The Storm (1)

Salty Lips & Late Night Dips

15: The Storm (Part I)



No way in hell was Tao going to share a room with Kris. Over his dead body. Because Minseok's home had more than enough rooms to house everyone individually. If Kris thought he was going to swindle him into sharing a room, he had another thing coming.

 

"Let go of my hand! I'll get my own room!" Tao attempted to yank his hand free but the surfer held to it firmly.

 

"Well that's fine with me." Kris exaggerated a sigh before finally letting go. "I just didn't think you'd want to sleep by yourself, seeing as how Minseok's house is haunted and all."

 

The blood drained from Tao's face. "H-Ha!" Tao faked a laugh that sounded more nervous than snippy. "Y-Y-You expect me to b-believe that?"

 

Kris shrugged. He had to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from smiling. He didn't think Tao would be this gullible, but it was just as well, because now he'd pretty much guaranteed his chances of rooming with the fussy young male.

 

Walking up a wide staircase, they took a right down the hallway before entering the bedroom at the end on the left. Given Minseok's superfluous abode, it was smaller than what Tao had expected, but he felt more at ease standing in a cozier room. He wondered if Kris had chosen it for that specific reason or if all of the rooms were deceptively small.

 

Tao scowled when he saw both of their bags resting at the foot of the bed. He considered snatching up his things, storming out, and claiming the room across the hall but--What if Minseok's house really was haunted? Tao had seen way too many horror movies and didn't want to take his chances. Plus, who knew how bad the storm would get?

 

"Why don't you shower?" Kris offered as he began digging through his duffel bag. "We might lose power so you should probably wash up."

 

He had a point. Tao felt icky after pitching in to help with the surf shop for the greater part of the day. "Well I was going to anyway." Tao grabbed his bag, marched into the bathroom, and slammed the door behind him. It drove him nuts how effortlessly Kris got under his skin. And even worse was the fact that he found himself liking it more than he did hating it. So Minseok's house was haunted. Big deal. Worse things could happen if he shared a room with Kris.


-



Tao had just rinsed the soap out of his hair when the lights flickered out, plunging him into darkness in the confines of the steamy bathroom. His heart rate hiked up a notch as he threw back the shower curtain and fumbled for the towel on the nearby rack. A sharp knock at the door had him jumping and clenching the towel tightly around his skin.

 

"Tao? You okay?" Kris' muffled voice sounded from behind the door.

 

Normally Tao would've been pissed at the other's intrusion but welcomed it given his current state of distress. He swallowed his fear before responding, voice shaky despite his best effort to steady it. "Y-Yeah! Be out in just a minute!"

 

"Okay. I'll be right here. That way we can go downstairs together."

 

After drying off, Tao stumbled about the bathroom for his black, cotton pajama pants and red t-shirt. He didn’t even bother with brushing his tangled hair before opening the door and stepping out.

 

A faint wash of light streamed in through the silk curtains, although, the sky seemed to have darkened considerably. Now that the shower head wasn't running, Tao could hear the aggravated wind, and it scared him more than he'd like to admit. With shaking fingers, he instinctively claimed the sleeve of Kris' white t-shirt.

 

"Time to move downstairs, Taozi. You alright?" Kris noticed the tension in Tao's shoulders, contemplated taking the other’s hand, but thought better of it. Instead he smiled softly. Tao was looking to him for a sense of protection and support. It may or may not have puffed up his ego a little.

 

"I'm fine," replied Tao, silhouette just visible in the soft, grayish light of the room.

 

Kris tried not to fall victim to the mouthwatering scent of Tao’s coconut shampoo but it didn't quite work. A wash of heat settled over the surfer and he gulped.

 

"Is... Is it normal for the wind to be this loud?" inquired Tao while worrying his bottom lip.

 

Kris’ eyes zeroed in on the action. Then he hooked a finger beneath his shirt collar and pulled. "Uh... yeah. I've been through a couple of storms like this. It's gonna get worse before it gets better." His words were met with a fear stricken expression. He immediately backtracked. "But don't worry. We're safe here."

 

Tao appeared to accept that but didn't let go of Kris' shirt as they made their way downstairs. Instead of moving to the game room like Minseok had suggested, everyone was still horsing around in the living area. They didn’t appear to be taking the weather seriously at all. Either that or they just didn’t want to think about it. Tao had a feeling it was probably a little bit of both.

 

"Finally!" exclaimed Jongdae, "The love birds have graced us with their presence!" Everyone stopped what they were doing to stare at Tao and Kris.

