God, he felt terrible.

After finding out that he was going to leave Sunny behind, Squirt hadn't bounced back from the initial heartbreak. Kang truly felt terrible, and he was internally scolding himself for not starting the process to get Sunny back earlier, but even then, Sunny would have still been taken away for quarantine. Either way, Sunny was being taken away from him and it was just a situation where there was no way to win.

It was the last day on base, and after he finished packing the day before, Squirt had done nothing but sit with Sunny in the barracks. And as if Sunny had sensed his mood, which she probably did, she didn't try to squirm out of his arms like she usually did after ten minutes. Instead, she let the boy hold her to his chest, his head leaning against the top of her head as he stared into nothing. His face was blank, his eyes half-lidded as he closed himself off.

It was odd, Kang could see that the teen was hiding his emotions, but all it did was emphasize how distraught he was. The past year and a half had helped the kid learn how to express his emotions, and while they were still muted compared to a normal teenager.

And of course, in a sign of his men's eternal bravery, they left it up to him to tell the kid it was time to go. Bastards.

Kang was going to remember that.

He slowly approached Squirt and gently rested his hand on his shoulder, internally cringing at the way he felt the kid stiffen up. He must have known what Kang was going to say, because the kid buried his face into Sunny's neck, further showing how he felt about the situation.

God, he felt like the scum of the earth.

Steeling himself, Kang cleared his throat before he gently said, "It's time to go." He took a deep breath, and giving Sunny one final squeeze, he stood up and grabbed his bag. In a smooth motion, Squirt swung his bag onto his shoulder and started to walk away from Kang, not even giving either Kang or Sunny a chance to keep up.

Sunny, the little nincompoop, thought that they were finally going outside, her tail wagging madly as she ran between them and the doorway multiple times as she tried to usher them out the door. She barked as she tried to get them to pick up the pack, each time, looking back at them expectantly before bounding back to them, her nails clicking against the floor each time she bounced in place.

Most of the time, her energy would have been enough to make him smile, but this time, all it did was make him sad.

Sunny truly had no idea that they weren't coming back.

The dog kept up her crackhead energy until they got to the hanger, where she fell back on her training and stuck to the kids' side like glue. It was in the hangar where they were going to get on a cargo plane that would take them to another base and from there, they would go to an international airport to get back home. All the men were already loaded up, and they were the only ones left.

The kid turned to Sunny and with a simple snapping of his fingers, Sunny was sitting at attention. She was looking up at Squirt with an expectant look, her mouth closed for once as she waited for instructions.

For a few seconds, all Squirt did was look down on his dog, a pained look on his face.

He cleared his throat," Stay." Despite his voice barely coming out as a whisper, Sunny yipped, her tail slowly moving left to right as she lay on her stomach," Good girl." And without looking back once, he went into the plane.

Right.

Kang patted Sunny's head, feeling bad at the way Squirt had left Sunny without petting her for a final time.

Time to go.

Sunny watched them leave, her tail wagging slowly as she patiently waited.


After a very awkward flight and a car ride, they arrived at the international airport. The men, who were used to the busy atmosphere of an international airport, were strolling through the airport, not giving anyone a single glance.

As he figured, Squirt was sticking to his side like glue, unsettled by the mass amount of people that surrounded them as they went on with their lives. Kang almost snorted at the way Squirt would very adamantly reel in his curiosity every time something caught his eye, snapping his head forward as he forced himself back to attention. It was obvious that he was curious about everything, it was his first time in an airport after all, Kang was thinking of taking the kid around the airport for some sight seeing when he noticed Dae-hyun. They had stopped for some snacks, and the medic was calling Kang into the nearby bathroom, giving the Major a glance that practically yelled 'we need to talk' as he did so.

Ok, he had to admit that seeing Dae-hyun like that got him nervous.

"What's wrong?" Kang asked as soon as they were in the men's room, concerned by the medic's actions. It had to be important if he wanted to talk about it in private.

He got straight to the point, "Sir, I didn't bring any sedatives or anxiety medication," Dae-hyun said plainly, though it did nothing to clear up his confusion. Of course, Dae-hyun didn't bring it, they didn't need it. Sure, all of them had some sort of anxiety, but none of them had it bad enough that they needed sedatives or anxiety medication. Dae-hyun had no reason to bring it along.

"Okay?" Kang asked, not understanding the urgency in the medic's voice," Why would you bring them? We don't need it."

Now Dae-hyun was looking at him like he was an idiot. Which was fair because he had done a lot of stupid shit in his military career and Dae-hyun had been there to see him do it. But that didn't explain why he was doing it now, in an airport bathroom on the way back home.

Dae-hyun stared at him for a little bit longer and had a slight tone of annoyance in his voice as he finally said, "The kid might need it."

That was when it clicked.

