Till Death do we Part
Title: Till Death do we Part
Chapter: 7/?
Pairings: KiHae (Main), KyuMin, YeWook, KangTeuk
Rating: PG-16
Warning: Character Death
Summary: The one thing Lee DongHae hadn't expected to happen that Sunday morning was to die. But that is exactly what happened, and now because of a 'lingering regret', he can't pass on fully. What regret is this? A long-suffering crush on a boy who didn't even know he existed; Kim KiBum. So he is given one week on earth as a ghost to fulfill this regret... Or heaven might not even be an option for him anymore. But with KiBum the only one who can see him, and an experienced ghost hunter on his tail, can he even make the deadline?
A/N: Next chapter is up! I don't know, I think this one failed... X.X; I'm tired...
Trailer || Chapter One || Chapter Two || Chapter Three || Chapter Four || Chapter Five || Chapter Six
Chapter Seven:
LeeTeuk watched, startled as DongHae suddenly bolted for the door. “Hae!” He called after him, breaking their decision to remain silent during the ceremony to avoid notice. The ghost didn’t stop, and soon vanished from sight. Had the pressure of being at his own funeral finally become too much? The spirit guide knew he shouldn’t have agreed to bring DongHae here… He should have invented some nonsense about not being too close to the body or something to keep him away…
Turning to see what had caused him to run like that, he saw someone walk briskly after DongHae, and break into a run when he was out of the room. Was that KiBum? What the hell was going on?
This wasn’t fair. He’d been a spirit guide for centuries! He knew the rules inside and out. Why was this all happening suddenly? Maybe it was time to retire.
Looking back at the funeral, he stiffened. KiBum wasn’t the only one who had taken notice. DongHae’s movement, KiBum’s sudden exit and LeeTeuks own shout of surprise had caught the attention of another. And from across the room, LeeTeuk met KyuHyun’s eyes, the human not gazing around in confusion, or trying to listen to something he could only half-hear. Looking straight at him. LeeTeuk had given himself away.
LeeTeuk drew in a shuddering breath. He had no idea what happened to a spirit guide caught by ghost hunters. It had never happened before. But the way KyuHyun met his gaze, eyes that had appeared warm while interacting with the other humans suddenly ice cold, sent shivers down his spine. For the first time in his long existence, LeeTeuk felt fear.
Doing the first thing that came to mind, he stepped backwards and through the wall, breaking that gaze. Once outside, he turned and started to run.
Piercing pain tore his leg, and he fell with a gasp. The fall didn’t hurt, but the pain continued to radiate from his leg, spreading upwards. Looking down, he said something had torn through his jeans and lodged itself in his skin, blood slowly trickling down. Pain. He wasn’t alive… He shouldn’t be feeling such pain. Taking a closer look, he saw a small spiral dart. But… But it shouldn’t have hit him! It should have gone right through him. Or, hit the wall he’d just gone through. It wasn’t a normal dart. It was a ghost hunter tool. They’d gotten upgrades.
Trying to get up, he found he couldn’t move. A strange, numb feeling was spreading after the pain, messing with his nerves. He couldn’t budge an inch. Only his head was free to move.
“You thought you could get away from me?” Came a soft voice behind him. LeeTeuk managed to turn around enough to see KyuHyun standing not even a meter from him. LeeTeuk knew the human wouldn’t be able to see him completely, just an outline at most, but that was all he needed. LeeTeuk couldn’t go anywhere.
“Your tyranny ends here.” He had a gun. A small handgun, clutched tightly in one hand. LeeTeuk could hear the faint click as the safety was released. Ordinarily he wouldn’t be worried. But he had a dark, dark feeling that any bullet from this gun wouldn’t just go through him harmlessly. He found himself looking down the barrel.
“I’ll make every last one of you pay,” KyuHyun said, eyes like ice and voice emotionless. “You’ll pay for my friends death.”
“LeeTeuk?” Called a voice behind him. LeeTeuk turned around again, and met KangIn’s startled eyes. The big man had frozen mid-step, eyes going from LeeTeuk on the ground with one hand over his bloody leg, to KyuHyun with his finger on the trigger. Almond-shaped eyes narrowed further. “What the hell is going on?” He growled, not daring move in case KyuHyun pulled the trigger.
