#P1H: The beginning of a New World | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

ryxiez · 9 months ago

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Rekindled Flame.ೃ࿐

≫ ──── ≪•◦ ❈ ◦•≫ ──── ≪

genera ➛ angst -> fluff

paring ➛ idol!keeho x reader

word count ➛ 2.1k

warnings ➛ drinking {y/n is of age}, misunderstandings, both y/n and keeho are very mature, talk of both high school and college, possible smut in part 2.

A/N: i wanna write more for p1h especially after seeing their amazing concert! pls leave suggestions <333

≫ ──── ≪•◦ ❈ ◦•≫ ──── ≪

It has been 10 years since you last saw his face. For 10 whole years, you have been left wondering if you could have been anything more.

Well, that wasn't entirely true. You've seen his face on your FYP from time to time while scrolling through your favorite social media apps. Its like your phone loved to torture you.

However, you couldn't bear to stare for longer than a minute. You couldn't let those feelings you once shared come back.

Keeho left you. He left you with nothing more than a letter in the mail.

Dear Y/N,

I hope this letter finds you well. I’ve been struggling to find the right words, but I know it’s time to be honest about what’s been weighing on my heart.

You’ve been my rock, my confidante, and my best friend. The time we’ve spent together has been nothing short of incredible, filled with memories that I will cherish forever. But as much as it pains me to say this, I have to be truthful about the future.

You know a bit about how much I’ve always dreamed of pursuing a job in the music industry, and now that opportunity has finally come. Moving to Korea is a chance to follow my dreams, connect with my past, and grow in ways I’ve always hoped for. It’s an opportunity I can’t pass up, but it’s also one that takes me far away from you.

This decision hasn’t been easy. I’ve spent countless nights thinking about us and what this move means for our relationship. The distance, the time apart—it’s something I’m not sure we can overcome without causing each other more pain and heartache. We both deserve to be happy and to fully embrace our futures, even if that means being apart.

You have been such a significant part of my life, and I will always be grateful for the love and support you’ve given me. I hope you understand that this decision is not about us lacking love or commitment, but about me needing to take this step for myself.

I believe that both of us deserve the chance to pursue our dreams and live our lives to the fullest. I hope that, in time, you can see this as a new beginning for both of us rather than an end.

I wish you all the happiness and success in the world. You are an amazing person, and I know you will go on to do incredible things. Thank you for everything you’ve brought into my life and for the memories we’ve made together.

Please take care of yourself, and remember that you will always have a special place in my heart.

With all my love,

Stephen

The words were still burned in your memory; you read the letter for weeks on end. You tried to contact him in every way possible, but your messages never seemed to be delivered, let alone even read.

That was until you realized you spent your entire summer before college sulking over a man who left you on a whim, the same man who you thought was going to be your high school sweetheart for the rest of eternity. You knew you shouldn't have let your hopes for the relationship develop as far as they did.

From then on, you decided to grow up and leave men—more like boys—in the past. You focused on your studies, climbed higher and higher in your line of work, and created a stable life for yourself and, of course, your pets.

However, it all seemed to feel like it was all crumbling down when you got a message from a very old group chat after you sat down to watch your favorite show.

"Class of ----, 10 year reunion!"

Of course, the thought of him was the first to come to mind.

Oh, how you wish you had outgrown the teenage heartbreak. It seems only a few things ever change.

There were plenty of random numbers in the chat, but in the back of your mind, you hoped that one of them might be his.

Days passed, and time drew closer to the large reunion. The world had seemed to slow down as your mind was clouded with too many conflicting emotions to even count.

You didn't know what to wear. You didn't know what to say. You didn't know what to do because, god forbid, Keeho actually showed up to this event. For all you knew, he was still in Korea, living out his idol dreams. It left a bitter taste in your mouth.

As the night on the fated day rolled around, you made your way to the bar your former classmates rented out for the night. Let's just say you guys raised a lot of money back then.

Your dress was black and fitted. It had off the shoulder straps with a slit on the right side showing off your admirable figure (you all are beautiful <3).

Squeals filled the large open area as you walked through the door. Old faces surrounded you as you all shared laughs and smiles together.

On the other hand, you noticed your own eyes straying from those of your old friends. You were searching for somebody.

A small sigh left your lips when you didn't see his face. Was it disappointment? Was it relief? You didn't even know yourself. What you did know was that you needed some drinks while catching up with the girls.

The night went on; it was almost, if not past midnight. You shared laughs, smiles, and even tears while listening to everyone and their stories. Oh, how you would love it if your life were ever that interesting.

That's when you heard someone behind you.

"Y/N?" it said.

You froze in place.

You recognized the voice. Maybe it was just your imagination. Maybe if you ignore it, it will go away.

So you continued to listen to the girls talk, but you soon realized they all stopped to stare at whatever was behind you.

"Y/N, please."

You stood straight up, gathering your belongings while getting ready to walk right out the door. You weren't ready for this. Not yet. But how many more years did you need?

A firm hand grabbed your arm and stopped you from walking any further. You froze yet again, and the hand slowly turned you around.

You were now face-to-face with nobody other than the man himself, Keeho.

