The shivering boy whimpered once again, seemingly unaware of his surroundings, and the quiet sound immediately pulled Jisoo's heartstrings.

After a brief moment of hesitation, he crouched down in front of the gap between the walls to make himself look less threatening and cleared his throat. The boy shrunk at the sudden sound and huddled himself further against the rough brick wall without looking up, most parts of his face still obscured by his arms.

Jisoo looked around one last time - just to make sure that this was not some sort of elaborate ruse to rob him - but seeing nothing out of the ordinary, he focused solely on the stranger in front of him.

"Excuse me? Do you need help?" He was incredibly glad that his voice had remained steady and that his stutter had not made itself known this time. After waiting for a few seconds and not getting any response, he tried again. "Hello? Can you hear me? It's too c-cold for you to sit here..." He trailed off when the boy lifted his head.

He looked even younger than Jisoo had assumed. With slanted, mono-lidded eyes and a pale face below a mop of brown hair, he appeared to be not older than sixteen but the mark on his foot was visible proof that he was at least legally an adult. Right now his pale face was glistening with tears and his eyes were red and slightly swollen. The stranger silently stared at Jisoo before he broke down into tears once again and muttered incomprehensible words.

It took the Wielder several ignored attempts of talking to the boy before he finally gave up and carefully moved closer while unwrapping his scarf with shaky fingers. He stopped a safe distance away, just out of reach of the other. The stranger didn't seem like much of a threat but better safe than sorry. "I'll give you my scarf but you really need to go home," he tried again and leaned forward, his scarf tightly grasped in his hands.

The boy seemed to calm down a little as soon as the soft, warm fabric came in contact with his skin and Jisoo slowly wrapped it around his throat and shoulders, careful not to touch the other directly. The crying stopped and silence filled the almost darkness. Jisoo breathed a silent sigh of relief and slowly began to move back towards the street he had originally come from in an attempt to make his way home.

He had not expected the boy to suddenly grab onto his arm, preventing him from going and scaring the living daylights out of him. Jisoo prepared himself for an incoming attack by closing his eyes.

"Thanks," a hoarse voice whispered next to him and the Wielder slowly opened his eyes again only to find the other still holding onto the sleeve of his jacket. The boy took a deep breath as if to suppress the tears that still threatened to spill and cleared his throat. "I don't have anywhere to go, I ran away. I'm Chan." His voice was clearer now, smoother, but filled with deep sadness that reflected in his dark eyes.

Jisoo felt a bit calmer now that the other was actually talking to him, so he turned back around and faced the boy once again. Chan had lowered his eyes and loosened the grasp on Jisoo's arm as soon as it seemed like he was not leaving anymore. He looked incredibly small and pale, still shivering from the cold. The Wielder worriedly noted the blue tint on his lips.

"I'm Jisoo. How long have you been out here, Chan?" he asked, making sure to keep his voice down to not scare the other. The boy only shook his head as an answer and wiped his eyes with the back of his dirty hands.

An almost motherly instinct rose to the surface of Jisoo's subconsciousness at the sight of so much misery. Maybe it was because he had always wanted a sibling or maybe because he was a Wielder and it was in his nature to care but the strong urge to help and protect the younger filled him. He took in the shaking form and bare, dirty skin and decided that he could risk bringing the boy into his flat so he at least could take a shower and warm up a little. "We should really get you out of the cold. It probably sounds weird but do you want to go to my apartment?"

Chan seemed reluctant to follow a stranger at first but after carefully studying Jisoo's face and only finding honesty and the wish to help, he finally agreed.

The walk back home had been quiet. Jisoo had forced Chan to wear his thick winter jacket since even the sweater Jisoo wore beneath it was warmer than every piece of clothing the boy had on his body combined. Although Chan wasn't that much smaller when it came to height, he seemed to drown in the jacket since he was so thin. Fortunately, the wide sweatpants hid his bare feet quite well while walking so none of the people on the streets noticed his unbonded status.

At the time they arrived in front of the apartment complex Jisoo lived in, Chan had stopped shaking but he was still overly pale and looked slightly dazed. He only talked when spoken to and even then his answers were monotonous and short. Jisoo worried that the boy was developing pneumonia or at least a severe cold and hurried through the hallways at an even faster pace than he usually did, all while keeping an eye out for Chan and the other residents. Fumbling with the electronic lock, he typed in the wrong passcode twice until the door to his apartment finally opened with a beep. He held it open and expectantly looked in Chan's direction who hesitantly entered the warm flat.

Turning on the lights, the Wielder closed the door and took off his boots. "Wait here, I'll get you some towels and something to wear." Chan only nodded silently, taking in the small but tidy living room. After raiding his wardrobe, Jisoo returned and showed the boy his bathroom.

The shower seemed to have revived Chan's spirits. He was now seated comfortably on the slightly worn-out sofa, wrapped in Jisoo's blanket and cradling a big mug of hot chocolate in his hands. The colour had returned to his face and his lips were a soft pink instead of pale blue. He was also much more alert and responsive than he had been before, chatting animatedly about the pictures and things he had seen in the apartment and asking random questions. Jisoo felt his heavy heart turn a bit lighter with every cute smile directed towards him.

After a short moment of comfortable silence, Jisoo dared to ask the questions that plagued his mind. "Chan, why were you out there? What happened exactly?" The boy's smile immediately crumbled and it pained Jisoo that he had to disturb Chan's peace but he needed to know what was going on.

"It's not a nice story," Chan said quietly, his eyes downcast, "and I'll under