“He… He can…” KyuHyun’s expression became one of surprise. He looked just as surprised as LeeTeuk had been to discover there was someone who could see him completely. “But how is that possible?” When KangIn took a cautious step forward, KyuHyun regained his resolve and straightened the arm holding the gun. “One more step and I shoot!” Leeteuk closed his eyes tightly.
“It’s okay, JungSu,” Whispered a voice in his ear. A warm feeling spread through him, removing him from the pain. LeeTeuk obeyed his eyes, and saw KyuHyun and KangIn still staring at each other, both not daring to move. They couldn’t hear the voice. It was in LeeTeuk’s mind alone.
“I’ve got you.”
“JaeJoong?”
KangIn’s attention was distracted from the crazy boy with the gun to LeeTeuk when suddenly the white aura increased tenfold. He thought he saw the pattern of wings inside the white. Even KyuHyun flinched, free hand raising to shield his eyes.
And right in front of him, LeeTeuk disappeared.
*****
DongHae slowed suddenly. Something felt off. Looking around, he could see nothing wrong, but some sixth sense he didn’t know he had was screaming at him to… He wasn’t sure what it wanted. Just that something was weird. Something had changed. Were ghosts supposed to feel this way when the person they loved found out they were a ghost? Where was LeeTeuk with his million-and-one answers when he needed him?
… Come to think of it… Where was LeeTeuk?
DongHae didn’t have any more time to ponder. Warm fingers closed around his wrist, making the ghost jump and turn around quickly, only to look into serious brown eyes. Crap. He’d delayed too long. KiBum had caught up.
“Let go,” He said shakily, trying to pull his arm out of KiBum’s grip. But the other had a good hold on him. DongHae bit his lower lip, too scared to look up.
KiBum was looking at the hand he had firmly around the older boys wrist. “How is it that you’re dead… I saw you in the coffin! But you’re right here, and I’m able to touch you, so you’re not a hallucination… And KangIn saw you too. But how is this possible?”
DongHae gulped and looked up slowly. KiBum looked up at him as well, eyes hardening. “I want answers,” He said, a harsh tone in his voice. “Now.”
But how could he answer? How was he supposed to tell KiBum that he was a ghost? That the only reason he was here was because he’d been too much of a coward while alive to tell KiBum how much he loved him? That for some unknown reason, all of KiBums family could see him as if he was real? How does he explain something that he himself barely understands?
“People are staring,” He said softly. The few people out on the streets were casting KiBum weird looks, avoiding him like he was crazy. “KiBummie, only you can see me. You look like you’re talking to thin air.”
KiBum remembered the librarian that day he’d talked to DongHae in the library. How she’d stared at him long after he turned his back. But he couldn’t let go of DongHae now, or he might run off again. “Let’s go somewhere else,” He muttered, turning and walking down the street with DongHae dragged along behind him. DongHae was spooked enough to not complain, eyes wide as he followed along obediently.
They turned into a smaller side alley, completely abandoned. Kibum stopped suddenly, and DongHae bumped into his back. Turning to the other, KiBum asked outside.
“Are you a ghost?”
DongHae bit his lower lip again, then slowly, hesitantly nodded. KiBum stared at him.
“And you died on Sunday.”
“Yeah…”
“Then why are you here? I mean… Isn’t there heaven or something?”
DongHae shifted anxiously. “Well… About that…” Deciding to just tell him, he opened his mouth. But words wouldn’t come out. His voice suddenly stopped working. Swallowing, he tried again. Nothing. Why couldn’t he speak? Was it a rule he couldn’t tell KiBum that he needed him to love him?
Of course LeeTeuk would forget something so important.
Altering his words, he tried again, relieved when his voice returned. “I just… Have something I need to do before I go. I’ll be here until Saturday at midnight.” By then, he’d be leaving Earth for good. One way or another.
“So… Why have you been following me?” KiBum was catching on quickly, but that part still eluded him. He couldn’t believe he was talking to a ghost. Ghosts weren’t supposed to exist!
“It’s… I just never talked to you while I was alive, and I want to be with you before I say goodbye…” DongHae blurted out. “Because I’m in love with you.”
There were those words again. He’d stayed up all night thinking about them. He wasn’t gay. He should be disgusted by the fact he was confessed to by another guy. But he couldn’t bring himself to feel hate or anything negative when he looked at DongHae’s hopeful face, eyes innocent and gentle.
