"Jongin, the lunch is ready."

As expected, the younger was too busy solving his cube to respond to Kyungsoo's gentle call. Kyungsoo knew it beforehand, but at least it was worth a try. His hopes were not all gone. So just like the past couple of weeks. He himself had to grab Jongin by his elbow and lead him towards the dining table. Still focussed on his puzzle, Jongin was in no state of paying attention to food. But considering that he was getting skinnier day by day, Kyungsoo had to make sure that he took at least something for his meal. Kyungsoo's fried chicken was something that Jongin could never say no to. There was a time when he would follow the aroma of this favorite dish of his, and would be ready to eat it with his watering mouth in the kitchen itself when it was still being prepared. But today, Kyungsoo had to fork a big fat piece of chicken and place it next to Jongin's mouth, while literally praying to god for him to eat it. As if making a joke of his prayers, that chicken piece instead of going inside Jongin's mouth, was flown right across the table and straight on to the ground.

"Jongin!"

Kyungsoo reflexively yelled at that disrespect that Jongin had shown by shoving his hand away like that. But it didn't take him too long to realise that it wasn't Jongin's fault at all, if anyone was to blame then it was Kyungsoo himself. Before he could even think of apologising for raising his voice like that, the noise had already driven Jongin away. He had nothing to do with the world with noises that disturbed him. He wanted to be alone, and so he went back to his room.

Kyungsoo had lost count of how many times he had already cried in the last couple of weeks. He didn't even have tears left to cry more, and that was even more hurtful. With dead will, dead hopes and dead emotions, he limply sat on the chair and went into oblivion. He was still not able to figure out what actually had happened that day between Jongin and that disgrace of a father. All he knew was that it took all of his happiness away from him. All he knew was that it had erased all those efforts of him and Jongin's therapist to improve his condition. All he knew was that he had once again, lost Jongin. After going through so much, everything was back to square one. A Jongin that had just started to talk more, to feel more, and even to express more was once again replaced by that same Jongin who wouldn't respond, wouldn't behave, who couldn't take care of himself, let alone others, who would act impulsively and what not. In fact it was worse because it had taken a toll on his health too this time around, he would suffer from more frequent and extreme stims, to the point that he would even hurt himself sometimes, he wouldn't eat so he was getting weaker and skinnier, also he wouldn't sleep at night. He wouldn't even let anyone except for Kyungsoo to come near him, so him getting treated by doctors was out of question. He wouldn't even look at any medicine, so Kyungsoo was advised by Dr. Jongdae to give him some space and time to recover from the trauma, to the point that they could at least diagnose him for his treatment. Kyungsoo did just that, he didn't try too much because it would piss Jongin off at times and he would act up, he even left Jongin's room and shifted back to his own because Jongin wanted to be left alone. Kyungsoo was completely broken at this stage, he had never felt any weaker than this. Had it been just for the sake of Jongin's betterment, he would still have managed to develop some courage to fight. But this time the heart of a lover was shattered, and that too into countless pieces, all those dreams that he had dared to see when Jongin's condition was improving, all of them seemed like a very painful joke now. He had dared to imagine them getting married one day. Hilarious, isn't it?

As if all of this pain was not enough, the burden of the blames that he had buried himself underneath, was slowly eating away his own will to live anymore. He believed that it was his fault behind each and every low that Jongin had ever had to experience, and so he should not be allowed to live anymore. But he was sane enough to know that his demise would end Jongin as well, for that poor boy had no one else to look after him. So at this point, Kyungsoo was living only so he could look after Jongin, besides that, he had no other reason to stay alive.

Reflecting his soul, Kyungsoo was sitting lifelessly on the chair when his ringing phone resurrected him. Baekhyun's number appeared on the screen. Kyungsoo had not told about the reappearance of his father to Baekhyun, nor about the condition Jongin was in. So he would avoid talking to him lest Baekhyun should get a clue of something wrong going on. So Kyungsoo didn't pick up the call, it was also because he didn't want to waste his energy over some stupid story or gossip that Baekhyun probably was itching to share, because needless to say, Kyungsoo too was lacking energy because he too had not been eating well those days. How could he swallow food knowing that his dearest Jongin was hungry?

