Jinki pulled into the driveway, a few boxes of take-out in the back that Jonghyun had nervously requested. At that point, Jonghyun could have asked Jinki to buy him a pony and the older male would have easily agreed. He put the car in park, shutting off all the lights and getting out after once more prying Jonghyun’s fingers from his shirt. The boy’s eyes widened, and he let out a choking gasp that made Jinki freeze in place.

“W..what?” He asked softly, and Jonghyun blinked a few tears from his eyes.

“Don’t leave me.” Jonghyun pleaded desperately. Jinki’s eyebrows shot up.

“I’m not. We just need to go inside.” Jinki said softly, and Jonghyun sniffed.

“Appa!” The cry came from near the house, and Jinki looked up in the dimming sunlight to see who it was. Minho came running down the steps that lead to the front door, making a beeline for the appa. “Where did you go? Did you find something?”

“Minho, come here.” Jinki said, getting out of the car and closing the door.

The car’s internal light had busted, so it wasn’t much of a surprise that Minho hadn’t noticed the boy. To be safe, though, Jinki led him around the back of the vehicle. He looked at Minho sternly before opening the door. Minho stepped forward, and when he caught sight of Jonghyun he could have sworn his heart stopped.

His knees grew weak, and he had to use the car to support himself as Jonghyun stared up at him with a damp face. He moved forward, his arms going around the shorter male even as he tried to get over his disbelief. Jonghyun took a minute to really register what was going on, but once his dizzy and confused mind put the pieces together he launched himself into Minho’s arms.

“Minho!” He all but shouted, his arms locking tightly around his boyfriend.

Minho pressed his face into Jonghyun’s shoulder, the elder doing the same to his dongsaeng. There were large damp spots on each of their shirts within a few seconds, and Minho looked shaky as he slowly pulled his head back, then pressed his forehead against Jonghyun’s. Jinki almost felt like he was intruding as their lips connected for the first time in weeks, even as Jonghyun’s small whimpering sobs escaped.

“Why don’t you bring him inside, Minho?” Jinki suggested lightly when the two separated.

Minho nodded slowly, then lifted Jonghyun into his arms. Jonghyun liked to cuddle, liked to hug, in general just liked to be touched, but being picked up was something he had very rarely allowed to happen. He claimed that he had a very special connection with the ground, and that it would be hurt if he left it. None of these jokes left the eldest son’s lips this time, however. In a way, he resembled a small child desperate for comfort.

Minho’s hand slid under his hyungs shirt, pressing his palm against the warm skin there. Jonghyun let out a small sigh, his head falling heavily on Minho’s shoulder. All the stress and anxiety he had been feeling for the last two weeks was gone, and even if there was some left it was so small and insignificant he couldn’t locate it if he tried. He knew he was just overwhelmed, and so it only seemed like his emotions had calmed down, but he would take what he could get.

When Minho pushed the door open he wasn’t terribly surprised to find Key and Taemin waiting. They had probably seen out the window, and he knew they were just as anxious to see Jonghyun as he had been. Jonghyun, however, seemed quite comfortable where he was, and didn’t even lift his head to say hello as Minho brought him into the living room. He took a seat on the couch, not surprised when Key and Taemin took up the seats on either side of him. Even Luna looked misty eyed from her place in the kitchen doorway.

“Jjongie?” Minho said softly, and Jonghyun whined softly, pressing his face into Minho’s neck.

“Hyung?” Taemin said softly, reaching out toward him. Jonghyun was tense, his fingers threatening to tear through Minho’s shirt. He shakily pulled one hand away from Minho in order to take hold of Taemin and pull him closer. Taemin allowed the elder to hold onto him, petting his hair sympathetically. “It’s ok. You’re at home now.”

Jinki stepped inside with the takeout boxes, setting them on the table without comment. He caught sight of Jonghyun straddling Minho somewhere in the mix of the other three boys who were clinging to him, but he couldn’t have cared less. He hadn’t seen his family whole in over two weeks, and now that they finally were, he didn’t care if they had an ice cream fight in his office. Luna offered him a small smile, pushing herself off the doorframe.

“I’m gonna head home. Call me, ok?” She said, catching Jinki’s attention. He nodded reluctantly.

