Baekhyun doesn’t think he’ll ever get used to the feeling of teleportation.

“Ready?” Jongin asks them as they stand in a row, holding hands in Yixing’s tiny apartment. One by one, they all nod, albeit hesitantly. There’s nothing even remotely fun about this experience, even though it’s incredibly efficient. Jongin grins. “Here we go.”

Space blinks in and out of existence; Baekhyun feels the floor of his consciousness wobbling before stabilizing, feet hitting solid ground in Colorado, USA. At least, he supposes that’s where they are; he’s never been to America in his life, and it’s such a big country with such a diverse climate that they could be in Texas or Vermont and he’d be none the wiser. Wherever they are, it’s green and alive with sounds of nature. There’s a gentle breeze passing by, making the trees hum in the wind. Instantly, Baekhyun feels welcome.

What do you know about Colorado? he asks Yixing to his left, squeezing his Parallel’s hand and feeling the way his mind reels from the aftershocks of teleportation. On his right, Jongdae is bouncing on the balls of his feet, excitement clear in the gleam in his eyes and his flushed cheeks. It’s endearing, but something about it sends a painful pang into Baekhyun’s chest, right beneath his heart. He knows why, but he doesn’t want to think about it.

Yixing shakes his head as if trying to get water out of his ears after a swim. Oh, man, I don’t even know, he says, sounding completely out of it. Even in his mind, his words get tinged with a slur of his Chinese accent. Colorado- isn’t Denver in Colorado?

Baekhyun blinks. I didn’t even know there is a city called Denver.

Over the chuckling in his mind, Baekhyun hears shuffling off to his right, where Junmyeon is holding Minseok and Jongin’s hands and poking his head out to look at the rest of them. “This is only a pit stop,” he announces, voice cheery. Next to him, Jongin is standing with his eyes closed, brow furrowed in concentration and his full lips pursed together. “Jongin is trying to find Kyungsoo’s exact location so he can drop us off before going to pick Chanyeol up.”

A murmur of agreement goes through them. Jongdae’s hand is squeezing Baekhyun’s painfully tight, but he doesn’t complain. Kyungsoo must feel so close but so far away to him at the moment, in the same state but with his actual location unknown. Jongdae can be fidgety all he wants; he’s waited ridiculously long to see his Parallel again. If Baekhyun was him, he’d be asking Jongin to teleport him to his Parallel the moment they first met him in London, but he knows that’s not how Jongdae rolls. First they all get together, alive and safe, and only then can Jongdae revel in the bliss of having Kyungsoo back.

You’re nervous, Yixing chides gloomily in his head. It’s not a question. You think he’ll forget all about you the minute he sees Kyungsoo.

Something about having his fears said to his face (not literally, but kinda) makes them sound so ridiculous that Baekhyun wants to blush and deny ever having them, but one look at Yixing makes him bite his tongue; his Parallel’s eyes are soft and honest, searching his face for an answer. He looks worried, with his head tilted like that. To Yixing’s left, Sehun’s pretending he doesn’t pay attention to the obvious telepathical conversation the Parallels are having; to Baekhyun’s right, Jongdae’s too busy humming a light melody.

Baekhyun swallows hard and looks down, avoiding Yixing’s gaze. He’s never had before, he says, mental voice hushed even though Yixing is the only one who can hear it. And I’m happy for him, he adds. It feels like an excuse. God knows we all need our Parallels.

Yixing’s eyes turn sad; Baekhyun sees them flick over to Jongin and feels his mind rush over Luhan, Wufan, Zitao. Loss, pain, death, rapid fire until they’re both holding back tears.

Jongin’s voice breaks them out of their morbid thoughts, happy and bright like the sunlight pouring between the leaves. “Found him,” he announces triumphantly. “Get ready.”

Obediently, Baekhyun closes his eyes and prepares himself for teleportation. There’s an empty whoosh in his ears he’d come to associate with the void they travel through, and the ground changes from soft earth to man-made floor tiles. He opens his eyes to the interior of a house;a rather large one, with black and white squares for the floor and solid white walls. There’s a sofa that looks like it’s seen better days, an old wooden coffee table, and a few empty shelves on the walls. A vase in the corner looks thoroughly dead. Everything is covered in a thick layer of dust.

It’s eerily quiet in the room until they all hear a distant bang and a clatter, followed by running feet and a familiar, low voice saying “Oh my god” excitedly. Baekhyun raises an eyebrow and looks at his friends; Yixing, Minseok, and Junmyeon all look just as confused as he feels, but Sehun looks like he’s trying his best not to burst out laughing. Jongin, it seems, has poofed off to find Chanyeol on his own.

