never letting you go 8/9 part 3
Part Three
Hyukjae had frowned a bit at all the stuffed clothes tightly hugging his body, but Donghae only smiled contently and gave the boy’s gloved hand a light squeeze.
“It’s cold outside, you need to be warmly dressed so don’t give me that look.” The man reasoned and checked all the clothes on Hyukjae’s body to see if there was any bit of skin that could get cold, but the boy only pushed him away lightly and pouted.
“Hae, I can barely see anything.” He whined, though it came out a bit muffled thanks to the thick scarf around his neck.
“Sorry, you’re already on the risk of getting a cold, that’s why.” Donghae pushed down the other’s scarf a little and let his hand caress Hyukjae’s soft cheek. “It’s better if we wait until you’ve rested enough, Hyuk. We could just as well spend out day at home.”
“Why ? You said we could go out… on a date.” Hyukjae blushed slightly at the thought of having a date, even though he didn’t know what they were supposed to do. He’d never had a date, but he knew at least those things were between people who love each other. Maybe that’s why he really wanted to go.
“Yes, but we have all time in the world to do so.” Donghae pulled Hyukjae closer by his wrist and then hugged him tightly. “I could just stay here and hug you all day. I just got you back, didn’t I?” The older man leaned down and gave Hyukjae’s cheek a soft kiss.
With closed eyes, Hyukjae secretly enjoyed the feeling of Donghae’s still lingering pair of warm lips against his skin and a light sigh left his mouth when the elder’s lips traced the line of his face and stopped to place a peck on his forehead before making a small distance between them. The light ministrations and sweet talk made Hyukjae feel all tingly and just felt like melting on the inside, like nothing else could make him feel. Just Donghae. He barely noticed when Donghae had backed a little so he leaned against the wall and pulled Hyukjae along with him.
“You’re so clingy!” The boy giggled as Donghae continued his never-ending hugging, and wagged him softly side to side.
“Sorry,” he made a small distance between the two of them but not too much. “I’m just afraid of letting you go.”
Hyukjae’s heart skipped a beat at Donghae’s words and a deep blush painted his pale cheeks red. “I’m not going anywhere…” He mumbled and hid his face in the crook of Donghae’s neck, while the latter went back to hold him in his embrace.
After a while of cute whining, Donghae didn’t have any choice but release the younger and started leading him out to the car instead. He smiled happily as Hyukjae caught up in his walking and managed to catch his swinging hand and hold it tightly.
---
“Is there something special you want to check out ?” Donghae asked as they both got out of the parked car and started strolling out of the parking house. There were already many people walking around the streets, hands stuffed with packages and shopping bags. Once again, Hyukjae held on to Donghae’s hand, and the latter grabbed it equally tight so they wouldn’t lose each other in the crowd.
All the shops were crowded with people, but the only shop Donghae wanted to enter was one of a goldsmiths’. All the pretty jewelries mesmerized Hyukjae as he walked around the shop and watched them glitter. Donghae only walked to the cashier and handed over an envelope with a smile before walking up behind Hyukjae who was looking around at set -ups of engagement rings.
“You want one?” Donghae whispered teasingly in Hyukjae’s ear. The latter had jumped in surprise since he hadn’t noticed Donghae had been standing right behind him.
“N -no. I was just looking around.” The boy blushed and turned his back to Donghae who happily grabbed on to Hyukjae’s hand and stuffed it into his pocket along with his own.
Hyukjae felt so flustered at the moment he didn’t even bother to ask why Donghae wanted to go in there in the first place when he didn’t buy anything. They continued their walking in the snow, and when both of them started getting cold, Donghae suggested for them to go to a café.
Luckily, the café they walked into was warm and not many customers and Donghae quickly found a place for them to sit in a corner.
“This is my favorite café.” Donghae said with a big smile on his lips as he looked around fondly. “It’s usually never crowded, and they’ve got delicious waffles.” As Donghae continued ranting random stuff about the café, Hyukjae only sat back and purred into his thick clothing and watched the elder talk happily. The happy expression on Donghae’s face as he shared stories about himself and letting Hyukjae know more about him. The latter wondered if he would feel like that as well if he also told about himself. It felt like he already knew more about Donghae, than Donghae knew about him.
When a waitress came to take their orders, Donghae immediately stopped his talking and turned to Hyukjae, asking what he wanted to have. As the woman left to get their orders, Hyukjae started fidgeting a bit in his seat and he jumped slightly when Donghae pulled off his thick hat and smiled.
“Hae..." he said softly, not really knowing if he dared to say it or not. How was he even supposed to say it?
"What's wrong?" It was clearly visible that Hyukjae was thinking hard about something, and he turned to him more to show that he really was listening to what Hyukjae had to say.
"I need to...to tell you something..."
The fret and fear that crawled up on Hyukjae’s face made the other worried. Did something happen ?
"It's about--"
"Here's your order sir" the waitress was back, and cut Hyukjae off when placing down the two steaming cups they had ordered earlier. Donghae smiled politely and thanked the woman, but let his cup be for a while as he turned to Hyukjae again.
"Sorry, you can go on now."
"Ah no... Never mind." Hyukjae gave him a weak smile and Donghae knew something still bothered the boy. His hand reached out for Hyukjae's underneath the table and gave it a gentle squeeze.
"You know you can tell me anything, right?" The other's hand clenched back at his, his facial expression still looked worried.
"I know," he whispered and looked down at their intertwined fingers. "I'm sorry... I don't want to talk about it here."
"You can say it whenever you want. Just don't go and stuff up your mind with things that bothers you” The worry in Donghae’s eyes made Hyukjae feeling guilty. “I hope that you can trust me.”
Hyukjae broke the eye contact between them and down at his lap. He trusted Donghae already, he really did, and he wanted not to have any secrets hidden from him. Donghae already knew a few things, but shouldn’t he deserve to know more ? To know the real truth behind Hyukjae’s past ? The boy glanced up at Donghae who sipped from his cappuccino with a content smile. Just for a little longer , Hyukjae thought and continued watching the man with a loving expression. I know he won’t hate me. I’ll just be brave and tell Donghae.
---
“Did you like it?” The brunette asked when Hyukjae tasted the hot chocolate with cream on top. He smiled and nodded happily.
“But you know, Heechul hyung makes super delicious hot chocolate! It actually tastes even better than this.” Hyukjae giggled and took another sip from the steaming cup while leaning his head onto Donghae’s shoulder next to him.
“Hmm… he never really lets me taste any of his food.” Donghae said bitterly and put away his cup of cappuccino, and only a second later he had Hyukjae’s cup of chocolate pressing against his lips.
“If you taste this and imagine something even more delicious, then you might know how good Heechul’s chocolate is.” the boy said with a bright smile. He let the warm beverage slip through his lips and down his throat. Hyukjae watched him with curious eyes and a hopeful smile.
“I’m getting a bit jealous that Heechul’s made you such delicious chocolate. I guess I won’t be able to match up with him on that stage.”
Hyukjae just stuck his tongue out before reaching out for Donghae’s cup of cappuccino. He smelled it a bit before tasting it and almost immediately he made a sour expression and spitted the beverage back into the cup and Donghae couldn’t manage to hold his laughter. Hyukjae had quickly reached for his own cup again and shook around his head with the chocolate in his mouth to flush away the bitter taste before swallowing.
“How can you…drink…that ?” Hyukjae still wore a bothered expression; the taste still seemed to linger on his buds. Donghae who was still laughing, stroke Hyukjae’s hair and pushed the cup away.
“Well, I can’t drink it now, can I? I guess it’s something you’ve got to get used to.”
“Sorry,” Hyukjae mumbled, feeling guilty for spitting in Donghae’s drink.
“It’s okay, it was cute.” Donghae kissed his cheek before stretching out his arm behind Hyukjae’s back and pulled him ever so close by his waist while smiling at him. The boy leaned his head onto Donghae’s shoulder and totally forgot about his chocolate when Donghae placed his head on top of Hyukjae’s. A small but happy smile decorated Donghae’s lips as he sat there on the soft couch with Hyukjae right next to him. This was just the kind of happiness he’d been missing for a long time of his life. Slowly, he started regretting he didn’t treat Hyukjae like this before.