“DongHae… I’m a guy.”
“Yes.”
“And you’re guy too.”
“Unless I’m missing out on something very important, yes.”
“DongHae,” KiBum tried again. “I’m not gay.”
“…” DongHae’s face fell, and KiBum felt like he’d just kicked a puppy. “… Oh.”
What was he supposed to say? ‘I’m sorry’? KiBum instantly felt horrible. The poor guy had died, and he couldn’t even pretend to feel the same way until Saturday? It wouldn’t have killed him, would it? He wasn’t homophobic. He didn’t have a problem with homosexuals, unless of course they were trying to persuade him to like guys as well. But couldn’t he have just pretended, for DongHae’s sake?
He didn’t notice he had let go of DongHae’s wrist until the ghost took a step back. He couldn’t just leave it like this. KiBum had a horrible guilty conscience. “DongHae,” He started again. “I may not like you that way, but… Could we still be friends?”
DongHae looked up at him, eyes watery. “Are… Are you sure?” He whispered.
KiBum nodded, still thinking. “Um… Thursday, after school. There’s supposed to be a festival in town this week.” YeSung had mentioned it at one point. “Do you want to go?”
DongHae’s eyes lit up like he had seen Christmas for the first time. “Really? You’re not busy, or studying, or... It’s not inconvenient?”
True, KiBum usually studied all the time, declining invitations from his friends to hang out with them. Like YeSung’s last request for one. “YeSung asked me to go with him and a bunch of people a few days ago, but I didn’t see much point in it… I think I might actually like it though, if you were there too,”
DongHae jumped up and down. “Hyukkie and me were supposed to go this week too…” He started, trailing off as he thought. “KiBummie… Could you convince Hyukkie to come along too?” He asked softly. “He looks so sad and depressed all the time now… I want him to have fun again.”
KiBum thought about the boy who had spoke the final words at DongHae’s funeral, with tears staining his cheeks. “I’ll try,” He said in reply, nodded. DongHae smiled brightly and jumped forward, wrapping his arms around KiBum. “Thank you!” He said happily, hugging him tightly. KiBum blinked in surprise, then his gaze softened slightly and he wrapped his arms around DongHae as well.
DongHae wanted to just stay there, because he felt safe in KiBum’s arms, like he wasn’t dead, like all this wasn’t happening to him, to them. But he knew he couldn’t. So he slowly pulled away, still smiling, though now it was more of a sad smile. KiBum didn’t like him that way. It hurt, like he knew it would. But he wasn’t going to give up. He still had the rest of the week.
*****
“You bastard! What did you do to him???” KangIn was furious. Completely forgetting about the gun, he crossed the distance between them and seized KyuHyun by the collar, nearly lifting him off the ground. KyuHyun snapped out of the startled daze he had been in when the ghost had disappeared in front of him without him even pulling the trigger. He’d gotten away. But how? No ghosts he had known had been able to run, let alone disappear, once he’d struck them with the spiral dart.
He didn’t want to use his gun on a human though. Besides the fact he wasn’t even sure if the bullet would work on a physical body, he had vowed to help mankind, not harm it. Help, by destroying the unseen menaces that threatened them. Like the poltergeist who had killed his best friend…
He was pulled back out of his thoughts by a punch to the jaw. Falling to the ground, he coughed and brushed one hand across his face, feeling blood where his lip had been split. Looking up at KangIn, he frowned. This human could see the ghost… Not just an outline, but see him fully. And he’d known his name…
“I didn’t do anything,” He replied, sitting up carefully. His jaw throbbed where he’d been punched, and frankly he was surprised it hadn’t been dislocated. “He disappeared.”
“How could he just disappear? You did something to him!”
He hated explaining things to others, but this idiot had to know just what the ghost was, or KyuHyun wasn’t going to get away without a few broken bones. He was more than a match for a ghost, and knew how to defend himself well, but this KangIn guy had a much greater strength than him. “He wasn’t human, you know. LeeTeuk, did you call him? He’s a ghost. A poltergeist.”
KangIn frowned, not understanding. “But I can see him. You can see him. KiBum can see him.” After all, KiBum had let LeeTeuk into their house the other day, along with the shorter male, DongHae.
