Are You There - Chapter 27: Chapter 27

[ six months later ]
Changkyun wakes late in the morning. After several months of living for both the moon and the sun, the man has come to find that sleep is not to be avoided for eternity. It comes when he is fed and healthy, as it would for any human. His half-blood strengths are also his weaknesses, as Hyungwon has told him. Sleep is for humans, but they unfortunately need around fifteen hours each month to maintain a state of control over their own bodies.
Changkyun usually keeps that scale to one long night a month, or has for the last three at least, and relishes in the catatonic state he resides in for the time. Waking to the warmth of a body beside his is not , however, what he had planned for.
"Minhyuk," Changkyun murmurs, recognizing the telepath's obtrusive stench with his eyes squeezed shut against the daylight. "What're you doing in my bed?"
The now natural toned telepath stirs, running a hand through his dark hair before sitting up. He yawns peering around the room as if confused. "I-" He sighs, running his hand down his face before letting out a demure yawn, his shoulders rolling to release some built up tension there. "Sorry. I had a late night at the hospital... Didn't realize I'd come into yours."
Changkyun sits up as well, rested and revitalized with the blood of a young dancer living a block over. His healthy glow had drawn Changkyun in easily, and the vampire's newly donned ability to glamour had drawn the man in right back. Thorough training with Hyungwon had helped Changkyun learn and adapt, developing his abilities over the last six months under his Master's tutelage.
"I had you move in here so you wouldn't be so tired dragging yourself all the way to Hyungwon's dungeon. And I know you can't stand sleeping at the hospital. But if you're gonna wake me up practically inviting me to claim a quick breakfast-"
Grimacing, Minhyuk interrupts the younger's complaints with a slap to his bare chest. "I didn't come here to be attacked, okay? Cut me some slack, I've been running doubles twice a week for a month already." Running a hand again through his lank hair, Minhyuk looks close to tears. "I'm fucking exhausted."
Changkyun sighs, tossing his covers aside to stand. He cares deeply for the man he has come to know as his older brother, but he cannot put Minhyuk before himself. Not when the consequences could lead to a bloodied and dying telepath on his bed first thing in the morning. Minhyuk rolls his eyes at Changkyun's thoughts, standing himself up as well. He hurries to right the blankets, sneering down at the duvet as he smooths it over the sheets.
"You and I both know you can control your hunger now, so stop giving me that guilt-trip thought cycle every single time I get too close to you."
Changkyun, shocked to find that his ploy has not worked this time around, coughs to lighten the mood. "Right, sorry." He ruffles his still silver-tinted hair, the old jet-black only a distant memory now. In the spring light that shines through his windows, he can see the shine of his rather unnatural undertones clearly. "I'm just on edge I guess. Today's the day."
Minhyuk nods to himself, flattening his hands down the front of his shirt to smooth out wrinkles. "The fact that you know that means you also know you can control your hunger. Now that we're clear on that, I hope you can stop pitying yourself and let me pass out wherever the hell I damn well please." Stalking out of Changkyun's bedroom, Minhyuk fights with his thick hair as it drops into his face yet again. It has become too long to control, and he desperately wants to take a pair of sheers to it and be done with it, but he would hate the result and hate himself more after finding the time to have a hairdresser fix it for him.
"G'morning, Minhyuk!"
Neither men are surprised to hear the fae sat in their shared kitchen, and Minhyuk barely spares Hoseok a glance as he shuffles to the fridge for the pitcher of iced tea he made the day before. "Don't you have your own house? I didn't move here to see you everyday."
Hoseok frowns, his place at the kitchen table suddenly cold. "Well sucks to suck, Hyuk, but I'm not here for you." Hoseok leans back in his chair, relishing in the frown the telepath fixes him with. Over his mug of cold tea, Minhyuk glares straight at the older man, wishing desperately to be able to break those walls and just read him like a book. This time a few months ago, he certainly could have.
"Changkyun isn't meeting Jooheon until tonight, what d'you need him for this early?" They both turn towards the hall leading back to the pair's bedrooms, having heard Changkyun's sudden shout before something hit the floor.