Jongdae breaks contact with Baekhyun and Minseok and steps forward, face literally glowing in his excitement, arms raising forward without him seeming to notice as he faces the only door in the room, which is currently closed. The sound of running gets even closer, echoing through what Baekhyun assumes are hallways and ebbing in through the walls until-

The door bangs open and in bursts Kyungsoo, flushed cheeks bunched up in his signature heart smile and his eyes even wider and rounder than usual. “Oh my god, oh my god,” he repeats, apparently unable to conjure up anything else to say as his eyes land on Jongdae and his entire form tenses; one second, he’s standing in the doorway, huffing and puffing, and the next, he’s throwing himself into his Parallel’s arms, wrapping his own tightly around the lightning bender’s neck as Jongdae lifts him and spins them around, laughing like a child. They all take a step back to avoid being hit by Kyungsoo’s legs, but the smiles on their faces are ones of genuine happiness.

After what seems like a proper amount of spinning, Jongdae finally stops, but he never puts Kyungsoo down; he chooses to look up into his Parallel’s face with unrestrained joy written all over his face, eyes shining a little. Baekhyun doesn’t think he’s ever seen Kyungsoo smile this much, or this hard. It’s infectious, in a way, as he finds that he can’t stop smiling himself.

The earth bender leans down in his Parallel’s hold and cups his face, pressing kisses over every bit of exposed skin. If it were anyone else but Jongdae, Baekhyun would’ve been seriously shocked, but Kyungsoo was always physically affectionate with Jongdae compared to the rest of them, taking hugs and kisses from his Parallel and actually growling at those who tried to do the same. Jongin always complained that it was unfair, but they all knew that this is just what it’s like with Parallels; you always make an exception for them.

Which is why Baekhyun doesn’t freak out when Kyungsoo leans down and presses his lips against Jongdae’s, and the lightning bender kisses back just as hard, a happy sound resonating through his chest.

It used to freak him out, though, when he and Jongdae first started their relationship. They’ve had many arguments about it, until Jongdae finally told him what it was all about.

Kyungsoo doesn’t… feel love that way. Ever. Not like how I feel about you. He just doesn’t work like that. He loves me, but not like that. Kissing on the lips doesn’t mean anything to him, Baek. It’s just another way of expressing affection, to him. Just another place you can kiss, you know? It’s- it’s never like that.

But if you do it enough times, won’t you eventually start to feel-

No. No, Baekhyun. I love you. It’s always been you. I love Kyungsoo, but not the way I love you.

Well. How could Baekhyun say no to that?

I love you too.

It doesn’t matter to him, now. Kyungsoo kisses Jongdae on the lips for everything- good morning, good night, good training session, are you scared, I’m here for you, you look cute, have a good meal, I love you- he got used to it. It still made him uncomfortable at times, but the green beast in his chest would quiet down after that particular conversation flashed in his mind. He trusted Jongdae with this.

When the two finally part from their kiss they’re panting but smiling so hard Baekhyun’s afraid their skulls will fall out of their mouths. Still held up, Kyungsoo leans his forehead against Jongdae’s and starts whispering to him, voice soft enough that no one else can hear what he’s saying. Jongdae whispers back, still beaming, and Baekhyun thinks he can smell copper.

Everyone else is trying so hard to give Jongdae and Kyungsoo some space that when Jongin and Chanyeol appear out of thin air right next to Sehun, it feels like a refreshing summer breeze blew into the room. Chanyeol’s smile sure makes him look like one as he goes around hugging them and booming in his obnoxiously loud voice. He looks skinnier, hair lighter than it was the last time Baekhyun saw him, but even his blinding smile can’t distract him from the dark circles beneath his eyes, heavy and pronounced like he hasn’t slept in weeks. His arms tremble a little when he wraps Baekhyun in one of his bear hugs, swallowing him completely with his tall frame.

“Baekhyunnie,” he says, voice softer after getting scolded by Minseok. “It’s so good to see you after-”

After what happened in the facility. Baekhyun’s mind flashes- running hand in hand, Chanyeol dragging him behind him across dark hallways, kissing his forehead and telling him to run before turning around to protect him from the red nurses. The light bender shudders and buries his face in the giant’s chest, wishing he never said anything. “I’m glad you’re alive,” he says and means it. Chanyeol’s eyes are dangerously wet when he pulls back.

“This is amazing,” the fire bender says after he’s finished hugging everyone (Jongdae and Kyungsoo excluded- they’re still completely curled up in each other, but at least Jongdae put Kyungsoo down), voice carrying immense awe in it. “I mean, I could only feel that Kyungsoo was alive, I thought the worst happened, but then Jongin showed up and just, how-”

“It’s a long story,” Junmyeon says with a smile. “We can shorten it, if you want.”

