#my sticky answers weren’t good enough I updated them because sticky deserves more. love him he’s my boy

[laniidae-passerine]

okay went back to long post 2.0 and the Pictionary concept so now I’m going to create an insanely long list of Pictionary pair-ups and how they’d work in the cottage on game night

Here are all the people I presume would be allowed in for game night:

Reynie, Sticky, Kate, Constance, Martina, S.Q, Jackson, Jillson, Mr Benedict, Number Two, Rhonda, Milligan, Miss Perumal

Here we go! Reminder: this is crazy long so only about a sentence each unless I’m inspired

Reynie - Sticky: absolutely killing it, definitely come in second if not first because while neither of them can actually draw that well, they’re in tune with what the other person is trying to get across. even if it looks like nonsense to everybody else, they understand

Reynie - Kate: not amazing but pretty good! Half the time she doesn’t know what on earth he’s drawing or her gesturing is just confusing him even more but the other half? really accurate

Reynie - Constance: good but only because she has trained him in the art of Not Losing. Constance does not do the losing thing Reynie and she’s also not bad at drawing so they’re getting by okay

Reynie - Martina: consists mainly of ‘uhhhhhhhh’ noises at each other and then a guess that’s kinda right. Dead bird is kinda a roast chicken right?

Reynie - S.Q: amazing perfect legendary! but not when Reynie is drawing. S.Q hasn’t seen a lot of things so it’s kinda hard for him to guess, especially when it’s all quite wobbly

Reynie - Jackson: fine, weirdly. Jackson is less intense than Jillson during game night so as long as they’re not coming last he can handle it.

Reynie - Jillson: she is yelling loudly and Reynie is a human question mark. He needs to learn that when it looks like a cornflake, it’s meant to be a bird

Reynie - Mr Benedict: really good! Reynie loves reading just like him so they kill it on the literature round and also Reynie and him are just messing about

Reynie - Number Two: eh? No money is being on them winning but they’re not. Appalling

Reynie - Rhonda: fun! Rhonda knows it’s just a game and Reynie is just a kid who wants to enjoy himself.

Reynie - Milligan: slightly stilted but Milligan is freakily accurate at guessing. He gets a massive hug at the end too which makes him feel very safe (you may guess which he I’m talking about)

Reynie - Miss Perumal: oh, fantastic. She’s encouraging of him and even when they mess up they end up giggling about it

Sticky - Kate: Kate has pulled 17 new facial expressions at Sticky’s drawings and he is astounded by the way she keeps guessing bucket. Somehow still in 3rd

Sticky - Constance: oddly good. Constance can be patient with Sticky and she coaxes out that side of him that Needs To Win. All of the adults sort of skipped over mean!Sticky so their faces are priceless when Sticky tells them they can suck it because he’s the goddamn best

Sticky - Martina: average because neither of them are world’s best drawer or guesser but they can muddle by

Sticky - S.Q: great!!! Sticky has encyclopaedic knowledge and S.Q is a fantastic drawer! also terrible because S.Q doesn’t know what many basic things are and Sticky can’t draw for shit

Sticky - Jackson: cordial and calm, doing pretty alright. Two rather formal children with a pen it might feel a bit like a meeting between people trying to come up with new ideas for Pictionary rather than a game of Pictionary but they’re alright!

Sticky - Jillson: she is chasing him around the garden with a harpoon

Sticky - Mr Benedict: rather sweet, they’re failing miserably but at least they’re supporting each other all the way. To the bottom of the scoreboard though

Sticky - Number Two: competent but I feel like Number Two is not that great at Pictionary unless she’s teamed up with specific people

Sticky - Rhonda: let’s just enjoy ourselves :) maybe Sticky needs to give her a few hints though because optimism can only take them so far

Sticky - Milligan: even though Milligan is actually a really good guesser and drawer he takes the blame for every loss to make Sticky feel better because he thinks Sticky is very sweet

Sticky - Miss Perumal: weirdly this works. She knows what he’s trying to convey even if it’s just literal scribbly chaos and there’s even a chance of them doing well!

Kate - Constance: they are yelling violently at each other but if someone else dares insult one of them for being too bossy, prepare for their rage to be turned on you

Kate - Martina: banned from playing together. Pictionary should not be used as a vehicle for flirting and/or fighting about tetherball

Kate - S.Q: doing great!!! he’s amazing at drawing and she’s also pretty good too so they’re in with a high chance of winning

Kate - Jackson: weird dynamic. If she draws and he guesses, they’re doing good. Opposite way around and it’s not terrible but it is. Questionable

Kate - Jillson: two headstrong girls refusing to lose creates a team that is too busy arguing with each other to actually achieve anything. Luckily they admire the other person’s refusal to lose so they don’t stay mad at each other

Kate - Mr Benedict: her wild enthusiasm carries over to him and this is when you catch him actually getting competitive. Prepare to see the very minimal part of his nature that will remind you of his brother

Kate - Number Two: Kate has her head in her hands and Number Two at least has the decency to look a little ashamed

Kate - Rhonda: woooooooh girl power!!! c’mon let’s win this through the power of friendship (and end up in second still vibing)

Kate - Milligan: unified. He draws a line and she guesses it instantly. They’re the perfect father daughter team and he’s so proud of her that nobody can even be mad that they lost

Kate - Miss Perumal: okay! she’s very nice and Kate likes her so they get along well enough to achieve a good ranking

Constance - Martina: oh they understand each other. They’re above everyone else and they will win and they will rub it in S.Q’s face and then one of them will secretively give him a brownie slice if the jeering makes him feel bad

