angel horns ; norenmin [ ✓ ]

a broken plate¹⁵

"what's the one thing i told you not to do?" yuta asked jaemin, his eyes blazing with anger.

jaemin, pushing another torn piece of tissue up his nostril, said, "get suspended or worse, expelled."

"exactly," yuta's smile wasn't a friendly one. "and what did you do?"

"got suspended for three months."

"e — xact — ly," yuta hissed, each syllable more angrier than the last. "you're grounded for those three months. i'm very, very disappointed in you."

jaemin frowned. "you sound a lot like mum, you know."

yuta was going to walk away from the living room couch but paused, whipping around. "good, then. mum wouldn't be happy with you either."

"he insulted me and her!" jaemin yelled. "how can you not expect me to get upset?"

"i never said you couldn't be!" yuta shouted back. "i would be just as much since she raised me too! the thing is: bae daehyun does it on purpose to rile you up and you keep falling into his trap, jaemin. leave the little shit alone and shit like this — " he let out a deep breath. " — doesn't fucking happen!"

in that moment, seeing how pissed off his half-brother's face, jaemin saw how much his eyes looked when he was angry was just like their mother's. scarily similar almost. his face being twisted with anger was just how she looked, but unlike her oldest son, she calmed down a lot more quicker and her softness returned immediately afterwards.

"just — " yuta paused, closing his eyes as he raised his hand, starting to calm a little before his eyes flew back open, still glinting with prominent anger. " — just get your little nose situation sorted out and go to your room."

with that, he left without another word, leaving his younger half-brother to watch his retreating back take a right and disappear down the hallway. would his mother be disappointed with him too? he's never got suspended twice in one single school year before.

all mentions of her was making jaemin just feel more and more sad: thinking about her in the robes shop, daehyun calling him 'motherless bastard' and not missing his chance to basically call her a whore, and now yuta mentioning her when his eyes remind him way too much of her.

jaemin hadn't been with her long, but he remembered her to be a strong person. it was admirable how she built herself up again after yuta's father abandoned them for japan and raised two sons on her own without any help. she always said, in her usual blunt away, that it was okay to fight back.

if they punch first, which daehyun did.

~*~

the weekend came faster than jaemin originally expected, but time seemed to go by fast when be was bored. the end of sunday was nearing as the sun set in the far distance. thankfully, his friends were keeping him entertained in the group chat.

then, his bedroom door opened, making him look up his phone as he rested his back against his pillow. it was his brother-in-law.

"me and yuta are leaving now," he informed him, reminding jaemin that he was told that they were going on a date. "remember, make sure shotaro is in bed by — "

"i know, by ten," jaemin nodded. "i can babysit my nephew."

though, he figures shotaro is definitely old enough to know when exactly to go to sleep.

"alright, just making sure," sicheng retorted. "if you need anything or something happens, call me or your brother."

"okay," jaemin gave him a half-hearted thumbs up that just makes sicheng smile before closing the door and leaving him alone. a few moments, he heard the front door open and close and yuta's black car back out the driveway before disappearing down the road.