The twinkle in Chanyeol’s eyes is dangerous, for lack of a better word. “ no. Tell me everything.”

By the time they finish the whole story, complete with everyone’s personal tale (Kyungsoo and Jongdae had to break it up for that part) and the explained plan, the sun is heading west and they’re tired. They’ve settled on the lonesome couch somewhere between Jongin and Minseok’s stories, ignoring the thick cloud of dust that rose from it as soon as they sat down; it was too small to seat all of them, obviously, so some had to do with sitting on the floor. Yixing managed to catch a good spot on the couch and Baekhyun settled down in his lap, deciding to give his boyfriend and his Parallel some time together. And anyway, Yixing’s arms around his waist, his chin on his shoulder, and the familiar hum of his mind next to his made Baekhyun relax a little. He didn’t realize how much he’d needed it.

As the conversation goes around the room, Baekhyun studies his friends’ faces, rejoicing in their presence. He didn’t think that getting them all back together would be this easy, but he’s glad that it was. There’s something about being back together in their normal lineup as nine that feels so right that he can feel the most basic and instinctive part of his mind purr in joy. This is how things should always be- all of them, together.

“So I find myself in Arizona, right,” Chanyeol says animatedly, hands waving wildly and smile going out of control as he speaks. “And I don’t know what the ’s going on. I only know two things,” he points out, holding out two fingers to list them. “One, Kyungsoo’s somewhere in America with me,” he folds down one finger, “and two, I don’t know any ing English.”

The room chuckles at that last part, some of them nodding in understanding to show they echo the feeling. Satisfied with the response, Chanyeol continues. “So naturally I think that I gotta get to Kyungsoo and figure things out from there. Only problem is, I don’t have any money, and America’s pretty ing huge. So I decide that I’m ed and give the up. Then, a few days later, Jongin shows up out of thin air and poofs me over here,” he finishes, leaning back into the couch after completing his story. Seconds later, he furrows his brow and looks around in confusion. “Wait, what is this place?”

“Yeah, I wanna know too, actually,” Sehun pipes up from his place on the floor, leaning back on both hands with his legs crossed. “It looks like no one’s lived here for ages.”

Humming, Kyungsoo nods to nothing in particular. He’s sitting on the couch with Jongdae’s head leaning on his knee, the lightning bender perched on the floor and his entire body curled towards his Parallel as Kyungsoo runs his fingers through his hair soothingly. They both have that look in their eyes Parallels often get when they’re in each other’s heads- distant, faint, dreamy. When Kyungsoo talks, Jongdae’s lips move in time to his Parallel’s, mouthing every word the minute the earthbender utters it without a second’s delay. No other Parallel couple Baekhyun has seen does that- that’s unique to Kyungsoo and Jongdae. It’s sweet, if not slightly terrifying.

“It’s an abandoned house,” Kyungsoo starts, stating the obvious as he looks around. “I actually crash-landed not too far from here. It was the only house I could see, so I walked in.” he shrugs, smiling sheepishly. “I figured that once you all come here it’d be big enough to house all of us. There are more than enough bedrooms and we can take care of electricity and water easily, so why not.”

Junmyeon nods, eyes showing appreciation. “That’s very smart, but we still need to eat and stuff.”

“And clothes,” Baekhyun points out, tugging the front of his shirt and releasing it, expression woeful. “I haven’t changed in days.”

“Picked up a job at the nearest gas station,” Kyungsoo and Jongdae say in unison. Baekhyun and just about everyone else jump in surprise; Minseok and Jongin clutch at their chests as if their hearts literally skipped a bit.

“Jesus ing Christ, you’re like the twins from the Shining,” Minseok mumbles, sounding faint.

When they both smile and dole out apologies, Baekhyun sees it; on Kyungsoo’s cheek, right at the high point where his cheekbone is, there’s a deep, scabbed-over cut, hidden in a deep purple bruise. It looks painful as all hell- Baekhyun’s surprised Kyungsoo can smile despite the pain moving his cheek must cause. “What happened to your cheek?” he asks, voice louder than he intended it to come out and tinged with worry. It draws everyone else’s attention to the bruise; Sehun and Chanyeol hiss in sympathy as Junmyeon makes tsking noises, disapproving. Yixing slides out from underneath Baekhyun and moves to crouch in front of the earthbender to scan the wound up close.

Raising a hand to his cheek, Kyungsoo shakes his head. His eyes are wide with alarm. “It’s okay, really,” he assures them, unsuccessfully. “I got cut while landing. It doesn’t hurt that much.”