His hair was a deep black, just as you always remembered it. His outfit was all black, coincidentally matching your own. A pair of glasses rested on his nose, complimenting his features nicely. But his eyes? They looked concerned.

You could've sworn you noticed a little blush appear on his face after he noticed you checking him out up and down.

You felt like melting into a puddle on the floor right then and there, but not because of the butterflies in your stomach, but because of embarrassment.

"Please, let's just talk." He pleaded yet again.

You were not having any of it. You could feel the anger bubble up inside of you, but you did not want to do anything you would regret, at least not yet. The alcohol in your body may make you think differently later.

"Talk about what, Keeho?" You made sure the venom leaked from your teeth when you spoke his name.

He flinched. "About us, Y/N. I've missed you so much."

"There is no US," you spat before thinking, "We haven't been together for 10 years, and this is how you say hello?"

Keeho's eyes widened. "Wha-what do you mean?" he stuttered in disbelief.

You couldn't help but laugh. There is no way this man is standing here acting like the victim in this situation.

"Why are you laughing?!" He cried out despritley. Everyone in the whole bar was easily staring at you both now.

You're not a monster. You could see the hurt and betrayal in his eyes. You knew something wasn't right, and you knew you needed to listen to him talk.

"Okay, I'm sorry," you said in a hushed voice, trying to calm the man down in front of you with a deep breath of your own. "Let's talk, but not here; come on." You grabbed his sleeve, pulling him out of the bar.

You didn't bear your farewells. That was the least important thing on your mind in this moment. You were focused on getting the truth. What exactly did Keeho mean?

Rain came down suddenly as a flash of light flew through the sky.

'Just great,' you thought.

"Y/N..." Keeho whispered from behind.

You stopped tugging on this jacket to turn around. Unexpectedly, you were met with sad and pleading eyes. Ones that threatened to spill with tears as the rain rolled down his face—his goddamn pretty face.

"Kee..' the nickname slid off your tongue just like it did many years ago. 'I promise to listen, and I'm sorry I was irrational. Let's get back to my place and we can talk, okay?"

All he could do was nod before taking your hand in his and taking you to his car. He knew you were too tipsy to drive safely yourself, but you couldn't help the faint blush that appeared on your face at the contact.

The car ride was silent. His eyes seemed lazzer focused on the road while you couldn't help but steal glances his way every other second.

You mumbled a few directions to your house. Your head was pounding, whether from the few drinks or the fact that so much had happened all at once.

The last thing you expected was to be in Keeho's car while he drove you back to your place. But wasn't this what you wished for deep down?

The breaks slightly screeched to a stop as he pulled into your driveway.

"Wait," he said before jumping out of the car to open the door for you.

He grabbed your hand as he helped you out of the low car.

"Still a gentleman, I see."

He chuckled a little. but his mind still seemed to be elsewhere.

As you unlocked the door and let both of you in, he immediately led you to the couch. Sitting you down, Keeho then ventured to go find you a glass of water.

Handing you the cup, he spoke, "Y/N, where have you been?" He paused. You were taken aback. "I've tried contacting you a countless number of times, and all I've gotten was radio silence. I didn't even expect you to still be in our old town."

You took his words in, and they hit you hard. However, you knew you had to be mature about the situation and talk out whatever misunderstanding you had.

"Keeho, I haven't heard a thing from you since the day you randomly up and left." You spoke after taking a sip from the glass of water. You tried to gather your thoughts to the best of your ability.

"I know it was sudden, and I still regret leaving so quickly. I just don't understand how you've heard nothing from me this whole time." He paused to think. "I've tried to call, text, and even write letters; I swear Y/N. I just don't understa-" He cut himself off.

You could tell something clicked inside his mind once his hands clutched together and his eyes became glossy.

"What is it, Kee? I don't understand this whole thing either." You said softly as you reached out to hold his tense hands.

"I-I don't know for certain... I think my company is behind all of this. It explains why they had me get a brand new phone and phone number. They also asked a lot about my romantic life and your basic information. Oh my god, I bet they probably blocked your number in my phone before I even got it." He looked up from his spot on the floor as he was taking everything in himself, his eyes making contact with yours. "I am so sorry, Y/N. I-I never meant for any of this to happen I-"

"It's okay." You cut him off.

You couldn't believe what you were saying. How could this be okay? This man has left you basically broken and helpless for a decade, and in less than an hour you already forgave him.

On the other hand, you could tell he was hurting the same as you.

"No, no," He felt conflicted, "I have to make it up to you. I've missed you so much, and I hope you've missed me too. Please let me show you how much I still love you."

≫ ──── ≪•◦ to be continued ◦•≫ ──── ≪

#ryxiez #ryxiezph1 #p1harmony #kpop x reader #p1h keeho #yoon keeho #keeho x reader #p1h x reader #keeho p1harmony #p1harmony x reader #p1harmony fluff #x reader angst #x reader fluff #x reader smut #fluff #angst #p1harmony angst #x you

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restlessmaknae · 2 years ago

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read your mind [intak]

Intak might not have been able to die, but you could read his mind. Quite literally. No wonder it led to many annoying, awkward and even sweet realisations.