 

Tao's countenance turned vicious, but before he had the chance to form a witty comeback, Kris smacked a hand to the top of Jongdae's head and forced him into a sitting position on the sofa. "You talk too damn much," he stated blandly.

 

Jongdae flashed a wily grin from his perch on the cushions. "That's only because you give me too much to talk about."

 

"So what now?“ interrupted Lay. "We don't have any power."

 

Sehun snorted before weaseling his way out of one of Luhan's headlocks, rainbow-colored hair a mess, courtesy of the elder’s bony knuckles. "No Sherlock."

 

"We could play one of the board games I bought," suggested Jongdae, "Plus there's still plenty of beer in the fridge. It should stay cold for a while, right Minseok?"

 

Minseok rolled his eyes. "You and your godforsaken beer, Jongdae. You know there's this thing called Alcoholics Anonymous. You should think about joining their ranks."

 

Jongdae stuck his nose into the air. "I am not an alcoholic. Thank you very much."

 

"The first step to solving a problem is admitting that you have one," provided Luhan in all seriousness, "Plus think of all the money you'd save. You could actually stop mooching off of Minseok for a change."

 

"Hey!" exclaimed Minseok, "That sounds like a great idea!"

 

"Would you guys shut the hell up!" snapped the so called alcoholic in question, "I am not an alcoholic! I don't even start drinking until after lunch... most of the time. "

 

Everyone was silent as they stared admonishingly at their friend. Their group argued incessantly, but when the situation called for it, they could work together for the greater good--greater good being their current mission of giving Jongdae a taste of his own medicine.

 

"I AM NOT AN ALCOHOLIC!" exploded Jongdae, huffing and puffing through his nose, face red with anger.

 

The room erupted into laughter. Jongdae flushed when he realized his friends had pulled a fast one on him. "Jesus! You guys can't do that to me," he laughed tepidly, "For a second there I thought you were holding an intervention or something."

 

"Well you know..." insinuated Sehun.

 

"Don't. You. Even. Say it," threatened Jongdae.

 

Minseok pulled out a board game.

 

"What's that?" asked Tao.

 

"Don't tell me you've never played Twister," said Luhan, to which Tao shook his head. “Oh ho ho! Well you're about to find out! I've got a feeling you're going to like it!"


-


Tao didn't like it. In fact, he was very close to murdering someone, because the compromising position he and Kris were in left little to the imagination.

 

He’d wound up on his hands and feet, face pointing toward the ground with Kris leaning over his back. Tao was being touched in places he didn’t want to be touched, and it ruffled his feathers more than he’d like to admit. He turned his head to find Luhan sitting on the floor with a smug grin stuck to his face. If not for the fact that Luhan was his boss, Tao probably would’ve smothered him in his sleep with a pillow by now.

 

"Alright!" piped Luhan, an impish glint in his eye. He flicked the arrow for Kris and everyone watched as it spun to a stop. "Left hand on green!"

 

Tao could see Kris between the open space of his legs. Kris shifted in preparation for his next move but lost his balance. Long fingers pressed into the sensitive protrusions of Tao’s hipbones, making his breath hitch. It was the final straw.

 

Swinging his hips to the left, Tao sent Kris toppling onto the carpet with a startled grunt. "You win." Tao huffed, crossing his arms and legs as he sat on top of the game with an annoyed huff. "This game is stupid anyway." Kris was laughing but Tao noticed the slightest hint of disappointment in the blonde’s eyes.

 

"Oh Really?" The way Sehun arched a brow had Tao glaring maliciously in return. "'Cause that blush on your face says otherwise," smirked the teenager.

 

"Wha-! I am not blushing! It's just stuffy in here since the power went out!"

 

More snickering ensued, that is, until a loud crash caught them all off guard.

 

"What the was that?" asked Sehun, eyes wide.

 

“I don’t know.” Minseok stood from the sofa, walked over to the window, and pulled back the curtains. “!” He rushed over to the front door and flung it open.

 

The picture frames on the nearby wall fell and shattered when a gust of wind invaded the house, bringing rain and bits and pieces of small debris flying in as everyone crowded around the door. The wind outside was horrendous, branches blowing in the wind, some of them even snapping. Parked on the grass next to the porch was an unknown car with a large branch tucked within the shattered windshield. Just when they’d had time to process the scene, the car doors flew open, revealing Jongin and several other people who stumbled out.

 

Kris was the first to dart out the door, followed by Lay and Luhan. One of the individuals appeared to be injured and was limping while two others helped guide him towards the front porch.