Even so, Yixing’s fingertips start to glow a light blue as he hovers them over Kyungsoo’s cheek. “I can heal it if you want,” he suggests, voice gentle. Kyungsoo shakes his head and smiles, a small, meek smile.

“It’s fine,” he says again; his voice holds something urgent in it, panicked. Baekhyun throws a quick look at Jongdae and finds his boyfriend sitting with his body and expression tense, eyes fixed on his Parallel and Yixing like an animal about to attack. It makes Baekhyun swallow hard. He’s sure that if he dared to take a breath, he’d smell metal in the air; the hairs on the back of his neck stand up, sending pinpricks down his spine.

Let it go, he tells Yixing. His voice comes out breathy and scared, and he has no idea why. His fear bleeds over to the healer, surprising him. Yixing, let it go. Something’s going on. Don’t touch Kyungsoo.

Yixing’s head flicks towards him so fast Baekhyun almost expects him to get whiplash, and his thoughts are a confused mess. They’re both suddenly hyper-aware of the fact that everyone’s watching them with a mixture of alarm, fear, and cluelessness, which means they have to act like they don’t know anything. Technically, they don’t; Jongdae’s kept Baekhyun pretty much in the dark up until now, making him and Kyungsoo the only ones in the room that know what’s actually going on. That thought sends a spike of anger up Baekhyun’s spine, making his eyes narrow and his nostrils flare. If Jongdae and him were Parallels, he’d be telepathically giving Jongdae a piece of his mind right now; but since they aren’t he just breathes in deeply and keeps his mouth shut.

Slowly, carefully, Yixing retracts his fingers (the edges of which aren’t glowing anymore) from Kyungsoo’s face. The earthbender relaxes slightly, eyes following Yixing back to his seat underneath Baekhyun.

The tense air in the room starts to disperse, which means Chanyeol just has to say something eloquent and brilliant.

“What the was that about?”

This time, when Jongdae and Kyungsoo say “Nothing” in perfect unison, nobody bats an eyelid.

------

Things are tense for the rest of the evening. They disperse into their bedrooms, feeling like it’s best to stay apart from each other for a while. Baekhyun leans against the wall opposite the one with the door leading to Kyungsoo’s room, arms crossed to seem relaxed and at ease, but eyes furious. Jongdae has entered that room over two hours ago and has not left it since, but the minute he does, Baekhyun will give him something to chew on. This whole mysteriousness deal is coming to an end tonight.

Sehun passes by on the way to the room he shares with Jongin and Chanyeol; the minute he sees Baekhyun seething alone in the hallway, he mutters some choice curse words and ducks his head as he speeds by the livid light bender, nearly throwing himself into his room and slamming the door behind him in his haste to escape. Baekhyun barely spares him a glance. The more he waits, the angrier he gets, which makes him really ing angry by now.

The lights in the hallway, now working thanks to Jongdae’s power, flicker dangerously.

Calm down, baby boy, Yixing mumbles in his mind. He sounds sleepy, like Baekhyun’s angry thoughts woke him up. You’re gonna plunge us all into darkness.

Go to sleep, hyung, I gotta kick my boyfriend’s , Baekhyun snaps, eyes never leaving the door in front of him.

Yixing sighs, but sends him the image of him backing away with hands raised in surrender. You know that if you’ll lay a single finger on Jongdae Kyungsoo will personally fight you, right?

An ugly snort leaves Baekhyun, both in his head and his actual mouth. What makes you so sure I’m gonna spare Kyungsoo, hyung?

Good ing luck and some fond amusement is all he gets in return before his Parallel falls back asleep, mind shutting off faster than Baekhyun could say thanks.

The house falls into silence. Baekhyun would’ve assumed that Jongdae and Kyungsoo went to sleep, if it weren’t for the light peeking through the crack at the bottom of the door. They’re speaking over their link, then, to make sure no one hears them. It’s a smart move, but it makes Baekhyun boil with rage. If they’re hiding crucial information from all of them, if they think they’re in danger and are doing nothing-

The door swings open and out comes Jongdae, followed closely by Kyungsoo. They both look exhausted and wary, but Baekhyun finds no remorse inside himself when he straightens up and gives Jongdae his most scalding look. The lightning bender stops dead in his tracks and throws his arms to the sides to protect his Parallel (which is ridiculous because Kyungsoo is one of their strongest) as Baekhyun storms up to his boyfriend and grabs him by the collar, tugging them close until their noses are touching. This close, Baekhyun can look straight into Jongdae’s eyes and see them turn from alarmed to confused to steel-hard in a matter of a second.

