Honestly, I hate this chapter. I hate the way it's written, they way it plays out, everything. But if I were to rewrite it then I wouldn't be updating for another week.

So, I'm sorry this chapteris shit.

I know I forgot to include this last chapter: thanks to DailyFeather and soraxtsuna123 for reviewing.

soraxtsuna123: I didn't include a Norway cameo in this chapter, but he and the rest of the Nordics (including Sealand, Ladonia, and Greenland) will be in the next chapter!

Chapter 7 - Tending to The Wounded

The drive home was silent.

And so was the walk inside. Some lingered by the car, too lost in thought to comprehend the current situation; some, like Yao and Yong Soo, were through the front door and in the foyer the second the car stopped.

No one said a word, and no one protested as Yao dragged Yong Soo off into his bedroom, grabbing a first aid kit from the kitchen as they went.

Yong Soo wasn't quite sure how, or when, but he found himself sitting on Yao's bed. His vision blurred with the tears he'd long since stopped trying to blink away, and his mind was fuzzy with that kind of haze he'd only ever felt when he'd once gotten high with Matthias' Dutch friend, Lars.

Yao didn't say anything just yet. He sat down on a chair in front of the bed, gazing at Yong Soo with an unrecognizable look. Carefully, almost cautiously, he rested a hand on his younger brother's knee.

Yong Soo jolted, head snapping up. Teary brown eyes met angered, despaired irises.

"Why?" his voice was unusually hoarse. He could barely force the words out. "Why would you not tell me?"

Yong Soo sniffled. "I-I don't know. I didn't...I don't...it didn't seem like something that..."

"It didn't seem like something that what? That we would care about? That I would care about?" Yao hissed back. His voice was sharper this time.

Yong Soo flinched. Looking down, he nodded hesitantly. Truthfully, though he knew his family did care for him, he didn't think they would care enough to worry over his problems. Especially since the split. They weren't as close as they used to be; Everyone else in Yong Soo's family lived only an hour or two away from each other, while he was in a different state entirely. Why would they care about his problems? They all had their own lives, anyways.

"I'm fine." It hurt. Forcing the words out, with the way his throat was opening and closing on it's own. "This is nothing big. I can deal with it myself, y'know? I'll be fine, da-ze. I'm always fine."

Again came the tears, and Yong Soo had to fight to force them back. His eyes fluttered, trying to dry the tears. "It's not— it's not that bad. I mean, as long as I do my chores and I don't mess up, he leaves me alone. I- I- I deserve it, d-don't I? Like that time when I- I- broke the vase- and he-"

God, he could barely breathe. It felt as if his lungs were shutting down, and his heart was pounding against his ribcage. The tears fell, and his face felt hot.

And all Yao could do was watch as his little brother broke down into sobs, tears going everywhere and ripping holes through his heart.

OOOOOOOOOOOOO

It was silent downstairs. Everyone was trapped in their thoughts, too caught up in their own sad little worlds.

"I'm scared."

Chio looked up, his gaze flickering to Mei. She sat on the floor in front of the couch, curled in on herself. Her face was wet with tears.

Jade slid down onto the floor next to her, wrapping both arms around her sister and resting her head in Mei's shoulder. She rubbed her hands up and down Mei's arm in a small attempt to comfort her. "I know," she said softly, her voice sounding pained. "We all are."

"He's gonna be okay," Leon whispered from his spot in the arm chair. His voice was hoarse and broken, and his eyes were red. "He has to be okay, right?"

Chio closed his eyes, burying his face in his hands.

"God I hope so."

OOOOOOOOOOOOO

Kai and Kiku sat in silence, both of them wanting to speak but not quite knowing what to say.

"He doesn't deserve this."

"No, he doesn't." Kiku agreed, his voice barely above a whisper.

OOOOOOOOOOOOO

Matthias frowned. Why wasn't Yong Soo answering the phone? He knew his boyfriend always kept his phone on him, and was usually fairly quick to text him back.

Perhaps he should text Alfred or Feliks, and ask them if they know anything.

OOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Alfred, cher, do you think you could help me out with dinner? Dad and Papa are out for the night."

Alfred gave Camille a small smirk, playfully nudging her in the side. "It's not as if Dad can cook anyways. Dude, he gave Liam and Jett food poisoning the last time he cooked."

Camille laughed, shaking her head at her little brother. "I take that as a yes, then?" She asked. When Alfred nodded, she headed back off to the kitchen.

