Are You There - Chapter 42: Chapter 42

Waking early on a Monday is Jooheon's typical routine as he works most weekday mornings. Today however, he wakes before his alarm with a natural strike through his chest. It leaves him shaken as he tumbles from beneath his sheets, his head foggy and his stomach sore. The order given to him last night is at the forefront of his mind now, a drive that urges him to return to the antiques shop he left in the afternoon. He is quick to find his strewn clothes about the floor, redressing in what he wore the day before. His movements are purely mechanical, his thoughts having little effect on what he does or how he does it.
He does not even notice Kihyun and Changkyun seated together at the kitchen island, though he has to turn himself to the side to squeeze past them from the hall. His eyes do not register that the pair are near. Kihyun watches the mortal with wide eyes, gripping a mug steaming hot enough to force his cheeks into a blush. The incubus glances Changkyun's way when the vampire straightens in his seat, wondering just what the younger will do.
"Jooheon, eat something."
Kihyun bristles at the simple thought, something he could have very easily commanded of his roommate. Nudging Changkyun, careful to keep his sleeve low over his fingers, Kihyun draws the darker man's attention. "You didn't need to come all the way out here just to tell him to eat."
Rolling his eyes, Changkyun lifts a wide hand to tap the butt of his palm against his own temple. "He's under a vampiric command, nothing you tell him to do will get through. I have to be around to use a glamour." Paused at the apartment door, Jooheon's shoulders are bunched as the differing commands argue against one another.
"I have to go," he informs the pair behind him, to which Changkyun rolls his eyes again.
"You'll go with me. Eat something." Forcing a darker bite into his voice, Changkyun is sure to shove the command into Jooheon's mind. The blonde sighs, as if the decision is impossible to make, before turning on his heel and approaching the pair at the island. He stands on the other side of the men, glancing between them in question.
Kihyun gestures towards the stove behind the blonde. "There's eggs in the skillet. And Changkyun brought over some cinnamon rolls."
Jooheon does not move, his eyes still drifting between the vampire and the incubus. He has not spoken to anybody since leaving the antiques shop yesterday, though he desperately needs to. There are too many things bubbling about his mind that he yearns to get rid of. The existence of vampires, for start.
Kihyun raises his voice, assuming Jooheon hasn't heard him properly. "Eggs. Behind you."
Grumbling under his breath, Changkyun knocks his shoulder into Kihyun's hard enough to knock the smaller man nearly out of his chair. "Idiot, I already told you he'll only listen to me. You're the wrong bloodline."
Kihyun's lips purse together as his eyes narrow, his entire expression pinching tight at Changkyun's words. At a fierce whisper, Kihyun says, "Don't go telling people what I am too. You wanna be stupid, that's on you. Don't out me."
Nodding quietly, Changkyun stands from his chair. "He's a human," Changkyun tells Jooheon nonchalantly, figuring the blonde will not retain the information either way. "Come have some eggs," he adds as he rounds the island and approaches the stove. Grabbing the covered pan from the surface, he opens cupboard after cupboard until he finds the plates. "Sit down," he commands, the blonde quick to move towards Changkyun's vacated seat.
"I have to go," he repeats as he slides himself into the chair, sparing a glance for Kihyun beside him. The incubus slides his untouched mug of coffee towards the blonde, gesturing for him to take it. Jooheon lifts his hand, reaching for it, but his aim falls short and instead he lies his fingers inches from the hot porcelain.
He wants so desperately to drink the coffee, but he has to eat. He has to go.
"Jooheon, drink some coffee." At Changkyun's words, Jooheon is quick to react, much to Kihyun's dismay.
Rolling his eyes, the incubus hops down from the tall island chair. "Are you two playing a game right now or can he seriously not hear me?"
Changkyun shakes the eggs from their warm skillet onto a plate, the scrambled pile unappetizing after months of pretending to peck at breakfast foods for Minhyuk's sake. "He can hear you just fine," the vampire mutters as he turns for the box of cinnamon rolls he picked up on the walk over. "He just can't compute what you're saying. His mind is split basically."