Behind him, Kyungsoo tenses, ready to fight, voice bearing danger as he growls. “Baekhyun, leave him alone.” The ground starts to shake ever so slightly at his words, the floor vibrating ominously beneath Baekhyun’s feet. He knows Kyungsoo will use his power to his advantage without batting an eyelid; he’ll do anything to ensure his Parallel’s safety, no matter how miniscule the threat may seem.

“It’s okay,” Jongdae promises, eyes never leaving Baekhyun’s as he easily releases himself from the light bender’s hold and straightens his shirt; in a way, he’s saving him. “Go inside, Soo, I’ll talk to him.”

It seems to take a monumental effort on his behalf, but finally Kyungsoo nods curtly and presses a peck on Jongdae’s cheek before stepping inside the room and closing the door, leaving the couple alone. Jongdae drops his arms and folds them instead, raising an eyebrow at his boyfriend, waiting for him to talk.

Boy, does Baekhyun want to talk.

“You need to come clean,” he starts, tone full of fire as he jabs his forefinger into an open palm. “Cut the mysterious crap. Stop whispering and giggling with Kyungsoo and tell us-” tell me “-what’s going on, because this, Jongdae, what you two are doing right now, isn’t ing cute. You told me we’re in danger. You told me that this is bad. Keeping the rest of us in the dark like that while we’re in risk and weird ing things are happening left and right just isn’t fair. If you didn’t want Yixing to heal Kyungsoo earlier, you should have told him why instead of just freaking us all out.” The mention of his Parallel shakes something inside Baekhyun’s chest and reminds him what he has to protect, turning his voice softer but more serious. “This isn’t some spy novel, Jongdae, this is real life, we’ve lost way too ing much to get here, and I won’t let you and Kyungsoo knowingly risk our lives for the sake of your little secret.”

When he finishes speaking, his chest is rising and falling rapidly and he’s shaking with rage. He looks at Jongdae defiantly and waits for his response, wiping some spit from his chin while he’s at it. Jongdae’s looking at him calmly, which sends another annoyed ripple down Baekhyun’s spine. “Tomorrow,” the lightning bender says. His voice betrays nothing. “We’ll tell you tomorrow.”

Baekhyun narrows his eyes. It’s not what he was hoping for, but it is pretty late and it looks like it’s the best deal he’s gonna get. “Good,” he hisses, taking a step back towards the room he shares with Yixing. He’s done here. He gets to the door and already has his hand on the knob before an old saying crosses his mind- never go to bed angry. He’s not exactly sure if it’s meant for couples or if it’s just some motivational slogan, but something about it rings true enough to make him turn around and face his boyfriend once again, expression and tone deliberately softer. “I love you, Jongdae, but you’ve really pissed me off. Let me cool down, okay?”

His eyes search the lightning bender’s face desperately as Baekhyun hopes to high heavens that Jongdae understands. Please, let him understand.

It seems like his prayers worked- despite the tense situation, Jongdae gives him a dazzling smile that makes Baekhyun’s heart ache, even with how angry he is. “I love you too,” he says easily, like nothing ever happened, like he’ll never get tired of saying it and meaning it. “Good night, Baek.”

Baekhyun nods and turns his back towards Jongdae, shoulders heavy. Falling asleep in his Parallel’s arms is almost as good as falling asleep in the arms of the love of his life.

------

Jongdae makes good on his promise. The next morning, when Baekhyun and Yixing go downstairs to the living room, he and Kyungsoo are standing in the middle of the room in front of everybody, faces grim like the bearers of bad news. Sleep had done wonders to Baekhyun’s nerves; when he walks past Jongdae to sit on the floor between Jongin and Yixing, he returns the smile his boyfriend gives him and lets him kiss his forehead, but nothing else. Not until Kyungsoo and Jongdae actually spill it.

(Nevertheless, it’s kind of nice to stand in the circle of his boyfriend’s arms and feel his lips press against his skin, soft and warm, like they always do. He almost wishes Jongdae could feel the longing gnawing at the inside of his chest when he moves away from his boyfriend and settles next to Yixing on the floor with his back leaning against the sofa.

Yixing’s arm around his shoulders fills the cold space in his stomach with warmth, even if it’s just for a few minutes. I’m sure he feels it too, baby boy.)

“So,” Kyungsoo starts, fingers playing with the hem of his shirt nervously as his eyes dart across their faces, seeing and not seeing them at the same time. Somehow, the bruise on his cheek is gone- skin unbroken. “You’re probably all wondering what that thing with Yixing yesterday was all about.”

