Into The Dark Night (6/?)
Title: Into the Dark Night
Author: ms_awkward
Genre: AU, Fantasy, Angst, Romance, Drama, Adventure, Fluff?
Rating: PG-13
Pairing(s): HyukHae(main), KyuMin, HanChul, KangTeuk, YunJae, ninja!YeWook
Summary: All they needed was light.
Into the Dark Night
Chapter 6
Wind and throngs of rain pounded harshly against the large glass windows of Kangin’s office. The burly man hardly noticed though, as he stomped around his room, his thoughts racing.
“It’s been almost three weeks!” he exclaimed, “Three!”
Hangeng could only nod mutely, his head bowed down in respect.
‘Four, actually.’ Yunho mumbled under his breath. ‘Simple math.’ Hangeng shot him a look, forcing the younger to bow his head as well.
“And they still haven’t found him?” the Lord bellowed, unaware of the small exchange, “I thought I hired Rife to get this job done faster. That damn Lee Soo Man…” he mumbled the through clenched teeth .
“It seems that torrential rains have hindered their travel time, sir.” Hangeng politely interjected, “They’ve only arrived late last week.”
“Details, details! Even then, they should have found the boy by now!”
Kangin paced across the carpeted floor, his steps heavy and unrelenting.
Time is running out.
Desperation seeped through his veins.
“Hangeng!”
“Yes, my Lord?”
“Dispatch a full-on search party for this kid. Leave no stone unturned. We can’t rely solely on the SM Corporation for this any longer.” Kangin eyed his two subordinates, a grave look etched into his features. “I want that Lumiciant. And I want it now.”
“Yes, Lord Youngwoon.”
“Use all means necessary. Citizens, Intel, other Lumici, Rogues-I don’t give a damn. Just get that brat here.”
“…Yes, my Lord.”
“Dismissed.”
- - -
“But hyung!”
“Yunho, I said no.”
“Hyung!”
“Yunho.”
“But why not?! I always go with you on your assignments! What makes this one so different?”
Hangeng frowned, "You might do something stupid."
Like fall in love.
"What? Hyung! If this is about me recruiting Yoseob, I'm sorry, okay? I didn't know he'd be that...troublesome."
Yunho whined openly as they dashed through the hallways. He didn’t care for the odd looks people gave him; he was honestly getting excited for this new assignment. Lord Youngwoon rarely permits interaction with Rogue Lumici, or any Lumiciant for that matter, that’s why he keeps them cooped up in the reserve on the far side of the city. So he was sure could meet one this time, he could feel it-and then Hangeng just suddenly says he can’t go?
His frown deepened.
Hangeng stopped abruptly in his tracks, sending him crashing into his back nose-first.
“Ow! What the hell, hyung!”
“Jung Yunho. You are not coming with me on this assignment. So long as you’re living under my roof, you will be following my rules. You are to stay home or at headquarters until I see fit. Have I made myself clear?”
He turned on his heel and sauntered away. Hangeng tried his best to bury the lost look that flickered in Yunho’s eyes into the furthest corner of his mind, images and memories of how he took the kid in that fateful rainy night flashing before his eyes. He grit his teeth and pushed forward, barking orders at the unsuspecting members of his squad.
There were more pressing matters at hand than his motherly overprotection of the orphan.
Nonetheless, Yunho stared at his hyung’s back with an undeterred look, escape plans already swimming through his thoughts.
Hangeng should’ve known it wouldn’t be that easy.
- - -
Hyukjae was of the elite class, the best of the best. Looked upon by others with awe and admiration, the one the boss calls when it seems that no one can get the job done quite right, bred and formed under his notion of what is right while bordering on perfection in all that he does. Strong, agile, astute. Even amongst his fellow trained companions, an object of both regard and jealousy.
A top Rife, so to speak.
He was supposed to be uncovering military secrets, finding impossible-to-find information, cornering bad guys and kicking their asses to the far ends of the universe. Not standing around in a meadow with a net clutched in his hands, keeping an eye out for butterflies-of all things.
It made no sense.
