(Last chapter: Taeyong confronted Ten who was acting suspicious and the two comes home late at night. Ten found the remains of another person who had been stranded on the island. "We're not the first ones to be here. We'll not be the first to die here either." Taeyong thinks this information is what could end it all.)

Part 11.

Johnny and Jaehyun were standing in shelter of the rain but as soon as they noticed Ten and Taeyong they ran out. “Where have you been?” Jaehyun asked and he reached out a hand, grabbed Taeyong’s wrist and pulled him into his embrace. Taeyong hid his face in Jaehyun’s neck, tears pressing on. Luckily the rain hid his tears and he tried to stay calm to not create suspicion. 

He pulled back and looked over to see Johnny and Ten just stand in front of each other. Ten looked up at Johnny. “I’m sorry.” He said weakly and Johnny shook his head, water dripping from his bangs. Jaehyun followed Taeyong’s gaze and the two watched Johnny’s hands slowly come up. Ten kept looking up at Johnny and then Johnny’s hands cupped Ten’s jaw, and Ten closed his eyes as one thumb caressed his cheek. Johnny leaned in and Taeyong held his breath when Johnny pressed a kiss to the bridge of Ten’s nose. 

  “Don’t worry,” Johnny said. “Whatever it is, we can make it. I will get us out of here.” He promised and Ten cried. Johnny pulled Ten close and Taeyong wrapped his arms around Jaehyun’s waist and pressed his face into Jaehyun’s chest. Jaehyun was drawing patterns on his back. 

  “Do we need to worry?” He asked softly as Johnny guided Ten back to their camp. 

Taeyong realized that this time. Honesty meant death. So he shook his head. “Ten just needed to talk.” He said and reached up to caress Jaehyun’s hollowing cheek. “No need to worry.” 

Lies.

Ten kept on coughing the next day. It was gnawing at everyone’s mind because what if he got sick? Johnny still looked like he had participated in the Holi festival. He was absolutely bashed but yet he wore his torn shirt and tried his best to participate in their daily schedules that they had tried to establish. Ten seemed more independent than before and he was still too quiet for anyone’s liking. Johnny sometimes held Ten’s hand or softly spoke to him and Taeyong found himself watching them. Even Jaehyun had pointed out that Taeyong should stop staring but the sight was rare. He one day sat by the fire, planning out their meals for the coming days when he zoned out, eyes focused on the fish Jaehyun had caught with the help of Ten who had looked rather uninterested. 

He imagined the group of friends in Taeil and Johnny’s college room, but now with Johnny inviting Ten to sit down beside him. He wondered if their relationship would’ve happened if this hadn’t occurred. Would Johnny look at Ten the way he did now? Would he be the one to brush Ten’s hair out of his face and take whatever was frustrating Ten to help him out? Taeyong saw Taeil’s wide eyes and knew that the other would’ve been thrilled if he knew this information. Ten and Johnny out of all people. 

Taeyong came home to their spot one day from the jungle to find Johnny and Jaehyun sitting down in the sand, softly conversing together. Actually he had seen them do this from time to time. The two of them just talking together. It was nice because he could see that Jaehyun enjoyed their talk and that both of them were comfortable with each other.

Taeyong thought for a moment if the three had all been perfectly well without him? Jaehyun wasn’t alone without them, he had Johnny to talk to and Ten to mess around with. Maybe they’d never had run into Kong if he hadn’t appeared. Ten wouldn’t have run away and he wouldn’t have found what had ruined whatever hope he had had. If Taeyong had stayed on his side of the island maybe he would’ve found what Ten had found, maybe he would have been the one crying and giving up on trying? Taeyong stood frozen as he realized that everything had gone bad since he came and now he was wondering if he really should walk over to where Jaehyun was chuckling softly. Lips stretched into a smile, a dip in his cheek giving off this youthful and charming look and those bright eyes gleaming as he looked at Johnny who was shaking his head. An amused curl of Johnny’s lip showed that he was the source of the joke and he looked out on the water. Jaehyun had his arms on his knees and his hands were hanging down fiddling with some liana that they were using to make rope with. Johnny picked up something and looked at Jaehyun, he waved the thing back and forth in a slight aggressive manner and Jaehyun threw his head back and laughed. Johnny looked away again, eyes turning into thin slits as he chuckled. It was a sight that made Taeyong feel doubt settle within. He couldn’t walk out of the shadows. Maybe he should stay in the shadows and maybe… maybe he should vanish in the shadows? 

He caught onto what they were talking about when Jaehyun looked at Johnny and spoke. “I just want to go home and see my mom.” He said honestly. “The people that care about me… my grandma. They must all be so worried.”

A gloomy look appeared on Johnny’s face. “Nobody is waiting for me.” He said and Jaehyun frowned. 

  “What about your mom?”

Johnny shook his head. 

Jaehyun looked like he was at a loss for words. “She’s not your mom, is she?” He said with realization.