Kang had been so worried about Squirt and his sorrow over Sunny, he completely forgot to ask if Squirt would be fine going onto a commercial airplane.

Sure, Squirt was fine with going onto a cargo plane, but even he admitted that he was fine with it because he knew and trusted the pilot, along with the fact that he had space to breathe.

Kang had no idea if Squirt would be fine going onto a packed, stuffy, and loud commercial airplane. There was a difference between a cargo plane that had an open layout with people that he knew and trusted. And there was a difference between a commercial airplane that only gave you less than a few feet of wiggle room that was chock-full of all types of strangers.

He could feel the blood draining out of his face "Oh fuck." Kang cursed foully under his breath, his hand going up to run through his hair," I forgot to ask. Did anyone ask him?" Kang was hoping with every fiber of his being that someone had managed to remember and that someone knew the answer.

His hopes were dashed when Dae-hyun almost frantically shook his head," No sir. We were hoping that you asked him." God this was such a giant fuck up!

They all knew that Squirt was a survivor of a plane crash! They all knew that! and somehow, they all forgot to ask him if he was fine going onto a plane!

How could they forget!?

God everyone was usually so good at keeping track of the details, but yet, they all collectively managed to forget!

God dammit!

Kang expressed his frustration as he covered his face with his hands and let out the loudest groan he's had in a while," Okay. Okay." He made a chopping motion with his hands as he said that, trying to convince himself that it was okay (it wasn't)," I'll go and talk to him. Is there anything we can buy to help?" Hell, he'll even take some odd herbal remedy if it meant that Squirt wasn't going to freak out midflight.

He wanted to bang his head against the wall when the medic shook his head," There's nothing we can buy. The best we can get is probably some allergy medicine to knock him out but…" Dae-hyun trailed off as he gave him a meaningful look, silently reminding Kang that Squirt would absolutely refuse to be in any vulnerable state out in public. Forget being vulnerable on plane that would stress him to hell and back.

Kang wanted to curse the sky. There was absolutely no chance that they would get some type of anxiety medication in an airport of all things. Nor anything that wouldn't leave Squirt half asleep or knocked out, the last thing he needed was for Squirt to be pissed at him again.

Anxiety medication had to be prescribed, which was why Dae-hyun had some back on base. As one might figure, fighting in a war zone causes anxiety over time, and in some cases, Dae-hyun had sedatives to help the men who needed them. Dae-hyun never needed to bring some of the medication back home, and that, combined with the stress of packing and keeping an eye on Squirt, the possibility of them needing it was something they never thought of.

This was such an oversight, it was downright shameful.

How could they forget such an important detail?!

Again, he took a deep breath to try and expel some of his frustration, "Alright. Fuck. I'll go and talk to him. God I am such a fucking idiot." As much as he cared for the kid, this was a massive oversight.

The worst part was that yet again, Kang didn't have a choice but to put the kid onto the plane. They were way too far from Korea for them to take anything but a plane. The documents and passport he had organized were already a little bit iffy for Korea, there was no way in hell they would be accepted in any other country if they traveled through them.

Not only did he take away Squirt's ability to choose again, this time Squirt was getting absolutely no warning at all.

The way that Dae-hyun was not disputing his statement only made it all the worse.

They quickly made their way out of the bathroom, the two of them beam-lining for the kid where they left him with the others. His distress must have shown on his face because the teen was giving him an odd look as Kang walked up to him, even more so when Kang pulled him to the side.

"Sir?" he was looking up at Kang expectantly, a slight raise to his eyebrow as he waited for the soldier to get to the point.

Right.

He just had to tell Squirt. he just had to tell the kid that they were getting onto a commercial airplane.

A commercial airplane.

The same type of airplane that killed his parents and left him stranded in the middle east for the past seven years.

Right.

Fuck.

Squirt was giving him an odd look, and deciding to just get over it, Kang blurted out," We're going on an airplane."

Squirt just raised his eyebrow," I know. We're at an airport." The way the kid said it made him feel like a total idiot and he couldn't help the flush that appeared as a result.

…okay maybe Kang was the one who was making it a bigger deal than necessary. Maybe he and the others were freaking out over something that was unnecessary.

Feeling like a through-and-through idiot, Kang nodded his head slowly as he asked," And you're fine with that? Considering…you know…" considering the fact that the kid lost his family in an airplane accident and had his life drastically changed.

Now Squirt was looking at him as if he was an idiot," I'll be fine." He affirmed, a confident look on his face, though that confidence didn't last long. "Only…" he shuffled on his feet, averting his eyes as he quietly said," Can I sit next to you…?" Kang huffed at that, some of the pressure in his chest dispelling at the simple, but earnest request. It actually warmed his heart that the kid was asking to sit with him.