“I caught one! Look, Ryeowook!” Donghae skipped his way to his unmoving companion, his grin ever present. “I caught one!”
He held out his hand and sure enough, there sat a butterfly that shone bright yellow. Donghae watched in repeated awe as it slowly spread its wings and flapped away, much like the several ones before it.
“That’s nice.” He said with forced enthusiasm.
He didn’t know why, probably a Lumiciant thing, but butterflies seemed to follow Donghae wherever he went, making it neither difficult nor surprising when he actually catches one. They probably confused him with a flower, what with the way he looked and the way he smelled.
Donghae laughed, and in seconds, he was bounding off again.
“C’mon, Henry! You won’t catch any if you just stand around like that!”
Hyukjae didn’t even feel the need to twitch anymore.
Originally, he had kept his name a secret for both protocol and in an attempt to get the boy to shy away and stop distracting him so damn much. Unsurprisingly, Donghae did not take it as most people, or Lumiciant in this case, would. He merely grinned at Hyukjae unfazed, saying he’d spout out all the names he could until he got it right.
After countless tries (“Hyunseung? Daesung? Changmin? Junsu?” He twitched at that, recalling his best friend briefly. “Youngbae? Seunggi? Jungmo? I know! Jessica!” “That’s a girl’s name.” “…Right.”), Donghae decided that the name would come to him soon enough and they should ‘go do something fun’ while his creative juices were stirring.
And apparently, ‘fun’ in Donghae’s dictionary meant amusement parks that were practically empty because of the constant rain, splashing around puddles, swinging on swings, riding up and down elevators, poking people in the back then running away, sitting on the grass and just looking. No need for words (although most of the time, he did like to talk), just the sight of the rain drizzling down to meet the grass in an elegant dance of nature was beautiful enough.
Oh, and of course, catching butterflies.
Hyukjae sighed loudly, and wondered how in the world he’d find his target with this hyperactive brunette dragging him anywhere and everywhere.
Why, oh why, had fate led him to this Lumiciant and not the one he was sent out to look for?
“Heechul!”
He froze at the familiar name, glancing at Donghae who merely stared back innocently as he jogged towards Hyukjae. He scrutinized the boy before shrugging it off.
A common name, that’s all.
“I finally found it!”
He raised an eyebrow at him, urging the brunette to continue. He hadn’t even known Donghae was looking for something.
He watched as a makeshift cage was shoved into his hands, a ruby red butterfly fluttering soundlessly in its midst. It looked nothing like the others, its wings had intricate patterns embedded into it and sparkled a different shade of ruby at every angle, its antennas curled elegantly.
“Red.” Donghae felt a bit confused at the warm tinge he felt in his cheeks, “just like you.”
He squirmed a bit under the Rife’s intense stare.
“I-It’s…” he continued, shyly mumbling with his eyes trained on the ground, “…it’s for you. To help you find what you’re looking for…”
Hyukjae blinked at the sight before him. All his life, no one had ever given him anything but praise, some additional cash if clients felt generous, praise and more praise. He was raised, sheltered, and kept alive for the sole purpose of the SM Corporation.
They were not given money for their efforts; Lee Soo Man saw no need for it-he provided them food and shelter, they do their jobs. Regarded as nothing more than machines.
Simple as that.
So he held the butterfly close to his heart, and said,
Eunhyuk.
“Hyukjae. My name is Hyukjae.”
Donghae had never seen such a beautiful smile.
“Hyukjae.”
Heechul watched with an almost weary stare as Donghae dragged the redhead, who complied almost willingly this time, to who-knows-where. His eyes followed the two figures, one with a skip in his step and one casually walking behind him, until they disappeared from his sight.
He stopped himself from groaning out loud and massaged his temples.
In all honesty, Heechul never thought that avoiding the Rife-Eunhyuk, if rumors and memory served him well-would arrive to this.
He missed Donghae; really, he did and still does. It takes every ounce of his willpower not to trap the boy in a bone-crushing hug and just take him home so they could live life like they used to.
If only it were that simple.
He knew he couldn’t keep on hiding forever; Eunhyuk was bound to find him. After all, the man lived up to his name and quite frankly, it was getting more and more difficult to hide from him.
