the afternoon sun shone on the Glade, lighting up grass. As we jogged over to the hill, laughing and talking until we reached the tree which Chuck had tied some rope to the top branch and tied a stick at the bottom.
I stood at the bottom of the hill, watching Ben and Thomas argue over who would go first. Minho was off to the side, leaning against the tree with a smirk on his face, watching the whole ordeal like it was the most entertaining thing he'd seen all week.
"You go first, you shank!" Ben laughed, pushing Thomas lightly. Thomas stumbled back with a grin before grabbing the rope and giving it a good tug.
"Alright, fine," Thomas said, stepping forward with mock bravery. "I'll show you how it's done."
With that, he launched himself off the small hill and swinging out over the clearing. He let out an exaggerated cheer as he swung back and forth before finally dropping and falling into a heap on the soft grass below. We all burst into laughter as Thomas scrambled back to his feet, brushing the dirt from his clothes.
"That was so graceful, Tommy!" I called out teasingly.
He shot me a look and stuck out his tongue. "Let's see you do better, Y/N!"
"Ok. Give it here!" I grinned, stepping forward as the boys cheered me on. I grabbed the rope, and before I could overthink it, I took off swinging. the wind against my skin and through my hair.
For a moment, it felt like I was flying. The world spun around me in a blur. I let out a laugh, feeling the adrenaline surge through me.
But as I swung back, I realized I had misjudged the landing. My foot caught on a small dip in the ground, and before I knew it, I was tumbling forward—right into Minho.
With a surprised grunt, he caught me, stumbling back a few steps before we both toppled onto the ground in a heap. His arms were around my waist as we landed, and I found myself staring up at him, our faces inches apart. His eyes widened in surprise before his usual cocky grin returned.
"Well, if you were falling for me, you could've just said," Minho teased.
I rolled my eyes but couldn't help the smile that tugged at my lips. "Don't flatter yourself, shank," I shot back, trying to hide the fact that my heart was pounding for an entirely different reason now.
We lay there for a moment longer than necessary, the laughter of the others fading into the background as I became aware of how close we were. I could feel the warmth of his body against mine, the rise and fall of his chest as he breathed. His eyes softened, and for a brief moment, the teasing expression slipped away, replaced by something warmer—something that made my heart skip a beat.
But then, as if realizing the moment had gone too long, he cleared his throat and pushed himself up off me, offering me a hand. "C'mon, before Newt starts making jokes," he said with a grin.
Before I could actually grab his hand, Ben jogged over, laughing. "Nice catch, Minho! You guys alright?"
"Perfectly fine," Minho replied with a wink. "I'm always here to save the day."
Thomas and Newt were still chuckling, clearly having witnessed the entire scene. "You two make quite the pair," Newt said, raising an eyebrow.
"Shut up," I said, but my tone was lighthearted, and I couldn't stop the smile that crept onto my face.
I looked back to Minho and took his hand, but before I could get to my feet, someone tugged my hoodie from behind keeping me down. Pulling up the sleeve of my hoodie. I yanked my arm away from Minho's grip, pulling my sleeve down, trying to stop him from seeing my arm. But it was too late. I made quick eye contact with Minho, who's smile had dropped into a wide eyed, confused expression.
The moment quickly became awkward as I turn around and glare annoyed at Ben, who thought it would be funny to keep me on the ground. He was still oblivious as was Newt, but Thomas noticed the way I had pulled my hand away, tugging down my sleeve and he saw how Minho looked at me.
I pushed myself off the ground and stood up, dusting grass from my clothes, pulling my sleeves down again, holding them at with hands. Newt was now running around chasing Ben because he had tripped him and I was standing in front of Thomas and Minho.
Ben and Newt came over again, panting and sweating after their chase. Minho looked uneasy but began talking absent mindedly with Ben and Newt. I let a breath of relief as I watched him casually talking with Newt.
He didn't see.
Thomas opened his mouth to say something. I knew what he was going to talk about by the sympathetic look on his face, but we were too close to the others so I shook my head at him, keeping him quiet.
We all gathered around in a circle, talking and laughing, but I noticed-like myself- Minho was distracted. He kept glancing over to me cautiously, not really listening to the conversations. I tried to ignore it because I didn't know what was wrong. He didn't see.
After a minute or two minho spoke to me quietly, probably meaning for just me to hear, but all the others did too. "Y/N can I speak to you in my hut for a second?" I gave him a confused look while Newt and Ben smirked at each other, obviously having their heads shoved in the gutter. Minho just gave them a cold glare as I nodded and followed him away from the circle.
The short walk was silent and the tension was thick. My mind raced all the things he could want to talk about, desperately steering my mind away from what he might have seen earlier.
When we reach his hut, he opens the door for me, putting a hand on my shoulder and gently guiding me to the bed. He sat me down on the end of the bed and stood in front of me. I looked up at him nervous and expectantly until he spoke.
All he did was look at me. But there was something in his eyes that made my heart drop.
fuck. he knows.
"y/n.."
his voice shakes and comes out as quiet as a whisper. I look up at him, my vision starting to blur as tears threaten to fall from my eyes. when my vision focused, I met his dark eyes that were glazed over with tears and looking at me sadly.
"Can you take off your hoodie for me, please?"
I could tell he was trying to hold himself together but every word breaks weakly as he speaks.
"why? I'm cold, that's all."
I try to sound convincing but fail miserably.
"I know that's a lie Y/N, now please take off the hoodie".
His voice was caring with a hint of sternness.
"Please don't make me Min."
I said weekly my voice starting to wobble.
I look up at him but his eyes were concerned and clearly expectant for me to take the hoodie off. I sighed softly and sadly, refraining myself from letting out a sob that was building a lump in my throat. I know there is no point arguing so I gently pull at the sleeves of my hoodie, trying not to scrape the fresh cuts I had made just a day earlier.
As soon as my hoodie was off, I wrapped my arms around me, hiding my wrists from him and looking down, avoiding eye contact. He carefully took my arm with his gentle hands, examining them. I heard his breathing hitch and he let out a shaky sigh, laced with sadness and hurt, followed by a low sob.
He put a finger under my chin, lifting my head up and forcing me to look at him. Tears rolled down both of our cheeks and his eyebrows were furrowed, his face filled with sorrow.
"Why?" He choked out.
I shrugged my shoulders weakly. "Everything. It's too much." My voice was barely heard as I whispered under my breath.
"Oh Y/N, i'm so sorry I should have know, please, please don't do this." Tears fell from his eyes as he cried harder, wrapping me into a tight hug, burying his head in the crook of my neck as I cried into his shoulder.
"I'm sorry. I didn't want to. It was the only way. To stop the pain." I said weakly. He pulled away and held my shoulders. "No. It's not, you don't need to punish yourself." I had given up at fighting so I just nodded my head, falling into his arms again as he held me.
I thought about showing him the scratches on my stomach, but it seems like a bad time. That can wait for another day. But I will explain it to him. I have to.
Any light left in the glade was now gone as it became night. We stayed there in Minho's hut, falling asleep in each other's arms, our limbs in a tangle, neither of us wanting to let go.