Passing the plate across the island to the blonde, Jooheon smiles appreciatively before lifting the warm pastry to his lips. Kihyun watches in interest, while Changkyun almost gags. Just the thought of tucking into a human meal makes him feel weak, nauseous even. The venom at the back of his throat threatens to rise the longer he watches, so he forces his gaze towards Kihyun.
"He has every normal thought, but none of them matter because Hyungwon gave him a direct order yesterday. Only another vampire's glamour can interfere with that." Changkyun watches as the incubus processes this, his dark hair falling into his eyes as he sighs. "Haven't you been around for centuries? Why don't you know that yet?"
Glancing at Jooheon, Kihyun attempts to keep his cringe to a minimum. Though Changkyun has assured that the blonde will not take in any new information, he trusts the vampire's words very little. He does not want anybody else knowing the truth. Not after how badly Hyunwoo reacted.
"I avoid vampires," is all Kihyun says. When Changkyun fixes him with a questioning look, Kihyun sighs, reclaiming his seat beside Jooheon. "I fell in love with a bad one during my third life," he admits at below even a whisper. He knows Changkyun will be able to hear him, with his enhanced hearing, but Jooheon will not hear a thing.
Changkyun hums to himself, not surprised to hear that the incubus has gotten himself into trouble with one of his own bloodline. After watching the smaller man pine after Jooheon almost blindly, and then practically leech off of Hyunwoo, Changkyun figures anything is possible where Kihyun is involved. "Did they hump and dump you?"
Changkyun does not bother adjusting his volume, finding the idea of the smaller man crying over some heartless vampire almost humorous. Kihyun shakes his head, looking down in shame as Jooheon moves on to his eggs.
"He drained me and left me to die."
Choking on the air he has chosen to take in, Changkyun pushes a gruff apology past his lips quickly, sincerely angry with himself all of a sudden.  Kihyun shrugs, uncomfortable, but willing to admit the things he knows will bring pity upon him. It is his natural need, to be loved and cared for, even in false pretenses. "I was rather important during my second life, and it made me careless when I was reborn. I lived into my forties then, but I didn't look out for myself."
Changkyun shifts his weight in place, clearly uncomfortable with the sudden change in conversation. He was expecting a humorous and albeit tragic heartbreak. He would have shared a frown with Kihyun, perhaps laughed even if it was not too hard a story. It could have been their moment to shift into a casual friendship. More than just withering glares and sarcastic comments at least. But Changkyun cannot play this off into any other direction. The mood has passed, and he is trapped. Anything he says can either make or break how Kihyun views him for the rest of their long eternities.
"A vampire killed me too," he finally pipes up, blinking hard at his own awkward words. "I mean, I kinda got killed twice now or something I-"
Kihyun lifts a hand in annoyance, silencing the vampire with just his glance. "Don't bother trying to relate to me, you suck at it."
Jooheon, finishing his meal, chuckles under his breath.
Turning in his seat, Kihyun stares hard at Jooheon's profile, the blonde's shoulders shaking as he attempts to hide his grin around the last bit of his eggs, his fork tinging against his teeth glaringly loud. "What the hell are you laughing at?" Incredulous, Kihyun turns his glare on the vampire before them, his mouth agape. "Can he fucking hear me-"
"Of course he can you idiot." Changkyun snorts into his hand, hiding the majority of his laughter within his palm. "Jooheon, what're you laughing at?"
Answering when asked, Jooheon lifts his blonde head to reveal his broad grin. "He said you suck. Like a vampire. But also like dicks."
Sputtering in embarrassment, Kihyun hops down from his chair with both hands up in surrender. Changkyun chokes on his spit, not having expected the second answer, but letting out a bellow of a laugh nonetheless. "Both of you, get out as soon as possible." Kihyun points to both men, glaring as best he can around his flush. "I need to find a man before I die, and I can't have the two of you lingering and getting in the way."