 

Tao remained latched to Minseok’s side, eyes wide, right along with Sehun who was just as rattled. As soon as everyone was inside, Minseok enlisted Jongdae’s help and closed the door against the force of the hurricane. Everyone soon converged in the living area.

 

“Get Baekhyun to the sofa!” said someone.

 

“Prop up his foot!” said another.

 

The injured guy, Baekhyun, stretched across the sofa, laid an arm over his face, and gritted his teeth. Tao recognized him as one of the surfers he and Kris had encountered on the beach the other morning--the same morning he'd whooped Jongin's and given him a bloody nose. For a fleeting moment, he caught Jongin’s gaze and felt a wave of annoyance, then smirked at the bandage covering the other's nose.

 

“What happened, Junmyeon?” Lay asked with concern.

 

A fair-skinned man stood and ran a hand through his dark, wet hair. “We were at my place," explained Junmyeon, "Everything was fine until this huge piece of metal crashed through the living room window. Somehow Baekhyun got injured in the process, and the wind was really bad so, Jongin got the car and we decided to come here.”

 

"You guys have some balls going out in this weather," said Minseok. As if on cue, something thumped against the roof. Everyone glanced up at the ceiling and exchanged worried looks. "Perhaps we should move to the center of the house for real this time. Just to be safe."


-


Tao’s sour mood continued to worsen as he stood in the corner of the game room where everyone had gathered. The only satisfaction he received was from the purplish tint surrounding Jongin's nose. He still didn't feel bad about bashing the jerk’s face in. After all, the guy had deserved it 100%.

 

"You look like you're about to commit murder." Jongdae moseyed his way around the pool table to Tao, arms crossed as he leaned against the navy-blue wall next to him.

 

"I'm considering it." Tao took on a smug smile as he and Jongin's eyes met for a second time. He wanted to silently convey his message--mess with Kris again and I'll break OFF your ing nose. Jongin looked away to tend to his friend and Tao huffed.

 

"I think you got your point across," supplied Jongdae, "Maybe you should pitch in and help?"

 

"Tch! Why should I help them?" Tao asked a little too loudly. Thankfully no one seemed to have heard him. They were all too busy fussing over Baekhyun, Kris included, which made Tao even more irritated. Why was Kris helping them after what Jongin had done? It didn't make sense to him at all. Those surfers hadn’t been the least bit sympathetic when Kris was bleeding all over "their" beach.

 

Jongdae reached over and patted Tao on the shoulder. "Sometimes it's best to let things go. You can't hold grudges forever, Taozi. Trust me, I know."

 

Tao scrunched up his nose. Since when had Jongdae turned into the caring, brotherly type? To be honest, it was sort of freaking him out.

 

Kris looked about the room until he located Tao. "Hey, Taozi!" he called, "Would you mind getting a beer out of the refrigerator for Baekhyun? He looks like he could use one."

 

Grumbling under his breath, Tao stomped out of the game room toward the kitchen. If not for how angry he was, he probably would've been frightened by the ominous sounds echoing throughout the house, but right now he just wanted to get the stupid beer out of the damn refrigerator. He wrenched open the door to the machine, quickly grabbed a can, and shut it before too much cold air could leak out.

 

Once back in the game room, he presented the can to Baekhyun. "Here," he snapped. Baekhyun was sitting on a sofa with his foot propped up on several pillows. The moment the injured male looked up, Tao was slapped by guilt. Baekhyun didn't look well at all. A glance down revealed an already bruising and slightly swollen ankle.

 

"Thanks." Baekhyun accepted the beverage more than willingly, popped open the tab, and took several large gulps of the frothy liquid.

 

"A beer and that Ibuprofen we gave you should help ease the pain," said Lay.

 

"If not then Jongdae has more than enough alcohol to knock your out," added Sehun.

 

Baekhyun chuckled at that. "I'll keep that in mind," he replied.

 

"It's not broken, is it?" A gangly surfer pulled up a chair and sat next to Baekhyun. He seemed worried as he observed his friend through the curly fringe of his bangs.

 

Another guy, whom Tao recognized as Kyungsoo, looked pointedly to each surfer gathered around Baekhyun. "There's no way to tell until we get him to a doctor, which will have to wait until the storm blows over. The most we can do right now is make him as comfortable as possible."

 

Tao tuned out the rest of the conversation because Kris decided to lean an arm on his shoulder. "You okay?" asked the surfer, "You've been awfully quiet. You're not planning my demise or something are you?" Kris flashed his signature grin.

