The funhouse of murder • Stray Kids X reader

99 ☠️

Third two hours; Changbin and Jeongin

After what seemed like way too little sleep, Changbin and Jeongin had both been woken up by Hyunjin, who after two hours of almost complete silence went right back to sleep as well. Though the two had definitely become a lot closer, there was still an awkward air between Changbin and Jeongin, the both unsure of what to do or what to talk about. They definitely shared a bond that had grown way stronger in these past few days, and yet they didn't know how to truly handle it. It was more of an unspoken bond that they shared, knowing that if something were to happen they'd have each other, but other than that they never truly talked to each other.

Still, simply staying silent felt too awkward. They were groupmates, shared so many difficulties already. Why wouldn't they be able to just enjoy a normal conversation right? That's what Changbin thought, but no matter how hard he tried to come up with something, anything to talk about, nothing just came to mind. What would he even ask? 'Hey, what trauma brought you here actually?' or, 'hey, so, how have your past few days been?' Neither of those seemed like particularly good questions to ask. Though luckily for Changbin, Jeongin broke the silence between the two.

"You know," Jeongin started, still trying to figure out the right words to say as he went. "Do you regret joining?" he settled on, looking at Changbin with pain in his eyes. Changbin had always known Jeongin seemed too innocent for this, he knew it would probably be hardest on him emotionally out of the entire group, but seeing him so vulnerable when he'd always been smiling or keeping up the mood no matter what, even Changbin realized that must have just been a façade. "I don't know," Changbin honestly answered. "Of course I regret it to a certain extent. Especially now that the only reason I came here, or anyone probably, is already taken away. But even if we would have made it, I think I might have still regretted it."

"Why?" Jeongin asked, now growing curious. Changbin took a deep breath, looking away. "My life before all of this was shitty. The things my mom made me do for money was just criminal, especially at that young of an age, being exposed to all the things only adults are supposed to experience, it had always created trouble for me. I thought I'd truly seen it all, I didn't know any better, but..." Changbin let out a sigh, looking over at the sleeping figures of his teammates. "Coming here made me realize the world is so, so much worse than I thought. I don't think anyone would come out of this place without more trauma, and I don't think any money could solve that."

Jeongin smiled weakly, nodding. "I didn't even know the world could be this cruel until I set foot in this place." He let out a sarcastic chuckle, rolling his eyes. "I only came here because I was so naive. I was about to join a cult at it too, and I would have spent all of the money here on it anyways, just because I thought they'd finally appreciate and accept me. Being here made me realize that, that people can just lie and deceive without a second thought," he said, glancing over at Hyunjin. "I don't know exactly what happened between you two, but he hurt you badly, didn't he?" Changbin asked. It wasn't hard to see something happened between Hyunjin and Jeongin, but he didn't want to pry too much. No matter how much time they spent together, he still barely knew him.

"You can say that alright," Jeongin agreed, his eyes glancing over at the girl next to him. "I'm just afraid she won't see it. I know the group is kind of splitting right now, and though I know that those two will just recklessly do anything, it seems like they're trying to get her on their side. I know Minho and Jisung would choose us if necessary, but I'm just scared that when it comes down to it, she's gonna make the wrong decision," he sighed. Changbin smiled weakly, nodding. "You really care about her, don't you?" Jeongin unconsciously smiled at those words, his eyes never leaving her frame. "She's the one that made me realize there's more to this than what Hyunjin did to me. That no matter how hard life is for others, they can still be kind and helpful. It's hard not to like her," he chuckled, finally looking over at Changbin again.

"But you probably figured that one out for yourself already, didn't you." Changbin laughed, trying to keep it low as he didn't want to wake the others. "I think she's brought something good for everyone here. She gave Seungmin hope, Felix warmth, Chan a second chance, Hyunjin acceptance, Minho care, Jisung... is a different story, but I think she may have helped him realize that one day he'll have to let things go, even if now he isn't ready for it, she gave you true kindness, and for me... She gave me healing for things that happened. When we were forced to do... things together, she was still so careful, trying her very best to make sure either Minho and I were okay. I think with all the things I ever did, no one had ever cared about how I felt about it. I think that even though she doesn't realize it herself, she's become a bigger part of the group than we'd become in the months training together."

The both smiled, nodding at it, too deep in their thoughts to notice how the time had flown by until half an hour extra had even passed. "I'll wake the two up, why don't you try go to sleep again?" Changbin offered, seeing Jeongin already half asleep. Though he didn't want to show it, the initial wound he had, and his nearly death experience just before had truly taken a toll on his body. "Hyung," Jeongin started, his eyes already closed, "thank you for being there for me. I promise I'll stay with you too, no matter what happens," he finished with, before falling into a deep sleep. Changbin smiled to himself, carefully stroking Jeongin's hair.

"Don't worry, I'll be there for you too. Sleep well."