“Hyuk,” Donghae spoke with a low voice while his free hand went to find Hyukjae’s that were resting in his lap. The boy hummed softly as he buried his face in Donghae’s fluffy jacket. “I’m sorry I forced you into staying with Heechul.” He felt the boy stiffen a little and then Hyukjae looked up at him with questioning eyes. His hand caressed the other’s cheek and then moved on to softly pat his head. “I should have taken better care of you from the beginning.” The sad smile on his lips made Hyukjae frown. At first thought of what Hyukjae was about to do, he blushed, but then nobody was looking, so Hyukjae leaned forward to press his lips against Donghae’s for a quick and shy kiss.
“No one has ever treated me as good as you have Donghae.” He said softly and looked straight into the man’s eyes, detecting slight surprise in them. “And for the staying with Heechul, I think it was good for me as well. I got new friends, and Heechul was really nice too.” Donghae drew a shaky breath and his heart skipped a beat when Hyukjae’s smile grew so big it showed his gums.
Donghae couldn’t hold back his own smile, and his hand clamped tighter around Hyukjae’s, seeing how this boy right next to him seemed to be perfect to Donghae.
“You’re only making me fall more in love with you.” Donghae said before claiming Hyukjae’s lips once more. When Donghae almost started to deepen the kiss, Hyukjae pushed him away carefully while blushing and then burying his face in Donghae’s chest.
“Donghae, people could see… I don’t like it if others would be watching.”
“Ah, I’m sorry Hyukjae.” Donghae said and hugged the other. Not that there was much of a chance anyone would have seen since they were seated in a quite distant corner of the café, and even the backs of the sofas where high, so no one from behind would have seen. But Donghae respected the fact that Hyukjae found it uncomfortable to show off too much in public. “Maybe we should get going? The stores might close soon.”
---
The sunlight had almost passed out, but that only added the effect for the beautiful lights that were put up in trees and lamp posts. It was a very pretty sight, and both Hyukjae and Donghae were busier watching them rather than the stores. Their plans for shopping didn’t success, but that didn’t stop them from having a great time together. Hyukjae never felt happier when he was able to walk next to Donghae among people and feel safe there. He leaned a little closer and the elder didn’t seem to mind as he held him in his arms. Hyukjae excitedly pulled Donghae along when they spotted in a near park where they were holding a small performance with ice skating, multi-colored spot lights shone all over the ice and the ice -skaters. He bent his head backwards to flash a bright smile at Donghae who was standing right behind him with his arms over Hyukjae’s shoulders.
“Thank you Hae.” He spoke and turned to give the elder a tight hug. “Thank you for being with me.”
The moment Donghae unlocked the door; Hyukjae jumped inside and made a spin before he started undressing himself of the winter-clothing, and enjoyed the warmth provided in the house.
“Hyukjae, make sure to take a warm bath now.” Donghae reminded him from where he stood by the door opening, still fully dressed in his winter-outfit. The boy smiled tiredly and did just as he was told and stalked into the bathroom. Donghae hurriedly went out through the door and locket it behind, before he drove off with the car.
---
With soft steps, Donghae entered the apartment again, slightly panting after have run from his car and back, and looked around for any sign of Hyukjae. He took his shoes off and hung off his jacket, and soon enough the boy exited the bathroom with damp hair and dressed in one of Donghae's large sweatshirts (he just preferred it that way).
"Did you go somewhere ?" Hyukjae asked surprised as he noticed that Donghae had a slightly red nose from the cold outside and only hang off his clothes now. The man nodded and then walked up next to Hyukjae with a nice playful smile lingering on his lips.
“Close your eyes.” Donghae said sweetly and earned a weird look from Hyukjae.
“Why ?”
“Just be nice and do as I say, please!” Donghae snapped in a soft way. Hyukjae obliged and closed his eyes so hard that his face scrunched up. Donghae laughed at his cuteness. The boy felt Donghae’s arms go around his neck and the man leaned forward. Donghae’s scent filled up his senses and he smiled, because he had always liked how the other smelled so sweet. He jerked a little as he felt a light weight around his neck and Donghae retorted his arms. “You can look now.”
Hyukjae opened his eyes and looked down to see a shining necklace in form of a heart. He held it between his thumb and forefinger and observed it in awe. It was shining silver and a little diamond was placed in the right upper corner of the heart, and in the middle written in italics, was Donghae’s name. He smiled as tears formed in his eyes, and then jumped up into Donghae’s embrace and hugged him tightly. Donghae stumble backwards a bit as he lifted Hyukjae up. He was startled when Hyukjae initiated a deep kiss with him but he didn’t hesitate to engage himself in it as well. Even when Hyukjae released Donghae from the kiss, he wouldn’t let go of his grip around the neck and continued hugging him.
“You really liked it that much ?” Donghae chuckled and Hyukjae nodded his head franticly.
There it was: Donghae’s name, carved into Hyukjae’s heart.
This is it, Hyukjae thought and his arms unconsciously hugged tighter around Donghae’s neck, almost making it a little hard for the other to breathe.
“Donghae” He whispered lightly with a serious tone and his body almost started shaking as he became more nervous. The other seemed to feel Hyukjae’s tensed body and let his grip soften and caught up eye contact with Hyukjae. They had a look Donghae felt was familiar, the fear he’d thought had be gone was there, but he could also sense the determination as well. Hyukjae slid his hands into Donghae’s and tugged at them lightly towards the couch. “I need to talk to you now.”
---
Donghae wanted to cry. He wanted to yell and curse because he was so angry. The feelings mixing up inside of him was burning and he didn’t know what to do. Worst of all, he knew that what he was feeling couldn’t be compared to what Hyukjae could ever have been feeling.
“H -Hyuk…” Uncertain where to look, Donghae started to fidget a little uncomfortable in his seat next to Hyukjae. The information he just had taken in explained everything. It was indeed sickening, even though he already knew that Hyukjae had been exposed to something like this, but hearing it from the boy himself was just painful. How could a father hurt his own son?
He felt two pair of hands cup his face, making him wake up from all his thoughts and turn to look into worried, brown orbs. Hyukjae looked sad.
“Will you only pity me again now ?” he asked as his hands still held tightly onto Donghae’s face, afraid to let go of him. With a small but sincere smile, Donghae took the boys hands and pulled him closer until Hyukjae had to climb his laps and sit right in front of him.
“No, I won’t. I’m just being stunned by how amazing you are.” He spoke as his fingers drew lines along Hyukjae’s features, with the pressure of a feather as if he was the most fragile thing in the world, putting loads of tenderness into it. Hyukjae had closed his eyes to enjoy the feeling. "You are unbelievingly strong Hyukjae. Not everyone would manage to go through the same as you have. I’m really proud of you." The fact that Hyukjae sat right beside him, managed to look him in the eye once in a while and telling him such a humiliating and vulnerable thing such as have being abused by one’s father while not spilling any tears. Not everyone would have pulled of such a thing, and Donghae felt great when he knew that Hyukjae could trust him, and open up his heart. No more closed door to secrets. He was growing mentally stronger.
And to Hyukjae, even he felt that a big stone had been lifted from his chest. He told Donghae something he’d been haunted by for so long. The truth was out now. Most of it. He didn’t know if it was okay only to mention the kicks and punches, burnings and hair-pulling. Because the last part of it all was he trying to bury as far away as possible. To just remember that man entering him made him sicken, then if he spoke about it then he was sure he would throw up. Donghae knew he’d been badly treated; he didn’t have to know details. No one did.
The pressure of Donghae’s hand stopped right at the shining necklace and Hyukjae couldn’t help but smile ever so widely. As crazy and stupid as it might have sounded like, all those punches in his guts and ribs, the torture throughout the years, they could all be worth it if that was the only way for him to meet Donghae.