Jaejoong, he groaned in his mind, where the hell are you…?
He had to act, and he had to act now.
But with this new development, Heechul was completely thrown off course. He’s no numbskull when it comes to relationships, and he’s pretty sure he knows a pair of lovestruck idiots when he sees one. They may not know it nor understand it yet, but Heechul does.
And he didn’t know what to make of it, whether it was a good thing or not, advantageous or jeopardizing. He’d forgotten just how charming his dongsaeng was and he had to be honest, Eunhyuk deserved a double take with his fiery red hair and porcelain skin.
The notorious Rife and the next Solis. Who would’ve thought…
Heechul laughed bitterly, and straightened himself.
“Come on, Heebum.” He motioned to the cat lazily stretching on the ground beside him, “we’ve got work to do.”
“Assemble!”
Heechul’s heart stopped at the familiar voice. His body moved before his mind could tell it otherwise, and he looked behind him. Surely, just over his shoulder, there he was in all his glory.
Hangeng.
In those few seconds, years of separation crumbled to dust.
He looked taller, manlier, his uniform matching well with his commanding demeanor as he barked firm orders Heechul couldn’t register because of the ongoing muddle in his thoughts at the sight of the man before him. Contrary to the gentle look in his eyes he used to know, he now looked tough, unrelenting, almost angry. But still handsome as ever.
He knows a lovestruck idiot when he sees one.
- - -
Donghae was a happy camper. He liked to smile and hum tunes and poke jokes at his hyungs now and then. No, he wasn’t on drugs, nor was he high. He was just like that.
But this time, he glowed just a bit more than usual, smiled a bit wider than before, and felt giddy every five seconds he steals a glance at Kyuhyun’s shirt that day. It was red.
“Someone’s been happy lately.” Kyuhyun raised an eyebrow and looked pointedly at the humming brunette.
“Maybe he’s in love or something.” Sungmin replied offhandedly.
“Love?” Donghae questioned. “What is love?”
…
After a number of arguments (“You tell him!” “What? No, you do it! You’re the sentimental one!” “Yah!”), they decided to drop the topic and figured it was too early for Donghae to know about things like those anyway. He may look their age, but as far as Kyuhyun and Sungmin were concerned, he’s still a boy.
Besides, there were more important matters to be discussed.
“You’ve been going out too much lately.”
Donghae stopped the wiggling of his toes and looked up at Sungmin. “But hyung, I bring my cloak every time. Promise.”
“You don’t understand, Hae.” He replied tiredly, “we have to be careful. We need to keep you safe.”
“But Kyu goes out to buy food.”
“I need to, you want to starve?” Kyuhyun retorted, eyes trained on the computer screen.
“And Sungmin hyung, you go out to buy us clothes.”
“Yeah, well…”
“And sometimes, the two of you go out at night when you think I’m sleeping and I don’t even know what you do.”
Sungmin’s cheeks colored. Kyuhyun smirked.
“Why can’t I go outside like you?” Donghae looked at them, a spark in his eye.
Sungmin sighed and sent a pleading look to Kyuhyun, who only threw his hands up in defense as if to say ‘I’m not part of this.’
He sighed again. “Look, Hae…I’m just worried, okay? Who knows what dangers might be out there? Especially for…our kind. The mundane don’t treat us…like one of them. We’re different. They might hurt you.”
Donghae twitched at the memory of his encounter with the three thugs. “But you guys get to go out…” he muttered stubbornly.
“Yes, but you’re…” he tried to find the right word, “…special.”
Something struck home in Donghae’s eyes. Special?
His heartbeat quickened.
“You’re not like us, Hae.”
‘Hey, isn’t he the one?’
“You’re different.”
‘Wow. He really is so…we shouldn’t stay too close.’
“We need to keep you safe.”
‘What are you doing here? Go back in your quarters!’
“To protect you.”
