I'm Okay
The Howling - Part III: Imprinting
Too much happened all at once and Joonmyun was still too panicky to follow, save for that Yunho and Jaejoong were rushing to save Jongin and get Yoochun out. He stood there, arms wrapped tight around his mid-section as he waited. Time passed agonizingly slow as he shuffled his weight from foot to foot, glancing towards the kitchen door every few seconds, hoping to see someone, to see Jongin.
Finally, the boy was being pulling from the room and pushed into the hallway, and as happy as Joonmyun was to see him, he didn't know what to do. Though, it seemed as if Jongin had no problems with that, because it wasn't long before Joonmyun was being pulled into a tight embrace; he had to fight the panic that overwhelmed him, because it was only Jongin and Jongin wouldn't hurt him. Still, after what had happened, the elder wasn't comfortable with being so close, so.... affectionate.
"Yes, I'm okay," Joonmyun said quietly as he wriggled himself free of the male's tight grip. "But you..." He saw the blood dripping from the split in his lip, the bruise on his tanned cheek, and then his eyes fell the Jongin's hands and blood-stained shirt; the elder knew it didn't belong to the boy, because he'd see the wound in Yoochun's shoulder as he was carried off. He fought away the images of Jongin putting a knife in Yoochun, the look that must have glazed his eyes, and swallowed to keep his emotions down before speaking again. "You're a mess, Jongin. C'mon, let's get you cleaned up."
Without waiting for an answer or an objection, Joonmyun took Jongin's wrist, mindful of the blood as he wrapped his fingers around the male's arm and tugged him down the hall towards his bedroom. Inside, he stopped long enough to shut and bolt the door before continuing on to the bathroom where he motioned at the edge of the tub, ordering Jongin to sit as he went about finding a clean cloth to wet.
Jongin was aware of the way Joonmyun panicked, and before the elder could wriggle away, the younger had already let go, his own sense of panic rising as he watched the elder male. His breath still caught in his throat, and he ignored the way Yoochun chuckled at them as he was dragged off before he wiped his lip - not really doing much more than smearing more of Yoochun's blood across his face.
"I'm fine," he mumbled softly, his eyes lowered to the ground as he felt the elder's fingers curl around his arm and tug him into a standing position. "As long as you aren't hurt..."
He didn't speak after that, his footsteps slow as he stared at Joonmyun's back as the elder led him back down to their bedroom, and he took a moment to tug his shirt over his head and dropped it in the hamper before sitting gingerly on the edge of the tub as Joonmyun had motioned. Jongin's heart was still racing after what they'd just been through, and while he could still feel Kai pulsing beneath the surface, the wolf wasn't as angry as he was before; now he was protective.
"Did he hurt you?" he asked softly, lifting his head to watch Joonmyun with a worried expression in his eyes.
With a swiftness and urgency that could only be explained by his still racing heart, Joonmyun fished out a few clean towels along with a wash cloth before he reached for the faucet and turned it on. It was as he was waiting for it to warm up that Jongin asked him what he should have been concerned about the most; had he been hurt? He didn't feel anything.... but then again....
Joonmyun absently tugged his hand through his hair, fingers brushing against the sore spot on his skull before trailing down to his neck where Yoochun had grabbed him; it didn't hurt, but he could still feel the other male's grip against his skin, a phantom pressure that was nothing more than fear and adrennaline pulsing through his veins. It would go away soon, and so he didn't worry Jongin, he shook his head. "No, I'm okay. Just... scared more than anything."
After taking a deep breath, Joonmyun stuck the cloth under the now warm flow, letting it soak before turning off the tap and wringing out the excess water. He turned to Jongin, giving him a once-over before stepping closer and lowering himself to his knees so he could be a better help. Reaching up hesitantly, he pressed the cloth against the bleeding split in the boy's lip before moving to wipe the blood he'd smeared across his chin and part of his cheek.
Eventually, shortly after moving to clean off Jongin hands, Joonmyun gave up and tossed the dirty cloth to the side. "Maybe you should just shower. There's still a lot of blood, and you have quite a bit of flour, too." It would be quicker, and that way they could get back to preparing dinner sooner. "The door is bolted, so I'll just go change and wait for you." Because there was no way in hell he'd go back to the kitchen by himself, even if he knew that Yunho or Jaejoong would be right there.
The younger winced a little as he straightened himself, his ribcage and waist hurting - no doubt he'd be bruised all over once they settled for the night - and he let his eyes close as he felt the first gentle touch of the cool, wet cloth pressing against his lip before it was wiping across his chin and cheek.
When the sensation faded, he opened his eyes, lookign up at Joonmyun carefully. "Oh... Yeah, th-that's a good idea. Remind me to sort out a load of washing tomorrow; we're probably running low on clothes... the amount of times I've been injured in the past two weeks..."
It was meant as a joke, but as soon as he'd said it, he regretted it, and he looked away, staring at the drops of blood that had dried against his palms and fingers. "I'm sorry Joonmyun. I thought we were having a good day, amidst the mess.."
He didn't know what else to say, and sighed softly instead, pushing himself away from the bath as the elder stepped out of the room. He waited for a moment before he closed the door, head bowed and fingers curling into the wood as he pushed his forehead against it before he turned away and stripped out of the rest of his dirty clothes, ignoring the ache whenever he stretched something the wrong way.
One of these days... he was just going to kill Yoochun and get it over with.
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