“I love you, Lee Hyukjae” The elder spoke as their fingers intertwined. Hyukjae was so happy at this very moment. Everything was over, all in the past, and now he had Donghae. The man who actually loved him with all his heart and would protect him no matter what. Hyukjae probably loved him just as much. They looked deeply into each other's eyes for minutes. Slowly, the younger of them leaned his head against Donghae's shoulder with a smile that yet had to fade. Donghae let his lips meet Hyukjae’s ear and whispered, “I’ll take care of you” and gave it a light peck before hugging him possessively. He continued with mumbling a numerous “thank you”, and Hyukjae didn’t know for how long they sat there, but he never got tired of it. The boy giggled a little when he heard Donghae’s stomach grumble for food and he took the initiative to move away so that Donghae could stand up.
They ate the food just like normal. Hyukjae felt at ease when Donghae didn’t try with giving him any extra-pitying treatment now, but only acted the loving way he always did. Only difference was that Donghae seemed a little happier, and he didn’t really know it was because of that he himself was acting happier.
Hyukjae later fell asleep in Donghae’s arms while they had watched a movie, and the elder spent the last half an hour of it to look at the sleeping boy instead of the television.
~*~
Waking up because of having his nose pressed against a firm and warm surface, Hyukjae blinked his eyes and leaned his head back to ease the pressure on his nose. The first thing he got to see after rubbing the blur out of his eyes was Donghae's chest and collarbone. The broad shoulders lay close to Hyukjae, one of them leading an arm to lie around the other's waist and feet were slightly tangled together. A tug of a soft smile appeared to Hyukjae's lips as he let his hand and fingers brush up along the other's torso. Donghae stirred, making Hyukjae flicker his eyes up to the brunette's handsome face, and saw how Donghae fought the sleep to open his eyes. An equally soft and heart -warming smile decorated Donghae's newly woken face. Having to see Hyukjae as the first thing in the morning was probably one of the best things he would ever experience (and then spotting down to the necklace, shining around Hyukjae's neck).
"Morning," he mumbled and pulled the boy closer with his arm and tangling their legs even more than before. Hyukjae nuzzled his face in Donghae's neck, answering with an equal "morning". Hyukjae gasped when Donghae suddenly turned to his back and pulling the former along to lie on top of him, and groaned tiredly. They came face to face, Donghae pouting a bit childishly indicating that he wanted a kiss which Hyukjae didn't deny him. He pressed a soft peck to the other's lips, letting the contact linger for some seconds before parting away with a small blush.
"You know what ?" Donghae asked as he stroke his hand up and down along Hyukjae's lean back, and let his fingers paint invisible patterns. "We should just stay here in bed all day." One hand rose to pull at the red strands hanging down Hyukjae's face in small locks. The boy smiled, his arms hugging Donghae's chest tightly and his chin rested on the brunette's chest.
"That would be nice..." He answered, referring to the comfortable hand stroking his back tenderly. "But you need to go to work."
"You sound like a wife when you say that." Hyukjae became silent and laid his cheek against Donghae's chest more comfortably. "You're coming with me today, right?"
"Can I?"
"Of course, you've done so well! And you liked it right?"
"Yeah, it's fun."
"Good." They lay for some moments longer, Hyukjae almost felt like falling back to sleep as Donghae ministrated a soft, one-handed massage to his back and shoulders, while his own fingers gently tapped Donghae's sides to the melody the latter was humming. "Hyukjae." The hand stopped moving and Donghae looked the boy in the eyes. "I love you."
A fade of red blush entered Hyukjae's cheeks and his heart was shooting fireworks. Donghae's eyes expressed so much feelings and love, he barely knew if he should laugh or cry. He managed not to spill any tears, so instead he widely parted his lips in a charming gummy smile.
"I… love you too, Donghae."
The moment was filled with pure feelings, and they sealed their words with a slow, lip-nibbling kiss.
"Now I really don't want to leave." Donghae groaned as they parted, but his arms tightened their hold around the boy.
After a couple of more minutes of whining and hugging, the older male managed to drag himself out of the soft bed, pulling Hyukjae along with him, and then making some quick breakfast. Every now and then Donghae would let his hand go of the steering wheel and squeeze Hyukjae's own hand, slightly intertwining their fingers.
~*~
"Shit!" the man cursed under his breath as he sped up his feet and ran even faster. This wasn't good at all. His hair was a mess, sweaty from all the running and then having the cold air cooling it down sent him shivers all over. The small puffs of warm breath started coming out of his mouth more frequently as he went on.
To the right, and then quickly over a wall separating two alleys, he managed to come away unseen for a short while. That's the best he could get for now.
With shaking hands he fumbled with his cell phone and connected the call and continues moving fast. He almost knew he'd be found out sooner or later.
“Come on, come on! Pick up the phone!” Cursing loudly, he tried beating in the number once more, but still the robotic voice would tell him the server was out of service. He glanced around and quickly tried to push in a number on the speed dial, but the call button was left untouched as a beat in his head made him loose his grip and fall to the ground unconscious.
~*~
Donghae noticed that Hyukjae would sneeze every now and then as he worked within the back, and at first he assumed it was just the dust, but the boy's cheeks looked slightly flushed. As he was almost done, he put away his camera and walked up to Hyukjae who was tangling out some cables on the floor and rubbing his nose with the sleeve of Donghae’s shirt. Donghae couldn’t help but think he looked quite adorable like that.
"Hey, how are you feeling? Did you catch a cold the other day ?" The boy looked up when Donghae crouched down and cupped his face and felt that it indeed was a little too warm than normal body temperature.
"I'm okay. I only feel a bit tired." Donghae caressed Hyukjae’s cheek, not wanting him to become ill.
"I'll cancel the meeting tonight so that we can go home and get you in bed." Hyukjae shook his head.
"You mustn’t miss more of your working time because of me. I-I can take the bus, remember!" Donghae smiled at the boy who just suggested himself to take the bus. It made him feel rather proud.
"I know...but I don't want you to go alone, if you would pass out or something like that." Hyukjae sniffed to make his runny nose stop.
"It's not that bad..." Donghae sighed and looked seriously into Hyukjae's eyes.
"Are you really sure?"
“Yeah… But are you’re going to be much late?” Hyukjae pouted a little and abandoned the knot of wires on his lap. Donghae gave him an apologetic look and helped him up from the floor.
“I’ll just stay for the important discussions, and then I'll go home as soon as possible. You remember from where the bus went, right?”
Hyukjae nodded.
“Good. Here’s money for the ride, and…” he looked around a little to see if anyone was near, then he pulled Hyukjae behind one of the large white screens. “Be safe.” He held Hyukjae’s cheeks and kissed him on the lips. Hyukjae blushed deeply as he knew they were out among other people and Donghae just kissed him. He felt both embarrassed and happy.
"My cell phone died of its battery earlier, so send a text to Kyuhyun when you’ve arrived at home, okay ?
Donghae wrote down his colleague’s number on a piece of paper and handed it to the boy. “And medicine is in bathroom-locker. Take some before you get worse." Hyukjae’s nose scrunched a little, but then he smiled at Donghae, who smiled back as a hand caressed his cheek.
“See you back home.” With a final hug, Donghae led Hyukjae to the exit and watched the boy walk towards the direction of the bus stop.
Hyukjae took the same way as he had done together with Donghae last time, and was just on time to catch the bus. It felt good that the bus wasn’t crowded at all. Only two men and a middle-aged woman were sitting on the ride and he sat himself in the front, almost wanting to fall asleep there. A throbbing headache started to invade his head and now he almost regretted not insisting on staying with Donghae. It would have felt more comforting just being close.
After fifteen minutes had passed he recognized the stop where he was getting off. He sulked as he walked the short way back through the snow to the apartment, because he missed Donghae already. His hand reached for his chest and he felt the necklace hanging securely beneath his jacket. Somehow the idea of making a surprise for Donghae before he came home popped up in his head making him excitedly jump up to the front porch.
Hyukjae reached for the keys Donghae had handed him and tried to open the lock but his hands were shaking too much because of the cold. He took a deep breath, and tried to hit the hole properly this time and he did. He turned the key and heard the soft ‘click’ telling him the door was open.