 

Tao's skin prickled at Kris' touch. Actually, no, he wasn't okay. They were in a hurricane. He had to share a room with Kris later that night. The power had gone out. And on top all that, Jongin and his crew had dropped in out of nowhere. His evening was getting worse by the minute.

 

"I'm fine." Tao’s reply was curt. It may have been a ridiculous notion, but he feared Kris would be able to see right through him. At times Kris was an absolute idiot, but at others, he was unnaturally perceptive and it unsettled him greatly.


-


The resounding clamor of the hurricane kept everyone rooted in the game room. The house creaked and groaned and seemed to vibrate in tune with the storm’s energy. They'd all reached a mutual decision to remain there until the worst had passed. That decision proved to be wise when a loud crash sounded from somewhere within the house.

 

Minseok was the first to dash out of the room with Kris hot on his trail. When the two surfers returned, both of them were wet and looked rather flustered. They informed everyone that the window in the living room had broken when the small palm tree in the front yard had toppled onto that side of the house. Minseok reassured everyone that all was well, however, his hesitant smile spoke volumes of the uneasiness he actually felt. Even Kris appeared taken aback by the event.

 

"This is the worst storm I can ever remember." Kris shook the water from his hair and sat against the wall next to Tao.

 

Their shoulders were touching. When Kris touched Tao, even unintentionally, it flooded the teenager's chest with warmth. Tao shifted to put some space between them and waited for his pulse to slow down. "How long do you think it's going to last?" he asked, trying to appear casual.

 

"Probably a few more hours. That's not including the eye of the storm."

 

Tao sighed. "This is so annoying. And it's too damn stuffy in here."

 

"Have you heard from your dad?"

 

Tao had gotten a handful of texts from his father after he'd arrived at Minseok's place. Ever since then he hadn't heard from him. The cell towers were probably taking a beating. The likelihood of any calls or texts going through right now was minute. "No," replied Tao. He was actually worried about his dad. Surely the old man had found a safe place to wait out the storm.

 

"I'm sure he's fine." Kris remained optimistic as he nudged Tao's shoulder. "So, what should we do for the next few hours?"

 

They ended up watching Jongin's group. Tao had been listening to everyone’s conversations. Junmyeon, Kyungsoo, Chanyeol, and Baekhyun seemed like pretty decent guys. The only person he had a problem with was Jongin, who was sulking in the corner, arms crossed as he remained an outsider to the majority of everyone's banter. Apparently the guy lacked decent social skills. Tao was not surprised.

 

Further observation revealed that Tao's friends knew the other surfers pretty well. The only conclusion he could formulate was that they’d been acquainted through the sport of surfing. The island wasn’t all that big, and when compared to the city, there weren’t a lot of people living on it either. Of course, Minseok knew everyone and was able to find some common ground between one person to the next. If not for that, Tao was almost certain things would’ve been much more awkward than they currently were. It was one thing to share a beach with a group of people, but an entirely different experience to be stuck in the same room with them for hours on end.

 

Due to the air of maliciousness that hovered between Jongin and Kris, Tao expected the tension in the room to be thick. Instead everyone either appeared to be blind to it or chose to ignore it. What had transpired on the beach the other morning wasn’t a secret. Jongin’s group knew their friend disliked Kris, just as Tao’s group knew Kris disliked Jongin. No one seemed to know why, including Tao, and the more he thought about it, the more it clawed at his nerves. Tao let out a long, drawn-out breath and looked for something to capture his interest.

 

Baekhyun still looked uncomfortable and occasionally winced when he moved the wrong way. Despite his discomfort, the auburn-haired male kept smiling and joined in on several conversations throughout the evening. Yet no matter how many times he reassured his friends that he was fine, Tao saw something in the other that indicated otherwise. Baekhyun was a surfer. If his foot was indeed broken, he’d be out of commission for the next several weeks, which meant he wouldn’t be able to surf or participate in any competitions.

 

Tao wasn't sure what made him do it, but he found himself looking to Kris for a favor. "Will you come with me upstairs? You know, just in case something happens?" He didn't want Kris to get the wrong idea. Minseok's house was pretty big. It would be just his luck to get lost and freak out.

 

The blonde perked up at Tao's words. "Sure! Did you forget something in our room?"

 

Tao was tempted to punch Kris in the shoulder but quelled it. "Sorta," he replied vaguely.

 

Kris grabbed the flashlight off of the table next to the sofa.

 

"Where are you two going?" inquired Jongdae.

 

"Tao forgot something back in our room. We'll be right back."