➳ Characters: Intak x female!mind-reader reader/you

➳ Genre: action, dystopian au (loosely based on 'P1H: The beginning of the new world' movie), superpowers au

➳ Words: 7.2k

➳ Warning: mentions of blood, death, knives, breaking bones, wound treating, losing parents

➳ A/N: This is my contribution to my own P1Harmony writing collab called '(dis)harmony' featuring stories revolving around the theme 'disrupted harmony'. Check out the other stories here!

➳ P1Harmony taglist: @dat-town, @tranquilpetrichor, @laaylaazyy, @americanokisses, @kuleo26, @hyu-won, @wccycc, @sunooslover, @littlestartonightsposts, @koishua

➳ Check out: my P1Harmony masterlist

You took your headphones off and let it rest around your neck as you turned a corner. There was no one around as expected, and this way, the noises in your head could finally shut up. Embracing the serenity of this moment, you listened to your footsteps echo off the ground as you took confident steps towards the abandoned, graffiti-tinted walls - aka your temporary home.

The metal stairs under your feet screeched as you made your way to the entrance and you halted when you noticed that the door was slightly ajar. Even though it had been a frequent sight to see it open before you had decided to live (or rather hide) here, you had always kept it closed ever since. Which meant that someone had to be in there.

Alert, you reached for the knife tucked into your boots, and pressed the door just on the right spot, so that it wouldn’t make noise as you pushed it open. As soon as you stepped inside (thus closer to the intruder), you could hear the thoughts racing in his head, mostly marvelling at the mapped out possibilities in your notebook based on the clues you had been gathering in the past few days.

You moved swiftly and quietly and after considering his build and his current posture - he was leaning towards your computer which meant that he was significantly shorter with his arched back, thus easier for you to corner him. He was also pretty oblivious, still wondering who could have left these things behind, so he had no chance to hear your approaching footsteps, he was so focused on piercing together what he saw in front of him.

As you stepped up to him, your arms closed around him, and you pointed your knife to his chin - a warning, not yet an attack. It was enough for him to stiffen, yet he didn’t risk straightening his back.

“Wow, easy, dude, I’m-” He exclaimed surprisingly casually, and you felt the need to scoff.

“What are you doing here? Why are you here?” You cut him off as soon as you could, straight to the point as always.

Oh shit, she’s not even a dude, he thought, and you rolled your eyes. So predictable to underestimate a girl like you.

“Yesterday, I saw you torn a Harmony sticker off the walls before following you back here, and thought that you might have a special ability, too, and you’re searching for them, but I thought that you are a guy,” he reasoned, still too calm for your liking. Disregarding the fact that he thought you could be a guy in your black hoodie, black sweatpants and your black unisex boots that you usually went out in, especially at night, you kept your tone stern and warning as you spoke up.

“Or I could be searching for people with special abilities, and I could kill you right here and right now.”

“Haha, nice one, girl.”

He had the nerve to laugh which annoyed you even more, so you held the knife closer to his skin, so close that it could be piercing his skin if you let it kiss his skin even closer.

“The problem is, I can’t die.”

I’ve got her, it seems. Now, who’s laughing?

“What?” Your eyes widened, the word rolling off your tongue in disbelief. What on earth…

I know that surprise. Huh, why can’t people believe that I can’t die? Am I too handsome for that?

His thoughts proved to you that he was telling the truth because if people lied to your face, they were hoping that you would buy it in their thoughts, they didn’t continue having thoughts that could prove their innocence because they had no idea that you could read their mind.

“That’s my special ability,” he broke it down to you nevertheless, and you had no reason not to believe him, and yet. Was he immortal then?

And I wonder what is yours, you heard his thoughts, but you decided not to tell him what you could do because it was your advantage, your strength against him. Sometimes it was difficult to distinguish when someone spoke up and when you heard their thoughts, but when you could read people’s mind, it was like a grumble, a ghostly voice in your head that echoed through your brain - or so it seemed even though there weren’t good enough words to describe what it felt like reading people’s mind.

Putting aside his curiosity, you pondered out loud, testing the waters as your grip around the knife didn’t loosen.

“So I can’t even cut you, I assume.”

“I guess you can, but even if I break a bone or two, I’m back to my healthy, unwounded self within a minute,” he responded just as casually as he did so far, but now you could put a finger on his laid-back self. You guessed that since getting hurt wasn’t an option for him, he feared nothing. Huh, guess some people had it better than others when it came to their special ability.

There was no point in holding the knife to his chin anymore, so you took a step back and retreated, letting the guy straighten up and turn towards you. He was definitely taller like this, messy, slightly curly locks sitting on top of his head, fringe in his eyes, a cheeky smile pulling his lips upwards, his whole posture radiating casualty.

Oh wow, she’s pretty, the boy thought, and you rolled your eyes.

“I guess you aren’t after people with special abilities if you let me go now. So, what do you think about teaming up?” The boy suggested as he lowered to sit on the desk. Despite the fact that it wasn’t your desk as per se since you had assembled this room from all the furniture that had been left here, it still bugged you that he was sitting so casually as if he owned the place.

You let out a huff, bewilderment an understatement to say how you felt.

“Why would I do that?”

“You can use me as a shield. I can’t die as I’ve mentioned.”

“What would you gain from teaming up with me? What’s your motif?” You turned the question around because it was all good that he couldn’t die, so you could push him out to quite literally bite the bullets for you, but why was he really here?