Behind Baekhyun, on the sofa, Junmyeon scoffs. “That would be an understatement.”

When Baekhyun looks around at his friends, he notices that he’s not the only one who noticed the lack of bruise on Kyungsoo’s cheek- Minseok’s eyes are locked on the earthbender’s face- which ultimately means Junmyeon has noticed too- Chanyeol has his mouth slightly agape, and Sehun and Jongin are exchanging weirded-out looks. Neither of them know what’s going on, but if there’s anyone who can explain it to them, it’s the duo standing in front of them.

The duo that is currently exchanging dark glances, no doubt having a quick conversation over their telepathic link. Baekhyun watches expectantly as Kyungsoo juts his chin out and leans his head towards the men watching them, eyes looking at Jongdae like he’s trying to get a point across to him. Jongdae doesn’t look to happy about it, but eventually he gives his Parallel a short nod and they both face their friends again, linking their pinkies together as they do. The lightning bender’s eyes meet Baekhyun’s, who in turn raises an eyebrow at his boyfriend to say get on with it.

With a small smile, Jongdae does just that.

“As you all know, for the past several years we’ve all been held in a facility set in the forests of South Korea,” he begins confidently, ignoring the wince that went through the room at the mention of that dreaded place. “In that facility we’ve trained daily, ate, slept, and had- medical exams every month.” his voice wavers at that last part, no doubt remembering those horrifying medical exams that resembled torture more than anything. Kyungsoo takes a sideways step that lands him right at his Parallel’s side, their shoulders pressed together. Jongdae takes a shaky breath. “Did any of you think why we were being held there?”

Jongin shifts uneasily next to Baekhyun. “I think we all did, but,” his voice takes on a hesitant waver. “I kind of get it? Our powers, they-” he stops himself short, seemingly unable to speak what he thought next as his eyes turn to the floor. On his other side, Sehun takes the teleporter’s arm and hugs it, leaning his head on his friend’s shoulder. He looks extremely juvenile like this, and something inside Baekhyun twists with the need to protect him from the world.

“We’re dangerous,” completes Sehun in a barely audible murmur.

“That’s not true,” Junmyeon contradicts him, but they can all hear the uncertain note in his voice.

It kind of is, though. Baekhyun thinks of Lyon, how he caused the entire city to plunge into darkness in a matter of seconds without even meaning to; his power acted on its own, uncalled and unchecked. He thinks of Jongdae and how often he’s smelled copper in the air since they escaped- all of which were triggered by small inconveniences, a sentence or an action out of line. If this is what they’re capable of when they’re not paying attention, what kind of havoc can they wreak with their hearts set on a goal?

Way too much, Yixing quips in his mind. The hope is all gone from his voice, replaced by the dark fog of fear. Baekhyun curls away from it and scooches closer to his Parallel, seeking the comfort that the healer usually supplies so easily. It’s unsettling when he gets none.

Jongdae shakes his head and plows on, seemingly unaffected by the somber turn the conversation took. “We’ve been thinking,” he says, clearly meaning him and Kyungsoo. “Ge, remember what you said back in Yunnan, about how before Jongin couldn’t teleport you from your cubicle to the common room without getting tired, and now he can teleport seven of us from China to Colorado without even breaking a sweat?” he asks Yixing, eyes starting to twinkle the way they do when he gets excited about something.

Yixing furrows his brows. In his mind, Baekhyun can see him pulling up the vague memory of him saying those exact same words. “Yeah, I remember,” he says cautiously. “What’s that got to do with it?”

“Everything,” Kyungsoo and Jongdae say together.

“We think the facility had some kind of force field around it that weakened our powers significantly, and when we escaped, our powers came back to full potential,” Kyungsoo picks up, practically bouncing on the balls of his feet as he points to his cheek- the one that until yesterday was covered in a nasty bruise but was now unmarred. “Look at what simply being in the same house as you did, hyung,” he tells Yixing, smile wide.

Baekhyun looks at his Parallel with awe. Both of their minds are reeling, racing to take in the new information that was so messily tossed at them.

Kyungsoo continues, spreading his fingers wide as if he’s going to count off a list on them. “The forest fires in Arizona,” he says, looking at Chanyeol and folding one finger. “The super-strong winds in Edinburgh,” he addresses Sehun, folding another finger. “The blackout in Lyon,” he accuses Baekhyun. “The sea’s level rising and flooding Marseille,” he tells Junmyeon. Another folded finger. “The temperatures in Berlin dropping lower than they ever have in the past twenty years,” he points at Minseok. As he lists all of those, his voice climbs higher and higher with excitement, his eyes shining like his Parallel’s.

