Chapter Text
I shot a glance over at Taeyong, who was talking on his phone in the corner and looking more and more upset as time went on. I noticed the others were starting to catch on as well, exchanging worried looks and slowly gravitating towards Taeyong. After a while, Dongyoung got everyone's attention and gestured for us all to gather together on the floor.
" Who is hyung talking to?" Chenle whispered in my ear, hooking his chin over my shoulder.
" I'm not sure. I think we're gonna find out now, though," I replied quietly.
Dongyoung placed a hand on Taeyong's shoulder and they stared at each other for a minute before he let Dongyoung guide him over to where everyone was waiting. Taeyong dropped down in between Yuta and Ten, leaning on Ten's shoulder. Johnny, who was sitting on Ten's other side, reached over and ruffled Taeyong's hair, offering a reassuring smile when Taeyong looked at him with wide eyes. Taeyong then turned his attention back to the person on the other end of his call.
" Mark, do you remember how I told about that group, er, club that I go to? Yeah, I'm actually there right now. Johnny's here, too. They want to help, Mark. Will you talk to them?"
Everyone went quiet as we all waited to see what would happen. What was going on with this stranger, Mark, that they needed our help?
" No one's going to judge you, Mark. I promise," Taeyong exchanged a glance with Kun, who was sitting across from him. Kun nodded encouragingly, offering more support for whatever was happening on the other end of the phone. I reached out and picked up Sicheng's hand and slotted our fingers together. Sicheng squeezed my hand gently, not moving his gaze from the carpet and resting his head on Yuta's shoulder delicately. I heard sniffling coming from somewhere to my left.
A simple phone call brought the atmosphere of the room to its knees. I knew there were still untold stories whirling through the heads of these men, stories that might come out tonight.
I heard Jungwoo let out a shaky sigh. I knew if I looked over I'd see him tugging on his sleeves again. Hopefully, I'd also see Lucas wrapping an arm around Jungwoo's shoulders, holding his hands like I was doing with Chenle and Sicheng.
" Do you want to talk to Johnny? He's right here," Taeyong mumbled into his phone, turning to face the man he mentioned. Johnny sat up, watching him intently. Ten wrapped his arms around both Taeyong and Johnny's biceps, leaning his head quietly onto Taeyong's shoulder. Taeyong suddenly passed the phone over to Johnny before slumping against Ten, clearly shaken.
" Hey, kiddo. Where are you right now?"
I tuned Johnny's voice out, deciding that whatever he had to say wasn't necessary for me to hear unless Johnny shared it with us on his own. I could sense the memories floating over all of our heads. But now we were together. We had friends now, people who understood. Hopefully, we'd be able to give some comfort to Mark.
" Hey, guys."
I lifted my head, making eye contact with Johnny.
" I'm going to go and pick Mark up and bring him here. The drive is like an hour long, so I want you guys to keep talking. Whatever you wanna share is fine, but try to keep a positive, or at least comforting note. Mark, you hear me?"
Most of us nodded in acknowledgement, promising to keep the call going as long as possible. As long as Mark was talking with us, he'd be okay.
" Dongyoung, do you mind coming with me?"
Dongyoung nodded, standing up and patting both Jeno and Jaemin on the heads as he stepped around them towards the door. Jaehyun reached out towards Johnny, silently asking for the phone as he walked by. Johnny mumbled a "see you soon" to Mark, and set the phone in Jaehyun's hands. Jaehyun introduced himself to Mark, and immediately launched into how he met Ten, which is always a fun story. I smiled faintly, remembering Jaehyun dropping onto the story-telling couch in the corner of the "club room" and theatrically telling the story of "meeting the devil himself" at some frat party. He'd ended it with Chenle in his lap and Taeyong laughing himself silly from his spot on the floor. I don't think I've seen Jaehyun's ears go that deep of a red since then.
The phone went to Jeno and Jaemin next, who talked about growing up together and how falling in love came naturally, sweetly, and about being torn apart by jealous classmates and Jeno's disappointed parents. They talked about finding each other again when Jeno went to live halfway across the country with his cousin, Kim Dongyoung. How said cousin had listened to their story and told them he'd help them in any way he could. How Dongyoung introduced them to Taeyong and this club, where they meet as often as they can with classes and schoolwork and have never regretted it.
The phone traveled to Lucas, who—with Jungwoo's permission—talked about finding someone he'd call the love of his life, learning that they weren't a girl, but a boy. How even growing up in an open-minded family was difficult and confusing because figuring out who you are isn't easy, especially when it's so different from how you started, and how people can be really cruel if you let them. But loving someone is worth it, loving someone as they grow into themself is beautiful and he wants to keep moving forward with his family and friends because looking back never brings as much joy as moving forward does.
The phone was handed off to Hendery, Dejun, and Yangyang, who shared their experiences with coming to terms with the fact that they might not be who they thought they were. Dejun cried as he shared his worries about being wrong and how he felt like he wasn't really like us and maybe he'd gone through all of this for nothing. That ended in a group hug from everyone willing to move and multiple reassurances that he was their friend no matter who he ended up being. There were murmured reminders that everyone's journey is different and he had a place with us no matter what alongside jokes that he wasn't getting rid of us that easily.
Honestly, I was a little worried we'd scared Mark off, but the soft laughter and sniffles coming through the phone said otherwise. Mark went quiet for a bit, scaring everyone half to death until Dongyoung's voice came through and explained that they were with Mark. He stated that they were going to hang up for a while, but they'd call back when they were on their way back. Kun thanked Mark for talking with them, which got a watery " Thanks, but I didn't do much."
" That's okay. You're already doing good by not doing so many other things. See you soon, Mark," Taeil added in before they hung up.
The quiet in-between was spent giving water and hugs to anyone who cried and making a cuddle pile on the carpet, complete with Ten getting blankets and pillows from his apartment, which was closest. I ended up squished between Taeil and Dejun, which ended up being one of the best places to be. Johnny called back and explained that Mark had passed out in his car, and they were going to let him sleep, but he said thank you to everyone who talked to him. That earned a chorus of "you're welcome"s despite Mark probably not hearing them.
A more comfortable quiet fell over the room as everyone slept or just laid there, soaking up the feeling of relief. The relief that our darker histories wouldn't repeat themselves, at least for this one person.