“KiBum?” KiBum could see ghosts? So then when he ran out of the funeral house… Had it been after another ghost? That was an interesting discovery. Two ghosts. That explained why this spirit felt different from the one he had sensed in the classroom a few days ago.
“It doesn’t matter. Some people can see them, those that are born with the gift. They’re dead. And they’re dangers to us all.”
“LeeTeuk? A danger?” KangIn looked torn between laughing and shouting again. “He hardly fits the personality of a dangerous spirit.”
“They don’t at first. But ghosts are pure energy, and if they stay on Earth for too long, their increased emotions turn them into monsters. It’s estimated they have about a week from the time of death before they lose themselves. Then, they are little better than monsters.” He held up his gun, turning the safety back on. “It’s my job to exorcise them, so there’s no chance of that happening. If I don’t, people die.” Like he died. It was his entire fault…
Never again. Never again was he going to hesitate and invite death to touch those he cared about.
At least KangIn didn’t look ready to kill him anymore. He had given him a lot to think about, and hearing LeeTeuk hadn’t been hurt seemed to calm him. Though both of them wondered where the ghost had gone.
“Kyunnie!” KyuHyun jumped and hid his gun in his pocket. SungMin ran up to him, waving a hello to KangIn. “Where did you run off to?”
“…”
“Anyways, YeSung invited me to come with him to the festival in town tomorrow. Do you want to come?”
He considered it. “Might as well.”
SungMin smiled happily. Then he turned around to EunHyuk and the others behind them. “Hyukkie, why don’t you come too?”
EunHyuk smiled sadly and shook his head. “I think I’ll pass this time.”
“Hyukkie…”
EunHyuk shook his head again. “I’ll see you all at school tomorrow.” He turned and walked off, looking so lonely and lost despite his reassuring words at the funeral. SungMin watched him sadly.
KyuHyun placed his hand on the bunny boy’s shoulder. “Don’t worry, hyung. He’ll come around eventually.”
SungMin smiled shakily up at him, lifting his hand to place it gently on top of KyuHyun’s, squeezing his fingers lightly. The ghost hunter couldn’t help but smile gently in return, feeling SungMin’s warm hand on his own.
Never again.
Chapter: 7/?
Pairings: KiHae (Main), KyuMin, YeWook, KangTeuk
Rating: PG-16
Warning: Character Death
Summary: The one thing Lee DongHae hadn't expected to happen that Sunday morning was to die. But that is exactly what happened, and now because of a 'lingering regret', he can't pass on fully. What regret is this? A long-suffering crush on a boy who didn't even know he existed; Kim KiBum. So he is given one week on earth as a ghost to fulfill this regret... Or heaven might not even be an option for him anymore. But with KiBum the only one who can see him, and an experienced ghost hunter on his tail, can he even make the deadline?
A/N: Next chapter is up! I don't know, I think this one failed... X.X; I'm tired...
Trailer || Chapter One || Chapter Two || Chapter Three || Chapter Four || Chapter Five || Chapter Six
Chapter Seven:
LeeTeuk watched, startled as DongHae suddenly bolted for the door. “Hae!” He called after him, breaking their decision to remain silent during the ceremony to avoid notice. The ghost didn’t stop, and soon vanished from sight. Had the pressure of being at his own funeral finally become too much? The spirit guide knew he shouldn’t have agreed to bring DongHae here… He should have invented some nonsense about not being too close to the body or something to keep him away…
Turning to see what had caused him to run like that, he saw someone walk briskly after DongHae, and break into a run when he was out of the room. Was that KiBum? What the hell was going on?
This wasn’t fair. He’d been a spirit guide for centuries! He knew the rules inside and out. Why was this all happening suddenly? Maybe it was time to retire.
Looking back at the funeral, he stiffened. KiBum wasn’t the only one who had taken notice. DongHae’s movement, KiBum’s sudden exit and LeeTeuks own shout of surprise had caught the attention of another. And from across the room, LeeTeuk met KyuHyun’s eyes, the human not gazing around in confusion, or trying to listen to something he could only half-hear. Looking straight at him. LeeTeuk had given himself away.
LeeTeuk drew in a shuddering breath. He had no idea what happened to a spirit guide caught by ghost hunters. It had never happened before. But the way KyuHyun met his gaze, eyes that had appeared warm while interacting with the other humans suddenly ice cold, sent shivers down his spine. For the first time in his long existence, LeeTeuk felt fear.