Constance - S.Q: oh she’s so pleased. She demands they win but because she cares about him (shut up) she will compliment all of his drawings in a veiled way. Of course she guessed it, she’s a genius and it’s also so obviously an airplane (translation: S.Q is very good at drawing and I believe in him)

Constance - Jackson: he’s afraid of her. However he will turn that fear into strength, mainly because that walking stick is way too close to Constance for his liking

Constance - Jillson: hell hath no fury like these two trying to win Pictionary. They will kill you and your mum and your dad and they are on the warpath. The only pairing so scary it makes S.Q draw appallingly

Constance - Mr Benedict: he can’t stop falling asleep when she insults him for being unable to guess accurately because he thinks she’s adorable and funny. He loves her so much and she’s secretly too happy about it to be mad

Constance - Number Two: who even knows what’s happening here? They sure don’t but whatever, Constance is willing to take the L, she wasn’t gonna win this one anyway

Constance - Rhonda: Constance has hidden respect for this woman. She will listen and pay serious attention to Rhonda while she is drawing and does her best to make it easy for her when it’s Rhonda’s turn to guess

Constance - Milligan: she’s still got insults left to give. Milligan is perhaps a little taken aback by the tiny child yelling at him but she’s a decent drawer so they’re getting along just fine (also she’s mean to anyone who is mean to him so he actually likes her)

Constance - Miss Perumal: you’d think Miss Perumal would be affronted by the rudeness but she actually just treats Constance with a lot of kindness in return. She apologises for getting things wrong, congratulates her for being a good drawer and so Constance is confused and actually. Stop working your magic on me you witch why am I so fond of you now

Martina - S.Q: hi bitchy S.Q we’ve missed you. They’re getting picky and irritated and being assholes to each other but they will win and they will totally high five when they do it. They have a victory song that Martina composed on a mandolin and it’s fifteen minutes long

Martina - Jackson: neither of them are afraid of the other. Will they use ‘I’M AN EXECUTIVE I’M BETTER THAN YOU!’ as a defence when they’re messing up? Yes. Is it completely useless? Also yes.

Martina - Jillson: you ever met two girls and seen them exchange a look and you know they just nonverbally said something bad about you but you’ve got no clue what it was? Now take that mean girl power and translate it into Pictionary. They’re gonna beat you so badly

Martina - Mr Benedict: something about the way that she’s so self assured and cocky makes him feel so happy that the cataplexy kicks in. He’s slid entirely off the sofa and when someone explains how that’s a good thing to Martina, she’s hiding a smile all night

Martina - Number Two: hand gestures and odd noises abound. Number Two can’t draw for shit but Martina refuses to give in so she will make them practice outside of game night so she can try understand what the hell Number Two is drawing

Martina - Rhonda: actually okay! not fantastic but Rhonda has such amazing vibes that Martina is learning to just relax and have fun

Martina - Milligan: he likes her. She’s occasionally mean and quite cocky, but she’s amiable to him and while she likely was at the start, she isn’t cruel or mocking towards him now. Yes he may be extremely tall and buff but the real matter at hand is if he can draw and thank god for the fact that he can

Martina - Miss Perumal: this child needs actual affection holy shit. C’mere Martina Miss Perumal will tell you that you’re funny and friendly instead of just smart. She ignores the actual game in favour of letting Martina feel cared for

S.Q - Jackson: terror from both of them but they think the other person has power. Jackson was told to leave the headmasters son alone and S.Q just thinks Jackson is scary so they’re playing a weird game of chicken where they both the chicken. Figure it out boys

S.Q - Jillson: when Jillson clocks that he’s a sweetheart she relaxes and then enters Oh We Will Win mode. S.Q is unnerved slightly but also it’s nice to be wanted with a borderline ‘I will be violent to other people if I don’t get him as my Pictionary partner’ intensity

S.Q - Mr Benedict: his nephew. Oh he loves him so much. Perfect boy, wonderful child. However this poses a slight problem because Benedict is talking too much about how amazing S.Q is and how much he loves him to actually guess what the object is. It’s okay though because they’re hugging by the end of it and that’s what matters

S.Q - Number Two: what is happening. Number Two can’t draw and S.Q has not seen most films or read most books or been beyond the island. He’s guessing bird 50% of the time

S.Q - Rhonda: oh they’re gonna win and Rhonda is on point with the positive reinforcement. Prepare to get a sweet chucked at you for every point you score S.Q

S.Q - Milligan: it’s odd because S.Q feels like he should be intimidated but he just feels safe. They’re doing very well together and it’s sweet to see the way that S.Q tentatively smiles when they do well and has the smile softly returned

S.Q - Miss Perumal: oh you want a mother? You want a mum? You want a brand new mum? What’s Pictionary do you need adoption papers? I can be your parent S.Q just sign here I love you

Jackson - Jillson: creepy twins out of the Shining x1000. Constance is not the only telepathic weirdo here. However if they hit a low streak they will start yelling at each other like little children

Jackson - Mr Benedict: uh. An adult being sincerely nice? Oh, yeah it’s fine. He’s fine. It’s cool. Does anyone have a tissue? also they’re doing decently, even if it’s hard for Jackson to see through happy tears

Jackson - Number Two: why are you both yelling at each other. None of this makes sense you’re not even being comprehensible anymore someone take the pen away from them

Jackson - Rhonda: good! Not much different to average people playing Pictionary it’s nice to watch

Jackson - Milligan: this man is TERRIYING. Jackson is afraid of him to the point where he kinda just stays weirdly quiet during rounds. Everyone is just waiting for him to realise that Milligan is an angel (when he does, they’re going to be a surprise powerhouse)