Suddenly two hands grabbed onto both of Hyukjae’s shoulders and the boy squeaked in surprise. He turned quickly - thinking it was Donghae who was pulling a prank on him - but instead of the brunette man, he faced two men dressed in black suits who grabbed onto his arms. He started resisting immediately and screamed for help, for Donghae, but no one showed up to his rescue. Without knowing it, he was pushed into a car, and he heard the locks clicking and he wildly banged at the window and pulled at the cars door handle, but it was useless. Why did this have to happen when Donghae wasn’t there ?
“Long time no see, Eunhyuk dear.” Hyukjae sat dead still when the voice registered in his brain. It had been such a long time he had heard it, and he thought he would never hear it again. The worst part of all, it sounded freezing cold. Hyukjae started banging on the black car windows in panic but there was not a soul passing by this hour. He was too afraid to turn around and look at the car’s other occupant so he still tried to open the door in vain.
Out of the black shadows of the car appeared Mr. Lee with a smug smile on his lips before he leaned over Hyukjae and flipped him around so they were face to face. “Well haven’t you been a naughty boy, running away like this, and even changing your hairstyle.” Mr. Lee played with a red lock of Hyukjae’s hair between his fingers. The boy couldn’t do anything at all. He was back at square one, and he was terrified. His eyes darted across his father’s face and registered it properly, making all memories started flashing back in just a second. The memories he’d tried so hard to wash away came back so easily. The man leaned down and breathed hot air into Hyukjae’s ear. “You knew I would like it better this way, how sexy you would look”
Hyukjae made a desperate crying sound as he felt the other’s lips nibble on his neck. The disgust of feeling the man doing this to him and he wasn’t able to fight back.
“What’s this ?” Mr. Lee grumbled and the boy panicked as he felt a tug of a string in his neck. He saw the silver chain stretch out to the other’s hand, and a chuckle echoed through the car. “Donghae ? What is this ? You fell in love with the east sea ?” He turned the necklace to observe the ridiculous object but his face dropped dead serious and suddenly he pulled the chain so it broke.
“No!” Hyukjae cried and ignored the burning feeling from having it pulled off his neck and tried to get it back from the other’s filthy hands.
“’ You will forever be in my heart’. WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS SHIT?!” Mr. Lee slapped Hyukjae’s cheek and the chain in his hand caused a red scratch to the boy’s pale skin. “You’re fucking around with random people, WHO THE HELL IS CLAIMING YOU AS HIS OWN? You fucking belong to me you bitch so don’t you dare go close to him or I’ll just kill him! You understand me?”
Tears trickled Hyukjae’s pale cheeks and his eyes stared pleadingly at the man above him. He didn’t care about the boy’s begging and took a grip around the thin neck and clenched his fingers together.
“Did you just understand what I said, Lee. Hyuk. Jae?” Hyukjae coughed to get some air and he finally nodded his head against his own will, and the grip loosened and the weight above him eased. But he wasn’t allowed to sit up before a damp cloth was pressed against his mouth and within seconds everything blacked out.
~*~
Donghae dragged his feet up from the small staircase in front of his outer door and noticed a key left in the locker. The brunette sighed and pulled out the key and made a mental note to explain to Hyukjae that he’s supposed to pluck the key out again. But as he stepped into the dark house he felt something wasn’t right.
“Hyukjae, I’m back!” He called and looked over the kitchen and living room on his way to the bed room. To his surprise the room was empty and lit down. The door was unlocked, key still in the lock and Hyukjae gone. Donghae’s legs shook as he got a really bad feeling. He ran to the phone and dialed Hyukjae’s phone number. Unfortunately, he heard the boy’s ringtone playing from the bedroom and Donghae hastily dialed a new number - to Heechul this time. Donghae practically screamed as the older picked up. “Hyung, is Hyukjae with you ?! Did you pick him up or something, please tell me you did!”
“Donghae, please calm down. What’s happened ?” Heechul said, but Donghae just shook his head furiously, and he cried for real, tears trailing pitifully on his face.
“Hyukjae’s gone! I let him go off all alone, and now he’s gone!”
“How can you be sure, maybe he just got lost, or took a longer walk ?” Heechul suggested, but he too felt slightly freaked out when Donghae told him the boy was gone, and he feared the worst. But now he didn’t want Donghae to panic too much.
“No hyung, the door was unlocked and key was still in the lock. Gosh, I should have gone with him!”
“Fuck,” Heechul hissed under his breath. “Donghae don’t panic, okay ? Just sta -“
“It was his father all along! He’s the one who hurt him.” The younger stressed, not really knowing why he brought it up. “Could he have been the one who took Hyukjae away ?”
“Let’s just wait and see what’ll happen. I will contact Hankyung since he was a part of the searching, so I’ll just ask him to find Hyukjae, alright ? He must know if he’s been caught or not.”
“What damn searching? He’s been looking for Hyukjae all this time ?” Donghae was on the verge of yelling through the phone. He was getting more upset for not knowing about it.
“Not now Hae, I’m sorry. Calm down and I will contact you in the morning to inform you if we get any trace. Just stay at home and take it easy, because if we’re lucky Hyukjae might just be safe and come back, and then I think it’s the best if you’re there.”
He nearly threw the phone into the wall in frustration and anger for not being told such an important thing that Hyukjae was being searched for.
Donghae dropped down on the couch and covered his face in his palms. ‘How could I let this happen to him? What if he’s hurting him again ? What if he won’t recover this time ?’ He cursed loudly and almost cried in the frustration he felt for being powerless of doing anything.
Not really knowing how or when, but slowly everything darkened in his head, and he fell into an uneasy sleep.
~*~
Heechul walked up and down with the phone pressed to his ear and mumbling pleadings. “Please pick up the phone, please pick it up!” Sungmin just came down the stairs and looked worriedly at the weird behavior of the black haired man. With a deep sigh, Heechul pulled away the phone from his ear when he didn’t get any answer. He noticed Sungmin standing at the last step of the staircase with an unbearable expression. Heechul smiled to not make the boy worried. “Good morning Sungmin -ah. Did you sleep well?” Heechul asked and walked towards the boy and patted his head friendly. Sungmin nodded, but did not return the smile. Heechul knew he had made the boy worried again and tried to erase his own expressions. “I’ve already prepared breakfast for you guys, so wake up Ryeowook and start eating. I’ll be right back after making a call.”
Heechul stepped past Sungmin but was stopped when the latter tugged at his arm and looking at him with puppy eyes.
“Hyung, is everything alright ? Did… did something happen to Eunhyuk ?” The man smiled affectionately and placed his hand on the younger one’s arm.
“It’ll be okay Sungmin -ah, now go wake up Ryeowook.” Sungmin nodded and did as he was told. Heechul continued walking into his own room and closed the door, dialing a different number this time. Not more than a tone echoed before the receiver picked up.
“Hyung!” the man on the line exclaimed and Heechul had to make a little distance between his phone and his ear to not make it hurt. “Hyung, have Hankyung hyung found him?” Heechul heard the other’s voice was hoarse, probably because he hadn’t slept well. He took a deep breath to calm himself down and to ease at the lump in his throat but it only grew larger.
“Donghae…” he merely whispered and the brunette shivered at the dull voice -not expecting anything good. “He’s gone…” Heechul couldn’t hold in his crying anymore and the tears started to triple down his beautiful face. ”Hankyung’s gone, just like Hyukjae.”
A/N: I’ve got you little runaway~ otl. WELL CHAP 8 WAS MY ATTEMPT OF ANGST (mixed with a bit of fluffeh). Be nice to me…
And yeah, I hope you’re happy that I updated so fast! Nyahahah~ Poorly proof-read, but it’s 5 a.m. and I’ve been up all night to write on this. I’m nice, aren’t I? ;)
And I want to make clear for this as well: The character for Hyukjae’s father is not based on any real person. He is pure fictional so don’t associate him with anyone. So it’s okay to hate him as much as you want to.
Aaah, I feel my way of writing as gotten lots worse Y_Y Sorry ‘bout that.