Johnny nodded. “Fake like all the rest.” He said and Taeyong’s heart dropped. “It’s all her fault.” Johnny said through gritted teeth and he threw what he was holding away. Jaehyun was frowning but he didn’t say anything. Johnny rubbed his upper arms as if he was cold. “He would’ve been waiting for me if it wasn’t for that woman.” 

Jaehyun tilted his head to the side. “Who?”

Johnny grimaced. “A friend.” 

Johnny was 15, college was around the corner. He was one year ahead just by studying in his room all the time so he would go to college when he was 17. He had been doing college applications the whole week, holed up in his room by the small round window that let in little light from outside. The sky was grey, covered by clouds that looked like they could drop a load anytime. 

Downstairs kids were laughing and talking, but Johnny was wearing his headphones and only occasionally eyeing the red and orange leaves blow off their spots on the trees’ crowns. He was looking outside while chewing on his pen when the latch to his room opened. Johnny leaned back with a groan and when a round chubby face appeared he pushed off his headset. 

  “Oscar, what did I tell you about knocking?” He asked and Oscar blinked with his wide blue eyes.

  “I knocked for the past 5 minutes.” He said and Johnny’s eyes widened.

  “Oh…” He just said and then looked at the younger. “What is it?”

  “There’s a new kid, parents died in a car accident and he’s Asian like you.”

Johnny gave Oscar an incredulous look. “Thank you very much for the valuable information, Oscar.” 

  “No, what I meant to say is that he is Korean too.” Oscar was starting to look a little annoyed, he was still holding the latch up and it was obviously heavy because his arm was shaking. 

Johnny shrugged. “Why would I care?” He asked and looked back at his notes; even if he had worked hard they still didn’t look as neat as he wanted them to look. 

Oscar almost dropped the latch on himself but now held it up with two hands. “You see,” he started with wide eyes, looking a little sheepish. “There’s no room.” He added and Johnny raised his gaze and moved it to the bed at the other end of the room.

  “No way.” He gawped and got up. Oscar got so surprised by the fact that Johnny was actually getting up that he leaned back in shock and Johnny jumped when the latch slammed shut and he heard Oscar let out a scream before he landed on floor with a thump. 

Johnny walked over and pushed it open, he looked down at Oscar who was lying on his back, staring up at the ceiling with a look of disbelief. Johnny huffed. “You’re seriously the most unlucky kid I know.”

  “ you, Johnny.” The younger said and got up. “I broke every bone in my body.” He whimpered and walked down the hall to his room. When the door opened, loud voices reached Johnny and he just prayed the kids would leave him alone as he went down. He stopped in front of the long mirror that decorated the dark halls of the orphanage. His hair was long, so long he had it dragged back into a small bun on the back. He needed a haircut, but he knew this hairstyle made people think he couldn’t take care of himself, and who wanted a useless teenager? 

He was pale. He never really went outside unless he was forced to. Oscar managed to somehow convince him when the adults told him to. Oscar was the messenger in the orphanage. Johnny was sure his bright nature would make it easier for him to be adopted. Lately the kids stayed too long and few people came to adopt. Johnny looked over the railing and eyed the front door. He had been standing here too many times, watching parents come in and call out his name, but they didn’t bear the faces he wanted to see. Johnny’s gaze dropped to his shoes, they were old, a hole was making its way through at the corners of both shoes and the brown leather was worn out and had faded over the years. He was still growing, now these finally fitted him. Johnny went down the stairs, one hand on the railing, trailing it with his nails. He glanced to his left down the hall and went towards the kitchen. The walls downstairs had yellow wallpaper and lots of pictures of kids that had been there through the years. Johnny’s eyes automatically found his own face on so many of them and he forced himself to look at the carpet on the floor. In the kitchen he found one of the women working there, the only one he could kind of communicate with. She was washing the pots and pans and she quickly glanced up to see who entered. When she noticed it was Johnny’s long form she went back to cleaning, knowing Johnny always came down to sneak some food upstairs. That’s why he liked her, she knew he didn’t want to talk about the ridiculous stuff like: “How are you doing?”

Johnny didn’t go over to the fridge but instead he was awkwardly lingering by the doorway, watching the woman work. He looked through the large glass doors behind her that showed the small garden they had and tried his best to come up with any words that made sense. She glanced up again when she realized he hadn’t been moving at all since he came in. 

  “We did re-stock the banana milk, Johnny, you can go check.” She said and Johnny nodded and pointed towards one of the fridges, when she nodded he turned towards it to walk over and get some. He froze with his side turned to her. 

  “Brooke.” He started, mouth dry. “Is the new kid going to live in my room?” He cut straight to the chase and by now it didn’t even surprise the other. 

Brooke nodded and pushed down the tap to stop the water. She turned to face him and leaned against the counter. “He is.” She replied and Johnny just stared back at her. She sighed. “We don’t have room.” She said and dried her hands in a towel. “Johnny, just this once. He’s a bright kid, he’ll get adopted very soon. The season is coming up and you won’t have to worry about him.” She made a motion of waving an open palm through the air as if he’d be in and right out. Johnny knew better. 