“So what? That doesn’t mean anything,” Minseok argues. He’s sitting up stiffly on the sofa, arms crossed defiantly as he looks at Kyungsoo with his eyebrows raised. If he were a cat, his fur would be standing up by now. “The weather in Berlin could’ve been without me.”

Kyungsoo and Jongdae both raise one eyebrow right back at him, mirroring his position with their arms crossed on their chests. “You caught a cold,” they point out. Their tones are final, like that sentence alone explains everything.

Of course, Baekhyun thinks, remembering how Jongdae tensed when Minseok sneezed back in Yunnan- he gets it now, gets that that solitary sneeze lit a warning light in Jongdae’s mind. Minseok never gets cold, ever- his power protect him from it, adjusting to low temperatures so he doesn’t get sick. This time, it must’ve flared out and affected Minseok too- froze him enough to catch a cold. It makes sense.

“Holy ,” Chanyeol mumbles, sounding like he just got hit by a truck after having probably reached the same conclusion as Baekhyun. “Holy , you might be right.”

The smug grins on Kyungsoo and Jongdae’s faces are kind of infuriating. “We know we are,” they say together, pleased, as always, to hear that they’re right. Yep, definitely infuriating.

A thought crosses Baekhyun’s mind, quick like a lightning. “Wait,” he says suddenly, raising a hand as if to physically stop everyone else in their tracks. He looks at Jongdae, who drops the smugness in his smile and blinks pleasantly at him. “You can manipulate the magnetic fields to fly now. That’s how you got to me, and how we got to Jongin,” he recalls.

“That’s awesome,” Sehun cries, eyes torn wide with admiration.

“Wish I could do that,” Chanyeol agrees, nodding along.

Jongdae, however, doesn’t look all that happy about it. He and Kyungsoo exchange uneasy looks, the earthbender pressing his lips to a thin line. “That’s not all,” he exclaims finally, nudging his Parallel’s side with an elbow, voice soft with caution and affection. “Show them, Dae.”

It looks like Jongdae’s having a mental battle with his Parallel and losing; with a defeated sigh he nods and turns around, grabbing the hem of his shirt and pulling it up to remove it. The hoots and calls of “Dude, what are you doing” are hushed abruptly when the shirt lands on the floor and the skin of Jongdae’s back is revealed. Baekhyun lets out an involuntary whimper.

Jongdae’s back, once smooth and unmarked, is now covered in what looks like intricate branching patterns, passing underneath his skin, standing out with their angry red color. His entire back is covered in them, stretching over every inch of skin and going up to his shoulders, probably continuing over his front, too. They look like lightning bolts, it occurs to Baekhyun, and that realization makes him tense up, hands clenching into fists. Something like dread grips his heart and squeezes until his entire chest is filled with a dull ache that throbs, impossible to ignore. His throat closes up as his mind whirls; he should go, he doesn’t want to see this-

When Jongdae turns around and puts his shirt back on, his smile is sheepish, like a kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar. “They’re called Lichtenberg Figures,” he explains over the hollow ringing in Baekhyun’s ears. “They’re- they happen when you get struck by lightning, or when you’re exposed to high voltages.”

“What happened?” Junmyeon asks, tone hushed like he’s talking to a wounded puppy. Baekhyun closes his eyes as his heart gives a painful thud. He doesn’t want to hear the answer, wishes with all his heart for Jongdae to just shut up.

He doesn’t, of course. Typical. “I, uh, I noticed that my power was a lot stronger after I crash-landed. It would erupt and spike violently, and destroy everything around me. So I directed it inside, towards myself.” when Baekhyun opens his eyes, Jongdae’s smiling that stupid charming smile of his. Tears collect in Baekhyun’s eyes, unbeckoned. “It’s better to hurt myself than everyone around me, right?”

That’s it. That’s really the final straw. It feels like he’s in some kind of trance as Baekhyun shoots up to his feet and flees the room, running through hallways and corridors he hasn’t had the time to explore and now doesn’t have the time to appreciate as his vision blurs and smears, turning his surroundings into clumps of blurred color. He can hear Yixing calling him in his mind, telling him to stop, pleading him to breathe, and Baekhyun shoves his Parallel out of his head and locks the door behind him. He wants to be alone.

He doesn’t know how or why, but suddenly he finds himself standing in a tiny courtyard he didn’t even know existed; it looks like an inner garden, flanked by the house from all four directions. There’s a lone tree in the middle of it and some bushes that grew all over the ground and walls over time. Whoever lived in this house must’ve been rich as .