Next chapter is supposed to be last one…Don’t know how I’ll manage that. Well, changes can easily be made. Have a good time until then! ^^
Hyukjae had frowned a bit at all the stuffed clothes tightly hugging his body, but Donghae only smiled contently and gave the boy’s gloved hand a light squeeze.
“It’s cold outside, you need to be warmly dressed so don’t give me that look.” The man reasoned and checked all the clothes on Hyukjae’s body to see if there was any bit of skin that could get cold, but the boy only pushed him away lightly and pouted.
“Hae, I can barely see anything.” He whined, though it came out a bit muffled thanks to the thick scarf around his neck.
“Sorry, you’re already on the risk of getting a cold, that’s why.” Donghae pushed down the other’s scarf a little and let his hand caress Hyukjae’s soft cheek. “It’s better if we wait until you’ve rested enough, Hyuk. We could just as well spend out day at home.”
“Why ? You said we could go out… on a date.” Hyukjae blushed slightly at the thought of having a date, even though he didn’t know what they were supposed to do. He’d never had a date, but he knew at least those things were between people who love each other. Maybe that’s why he really wanted to go.
“Yes, but we have all time in the world to do so.” Donghae pulled Hyukjae closer by his wrist and then hugged him tightly. “I could just stay here and hug you all day. I just got you back, didn’t I?” The older man leaned down and gave Hyukjae’s cheek a soft kiss.
With closed eyes, Hyukjae secretly enjoyed the feeling of Donghae’s still lingering pair of warm lips against his skin and a light sigh left his mouth when the elder’s lips traced the line of his face and stopped to place a peck on his forehead before making a small distance between them. The light ministrations and sweet talk made Hyukjae feel all tingly and just felt like melting on the inside, like nothing else could make him feel. Just Donghae. He barely noticed when Donghae had backed a little so he leaned against the wall and pulled Hyukjae along with him.
“You’re so clingy!” The boy giggled as Donghae continued his never-ending hugging, and wagged him softly side to side.
“Sorry,” he made a small distance between the two of them but not too much. “I’m just afraid of letting you go.”
Hyukjae’s heart skipped a beat at Donghae’s words and a deep blush painted his pale cheeks red. “I’m not going anywhere…” He mumbled and hid his face in the crook of Donghae’s neck, while the latter went back to hold him in his embrace.
After a while of cute whining, Donghae didn’t have any choice but release the younger and started leading him out to the car instead. He smiled happily as Hyukjae caught up in his walking and managed to catch his swinging hand and hold it tightly.
---
“Is there something special you want to check out ?” Donghae asked as they both got out of the parked car and started strolling out of the parking house. There were already many people walking around the streets, hands stuffed with packages and shopping bags. Once again, Hyukjae held on to Donghae’s hand, and the latter grabbed it equally tight so they wouldn’t lose each other in the crowd.
All the shops were crowded with people, but the only shop Donghae wanted to enter was one of a goldsmiths’. All the pretty jewelries mesmerized Hyukjae as he walked around the shop and watched them glitter. Donghae only walked to the cashier and handed over an envelope with a smile before walking up behind Hyukjae who was looking around at set -ups of engagement rings.
“You want one?” Donghae whispered teasingly in Hyukjae’s ear. The latter had jumped in surprise since he hadn’t noticed Donghae had been standing right behind him.
“N -no. I was just looking around.” The boy blushed and turned his back to Donghae who happily grabbed on to Hyukjae’s hand and stuffed it into his pocket along with his own.
Hyukjae felt so flustered at the moment he didn’t even bother to ask why Donghae wanted to go in there in the first place when he didn’t buy anything. They continued their walking in the snow, and when both of them started getting cold, Donghae suggested for them to go to a café.
Luckily, the café they walked into was warm and not many customers and Donghae quickly found a place for them to sit in a corner.
“This is my favorite café.” Donghae said with a big smile on his lips as he looked around fondly. “It’s usually never crowded, and they’ve got delicious waffles.” As Donghae continued ranting random stuff about the café, Hyukjae only sat back and purred into his thick clothing and watched the elder talk happily. The happy expression on Donghae’s face as he shared stories about himself and letting Hyukjae know more about him. The latter wondered if he would feel like that as well if he also told about himself. It felt like he already knew more about Donghae, than Donghae knew about him.
When a waitress came to take their orders, Donghae immediately stopped his talking and turned to Hyukjae, asking what he wanted to have. As the woman left to get their orders, Hyukjae started fidgeting a bit in his seat and he jumped slightly when Donghae pulled off his thick hat and smiled.
“Hae..." he said softly, not really knowing if he dared to say it or not. How was he even supposed to say it?
"What's wrong?" It was clearly visible that Hyukjae was thinking hard about something, and he turned to him more to show that he really was listening to what Hyukjae had to say.
"I need to...to tell you something..."
The fret and fear that crawled up on Hyukjae’s face made the other worried. Did something happen ?
"It's about--"
"Here's your order sir" the waitress was back, and cut Hyukjae off when placing down the two steaming cups they had ordered earlier. Donghae smiled politely and thanked the woman, but let his cup be for a while as he turned to Hyukjae again.
"Sorry, you can go on now."
"Ah no... Never mind." Hyukjae gave him a weak smile and Donghae knew something still bothered the boy. His hand reached out for Hyukjae's underneath the table and gave it a gentle squeeze.
"You know you can tell me anything, right?" The other's hand clenched back at his, his facial expression still looked worried.
"I know," he whispered and looked down at their intertwined fingers. "I'm sorry... I don't want to talk about it here."
"You can say it whenever you want. Just don't go and stuff up your mind with things that bothers you” The worry in Donghae’s eyes made Hyukjae feeling guilty. “I hope that you can trust me.”
Hyukjae broke the eye contact between them and down at his lap. He trusted Donghae already, he really did, and he wanted not to have any secrets hidden from him. Donghae already knew a few things, but shouldn’t he deserve to know more ? To know the real truth behind Hyukjae’s past ? The boy glanced up at Donghae who sipped from his cappuccino with a content smile. Just for a little longer , Hyukjae thought and continued watching the man with a loving expression. I know he won’t hate me. I’ll just be brave and tell Donghae.
---
“Did you like it?” The brunette asked when Hyukjae tasted the hot chocolate with cream on top. He smiled and nodded happily.
“But you know, Heechul hyung makes super delicious hot chocolate! It actually tastes even better than this.” Hyukjae giggled and took another sip from the steaming cup while leaning his head onto Donghae’s shoulder next to him.
“Hmm… he never really lets me taste any of his food.” Donghae said bitterly and put away his cup of cappuccino, and only a second later he had Hyukjae’s cup of chocolate pressing against his lips.
“If you taste this and imagine something even more delicious, then you might know how good Heechul’s chocolate is.” the boy said with a bright smile. He let the warm beverage slip through his lips and down his throat. Hyukjae watched him with curious eyes and a hopeful smile.
“I’m getting a bit jealous that Heechul’s made you such delicious chocolate. I guess I won’t be able to match up with him on that stage.”
Hyukjae just stuck his tongue out before reaching out for Donghae’s cup of cappuccino. He smelled it a bit before tasting it and almost immediately he made a sour expression and spitted the beverage back into the cup and Donghae couldn’t manage to hold his laughter. Hyukjae had quickly reached for his own cup again and shook around his head with the chocolate in his mouth to flush away the bitter taste before swallowing.
“How can you…drink…that ?” Hyukjae still wore a bothered expression; the taste still seemed to linger on his buds. Donghae who was still laughing, stroke Hyukjae’s hair and pushed the cup away.
“Well, I can’t drink it now, can I? I guess it’s something you’ve got to get used to.”
“Sorry,” Hyukjae mumbled, feeling guilty for spitting in Donghae’s drink.
“It’s okay, it was cute.” Donghae kissed his cheek before stretching out his arm behind Hyukjae’s back and pulled him ever so close by his waist while smiling at him. The boy leaned his head onto Donghae’s shoulder and totally forgot about his chocolate when Donghae placed his head on top of Hyukjae’s. A small but happy smile decorated Donghae’s lips as he sat there on the soft couch with Hyukjae right next to him. This was just the kind of happiness he’d been missing for a long time of his life. Slowly, he started regretting he didn’t treat Hyukjae like this before.