“I’ve told you. I’m also searching for the Harmony bungalow or base or whatever we want to call it, and I think two is better than one. You seem pretty fierce for one, so whether you have super strength or something, I feel like I could also gain something from this partnership,” he reasoned, ruffling his hair at the end as if he wanted to charm you.

She can’t say no to this. I’m even using my puppy eyes, it’s always working.

Bingo. A few minutes with this guy, and you could already tell just what kind of a guy he was. Despite the tempting offer to use him as a human shield, you didn’t have time to strike deals with guys like him.

“As you can see, I’ve been doing just fine up until now, so I don’t need your help,” you told him in a condescending tone, and pushed his shoulder to prompt him to stand up from the desk. The boy didn’t budge, instead, when you reached for his shoulder for the third time, he grabbed your wrist - gently yet firmly -, and turned your body towards his.

“I don’t have anywhere else to go,” he voiced out, serious for the first time since the beginning of the conversation. There was a few seconds of silence that hung over the two of you while he was thinking: should I tell her about my family? About how they died because of me? Or would she not believe me? How can I make her believe me then? I thought I would be able to convince her with just the fact that I can’t die.

Your heart churned at the thought of him losing his family - probably because of who he was and what he was. A monster, a freak or a god. It depended on what stories you listened to, what kind of people you talked to. There had been a huge meteor shower two months ago that had killed many, but it had also left many with special abilities. There were rumours about people being able to fly or run super fast or create illusions, and then it seemed that he couldn’t die, and you could read people’s minds.

However, it wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows for those affected no matter how many kids called special abilities cool. The government was searching for those with special abilities because they deemed them dangerous (and probably because they wanted to control them), and they did whatever it took to hunt them down. That’s why you had run away from home as well. You had known what your parents had been thinking about the whole situation, and even though you hadn’t told them that you could read minds, you had left, saying that it was better for everyone.

Ever since then, you had been on the run, but the frightened thoughts of your parents from the hospital were still hunting you.

What if she is lying, and she is also one of them? What if they come for her? Your mother had thought, and it had broken your heart not to tell her the truth, but you had put the pieces together quickly. You had been in a coma for three weeks as one of the meteors had hit the supermarket you had been at, and whilst unconscious, you had merely thought that you could hear others talk around you in the hospital ward. Yet, as soon as you had woken up, you had realised that you had heard their thoughts in your head, not only the words spoken out loud.

Considering your own experience and the way he was pondering about his own family’s tragedy in his thoughts, tormented whether he should tell you about that to convince you, you broke the silence:

“Fine.”

“Really?”

“Really,” you told him, looking away for a moment to avoid seeing that wide grin spread across his lips like honey before looking back at him. “Now, let me go,” you demanded as you turned your gaze towards his fingers around your wrist. He formed an O with his mouth, clearly bewildered that he was still holding your hand, and after he let go, you set some rules.

You told him to follow your words and not go out doing god knows what all on his own without discussing it with you beforehand, you told him that he should help you out as much as he could and share his own clues about the Harmony base, and you also told him to stop babbling if you asked him to. Plus, you told him not to do stupid stuff because you believed him, you believed the fact that he couldn’t die.

“Noted?”

“Noted,” he bobbed his head fervently like an excited puppy. In the next moment, he opened his mouth, then closed it a few seconds later without muttering a single word. Your reply came in a package with a questioning quirk of your eyebrows and a weary question:

“What is it?”

“The thing is…” God, I’m so stupid, I think she would say no if I told her about it… “I think the government is after me.”

“No shit, Sherlock. They are after all of us,” you rolled your eyes instantly since it was a known fact that they were after all of you who had special abilities. You felt the urge to laugh into his face, but his facial expression was rather guilty - to follow up the puppy metaphor, he seemed like a puppy that had gotten caught breaking a vase and now he looked at you with a tremendous amount of pleading in his eyes.

“Maybe I did try to see if I can’t die a bit too many times, and they have caught onto that, so I’m actually on the run, not just looking for a partner in crime.”

Maybe I shouldn’t have tried jumping off high buildings too many times in the areas where there are CCTVs. In retrospect, it wasn’t the best way to test my powers.

You let out a long sigh, the added thoughts going through his head proving that he was telling the truth. You shook your head a few times before taking a seat beside the desk, looking ahead of yourself for a few seconds that he interrupted only with his thoughts.

What is going on? Will she tell me to go to hell? Will she slap me?

“It’s not like I’m not on the run,” you announced before grabbing the notebook on the desk and opening your laptop, showing him the clues you had been gathering about where this base could be, and how you could get there.

Whether only you were wanted by the authorities or he was too, it didn’t really matter. Though you definitely didn’t think that he was that serious about his warning, and that he was that sought after, the government-sent men showed up a few hours later, and it didn’t turn out to be a peaceful encounter…

Your fingers were itching, you really felt like you were going somewhere with the clues the Harmony base had left behind. Usually, they left behind stickers with numbers or words at random places, so the clues could be taken off before someone from the authorities found them. On the other hand, for it to be safe, they probably had to change bases periodically because once you had thought you had found them, but all you had found was an empty warehouse and traces of paper, smoke and crumbs. Afterwards, the numbers and words of the clues had also changed, but the rumours stayed the same: that there was a base where people with special abilities could train together and be united. Something that you all probably longed for.