But he did file it away as the kid still had some aversion to the plane ride because if he had truly been fine with it, he wouldn't have made such a request.

Squirt started shuffling on his feet again, making Kang realize that he had been quiet for a little bit too long," Yes. Of course you can." The tension left his shoulders, and he let out a discreet sigh of relief that Kang did not miss, "Are you sure you'll be fine?" Kang had to ask one more time, just to be sure. But again, Squirt gave him a confident nod.

"I'll be fine. I'm…I'll be fine." Kang smiled as he ruffled the silver hair, much to the kid's indignation as he got his hands smacked away.

"Ok kid. If you say so." He was still a little bit nervous about the Squirt being on the plane, but for now, he was going to take his word for it.

Besides, it was just a plane ride, what's the worst that could happen?


Ok.

This was terrible after all.

Turbulence rocked the entire plane, hard enough that even with his military experience, he was starting to get a little bit nervous.

A particularly rough patch of wind made the cabin lights flicker, and if it wasn't for the fact that he was sitting right next to Squirt, he would have missed the muted gasp from him.

The squirt was holding onto him for dear life and was trembling in his arms. Squirt had to be uncomfortable with the way the armrest was digging into his side, but that did nothing to deter the young man. The kid's head was tucked under his jaw, his hand gripping Kang's forearm with an iron grip as the turbulence rocked the plane over and over again. In an attempt to soothe the boy, Kang ran his hands through his hair and whispered promises that they were going to be fine.

The pilot warned that they were going to encounter some rough turbulence, but this was getting ridiculous. It would have been acceptable if the turbulence had lasted for five minutes or less. That was a reasonable time.

It had already been almost twenty minutes of constant, almost nonstop turbulence.

Even the strongest of people were starting to succumb to their anxiety.

Kang was trying his best to keep Squirt from freaking out, he could feel Squirt's breath on his arm, and he could tell that the kid was breathing too fast," Squirt, kid," Kang repeated, wincing as the plane shook again. The children that were already crying shrieked at the sudden movement, and Kang could hear a few more adults burst into tears. This was all going to shit, but that didn't deter him from trying to help, "You need to calm down." Squirt was going to have a panic attack at this rate. And while he didn't blame the kid because the passengers around them were already in the midst of an attack, he had to try and stop it.

The kid was already scared, he didn't need a panic attack to make everything worse.

Slowly, the teenager nodded his head, but when the lights flickered again, Kang felt the boy tense up further.

"Squirt, listen to me. You're breathing too fast, okay?" Kang grabbed Squirt's hand and pressed it against his chest," Copy me. Deep breath in," He took an exaggerated breath, and the ball of anxiety in his chest got smaller when he saw that Squirt was copying him," deep breath out." The cabin trembled again, and it was clear that everything was getting to him when he scrunched his eyes closed, trying to get away from everything that was going on. It was hard to call to him over the cries and shrieks, but Kang kept his voice calm," It's okay. It's okay, just listen to my voice. We're going to be fine. But I need you to calm down." He didn't blame the kid at all for panicking like this. The grown-ass adults around them were also panicking, and Kang was rather sure that they weren't plane crash survivors.

The squirt had been fine originally, if not a little bit nervous, but the moment the turbulence started, that was when everything started to go downhill.

Rubbing the kids back, Kang looked around, trying to see if there was any other source of help, but with the way everything was going, everyone was strapped into their seats, including the flight attendants. Until everything settled down, he couldn't get any professional help and he was thoroughly cursing his lack of hindsight to sitting next to Dae-hyun. The medic had far more training in stopping a panic attack, and while Kang knew what to do, that didn't mean that he was good at it.

Frantically looking around, he made eye contact with Gwangsik across the aisle, and the look on his face must have been enough to show his distress because now the soldier was asking to switch seats with a random person so he could be closer.

Good, maybe having someone else would help.

Kang turned his attention back to the Squirt, who had only worsened in the few seconds he looked away. The kid was ashen at this point, and his heart leaped into his throat when he saw tears budding at the corner of his eyes. Still, he didn't give up, "Deep breath in kid. Come on, deep breath in," as much as it pained him, all Kang could do was try to help. This time, when the kid tried to take in a breath, it staggered, not going in smoothly at all.

Shit.

If he wasn't nervous already, the sight of the kid being unable to take in a smooth breath, only upped the panic he was feeling.

Gwangsik plopped down into the seat on the other side of the kid, and after buckling himself in, he started to help. Gently, he started to rub soothing circles into the kid's back," Breath with us kid. You can do it." But despite their attempts, he just wasn't calming down.

The cabin shook violently once again, the cabin lights flickering, and screams filled the air as the entire plane shook for almost ten seconds straight. Gwangsik almost fell out of his seat and he scrambled to buckle himself in once again. Kang could feel the seatbelt straining to keep him inside the seat, and he had to bring up his leg so he could use it as an anchor point against the seat in front of them, his arms wrapped firmly around the terrified teenager.

