The fight was already over when Lee Sujin ran in with Hoseok and Taehyung on her heels, though it seemed Suga was just getting started. Jin watched on in mild interest, feeling the aches and bruises on his body, as the girl he knew as timid yelled at Suga and the rest of them before hauling Jungkook off.

“Suga,” Rap Monster called sternly as he stared off after the girl, but Hoseok and Taehyung dragged him off.

Jin was too tired to bother going after them, and apparently Rap Monster and Jimin were too, though Jimin was snarling angrily.

Rap Monster sighed, and the sound was so incredibly tired. Jin knew it wasn’t just from the fight, and for the first time since Hoseok and Taehyung left, it really, truly dawned on him that things were different.

Maybe they were all tired. Maybe they were too tired to feel it before, but now that their eyes were being opened, it was hitting them all at once, with the force of a hurricane. Maybe it was time to stop running from their pasts and start looking to their futures. They were getting older whether they liked it or not and Jin knew they couldn’t do this—fighting and running and hiding—forever.

But change—did they want it? Did he?

Jin closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “I’m going. See you tomorrow.”

Rap Monster nodded; Jimin just looked at him.

Jin carefully picked his way through the unconscious bodies, wincing when his steps tugged at his wounds. Once upon a time, he would have been nervous going home all beaten up, but he knew better now: no one would notice, or if they did, they wouldn’t care.

The only thing Jin knew for certain and cared about right now was that he couldn’t wait to leave home—everything else was secondary.

It was Saturday and everyone was doing their own thing. Jin wasn’t about to stay at home, so he headed downtown, where the crowds were. He liked being around lots of people: he could blend in and observe, and not be disturbed.

He found a bench by one of the busier streets and sat down, staring at passersby. There were groups of friends hanging out, adults hurrying around, kids playing together, families window-shopping. Occasionally, he found himself wondering what it was like to live someone else’s life and was struck deeply by the knowledge that other people with other lives exist, all around him. Even the idiots they beat up last night. They were as real as him.

It was easy to forget that, sometimes. It was easy to forgot a lot of things when life didn’t hold much appeal anymore.

Jin was lost in his thoughts and the people for a long time. It was easy to lose track of time when he did this, so he was duly shocked when someone clambered onto the bench to sit beside him and poked him in the thigh.

“Jin-hyung! It’s Jin-hyung!”

Jin stiffened and turned his head to see the little boy he’d helped the other day—Hyunsuk—beaming up at him excitedly. His brows furrowed a little. Was he lost again?

“Hello,” Jin greeted softly. “Are you alone?”

Hyunsuk shook his head and pointed behind him. Jin recognized his sister and his aunt rushing towards them.

“You should stop running off on your own,” Jin commented, turning back to Hyunsuk.

The little boy pouted. “I only ran because I saw you here!”

“Hyunsuk! I told you to stay with me!” The girl finally reached them, Hyunsuk’s sister in her arms. She looked at Jin and frowned. “I’m so sorry about him.”

“It’s fine,” Jin brushed off, looking her in the eyes. She seemed a little startled by his strong gaze. “You really need to keep a better eye on him.”

Her eyes narrowed. “I’m sorry, I don’t—do you—”

“Noona!” Hyunsuk tugged at his aunt’s jacket. “It’s him, it’s Jin-hyung!”

Her eyes widened and a hint of a blush worked its way onto her cheeks. “Oh! You—from before—”

Jin nodded curtly. “Perhaps you should ask someone for help babysitting if you can’t handle them both.”

Her expression faded into one of embarrassed indignance. “I can! I mean, I haven’t—anyway, there’s no one else—this isn’t any of your business!”

Jin raised an eyebrow. “Right.” He stood and nodded at Hyunsuk, who was still watching him with something like hero worship. It made Jin mildly uncomfortable. “Goodbye.”

“Wait! Um—” The girl settled both kids on the bench before stepping closer to him, chewing on her lip. Her eyes flickered between him and the ground. “Last time...I didn’t really get to thank you. I know you said it was fine but I-I don’t like owing people. And I feel like I owe you. So...can I...buy you a meal? Or—or something?”

“Yeah, Jin-hyung, eat with us! Please?” Hyunsuk begged eagerly, bouncing in his seat. His sister—Minhee, Jin recalled—hadn’t taken her curious eyes off him since she noticed him.

Jin was about to decline, but one look at Hyunsuk’s excited face made him pause and reconsider. He had time, and it was a free meal—why not?

“Fine. Let’s go.”

Hyunsuk cheered and jumped up, hugging Jin’s leg. “Yay! Let’s go, let’s go! Minhee, come on! Jaehee-noona, can we eat burgers?”

Jaehee rolled her eyes and hefted Minhee into her arms again as they started walking down the street. “Let’s ask the guest what he wants to eat, okay?” She turned back to Jin. “Um, oh! We haven’t really introduced ourselves. I’m Jaehee.”

“Jin.”

“I know.” Jaehee laughed. “Hyunsuk hasn’t stopped talking about you all week.”

“Jin-hyung’s so cool! He’s like a ninja, whoosh!” Hyunsuk swung Jin’s hand as he made wild gestures.

Jin’s lips twitched.

“So, um, Jin, are you—are you in school?” Jaehee asked uncertainly.

He watched her out of the corner of his eye. “High school senior.”

“Oh. I see.” There was an awkward pause. “I-I’m in college! First year. But I live at home because the school is so close.”

Jin made a noncommittal noise.

“Uh, do you know where you wanna go to college?”

Jin shrugged. “Not sure if I’m going.”

“Oh. Why not?”

“None of your business.”

She bit her lip and looked away. Silence reigned again. Jin didn’t mind but he was sure she did. The kids filled the silence with their chatter, so Jin let her fuss over them and settled back into himself so he could watch them.

notes: Wow, look at me, updating two days in a row! Unprecedented! LOL.

A little longer this time, as promised, and from now we'll get to see post-CCT Suga and Jungkook every now and again!

Jin is actually really hard to write. Someone who doesn't care about much of anything is really difficult to characterize lol, but hopefully I'm doing alright. The kids are back, and so is Jaehee, but the interation is fairly one-sided at this point! Change is a-comin', though.

I'll try to get the next chapter up soon, but school starts up again next week, and I'm having soooooooo many scheduling issues so if I don't update before Tuesday, it might be a while. I'm sorry in advance!

skyblaze208, OUT!

© Copyright 2017 by skyblaze208