Baekhyun stops to catch his breath, a pretty useless endeavor as it seems like every piece of oxygen he has in his body is being channeled to a series of ugly sobs that tear through his lungs and vocal chords. Jongdae with his heroism and his god complex and his need to always, always save everyone around him, him-

“Baek,” a voice from behind him says, and Baekhyun whips around to see Jongdae standing there, panting. He looks at Baekhyun and his eyes are full of pain and sorrow as he reaches out to his boyfriend, fingers curling desperately. “Baby, please-”

“Don’t,” Baekhyun warns him, voice shaking dangerously as he takes a step back. “Save it, Jongdae. All of your inspirational mottos and your- your ing hero’s guilt, save it.” he raises a shaking hand to wipe at his eyes, though it doesn’t help- his vision is just as blurry as it was before. “You can’t keep sacrificing yourself for the greater good, can’t keep hurting yourself like this.” he’s sobbing and it’s ugly, but he just can’t stop; he’s hurting.

Jongdae takes a few steps forward so the distance between them isn’t so unbearable anymore. “Why not?” he asks defiantly. “I don’t care if I get hurt as long as you’re all safe-”

“BECAUSE IT HURTS ME!” Baekhyun outright screams, finally gathering all that pain and letting it out- it feels ing good, to see (however blurrily) the shocked expression rise on Jongdae’s face like he just got slapped. “It hurts me to see you like this, Jongdae. I can’t look at it, I can’t stand knowing that you’re in pain and that you’re sticking your neck out for us, I care about you too much to take it.” he doesn’t even know if Jongdae can understand what he’s saying through the sobbing mess he’d turned into, but something must’ve gotten through to him, because he takes those extra few steps that separate them and wraps Baekhyun in his embrace, one hand on his back and the other cradling the back of his head sweetly. Baekhyun buries his face in his boyfriend’s shoulder and claws at the back of his shirt, holding on for dear life as he keeps sobbing uncontrollably. He doesn’t even know what he’s saying anymore, but he’s talking and it helps to ease the pressure on his chest, even if it’s just slightly.

Jongdae lets him cry it out, his hair and back and pressing kisses to his temple all throughout his breakdown. Baekhyun revels in the feeling of being in his boyfriend’s arms and presses himself even closer as his sobs subside to whimpers and an occasional sniffle. He’s tired, eyelids and limbs feeling like lead and his throat sore. Without him noticing, he’s shifted his entire body weight so he’s practically leaning on Jongdae. He’ll probably be embarrassed about it later, but right now he doesn’t care.

A kiss is pressed to his neck, right behind his ear. “Tired?”

Bless Jongdae for understanding without having Baekhyun say a single word. The light bender nods, a small movement, and closes his eyes. “I feel gross.”

Jongdae chuckles, his voice warm and fond. Baekhyun can feel it vibrating against his chest and presses himself closer, starved for affection and touch after the last twenty four hours. “Let’s put you to bed, babe.”

“Don’t treat me like a ing baby,” Baekhyun whines, sounding exactly like one. He doesn’t hate the idea of a nap, even though he just woke up a few hours ago. Distantly, he feels Jongdae pick him up and carry him inside. His mind slips in and out of consciousness for a few seconds; the next thing he’s aware of is Jongdae putting him down on a soft mattress, having removed his shoes and pants. An alarm sounds in Baekhyun’s head when Jongdae tucks him in and moves to leave; blindly, he reaches out and manages to snag something that feels like his boyfriend’s jeans. “Stay with me,” he pleads, voice weak and words slurring together.

His hold on reality weakens fast, but he feels Jongdae slip into bed next to him and wrap his arms around him, pulling him close as their legs tangle together.

“Always,” is the last word Baekhyun registers before his mind slips into darkness.

FINE OKAY SO THIS ISNT THE LAST CHAPTER. SUE ME. i totally meant for it to be, but then it got rly ing long and i couldnt fit everything into one explaining session, so i guess the next chapter will truly be the last. (with a little closing epilogue after it, and dont forget about the prequel i wanted to write about their actual escape. things are Grand, my pals. im doing Completely Fine)

but!! kyungsoo is aromantic but he still loves jongdae to the moon and back bc chensoo are life. i did my best to highlight the fact that kyungsoos love for jongdae is purely platonic, but if any actual aromantics are reading this and are offended bc i may have implied that u just need the right person to come along for u to feel romantic attraction, pls correct me! as an aual, the last thing i want is for ppl to feel like theyve been wronged by an allo bc that is Not A Nice Feeling. pls support my smol aro son he needs it. also chanyeol curses like a sailor #relatable

HOW DID THIS CHAPTER GET TO 6.8K???????

lichtenberg figures are actually real things. theyre real cool!