“You see him? He’s the one. He’s the-”
“Ah!” Donghae collapsed to the ground, a hand clutching the strands of his hair in a tight fist as pain shot through his head. He crumbled into a ball in an attempt to make it go away. “It hurts…it hurts…”
“Donghae!” He could hear urgent footsteps approaching him, but he was too far off to barely register anything anymore.
His head hurt so much.
- - -
Deep in the corridors of Kangin’s palace, amongst the countless staircases and maze of doors, in the farthest side of the west wing, there was one particular door that was never to be opened. No one knew anything about it or what was inside, except that they were ordered to steer clear and neither go near it nor speak of it.
Rumors say that if you disobey, Lord Youngwoon would personally facilitate your execution for everyone to see. Some say they see him sneak into it during the wee hours of the night, coming out only at the crack of dawn.
No one knew why, and no one dared to find out.
Swift, quiet footsteps replaced usual strong and sure ones as Kangin crept along the hallways. He let out a breath as he approached a familiar door and quietly closed it behind him.
There, in the shrouded room, lay a chair, a cupboard, another door on the far right, a small study table that looked as if it’s long been unused, and a simple bed lined with linen covers that flashed white with the occasional lightning.
A painfully conventional bedroom setting, save for the delicate figure on the lone bed. He sat with his back to the door, his back erect as he was as still as a statue. His hair was a bright brown that almost looked as if it had been blonde in the past. His eyes stared out into the air, empty, glossed over and devoid of emotion.
But one could easily say with a single glance, he was extremely beautiful.
Kangin slowly and cautiously approached the man as if one wrong move would break him, and knelt in front of the bed, placing himself between frail knees and brought his hands up gingerly to cup the smooth skin of his face.
He closed his eyes and leaned forward so their foreheads met, “Teuk…” He breathed.
Leeteuk did not acknowledge the Lord’s presence and continued to stare forward, deaf and detached from the rest of the world.
“Teuk…” he began again, his voice shaking painfully “…I’m almost there. I’ve almost got him. Hangeng’s going to find him, make things better. You’ll be back to normal. You’ll be okay.”
Thunder rolled as a desperate man comforted more himself than the delicate creature before him.
“You’ll be okay.” -- ♦
- - -
previous | next
Author: ms_awkward
Genre: AU, Fantasy, Angst, Romance, Drama, Adventure, Fluff?
Rating: PG-13
Pairing(s): HyukHae(main), KyuMin, HanChul, KangTeuk, YunJae, ninja!YeWook
Summary: All they needed was light.
Into the Dark Night
Chapter 6
Wind and throngs of rain pounded harshly against the large glass windows of Kangin’s office. The burly man hardly noticed though, as he stomped around his room, his thoughts racing.
“It’s been almost three weeks!” he exclaimed, “Three!”
Hangeng could only nod mutely, his head bowed down in respect.
‘Four, actually.’ Yunho mumbled under his breath. ‘Simple math.’ Hangeng shot him a look, forcing the younger to bow his head as well.
“And they still haven’t found him?” the Lord bellowed, unaware of the small exchange, “I thought I hired Rife to get this job done faster. That damn Lee Soo Man…” he mumbled the through clenched teeth .
“It seems that torrential rains have hindered their travel time, sir.” Hangeng politely interjected, “They’ve only arrived late last week.”
“Details, details! Even then, they should have found the boy by now!”
Kangin paced across the carpeted floor, his steps heavy and unrelenting.
Time is running out.
Desperation seeped through his veins.
“Hangeng!”
“Yes, my Lord?”
“Dispatch a full-on search party for this kid. Leave no stone unturned. We can’t rely solely on the SM Corporation for this any longer.” Kangin eyed his two subordinates, a grave look etched into his features. “I want that Lumiciant. And I want it now.”
“Yes, Lord Youngwoon.”
“Use all means necessary. Citizens, Intel, other Lumici, Rogues-I don’t give a damn. Just get that brat here.”
“…Yes, my Lord.”
“Dismissed.”
- - -
“But hyung!”
“Yunho, I said no.”
“Hyung!”
“Yunho.”
“But why not?! I always go with you on your assignments! What makes this one so different?”
Hangeng frowned, "You might do something stupid."
Like fall in love.
