𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐲 𝐤𝐢𝐝𝐬 𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐭𝐬

STORM - minsung

Minho stood in the rain. His umbrella kept him dry as he remained in the middle of the street, inhaling the fresh scent of the rain and admiring how the pale light of the moon illuminated the raindrops against the canopy of darkness draped over the night sky.

He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. The puddle at his feet lapped at his shoes, completely soaking them, but Minho didn't mind. He enjoyed every sensation that the rain brought with it: blinding light, booming thunder, the feeling of electricity buzzing through the air, the cold water on his skin, droplets tapping on his umbrella — every scent, sight, and sound of a storm was beautiful.

The wind picked up, sending freezing drops of rain into Minho's face. He only smiled and held one hand out so it peeked out from under the umbrella, feeling the rain and wind. Another flash of lightning brightened the sky for an instant. Minho could see it even with his eyes closed. It lasted only for one brilliant moment, but it made his smile grow. Another moment of brightness lit up the world, but this one lasted. Confused, Minho opened one eye and turned toward the source of the light.

Headlights. Coming toward him.

The car stopped right next to him, and the passenger side window rolled down. It was his classmate and neighbour, Jisung.

"Get in," he shouted over a crack of thunder. Minho closed his umbrella and got into the car. The atmosphere was tense, almost awkward, but he couldn't figure out why.

When they arrived back at Jisung's house, Minho thanked him for driving him home and started down the street. Jisung grabbed his hand before he could walk away. He stared at the ground as he whispered, "Please stay. I really don't want to be alone right now." Minho nodded and both boys went inside. The rain, wind, thunder, and lightning only got worse as the night continued. "Maybe you should just stay here," Jisung suggested. Another loud boom of thunder echoed through the sky, shaking the windows and causing Jisung to scream.

Minho wrapped his arms around the younger boy and began to hum a soothing melody. They sat on the floor, Jisung's back pressed against Minho's chest, just slowly swaying to the rhythm of Minho's song. With each flash of lightning or crack of thunder, Jisung shook more and moved closer to Minho.

"Are you afraid of thunder?" He suddenly whispered against Jisung's shoulder. Jisung nodded. "Oh. Is this helping?" Jisung nodded once more and took one of Minho's hands in both of his own.

"Thank you for being here with me tonight. I really don't know if I would've been even remotely okay on my own," he mumbled.

"Y'know," Minho said, "I used to be scared of storms, too. I love them now. I tried to think that in all the chaos of thunder and rain, I didn't have to let the wind sweep me away. So every time it rained, I went outside and stood in the rain. I planted my feet and braced myself for whatever scary thing might've come, and I just stood there as still as possible. And then I realised that in the mess and the chaos of the storms, I was stable. I was the one thing that the wind couldn't bend or blow away. The sound of thunder became like a lullaby for me, and it was almost reassuring because storms were what made me learn to be strong on my own."

Minho's calming voice and the way he rocked Jisung back and forth eventually lulled the frightened boy to sleep. Minho planted a chaste kiss on his temple and smiled.

"You'll learn to be strong in the storms one day, too," he muttered, "But for now, I can become your strength. I'm here for you, Ji." And with that, he fell asleep to the cacophonous song of the rain and thunder, holding Jisung and grinning.

a/n: oop this chapter has 666 words—