Jackson - Miss Perumal: she’s nice to him and it makes him wanna do well. Even when they do badly she’s still friendly to him and it’s good vibes all arounf

Jillson - Mr Benedict: this girl is insane. And he has a habit for thinking mean teenage girls are intensely funny so he’s not conscious almost every time she’s doing the guessing. On her end she’s just completely thrown by the Curtain clone thinking that she’s funny (…he really thinks that? Oh. That’s… fantastic, actually)

Jillson - Number Two: this works. The freaky teenager and the woman that she will one day be like are on the same wavelength so they’re actually guessing each other’s horrible drawings correctly. They’re so goddamn weird and yet winning. How the hell are they winning

Jillson - Rhonda: Why are you being nice? Stop It Now. No stop being friendly and kind and amusing. Shut up. (no don’t actually shut up you seem like the kind of person I wanna hang out with with)

Jillson - Milligan: this man is a social oddity. However she has spent more time on the Milligan Boat than necessary so she is starting to comprehend him. They’ll do fine

Jillson - Miss Perumal: okay Jillson is maybe one of the few people Miss Perumal just doesn’t get. But when she’s punched in the arm by Martina and told to be nice, they can actually get along fine and do quite well

Mr Benedict - Number Two: this is deranged. Perfection and insanity in one combination. They’re winning and Benedict has passed out but the answer was narcolepsy and technically that counts as correct. Everyone is losing their minds watching this occur

Mr Benedict - Rhonda: yeahhhhhh it’s time for two people who can’t stop giggling at each other. Everything is so funny to them and their positivity is infectious. Everyone can have been having the worst day of their lives but if game night rolls around and these two are a team? You’ll be happy by the end of it

Mr Benedict - Milligan: assured and calm. They know each other very well but their communication is a bit strange. Expect longggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggg pauses and extended direct eye contact. It’s… really something however they’ll do well

Mr Benedict - Miss Perumal: the vibes are good with this one. For a man who often supports other, he’s a little thrown and very appreciative to have someone who treats him like he needs the support. She’s very kind to him.

Number Two - Rhonda: mainly Rhonda politely going ‘hmmmmmm. well. maybe…’ to make up for the fact that what Number Two is drawing is nonsense. Very ‘two sisters being unable to communicate and fighting about it’ until they inevitably reconcile

Number Two - Milligan: vibes. Doing well and nodding a lot at each other. He has very poetic ways of describing her awful drawings

Number Two - Miss Perumal: somebody try save Miss Perumal because none of this makes sense. No seriously is she dreaming did she eat cheese before bed

Rhonda - Milligan: actually they can both draw and they’re buddies. So it’s going pretty good and also they share Looks that have secret meaning so have fun figuring those out

Rhonda - Miss Perumal: if they are cheating via sign language that is none of your business. Stop reporting them for it you’re all so annoying god bless <3

Milligan - Miss Perumal: she’s a bit unnerved and then she gets to know him. Pretty good they connect over parenting and they can both draw so. Bisexual rights!

[daemour]

You’re Still My Universe Pt. 8

Title: You’re Still My Universe

Pairing: Jinyoung x BamBam

Genre: Angst, maybe fluff, parent au

Warnings: Car crash, panic attack

Word count: 3755

Summary: Jinyoung’s life is devoted to his son. But the first time he’s been separated, so many other people barge into his life and start taking up what little free time he has left.

Sorry this took so long! I might have to push updates to biweekly instead of weekly because I no longer have a buffer.

It has been a week since Yugyeom had returned and Jinyoung is intent on avoiding Youngjae. The younger had, at first, stayed with BamBam for two days, giving Jinyoung space and time. But as time goes on, he tries to catch Jinyoung in conversation multiple times. But Jinyoung is nothing if not a master at evading conversations, even if the two live in the same apartment. One of the tricks is spending time with Yugyeom because he knows Youngjae wouldn’t bring it up around the kid, and so Jinyoung has no qualms in utilising his child.

Except, he had misjudged Youngjae’s persistence. Youngjae had tried multiple times to get BamBam to watch the child for long enough. And even if Jinyoung had asked BamBam to decline, he knew his boyfriend would soon cave. BamBam had even been telling him that he needs to speak to Youngjae about that. Jinyoung knows that, he just doesn’t want to.

He should, as BamBam told him time and time again, and Jinyoung knew it definitely would have to come before Jaebeom made his way over. But for now, Jinyoung was content with acting like a petulant child. Even if Yugyeom had caught on to their feud and now quietly sides with Jinyoung (of course he would, the child loved his father as much as a four-year-old could), Jinyoung still would not be an adult about that.

“Hyung, are you monologuing again?” BamBam comes up behind Jinyoung, who is leaning on the younger’s kitchen counter, wrapping his long arms around the broader man’s waist. Jinyoung turns his head to look at the younger man, who has hooked his chin over Jinyoung’s shoulder.

“...No.” The pause tells BamBam all he needs, and the skinnier man laughs and leans forward to press a quick kiss to Jinyoung’s lips.

Jinyoung tucks his head in BamBam’s shoulder, trailing kisses along the smooth skin of his collarbone and BamBam sighs at the feeling, pressing even more kisses to the crown of Jinyoung’s head in response. “I know I keep saying this, and you keep hearing it, but you really gotta talk to Youngjae about this, you know.”

Jinyoung whines into BamBam’s neck. “I don’t wan-na.” He’s just further cementing the idea that Jinyoung is literally a toddler in a twenty-eight-year-old’s body. BamBam laughs again, a little bit both breathless and exasperated.

“Don’t whine, baby. We’re not fucking just yet–” Jinyoung slaps a hand over BamBam’s mouth, ears burning red. BamBam cracks up, loud and happy, and Jinyoung hides a smile in BamBam’s cheek as he presses a series of quick kisses to the soft skin.

