#np gnash - fragile ft. wrenn

fragile (1407 words), angst, slice of life     //warnings (highlight with your mouse to view): mentions/hints of domestic abuse, hinted depression

hanbin stands in the doorway, frustration seeping into his being. the neighbour’s dog is barking. soyeon falls asleep with shaky hands and wet eyelashes. somewhere in the middle of all this, they find something precious.

hanbin doesn’t really remember when was the last time that he didn’t feel the urge to yell at his mother. he wasn’t necessarily angry at her, he was more angry with his dad, but the way she just sat there and let it happen made his blood boil.

he stands in the doorway for who knows how long, just watching quietly as she buries the sobs into her worn down hands and eventually he turns around and just leaves before even stepping inside properly.

he’s still wearing his school uniform and there’s only one place in his mind as he counts his steps to take the troubled thoughts out of his mind.

soyeon has had memories of these kinds of things ever since she was seven. with a horrible haircut she had watched her father yell and scream and rip apart her heart with every word. even now, she felt every drop of blood inside her freeze and her hands get shaky. she would lose control with every slurred letter, until eventually she was reduced to nothing but messy tears and the will to defend herself. she had thrown plates, chairs, books, magazines, tv remotes at him in panic, but more often than not it had only resulted into bruises aimed at her.

so rather than defending herself, she had developed the reaction to escape. before it could even start properly, she would be out of the house, spending cold evenings alone at various parks and wandering in the dark, searching for something to calm herself down. nothing rarely worked, and she will only properly find peace when he’s six feet under.

she met hanbin one thursday evening. he had been sitting on a swing with a familiar school uniform still on and earbuds in his ears. he had looked like a deflated balloon and somehow it reminded soyeon of herself.

it didn’t take long before they found friendship amidst their worries. with a few words exchanged they were already tangled into each other’s lives.

“so, one more year to go”, hanbin says to soyeon one night, on his birthday. he’s tipsy, having already celebrated a bit with his friends earlier. it was late, the stars were out, though not visible from the city and soyeon’s fingers were cold in his pockets. she forgot her gloves at home in the hurry again. hanbin didn’t mind the hands in his pockets one bit.

“lucky you. my birthday’s in december”, soyeon whines and hanbin chuckles as he lowers his gaze from the night sky to the girl in front of him.

“where’s my present?”, he asks cheekily, choosing to ignore her complaint. she rolls her eyes, that’s one thing she does a lot in his presence. “my existence is a gift on its own, so you’re welcome”, she answers and hanbin has to hold back a laugh. soyeon pretends she doesn’t notice the smile he can’t hold back. it feeds his ego.

“does this imply that you won’t treat me to some late night ramen?”, hanbin inquires and soyeon narrows her eyes at him before she pulls her hands back from his pockets. they feel empty and hanbin places his own inside them to fill the spaces.

“i never said that”, soyeon replies and they both stand up with great trouble caused by the exhaustion that their late night meet ups cause. hanbin has half a mind to hold her hands, knowing they are cold, but he doesn’t.