 

Ignoring their friends' resulting ooohs and aaahs, they stepped into the eerie hallway. A commotion could be heard toward the front of the house, no doubt where the living room window had been shattered, exposing that area to the hurricane's wrath. The room was bound to be destroyed by now. Tao looked down the ominous hallway, latched onto Kris' shirt sleeve, and shifted closer. Kris smiled faintly but kept his eyes trained forward. The flashlight he held cast dancing shadows across the walls on their walk up the staircase.

 

Tao hesitated to go up the last few steps when he saw the world through the rattling window at the top of the stairs. There were a handful of palm trees placed about the yard that resembled fragile toothpicks more than they did trees. Their trunks were bent at unnatural angles as their fronds flapped violently in the wind. A house was just visible in the distance. Its cream-colored vinyl siding was peeling off while its shingles continued flaking off and flitting away like seeds in the wind. Destruction was happening so swiftly and easily that it actually frightened Tao. He’d never seen anything like it before.

 

Sensing Tao's uneasiness, Kris draped an arm around his shoulder, ushered them up the remaining steps, then down the hallway to their room. "What was it that you needed?" he asked once they entered their room.

 

Tao detached himself from Kris, secretly thanking the darkness for concealing his embarrassing blush, and began digging through his bag at the foot of the bed. "Nothing," he mumbled. Actually, he knew exactly what he was looking for and why. Tao’s hand met with the combined items he sought before pulling them out.

 

He turned and faced Kris. "Okay."

 

"That's all?" The surfer didn't seem to believe that they'd left their safe haven for something so measly.

 

"It's not for me," Tao mumbled, "It's for Baekhyun."

 

Since when did Tao do nice things for people? Kris recalled the incident on the beach when Tao had stuck up for him. Tao did nice things for people all the time, he just had a y way of doing it.

 

"What!" snapped Tao.

 

Kris shook his head with a smile. "Nothing. I was just thinking is all."

 

Tao cut his eyes at Kris before heading towards the door. "Well come on then. Let's make a break for it before a tree falls on us."

 

"What the hell!" Jongdae chortled when they entered the game room. "That was quick! I didn't picture Kris as a thirty-second-wonder in bed."

 

"Would you shut the hell up!" Tao walked across the room and smacked Jongdae across the back of the head.

 

"Ow! What was that for!"

 

A light and airy laughter caught everyone off guard.

 

"That's nothing! Just wait til he breaks your ing nose!" Jongin laughed sardonically. He stopped when his face contorted too much, which made his nose throb.

 

Tao had been caught off guard. Was Jongin making fun of him? Or was it supposed to be some sort of compliment? In any case, he shook it off, marched over to Baekhyun, and held out his mp3 player and expensive ear buds. "Here," he said curtly.

 

Baekhyun looked up. "Hm?"

 

"I'm not sure what type of music you like but there's like a thousand songs on there." Tao could feel everyone's eyes on him. "Break it and I'll kill you," he added in his typically fussy fashion before shoving the items into Baekhyun’s hands and marching back to his wall of solitude by the pool table.

 

Kris smiled from afar. Tao had almost been nice--almost. It was an improvement, nonetheless, and Kris couldn’t help but to be just a little bit proud.

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RuinedReverie
8/26/15 - SL&LND is now complete. Extra side stories will be added soon. [RuinedReverie]

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ExoticPandragons
#1
Chapter 22: I’m literally gonna read this up until I die.
ExoticPandragons
#2
Chapter 22: Hhaaaa back again and I still love it and it still makes me scream and emotional and happy and ugh yes perfect
ExoticPandragons
#3
Chapter 22: LORDDDDDD I’m still weak. The power this fic has over me is surreal. I adore it. A whole favorite. I love everything about it
ExoticPandragons
#4
Chapter 22: Oops I read it again. God what the fic does to my heart should be illegal
Galaxyboo_
#5
Chapter 25: This is so good i miss taoris ?
ExoticPandragons
#6
When I tell you it’s been like 5 years since I’ve read this for the first time and I come back to read it again almost twice a year (let’s be real, way more), but this story never fails to grab me by the heart. I will go about my life and suddenly DREAM about this and wake up with the NEED to read it again. One of my favorites, from the bottom of my heart. Bless you.
Kevin_was_here #7
OMG THANK YOU SO MUCH
versaillesmaiden #9
Chapter 22: BEST. TAORIS. FIC. EVER.
MY HEART CANT STOP CRYING AND LAUGHING OMG BLESS U AUTHORNIM