"What? Hyung! If this is about me recruiting Yoseob, I'm sorry, okay? I didn't know he'd be that...troublesome."
Yunho whined openly as they dashed through the hallways. He didn’t care for the odd looks people gave him; he was honestly getting excited for this new assignment. Lord Youngwoon rarely permits interaction with Rogue Lumici, or any Lumiciant for that matter, that’s why he keeps them cooped up in the reserve on the far side of the city. So he was sure could meet one this time, he could feel it-and then Hangeng just suddenly says he can’t go?
His frown deepened.
Hangeng stopped abruptly in his tracks, sending him crashing into his back nose-first.
“Ow! What the hell, hyung!”
“Jung Yunho. You are not coming with me on this assignment. So long as you’re living under my roof, you will be following my rules. You are to stay home or at headquarters until I see fit. Have I made myself clear?”
He turned on his heel and sauntered away. Hangeng tried his best to bury the lost look that flickered in Yunho’s eyes into the furthest corner of his mind, images and memories of how he took the kid in that fateful rainy night flashing before his eyes. He grit his teeth and pushed forward, barking orders at the unsuspecting members of his squad.
There were more pressing matters at hand than his motherly overprotection of the orphan.
Nonetheless, Yunho stared at his hyung’s back with an undeterred look, escape plans already swimming through his thoughts.
Hangeng should’ve known it wouldn’t be that easy.
- - -
Hyukjae was of the elite class, the best of the best. Looked upon by others with awe and admiration, the one the boss calls when it seems that no one can get the job done quite right, bred and formed under his notion of what is right while bordering on perfection in all that he does. Strong, agile, astute. Even amongst his fellow trained companions, an object of both regard and jealousy.
A top Rife, so to speak.
He was supposed to be uncovering military secrets, finding impossible-to-find information, cornering bad guys and kicking their asses to the far ends of the universe. Not standing around in a meadow with a net clutched in his hands, keeping an eye out for butterflies-of all things.
It made no sense.
“I caught one! Look, Ryeowook!” Donghae skipped his way to his unmoving companion, his grin ever present. “I caught one!”
He held out his hand and sure enough, there sat a butterfly that shone bright yellow. Donghae watched in repeated awe as it slowly spread its wings and flapped away, much like the several ones before it.
“That’s nice.” He said with forced enthusiasm.
He didn’t know why, probably a Lumiciant thing, but butterflies seemed to follow Donghae wherever he went, making it neither difficult nor surprising when he actually catches one. They probably confused him with a flower, what with the way he looked and the way he smelled.
Donghae laughed, and in seconds, he was bounding off again.
“C’mon, Henry! You won’t catch any if you just stand around like that!”
Hyukjae didn’t even feel the need to twitch anymore.
Originally, he had kept his name a secret for both protocol and in an attempt to get the boy to shy away and stop distracting him so damn much. Unsurprisingly, Donghae did not take it as most people, or Lumiciant in this case, would. He merely grinned at Hyukjae unfazed, saying he’d spout out all the names he could until he got it right.
After countless tries (“Hyunseung? Daesung? Changmin? Junsu?” He twitched at that, recalling his best friend briefly. “Youngbae? Seunggi? Jungmo? I know! Jessica!” “That’s a girl’s name.” “…Right.”), Donghae decided that the name would come to him soon enough and they should ‘go do something fun’ while his creative juices were stirring.
And apparently, ‘fun’ in Donghae’s dictionary meant amusement parks that were practically empty because of the constant rain, splashing around puddles, swinging on swings, riding up and down elevators, poking people in the back then running away, sitting on the grass and just looking. No need for words (although most of the time, he did like to talk), just the sight of the rain drizzling down to meet the grass in an elegant dance of nature was beautiful enough.
Oh, and of course, catching butterflies.
Hyukjae sighed loudly, and wondered how in the world he’d find his target with this hyperactive brunette dragging him anywhere and everywhere.
Why, oh why, had fate led him to this Lumiciant and not the one he was sent out to look for?
“Heechul!”