“Hyuk,” Donghae spoke with a low voice while his free hand went to find Hyukjae’s that were resting in his lap. The boy hummed softly as he buried his face in Donghae’s fluffy jacket. “I’m sorry I forced you into staying with Heechul.” He felt the boy stiffen a little and then Hyukjae looked up at him with questioning eyes. His hand caressed the other’s cheek and then moved on to softly pat his head. “I should have taken better care of you from the beginning.” The sad smile on his lips made Hyukjae frown. At first thought of what Hyukjae was about to do, he blushed, but then nobody was looking, so Hyukjae leaned forward to press his lips against Donghae’s for a quick and shy kiss.
“No one has ever treated me as good as you have Donghae.” He said softly and looked straight into the man’s eyes, detecting slight surprise in them. “And for the staying with Heechul, I think it was good for me as well. I got new friends, and Heechul was really nice too.” Donghae drew a shaky breath and his heart skipped a beat when Hyukjae’s smile grew so big it showed his gums.
Donghae couldn’t hold back his own smile, and his hand clamped tighter around Hyukjae’s, seeing how this boy right next to him seemed to be perfect to Donghae.
“You’re only making me fall more in love with you.” Donghae said before claiming Hyukjae’s lips once more. When Donghae almost started to deepen the kiss, Hyukjae pushed him away carefully while blushing and then burying his face in Donghae’s chest.
“Donghae, people could see… I don’t like it if others would be watching.”
“Ah, I’m sorry Hyukjae.” Donghae said and hugged the other. Not that there was much of a chance anyone would have seen since they were seated in a quite distant corner of the café, and even the backs of the sofas where high, so no one from behind would have seen. But Donghae respected the fact that Hyukjae found it uncomfortable to show off too much in public. “Maybe we should get going? The stores might close soon.”
---
The sunlight had almost passed out, but that only added the effect for the beautiful lights that were put up in trees and lamp posts. It was a very pretty sight, and both Hyukjae and Donghae were busier watching them rather than the stores. Their plans for shopping didn’t success, but that didn’t stop them from having a great time together. Hyukjae never felt happier when he was able to walk next to Donghae among people and feel safe there. He leaned a little closer and the elder didn’t seem to mind as he held him in his arms. Hyukjae excitedly pulled Donghae along when they spotted in a near park where they were holding a small performance with ice skating, multi-colored spot lights shone all over the ice and the ice -skaters. He bent his head backwards to flash a bright smile at Donghae who was standing right behind him with his arms over Hyukjae’s shoulders.
“Thank you Hae.” He spoke and turned to give the elder a tight hug. “Thank you for being with me.”
The moment Donghae unlocked the door; Hyukjae jumped inside and made a spin before he started undressing himself of the winter-clothing, and enjoyed the warmth provided in the house.
“Hyukjae, make sure to take a warm bath now.” Donghae reminded him from where he stood by the door opening, still fully dressed in his winter-outfit. The boy smiled tiredly and did just as he was told and stalked into the bathroom. Donghae hurriedly went out through the door and locket it behind, before he drove off with the car.
---
With soft steps, Donghae entered the apartment again, slightly panting after have run from his car and back, and looked around for any sign of Hyukjae. He took his shoes off and hung off his jacket, and soon enough the boy exited the bathroom with damp hair and dressed in one of Donghae's large sweatshirts (he just preferred it that way).
"Did you go somewhere ?" Hyukjae asked surprised as he noticed that Donghae had a slightly red nose from the cold outside and only hang off his clothes now. The man nodded and then walked up next to Hyukjae with a nice playful smile lingering on his lips.
“Close your eyes.” Donghae said sweetly and earned a weird look from Hyukjae.
“Why ?”
“Just be nice and do as I say, please!” Donghae snapped in a soft way. Hyukjae obliged and closed his eyes so hard that his face scrunched up. Donghae laughed at his cuteness. The boy felt Donghae’s arms go around his neck and the man leaned forward. Donghae’s scent filled up his senses and he smiled, because he had always liked how the other smelled so sweet. He jerked a little as he felt a light weight around his neck and Donghae retorted his arms. “You can look now.”
Hyukjae opened his eyes and looked down to see a shining necklace in form of a heart. He held it between his thumb and forefinger and observed it in awe. It was shining silver and a little diamond was placed in the right upper corner of the heart, and in the middle written in italics, was Donghae’s name. He smiled as tears formed in his eyes, and then jumped up into Donghae’s embrace and hugged him tightly. Donghae stumble backwards a bit as he lifted Hyukjae up. He was startled when Hyukjae initiated a deep kiss with him but he didn’t hesitate to engage himself in it as well. Even when Hyukjae released Donghae from the kiss, he wouldn’t let go of his grip around the neck and continued hugging him.
“You really liked it that much ?” Donghae chuckled and Hyukjae nodded his head franticly.
There it was: Donghae’s name, carved into Hyukjae’s heart.
This is it, Hyukjae thought and his arms unconsciously hugged tighter around Donghae’s neck, almost making it a little hard for the other to breathe.
“Donghae” He whispered lightly with a serious tone and his body almost started shaking as he became more nervous. The other seemed to feel Hyukjae’s tensed body and let his grip soften and caught up eye contact with Hyukjae. They had a look Donghae felt was familiar, the fear he’d thought had be gone was there, but he could also sense the determination as well. Hyukjae slid his hands into Donghae’s and tugged at them lightly towards the couch. “I need to talk to you now.”
---
Donghae wanted to cry. He wanted to yell and curse because he was so angry. The feelings mixing up inside of him was burning and he didn’t know what to do. Worst of all, he knew that what he was feeling couldn’t be compared to what Hyukjae could ever have been feeling.
“H -Hyuk…” Uncertain where to look, Donghae started to fidget a little uncomfortable in his seat next to Hyukjae. The information he just had taken in explained everything. It was indeed sickening, even though he already knew that Hyukjae had been exposed to something like this, but hearing it from the boy himself was just painful. How could a father hurt his own son?
He felt two pair of hands cup his face, making him wake up from all his thoughts and turn to look into worried, brown orbs. Hyukjae looked sad.
“Will you only pity me again now ?” he asked as his hands still held tightly onto Donghae’s face, afraid to let go of him. With a small but sincere smile, Donghae took the boys hands and pulled him closer until Hyukjae had to climb his laps and sit right in front of him.
“No, I won’t. I’m just being stunned by how amazing you are.” He spoke as his fingers drew lines along Hyukjae’s features, with the pressure of a feather as if he was the most fragile thing in the world, putting loads of tenderness into it. Hyukjae had closed his eyes to enjoy the feeling. "You are unbelievingly strong Hyukjae. Not everyone would manage to go through the same as you have. I’m really proud of you." The fact that Hyukjae sat right beside him, managed to look him in the eye once in a while and telling him such a humiliating and vulnerable thing such as have being abused by one’s father while not spilling any tears. Not everyone would have pulled of such a thing, and Donghae felt great when he knew that Hyukjae could trust him, and open up his heart. No more closed door to secrets. He was growing mentally stronger.
And to Hyukjae, even he felt that a big stone had been lifted from his chest. He told Donghae something he’d been haunted by for so long. The truth was out now. Most of it. He didn’t know if it was okay only to mention the kicks and punches, burnings and hair-pulling. Because the last part of it all was he trying to bury as far away as possible. To just remember that man entering him made him sicken, then if he spoke about it then he was sure he would throw up. Donghae knew he’d been badly treated; he didn’t have to know details. No one did.
The pressure of Donghae’s hand stopped right at the shining necklace and Hyukjae couldn’t help but smile ever so widely. As crazy and stupid as it might have sounded like, all those punches in his guts and ribs, the torture throughout the years, they could all be worth it if that was the only way for him to meet Donghae.