  “I won’t talk to him.” He said and Brooke rubbed her upturned nose before messing up her short blonde hair. 

  “Give him a chance.” She pleaded and Johnny went over to take a banana milk to show her it was the end of that conversation. 

  “His mother committed suicide.” She called out when Johnny was heading out the door. Johnny froze and his gaze was fixed on the front door. He saw his own mother in front of him and he felt that gnawing guilt that it was his fault for leaving his mother. He should’ve taken care of her. 

Johnny saw the front door open and with the grey sky in the background and the road that was barely used a boy with bleached blond hair walked in with wide brown eyes glancing up at the high ceiling. He had a grey beanie tugged down over his curly hair and he was dressed in a curry yellow jacket and a grey knitted shirt. Johnny looked at the bag the boy carried and realized it was a guitar. The boy sniffled and Johnny wondered if it was the cold or because the boy had been crying in the car. 

Johnny had cried the whole way. He was sure this kid had done that too. 

As if on cue the boy’s chin trembled and he moved his glistening eyes to the hallway where Johnny was standing. Their eyes met and Johnny felt as if a mirror to his past life had been put in front of him. In that moment he saw his younger self with disheveled brown hair and sad eyes step into the house. He had been wearing a red shirt that his mother had knitted for him. He wondered if the kid in front of him was wearing some of his parents’ clothes too. 

The man that also took care of the children at the place stepped inside behind the boy and closed the door. The wind crept in and pulled at the kid’s clothes and pushed Johnny’s hair out of his face. 

  “Welcome to your new home, Mark!” The man said way too cheerfully and Johnny grimaced when he noticed Mark’s gaze drop to the floor. The kid turned around to face the man with a smile and Johnny admired the fact that the other could even react to other people. Johnny had closed off, he couldn’t hear and he couldn’t speak. He just watched how unfamiliar faces ogled at him and then he had hid in his bed beneath a blanket the rest of the day. 

Mark turned around but as he did Johnny was already passing him and Johnny felt the kid’s eyes on him as he went up the stairs towards his room. He quickly climbed up the ladder and closed the latch. He almost locked it before he realized that Mark would come in soon. 

Johnny sat there contemplating before he decided to just go back to his bed and wear his headphones. He didn’t want to be a complete douchebag but also didn’t want to be friendly. 

He could hear Oscar greet Mark downstairs, “what up new kid, wait - wait - annyeonghase-YO!” He yelled dragging out the yo as if he was a rapper and Johnny hoped that that white kid wouldn’t end up in a town full of black people because he would get stabbed. 

Johnny dragged a hand over his face. Oscar just tried his best, but he was a little blunt. 

Johnny almost jumped out of his skin when the latch opened. 

  “Now don’t think we’re throwing you into this dusty attic, we already have one boy up here as well, and he wanted the room and even got it ready. Let’s see if he’s up here,” - Johnny rolled his eyes at the guy came up, Johnny’s always in his room, what the was he talking about? - “There he is! Johnny meet Mark your new roommate. Mark this Johnny.” 

And Johnny oddly found himself looking when Mark crawled up and looked over at Johnny. Mark smiled a little and made a small wave as greeting. Johnny copied him and gave what was more of a tug of the corner of his lips than a smile. This though made Mark’s eyes light up and Johnny had to take a second glance at the other nearly snickering. Johnny eyed the other guy and he was looking at Johnny with surprise. Johnny gave him a glare and the guy almost fell down the ladder just to get away from him. Johnny rolled his eyes and pushed his stuff away to lie down and take a nap. Mark was putting his things into the small shelf at the foot of his bed and then he took out his guitar to play. Johnny sighed.

  “Could you not?” He grumbled and the sound stopped. 

  “Sorry.” Came a reply and Johnny hated how he felt guilty for stopping Mark. Yet why should he care about this kid? This kid meant nothing to him…

  “What are you doing?” 

Taeyong jumped in shock when Ten appeared right beside him, arms full of wood for the fire. Johnny and Jaehyun looked up at them and a small smile appeared on Ten’s face when Johnny looked at him. Taeyong tried to say something but realized his mouth was opening and closing like an idiot with no excuse. “Nothing.” He said instead. “I was heading back from Paradise.” He said and that was true, but it was a long time ago since he left. 

Ten just nodded as if he understood but he was being ironic and it annoyed Taeyong to the core. How dare he act like this? Taeyong hadn’t tried to offend Ten, but why did the other act like he had? He was only trying to save a friend. 

But maybe… Ten didn’t want to be saved.

A/N: Oh my god, I'm so sorry for taking so long. As I said in the feed I wrote ahead and had to connect the parts. Now I have at least 2-3 chapters ready, so it shouldn't take long before I'll update again. Thank you guys for waiting patiently <3