Jihoon was trying to sleep, though the throbbing pain in his shoulder didn't calm ever since the metal bar had been shamelessly ripped out of his body. He was currently laid down under exactly two blankets and one plaid, but however, he was currently shaking as hard as if he’d been shirtless under the snow. The cold damp on his forehead hinted of a fever, and his clicking teeth made Taeil frown his eyebrows, watching him from the chair carefully settled behind the desk at the corner of the room.

His eyes were travelling between the younger and the pieces of metallic debris of what used to be a bomb. His eyes were scanning, examining and analyzing every single piece of fragments, trying to understand – no, to learn something. Something that might hint them who is the responsible of this whole… attempt, whatever that might be.

Taeil’s eyes raised when the soft fabrics of the duvet moved, a mass moving under it. “Don’t move too much, Jihoon-ah, you need rest.” His voice was firm and reprimanding, and as soon as it travelled to the younger, Jihoon stopped moving, already pleased with the new position he was in. After a few seconds, he drifted off to sleep again and Taeil allowed himself to look at the broken pieces again.

It’s a pretty short story, how he ended with this pieces of exploded furniture. Something about WINNER getting their hands on those after the explosion (don’t ask him though, how the gang had it and not the police), and Jiho paying a fair amount of money for Taeil to examine it.

There was particular piece of metal that intrigued him. It was a small fragment, burn on some edges and sharp at the others – though, there was something written on it, and Taeil would bet that this was the bomb’s trademark. He couldn’t really read it, the oxidized piece too burnt to be readable. And he’ll work on it, trying to find a way to find the culprits of those actions.

He was so caught up in his examination that he didn’t hear the younger move again, a small cry escaping his lips as he tried to sit up. “How’s it going?” Taeil raised his head once again, ignoring the way the younger’s voice was as weak as it was shaking.

“What did I just say?” The annoyance was clear in his voice, and as much as he came off harsh, it was for the younger’s sake. There was no doctor here, though he was pretty sure that turning around endlessly would be against his advices. Taeil let out a long sigh, tearing his gaze from the shaking body to look once more at the pieces. Without even looking, he was pretty sure that despite the pain, Jihoon would fine the will to pout at him. It made him smile innocently. “How is your shoulder?”

“ing hurts…” This time, he didn’t move. Instead, his eyes locked on the elder, trying to find whatever could distract him from the throbbing pain. There was so much painkillers one could take, and Jihoon had already exceeded his limit. “But we can’t do anything ‘bout that, right?” A soft chuckle escaped his lips but it soon turned in a fit of coughs, and Jihoon tried not to whine at the different pain surrounding his shoulder.

Taeil pinched his lips, laying back on his chair. He raised his glasses as he closed his eyes, rubbing at the flesh until he saw nothing but a dark sky full of stars. When he opened his eyes again, it took one or two seconds for his sight to go back to normal, and when it finally did, he stared down at the younger with pinched lips. “I’m gonna go buy some more medicines, don’t move. And try to rest.”

Jihoon chuckled once more, and just life before, it turned quickly in a painful fit of coughs. “Like I could go anywhere…” The end of the sentences was muffled as Taeil’s chair shrieked against the wooden floor as he sat up. He gave one last look at the younger before disappearing through the door. At the corner of the corridor though, his eyes peeked inside another room where Yukwon was currently resting too.

He knocked on the door twice, though he didn’t wait for any answer before finally entering the room. Taeil wasn’t surprised to see Minhyuk there too, hovering over the younger to keep an eye on him – just like Taeil was doing himself with the red-head in the other room.

Yukwon’s leg was bare, exposed, while the rest of his body remained under the heat of the blanket. His knee was in a purple color, mixed with some blue and green in some places. It wasn’t twisted in a weird angle like it did the day before, though it was almost as if Taeil could see the broken bones under the flesh. It really wasn’t pretty.

“Hey, how’s Jihoon?” Minhyuk asked, squirting some cream on his hands before lingering his hands near Yukwon’s broken leg. He didn’t even touch his skin yet but the younger was already flinching.

“In pain.” Taeil stated, crossing his arms as he leaned against the doorframe. When Minhyuk’s digits finally pressed against the younger’s flesh, Yukwon’s gritted his teeth as a groan escaped his lips. He shot a deadly look at the elder, menacing him with the way his shoulders raised and his breath became heavy. “And how you doin’?” There was a slight teasing tone in his voice and when Yukwon raised his eyes at him, Taeil earned the exact same look as Minhyuk before.

“Never better.” He said, still his breath caught once more in his throat as Minhyuk’s hand touched some sensitive areas.

“I’m going to the drugstore to buy Jihoon some medicine, d’you need anything?”

Minhyuk thought for a second, trying to recall things that was missing in the first-aid kit. Kyung told him about a few things he needed, though he couldn’t quite remember what it was; he should have paid more attention. “I don’t know, just – antibiotics, painkillers. The usual , I guess.”  

