Hosuh found his voice. "I did quite a few –" a fist collided with his chest and he doubled over, coughing.

"Think you can tell me what to do? Eh?" The man grabbed his hoodie, pulling him towards him. Hosuh struggled wildly, kicking into the man's chubby legs but it only seemed to encourage him.

"Shut your fuckin' mouth!" Hosuh was punched again, deep in the gut. The blow left him wheezing on the floor, blood dripping down his lip. He couldn't recover in time to dodge the foot slamming onto his back, making him cry out.

"Hey! Get your hands off him you bastard!" Hosuh looked up blearily, seeing a flash of blond hair tackling the man twice the size of him. Despite the difference, Jay forced the older man to the ground, kicking him in the face.

"Don't – touch – Hosuh – ever!" He said in between pants, punching his face till his nose cracked. Hosuh coughed, curling in on himself, as the pain began to grow – a few cracked ribs for sure.

Only once the drunk was knocked unconscious did Jay come over to Hosuh, wiping his bloody hands on his trousers.

"Are you ok?" He asked, crouching down to look into his eyes. Hosuh nodded, tasting blood in his mouth.

Taking Jay's offered hand, he stood up. His legs buckled, unable to deal with the new pain the movement brought, and he would've fell to the floor if Jay hadn't caught him. His ribs ached and his cheek stung, making him cry out.

"You're not okay." Jay stated, helping him up. He pushed Hosuh against his sides letting him lean on his shoulders. Together they left the bathroom, Hosuh limping with each step, until they left the bar entirely.

"What did you do to piss that guy off?" Jay asked. Hosuh realised, as he clutched his chest, that Jay was trying to distract him from pain. He wasn't sure whether it was working, but it was a nice thought.

"It was the same...guy..." Hosuh winced as Jay moved to open the car door, where inside Stephen was playing with all the buttons in the car.

"About time, what took you so – jesus Hosuh what happened?!" Dan exclaimed, staring at the beaten state Hosuh was in. Stephen paused, eyes narrowing as he saw Hosuh struggle into the backseat with Jay at his side.

"Someone beat you up?" Stephen was acting almost sober, his voice low and dangerous. Hosuh saw Jay nod before curling up, pressing against the car plastic.

"Who fucking did this I'm going to –"

"It's fine, Jay got him." Hosuh gave a weak smile. "Right now I want to sleep."

"Not a bad idea." Jay smiled, grabbing a tissue from his pocket. As Dan rolled the car slowly out of the carpark, he handed the thin paper to him. "For your lip."

"Thanks." Hosuh pressed it to his face, feeling it grow warm and wet. Stephen looked murderous at the sight of the blood, but didn't comment. Instead he was staring at the bar disappearing behind them, his eyes taking a mental note of its location.

"It's really fine." Hosuh said. Jay shrugged.

"We know." He shared a meaningful glance at Stephen. "But anyone that hurts you gets hurt by us. It's protocol."