He froze at the familiar name, glancing at Donghae who merely stared back innocently as he jogged towards Hyukjae. He scrutinized the boy before shrugging it off.
A common name, that’s all.
“I finally found it!”
He raised an eyebrow at him, urging the brunette to continue. He hadn’t even known Donghae was looking for something.
He watched as a makeshift cage was shoved into his hands, a ruby red butterfly fluttering soundlessly in its midst. It looked nothing like the others, its wings had intricate patterns embedded into it and sparkled a different shade of ruby at every angle, its antennas curled elegantly.
“Red.” Donghae felt a bit confused at the warm tinge he felt in his cheeks, “just like you.”
He squirmed a bit under the Rife’s intense stare.
“I-It’s…” he continued, shyly mumbling with his eyes trained on the ground, “…it’s for you. To help you find what you’re looking for…”
Hyukjae blinked at the sight before him. All his life, no one had ever given him anything but praise, some additional cash if clients felt generous, praise and more praise. He was raised, sheltered, and kept alive for the sole purpose of the SM Corporation.
They were not given money for their efforts; Lee Soo Man saw no need for it-he provided them food and shelter, they do their jobs. Regarded as nothing more than machines.
Simple as that.
So he held the butterfly close to his heart, and said,
Eunhyuk.
“Hyukjae. My name is Hyukjae.”
Donghae had never seen such a beautiful smile.
“Hyukjae.”
Heechul watched with an almost weary stare as Donghae dragged the redhead, who complied almost willingly this time, to who-knows-where. His eyes followed the two figures, one with a skip in his step and one casually walking behind him, until they disappeared from his sight.
He stopped himself from groaning out loud and massaged his temples.
In all honesty, Heechul never thought that avoiding the Rife-Eunhyuk, if rumors and memory served him well-would arrive to this.
He missed Donghae; really, he did and still does. It takes every ounce of his willpower not to trap the boy in a bone-crushing hug and just take him home so they could live life like they used to.
If only it were that simple.
He knew he couldn’t keep on hiding forever; Eunhyuk was bound to find him. After all, the man lived up to his name and quite frankly, it was getting more and more difficult to hide from him.
Jaejoong, he groaned in his mind, where the hell are you…?
He had to act, and he had to act now.
But with this new development, Heechul was completely thrown off course. He’s no numbskull when it comes to relationships, and he’s pretty sure he knows a pair of lovestruck idiots when he sees one. They may not know it nor understand it yet, but Heechul does.
And he didn’t know what to make of it, whether it was a good thing or not, advantageous or jeopardizing. He’d forgotten just how charming his dongsaeng was and he had to be honest, Eunhyuk deserved a double take with his fiery red hair and porcelain skin.
The notorious Rife and the next Solis. Who would’ve thought…
Heechul laughed bitterly, and straightened himself.
“Come on, Heebum.” He motioned to the cat lazily stretching on the ground beside him, “we’ve got work to do.”
“Assemble!”
Heechul’s heart stopped at the familiar voice. His body moved before his mind could tell it otherwise, and he looked behind him. Surely, just over his shoulder, there he was in all his glory.
Hangeng.
In those few seconds, years of separation crumbled to dust.
He looked taller, manlier, his uniform matching well with his commanding demeanor as he barked firm orders Heechul couldn’t register because of the ongoing muddle in his thoughts at the sight of the man before him. Contrary to the gentle look in his eyes he used to know, he now looked tough, unrelenting, almost angry. But still handsome as ever.
He knows a lovestruck idiot when he sees one.
- - -
Donghae was a happy camper. He liked to smile and hum tunes and poke jokes at his hyungs now and then. No, he wasn’t on drugs, nor was he high. He was just like that.
But this time, he glowed just a bit more than usual, smiled a bit wider than before, and felt giddy every five seconds he steals a glance at Kyuhyun’s shirt that day. It was red.
“Someone’s been happy lately.” Kyuhyun raised an eyebrow and looked pointedly at the humming brunette.
“Maybe he’s in love or something.” Sungmin replied offhandedly.
“Love?” Donghae questioned. “What is love?”