“A-ani!” Jonghyun’s voice rang out through the room, and every pair of eyes turned to him. He swallowed hard, his cheeks flushing as he locked his watery gaze on Luna. “Do...do you have to go?”

“Jjongie...?” Jinki said softly, but Jonghyun didn’t move his eyes from Luna. She recovered from the small state of shock she had entered a moment later.

“Ani...I just thought you would want time alone with your family.” She explained softly. Jonghyun looked like he was going to enter a fresh round of tears at any moment, and Luna seemed alarmed at that as she blurted out the next bit. “I can stay if you want me to.”

“De.” Jonghyun said, his voice small as he nodded. The absolute shock that filled the room was almost too overwhelming for Jonghyun, and he slowly began shrinking back against Minho.

“Jjongie-Hyung..” Key mumbled, and Jonghyun looked over at him. “Can...you tell us what happened?”

The atmosphere in the room grew very tense very quickly, but Key didn’t backtrack. He wanted to know. He had to know. Eventually, Jonghyun nodded. It was a single, jerky movement that left Jinki and Minho both wondering whether they should intervene, but their desire to know what had taken place outweighed it. They both justified it to themselves, convincing themselves that they would need to know for future reference anyway. Jinki took a seat on the couch behind Key, both facing Jonghyun and Minho, and Luna took a seat behind Taemin.

It was quiet for a long time while they all waited, and they were beginning to worry the boy wouldn’t speak up. Minho rubbed Jonghyun’s back silently, and the older boy seemed a bit startled by the touch. A little red flag went up in the back of Minho’s mind, dragging a memory from their first week together with it. Jonghyun had completely shut himself off, to the point where even a physical touch wasn’t something he could handle. Minho couldn’t let that happen again.

“Jjongie?” Minho said softly, and Jonghyun glanced up at him with a sheepish expression.

“Mian. I just...can we eat first?” Jonghyun asked softly. He had been trying to hide the cramps gripping his stomach for several minutes, but with the smell of the food hitting his nose it was too much.

“Omo! Mianhae, Jjongie!” Jinki said, his expression one of extreme guilt. He looked ready to cry as he handed Jonghyun a box of food, and Minho was instantly suspicious.

“When’s the last time you ate, Jjong?” Minho asked softly. Jonghyun took an eager bite of the pork sitting inside the box before answering.

“Wednesday morning.” He admitted. Minho’s heart cracked almost audibly.

“It’s...it’s Saturday...” Minho said. Jonghyun nodded, showing that he already knew.

“I’ve gone longer.” Jonghyun said, and Minho tensed.

“But you shouldn’t have to.” He said, and Jonghyun finally looked back up at him.

“Minho-yah.” Jonghyun said firmly, and the younger quieted. “I don’t have to. Don’t worry about it, arasso? As long as I’m at home I’m ok.”

Minho nodded slowly, but the atmosphere of the room remained heavy and silent as they each ate their meal. Eventually, though, the food was gone, and Jonghyun knew he had to tell them what had happened. They had been waiting patiently the whole time he had been eating, but now he really didn’t have an excuse not to tell them. He hadn’t moved from his position in Minho’s lap since they had originally sat down, and he suddenly found Minho’s shirt to be the most fascinating thing in the entire world. He stared at it for a long time, trying to block out everything else.

He had managed to skate through for a while on the euphoria of being home, and the absolutely overwhelming situation shutting his emotions down temporarily. It had been a while since he was in a mental state bad enough where he had had to do such a thing, but now he had the safety of home and family around him, and his defenses were crumbling. He would take the vulnerability he felt sitting on the outside of a booth in a crowded restaurant over the emotional he was dealing with now. When had his nerves become so raw?

He saw that Minho’s shirt had somehow become tangled up in his fingers again, and there were random spots where the whiteness was tainted with his fat tears. Minho reached up, wiping at his eyes as his thoughts began to race. He had a full belly. He was allowed to talk. No one was going to force him to do anything. So why was he more afraid now than he had been when Sangho took him? He was shaking all over, and Minho kissed his forehead softly as Key his hair.

“D-don’t get mad at me.” He pleaded softly. He knew their anger wouldn’t come out violently like Sangho’s had those few times. No, it would be more of a disappointment, and that was worse.

“Why would we get mad?” Jinki asked, his eyebrows pulling together.