Not a day goes by when he’s not endeared by the younger, gorgeous man. Jinyoung is always happy he met BamBam at the bar that one night. He honestly thinks he could see a future with BamBam forever– Yugyeom loves the man as well, and that is all Jinyoung needs in his life. God, what did he do to deserve this?

“Hyung,” BamBam’s whiny voice cuts into Jinyoung’s thoughts, “you’re thinking again.” Jinyoung giggles, face still pressed into BamBam’s cheek.

“But thinking is important. If I didn’t think then I wouldn’t have gone out to meet you,” Jinyoung retaliates, words mumbling into BamBam’s face.

BamBam huffs and rolls his eyes. “You can think, I love it when my boyfriend uses his brain. But I prefer it when my boyfriend kisses me.”

Jinyoung immediately complies, pressing kiss after kiss on BamBam’s cheeks until he reaches the younger’s chapped lips. As he fits his lips in between BamBam’s, the younger’s slender hands come up to cup Jinyoung’s face. The kiss they share is sweet, unusual for these two, but something about it makes Jinyoung’s heart flutter.

BamBam leans forward a little, deepening the kiss, and Jinyoung pulls BamBam closer by his waist. When Jinyoung pulls back to just take in the sight of his boyfriend, BamBam whines and tries to capture the older’s lips again. Jinyoung smiles at the (slightly) shorter man, leaning in and letting their lips meet again.

They stay like that for who knows how long, just breathing in each other and practically becoming one. Jinyoung could stay like that for ages. It’s only when Jinyoung’s phone rings and startles the both of them do they separate. Jinyoung’s face is warm from the press of BamBam’s lips against his and the younger’s close proximity as he answers his phone without looking at the caller ID.

“Hello?”

“Jinyoung–”

Jinyoung’s eyes widened. “Jaebeom hyung? What’s up? This is a pleasant surprise.”

“Jinyoung, Yugyeom and Youngjae were hit by a car they’re at Cha Medical Centre Jinyoung please–” Jaebeom’s frantic voice cuts off with a choke. Jinyoung doesn’t even know how to respond, standing still. The words haven't even registered in Jinyoung’s brain. It’s only when BamBam’s cool hand finds Jinyoung’s back does Jinyoung snap back to reality.

“Jaebeom”—Jinyoung’s voice falters but he powers through—”Jaebeom what happened? Bam and I are on the road now and I need you to tell me what the f-uck is going on.”

He is shoving his heels haphazardly into his shoes, BamBam close behind him. Jaebeom seems to be inconsolable, sobbing after every other word.

“They were trying to go to the park but a car ran a red light. I’m on the bus but it’ll take a good five hours–” Jaebeom cuts off with a crackle of static and a half-heard sob, and the call ends. Jinyoung curses, the words heavy in his mouth. His foot is basically out of the door now, only BamBam shrugging on a coat.

Once BmBam finishes up what Jinyoung felt was slightly unnecessary, the two hurry down the hall. Waiting for the elevator seemed like too much of a risk to Jinyoung, so he basically ripped open the door to the stairwell instead. This proves to be a mistake—BamBam lives on the sixth floor—but adrenaline keeps Jinyoung going until they reach the lobby. BamBam steps out to get a taxi while Jinyoung calls the hospital and sits down to catch his breath.

“Hello, Cha Medical Centre, how can we help you?” A crisp voice answers the call, and Jinyoung feels a twinge of embarrassment about his state.

“Hi, I’m Park Jinyoung. I was wondering if my son, Park Yugyeom, and the man he was with, Choi Youngjae, are there?” The person on the receiving end of the call hums, and Jinyoung can hear papers rustling in the background.

He waits on hold as BamBam tugs him towards the taxi, and the person soon returns to the call. “Yes, both are here. Unfortunately, I am unable to give any more information over the phone. Is there anything else I can help you with?”

Jinyoung thanks the person and ends the call, but once that is over he doesn’t even know what to do with himself. His hands find their way to his lips and he busies himself with picking and peeling. His lips weren’t chapped by any means, but they weren’t exactly soft, and there was a sting of pain every time Jinyoung’s nails caught onto a particularly rough patch.

BamBam sighs, looking at his anxiety-ridden boyfriend out of the corner of his eye. Even if he was the one who kept telling Jinyoung to stop worrying and thinking so much, he certainly did his own share. Instead, he opts just to place his hands over Jinyoung’s and squeeze comfortingly.

Jinyoung has never told him about Eunbi and how he had gotten Yugyeom, and BamBam has never asks. It is the unspoken line of uncertainty between the two. Jinyoung sees it as something to hold on to, perhaps in the case that BamBam doesn’t work out the way he wishes. He doesn’t know how BamBam feels about not knowing, and Jinyoung knows he would have to tell the younger at some point. But for now, he is content with just gripping onto his boyfriend’s hand, using him as an anchor to the real world.

Jinyoung is more worried than he would let on; it feels like a fever dream to him. Is there a proper way to react? How is he even supposed to react to the news? Jinyoung can hardly think, his grip on BamBam’s hand tighter than intended.

What if Jaebeom didn’t make it either? What if Jinyoung never apologises to Youngjae? What if Yugyeom– Jinyoung can feel a tear fall but if he acknowledges it he knows he will break down. He cannot. He needs to be strong.

But when the taxi arrives and they step out into the hospital, the pristine, almost imperceptibly off-white walls and floor, Jinyoung can feel his resolve crack. His paper-thin facade of strength. He can hear his heart roaring in his ears, can barely hear the receptionist and nurse explain that Yugyeom is still in surgery, only somewhat understands when they direct him to the room where Youngjae waits.