…
After a number of arguments (“You tell him!” “What? No, you do it! You’re the sentimental one!” “Yah!”), they decided to drop the topic and figured it was too early for Donghae to know about things like those anyway. He may look their age, but as far as Kyuhyun and Sungmin were concerned, he’s still a boy.
Besides, there were more important matters to be discussed.
“You’ve been going out too much lately.”
Donghae stopped the wiggling of his toes and looked up at Sungmin. “But hyung, I bring my cloak every time. Promise.”
“You don’t understand, Hae.” He replied tiredly, “we have to be careful. We need to keep you safe.”
“But Kyu goes out to buy food.”
“I need to, you want to starve?” Kyuhyun retorted, eyes trained on the computer screen.
“And Sungmin hyung, you go out to buy us clothes.”
“Yeah, well…”
“And sometimes, the two of you go out at night when you think I’m sleeping and I don’t even know what you do.”
Sungmin’s cheeks colored. Kyuhyun smirked.
“Why can’t I go outside like you?” Donghae looked at them, a spark in his eye.
Sungmin sighed and sent a pleading look to Kyuhyun, who only threw his hands up in defense as if to say ‘I’m not part of this.’
He sighed again. “Look, Hae…I’m just worried, okay? Who knows what dangers might be out there? Especially for…our kind. The mundane don’t treat us…like one of them. We’re different. They might hurt you.”
Donghae twitched at the memory of his encounter with the three thugs. “But you guys get to go out…” he muttered stubbornly.
“Yes, but you’re…” he tried to find the right word, “…special.”
Something struck home in Donghae’s eyes. Special?
His heartbeat quickened.
“You’re not like us, Hae.”
‘Hey, isn’t he the one?’
“You’re different.”
‘Wow. He really is so…we shouldn’t stay too close.’
“We need to keep you safe.”
‘What are you doing here? Go back in your quarters!’
“To protect you.”
“You see him? He’s the one. He’s the-”
“Ah!” Donghae collapsed to the ground, a hand clutching the strands of his hair in a tight fist as pain shot through his head. He crumbled into a ball in an attempt to make it go away. “It hurts…it hurts…”
“Donghae!” He could hear urgent footsteps approaching him, but he was too far off to barely register anything anymore.
His head hurt so much.
- - -
Deep in the corridors of Kangin’s palace, amongst the countless staircases and maze of doors, in the farthest side of the west wing, there was one particular door that was never to be opened. No one knew anything about it or what was inside, except that they were ordered to steer clear and neither go near it nor speak of it.
Rumors say that if you disobey, Lord Youngwoon would personally facilitate your execution for everyone to see. Some say they see him sneak into it during the wee hours of the night, coming out only at the crack of dawn.
No one knew why, and no one dared to find out.
Swift, quiet footsteps replaced usual strong and sure ones as Kangin crept along the hallways. He let out a breath as he approached a familiar door and quietly closed it behind him.
There, in the shrouded room, lay a chair, a cupboard, another door on the far right, a small study table that looked as if it’s long been unused, and a simple bed lined with linen covers that flashed white with the occasional lightning.
A painfully conventional bedroom setting, save for the delicate figure on the lone bed. He sat with his back to the door, his back erect as he was as still as a statue. His hair was a bright brown that almost looked as if it had been blonde in the past. His eyes stared out into the air, empty, glossed over and devoid of emotion.
But one could easily say with a single glance, he was extremely beautiful.
Kangin slowly and cautiously approached the man as if one wrong move would break him, and knelt in front of the bed, placing himself between frail knees and brought his hands up gingerly to cup the smooth skin of his face.
He closed his eyes and leaned forward so their foreheads met, “Teuk…” He breathed.
Leeteuk did not acknowledge the Lord’s presence and continued to stare forward, deaf and detached from the rest of the world.
“Teuk…” he began again, his voice shaking painfully “…I’m almost there. I’ve almost got him. Hangeng’s going to find him, make things better. You’ll be back to normal. You’ll be okay.”
Thunder rolled as a desperate man comforted more himself than the delicate creature before him.
“You’ll be okay.” -- ♦
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