Doing the first thing that came to mind, he stepped backwards and through the wall, breaking that gaze. Once outside, he turned and started to run.
Piercing pain tore his leg, and he fell with a gasp. The fall didn’t hurt, but the pain continued to radiate from his leg, spreading upwards. Looking down, he said something had torn through his jeans and lodged itself in his skin, blood slowly trickling down. Pain. He wasn’t alive… He shouldn’t be feeling such pain. Taking a closer look, he saw a small spiral dart. But… But it shouldn’t have hit him! It should have gone right through him. Or, hit the wall he’d just gone through. It wasn’t a normal dart. It was a ghost hunter tool. They’d gotten upgrades.
Trying to get up, he found he couldn’t move. A strange, numb feeling was spreading after the pain, messing with his nerves. He couldn’t budge an inch. Only his head was free to move.
“You thought you could get away from me?” Came a soft voice behind him. LeeTeuk managed to turn around enough to see KyuHyun standing not even a meter from him. LeeTeuk knew the human wouldn’t be able to see him completely, just an outline at most, but that was all he needed. LeeTeuk couldn’t go anywhere.
“Your tyranny ends here.” He had a gun. A small handgun, clutched tightly in one hand. LeeTeuk could hear the faint click as the safety was released. Ordinarily he wouldn’t be worried. But he had a dark, dark feeling that any bullet from this gun wouldn’t just go through him harmlessly. He found himself looking down the barrel.
“I’ll make every last one of you pay,” KyuHyun said, eyes like ice and voice emotionless. “You’ll pay for my friends death.”
“LeeTeuk?” Called a voice behind him. LeeTeuk turned around again, and met KangIn’s startled eyes. The big man had frozen mid-step, eyes going from LeeTeuk on the ground with one hand over his bloody leg, to KyuHyun with his finger on the trigger. Almond-shaped eyes narrowed further. “What the hell is going on?” He growled, not daring move in case KyuHyun pulled the trigger.
“He… He can…” KyuHyun’s expression became one of surprise. He looked just as surprised as LeeTeuk had been to discover there was someone who could see him completely. “But how is that possible?” When KangIn took a cautious step forward, KyuHyun regained his resolve and straightened the arm holding the gun. “One more step and I shoot!” Leeteuk closed his eyes tightly.
“It’s okay, JungSu,” Whispered a voice in his ear. A warm feeling spread through him, removing him from the pain. LeeTeuk obeyed his eyes, and saw KyuHyun and KangIn still staring at each other, both not daring to move. They couldn’t hear the voice. It was in LeeTeuk’s mind alone.
“I’ve got you.”
“JaeJoong?”
KangIn’s attention was distracted from the crazy boy with the gun to LeeTeuk when suddenly the white aura increased tenfold. He thought he saw the pattern of wings inside the white. Even KyuHyun flinched, free hand raising to shield his eyes.
And right in front of him, LeeTeuk disappeared.
*****
DongHae slowed suddenly. Something felt off. Looking around, he could see nothing wrong, but some sixth sense he didn’t know he had was screaming at him to… He wasn’t sure what it wanted. Just that something was weird. Something had changed. Were ghosts supposed to feel this way when the person they loved found out they were a ghost? Where was LeeTeuk with his million-and-one answers when he needed him?
… Come to think of it… Where was LeeTeuk?
DongHae didn’t have any more time to ponder. Warm fingers closed around his wrist, making the ghost jump and turn around quickly, only to look into serious brown eyes. Crap. He’d delayed too long. KiBum had caught up.
“Let go,” He said shakily, trying to pull his arm out of KiBum’s grip. But the other had a good hold on him. DongHae bit his lower lip, too scared to look up.
KiBum was looking at the hand he had firmly around the older boys wrist. “How is it that you’re dead… I saw you in the coffin! But you’re right here, and I’m able to touch you, so you’re not a hallucination… And KangIn saw you too. But how is this possible?”
DongHae gulped and looked up slowly. KiBum looked up at him as well, eyes hardening. “I want answers,” He said, a harsh tone in his voice. “Now.”
