CARAMEL ; a collection of stories

[deleted scene] liability | l.mh

Minho's as quiet as a cat and you know it. He looks distinctly uncomfortable, eyes darting around and brows furrowed. He's silent, hovering beside the rest of them. Felix and Chan have taken interview question after interview question, smoothly intercepting the questions thrown at them without leaving any awkward silences.

Jisung squeezes Minho's hand and you tell yourself to breathe, that Minho will be okay even if you can't reach over to him right now. You watch with keen eyes as cameras train themselves all over the group, bright lights illuminating their faces.

Minho is hidden in the shadows, barely visible unless you're really looking for him. You clench your jaw, feeling anxious on his behalf. The night has only just begun, and he still has to get through the rest of the night while listening to conversations in English that he doesn't know how to join.

As soon as the interviewer leaves, you pull the collar of your jacket up to cover your face, closing the distance between you and Minho. Seungmin sees you and makes space for you, and you cast him a grateful look.

"Are you alright?" You keep your volume down, face turned towards Minho so that no one else can see the concern on your face.

Minho doesn't look at you. He keeps his eyes trained determinedly on the stage, jaw set in a hard line. You look down and notice that he's still holding onto Jisung's hand. In fact, the veins in his forearms are visible, which tells you that he's holding onto Jisung's hand tightly enough that it should hurt, but Jisung doesn't make any noise.

He inhales sharply and turns to look at you for a split second before he turns back to face the stage. "Yes."

But it doesn't sound like he means it. You wonder if there's anything you can do to help him, but you don't think he wants it. Sometimes you don't think Minho was suited for the idol life. He would have flourished as a dancer, perhaps doing even better than he does now in Stray Kids. You wonder if you had a part to play in that.

Minho grabs your hand roughly, as if he knows what you're thinking. "Stop it," he says lowly. "Stop thinking it's your fault that I'm uncomfortable. I don't want to be here because I'm an introvert, and that's my issue. There's nothing you could do to prevent this. Stop blaming yourself."

"I just want you to be happy."

He turns to look you in the eye properly, finally noticing your expression and the way your lips quiver worriedly.

"Y/n, I am happy. Everyone has issues sometimes. I'm tired sometimes. That's normal! You never worry this badly about Changbin or Hyunjin."

You avert your eyes. "Oh my God, you do." You chew on your lip, but Minho isn't going to let you off this easily.

"Y/n, our mental health is not solely your responsibility. You are responsible for us as far as we let you be—if we come to you seeking help, it is your duty to help us in seeking help. It is not your duty to be our therapist. That's not your job.

"You are our manager, Y/n. You're not our parent. You don't have to worry about us, we're grown men. We can handle ourselves," he says with a bitter smile.

"But you're my boyfriend."

The corners of Minho's lips curve upwards, just a little. "I know you love me. But I love you too, and worrying sick about eight men who don't need that level of concern isn't taking care of yourself."

You have to admit that he's right. It's rather stupid sometimes, how strongly you feel all your emotions, and get too caught up in other people's lives. "Okay," you mumble, fiddling with the rings on his fingers. You absentmindedly wonder who styled him today, and if you should find them later to tell them to continue putting rings on Minho, simply because he always forgets to take them off, so you've gotten into the habit of fiddling with his rings, since you rarely wear any.

Minho rubs your thumb comfortingly, and you know that's the biggest display of affection that he can offer in a public space like this.

You see someone waving at you, and drop Minho's hand, assuming the position of his manager once more. The soft smile on his face drops, and he follows after Chan, and you bring up the rear as Stray Kids heads towards their seats.

As Minho turns to get into his seat, his eyes meet yours, and he holds a thumbs-up low at his hip. You're used to catching these gestures now, and you discreetly nod at him, mouthing a thank you.

AUTHOR'S NOTE

currently in a horrible state of brainrot so have a minho oneshot while i struggle with my doyoung fic <3 this was inspired by the stray kids interviews at the vmas, if you pay close enough attention you'll notice minho would love to be anywhere but there