"Urgh." His head was killing him. Pain was coursing through his body. He curled up even more, trying to shield himself as much as possible from the cold drops. ". ing rain."

Why did it have to rain today, of all days? It had been dry for weeks and now, out of all the times it could have rained, it had to rain while he had no place to stay the night.

"This . Life . Everything ." He punched the ground but immediately regretted it. "Ow."

Joshua blankly watched as blood dripped down his knuckles. The skin had split open where it had met the surprisingly hard jaw of one of the s who had beaten him up. The wound had only stopped bleeding a few minutes ago but now, thanks to his own stupidity, it had reopened.

"Revenge my . ing wimps." Too scared to fight him fair and square. Five against one unsuspecting victim.

The smell of wet soil and rain began to penetrate the cool air as the soft pitter-patter of drops hitting the ground slowly increased in volume. Water dripped onto his face from the branches he was hiding under. He hissed in annoyance.

This . He wanted to go home. But his limbs were too heavy to move and his parents would throw a massive fit once he came home like that. It wasn't the first time after all.

Therefore it was better to just stay away, sleep outside or find a place to spend the night.

Pain flickered through his chest when he pushed himself backwards, towards the trunk of the tree, in an attempt to get further away from the rain.

Should he call someone to pick him up? Wonseok-hyung, maybe? But if he told him about the fight, Shinji-hyung would hear about it too - and then he'd get his beat for losing face. It was probably better to try to get to their hideout alone. He’d be able to stay there for a few days...

Almost masked by the sound of rain, the crunching of gravel on the nearby trail alerted him of someone's presence. Joshua tensed.

Had they returned to finish their business? But they had left on their own earlier, after beating him to a pulp; it didn't make sense. But nobody would take a stroll through the park in this weather unless-

Joshua pressed himself against the rough bark of the tree trunk in an attempt to blend in with the hues of brown and green surrounding him, to be as unnoticeable as possible. His bruised back was screaming in protest.

No Human would take a stroll now. But this was a rather secluded area and the heavy clouds were hiding the sun; the light was dim despite it only being early afternoon. Perfect for Beings who wanted to hunt.

Besides, this wasn't one of the safe-zones. Nobody would help him here.

Sweat began to mix with rainwater. The way he was right now - injured, helpless – made him the perfect prey and he could only hope that the weather would hide his presence as much as possible.

When the footsteps neared his hiding spot, he wrapped his dirtied leather jacket tighter around him, grimacing at the pain from his cuts and bruises.

The smell of rain grew stronger. The crunching of gravel stopped.

"Uhm... Are you alright?" a voice asked.

The stranger turned out to be a teenager around Joshua's age, maybe a bit younger. The coat he was wearing looked expensive, even though it was already completely soaked, just like his brand-name sneakers and jeans. His dark-brown hair was parted in the middle and the rain made it stick to his forehead. It was long enough to poke his brown, mono-lidded eyes.

Mama's boy was the first thing that shot through Joshua's head. To his relief, he couldn't make out any fangs, claws or otherwise unsettling features.

They eyed each other warily, taking in their similarities and differences. Two Humans at completely opposite ends of the social spectrum.

"You're bleeding," the boy pointed out, his voice shaking slightly.

Joshua grunted. The brat probably thought he was some sort of homeless piece of trash - which, if he had to be completely honest, wasn't too far off right now. Not that it bothered him. "None of your ing business."

The stranger startled at his hostile tone and for a split second, Joshua felt bad. But then his defences went up again. Who knew what that guy was planning. And why was he still here? "Piss off," he growled, his face distorted while he tried to sit up straight.

Something was seriously wrong with his chest. Maybe a broken rib?

Hands wrapped around his arm and pulled him upwards but before Joshua could slap them away, the boy had already released him and taken a step back, seemingly surprised by his own courage. Silence reigned for a moment, only broken by the increasingly loud sound of rain.

The boy wasn't leaving despite the bad weather and his unfriendly attitude - what was his problem?

"Thanks," Joshua finally muttered, unsure what else to do. He eyed the other male again, noting the pale complexion under the soaked-through mop of hair. He looked like he had spent hours in the rain although it had only started to drizzle a few minutes ago. He also looked like he was about to collapse. "Uh... want some chocolate?"

The boy looked up from his shoes, his eyes wide, and Joshua had to suppress a snort at his baffled expression. He was just like a kid.

Joshua patted his dirty leather jacket until he found the squashed chocolate bar he had bought before his day had gone downhill. He held the crinkled wrapper with two fingers, careful not to get any blood on it, and offered it to the boy. "Sorry, got a bit smashed up earlier but it should still taste okay."

"You don't want it?" The voice of the boy was shaking even more now and Joshua's brows furrowed. Of course, he wanted it. He had bought it with what little allowance he had left and he was freaking starving. "Nah, you take it. You look like ."

Redness took over the pale cheeks. "You're one to talk," the boy mumbled, reaching for the chocolate bar, and Joshua flashed him a grin. His split lip twinged.

"Yo, 's that how you thank people?"

The boy's flush deepened but a smile tugged at the corners of his mouth nonetheless. "Thank you."

"That's right," Joshua drawled while he watched his lunch getting devoured. That guy was eating as if he had starved for three days.

With another grimace, he once again leaned back against the tree, trying to avoid touching the forming bruises on his back. Then he patted the semi-dry ground next to him. "Sit. You're making me nervous standing there." And it probably wouldn't do the boy any good to get even wetter - if that was even possible, given his drenched state.

He followed the order without a word, his mouth filled to the brim. His puffy cheeks made him look like a hamster. Joshua bit back another grin before he asked, "What's your name? And slow down; if you choke to death, I'm gonna be the one in trouble."

Chocolate-smeared lips twitched into another sweet smile and Joshua decided that this guy was entirely too pure to hang out with him.

"I'm Minghao," the boy replied after swallowing the massive bite. "And you?"

The smell of chocolate hit Joshua's nose and his stomach clenched in hunger but he tried to ignore it and patted the pockets of his jacket until he found what he had been searching for. ", they're all messed up. Those bastards." He lit one of the crooked cigarettes anyway and held the biting smoke in his lungs for a few seconds before he blew it into the humid air, watching as the see-through wisps dissipated. The familiar smell of tobacco soothed his nerves. His stomach relaxed a little. Finally, he said, "I'm Joshua. Want one?"

The sight of the offered cigarettes seemed to intimidate the boy but after a moment of hesitation, he nodded nonetheless and reached for the pack with a shaking hand.

Joshua raised an eyebrow at the reaction before he pulled away, Minghao's cold fingers grazing his bloody knuckles. "Changed my mind. I gotta save some, I'm too broke to buy another pack." He wouldn't be the reason why that kid started smoking.

Relief got overshadowed by disappointment on the young face.

"How old are you anyway?" Joshua asked while he slid the remaining cigarettes back into his pocket, ignoring the boy's longing stare.

"I'm turning fifteen soon."

Two years younger. Joshua eyed him again, his eyes once again drawn to the expensive designer clothes Minghao was wearing. Was it really okay for a rich kid like him to hang out with a beat-up delinquent? Not likely. "You gotta go home, kiddo. You're outside the safe-zone." There were worse things out here than human thugs.

Minghao's face visibly fell at his words before he looked down and mumbled, "I can't. I ran away."

That caught Joshua off-guard. "Why?" He didn't seem like a troublemaker or someone who'd rebel against his parents but the very real despair in his eyes was strong enough to make Joshua uncomfortable. It didn't match the chocolate still stuck to t