“Alright, keep an eye on Jihoon too, yeah?” Minhyuk nodded and Taeil headed out of the room without another word. Just as he closed the door behind him, he could hear Yukwon’s complains reaching his ears one more time. He took his keys, his wallet and as he opened the front door of the apartment, he put his hoodie over his head. He fixed his glasses on his nose, attached his favorite bandana around his neck and finally headed down the stairs.

Then, the shining sun hit his head like a hammer, blinding him for a few seconds. There was not a single cloud in sight, and the warmth of the bright star made him sight in contentment. He was so used to go out at night since he arrived (Jiho’s commands), that he almost forgot how good it felt to see the light of the sun.

He didn’t walk for a long until he finally saw the local drugstore. When he pushed the door open, he heard the tingling of the bell above his head ringing in the department. The shop wasn’t crowded, there was just an old man hanging around in the back, and a lady with her child in the children section. He adjusted the hood over his head, and made his way over the counter.

There was a young woman, probably a bit older than he was – she had long, straight hair colored in light brown, her lips were plumped, and eyes small. Though, it wasn’t her beauty that attracted Taeil’s attention. Right behind her, was seven pictures of seven man hanged on the wall. Each of them had their own angry facial expression, but they all held a different plaque with their names on it. When his eyes fell on his own face, Taeil couldn’t help but pinch his lips. 

“Hi, how can I help you?” The lady’s voice pulled him out of his stare, and was meet with curious eyes. She was looking at him expentently, waiting for him to ask for whatever he needed.

“Yeah, uhm…” he trailed for a second, recollecting the things he needed. “I need some painkillers. Uhm… my friend just got his wisdom teeth pulled out, and the pain is killing him…” The woman said nothing, though she looked at him with pinched lips and suspicious eyes.

“I need a prescription for that.” Her tone was strong, and it made Taeil close his mouth shut. “I believe that the doctor that did the intervention give you one? Or your friend?”

A soft chuckle escaped Taeil’s lips, something that he wanted more natural than nervous. “Yes, that’s the thing. My friend is a bit… clumsy, and he doesn’t know where he put it.” He trailed off, his lips as he tried on a not-so-innocent look. “Is there any chance you might make an exception?”

The woman eyed him, not very sure if she should believe him or not. Well, it wouldn’t be the first time someone was trying to get medication without a prescription. She didn’t get the time to come to a decision though, as the firm voice of a man came to interrupt her thoughts. “Sojin-ah, come here for a second.”

She was about to call off the man, but the way he was looking at her made her change her mind. “Excuse me.” She bowed to Taeil, and disappeared behind a shelf, a bit further behind the counter. He said nothing, though he couldn’t help the way his eyes travelled discreetly through the place, scanning for any possible threat. He quickly looked away, adjusting his bandana around his neck when the lady with her child stared at him for a few seconds too long.

“Is there a problem?” He called as the woman returned, appearing behind the shelf after a few minutes. Her face had drastically changed, where her eyes were firm and almost annoyed, was now a scared spark. She cleared , but looked at him with what she wanted to be assurance.

“Not at all, sir, my boss is searching for the medicines you’re looking for.” Her voice wasn’t steady, and it only send a clutching feeling in Taeil’s guts. Without some more thinking, he headed out of the store, slamming the door shut behind him.

Though, at the second his foot step on the pavement of street, Taeil was met with the sound of police’s sirens reaching his ears. He froze for about half a second before he sees a car coming at the end of the street, to his right, flashing lights going crazy at the top. He unconsciously took a few steps back as his breath became heavy, a veil of sweat starting on his forehead. He looked to his left, trying to see if there was any escape possible in this direction.

There was another car coming from there too, so he didn’t have any other choice but to run forward, where there was a small a few feet further. Though, it was almost as if his heart stopped when he was meet with a dead-end. There wasn’t any exit, and a police car stopped right at the end of the alley, preventing him to go anywhere. Just a second after the door opened, two cops emerged from the car, respectively pointing their guns at him. “Don’t move!” The tall one yelled, “Put your hands up, slowly!” Taeil didn’t know what to do, he was trapped, with no way of getting away. “I said put your hands up!”

The cop with the glasses and long straight hair tied in a ponytail came closer, slow steps and aware eyes directed at him. Taeil couldn’t get caught, he just couldn’t – that wasn’t an option, and he was pretty sure that Jiho would kill him if he did. The bastard would definitely come to prison himself just to do that.

And there, he saw his escape, right in the corner of his eye. There was a dirty trash bin, and he didn’t hesitate to just jump on it, making his way towards an apartment balcony just above, lifting his weight to climb to the window. He heard shouts under him, though he did not give so much attention to understand what the cops were saying.