But how could he answer? How was he supposed to tell KiBum that he was a ghost? That the only reason he was here was because he’d been too much of a coward while alive to tell KiBum how much he loved him? That for some unknown reason, all of KiBums family could see him as if he was real? How does he explain something that he himself barely understands?
“People are staring,” He said softly. The few people out on the streets were casting KiBum weird looks, avoiding him like he was crazy. “KiBummie, only you can see me. You look like you’re talking to thin air.”
KiBum remembered the librarian that day he’d talked to DongHae in the library. How she’d stared at him long after he turned his back. But he couldn’t let go of DongHae now, or he might run off again. “Let’s go somewhere else,” He muttered, turning and walking down the street with DongHae dragged along behind him. DongHae was spooked enough to not complain, eyes wide as he followed along obediently.
They turned into a smaller side alley, completely abandoned. Kibum stopped suddenly, and DongHae bumped into his back. Turning to the other, KiBum asked outside.
“Are you a ghost?”
DongHae bit his lower lip again, then slowly, hesitantly nodded. KiBum stared at him.
“And you died on Sunday.”
“Yeah…”
“Then why are you here? I mean… Isn’t there heaven or something?”
DongHae shifted anxiously. “Well… About that…” Deciding to just tell him, he opened his mouth. But words wouldn’t come out. His voice suddenly stopped working. Swallowing, he tried again. Nothing. Why couldn’t he speak? Was it a rule he couldn’t tell KiBum that he needed him to love him?
Of course LeeTeuk would forget something so important.
Altering his words, he tried again, relieved when his voice returned. “I just… Have something I need to do before I go. I’ll be here until Saturday at midnight.” By then, he’d be leaving Earth for good. One way or another.
“So… Why have you been following me?” KiBum was catching on quickly, but that part still eluded him. He couldn’t believe he was talking to a ghost. Ghosts weren’t supposed to exist!
“It’s… I just never talked to you while I was alive, and I want to be with you before I say goodbye…” DongHae blurted out. “Because I’m in love with you.”
There were those words again. He’d stayed up all night thinking about them. He wasn’t gay. He should be disgusted by the fact he was confessed to by another guy. But he couldn’t bring himself to feel hate or anything negative when he looked at DongHae’s hopeful face, eyes innocent and gentle.
“DongHae… I’m a guy.”
“Yes.”
“And you’re guy too.”
“Unless I’m missing out on something very important, yes.”
“DongHae,” KiBum tried again. “I’m not gay.”
“…” DongHae’s face fell, and KiBum felt like he’d just kicked a puppy. “… Oh.”
What was he supposed to say? ‘I’m sorry’? KiBum instantly felt horrible. The poor guy had died, and he couldn’t even pretend to feel the same way until Saturday? It wouldn’t have killed him, would it? He wasn’t homophobic. He didn’t have a problem with homosexuals, unless of course they were trying to persuade him to like guys as well. But couldn’t he have just pretended, for DongHae’s sake?
He didn’t notice he had let go of DongHae’s wrist until the ghost took a step back. He couldn’t just leave it like this. KiBum had a horrible guilty conscience. “DongHae,” He started again. “I may not like you that way, but… Could we still be friends?”
DongHae looked up at him, eyes watery. “Are… Are you sure?” He whispered.
KiBum nodded, still thinking. “Um… Thursday, after school. There’s supposed to be a festival in town this week.” YeSung had mentioned it at one point. “Do you want to go?”
DongHae’s eyes lit up like he had seen Christmas for the first time. “Really? You’re not busy, or studying, or... It’s not inconvenient?”
True, KiBum usually studied all the time, declining invitations from his friends to hang out with them. Like YeSung’s last request for one. “YeSung asked me to go with him and a bunch of people a few days ago, but I didn’t see much point in it… I think I might actually like it though, if you were there too,”
DongHae jumped up and down. “Hyukkie and me were supposed to go this week too…” He started, trailing off as he thought. “KiBummie… Could you convince Hyukkie to come along too?” He asked softly. “He looks so sad and depressed all the time now… I want him to have fun again.”
KiBum thought about the boy who had spoke the final words at DongHae’s funeral, with tears staining his cheeks. “I’ll try,” He said in reply, nodded. DongHae smiled brightly and jumped forward, wrapping his arms around KiBum. “Thank you!” He said happily, hugging him tightly. KiBum blinked in surprise, then his gaze softened slightly and he wrapped his arms around DongHae as well.