"He fell," Hoseok tells Minhyuk around a smirk, the memory already playing across his mind like his own. The fae and vampire had grown used to their connection over the last six months, and though they use walls most days to avoid fights and stress, neither can build blocks strong enough to last forever.
"Thanks, I couldn't tell," the telepath replies sarcastically. He slams his now empty mug against the counter, his eyes combing Hoseok's face for any signs of an apology, or even an explanation. "Are you not gonna tell me anything?"
Hoseok, though he knows what the younger man wants, plays innocent. "What do you mean?" He does not drop his smirk, eager to agitate the telepath, but his facade will crack soon if Minhyuk continues glaring like that.
"The bite-"
Changkyun enters the room in a rush, a jacket hung over one arm while he frantically searches for the other half of the cloth behind him. His jeans are not done up at the waistband, and his socks do not match one another, but he is ready to go despite it. "Minhyuk wants to know why Hyungwon's got a mark on ya," he blurts out as he finds his lost sleeve and tugs his jacket on. "And so do I, actually."
Hoseok has gotten good at isolating certain memories from Changkyun, and he has hidden this particular one well. Changkyun cannot find any trace of Hyungwon biting Hoseok, or drawing from him. Hoseok is not even a pledge. But he blushes now as if he had signed himself over right under his friend's noses. The fae shrugs, and as he brings his shoulders down again, it is not hard to miss the small bruise along the path of neck to shoulder.
"You fucking idiot." Minhyuk, full of coarse language already, clenches his fists at his sides. "You let him give you a hickey?"
Hoseok lifts his hand to hide the spot at his neck, embarrassed beyond all relief. "Not really. He did that himself. I was offering up a quick bite and he just-"
Minhyuk groans, begging the fae with his hands to just stop already. The telepath had seen enough when he had walked into Hyungwon's antique shop to find the vampire, and found the rather disturbing scene instead. "I imagine your father is going to go absolutely nuts when you show up at his shop today."
Hoseok feels his ears burn as he ducks his head, squirming in his seat. "Coming from a blood-whore, Minhyuk, I'm almost shocked by your reaction."
Changkyun, finding the insult of blood-whore rather painful for him as well, flicks his eyes between Minhyuk and Hoseok nervously. He lets out a shaky laugh, Minhyuk's anger growing each moment that passes in silence. "Hoseok, maybe we should just go-"
"If you're angry that I wouldn't sleep with you last week, you can say as much. But even as a blood-whore, I'm still better off than a drunk that cries for acceptance everywhere he goes." With that, Minhyuk sighs and stomps out of the kitchen. Both men left in the kitchen flinch at the slam of the bathroom door, the shower starting up a moment later.
"I thought you guys were cool," Changkyun whispers, though he knows Minhyuk cannot hear him. "What's up with the insults? You know I don't like that word anymore than he does."
Hoseok sighs, standing up from the table. Both men know that Minhyuk has not been drawn from since Changkyun had accidentally attacked him months ago. They both watched him slip into a depression after his mother's execution, and later grow desperate for the drug of a vampire's bite. But the fact of the current matter is that Hoseok is far closer to that addiction these days than Minhyuk.
"It just slipped out," Hoseok murmurs, hurt by his own use of the slur. It was a disgusting derogatory, worse than calling someone a half-blood to their face, meant to call out those who actively seek out the drawing of their blood by a vampire.
Changkyun, with a hand in his hair, sighs. Coming to terms with being a vampire had been hard, but watching the drama that unfurls within his closest friends is somehow far more difficult to get around. He is confused in this moment, but he moves forward easily enough. He knows if he does not, Hoseok too will stay in dwindling in the moment. "You two were practically humping on my couch three months ago, then you weren't even talking. Now you're begging to sleep with him?" Changkyun cannot keep up, but he nudges Hoseok towards the door anyway. "I expect a lot of explanations on the way."