Though BamBam basically supports him all the way to the door, Jinyoung stops just short of it. “BamBam-ah,” he breathes, “I don’t think I can go in.” He can feel the sweat, sticky on his forehead, his throat, dry. He swallows. “BamBam-ah,” he tries again, voice just as weak and thick.

BamBam’s hand is the only thing grounding him, Jinyoung feels like he’s floating away like a balloon, his hand the string connecting him to the real world. BamBam sighs, his free hand coming to grasp Jinyoung’s and turning the older to face him. “Hyung, if you don’t go in and talk to Youngjae, you may never do it. You need to talk, both of you. He’s important to you, you can’t throw this away.”

Jinyoung just looks up at BamBam, eyes shining and tears dripping down his face, larger than BamBam had seen and rolling into each other and dripping onto their connected hands. “Bam–”

BamBam looks around, and quicker than a blink, presses his lips against Jinyoung’s and pulls back. “You can do this, Jinyoung. Go in there. Talk to Youngjae. Not even about your problems or resolving your fight. Be there for him. Don’t let your differences take away your friendship.”

With a little resistance, BamBam untangles his fingers from Jinyoung’s and guides him into the room where Youngjae lays. He hangs back around the door while Jinyoung treads forward carefully, as if walking too fast would cause Youngjae to break into pieces.

“Hey, Youngjae,” Jinyoung starts carefully, “how are you?”

Youngjae turns at the sound of Jinyoung’s voice, eyes levelling at Jinyoung. “Let me think about it...you know, it just hit me that I'm doing just fine.” Jinyoung winces at both the pun and the tired fierceness in Youngjae’s voice.

“Is it serious?” Jinyoung doesn’t think he has the energy to respond to Youngjae’s jibe and it seems Youngjae doesn’t either.

Youngjae sighs as Jinyoung comes to sit in the chair beside his bed. There’s a moment of silence, and then Youngjae speaks quietly. “I’m sorry.” Jinyoung’s brows furrow and he leans forward to grasp at Youngjae’s hands.

“What are you sorry for, Jae? It wasn’t your fault.” The words feel like lead in his mouth. No, it wasn’t Youngjae’s fault, but Jinyoung can’t help but let his thoughts stray to all the possibilities of how the accident came to be.

“It–” Jinyoung shushes him quickly.

“Youngjae, please, don’t talk about it. I don’t think I could talk about it if I wanted to.” Jinyoung bows his head as if ashamed, but Youngjae nods his head in understanding, letting his warm hands comfort Jinyoung.

The two men exchange no words, letting the silence envelop their quiet comfort. The only interruption was a nurse coming in to check up on Youngjae, and that was when Jinyoung left to use the bathroom, though the both of them knew that was a thinly veiled excuse to remove himself from the suffocating hospital room.

To his surprise BamBam wasn’t where he left him, nor did he enter Youngjae’s room. Jinyoung found a text from the younger boy telling him that he was going to go get a card and gift for both Youngjae and Yugyeom. Though Jinyoung was a tiny bit disappointed that BamBam wasn’t going to be there, he understood wanting to get away, and just sent the younger a text to return soon.

After some deliberation, Jinyoung added another text stating he wanted to talk. After a moment, BamBam reads the text but sends no reply, and Jinyoung can only hope the younger isn’t worrying. Two people simultaneously worrying about the same people while waiting alone together is never a good mashup.

Jinyoung returns to the hall outside of Youngjae’s room, dropping into the bench on the side. He can’t do anything right now and he’s never felt his heart break more. He hates this feeling. The feeling of being able to do nothing, of being alone. And though Youngjae is sitting in the room next to him, eyes probably trained on the tv on the wall across from him, Jinyoung can’t help but feel the walls closing in on him like he’s the only one in this goddamned hospital. How could this have been prevented?

Was he a bad father? No, no, how could he have known? But he should have anticipated anything. Been prepared at least. And here he is, a mess in Youngjae’s room, not knowing shit. He feels stupid.

“Hey, Jinyoungie,” a familiar voice breaks Jinyoung out of his haze. Jaebeom is currently squatting in front of him, hands outreached. Jinyoung must have been sitting here for hours. “How are you doing?”

Jinyoung can physically feel his bottom lip start to quiver and he can’t tell if that’s a good thing or a bad thing. Probably the latter. Jaebeom makes vague cooing noises not dissimilar to the ones he uses on cats, but Jinyoung can’t seem to bring himself to roll his eyes. Instead, he blubbers out a “Hyung” and falls into Jaebeom’s arms.

God, he’s such a loser. He can't help but be embarrassed as Jaebeom hums and pets him, stroking his hair softly, but it’s comforting to be in his hyung’s arms. He feels like a child again, his mother comforting. But the crown of his head feels wet. When Jinyoung looks up, a fat tear drips onto his cheek. Jaebeom is crying as well. Jinyoung feels even worse about himself. His friend has just received nes, and instead of taking time to himself, Jaebeom immediately rushed to Jinyoung.

When Jinyoung starts to pull away, Jaebeom doesn’t let go of his arms, looking up at him with such a face that Jinyoung immediately plops back down onto the floor. “Where do you think you’re going?”

“I thought that maybe you’d want to go see Youngjae or something?” Jaebeom laughs with a hint of an emotion Jinyoung can’t place and shakes his head. His hands stay clasped to Jinyoung’s.

“If I see him right now I might cry even more than I already am.”