“Because it’s my fault.” Jonghyun managed to choke out, his voice at least an octave higher than it should have been. Minho pulled Jonghyun against him, letting the boy settle against him and hide his face before he spoke again. “He kept coming to see me at school. No matter what I said, he wouldn’t go away. I should have told you.”

Minho kept his mouth firmly shut. It wasn’t that he agreed with Jonghyun, but more that he was still angry that none of them had told him a single thing. He hadn’t even heard of this Sangho guy until he got home, and the man had been in the house! And then they had kept Jonghyun’s kidnapping a secret from him for more than two days. As calm as he was able to be about it, he was still angry.

“You’re mad.” Jonghyun said, starting to pull away from his boyfriend. Minho stopped him.

“I’m not mad. I’m pissed.” Minho corrected, his arms winding around Jonghyun. “If I ever get my hands on that guy, I swear to God-”

“Minho.” Jinki said sharply, and Minho looked over at him with a slightly defiant expression.

“Like you wouldn’t.” He accused, and Jinki shook his head.

“I wouldn’t.” He said. “I have four really good reasons not to go to jail.”

“...oh.” Minho whispered, looking down at Jonghyun. The boy in his arms was reason enough to agree with the appa.

Older or not, Jonghyun still retained too many child-like tendencies to be left alone like that. Even then, in that moment, the most underdeveloped part of him was being openly displayed. The part that could trust, the part that needed love. Jonghyun looked up slowly, his expression nervous and vulnerable. They hadn’t seen him in such a state in a long time, if ever.

“Are you ok, Jjongie?” Minho asked. Jonghyun’s throat felt like it was closing up as he fought against his tears. He shook his head, then wiped at his eyes.

“I...I know this will sound r-really weird...” Jonghyun said, looking a bit frustrated when he stuttered. Minho gently rubbed his back, urging him on. “But...I don’t...I don’t want to be alone tonight.”

“You won’t be.” Key said. “We’re all here.”

“I know, but everyone’s in a different room except Minho, and...” Jonghyun trailed off, trying to think of the right words to say. Everyone had an idea of where he was heading with it anyway, but they had to be sure. He whispered the last part. “Can we just stay together tonight?”

The house was silent for a moment, and in that time they all took in Jonghyun’s appearance. Sure, he was the smallest one in the house, and his childish personality made him seem more like the maknae than Taemin at times, but that was just it. His personality had completely ballooned. He could take up an entire room with it, and he could be quite loud if he found the moment to be right. Especially after he had unwillingly taken a trip to the doctors a month prior and discovered he had grown two inches since living with Jinki.

The person in Minho’s arms was someone completely different. The bright and happy kid was gone, stuffed so far away not even a hint of him was visible. All that was left was this boy who seemed to be no bigger than a twelve year old in that moment, and his voice was that of an even younger child, afraid to ask for what he wanted, what he needed, because he didn’t know if he would be punished for it.

It was Taemin who responded first, nodding as tears tracked down his cheeks. A moment later, Key agreed as well, then the appa. They had expected him to calm down after, but the longer they sat, waiting for a sign of reassurance, the more worked up he seemed to get. Jinki glanced up at Luna, his expression slightly apologetic, but her focus was on Jonghyun.

“Jonghyun.” She said, and he looked up at her from where he was curled up against Minho’s chest. She wasn’t sure how to ask this question, but she didn’t want to be in the middle of a misunderstanding with the emotional boy. “Did you want me to stay too?”

Jonghyun nodded, and Luna offered him a small smile before she, too, tilted her head forward in confirmation.

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I spent a lot of time going over this one, editing it, and changing things to try to make it all fit the way I wanted, but in the end...It wouldn't all fit. The official chapter count is now at 40, just to accomidate my stupidity. Also, I love the chapter pic I have. If you look at it straight on, you can't really see Minho's face, and it just looks emotional, but if you look at it from an angle you can see that he's smiling. I felt like it fit really well.

Oh, and...for anyone who wasn't quite sure...yes. Jonghyun IS reverting/retreating/backsliding.

And about Jonghyun's mom!

Guys...come on. She's trying to get out of jail. Being an accesory to kidnapping isn't going to help her case - of course she was going to tell them the truth. I'm not saying she's a good or a bad person, I'm just saying - don't trust too easily.