You were just about to put your clues together with a possible map of a district in Southern Seoul when you heard footsteps echoing off the metal stairs outside. You exchanged a glance with Intak - who didn’t fail to mention his family name when he introduced himself, Hwang as in king, and he said it so proudly as if you couldn’t understand what Hwang meant - before you closed your laptop, threw it into your bag alongside your notebook with the stickers and notes. Then, you reached for the knife in your boots and whispered to Intak that he should get something, too.

“But I don’t have anything,” he mouthed back, and you sighed, quickly reaching into your bag to get out another knife. The boy gave you an almost intimidated glance before he took it, but he didn’t have time to be horrified because the door flew open, and two broad-shouldered men stepped inside in what looked like soldier uniforms.

In the dim light of the lamp on the desk, you could only take out the outline of their features, nothing else, but their outfit was enough to believe that they were coming for you, and they weren’t just random dudes scaring off youngsters at an abandoned house.

“Now, if you cooperate with us, no one gets hurt,” one of the men spoke in an almost mellifluous way. It gave you the creeps, let alone the way his lips curled upwards as if he was looking at his prey with a victorious smile.

You knew that the quickest way to escape was to go outside through the doors, but the men were still standing there as if they actually believed you would change your mind, and other than that, you could only go upstairs to the rooftop or jump out of the window. The window option didn’t seem that appealing, so when the men walked towards you two, you spun the knife in your hand before aiming at the mellifluously speaking man’s arm.

He was taken aback by your quick reflexes and blood trickled down his arm immediately, but the sight infuriated him, and he became like a destroyer machine, breaking stuff around him and launching himself at you as if he wanted to squash you. You turned, rolled on the floor, kicked and cut him with your knife wherever you could, but he was too strong, so at one point, you had to use a bit of planning, and smash his head against the edge of the desk to slow him down, so you could save some time to run towards the door.

Just as you were about to run towards the door, you saw Intak running up the stairs, and you cursed under your breath. You couldn’t leave him alone, but fighting on the rooftop was the worst possible option even though you knew he couldn’t get seriously hurt. On the other hand, he didn’t even seem skilled enough to fight someone, and you heard his frantic thoughts in your head as you ran up the stairs after him and the man chasing him: Oh my god, no, I can’t do this. I was a lazybum during PE too, why is this Terminator guy so quick? Damn it…

The man obviously had thoughts about not letting this kid (as he called Intak) have his way, and he also thought that the boy would fit in well with the other monsters at the prison. To which, you couldn’t help but wonder if they really kept people like you in prisons? The thought itself made you so angry that when you reached the two of them on the rooftop, you kicked into the man’s back with more strength than you thought you possessed.

“Nice kick, girl!” Intak hollered, almost excited, and you could afford a semi-smile before the ground slipped from beneath your feet. You landed on your back with a loud thud, your bag sliding down to your arms. The worrying thoughts that went through Intak’s head with the man’s victorious thoughts going through his head at the same time was more painful. The more people’s thoughts you could hear around yourself, the more it felt like your head was aching, so it was harder to concentrate and now it was harder to think about your next move.

Your vision shifted and spun like a carousel for a few seconds before it came back to normal. You felt Intak’s hands reaching for yours, and you grabbed them, pushing yourself off the ground with your free hand.

“You shouldn’t have come up to the rooftop. This was the stupidest option,” you reprimanded him in between shallow breaths before turning around to face the man who had made you fall.

“I panicked. I didn’t know what to do,” Intak justified, rather hurt, before you could hear his thoughts as clearly as ever: Besides, I have an idea, but I’m not sure she would consider it a good one.

You couldn’t help but roll your eyes as you swang your knife at the man who dodged your move. He was much better than the other man, and he was even stronger, so when he managed to knock the knife out of your hand with a well-aimed kick, you cursed under your breath. You fought a lot better with a knife than with your bare body, and it didn’t help that you heard Intak’s frantic thoughts at the same time as the man’s - the two had totally opposite thoughts, and with the adrenaline working hard in your system, it was difficult to shut them off. When you were calm and composed, you could tame the voices or at least the volume of them, but not when you were in the middle of a fight…

“Whatever idea you have, Intak, do it now!” You grumbled frantically as you started taking steps backwards, trying to get out of the man’s way, especially after he managed to snatch the knife out of Intak’s hand, too.

“Little kids like you should know when to give up,” the man sneered through gritted teeth, his voice resembling a psychopath’s. Maybe you two were the odd ones out with Intak, but he was definitely the more dangerous one here.

Okay, here we go, Intak thought before you could feel him touch you from behind. Before you could realise what he was about to do, he practically gave you a back hug before taking a few quick steps towards the edge and taking you with him. Then, it felt like flying - you could see the cloudy sky above with darkening patches on the horizon, the edge of the building you had just jumped from and the man’s bewildered expression. You were both super fast and super slow as you were carried by gravity, Intak’s body reaching the ground first, then yours.