When his phone rang, Alfred couldn't help but to frown. Why was Matthias calling him? They were friends, but they usually only texted or facetimed. Neither of them were very fond of talking on the phone.

OOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Look at me."

Yong Soo blinked, and he couldn't help but to flinch when a hand grabbed his chin, albeit rather gently. Yao titled the younger boy's head back so he could look him in the eye.

"I care, aru." He said slowly, his voice gentle. He stared at Yong Soo long and hard, willing the boy to really listen and take in what he was saying. "We all do. If you ever have a problem, aru, or even just need someone to talk to, I'll be there. And so will all of your other siblings."

Yong Soo was tired. He was tired of covering the marks, tired of second-guessing himself, tired of everything. He could only nod in response to Yao's words, fearing that if he opened his mouth, he wouldn't be able to get the words out.

Seemingly satisfied, Yao ordered Yong Soo to take his shirt off. His breath halted, and his muscles froze up as he got a good look at Yong Soo's wounds for the first time.

Yao had known it was going to be bad. He had known that. But that still didn't prepare him for what he saw.

He reached out, one thin finger trailing down a bruise on Yong Soo's back. Yao felt the boy flinch, but he didn't pull back. He traced up back towards Yong Soo's injured shoulder, wincing when he saw the dark red split in the skin. Luckily, it was nearly healed, and it looked as if Yong Soo had been taking care of it nicely. It was clean, and showed no signs of infection.

Though, there was the problem of it...

"You do realize this could scar, aru?" His voice is light, gentle, and he says the words almost without thought.

Yong Soo pauses, and he blinks, because yeah, he has thought of that. "Yeah, da-ze, I know." He just doesn't really care. After all, what's so wrong about having a few scars here and there?

Yao sighs, slowly backing away from Yong Soo. Right. He needed to tend to those bruises, didn't he?

Shuffling through the first aid kit, Yao pulled out some bruise cream. Just a little something for pain relief, and to help them heal faster.

As Yao rubbed the cream into the bruises, his mind was racing. What were they going to do about this? Obviously, Yong Soo had to come back home. He couldn't just stay with Hyung.

At the thought of Hyung, Yao felt his anger flare. Yao wasn't a naturally violent person, not at all, but he swore to himself that the next time he saw Hyung he was going to punch that bastard in the face. Yao didn't care if that was a reasonable thing to do. Hyung had hurt his baby brother, an act that Yao could never forgive.

Yao had always been protective of his younger siblings; they meant everything to him after all, and he really didn't know what he would do without them.

"Yao?"

The light voice broke him from his thoughts, and the Chinese man looked up. "Yes, aru?"

Yong Soo hesitated. He glanced to the floor, then to Yao, then back to the floor. Shifting uncomfortably, his voice was soft as he asked something that had been on his mind.

"Do I have to go back?"

For all his credit, Yao didn't drop the first aid box he had been closing, though he came close to it. His expression went from blank, to confused, before quickly morphing into anger.

"No." Yong Soo flinched at the hard tone in Yao's voice, worried that he was mad at him. "You are never going back there. Do you hear me, aru?"

Yong Soo seemed to shrink in on himself, wrapping his arms around his bare midsection. The logical part of his brain told him that Yao had no reason be mad at him, but the rest of his intrusive thoughts overrode that.

"Sorry, da-ze." He quickly apologized, his voice soft and his face almost scared. Apologies never worked on Hyung, but maybe if he apologized Yao wouldn't be as mad.

In seconds, Yao's face crumbled. This time, he really did drop the first aid kit. Scrambling to get to Yong Soo's side, Yao plopped down on the bed next to him. Without a second thought he grabbed hold of the younger boy, ignoring the way he tensed up, and pulled him into his chest.

"No, no, no, aru. Don't apologize. I'm not mad at you, aru. Why would I be mad at you?"

Yong Soo didn't respond.

Yao, hugging Yong Soo fiercely, went to rest his chin on top of his head; something he had done quite a bit when Yong Soo had been younger. "I'll never hurt you, aru. I promise."

And Yong Soo wants to believe him. Really, he does. Because Yao sounds so sincere, and he's never hurt Yong Soo before, has he?

But at the same time, he can't help the way his body freezes every time Yao touches or gets too close to him. The way his mind seems to scream at him that he's in danger.

He wants to believe that Yao won't hurt him, but he's not sure he can.