“I love you, Lee Hyukjae” The elder spoke as their fingers intertwined. Hyukjae was so happy at this very moment. Everything was over, all in the past, and now he had Donghae. The man who actually loved him with all his heart and would protect him no matter what. Hyukjae probably loved him just as much. They looked deeply into each other's eyes for minutes. Slowly, the younger of them leaned his head against Donghae's shoulder with a smile that yet had to fade. Donghae let his lips meet Hyukjae’s ear and whispered, “I’ll take care of you” and gave it a light peck before hugging him possessively. He continued with mumbling a numerous “thank you”, and Hyukjae didn’t know for how long they sat there, but he never got tired of it. The boy giggled a little when he heard Donghae’s stomach grumble for food and he took the initiative to move away so that Donghae could stand up.
They ate the food just like normal. Hyukjae felt at ease when Donghae didn’t try with giving him any extra-pitying treatment now, but only acted the loving way he always did. Only difference was that Donghae seemed a little happier, and he didn’t really know it was because of that he himself was acting happier.
Hyukjae later fell asleep in Donghae’s arms while they had watched a movie, and the elder spent the last half an hour of it to look at the sleeping boy instead of the television.
~*~
Waking up because of having his nose pressed against a firm and warm surface, Hyukjae blinked his eyes and leaned his head back to ease the pressure on his nose. The first thing he got to see after rubbing the blur out of his eyes was Donghae's chest and collarbone. The broad shoulders lay close to Hyukjae, one of them leading an arm to lie around the other's waist and feet were slightly tangled together. A tug of a soft smile appeared to Hyukjae's lips as he let his hand and fingers brush up along the other's torso. Donghae stirred, making Hyukjae flicker his eyes up to the brunette's handsome face, and saw how Donghae fought the sleep to open his eyes. An equally soft and heart -warming smile decorated Donghae's newly woken face. Having to see Hyukjae as the first thing in the morning was probably one of the best things he would ever experience (and then spotting down to the necklace, shining around Hyukjae's neck).
"Morning," he mumbled and pulled the boy closer with his arm and tangling their legs even more than before. Hyukjae nuzzled his face in Donghae's neck, answering with an equal "morning". Hyukjae gasped when Donghae suddenly turned to his back and pulling the former along to lie on top of him, and groaned tiredly. They came face to face, Donghae pouting a bit childishly indicating that he wanted a kiss which Hyukjae didn't deny him. He pressed a soft peck to the other's lips, letting the contact linger for some seconds before parting away with a small blush.
"You know what ?" Donghae asked as he stroke his hand up and down along Hyukjae's lean back, and let his fingers paint invisible patterns. "We should just stay here in bed all day." One hand rose to pull at the red strands hanging down Hyukjae's face in small locks. The boy smiled, his arms hugging Donghae's chest tightly and his chin rested on the brunette's chest.
"That would be nice..." He answered, referring to the comfortable hand stroking his back tenderly. "But you need to go to work."
"You sound like a wife when you say that." Hyukjae became silent and laid his cheek against Donghae's chest more comfortably. "You're coming with me today, right?"
"Can I?"
"Of course, you've done so well! And you liked it right?"
"Yeah, it's fun."
"Good." They lay for some moments longer, Hyukjae almost felt like falling back to sleep as Donghae ministrated a soft, one-handed massage to his back and shoulders, while his own fingers gently tapped Donghae's sides to the melody the latter was humming. "Hyukjae." The hand stopped moving and Donghae looked the boy in the eyes. "I love you."
A fade of red blush entered Hyukjae's cheeks and his heart was shooting fireworks. Donghae's eyes expressed so much feelings and love, he barely knew if he should laugh or cry. He managed not to spill any tears, so instead he widely parted his lips in a charming gummy smile.
"I… love you too, Donghae."
The moment was filled with pure feelings, and they sealed their words with a slow, lip-nibbling kiss.
"Now I really don't want to leave." Donghae groaned as they parted, but his arms tightened their hold around the boy.
After a couple of more minutes of whining and hugging, the older male managed to drag himself out of the soft bed, pulling Hyukjae along with him, and then making some quick breakfast. Every now and then Donghae would let his hand go of the steering wheel and squeeze Hyukjae's own hand, slightly intertwining their fingers.
~*~
"Shit!" the man cursed under his breath as he sped up his feet and ran even faster. This wasn't good at all. His hair was a mess, sweaty from all the running and then having the cold air cooling it down sent him shivers all over. The small puffs of warm breath started coming out of his mouth more frequently as he went on.
To the right, and then quickly over a wall separating two alleys, he managed to come away unseen for a short while. That's the best he could get for now.
With shaking hands he fumbled with his cell phone and connected the call and continues moving fast. He almost knew he'd be found out sooner or later.
“Come on, come on! Pick up the phone!” Cursing loudly, he tried beating in the number once more, but still the robotic voice would tell him the server was out of service. He glanced around and quickly tried to push in a number on the speed dial, but the call button was left untouched as a beat in his head made him loose his grip and fall to the ground unconscious.
~*~
Donghae noticed that Hyukjae would sneeze every now and then as he worked within the back, and at first he assumed it was just the dust, but the boy's cheeks looked slightly flushed. As he was almost done, he put away his camera and walked up to Hyukjae who was tangling out some cables on the floor and rubbing his nose with the sleeve of Donghae’s shirt. Donghae couldn’t help but think he looked quite adorable like that.
"Hey, how are you feeling? Did you catch a cold the other day ?" The boy looked up when Donghae crouched down and cupped his face and felt that it indeed was a little too warm than normal body temperature.
"I'm okay. I only feel a bit tired." Donghae caressed Hyukjae’s cheek, not wanting him to become ill.
"I'll cancel the meeting tonight so that we can go home and get you in bed." Hyukjae shook his head.
"You mustn’t miss more of your working time because of me. I-I can take the bus, remember!" Donghae smiled at the boy who just suggested himself to take the bus. It made him feel rather proud.
"I know...but I don't want you to go alone, if you would pass out or something like that." Hyukjae sniffed to make his runny nose stop.
"It's not that bad..." Donghae sighed and looked seriously into Hyukjae's eyes.
"Are you really sure?"
“Yeah… But are you’re going to be much late?” Hyukjae pouted a little and abandoned the knot of wires on his lap. Donghae gave him an apologetic look and helped him up from the floor.
“I’ll just stay for the important discussions, and then I'll go home as soon as possible. You remember from where the bus went, right?”
Hyukjae nodded.
“Good. Here’s money for the ride, and…” he looked around a little to see if anyone was near, then he pulled Hyukjae behind one of the large white screens. “Be safe.” He held Hyukjae’s cheeks and kissed him on the lips. Hyukjae blushed deeply as he knew they were out among other people and Donghae just kissed him. He felt both embarrassed and happy.
"My cell phone died of its battery earlier, so send a text to Kyuhyun when you’ve arrived at home, okay ?
Donghae wrote down his colleague’s number on a piece of paper and handed it to the boy. “And medicine is in bathroom-locker. Take some before you get worse." Hyukjae’s nose scrunched a little, but then he smiled at Donghae, who smiled back as a hand caressed his cheek.
“See you back home.” With a final hug, Donghae led Hyukjae to the exit and watched the boy walk towards the direction of the bus stop.
Hyukjae took the same way as he had done together with Donghae last time, and was just on time to catch the bus. It felt good that the bus wasn’t crowded at all. Only two men and a middle-aged woman were sitting on the ride and he sat himself in the front, almost wanting to fall asleep there. A throbbing headache started to invade his head and now he almost regretted not insisting on staying with Donghae. It would have felt more comforting just being close.
After fifteen minutes had passed he recognized the stop where he was getting off. He sulked as he walked the short way back through the snow to the apartment, because he missed Donghae already. His hand reached for his chest and he felt the necklace hanging securely beneath his jacket. Somehow the idea of making a surprise for Donghae before he came home popped up in his head making him excitedly jump up to the front porch.
Hyukjae reached for the keys Donghae had handed him and tried to open the lock but his hands were shaking too much because of the cold. He took a deep breath, and tried to hit the hole properly this time and he did. He turned the key and heard the soft ‘click’ telling him the door was open.