DongHae wanted to just stay there, because he felt safe in KiBum’s arms, like he wasn’t dead, like all this wasn’t happening to him, to them. But he knew he couldn’t. So he slowly pulled away, still smiling, though now it was more of a sad smile. KiBum didn’t like him that way. It hurt, like he knew it would. But he wasn’t going to give up. He still had the rest of the week.
*****
“You bastard! What did you do to him???” KangIn was furious. Completely forgetting about the gun, he crossed the distance between them and seized KyuHyun by the collar, nearly lifting him off the ground. KyuHyun snapped out of the startled daze he had been in when the ghost had disappeared in front of him without him even pulling the trigger. He’d gotten away. But how? No ghosts he had known had been able to run, let alone disappear, once he’d struck them with the spiral dart.
He didn’t want to use his gun on a human though. Besides the fact he wasn’t even sure if the bullet would work on a physical body, he had vowed to help mankind, not harm it. Help, by destroying the unseen menaces that threatened them. Like the poltergeist who had killed his best friend…
He was pulled back out of his thoughts by a punch to the jaw. Falling to the ground, he coughed and brushed one hand across his face, feeling blood where his lip had been split. Looking up at KangIn, he frowned. This human could see the ghost… Not just an outline, but see him fully. And he’d known his name…
“I didn’t do anything,” He replied, sitting up carefully. His jaw throbbed where he’d been punched, and frankly he was surprised it hadn’t been dislocated. “He disappeared.”
“How could he just disappear? You did something to him!”
He hated explaining things to others, but this idiot had to know just what the ghost was, or KyuHyun wasn’t going to get away without a few broken bones. He was more than a match for a ghost, and knew how to defend himself well, but this KangIn guy had a much greater strength than him. “He wasn’t human, you know. LeeTeuk, did you call him? He’s a ghost. A poltergeist.”
KangIn frowned, not understanding. “But I can see him. You can see him. KiBum can see him.” After all, KiBum had let LeeTeuk into their house the other day, along with the shorter male, DongHae.
“KiBum?” KiBum could see ghosts? So then when he ran out of the funeral house… Had it been after another ghost? That was an interesting discovery. Two ghosts. That explained why this spirit felt different from the one he had sensed in the classroom a few days ago.
“It doesn’t matter. Some people can see them, those that are born with the gift. They’re dead. And they’re dangers to us all.”
“LeeTeuk? A danger?” KangIn looked torn between laughing and shouting again. “He hardly fits the personality of a dangerous spirit.”
“They don’t at first. But ghosts are pure energy, and if they stay on Earth for too long, their increased emotions turn them into monsters. It’s estimated they have about a week from the time of death before they lose themselves. Then, they are little better than monsters.” He held up his gun, turning the safety back on. “It’s my job to exorcise them, so there’s no chance of that happening. If I don’t, people die.” Like he died. It was his entire fault…
Never again. Never again was he going to hesitate and invite death to touch those he cared about.
At least KangIn didn’t look ready to kill him anymore. He had given him a lot to think about, and hearing LeeTeuk hadn’t been hurt seemed to calm him. Though both of them wondered where the ghost had gone.
“Kyunnie!” KyuHyun jumped and hid his gun in his pocket. SungMin ran up to him, waving a hello to KangIn. “Where did you run off to?”
“…”
“Anyways, YeSung invited me to come with him to the festival in town tomorrow. Do you want to come?”
He considered it. “Might as well.”
SungMin smiled happily. Then he turned around to EunHyuk and the others behind them. “Hyukkie, why don’t you come too?”
EunHyuk smiled sadly and shook his head. “I think I’ll pass this time.”
“Hyukkie…”
EunHyuk shook his head again. “I’ll see you all at school tomorrow.” He turned and walked off, looking so lonely and lost despite his reassuring words at the funeral. SungMin watched him sadly.
KyuHyun placed his hand on the bunny boy’s shoulder. “Don’t worry, hyung. He’ll come around eventually.”
SungMin smiled shakily up at him, lifting his hand to place it gently on top of KyuHyun’s, squeezing his fingers lightly. The ghost hunter couldn’t help but smile gently in return, feeling SungMin’s warm hand on his own.
Never again.