Through the Back Door

11

"Seriously, I'm fine Hanbyul-ah!" The cat-faced boy insisted as he plopped on the toilet. His face was still contorted in pain that indicated otherwise, blood pooling onto his shirt. "I don't need your help!"

"You just got your nose broken today and now you've had a whole-ass bed crash on you. On top of that, you're covered in spicy ramyeon, and if I remember correctly you stated a few seconds ago that you got some of it in the cut on your bridge. And for all we know, you could've gotten splinters too!"

"Whatever, I've dealt with worse. And you shouldn't be helping me anyways, we're not friends!"

I sighed as I turned on the tap to wash my hands before attending to his wound. "Then why do you insist I call you oppa?"

"Just a formality," he huffed.

"Uhuh." I bent down to open the cupboards underneath the sink to look for fresh towels and hopefully a first-aid kit which were luckily right near the front. I soaked one of the cloths in cold water. "This might sting a little," I warned before dabbing the wet fabric around his face.

"Aish," he hissed, clutching his thigh. "That hurts!"

I rolled my eyes, soaking the cloth again. "I've gotta clean your face to get a better look at your nose."

"I'm fi-"

"Are you fine or are you not?" I interrupted, looking at him pointedly. I began to gently wipe the blood off his upper lip. "Pick one Mr. Ambiguous."

"Whatever."

"Just let me help, okay? Since we're gonna be living together and partners in crime, I just..." I sighed. "I want to get along alright?"

Minho raised an eyebrow, wincing upon doing so. "Even though by definition we-"

"You," I corrected.

"Fine, I. Even though by definition, I kidnapped you?"

I nodded, lips pursed. "Mhm, yeah." I soaked the cloth once more to clear it of any grime it had collected. "Look, I'm sorry for being rude to you all day. It's just... This has been a lot to handle, but that doesn't give me the right to take it out on you."

"How's things going doc? Is he gonna live?" Hyunjin joked, huffing as he walked into the bathroom. He leaned up against the doorframe.

"You think you're funny, huh?" Minho asked, glaring at the tall blonde.

"No, I know, you know, Lee Know, I'm funny," he responded in English. "Because I'm Hyun-genius!" The Hwang boy slapped his thigh repeatedly, cackling.

I puffed my cheeks, nearly spitting on Minho while trying to hold back my laughter. "That was-"

"Terrible," the auburn-haired boy stated, shock written all over his face.

"Fucking hilarious," I insisted, backing up from the cat-faced boy so I could mimick Hyunjin. "I can't!"

"You both disgust me," Lee Know muttered although he was seemingly starting to crumble under the pressure of succumbing to laughter. He paused. "Hyun-genius," he whispered before finally cracking.

The three of us became a laughing mess. Hyunjin had slid down the wall and was rocking himself back and forth, nearly on the verge of tears; Minho was practically in a state of mania, his laugh vaguely reminding me of a psychopath; meanwhile, I was leaning up against the bathroom counter for support, afraid I might collapse due to erratic breathing.

"Jesus," I thought, trying to calm down. "Everyone's growing on me already; this is not good. I need to remember to keep my guard up."

"Ah shibal!" Minho exclaimed, clutching his stomach. "It hurts!"

Distracted, I couldn't tell whether he meant his nose or his abdominals. "Which one?"

"All of it," he wheezed, slumping. "Existence is pain."

Hyunjin nodded. "T-truer words have n-never been spoken," he affirmed through giggles all the while wiping his eyes.

Felix stepped into the bathroom from a door on the left, making me only just realize it was probably connected to two rooms. "What's going on here? You guys are hella loud!"

I coughed. "So you can check on us when you hear laughing in the bathroom but you can't do that when you hear furniture crashing, two rooms down?"

He shrugged. "I had my headset on, I was playing Fortnite."

I grimaced. "Well I see you've got your priorities sorted out then."

"Well it's not like I can pause the game!" Felix stuck his tongue out at me, his freckles being accentuated once again by such a simple facial movement.

Lee Know rolled his eyes. "Swear to god, Yongbok wouldn't leave that game even if the house was on fire and all of us were dying."

The freckled-face boy faked a gasp, bringing his hand to cover his mouth all the while leaning against the wall in a dramatic pose. "That's a low blow hyung! I'd save you guys!"

Hyunjin cocked his head. "Even during a championship?"

This time I swear Felix actually gasped, quivering. "I..." he paused. "Of course I would!"

The three of us stared at the silver-haired boy, various expressions of disbelief plastered on our faces.

"After I won the game!" He added.

Minho groaned. "Called it!"

"Unbelievable!" Hyunjin stared at his chingu aghast. "We'd all be dead by then!"

I bit my lip. "This hypothetical is getting out of hand, but let's just assume we can't trust Felix with our lives if he's playing a video game." I turned back towards Minho. "Anyways, let me finish-"

A could hear a voice shouting from behind the wall of the bathroom, followed by the fire alarm going off. "Oh fucking shit!"

Lee Know groaned. "You've got to be kidding me."