Suddenly two hands grabbed onto both of Hyukjae’s shoulders and the boy squeaked in surprise. He turned quickly - thinking it was Donghae who was pulling a prank on him - but instead of the brunette man, he faced two men dressed in black suits who grabbed onto his arms. He started resisting immediately and screamed for help, for Donghae, but no one showed up to his rescue. Without knowing it, he was pushed into a car, and he heard the locks clicking and he wildly banged at the window and pulled at the cars door handle, but it was useless. Why did this have to happen when Donghae wasn’t there ?
“Long time no see, Eunhyuk dear.” Hyukjae sat dead still when the voice registered in his brain. It had been such a long time he had heard it, and he thought he would never hear it again. The worst part of all, it sounded freezing cold. Hyukjae started banging on the black car windows in panic but there was not a soul passing by this hour. He was too afraid to turn around and look at the car’s other occupant so he still tried to open the door in vain.
Out of the black shadows of the car appeared Mr. Lee with a smug smile on his lips before he leaned over Hyukjae and flipped him around so they were face to face. “Well haven’t you been a naughty boy, running away like this, and even changing your hairstyle.” Mr. Lee played with a red lock of Hyukjae’s hair between his fingers. The boy couldn’t do anything at all. He was back at square one, and he was terrified. His eyes darted across his father’s face and registered it properly, making all memories started flashing back in just a second. The memories he’d tried so hard to wash away came back so easily. The man leaned down and breathed hot air into Hyukjae’s ear. “You knew I would like it better this way, how sexy you would look”
Hyukjae made a desperate crying sound as he felt the other’s lips nibble on his neck. The disgust of feeling the man doing this to him and he wasn’t able to fight back.
“What’s this ?” Mr. Lee grumbled and the boy panicked as he felt a tug of a string in his neck. He saw the silver chain stretch out to the other’s hand, and a chuckle echoed through the car. “Donghae ? What is this ? You fell in love with the east sea ?” He turned the necklace to observe the ridiculous object but his face dropped dead serious and suddenly he pulled the chain so it broke.
“No!” Hyukjae cried and ignored the burning feeling from having it pulled off his neck and tried to get it back from the other’s filthy hands.
“’ You will forever be in my heart’. WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS SHIT?!” Mr. Lee slapped Hyukjae’s cheek and the chain in his hand caused a red scratch to the boy’s pale skin. “You’re fucking around with random people, WHO THE HELL IS CLAIMING YOU AS HIS OWN? You fucking belong to me you bitch so don’t you dare go close to him or I’ll just kill him! You understand me?”
Tears trickled Hyukjae’s pale cheeks and his eyes stared pleadingly at the man above him. He didn’t care about the boy’s begging and took a grip around the thin neck and clenched his fingers together.
“Did you just understand what I said, Lee. Hyuk. Jae?” Hyukjae coughed to get some air and he finally nodded his head against his own will, and the grip loosened and the weight above him eased. But he wasn’t allowed to sit up before a damp cloth was pressed against his mouth and within seconds everything blacked out.
~*~
Donghae dragged his feet up from the small staircase in front of his outer door and noticed a key left in the locker. The brunette sighed and pulled out the key and made a mental note to explain to Hyukjae that he’s supposed to pluck the key out again. But as he stepped into the dark house he felt something wasn’t right.
“Hyukjae, I’m back!” He called and looked over the kitchen and living room on his way to the bed room. To his surprise the room was empty and lit down. The door was unlocked, key still in the lock and Hyukjae gone. Donghae’s legs shook as he got a really bad feeling. He ran to the phone and dialed Hyukjae’s phone number. Unfortunately, he heard the boy’s ringtone playing from the bedroom and Donghae hastily dialed a new number - to Heechul this time. Donghae practically screamed as the older picked up. “Hyung, is Hyukjae with you ?! Did you pick him up or something, please tell me you did!”
“Donghae, please calm down. What’s happened ?” Heechul said, but Donghae just shook his head furiously, and he cried for real, tears trailing pitifully on his face.
“Hyukjae’s gone! I let him go off all alone, and now he’s gone!”
“How can you be sure, maybe he just got lost, or took a longer walk ?” Heechul suggested, but he too felt slightly freaked out when Donghae told him the boy was gone, and he feared the worst. But now he didn’t want Donghae to panic too much.
“No hyung, the door was unlocked and key was still in the lock. Gosh, I should have gone with him!”
“Fuck,” Heechul hissed under his breath. “Donghae don’t panic, okay ? Just sta -“
“It was his father all along! He’s the one who hurt him.” The younger stressed, not really knowing why he brought it up. “Could he have been the one who took Hyukjae away ?”
“Let’s just wait and see what’ll happen. I will contact Hankyung since he was a part of the searching, so I’ll just ask him to find Hyukjae, alright ? He must know if he’s been caught or not.”
“What damn searching? He’s been looking for Hyukjae all this time ?” Donghae was on the verge of yelling through the phone. He was getting more upset for not knowing about it.
“Not now Hae, I’m sorry. Calm down and I will contact you in the morning to inform you if we get any trace. Just stay at home and take it easy, because if we’re lucky Hyukjae might just be safe and come back, and then I think it’s the best if you’re there.”
He nearly threw the phone into the wall in frustration and anger for not being told such an important thing that Hyukjae was being searched for.
Donghae dropped down on the couch and covered his face in his palms. ‘How could I let this happen to him? What if he’s hurting him again ? What if he won’t recover this time ?’ He cursed loudly and almost cried in the frustration he felt for being powerless of doing anything.
Not really knowing how or when, but slowly everything darkened in his head, and he fell into an uneasy sleep.
~*~
Heechul walked up and down with the phone pressed to his ear and mumbling pleadings. “Please pick up the phone, please pick it up!” Sungmin just came down the stairs and looked worriedly at the weird behavior of the black haired man. With a deep sigh, Heechul pulled away the phone from his ear when he didn’t get any answer. He noticed Sungmin standing at the last step of the staircase with an unbearable expression. Heechul smiled to not make the boy worried. “Good morning Sungmin -ah. Did you sleep well?” Heechul asked and walked towards the boy and patted his head friendly. Sungmin nodded, but did not return the smile. Heechul knew he had made the boy worried again and tried to erase his own expressions. “I’ve already prepared breakfast for you guys, so wake up Ryeowook and start eating. I’ll be right back after making a call.”
Heechul stepped past Sungmin but was stopped when the latter tugged at his arm and looking at him with puppy eyes.
“Hyung, is everything alright ? Did… did something happen to Eunhyuk ?” The man smiled affectionately and placed his hand on the younger one’s arm.
“It’ll be okay Sungmin -ah, now go wake up Ryeowook.” Sungmin nodded and did as he was told. Heechul continued walking into his own room and closed the door, dialing a different number this time. Not more than a tone echoed before the receiver picked up.
“Hyung!” the man on the line exclaimed and Heechul had to make a little distance between his phone and his ear to not make it hurt. “Hyung, have Hankyung hyung found him?” Heechul heard the other’s voice was hoarse, probably because he hadn’t slept well. He took a deep breath to calm himself down and to ease at the lump in his throat but it only grew larger.
“Donghae…” he merely whispered and the brunette shivered at the dull voice -not expecting anything good. “He’s gone…” Heechul couldn’t hold in his crying anymore and the tears started to triple down his beautiful face. ”Hankyung’s gone, just like Hyukjae.”
A/N: I’ve got you little runaway~ otl. WELL CHAP 8 WAS MY ATTEMPT OF ANGST (mixed with a bit of fluffeh). Be nice to me…
And yeah, I hope you’re happy that I updated so fast! Nyahahah~ Poorly proof-read, but it’s 5 a.m. and I’ve been up all night to write on this. I’m nice, aren’t I? ;)
And I want to make clear for this as well: The character for Hyukjae’s father is not based on any real person. He is pure fictional so don’t associate him with anyone. So it’s okay to hate him as much as you want to.
Aaah, I feel my way of writing as gotten lots worse Y_Y Sorry ‘bout that.
Next chapter is supposed to be last one…Don’t know how I’ll manage that. Well, changes can easily be made. Have a good time until then! ^^