Ten seconds didn't sound like a lot, but when it was ten seconds of flickering lights and terrified screams on the world's shittiest impromptu roller coaster, it felt like a lifetime. After one final jerk of the plane that almost gave him whiplash, everything stopped trembling, and everyone was left gasping for air.

The kid turned green.

Kang scrambled for the empty trash bag that once held their snacks and with a second to spare, he thrust it under the kid's head just in time," It's okay kid. It's okay," The Major pushed the teenager's hair back and swallowed thickly when he felt the cold and clammy skin on his forehead. He was still violently trembling, the way he was coughing and gagging into the bag did nothing to help," We're fine. You're gonna be fine."

The sound of the intercom turning on made him look up and before he could even play with the possibility that it was the pilot giving them another warning of incoming turbulence, he got the exact opposite.

"The flight attendants will be tending to you shortly. Thank you for your patience."

Kang damn near sobbed in relief.

"It's okay, it's okay," Kang didn't know if he was saying that for Squirt or himself at that point, but it was all he could think to say at that moment. "We're gonna be fine," Squirt was still trembling in his arms, his hands fisting into Kang's shirt as he tried to catch his breath. Now that the turbulence stopped for more than 30 seconds, the kid was finally starting to calm down a little bit. But they still weren't out of the woods yet.

Kang kissed the crown of his head and held him closely.

"We're gonna be fine."


Slowly, he sipped at the soda. The sweet nature of the soda only upset his stomach, the flavor being too strong for him to drink comfortably, but after the glare he got from Dae-hyun when he tried to get out of drinking it, he didn't want to test his luck. Something about his blood sugar dropping after what happened on the plane, and that if he wanted to feel better, he needed to finish it.

He doubted that, but he didn't want to face the wrath of the medic.

Dae-hyun was scary when he was mad.

Letting out a deep sigh, he rested his hand on the bench under him, truly thankful that it was still, that it had the firmness of the earth that he had so desperately missed while they were on that cursed airplane. At least now, there was no chance of his entire world trembling violently in a way that brought him to tears.

Thankfully, Kang and Gwangsik didn't say a single thing about him crying to the other men when they got off the plane, and he was truly thankful for that.

One by one, the men started to leave, all of them giving him a farewell and a promise to be in contact before they went off with their families, ready to spend some time with them. That, combined with the constant stream of people going past them, the busy street, and the constant chatter of people around him, made him more than eager to get somewhere quiet. It was almost overwhelming, and if it wasn't for the constant paranoia that someone was going to sneak up on him, he would have loved to just stare down at the cement and focus on finishing the stupid soda.

There were so many people here.

He didn't like it.

At all.

But he swallowed his discomforts, he just needed to be patient, they would leave when it was their turn.

By the time he finally finished the soda, it was just him and Kang waiting to be picked up. If they were going to be picked up. It had to be late, since there weren't a lot of people on the street by that point, but he wasn't sure.

Kang sat down heavily next to him, passing him a small bag of crackers as he did so," Alright Squirt," Kang gave him a firm look, and not having the energy to try and argue, he opened the bag and started eating the crackers," we're going to head on over to my place. It's just going to be the two of us for a couple weeks." Quietly, he nodded his head.

That didn't sound too bad, it was just the two of them. His heart clenched at the realization that Sunny was left behind (for the umpteenth time) but at least he was going to be with the Major. At least he wasn't going to be completely by himself.

Kang cleared his throat next to him, causing him to look over at him once again. Now he had a slight furrow to his brows as he added," Just so you know…my family will be coming back home in two weeks. But don't worry!" Kang quickly added when he saw his upset look, "They want to meet you. And they're good people! They wanted to meet you as soon as we landed but I managed to convince them to give us a few weeks to settle down and get a routine. Is that okay with you…?" It took him a few seconds to dissect the information. He was mentally exhausted after his little…episode on the plane and all he wanted was to go to sleep.

Okay…they had two weeks before Major Kang's family came home to see their son and to meet him (for some odd reason).

Two weeks.

That didn't sound too bad. Besides, Major Kang was a good person, he had good morals and a kind personality. They said that relatives usually shared personality traits, right? So, it wouldn't be far-fetched to assume that Major Kang's family would be similar to the Major.

He nodded his head," Okay."

Kang widely grinned, truly ecstatic that he agreed to meet his family, for some odd reason," Great!" Kang chirped out, jumping to his feet, and grabbing their bags before he could grab his own," Come on kid! Let's go home!"

He didn't have the energy to try and match the Major's energy, so he just inwardly smiled at the man's antics.

Although that airplane ride was a shit way to start.

Maybe this won't be too bad after all.