Jinyoung frowns at that, pulling away and fully standing. “Hyung, go see Youngjae. He was just in a fucking crash, go cry. It’ll be fine.” Jinyoung pauses in his words when he sees Jaebeom looking up at him with wide eyes, but his resolve hardens. Nothing will be resolved if they don’t walk to each other, trust him, he knows. “I’m going to go find BamBam.”

Jinyoung can feel Jaebeom’s betrayed eyes on his back as he moves down the halfway, but he promises himself that he’s making a good decision. Even if his thoughts are eating at his mind as he wanders aimlessly through the halls of the hospital. He knows a couple nurses are whispering about him but he’s just trying to find the exit.

“Jinyoung? What are you doing here?” Jackson? Jinyoung’s confusion shows on his face as he turns to see the older man smiling and waving from down one of the halls. “I was waiting for Mark to finish up his exam,” Jackson answers Jinyoung’s unspoken question.

“Ah.” Jinyoung is still not sure of what is occurring around him, barely managing to respond with one word. Jackson waits patiently, letting Jinyoung gather his thoughts. “Youngjae and Yugyeom, ah, they–”

Jinyoung is saved from responding (or is it really being saved?) when a nurse comes up to smile at Jinyoung before turning to Jackson. “Mr. Wang, Mr. Tuan has finished his check-up. You’re welcome to go back in.”

As the nurse leaves, Jackson turns to Jinyoung with a smile still on his face. “Want to come in? Mark will be happy to see you.”

Jinyoung just nods—anything to avoid thinking about Yugyeom and Youngjae and Jaebeom—and follows Jackson back down the hallway. Maybe he’s a little bit of an idiot for just ignoring his problems, but everyone is a genius in hindsight.

The door creaks open to reveal Mark sitting at the edge of a bed with his eyes closed as he breathes out deeply. The sight confuses Jinyoung but Jackson is unperturbed, just beaming and walking up to Mark. “Hey, Markie! Guess who I found!” Mark just grunts, tilting his head up to face Jackson but not opening his eyes.

Mark sighs heavily. “Is it Jinyoung?” Mark’s voice is almost void of any emotion and excitement, and Jinyoung doesn’t move from his spot right next to the door. Jackson, however, doesn’t have any restraints and laughs loudly.

“Yeah! How did you know, Markie? Oh, nevermind that. But yeah, it’s Jinyoung! We keep running into him.” Mark grunts, finally opening his eyes and sending a small smile to Jinyoung.

“Nice to see you, Jinyoungie. What brings you here?” He’s short of breath, Jinyoung notices, but says nothing about it.

“Yugyeom and Youngjae got into a car accident.” It’s strange saying it out loud, as if Jinyoung is speaking it into existence. All this time, it was just a fever dream but now it is real, solid. It happened.

Jackson’s eyebrows furrow and he jumps up. Mark gets up as well, albeit a bit slower. “Oh my God,” Mark breathes out. Jinyoung refuses to look either of them in the eye. If he does it might become even more true than it really is. Even now, he’s hoping he’ll wake up and Yugyeom will be curled up on his chest, like how the child often ends up every night.

But when he blinks, Yugyeom is not there, in the comfort of Jinyoung’s bed. Yugyeom’s surgery. Jinyoung’s standing in Mark’s hospital room, both Mark and Jackson looking at him with both pity and unsurety in their eyes. He can’t do this. Jinyoung can’t breathe. There’s an unsettling feeling in his stomach.

Jinyoung turns around, finds the nearest trash can, and retches. Mark starts and Jackson hurriedly makes his way to Jinyoung, placing a soothing hand on his back. Jinyoung can’t seem to stop emptying his stomach of nothing and his soul of everything though. Jackson’s hand on his back is grounding but Jinyoung needs BamBam. Where is BamBam?

Jinyoung jerks his head up, stumbling to his feet and bumping into a wall. He can’t seem to regain his balance but he fumbles for his phone. “Hey, hey, you need to sit down,” Jackson tries to say but it feels like cotton is stuffed in Jinyoung’s ears. He can only hear the roaring of his own blood. He can’t breathe.

“Bam”—Jinyoung chokes out the name, thrusting his phone at Jackson haphazardly—”call BamBam–”

Jinyoung only gets out half the words he wants before Mark finally stands and comes over, placing his hand on Jinyoung’s shoulder. “Hey.” His voice is low, quiet, and grounding. “Come on, let’s go sit on the bed, all right? It’s going to be alright.” Jinyoung is all but hoisted onto his feet by Mark and led to the lone bed.

He can’t tell when he’s sitting nor when he’s standing, just that Mark is beside him and rubbing small circles into his back.God, why now? Why in the middle of the goddamn hospital? He couldn’t have had a mental breakdown in private? Jinyoung knows he’s being unreasonable but he can’t help his mind from running a million miles a second.

“Jinyoungie?” Jinyoung’s head snaps up and he can faintly make out BamBam through his blurry vision. “Oh, Jinyoungie.”

The blob moves closer, and Jinyoung can see BamBam’s soft face through his thick tears. “BamBam,” he blubbers, and he’s not afraid to admit it (well, maybe just a little). Jinyoung holds out his arms and BamBam laughs softly but not unkindly as he settles in Jinyoung’s lap to properly wrap his lanky arms around Jinyoung.

Mark and Jackson quietly leave the room to let the couple have their moment, and as soon as the two are gone, Jinyoung buries his face into BamBam’s neck. The younger doesn’t pull away at the tears and snot pressed into his neck, only pulling Jinyoung even closer and murmuring nothings into Jinyoung’s soft hair.

OnceJinyoung has cried until his eyes dried up, he finally pulls away, wincing at the wetness of BamBam’s neck. “‘M sorry,” he mumbles out, but BamBam, bless him, just chuckles softly.