Even though Intak took the fall instead of you (you landed as if he was a pillow beneath you), your teeth clinked together and the landing’s effect reverberated through your spine, making you dizzy and a bit light-headed. Your vision yet again lost sight of colours for a few seconds before you managed to come back to your senses. You had just jumped off that building. To be precise, Intak had jumped off and pulled you with him which was the stupidest and the smartest idea at the same time.

Yet, despite knowing that he couldn’t get seriously hurt, when you heard him grumble beneath you, you immediately rolled off him, and crouched beside him. There was blood oozing out from his head, and the sight of it scared you, so much that you found yourself reaching for his chest, to feel his heartbeat.

“Are you okay?” You found yourself asking despite the fact that it was the most unreasonable question to ask him given the circumstances. He was blinking rapidly, looking around himself, and when his eyes closed in on you, he blinked a few more times. Then, he caught sight of your hands on his chest, and there it was, that cheeky smile of his…

“You should have asked me if you wanted to touch me so bad,” he mentioned, his voice uncharacteristically low, and you felt the need to punch him. That annoying jerk.

She is cute when she’s worried, he thought, and you were about to open your mouth to say that you weren’t cute, but then you realised that it wasn’t coming from his mouth, it was merely what he was thinking. So you shut your mouth, and instead, pulled the boy towards you, helping him to get up. However, he lost his balance for a moment, and you nearly fell upon him, but he held you up, strong and steady.

“Are you okay?” He asked and you could only blink at him. The closeness, the physical touches and the worried thoughts going through his head whether you hurt yourself and whether that fall on the rooftop had been excruciating pained you and mended your heart all at the same time. There were no remains of the cheeky smile from before, there was no mischief glinting in his deep mahogany-brown eyes, there was nothing but worry invading his thoughts, and if anything, that just scared you even more. He shouldn’t have cared about anyone he had just met a few hours ago to that extent, yet… you were the same…

As if woken from a stupor, the noise of the outside world reached you, and you immediately stumbled to your feet, the boy doing the same. Then, you two just ran, and you didn’t even realise he was still holding your hand until you reached a corner and he turned sooner than you could have done so. He still didn’t let go of you, merely pulled you with him, and you followed him even though you had no idea where you were going. Just away from the danger, away from yet another temporary home…

After the meteor shower that had led to people developing special abilities, a lot of buildings were left mildly or gravely damaged. Some were taken care of, some were in the middle of construction, and a lot of them were still abandoned, left in their spooky and semi-equipped state. You didn't know whether it was because the ones who had been living there were not so lucky and passed away in the meteor shower (or they were still in a coma), or it was because nobody cared to rebuild them instead of finding a new home, but you were lucky in the sense that you could go from one abandoned building to another, finding shelter. There were a few that homeless people occupied, but there were always some that were left uninhibited.

When you reached one after running for so long, you walked around the building to make sure that nobody else was there, then you plopped down on the dusty couch, finding solace in stillness. Intak followed your example, and wiped the sweat off his forehead with the hem of his jacket.

You hadn’t known him for long, but you could already tell that silence was scarce around him. He was usually determined to break it and fill it, but now, neither of you seemed to find the right words to say. So you merely sat there for a few minutes, catching your breath and thinking of ways to move forward.

Surprisingly, you were the first to speak up.

“You know, going to the rooftop was the stupidest idea. You should have just left through the front door while I was taking care of the other man,” you pointed out in case you two will ever have a fight like that again. Hearing your words, the boy puckered his lips like an offended child and his voice was slightly higher when he spoke up.

“Well, sorry, I panicked, that was the only thing that came to my mind. I’m not as smart as you are, and I’m not as good of a fighter as you are, you could see that.”

Still, I’m glad that we are both safe. Even with my stupidest idea, he thought to himself, and you could hear the sulkiness in his voice - both when he said the words out loud and when you heard his voice in your thoughts. With his big doe eyes, boyish features, messy locks and puckered lips, he really did resemble a child. Or a puppy that was left alone for too long.

“Don’t be sulky. I was saying it, so that we wouldn’t run into something like this in the future.”

“I’m not sulky.”

“Yes, you are,” you insisted, a smile already making its way onto your lips as you watched his facial expression change from apparently sulky to defensive and then to resigned. He was such an open book, you could tell how he was feeling just by a glance at him.

God, are we really going to pick a fight over this when we managed to escape the men? I know I’m not the sharpest knife in the drawer, but still… I saved her.

You had to give it to him that he was right. He did save you, and you would say that he had sacrificed himself for you if you hadn’t known that he couldn’t die. Still, it was sort of like sacrificing himself for you. You hadn’t been around anyone else, let alone someone like an ally for the past month ever since you had left home, so having him around felt like a burden and a relief. A burden because now you couldn’t help but worry about his safety (despite knowing that he couldn’t die), and a relief because it was more bearable going through something like this together. You weren’t even sure that you could have escaped the men from before if he hadn’t been there. You had managed to fight a man before, but he had been alone then, and he had been rather inadequate to fight, thus you had managed to escape him almost easily.

Knowing what Intak was thinking and seeing how he was still like a pouty kid, you cleared your throat.

“Well, thanks anyways,” you broke the silence, and given his wide-eyed stare, you added. “For saving me back there.”