He heaved a sigh of relief when the phone stopped ringing on its own. But that relief was short lived as Baekhyun's call popped up again. Figuring out that maybe this time Baekhyun's story wasn't as silly, Kyungsoo mustered up all his courage and finally picked up the phone, only to get surprised by an unknown man's heavy voice. The frantic way in which he spoke took Kyungsoo off guard.

"Hello, hello? Is this Kyungsoo?"

The man sounded so scared and worried that Kyungsoo could already feel a weird sensation in his stomach.

"Y-Yes? Who's this? Where's Baek-"

"Reach the City Hospital as soon as you can. The owner of this phone has met a fatal accident here on the highway. The ambulance should be here any minute. Please reach there fast- Oh, here it is-"

After a few sirens, the call was cut off. Kyungsoo had no time to ponder over the information that he had just recieved. All he knew was he had to race straight to the hospital because his only friend in this whole world was in need. He grabbed his phone and the car keys, but just as he was about to set his foot out of the house, he remembered-

"Jongin"

He had promised himself to never leave Jongin alone again, what about that? But the guy over phone had mentioned a 'fatal' accident. Kyungsoo couldn't just leave his friend to die and stay at home. He had to go. Not knowing what to do he rushed straight into Jongin's room and grabbing his arm he pulled him towards the main door as he spoke on the way.

"We have to leave Jongin. You have to obey this time."

But of course there was no way that Jongin could leave the house. He was protesting as hard as he could, and eventually was able to get his arm freed from Kyungsoo's hold and then started shouting on top of his lungs.

"Jongin. Jongin, calm down. Please understand, we need to go. I can't leave you alone at home."

Not paying any attention, Jongin continued with his yelling while covering both his ears with his hands.

"Jongin, please listen. Your Baekhyun hyung-"

No. Kyungsoo couldn't do that. He couldn't tell about such a devastating event to an already traumatised Jongin. So he stopped himself from speaking any further in time. He didn't have any time to waste in begging Jongin, who obviously was not going to budge. Hence he was left with no other option than to leave Jongin alone in the house. Tearing up, he grabbed Jongin by his shoulders, trying to get it through his ears he spoke up in a shaky voice-

"Jongin. Don't let anyone inside the house. I'll be back really really soon. Just don't let anyone in. Did you hear that?"

Even if he didn't, Kyungsoo had to leave. So he did. Thankfully, having taken lesson from the last time, he had already taken a few safety measures beforehand in case such emergency occured. He had installed a fingerprint lock system on the door that couldn't be broken into. He had locked the door from outside while leaving the house, so that Jongin could not open the door for someone even if he wanted to. He had also removed the doorbell, because he knew that it bothered Jongin and so he was quick to figure out that it might have been the reason that Jongin had decided to open the door that day in the first place. Added to that, he had also installed security cameras both outside as well as inside the house. Despite all of this, he still wasn't satisfied, because one can never make sure to prevent each and every mishap. Take Baekhyun's case as an example, that boy despite being an excellent driver met such an accident, no one saw that coming. You just never know.

The City Hospital was far from Kyungsoo's home. He had been driving since twenty minutes already when he came across a huge traffic jam on the road. He tried to cool himself down lest he should bump his car into someone else's in the panicky state he was in. That's when he pondered over things and thought as to why they chose to bring Baekhyun to the City Hospital rather than the one near the highway. Perhaps, it wasn't the highway Kyungsoo was thinking it to be. But no matter how hard he tried, he could not think of any other highway near the City Hospital. Also, he was pretty sure that he had not talked to Baekhyun over phone in at least past couple of days, so Chanyeol's number should have been in the recently called list above his own, right? They must have informed him as well then. Just to make sure, Kyungsoo picked up his phone and called Chanyeol as he waited for the traffic to clear up.

"Hello?"

"Chanyeol, did you reach the hospital? Did you see Baekhyun? How is he?" Kyungsoo threw those questions in one breath.

