healer ; ateez x reader

; chapter 18

San always loved making friends. He was instantly able to befriend any person he came across and it was as if it was a power of his to do so. However, in school, he often chose to stay by himself as he preferred the calm environment from the otherwise chaotic classroom settings despite his extroverted nature.

San was an innocent boy whose parents raised him with the life motto of being nice to all. As he grew up, he often questioned this idea because of course, respect shouldn't be given to those who don't deserve it. However, his parents emphasized the importance of being empathetic and simply understanding that people may go through things that make them act rudely. They tried to always live with the idea that a little bit of empathy and kindness could change others.

However, San quickly realized that some people were cruel by nature and no amount of kindness could change them.

"Please, let me go!"

Highschool was when San discovered his first bully. He didn't think anything of it as all they'd do is throw rude and degrading remarks at him. San knew he was above small words until it became physical. They would push and shove him onto the cold ground after school and he couldn't do anything about it with the sheer number of them versus him. He never had any classes with them so he didn't care to learn their names but he also couldn't understand why they picked on him so much. Was it because he was new? Maybe they were like this to everyone?

He was friendly but he couldn't say he had any actual friends to help him in these kinds of situations. Although he was kind to all and was on the good side of many popular people, no one stuck around for long enough. As he got older, his parents stayed at work more often and never cared to ask about the bruises littering his body. San tried to tell the principal but all it took was a simple, "No sir, I go straight home after school," from one of his abusers for it to be dropped.

"Hey San, I was wondering... I'm actually hosting my birthday party tonight and I wanted to invite you!"

"Suren Rose, I'll try to make it," he smiled.

Rose was a popular girl and they had been friends after he tutored her for math, which she would've failed without him. She was one of the first people in the school to approach him when he transferred during his second year, so they had a close relationship despite not talking much outside of tutoring. Part of the reason was her boyfriend being one of his abusers. After San had seen them kissing in the hallways before class, he made sure to never be seen with her around him.

However, that changed when Rose gently stopped him in the hallway to discuss her birthday plans while she was with him. Judging by the boy's angered expression, San knew he would regret ever befriending such a kind girl. 

Instead of taking him to the back of the school, as usual, Rose's boyfriend and another boy in his class dragged him to the small river between two neighborhoods. They pushed him against the railing causing him to yell in pain as one of them grabbed onto his collar.

"Do you really think I didn't know something was going on with you and my girlfriend?"

"Nothing is going on I promise!" he pleaded, tears flooding his eyes from the pain his spine was experiencing.

"I'm sick of you! All the girls like you and for what? Are you a whore or are you just gay? There's nothing special about you so why do you walk around like you're worth anything!"

San began panicking the second the boy in front of him started raising his voice; he truly didn't want them to lose their cool near a large body of water. His body felt tense as if all his muscles had stopped working and his mind couldn't control anything anymore. He was torn wondering what he could do or even what he could've done. If he had just stood up for himself earlier... if he had maybe approached his parents.