“If my parents could deal with my endless messes and sobs as a child, I can dea with your perfectly valid tears.” Jinyoung looks away at that, but BamBam’s hand finds its way to Jinyonug’s chin and draws the older to look at him again. “Really, Jinyoung. I do love you, you know. It’s all right. Let’s get cleaned up, yeah? Then we can go find out what happened. I’ll be here for every minute of it, all right?”

Jinyoung nods almost miserably, leaning around BamBam and grabbing a handful of tissues from the box on the bedside table. He wipes sullenly at BamBam’s neck, but cracks a smile when BamBam whines and tries to wipe off the tears and snot with Jinyoung’s sleeve. BamBam holds a hand and there’s only a beat of a heart (Jinyoung’s or BamBam’s, who would ever know) before Jinyoung takes the leaner man’s hand.

“I’m sorry,” Jinyoung can’t help but whisper again. BamBam says nothing and just wraps an arm around Jinyoung’s shoulders. There’s not much he can or would say but it’s enough for Jinyoung. He can make it through this if BamBam is there with him.

Mark and Jackson are waiting anxiously outside the door with a man Jinyoung doesn’t recognise. “Hey, Jinyoungie,” Jackson starts to say carefully, “this is Doctor Kim Seokjin. He’s here to tell you about how Yugyeom is doing.”

[jeichanhaka]

And Carried Me Away: Ch. 16

Author Note: Sorry about not updating lately, I’ll try to get back to writing more frequently to this fanfic.

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Chapter 16:

"All right. Hopefully that will help find this Bryce Samuels." Cam muttered as she returned to the investigation area of the station, Tara not far behind. The two of them had just finished up a press release after a database search into the suspect, whose name Hotch got from James, yielded no results. "I can't believe Garcia couldn't find anything on him."

"Well, he was one of the children in Somerfield's institute. It's possible Somerfield used aliases for his 'patients' in any records he kept." Tara replied, shutting the door behind them. "Hotch did get a description from James, but it was from over twenty years ago when the two were thirteen."

Cam grumbled, her heterochromatic eyes livid. "I can't believe this. We have all of his files, but can't find out what we need."

Tara grimaced and nodded, her arms crossed. The moment Hotch had given the team a name to look into as a possible unsub, Garcia had did an extensive search into Bryce, including the files they'd taken from Somerfield. It didn't take long for the tech analyst to discover that on top of giving each subject of his an alias, Somerfield had also obscured or falsified their personal information. Ages and dates were all changed.

The only thing he kept were records of the experiments he did, which horrifyingly were done to many of those at his institute. Not just James. And most were experiments repeated on multiple victims. Multiple times.

"If..." Cam started to say, only to be interrupted by Tara's phone ringing. The latter quickly answered it after a glance at the display.

"Yes, Morgan? What..." Tara paused, eyes narrowing in thought as she listened. "Yes. All right. We'll meet you there."

"What is it?" Cam asked after the older woman hung up.

"Jersey police just found a body of an unidentified woman, enucleated and stabbed in the spine. She was killed and dumped recently."

"Is it Melissa Joyce?"

"If it is then the unsub could be escalating. He kept Olivia Sutters for weeks. He barely had Melissa a day." Tara replied, the two of them already heading out to meet up with the rest of the team.

"Yes. We're fine. Jemma and Alsie are picking out some ice cream." Spencer glanced towards his sister and niece, his cell phone pressed to his ear. He pulled a face, a tentative frown tugging his lips. "I know...we got a late start. There was...but things are fine now. What about the case? Has the unsub been found?"

-"Not yet." Rossi cocked an eyebrow at the shift he heard in the younger agent's voice, and the false start Spencer made. "Are you sure everything's all right? Did something happen? Did Alsie...?"-

Spencer grimaced, instinctively wanting to keep quiet about what had happened. It took a glance at Jemma and the concern in Rossi's voice as he repeated his question for Spencer to re-realize that the other man deserved to know. Jemma was Rossi's granddaughter and Alsie had almost become his daughter-in-law.

-"Reid..."-

"Sorry. Alsie shifted to an alter earlier and...well, it delayed us getting to the park. Jemma had a tantrum because of it." Spencer gave a demure smile as he kept his gaze on his niece. The full, wide-eyed, grin the toddler gave when Alsie handed her a small, soft serve vanilla ice cream cone covered in sprinkles made him smile more.

"Jem, not like..." Alsie chuckled as Jemma started eating the ice cream with her hands, scooping it up with her fingers and putting it in her mouth. Alsie shook her head quietly and picked up her sundae, before leading Jemma back towards the bench Spencer was standing beside.

Spencer shook his head as Alsie started to ask him if he was sure he didn't want one. "I don't do too good with dairy products."

"Ah. All right." Alsie mumbled, turning her attention to her sundae after helping Jemma onto the bench. The toddler continued devouring her ice cream, her fingers and chin becoming an increasingly sticky mess. Alsie smiled at her daughter and then started eating her sundae, scooping it with the spoon it came with.

-"It sounds like everyone's having fun." Rossi grinned as he spoke, the genuine laughter he heard from the other end alleviating his concerns.-

"Yeah." Spencer chortled, watching as Alsie broke from her resolve to let Jemma eat as she pleased and gave the girl her spoon.

"Here. Use this. Not your hands. Please." Alsie sighed and glanced toward the ice cream vender, wondering if she should get another spoon. As well as some napkins.

"Sorry, Rossi." Spencer apologized, his lips twitching as Jemma gave back the spoon to Alsie. "I got distracted."