"Kyungsoo, Kyungsoo. Calm down. What- what are you talking about? What hospital?"

"You don't know? Baekhyun got into an accident."

"What?", A chuckle followed that amused tone, "Kyungsoo, Baekhyun is sitting right next to me. In fact, he's playing video games. He's absolutely fine."

"B-But I got a call. Someone...someone called through Baekhyun's phone and told me that-"

"Oh...I get it now.", Chanyeol laughed again, "Actually Baekhyun's phone got stolen yesterday. Maybe the thief pulled a prank on you. By the way hey, is there any chance we can trace that call? Maybe we can catch the-"

Kyungsoo knew that Chanyeol was still rambling non-stop, but he couldn't focus anymore. For his whole life had just ran across his eyes in a millisecond as he put two and two together and finally realised, that it wasn't a prank. It was a strategy, to get him out of the house, and to get Jongin alone.

Kyungsoo didn't even bother to cut the call before throwing his phone away and getting out of the car. He left all his belongings behind as he ran past all those vehicles stuck in that long and packed traffic jam. There was no way he could get his car out of the jam before at least another half an hour, and he was already running out of time. Like a madman, he sprinted across the roads and streets in search of any moving vehicle that could get him back home as soon as possible. Fortunately, he was able to find a cab pretty quickly. All along the ride, he was so restless that he couldn't sit calmly for a single second without telling the driver to hurry up and drive fast.

Finally, Kyungsoo made it to his house under ten minutes. He was in such a hurry that he couldn't heed to the shouting driver behind him who was yet to be paid his fare. To his relief, the front door was still locked, but he wouldn't be satisfied until he saw Jongin all healthy with his own eyes. As soon as he entered the house he started calling Jongin's name at the top of his lungs,

"Jongin...Jongin...", he kept calling as he ran towards the door to Jongin's room.

Behind that closed door...and under that shattered window, lying there was the last sight that Kyungsoo could ever imagine to see.

"JONGIN"

*************************

Kyungsoo had been rocking his torso back and forth while sitting on the bench. He chuckled when he realised that he was doing it just like Jongin. Like a maniac, he laughed and cried at the same time at the littlest things. Poor boy was still not able to comprehend what was happening, what could have happened or what could happen next. Or perhaps, the whole thing was just too much for his brain to take, and now he had lost his own mental stability. He was just not able to accept the reality. Even when his own clothes were drenched in Jongin's warm blood, even when he was sitting in front of the ICU waiting for any of the four doctors and six nurses to come out and tell him how his Jongin was, even after he himself with his own hands had picked up Jongin's almost lifeless body and carried it to the hospital through that cab that had still waited outside. No, Kyungsoo couldn't believe it. He couldn't believe that Jongin was lying there on the hospital bed a few feet awag from him, battling between life and death. He couldn't believe that the doctor initially had told him that he could lose Jongin forever. No, Jongin can't die, right? Why would god be so unfair? Kyungsoo had never done anyone wrong, and Jongin...that poor baby couldn't do anyone wrong even if he wanted to. Why would god make them go through all of it? It couldn't be true.

After the most excruciating six hours of Kyungsoo's life, where he could do nothing but watch the doctors and nurses running in and out of the ICU from afar, begging them to give him any, any information about his Jongin's condition but getting just silence in return; one of the doctors finally came out towards him with a much slower pace than before. Kyungsoo knew that it was the time, he stood up from the bench and said nothing, he just looked at the doctor with hope-filled doe-eyes which had only one big question embedded in them. And even though he was not at all ready to hear that he had lost his Jongin, he still needed to hear the counterstatement just to gain some sanity.

"Gentleman, the operation was successful. We were able to save him."

Kyungsoo's braincells came back to life. His face enlightened as he smiled brightly.

"My god. Thank you...thank you so much doctor for saving our Jongin." It was the excited voice that came from the back a few microseconds before the man came in the front and hugged Kyungsoo tightly.

