All That's Wrong With Us

08. Beneath the Midnight Lights

Temp coughed, eyes wide, rage tightening expression as he looked up. "Who the fuck are you!?"

Before he could say more, Johan stepped forward. His movements were slow. Measured.

Nao, Ikkyu, and Chai instinctively shrank back, not from fear of Johan, but from emotion they saw in frozen stare. It wasn't rage. It wasn't fury. Just emptiness, cold, unfeeling, absolute. A look that promised he'd break every bone in your body if you wasted even a second of his time.

"Enough." Johan tilted his head slightly, the overhead lights cutting sharp lines across the face.

One word was enough for the entire bar to fell silent. For a moment, nothing moved.

A groggy mumble broke through the quiet. "... huh?" 

Johan exhaled, shoulders relaxing just slightly, watching how North squinted, trying to process the scene around him, eyes unfocused, mouth slightly parted like his brain was buffering. Against all logic, he suddenly jolted upright, wobbly, limbs flailing resembling a baby deer experiencing gravity for the first time.

"I'm fine," he announced with full confidence, immediately stumbling.

Knees buckled, arms flailing for balance, and for a split second, he seemed to defy physics, teetering precariously on all fours like a drunk cat. The floor, however, had other plans. Palm missed its landing, balance betrayed him, and he went down again, this time dramatically face-planting with a soft thud, a muffled groan escaped him.

Slightly smushed voice whispered, as he tried again to get up. "I'm still fine!"

With the stubborn determination of a man who had no business standing, North pushed himself up. He swayed dramatically, nearly toppled over, but somehow, miraculously, stayed on both feet. For half a second, he looked victorious, but soon his knees gave up. Luckily, Johan caught him before he could collapse back onto the floor.

Dazed, North looked up at him, eyes sluggish as they drifted downward, landing on the broad expanse of Jo's chest. Confusion furrowed dark brows before he pressed hands against the unfamiliar torso.

"What's a wall doing here?" he mumbled, giving it an experimental push, as if testing its solidity.

Johan let out a slow exhale, measured and controlled, but before he could respond, North turned a little, spotting Temp. His expression twisted into something that was supposed to be menacing but mostly just looked... adorable.

"You..." With all the courage of a completely wasted man, North attempted to lunge at Temp. He got about two inches before Jo yanked him back, making him flail, legs kicking uselessly in the air as taller man effortlessly held him in a firm back hug, arms locked around torso like a human restraint.

"Lemme at 'im!! I gotta...hic...kick 'im or somethin'!" North slurred, limbs moving with all the coordination of a newborn foal. Foot swung wildly, missing everything but air.

"You're not kicking anyone," Johan said, tone dry as he adjusted the grip, barely reacting to North's sloppy attempts at freedom.

"I could!" North insisted, trying again.

Johan didn't dignify that with a response. Instead, with one swift motion, he grabbed North by the waist and hoisted him up.

"Hey!" The complaint barely left North's lips before Johan moved, lifting him with ease, as if he weighed nothing. In one smooth motion, he was slung over Johan's broad shoulder like a sack of rice, arms dangling, legs flapping around.

North let out an undignified squawk, kicking weakly. "You can't just..." 

A hiccup interrupted the outrage, arms flopped uselessly against Jo's back. From this angle, the world spun slightly, his already wobbly balance made even worse by the fact that he was upside down. Hands smacked tense muscles in protest, but it felt more like a half-hearted pat compared to an actual escape attempt.