[ x ]
Kihyun sighs as the late afternoon light drags across his face, waking him easily from his short nap. He had fallen asleep on the sofa, a book beneath his nose and the sound of the shower going in the other room. The apartment is quiet now, and he sighs again before standing from his sunken spot in the couch. Jooheon has a date tonight, and though Kihyun does not care for him in the way that he had for many years of this lifetime, he still worries.
Kihyun finds Jooheon sat in the second bedroom of the apartment, still quite barren though Jooheon moved in months ago. Kihyun knew all about the wipe, and while he had been happy for a week, and had gladly taken Jooheon in when he had only him and Hoseok to go to, now the blonde is a nuisance. Kihyun worries over him more than anything, and it sits deep in his stomach to know that the blonde will be soon dining with a vampire.
Jooheon hears Kihyun's approach and glances up when the smaller man pauses in the doorway. The blonde does not smile, but nods in greeting. The wipe had not erased everything of Jooheon's life over the last few years, but it had canceled out a lot of things Kihyun and he had gone through. Implants were needed over time to fix Jooheon's broken and fragile mind; Kihyun did not want to wake up again to find the blonde eager for dates and sex, as if their breakup had only been a simple fight.
"Are you ready to go out tonight?" Kihyun shuffles his weight from foot to foot, wondering if he should trail the pair to make sure Changkyun does not try anything. Though Kihyun and Changkyun have become good acquaintances over the last few months, through Hyunwoo respectively, neither trust the other with Jooheon.
Kihyun because of his ability to drain others of their energy, Changkyun because of his ability to drain others of their life.
"Hoseok sent me a picture of the guy, he's cute." Jooheon sighs as he stands, having sat and stewed in his nerves long enough. "He's actually really cute. Like, he'll probably laugh if he sees me."
Kihyun shakes his head at Jooheon's words, knowing full and well that Changkyun will be falling over himself to get Jooheon's attention. Changkyun has been asking the incubus for long enough if the blonde is happy, healthy, working, eating well; every question had been asked more than once, and Kihyun knows the dark man will not hesitate to show Jooheon just how important he is tonight. "I'm sure he'll adore you," Kihyun mutters.
Jooheon shifts in place, twiddling his thumbs a bit before glancing down Kihyun's stiff stance nervously. "You're not gonna get angry, are you? That I'm going out with someone? I don't wanna hurt you, but since we've been living together we've obviously lost that last connection-"
Kihyun holds a hand up to silence the blonde, the flash of Hyunwoo's face hot on his mind. "Don't even worry about it. Just don't go having sex in the apartment while I'm here, you know my hearing is sensitive."
"Shouldn't that rule apply to you too?" Jooheon finally lets a smile grace his round features, pointing a thin finger at Kihyun accusingly. "Don't think I don't here you and that giant from your work going at it."
Kihyun flushes, not surprised to know he has been found out. He had given in easily enough to Hyunwoo's prodding, believing that a few lashings would be worthy enough if it meant Kihyun could have the hulking man all to himself. The incubus is almost surprised at how wonderful it feels to love and be loved by another, something he has not been given in his long string of lives until now.
"I'm not apologizing for anything," Kihyun murmurs, turning on his heel. "Especially not when his dick is so huge-"
"Gah!" Jooheon strikes his hands through the air, begging Kihyun to stop before he says something the blonde really does not want to hear. "Just go, I've got to finish getting ready."
Kihyun nods and makes his way to his own room, preparing to leave as well. Hyunwoo is closing the comic shop today, and Kihyun is meant to meet up with him and do whatever the man desires. After the incubus had helped Jooheon into his home, Hyunwoo had become more than a little possessive. Kihyun had had to convince Hyunwoo that Jooheon and Changkyun had gone through a hefty falling out, and if Jooheon ever came around the store, not to bring up the darker man. Kihyun did not want Hoseok to use any implants on the mortal, so he had done his best to keep Hyunwoo free of mind.
It was not hard to win the man over once Jooheon moved in, the darker man eager to claim Kihyun as his own and hide him from any threat at what was his.
"I'm going now!" Jooheon's shout from the front door of the apartment rouses Kihyun from his routine of skin and hair care.