"Baekhyun...", Kyungsoo whispered. He was so lost in the past hours that he didn't even notice it before, but Chanyeol and Baekhyun were sitting beside him all this while.

"Good thing you didn't wait for the ambulance. Even a little more delay could have cost him his life."

Kyungsoo reminisced about the angel that the cab driver was, thank god he waited for his fare.

"Oh, by the way. I tried paying that driver, but considering this emergency he refused to take it." said Baekhyun, still clinging to Kyungsoo's body.

That driver sure was an angel sent from heaven, Kyungsoo thought. Maybe god hadn't fully turned his back at him and Jongin yet.

"May I ask you how you're related to him?"

"He...he's my...", Kyungsoo gulped before saying any further. What was Jongin to him? He certainly was not just his step brother, he was Kyungsoo's life. Because Kyungsoo knew that if Jongin had died that day, then he would not be able to live any longer as well.

"...he's my boyfriend." It seemed like a fair settlement between stepbrother and life. Boyfriend.

"Well, I must say. Your partner is a fighter. We wouldn't have been able to save him had he given up."

A proud smile adorned the beauty of Kyungsoo's face. He knew it. He knew that Jongin was a brave fighter, he was even way stronger than Kyungsoo himself.

"But..."

Of course there was a but, Kyungsoo had so much faith in his misfortune by now that he trusted that his smile couldn't last longer than a second on his face.

"But he's still in a very critical condition. Especially the injuries on his head and chest are the most severe ones, he will still have to be kept under intensive care and will also have to go through some more operations if needed."

With that, the doctor left after handing over the prescription list to Kyungsoo. But his words got stuck in Kyungsoo's head, the battle wasn't over yet. He could feel his lungs constricting. How much more did innocent Jongin have to go through?

"Kyungsoo..." Baekhyun said in a calm voice putting a gentle hand on Kyungsoo's shoulder, and carefully taking the doctor's prescription from his hand. "I'll take care of it. And Chanyeol is here in case they need anything else. But you have to go now..."

"Where?", Kyungsoo asked in a whisper. Where in the world should he be instead of being beside his Jongin?

"The reception. There the cops have been waiting for you to talk to them. You were just not listening earlier, please go talk to them now."

"But why?"

"What do you mean, why? Don't you want to find out who did this to Jongin?"

Kyungsoo's swollen eyes turned red as he remembered that, "I already know who did this."

"Who?"

A few seconds later when Kyungsoo didn't say anything, Baekhyun continued.
"Okay, don't tell me. But at least tell the police. Only they can punish those criminals."

"No", Kyungsoo spoke with his gritted teeth, "I will kill that bastard myself."

"Kyungsoo...you know that you can't. Be practical, what if you get arrested for attempting something like this? Who will look after Jongin? Who do you think that strength in Jongin came from? Its you. He wants to live for you. You're the only one that he has."

Baekhyun was right. As much dissatisfying it seemed, but getting that behind the bars by the hands of law was a much safer choice than trying to punish him on his own. With his head low, Kyungsoo meekly nodded to Baekhyun and then slowly walked away.

"Mr. Doh, nice to meet you....", a very inappropriate thing to say on such a day, but Kyungsoo shook hand with that police officer nonetheless, "I'm the Chief deputy officer of this locality, I'll be investigating your brother's case."

Brother? Kyungsoo did not have any strength left to clarify that Jongin was not his brother. So he just let it be.

"There's nothing left to investigate. I know who did this to him."

"Who is it?"

"My father." 

After a few gasps from the sheriffs standing behind them, the officer cleared his throat and tried to be as respectful as possible when he said, "Do you have any...proof regarding that?"

Kyungsoo frowned at that, would a lover covered from top to bottom with the blood of his beloved lie about something like that? But his question was answered before he even asked it.

"I would absolutely believe you. But the court won't plead him guilty unless there's a solid proof supporting this accusation."

Kyungsoo, who was previously on the verge of losing his temper and throwing a fit, was calmed down by that. Of course they needed a proof, but where could he find one? He thought and thought, until it clicked him-

"....the security cameras."
 

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To be continued...