Jooheon chuckles to himself once more. Nobody wants to know why this time.
[ x ]
Kihyun walks himself to work today, taking as many detours as he possibly can so he does not accidentally bump into Hyunwoo. The last thing he would like to do today is inconvenience the man, his vow to find a new lover hurting though the darker had not even heard it. He feels as if he is been unfaithful even making the joke, though Hyunwoo surely would not care at this point. The incubus figures he could stroll along the streets stark naked and Hyunwoo would not spare him but a glance. It hurts him more to think about that on top of the rejection he has pitted against himself. So he tries not to think at all.
Arriving at The Fourth Wall, Kihyun is surprised to find that Hyunwoo is not around yet. The incubus had spoken to the store's owner about leaving, and they agreed upon this coming weekend. He would stay for the week, giving him enough time to secure a new job, and then Kihyun would be gone. But without Hyunwoo around, Kihyun does not see much point in even pretending to work.
He knows close to nothing of comic books, or manga. He cannot even recall the last time he held a novel in his hands before Hyunwoo came along, and even that put him to sleep nearly each time he attempted to read through one. He needs something to grasp his attention, and books simply do not. Hyunwoo does however, and Kihyun finds it all but impossible to focus on his paying job without the looming shadow beside him behind the counter.
Asking the shop's owner later on if he knew where his shift mate was brings him more pain than he is expecting. Called in sick, is the reply, though Kihyun's mind runs almost rampant at the plethora of reasons Hyunwoo could have chosen to stay home. He doesn't want to see me, he insists in silence.
His eyes, staring out at the nearly empty store, see nothing. They cannot focus on anything, not while his mind reels over and over again. He does not like thinking that Hyunwoo has stayed home just to avoid him, but the thoughts cannot be helped. Kihyun had done the exact same on his way to the shop, taking odd turns and prolonging his walk so he would not see the darker man, but this is different.
This is so Hyunwoo does not have to endure what he believes is a lie. Kihyun had tried to spare Hyunwoo's feelings so the hulking man would not have to bother with the task. But the older has made the move for himself as well, and now Kihyun is stuck alone. Changkyun will not be in to replace him until the afternoon, whatever his engagements are this morning cannot be broken. Kihyun had called and begged, but Changkyun had cursed and sworn that he could not leave his Master.
So Kihyun remains stuck. Alone. Trapped.
He is nearly asleep behind the counter when his shift finally ends, Changkyun rushing in with the April heat at exactly three in the afternoon. There is a fine sheen of sweat across his brow, but even as he tells Kihyun that he can leave, the damp skin mattes and becomes dry within the few moments.
"Have you talked to Hyunwoo?" Changkyun asks quickly as Kihyun clocks himself out for his shift. He had not heard the vampire follow him into the break room, but the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end when his stench hits Kihyun's nose.
"No, he refuses to talk to me."
Changkyun hums, waiting for Kihyun to turn around before speaking again. "Well he's sitting outside the shop looking dead and scaring customers away. So maybe you should try to force some words out of him before we go bankrupt."
Kihyun's eyes narrow as he takes in the words, close hard as he processes them, and widen as he realizes what the vampire means. "He's- Are you saying he's outside right now?" Kihyun gestures towards the front of the store, incredulous.
Changkyun nods, jutting his chin to follow Kihyun's splayed fingers. "Can't you smell him? He's got the flu, smells like something dead."
Kihyun can smell him. He has had the scent trapped in his nose for nearly an hour now. "So he's really sick?" His mental tirade, falling to his own feet, is long forgotten as the truth in Hyunwoo's truancy comes to light.
Changkyun nods, nodding to the front of the store once again. "Please take him home before he throws up on the pavement. It's hard enough getting blood off the ground out there, and I don't think my Master wants to drag himself out here to scrape vomit up this time."