What? Did she change her mind? What’s with the mood suddenly?

“You’re welcome, I guess?” Intak replied cautiously, and his answer was more like a question. Even his thoughts mirrored his uncertainty: What am I supposed to say to that? I didn’t prepare for a thanks from her.

There was a kind of a solemn mood blanketing you two after your little banter, and you could hear based on his thoughts how he wanted to break the silence, but he didn’t know what he could possibly bring up. On the other hand, you had a question that had been floating in your head ever since you had gotten to know about his special ability, so you decided to ask about it.

“How are you so sure that you will survive each and every time you’re supposed to die? Is there really no way for you to die?”

“I don’t really know. I fell from pretty high the first time I died, and I should have probably broken a few bones and thrown out my shoulder and stuff, but I still managed to put myself together afterwards. I don’t know how and why, I’m just as clueless as you are,” came the answer almost immediately, and you could see sincerity reflected in his warm brown orbs.

When you had met him that morning, he had seemed like your typical popular boy at school. The fact that he was wearing sweatpants, a loose tee and a bomber jacket as if he had just come from the gym didn’t help either. He had that cheeky smile plastered onto his face, and he had seemed rather carefree and careless. Now, you could tell that he didn’t think of his special ability as something cool, no matter how much he had made it seem like in the beginning. Uncertainty was scary, and even though you weren’t fully aware of the characteristics of your mind-reading ability, his case must have been even more difficult.

“Isn’t it scary? Dying over and over again?” You couldn’t help but ask. His demeanour didn’t waver, but you could see a hint of surprise flash across his orbs.

Huh, is she worried about me? Has she warmed up to me to care about whether it is scary for me to die again and again?

You could have easily rolled your eyes upon hearing his thoughts, but since he didn’t appear cocky, you didn’t feel like doing so. Instead, he remained cool on the surface and shrugged his shoulders.

“The first two times, it was scary. Ever since then, it’s not that bad.”

Besides, this time, I had to save us. I had to save you. I didn’t think about anything else.

You froze for a moment there. Sure, you had been worried about him during the fight, you had thought about his safety as well, but you wouldn’t have expected such thoughts from him. He was apparently more mature and responsible than you would have thought so, not that you would let him know that you felt this way.

Brushing off his words echoing in your head and the flashbacks of his hands on your hands, you suggested talking about what you were supposed to do next, and that you should probably grab some food afterwards. You ended up eating first, then plotting some plans because Intak was also really hungry. He went to grab some food from the nearby supermarket (taking your safety tips into consideration about how to appear less on CCTVs and such), and then, you were hunched over your notes and maps while having a pretty dry yet edible sandwich. Definitely not the way you would have thought this day would end, but you didn’t mind.

Actually, Intak was pretty useful when it came to the clues. He might not have been able to read maps, but he had that outside-of-the-box thinking that made you realise that the seemingly random letters you had found on one sticker could indicate that they were coded, and you had to translate them to their corresponding number in the English alphabet. You assumed that they were the acronyms for a street or a district name, but once you had the encryption done, they turned out to be GPS coordinates. It fit well with the map you had been working on and the text that was only visible in the dark that said: follow the fences. According to the map you had found, it was supposed to be a huge empty place, the remains of a firm built a few decades ago, probably behind high fences.

Needless to say, it didn’t take you only a day to put your clues together, so you had to spend some time together with the boy which made you feel uneasy in the beginning. However, apart from a few jokes about sleeping together (as in under the same roof before anyone could misunderstand) and his usual (now trademark) cheeky smiles, he wasn’t that unbearable. Besides, you could read his mind, so he didn’t have a lot of secrets in front of you, let it be his opinion on the bibimbap you got him from the store or how much he hated riddles and felt stupid when he couldn’t help with the clues. You felt the need to reassure him time and time again that he wasn’t stupid, and that he helped immensely, and you expected him to be all smug about it, but he was rather touched to hear your soothing words.

However, being the target of the government due to your special abilities meant that you had to be on the run whether they found out about your hideout place or not. You had to fight a few more officials and flee from another place before you could put together the clues, and this fight resulted in a few injuries on your part. You insisted that you could take care of them, but you had a big cut from a glass window that scratched your back, so you had to let Intak disinfect it. It didn’t help that you could hear his concerned (and panicky) thoughts running through his head, and his self-blame resurfaced with the thoughts.

“Don’t blame yourself. It wasn’t your fault,” you told him between two hisses, and you thought that he would catch onto you reading his mind, but he didn’t. Despite the fact that he seemed innocent and he was definitely harmless, there was no right time or right place to tell him about your ability, especially when you were on the run, so you didn’t. One day, you would do so.

“But it bugs me that I can’t die and can’t get hurt, but you can. I wish I could have a power that lets me heal others, not just myself,” he responded firmly, and his sincere confession took you aback. You felt your heart beat against your rib cage in a rather panicked rhythm, the rhythm of your confusion and gratitude and… was that affection? You cared about him, he genuinely cared about you just as this confession proved you, but could it be something else?

You didn’t have time to ponder over it because the boy put the antiseptic on an untreated part of your cut, and the pain erased all questions from your head. You winced, letting the agony wash over you in waves before you finally finished, but that one question stayed in the back of your mind even after it was over, even days after when you put the clues together and you were about to leave for Harmony base (hopefully) with all the (little amount of) belongings you had on you.