"Be safe!" The incubus calls back, his soft spot for the blonde smaller but still prominent in his life. "Bring a knife!" He is graced with Jooheon's echoing laugh from across the apartment, and then the front door slams and he is alone. "Finally," the incubus murmurs, grabbing for his phone and texting Hoseok hurriedly.
To Hoe 4 Vampz ✨: Hey joo is on his way now. I swear if anything happens I'll skin the vampire alive
From Hoe 4 Vampz ✨: good thing he's already dead then, yeah?
Kihyun rolls his eyes, but smiles at the joke despite himself. His mood has lifted heaps since Hyunwoo wandered into his life, and preparing to meet him now only gets him riled with excitement. Not much can damper his mood. Kihyun jumps as another message rings through the room like a siren, lighting his phone up beside him. He checks the notification and blushes, opening the message to read the full text.
From Big Bear: Left early. I'm outside, just watched Jooheon walk out. Let me in and help me get these jeans off.
[ x ]
Hyungwon sighs, the taste of Hoseok still lingering on his lips more than twenty-four hours later. He had not meant to let his lips linger against the fae's throat, but the intoxicating taste of chocolate and salt had held him against the man's skin like heat to fire. It had been a mistake, and seeing Minhyuk turn on a heel in fright and rush out of the store had hurt him.
Hyungwon has been fighting with his emotions for over a year now. Possible feelings for Minhyuk, and the new draw he has to the fae; both levels of attraction are confusing and piling onto one another like dust on a shelf. He has not acted on either, apart from the mistake yesterday. That was meant to be a quick offer of blood, as Hoseok should do if his Master is hungry, but Hyungwon had screwed it up.
Running a finger over his damp lips, Hyungwon almost blushes. Hoseok had felt so warm against him, and his heart had felt so right beating rapidly between their chests. But that same image of Minhyuk's retreating figure crushes Hyungwon's memory. It had been agony for him months ago to turn over Lee Seonhae, knowing full and well that she would be killed. He would have to live with that guilt forever.
But Minhyuk had forgiven him, because what else could he do for his Master? Hyungwon wished for a long time that he could become drunk like the average human just so he could confess to Minhyuk just how desperately he cared. Sipping from a drunkard is not enough to let his guard down any longer. Now, after months of suffering in silence, Hyungwon has royally wrecked it all.
He had let his inhibitions slip for the moment, and his intense attraction towards Hoseok along with his rather imposing figure had taken over all his senses. He wanted to pin the fae against the shelves of his store and have him then and there. Stripped, warm, slow, delicious. Every fantasy Hyungwon had played out in his mind since meeting Hoseok would have become reality easily enough, if he had not spotted Minhyuk's deep flush as the telepath glanced back before storming off.
Hyungwon's perceptive ears pick up the entrance of his telepath now, thundering floors above him before traipsing down the stairs towards where he rests. The scene reminds him of the day Minhyuk broke his heart, sobbing and begging to help his mother. Hyungwon had not been able to then, and he fears that he cannot help the telepath now.
"Master?" Minhyuk's soft voice is thin in the dark, and when he steps into the densely lived in room, his lips break in a small smile. His dark hair, falling in natural waves over his thin face, darkens his light skin in the room.
The pair had made it a point to decorate the warehouse's main room since the new year had begun, lighting a must, and a few tapestries opening the space and making it far more comfortable. Hyungwon stands from his usual cushion on the floor, his chair against a wall to collect dust.
"Minhyuk-"
"I'm only here for a minute. I just wanted to grab a few books, I've got a shift tonight and can't stay." Minhyuk passes Hyungwon quickly, entering one of the old rooms for the pledges that have long since emptied. Hyungwon had released them all, distraught after Seonhae's execution, and the rooms have since remained empty and cold. He can find blood easily enough anyhow, his Claimed offerings if need be, or the many humans that wander about in the late nights just asking for a bite.
"Minhyuk," Hyungwon calls again, following after the telepath into his mother's old cell of sorts. It was by far the nicest of the small quarters, warm still with her old energy. Minhyuk ignores the vampire as best he can, his eyes on an old shelf stocked well with novels, fae history, and charm books. Though Seonhae had never needed them, she had collected well for her son if he ever chose to delve further into the world of his fae bloodline.