Kihyun grimaces, nodding despite the thought. "I'll see you tomorrow then." He rounds the vampire, pushing himself through the store with a newfound urgency. He cannot imagine Hyunwoo wants to see him right now, but he will be damned if he lets the mortal suffer alone tonight.
Sure enough, Hyunwoo groans when the incubus appears before him, his dark eyes rolling off to the side to face the street. He will not admit it to anybody who asks, but he has come here to wait for Kihyun. He is not sure why it is so hard to see him in person, especially when the smaller man is the only thing he can see if he should shut his eyes for a breath too long.
"What the hell are you doing sitting on the street?" Kihyun forces his voice into his best scold, his hands on his hips though Hyunwoo cannot see him. The broad man shrugs, sighing to himself when Kihyun stoops down in his peripheral. "Can I take you home?" Hyunwoo wants that. He desperately wants to be cared for. His throat aches, and his body feels terribly sore at every crook. His forehead is damp, and his eyes are bleary, but he does not know why he cannot admit it. Admit that he needs Kihyun. He refuses to admit that he needs a liar.
"I'm sick," he murmurs pitifully. His fatigued mind cannot scrounge up anything else to say. He wants to tell Kihyun to call him a cab. Send him off. But he also wants the smaller man to call them both a cab. Come home with him. Love him again. Hyunwoo wants to apologize. He cannot apologize to a liar.
"Lemme take you home," Kihyun offers again, sighing when Hyunwoo brushes his outstretched hand away. "Hyunwoo, please. You can't sit out here like this. I dunno why you're out here in the first place, but you can't stay here-"
"Fuck it just take me home." Struggling to stand himself up, Hyunwoo tips to the side with a yelp. His body is shaking as he prepares to hit the pavement, ready to take a face full of cement that he surely deserves. He has been such a horrid brat these last few days. He does not deserve even half of Kihyun's caring glances or pitying hums. He wants none of them at this point, not if he cannot have the man attached to them.
He deserves the pain.
Yet it never arrives.
Kihyun grunts with the effort of holding Hyunwoo up from the ground, using as much of his strength as he is willing to reveal in public to stand the man up beside him. "Put your arm around me so people don't think you're dead."
Hyunwoo hums, his head swimming as the familiar scent of Kihyun's shampoo swarms his senses. It is warm and nestling, something spiced that he cannot recall the name of. He loves it. "Can you make me some soup?" His voice is muffled in the crook of Kihyun's neck, his breath warm against the smaller man's pulse point.
"I shouldn't stay," Kihyun mutters gently as he marches their odd pair towards the road. It is easy enough to flag down a taxi, though it is not as simple to gather Hyunwoo's shivering form in his arms and ease him into the backseat. He calls Hyunwoo's address up to the driver, fishing his wallet from his sweatshirt pocket to pay beforehand.
Hyunwoo's frown is apparent in his voice as he speaks over Kihyun. His body is turned away from the incubus, his eyes staring out the taxi's far window, but his words reach the younger anyhow. "If I apologize, will you come back?" Kihyun wants to. He wants to be with Hyunwoo and help him. He wants to care for him, love him, treat him and make everything okay again. But it will not make Hyunwoo believe Kihyun. It will not fix things. Even an apology cannot fix things. Hyunwoo has to realize the truth, and Kihyun cannot force it from the man. Not even when his mind is sick and malleable. Kihyun refuses.
"I'll order you some takeout from that little shop you like down the road from your apartment. They've got your favorite ginger and chicken soup. I'll pay with my card, you just have to open the door when they knock." Kihyun hands the driver the cash he has had waiting all along, a smile aimed at Hyunwoo's profile. "Feel better."
Hyunwoo sighs, but he does not argue. He lets Kihyun close the taxi's back door. He says nothing as the car pulls away from the curb. He does not even turn to look out the back windscreen as they depart.
He pretends the salty tears are just his sinuses reacting to the burn in his nose. He pretends he could never really need a man like Kihyun.