You were careful about how you were going there, changing clothes from the last time the officials had ambushed your hideout place, but you couldn’t appear panicked because that would draw more suspicion than anything else. So you casually hopped on the bus, then the metro, and walked towards the abandoned factory. Indeed, there were an awful lot of fences that led to the firm’s front door, and as you looked around, you caught sight of a few cameras. Could they be government-related cameras? Or could the ones at Harmony base monitor who were circling around the base? It even crossed your mind that it could be a trap after all, but you hoped that it wasn’t a trap after everything you had gone through to get here.

You knew that Intak had the same thoughts, though he was eerily quiet beside you. He was scared and hopeful at the same time according to his thoughts, but when you reached the front door of the firm, he reached for your arm and pulled you behind him. Bewildered was an understatement to describe how you felt even though it was true that he couldn’t get hurt, so if things went south, he could still let you have enough time to run away if he was, for instance, stabbed. Not that you would leave him there on his own. After all, who knew what they would do to him?

“Should I just knock? Or should we wait for them to come outside?” Intak inquired rather conflicted, and you didn’t know what would be better, so you suggested knocking.

He knocked a few times, but only silence remained.

“Do you think we came to the wrong place? I was so sure about the encryption though,” the boy mentioned sulkily, and turned towards you with a pout. He was pretty cute when he was pouting.

“Even though this is not the Harmony base, we’ve tried to find and put the clues together. That’s what matters,” you pointed out with a half-smile. “Maybe they’ve already left,” you reasoned, hoping not to crush whatever hope he had left in him. You still had the chance to open the door yourself, but before you could do so, the door flew open, and a grey-haired boy stepped outside.

“We’ve heard your conversation, and you’ve come to the right place,” he announced in a theatrical manner, even going as far as bowing towards you two. Then, he reached for Intak’s wrist, closed his eyes, and did… nothing for a few seconds. “You pass,” he announced after opening his eyes, but Intak didn’t budge, still sheltering you from the front.

You were utterly confused as to what was going on because even the thoughts of the grey-haired boy seemed genuine. He was thinking how lucky they were that two more people with special abilities could join them, and that their clues didn’t seem that difficult this time. So he wasn’t just acting nice, he was a part of Harmony base, but still… What was with the wrist touching?

“Oh yeah, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Keeho, and I can sense who has a special ability and who doesn’t, but in order for me to do that, I need to touch them. Just a bit though,” he introduced himself cheerily, a wide smile plastered onto his face. He looked at you peeking out from behind Intak with an expectant smile, and you exchanged a glance with your partner in crime before reaching out your wrist and letting the so-called Keeho touch it.

He was gentle though, and his hand was off your wrist in no time, letting you pass as well. He beckoned you two inside, and despite the first few minutes that you spent looking around and trying to make sure that you weren’t dreaming, you finally managed to believe that you had found Harmony base. You did it. Especially when you met more people with special abilities, some were in the midst of training their telekinesis or what seemed like super strength, others had special labs in which they put together or grow stuff, and it was so cool and so reassuring. They were all just like you. You belonged here.

Intak felt the same joy because he swept you off your feet (quite literally) and spun you around while hugging you.

“We did it,” he hollered cheerfully before putting you down and letting you escape his grip. You didn’t do so. You just stared at him, smiley and wide-eyed, your heart jumping up and down in exhilaration. Intak did the same, and this moment seemed so fragile, something that you would like to embrace and keep close to your heart for the future. You really did it.

I want to kiss her so bad, but I’m afraid she will slap me in the face if I do so. You heard Intak’s words in your head, and you couldn’t help but let out a light-hearted laughter.

“I won’t”, you said as you pulled on his shirt and pulled him closer, your lips crushing against his. It was swift and sweet, and Intak definitely didn’t see it coming despite his own thoughts of kissing you because he gaped like a fish after you let go of him.

“What? What did you mean by you won’t?” He blinked at you, totally confused, and you shrugged your shoulders in response. Seeing his utter confusion though, you decided to let him in on the secret.

“That I won’t slap you.”

“But I didn’t… I didn’t say it out loud, did I?” He looked so perplexed as if he actually believed that he did say it out loud without him knowing. It was so him, your smile only grew wider before the confession.

“You didn’t, but I can read your mind. That’s my special ability.”

If he was gaping before, now his jaw was hanging open. He couldn’t close his mouth for a few more moments, but when he did so, he started blabbering about it - if you could read his mind all the time (yes), if you had heard all of his thoughts when he thought that you were pretty and cool and badass (yes, you did), and that if you knew he liked you, why didn’t you act (because you weren’t sure about your own feelings towards him).

“But now you are?” Intak blinked at you, a hint of hope flashing across his warm, mahogany-brown orbs. No words were needed to confirm it, you merely nodded and pulled him in for another kiss, and he wasn’t that taken aback this time. He rather enjoyed it which you knew because his thoughts were full of you.

You were sure though that if he could read your mind, he would say the same.

A/N: Hope you enjoyed this story of mine! Let me know what you think!

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Hope you have a lovely day/night! Take care! ❤️