Today is that day. "Master, I'm going to pretend yesterday didn't happen, if you promise to help me with something." Minhyuk steps towards the shelf, peering through the dark to read the spines of each book carefully. "I'm going to create a charm, or try to I guess, and I need your blood."
Hyungwon, with a hand to his chest, swallows hard. "Mine? What the hell for?"
Minhyuk sighs in relief when he finds the book he is looking for, tugging it gingerly from the shelf. It feels fragile, the leather binding old and ragged at the edges. Lifting the frail cover open to read the inscription on the first page, Minhyuk feels himself smile genuinely for the first time since waking today.
Magic of the Dead.
Hyungwon reads over the telepath's shoulder, startled to see the words in plain text before him. "Minhyuk, what exactly are you aiming to do?"
"Talk to my father," the telepath admits without much thought. He pages through the book, searching for the charm he had read about once before. He stops when he has found it almost two minutes later, holding it higher for Hyungwon to read in the dark. "I need your blood," he says softly.
Hyungwon reads but does not understand. The charm is clear, and his blood is in fact necessary, but what good will a chat with a dead man do? "What do you need him for? He's been dead a long time-"
"He knew me before I knew you," Minhyuk spits, almost like a curse. "I want a piece of advice that doesn't have any bias."
"He knew me as well," Hyungwon says softly, reaching out for the book. Minhyuk only closes it and cradles the leather to his chest protectively.
"And he trained me early to be scared of you, whenever the time came for me to serve. And now I'm more than comfortable, as if you were really my own brother. I want that fear back, and he's the only way I'll have it again." Minhyuk can see the hurt cross Hyungwon's face, but he holds his expression and holds his gaze steady. "I need your blood, and if you don't offer it up, I'll take it."'
Hyungwon, in an instance of fear and pain, realizes something far too late. He will do absolutely anything Minhyuk asks. I love you, he thinks, pushing his thoughts onto Minhyuk as best he can.
The telepath is unfazed, the block he pushed between himself and his Master strong enough to force out even the best of Hyungwon's attempts to break through. "Are you going to fight with me?" Minhyuk asks, his stance full of power as he stares hard at the vampire.
Hyungwon only shakes his head, turning on his heel to sit back in his den. "Take whatever you like and fix yourself however you choose. I won't stop you." He sits back onto his cushion, his head low and his eyes shut. "I just hope you're not doing this because you don't know how I feel for you."
"It's because I know that I'm doing this," Minhyuk admits, rushing from his mother's room and past Hyungwon's place on the floor. Minhyuk has seen the inner workings of his Master's mind, and he knows the feelings that rest there. For Hoseok. For Minhyuk. The telepath is at a loss for how to analyze them, so he chooses to ignore them. "I'll come back after work."
Hyungwon listens to the pound of the nurse's feet against the steps, overhead, then on the street. He listens until he can no longer hear the man, and he realizes he is alone. His curse of solitude seems more real now than ever, and the realization hurts like a knife through his chest. The dependence he has placed on Minhyuk is too much for the both of them, and if Minhyuk chooses to break it, perhaps it is for the best. The bond they hold is not one to be held long anyhow. A telepath, with the blood of a fae through him, should never be held so close to a vampire. It will only cause issues later.
And if anyone were to discover just how important Minhyuk is to Hyungwon, it could be dangerous for the both of them. Though Hyungwon is still unsure of how strong his love for the nurse holds, it is a strong enough tie to keep the man close for as long as forever lasts. Hyungwon has never been in love, and he is not sure if this is what it feels like. It's an ache, more than anything.
A pain he feels each time he hurts his telepath. A pain each time his telepath leaves. And each time Hyungwon cannot fix what he has done. "What a devilish mess," he mutters to himself, his mind at a crossroads.
if you cannot understand hyungwon for having a space in his heart for two men, or minhyuk and hoseok doing the same, then exit.