-"No problem. Just take some photos of my adorable granddaughter so I can add them to the album I started." He paused, thinking about something. "We need to get you a phone with a newer camera."-

Spencer blinked and shook his head. "What's wrong with the phone I have now? I like it. It works just fine, it calls, texts, and takes pictures. I don't need a new one."

-"...kid." Rossi sighed. "The picture quality of your phone is just...not the greatest. Besides you can't really record video on it either. Jemma deserves the best quality of photo and video."-

Spencer made a face, twisting his lips. It wasn't that he disagreed with Rossi's comment about Jemma, but rather the idea of upgrading his phone. Most if not all of the phones with better cameras were smart phones with touch screens. He hated touch screens.

-"...it's all right, kid. I was joking." Rossi replied with a chuckle after realizing what Spencer's silence meant. "Alsie has a smart phone so you or her can use that." He paused a moment, listening to Spencer grumble about newer technology and how addictive it can be for people. He waited until the younger man was done grumbling. "All right. I get it. Anyway there's another reason I called, aside from checking up on Jemma."-

"...What is it?" Spencer asked, glancing at Alsie and Jemma briefly before turning away to focus on the call.

-"...Hotch found out something that the team needs to hear. He didn't elaborate, but said it was important." Rossi took in a breath, rubbing his chin as he recalled Hotch's call. The younger man had seemed perturbed by something he'd learned, and Rossi was sure it had to do with James. Hotch had just gotten done with an interview with James after all. He couldn't help wondering what it was Hotch had learned, what James may have told him.-

"Rossi, I..." Spencer started, but quickly stopped, his eyes widening after returning to his sister and niece. The wheezing coming from the latter terrifying him. He quickly flew to the bench, his eyes widening at hives marring his niece's skin. "Jemma!"

Alsie trembled, panicking. Her frightened and wide eyes searching Spencer's face before locking once more on her daughter. She was unable to speak, and simply panicked, her heart thumping wildly in her chest.

Spencer, recognizing the symptoms of severe allergic reaction, quickly hung up on Rossi. The very next moment calling for an ambulance.

New Jersey:

The sky overhead a deepening crimson as sunset inched nearer, police cars surrounded the area leading to the dumpsite. It was a wooded area, with biking and hiking trails leading along and from the road that curved through the area. The trees were many and a lush of green, part of a lovely, non-urban landscape.

It was not a place used to homicide, nor the disposal of corpses. That was evidenced by the reporters and onlookers trying to see what the commotion was about. To see why so many police were around in an area that was considered safe.

Cold eyes peered at the flashing lights, their owner standing quietly among the gaggle of onlookers. Dressed in worn jeans and a slate-gray hoodie, he studied the officers coming and going while blending in with the crowd.

"What's happened?" One of the onlookers asked another, trying to see some hint of what was beyond the police barricade.

"Don't know. Heard someone say there was a dead body. A woman."

"What? Seriously? Do you think she was killed?" The first asked, turning to her friend. Her eyes widened and lit with morbid interest. "Do you think it could be another of the copycat murders? Like it mentioned on the News?"

"Weren't the other ones found closer to Newark? Why would one be found here?"

The man with the cold eyes crept away, a twitch of his lip the only indication that he'd heard the two friend's conversation.

"'And now we roam, in sovereign wood, and now we hunt the doe...'" Bryce whispered as he sauntered off, his thin lips itching to form a sneer.

It was as he walked off, not yet outside of the crowd, that he emptied his hoodie's pocket. A parcel, unremarkable enough not to be noticed amid the draw towards the police lights, but of enough girth to eventually be seen. And felt.

Bryce smirked slightly, really just a twitch of his lips, as he continued on. His cold eyes, catching sight of a black SUV driving towards the site cordoned off with police tape, gleamed. He watched it disappear behind the gaggle of onlookers before resuming his walk.

-Flashback-

-"Yes, I understand. You were hoping to find her or the family, but you knew from the beginning that it was a long shot." The man spoke, handing over a quarter-inch stack of papers to him. "There isn't any proof that a switch happened, or that this Crawford family is connected. Mr. Reid...It's been years, any trail, if there's one to be found, has likely grown cold. The agency you hired before has a great reputation, if they didn't find a trail back then, it's unlikely any will be found now."

"I...that's..." William sighed and begrudgingly took the papers, his blurry gaze shifting to the top page. He blinked until his tired eyes were clear, the sliver of hope he had diminishing.

"I suggest you deal with the likelihood that your daughter wasn't switched and move on." The man waited, watching as his client nodded though with more weariness than just moments ago.

"Yes. Maybe you're right. I should...thank you for your time Mr. Cutler..."

x

William Reid glowered at his steering wheel, his increasingly livid gaze shifting to the sign on the front of the building across from him. He squeezed his steering wheel as he read the name of the law offices. C. J. Cutler. The lawyer who drew up Mary Schmidt's will.

William scowled and took a deep breath, his eyes flitting to the folder he'd lain open on the passenger seat. The folder he had kept during his search for Alsie, the folder containing all the reports filed by the detective agencies he hired.

His jaw taut and eyes narrowed, he picked up the papers and folder before exiting his car. Though it was getting late, his detour to visit James at Alsie's behest having taken up a chunk of the day, he refused to wait longer.

Midway in shutting his car door, his cell phone rang. His narrowed, angry eyes widened with concern seeing Alsie's number and name on the display.

"Hello? Elsie, what's...?" William paled as he listened to his daughter, her voice terrified and what she was saying terrifying. Though he honestly only heard 'Jemma' and 'hospital.' "Which hospital? Whi...don't worry. It'll be all right. I'm on my way." William reassured Alsie, returning to his car without another thought.