Jisung, Speak | ᴄʜᴇɴsᴜɴɢ

three

"Hyung, are you really sure that this is his address?" Chenle asked them for the nth time.

"Yep," Jeno answered. "This is what is written here in his ID."

"So, why won't we press the doorbell already?" He asked again.

They have been standing in front of a cream-colored two-story house for good 10 minutes already, yet none of them have the guts to press the doorbell.

The house in front of them looks quite big. The cream color of it and the black-gold color of the gate made it look sophisticated.

Probably because they know that it's their fault why Jisung walked out, and they felt guilty about it that's why no one dared to press the doorbell.

"Pussy." Donghyuck teased them.

Renjun glared at him, "Since we're pussy and you're not, why won't you press that doorbell?"

Probably there are really being pussy because none of them dared to press that doorbell.

"Hello, young men. Why are standing in front of my house?" They quickly turned to their back after they heard a woman speak.

The woman was wearing a red blouse and white pants, she was also wearing gold earrings and a bracelet on her left wrists. She looked like in middle 30s or early 40s, she looked young.

"Uhm, is this where Jisung lives?" Chenle asked shyly.

"Are you his classmates?" The woman asked them with a hint of delightment in her voice, and they all nodded.

"Here, come inside." She said cheerfully as she opened the gates for them to enter. "It's been years since someone visited Jisung."

Is he that lonely? Chenle asked himself.

Chenle couldn't help himself but feel pity for Jisung.

They sat on the couch the moment they entered the house. In the living room, you could see a family portrait of the Park family which obviously looked like was taken years ago. Jisung looked so young there. Chenle estimated around 14 years old. And like his usual look, Jisung wasn't smiling there unlike his parents.

Below the portrait, they could see a tall yet small table where an urn was placed.

In loving memory of ****** Park
April 5, 1975 - November 14, 2008

Chenle felt more pity towards Jisung even though they are not really close. He felt like he should take care of the younger. He should have made more effort to befriend him.

The fact that no one in their class except him and Jaemin tried to approach him, no one among his former classmates dared to visit him, and his father's death a few years ago made him want to look after the younger more.

"I'll just call Jisung," Mrs. Park said after she placed the juices and sandwiches in the coffee table in front of them. "You can drink and eat this while waiting."

They said "Thank you" in unison, and when Mrs. Park was gone from their vision, all of them started to take a sip from the glass of juice and grab a bite from the sandwich.

A few minutes after, they heard footsteps coming from the stairs. It was Jisung who was already in his casual clothes, a plain gray shorts that was below his kneecaps and a white shirt.

After a few minutes, Jisung was now sitting on the floor beside them with his laptop on the coffee table, typing. They apologized to Jisung for making him uncomfortable with the noise they made while ago, and surprisingly, Jisung just nodded to them.

Chenle kept on looking at Jisung. His tongue was itching to ask questions to the younger lad, but who was he to ask? They are not close. Jisung might find him creepy and weird.

"Jisung," Chenle called Jisung. "Where's the restroom?"

Jisung stood up and walked towards the left side of the house. It took Chenle a few seconds to realize why Jisung walked out.

Of course, he wants me to follow him. Chenle thought.

While walking, Chenle realized how big Jisung's house was. It looked like an average house outside but it was much more bigger inside.

They stopped at the black sliding door. "There."

"Thank you," Chenle said with a smile.

Jisung just nodded and walked back towards the living room to continue their school work.

While inside the restroom, Chenle accidentally stepped on a glass shard which he didn't know where it came from.

"Jisung!" He hollered.

Jisung stopped on his way back to the living room when he heard Chenle called out his name.

Jisung went back to the restroom and knocked on the door. "Problem?"

It was loud enough for Chenle to hear. "I stepped on a glass shard. Can you lend me your first aid kit?"

Jisung's forehead creased.

Why's there a glass shard? Jisung wondered.

Jisung opened the door of the restroom and saw Chenle standing there, and there's blood on the floor.

Jisung hissed. He held Chenle's hand and helped him walked out of the restroom. Jisung made him sat on a stool before he walked out again to get the first aid kit.

A few minutes had passed and Jisung arrived with a white container in his hand, which was probably the first aid kit.

Jisung knelt on the floor and held Chenle's left foot. He get the tweezers and pluck out the glass shard slowly.

Chenle hissed at the pain and that made Jisung looked at him worriedly.

Jisung became more gentle on plucking out the glass shard and after he did it successfully, he's now cleaning Chenle wound.

"Jisung, I have something to tell you," Chenle said out of the blue.

Jisung didn't bother to reply, he didn't even spare a look at Chenle and just continue to clean his wound.

Chenle would ask that question again to him, but now, he wasn't just asking him this for the sake of gaining friends.

Now, he felt more than that.

No, not more than friends. It's too early for that.

He felt like he wanted to be Jisung's friend who could take care of him, who could baby him, because even though Jisung looked like a tough cookie, he still needed someone to take care of him. That 'toughness' might just be the cover to the real Jisung.

"I want to take care of you. Can I take care of you? Can I be your friend?"

Jisung stopped on tending his wound. He did not answer nor look at him.

And for Chenle, silence means yes.